Issue 4

Can we destroy voter apathy? p. 5

Men’s Studies offers counter to history, p. 3 Bars stop unlawfully scanning IDs , p. 4 Meet the winner of our ďŹ ction contest, p. 8 Twitter road trip gives bloggers power, p. 11

•Think you’ve got a scoop? Write it for the Martlet News section this year! •Visit our website at martlet.ca for more information about getting involved. news@martlet.ca

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UVic parking fines reinstated by SCOTT DALY The University of Victoria’s Independent Newspaper

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Contributors Aria Alavi, Amir Arani, Adam Bard, Graham Briggs, Leen Degezelle, Christopher Griffiths, Jess-C Hall, Will Johnson, Kim Magi, Meghan Nay, Jessie Porte, Graham Spencer, Kelly Sugiyama, Kate Rattray, Riley Trottier, Sara Tuppen, Ian Venables, Jennifer Zhou

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UVic has moved to reintroduce fines for those who do not buy valid permits while parked on campus. Starting July 20, UVic again began issuing $25 tickets to those found in violation of the parking rules. The university had suspended its issuing of fines in the wake of a B.C. Supreme Court ruling against UBC’s authority to impose similar fines under the University Act. However, the B.C. Court of Appeal stayed the part of the decision dealing with levying fines until after the appeals process launched by UBC is completed. “Given the most recent decision, we will once again issue parking violation fines,” said Director of Campus Security Peter Zacour. “While UVic was not party to the UBC court action, these court decisions did influence the UVic parking policy.” In the absence of fines, UVic immobilized and towed vehicles after an initial warning ticket had been issued. The university will continue

AHMED MUMENI Don’t skip the parking pass unless you’re prepared for a fine — again.

to immobilize and tow cars that have not paid their fines. Until the issue is resolved in the courts, UVic will hold the money collected from the fines. UVic says that parking fees

are usually used to cover the cost of maintaining parking facilities as well as support alternative transportation initiatives like cycling infrastructure and employee buspass subsidization.

UVSS deficit soars above expectations by SCOTT DALY The UVic Students’ Society (UVSS) deficit for the 2008/09 fiscal year is now expected to be much bigger than anticipated. The UVSS has stated that it will be almost $300,000 in the red for the year, which is well above the $160,000 it was previously predicting. The overall budget for the UVSS is approximately $8.9 million, with most of that coming from its business operations. UVSS Director of Finance Edward Pullman says that the shortfall is due to a loss of revenue, and commends Student Union Building (SUB) business managers who he says have been able to adjust to the weaker demand in order to prevent the deficit from climbing even higher. “There’s been basically no increase in spending,” said Pullman, noting that the actual amount of the deficit

has not been verified and is still fluctuating. “We’ve actually been scaling back so that our businesses are not fully stocked [in an effort] to save money.” The shortfall is being blamed on a combination of this past year’s SUB strike, and underperforming businesses in the SUB. Last year’s strike took away the SUB’s most profitable months of September and October, while several UVSS businesses have continued to lose money. Bean There, Cinecenta, Subtext, the Munchie Bar and Zap! Copy Centre have been flagged as performing most poorly over the past year. Bean There coffee shop, which has traditionally been the most profitable business for the UVSS, saw its revenue plunge with the opening of the Bibliocafé last year — though it did make a profit.

To combat the deficit for the next year, the UVSS will be increasing the capacity of its most profitable businesses, like Been There, which was recently approved for a $280,000 renovation to improve product selection and seating. Subtext will also receive upgrades to accommodate a larger selection of products, like flip flops and sunglasses. The UVSS has also approved nearly $20,000 to upgrade the Cinecenta projector to increase the selection of movies that can be shown at the theatre. Many new movies are no longer being distributed in the 35mm movie reels that the old projector was limited to. The new projector will be able to play films on DVD. “Plans are in place for underperforming businesses to upgrade their capacity. That will translate into stronger revenues in the new school year,” said Pullman.

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Men’s Studies offers new look at old confines The University of Winnipeg’s gender-based course has universities across Canada considering the historic role of men by KATE RATTRAY In the coming year, University of Winnipeg students will be presented with a unique learning opportunity currently offered at only a select few Canadian universities: the ability to study men. The U of W Women’s and Gender Studies Department will offer its first Men’s Studies course during the 2010 Winter Semester, entitled “Boys, Men and Popular Culture: Filmed Genders.” With courses like this popping up all over the country, Men’s Studies could even be in the direct future for UVic. The U of W course, headed by professor Pauline Greenhill, will examine images and theories that shape the representation of boys and men in popular culture. Greenhill’s decision to propose the course stemmed from her department’s growth to “Women’s and Gender Studies” from “Women’s Studies.” After suggesting a parallel course for the department’s “Girls, Women and Popular Culture” class, Greenhill was met with tremendous support from her colleagues in Women’s and Gender Studies and “no dissing whatsoever” from inside the University. U of W Women’s and Gender Studies Department Chair Fiona Green believes that the course will be a valuable addition to the department, particularly after the department’s recent growth. “In the past, the Department of Women’s Studies has offered many courses specifically focusing on women, as it has grown from Women’s Studies into a department now including Gender Studies,” said Green. “[But] addressing the social construction and depiction of masculinity in a specific course provides space and a place to delve further into this important area in understanding gender.” Men’s Studies courses are currently offered at a handful of Canadian universities, such as Queen’s, Concordia and the University of Alberta. “Boys, Men, and Popular Culture” will be the first course of its kind offered in Manitoba. However, despite the appearance of new Men’s Studies courses in Canada, there has often been debate not over whether these courses effec-

JESS-C HALL While courses in Women’s Studies have been mainstream since the 70s, Men’s Studies has only begun to hold precedence in recent years.

tively allow students to understand the theories behind men’s lives and experiences, but whether or not it is a necessary field of study at all. Men’s Studies emerged as a somewhat-organized academic field in the 1970s and 1980s, largely as a response to the growth of the women’s rights movement and the expansion of Women’s Studies. Scholars were eager to examine and evaluate the reality for men that would be created in the wake of the women’s rights movement. As time has worn on, Men’s Studies courses have become engaged with and sympathetic toward feminist politics through their proximity to gender theory. Despite the field’s intimate relationship with other gender studies courses and programs, some argue that many disciplines, such as sociology, history, political science and literature are already dominated by

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masculine theories and texts, and therefore counter all need for the Men’s Studies field. “Though most university courses have historically focused on men and their experiences, highlighting men in terms of gender and as socially constructed and not just ‘given’ is a useful perspective, just as seeing mainstream ‘English’ culture as an ethnicity is a useful perspective,” said Greenhill. That being said, it’s possible that

UVic students could be seeing similar courses in the future. The UVic Women’s Studies department has offered a course entitled “Deconstructing Masculinity” in past years, but has since lost the professor responsible for the course. While there are no current plans to offer a Men’s Studies class, the department may consider the option of incorporating Men’s Studies into the curriculum for future years, provided they have the

necessary faculty resources. UVic Women’s Studies Department Chair, Annalee Lepp, says that although the department has decided to retain the title “Women’s Studies” rather than “Women’s and Gender Studies,” the department is not defined by this title, but what faculty are able to teach and produce. Lepp also notes that the title will have no impact on whether or not UVic students can expect Men’s Studies courses in the future.

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NEWS 3

Bars warned to stop collecting personal info B.C.’s Information and Privacy Commissioner says scanning IDs with surveillance technology is unlawful by GRAHAM BRIGGS Victoria’s bars and nightclubs have stopped scanning IDs and collecting patrons’ personal information using TreoScope’s controversial EnterSafe surveillance technology. The move comes after B.C. Information and Privacy Commissioner David Loukidelis ordered the Vancouver club, Wild Coyote, to stop scanning IDs, stop collecting patrons’ personal information and ensure that any such information in TreoScope’s database is destroyed. TreoScope’s EnterSafe system creates a digital profile of patrons by recording their name, photograph, date of birth and ID serial number. Patrons’ personal information is sent encrypted over the Internet to TreoScope’s database in Vancouver. “[Under B.C.’s Personal Information Protection Act,] Wild Coyote cannot require an individual to consent to the collection, use or disclosure of personal information … through the TreoScope software … as a condition of supplying a product or service,” Loukidelis ruled in his decision. “There was no persuasive evidence presented to me which demonstrated that such a requirement would have any significant effect on customer safety.” Loukidelis’s order is similar to one in 2006 by Alberta’s privacy commissioner, which was upheld by Alberta’s Court of Queen’s Bench. B.C. Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA) Policy Director Micheal Vonn was pleased with Loukidelis’s order. “We have two Canadian privacy commissioners, now, who have found this particular program, that scans the very sensitive information in one’s driver’s license and stores it in a third-party database, to be disproportionate to the purported benefits,” Vonn said. Loukidelis said the benefits have not been significant. “There is no objective evidence that persuasively demonstrates any actual decline in gang-related violence as a result of utilizing the TreoScope system,” Loukidelis said in his order. However, he added that he understands the need to quell gang violence, and wants to work constructively with bar and nightclub owners.

JESS-C HALL Bars won’t be scanning IDs with TreoScope’s surveillance technology anymore, but this doesn’t mean that sneaking in will be any easier.

According to Victoria Bar and Cabaret Association spokesman Scott Gurney, stakeholders are working together on a solution so that all needs, including those of the privacy commissioner’s office, are met. For now, Gurney thinks that concerns about TreoScope are unnecessarily exaggerated. “I think [the situation] has been way overblown, and it’s only because the public’s not educated,” Gurney said. “The ultimate goal is public safety. And that’s what’s really being shrouded right now with this whole privacy concern … There’s no secondary interest here for soliciting information.” According to TreoScope’s website, loyal customers, or big spenders, may be noted as such in a venue’s EnterSafe system. As well, TreoScope EnterSafe clients can purchase reports that deliver insights into the makeup and behaviour of their customers.

“There’s a whole range of different questions that need to be asked about how the technology is going to be applied and used in individual contexts,” said Colin Bennett, a UVic Political Science professor and privacy advocate. “There are enough examples from other systems to know that … rogue employees browse around databases and find out personal information that they have no business knowing.” Victoria Police Department Sgt. Grant Hamilton has downplayed privacy concerns about TreoScope. “You return an item of clothing and they ask for your name, your address, your phone number, right? And you willingly provide that to return the item,” Hamilton said. However, the Personal Information Protection Act explicitly distinguishes collecting personal information to prevent fraudulent refunds from collecting personal

information as a condition of providing a product or service. Hamilton also compared the information bars collect to what people are willing share on the Internet. “[People who go to nightclubs] are all mostly younger people who are on Facebook, and most of those people will have [about] five hundred friends that they tell much more information to than would ever be captured in that [TreoScope] system,” Hamilton said. However, Hamilton did express support for Loukidelis’s ruling. “We are working with the privacy commissioner to make sure we comply with his concerns,” Hamilton said. Hamilton also said that Bar Watch was officially a Victoria Bar and Cabaret Association program. Gurney, however, disagrees. “The Bar Watch program was brought to us and proposed to

University of Victoria Photo ID Centre

us by the Victoria Police department,” said Gurney. “One of the conditions of being in the program was to have the TreoScope technology.” However, Gurney continues to support the use of TreoScope’s EnterSafe. “What I would like to see happen is to have an ID scanning system in place that collects enough information that if someone decides to come in and engage in criminal behaviour, we can track them down, charge them, convict them and be rid of them from the public … if you want to live a private life in anonymity, then go live in the woods,” Gurney said. Vonn, however, disagrees. “The paradigm that has to be attacked here is that we need to keep track of everybody in case somebody makes a wrong move… which completely inverts the presumption of innocence,” he said. “It is simply not enough for the commercial interests who stand to benefit from this, and the police (who generally are all in favour of surveillance that might land in their data coffers) to purport that security and surveillance are synonymous — they are not.”

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Canadians fail their civil duties Results from Stats Canada prove that citizens don’t take voting seriously by RILEY TROTTIER Canada has been regarded as one of the most educated places in the world, one of the best countries to live in and a country that contributes generously to poorer nations all over the globe. But, judging by the latest Stats Canada results, Canadians have begun to neglect their most basic of duties and rights. That is to say, voting. According to Elections Canada, voting numbers took a sharp downward turn in the last election — though the numbers weren’t exactly encouraging in the previous few elections, either. Roughly 60 per cent of registered voters participated in the past three elections (2000, 2004 and 2006), which sounds high, until it’s noted that only a little over half of all Canadians are registered voters. That means that only about 35 per cent of the population voted, giving the federal government power by well under half of all Canadians. How serious is this? “[Voting rates] are definitely a problem” said Denis Pilon, a Political Science professor at UVic. Pilon says that Canadians are not alone in this recent trend. Other industrialized nations around the world are experiencing similar declines in voting numbers. In the 1970s, Canada drew 70 to 80 per cent of its registered voters to the polls. In the 2008 federal election, that number dropped to 58 per cent — a six per cent decline from the previous election, and the largest decline in the past decade. According to Pilon, the problem lies in the younger generations. “[Historically], young people in their 20s have never voted in large numbers,” Pilon said. “But as people came into their 30s, they began to have a better interest and understanding of how voting affected their lives, and so they started turning up to the polls. That’s not happening anymore. What was once a cyclical aversion to voting has become more permanent.” Pilon says this trend is not as obvious in the middle-upper classes, but is very apparent in the working class. “People in the upper classes feel that they are qualified to vote, even if they know very little about the issues. Working class people feel that they are not qualified to vote, so they don’t go to the polls,” said Pilon. Pilon went on to explain that over this last half century, politics had slowly shifted toward TV and away from personal connections. Where parties once went door-todoor in force to try and encourage people to vote for them, they now use commercials, press conferences and media coverage to spread their messages. “The problem with that [technological] change is that TV is harder to recap, it’s not written down, so you can’t go back and

August 13, 2009

confirm what you heard,” said Pilon. “People who rely on the TV for information aren’t learning nearly as much as they would if they could sit down and talk to someone face to face.” Another issue is that most political stories you see in the media are scandals or smears, making people less likely to trust politicians and more likely to develop a general feeling of hostility toward politics. Combine that with the feelings of insecurity or confusion many Canadians have toward politics, and it’s no wonder most don’t vote. “It’s not so much that the product is bad,” Pilon said, referring to the political parties. “It’s just that people don’t even know what the product is.” The only way to get people back to the polls, Pilon says, is to enlighten them and make them feel like they do know enough to vote in elections. The best way to do this: go back to the tried-and-true method of personal contact. Door-to-door canvassing by political parties preaching their message, and by the government encouraging people to register and then vote. It sounds so easy, but will it happen? “If you’d asked me a year ago, I would have told you it wasn’t going to happen and that we’re all going to hell in a hand basket,” said Pilon. “But then Obama came along and won the American election. That changed a lot of things.” U.S. President Barack Obama did have a well-oiled campaign machine that involved a lot of door-to-door canvassing by volunteers. Ironically, a large percentage of the volunteers were students in the 20s — the candidates who historically are the least likely to vote. Pilon says the success Obama had in bringing younger voters to

JESS-C HALL

Going door-to-door to get people’s attention is one way political parties can encourage voters, say the experts.

the polls may change the attitudes of political parties in countries like Canada, and perhaps the necessary mobilization will occur. “But it’s too early to tell yet,” he added. Canadian politicians may be forced to take a long hard look at the U.S.’s historic election in order to learn from it and bring around a much needed change in Canadian attitudes toward voting.

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CIVICS 5

Opinions EDITORIAL

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STUDYING MEN

Men’s Studies: it’s about time A new gender-based course at the University of Winnipeg has people across Canada talking about something we’ve never really been allowed to talk about before: men. That’s right, that socially-normative historically-dictating group that’s so mainstream it’s hardly politically correct to refer to them finally has an entire school of study dedicated to observing this history. But is it deserved? Is it progressive? Is it going to help anything other than a group who has had the traditional trump on society? Heck yes, it is. Women Studies, which began in the 70s and has adapted and flourished with society’s countless changes, has undergone the critique and support of nations worldwide. Yet, the study of men has been looked at as largely superfluous — why should we give more emphasis to a gender that has ritually dominated the globe? For one important reason alone: education. It’s time we woke up and realized the vast benefits that come from teaching a gender about its histories: the good and the bad. How else can we hold any group accountable and assume that people can learn from the past? Just as we expect women to educate themselves enough to make powerful and informed decisions, and understand full well the history their foremothers were forced to battle, we must that same respect and that same responsibility to men. In a time when celebration occurs around women who have become men, men who have become women, the ambiguity of sexuality and the power of the feminine influence, we fail to note the very constraints that men — many of them — are fighting to break free from.

JENNIFER ZHOU GRAPHIC

LETTERS A mythical tale of study

Whether it’s the son who was trained that crying is “for girls,” the husband who is expected to pull in money from a nine-to-five, or the dad who is forced to play baseball with his kids when he’d really rather braid their hair, it’s time we asked ourselves how society continues to force unprogressive attitudes rather than celebrate social change. And when it comes to changing perspectives, it seems like men have as much to deal with amongst themselves as society has surrounding them. Isn’t it education’s job to help? Why should women be the only gender critiqued, examined and prodded in an effort to understand our role in society? We may think this gives attention where attention has been long due, but in a nation that promotes equality, it’s time we did just that. Women’s Studies itself will never be able to cover the entire canon of gender if we continue to ignore the course of men, in an effort to preserve women’s place in the world. Sure, men-only clubs have historically been exclusionist, as have many women’s centres, but it’s time to turn the better cheek. It’s time to push aside those feelings of entitlement for the responsibility of society. UVic’s Women’s Studies department may have little interest in changing the department’s name (as so many other progressive universities have) to Gender Studies. It may be some time before our university witnesses our very own courses in Men’s Studies. There may be no intention for the UVSS Women’s Centre to open it’s doors to become gender neutral, and there may be no talk (heaven forbid) of having a club on campus for just men to celebrate in camaraderie. After all, why would they need it? Even if you ignore the fact that women at UVic exceed the male population, three to one (technically classing men as a minority group on this particular campus), you can’t ignore the notion that fear itself is at play here: fear that celebrating and recognizing men will defeat the progress women here have made so far. Come on, UVic, we can do better than that. Allowing fear to demobilize change has never helped us before, and fearing a slip back into a patriarchal world shouldn’t stop us from promoting equality today. So move over a little, ladies; it’s time to share the classroom with that gender we’re always trying so hard to understand.

Editorial topics are decided on by staff at our editorial meeting in the Martlet office (SUB B011). Editorials are written by one or more staff members and are not necessarily the opinion of all staff members. 6 OPINIONS

Once upon a time, there was a quiet university on an island. It was summer and the students were more interested in enjoying the sunshine and sleeping on the lawn than studying and doing their assignments. The president of the university became very concerned about the lack of academic enthusiasm, so he hired a wizard to make things better. The wizard issued a proclamation (that is to say he sent out an email) that said “Warning: study or you will face consequences.” The students ignored the warning and continued to sprawl and enjoy the sun. The wizard walked around the campus and shouted: “Be studious unless you wish to spend the rest of your days lying about on the grass.” The students laughed at the wizard and continued to bask in the sun. Then, one warm summer day, the wizard walked to the center of campus. He stood by the fountain and declared in an ominous voice “Study or Bunny.” There was a crack and a pop and a poof, and suddenly all the students relaxing on the lawn were transformed into rabbits. Veronika Irvine UVic student

Transformers deserves better I just came across the July 16 review of Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen. I could not believe what I was reading. The Martlet digs into a forced and desperate criticism which attempts to sully the messages of the movie. Relax; it’s a mindless robot action flick that satisfied and thrilled fans. So before you go on a slanted, feeble attempt at nitpicking the subliminal messaging of a summer blockbuster, why don’t you check out how

many people have flocked to it and how true Transformers fans have thoroughly loved it. Nice try, crusaders. Jackson Todd UVic student

UVic lacking for families I feel compelled to write this letter due to issues in UVic’s family housing complex. There have been several thefts since I moved on campus, yet there is a noticeable lack of Campus Security present at family housing save for parking enforcement. In my time here, I have not once witnessed members of Campus Security walking around family housing except to empty parking meters or write tickets. I have insomnia, which has made me privy to much of the comings and goings at night around here, and although security does drive though family housing once in a while at night, it’s at high speed — more akin to a drive-by shooting than to the detection of criminals. The main body of campus gets regular walk throughs by security in an effort to prevent vandalism and other acts of crime. Is my family’s safety less important? I am tired of seeing the money allocated for security being used for parking enforcement — not for students’ security. Security needs to have one clear mandate: the safety and security of the students, not of increasing the purse of the institution. Dave Mac Main UVic student

Letter’s facts not accurate I am writing to correct Edward Pullman’s factual errors in his letter, “Management article out of

line,” July 16. Pullman claims former UVSS General Manager Doug Ausman was “fired and replaced by Ms. Jensen” for “failing to notice” then-Business Manager Vivek Sharma’s “fraudulent activities.” However, in the January 8, 2004 Martlet, Ausman stated, “I was one of the prosecution’s key witnesses. In 2001, I initially identified the details of the two frauds Sharma ultimately pleaded guilty to. At that time, I fully outlined my findings to the UVSS executives and to the finance committee.” Ausman wrote that he was used as an “employee-scapegoat” so the UVSS Board “would not have to bear their portion of the heat as to why they accepted Sharma’s explanations and reports, and why they trusted him as much as I did.” Pullman also claims Jensen was not present during “the [UVSS] board’s deliberations regarding the 2006 election [which] were done in-camera.” But the minutes of the April 25, 2006 Board meeting which reversed the election results did record Jensen’s attendance. David J. A. Foster UVic student

Happy? Sad? Enraged? Tell us: letters@martlet.ca The Martlet has an open letters policy and will endeavour to print every letter received from the university community. Letters must be submitted by e-mail, include your real name and affiliation to UVic, and have “Letter to the editor” in the subject line. Letters must be under 200 words and may be edited.

August 13, 2009

Doesn’t UVic like sex? It’s time for a municipal police merge Racy new course may get the axe due to low enrollment

by ARIA ALAVI

by KELLY SUGIYAMA

Victoria is one the best places on earth, due to its beautiful nature, low-paced lifestyle. Yet the capital of B.C. would be better off if it weren’t for one thing: highly divided municipalities. And this is seen in no greater magnitude than in Victoria’s police force. Saanich, Oak Bay, Victoria and Esquimalt Police are prime examples of where division has occurred among one of the most critical, trustworthy and crucial organization in our city. Yet the goal should not be to separate these forces, but to have one “Police Unit” that isn’t subject to division based on inhabitants and districts. While it may seem daunting to some to envision one big police force, the benefits far outweigh the downfalls. First off, the old system of having different policing units throughout a region has been eliminated in many countries for years. This old form proved that the efficiency of the police system would decrease significantly. For instance, in Ottawa, the city found that tracking criminals, properly enforcing laws and protecting citizens accordingly was a near-impossible task prior to the merge of the police force to one unit. In the old form, if a police officer chased and attempted to arrest someone, as soon as that person crossed any given bridge he or she would automatically become the responsibility of another district, and it was out of order for the officer to complete the mission. This problem not only decreased the efficiency of the force, but also caused many jurisdictional conflicts. Comparing the old and new form of policing in the Ottawa force indicates that the

UVic is finally ready to teach students all about sex — but most of your fellow classmates are having none of it. For the first time this upcoming term, UVic is offering an awardwinning Healthy Sexuality course (HSD 460) taught by Dr. Charlotte Reading. The following is a course description from her lecture at Dalhousie University: “This class is concerned with biological, cultural, ethical, historical, psychological, religious and semantic aspects of human sexuality. Four themes are threaded throughout the class — diversity in gender roles and in sexual attitudes, behaviours and customs; critical thinking; making responsible decisions; sexual health. The class is designed to support positive integration of sexuality into the lives of individuals and to foster the prevention of sexuality-related problems, at all stages of life.” Undergraduates at Dalhousie University scrambled to be one of the lucky 150 that secured a coveted seat and avoided the long waitlist. So why are there only a handful of UVic students enrolled for the course this fall? There are currently no prerequisites to take the course, no restrictions and no waitlist. So what are we waiting for? Why aren’t students jumping at the chance to get in on this action? I highly doubt it’s our students. The problem lies with a lack of advertising for new undergraduate classes at UVic. The UVic Calendar itself fails to include a course de-

scription, labeling the 460 course, “Special Topics in Human Social Development.” It also claims this course is unavailable to students outside of the Human and Social Development department. All the while, uSource says you only need to be an undergraduate to register. How are we supposed to know what’s new at our school if new courses are hidden behind conflicting restrictions and poor promotion? Dr. Reading’s course is just one example of a class that is possibly going unnoticed due to lack of advertising. Many appealing special-interest courses and electives are cancelled every year, such as self-adaptive and self-managing systems in software engineering, contemporary issues in law, summer sessions of general biochemistry, biological oceanography and intermediate field study in environmental studies. Bulletin boards, mass emails and word of mouth within a department may circulate information about a great new course, but what about students outside of the department? UVic needs to post a list of new courses on the main current students’ page so students have access to information about all the up and coming courses. Part of what makes a well-rounded university education is the opportunity to choose electives that give students the opportunities to explore different topics and possibly spark a new research interest. So what’s wrong UVic; don’t you like sex?

LEEN DEGEZELLE

old form was indeed not successful in allowing police officers to “protect and serve” appropriately. Secondly, the old form of municipal division is not helpful for new residents to understand the city. Due to the vast spreads of the different municipalities in Victoria, immigrants can become confused in knowing what force serves their specific location. Yet having one name and one force, Victoria Police, would give newcomers more security, and more information during their residing time in Victoria. Finally, spending taxpayers’ money on policing units in small districts is ultimately not justifiable. Our complicated bureaucracy means that spending money on small policing units not only increases the cost of those units, but also loses efficiency

— the more divided the area, the less you can compile the funds you are given. This results in some police units (mere blocks away from each other) having vastly different policing abilities. Some districts do not necessarily even have to have an actual police station, due to the fact that some bigger districts can provide services to smaller districts. Having one big unit not only creates more jobs, but also helps citizens to deal with one central, uncomplicated organization. While many counter arguments to these points exist, synchronizing our police force would be more beneficial to the city on a whole, and would not only be less bureaucratic, but less costly. It’s time that Victoria’s mayor once again re-considers opening an old file for conjoining our police force.

MELODRAMATIC MUSINGS

What to do when girls will be boys: don’t panic by WILL JOHNSON Have you ever seen a 120-pound girl tackle a bouncer? Picture this: a cute blond with messy dreadlocks smeared across her forehead. She’s dressed for the bar and reeks like booze. She flies through the air at a surly bouncer twice her size. “I’ll kill you,” she yells. With one fluid motion, the bouncer catches the flailing girl in mid-air and dumps her to the ground. He pins her face to the concrete with his knee. “Calm down,” he says. “Calm down.” The girl continues to writhe and kick, eventually twisting into a position where she can clamp her teeth on the poor guy’s knee. “She’s biting me,” the bouncer announces matter-of-factly, a stunned look on his face. “This girl is biting me.” After convincing her friends to drag this girl home, the bouncer shakes his head and walks back into the bar chuckling to himself. “I think I’m in love,” I say to my friend Lisa, as I sit down at our table.

“Why are you so attracted to fucked up girls?” she asks. I honestly don’t know. There’s been a lot written about girls’ attraction to the proverbial bad boy. But what about when the genders are switched? It seems to me like these days more of my girlfriends have become harddrinking, promiscuous versions of the rebel boys of yester-year. Meanwhile it seems like us guys are turning a little, well, female. I remember the media creating a huge fuss when girls overtook boys in elementary school work. These days, an increasing number of women are taking over traditionally-male careers. I have female friends working as accountants, forestfire fighters, doctors and lawyers. And that’s the way it should be. But what about men’s bad habits? More and more, I hear of girlfriends dumping their over-attentive or too-serious boyfriends to maintain their independence and freedom. They drink until they black out, they get into fistfights, they’re scared of settling

down. Girls are picking up all the neuroses and vices of their male counterparts. And babies? Forget it. “I’m never having kids,” three young women repeated to me verbatim over the course of one afternoon. Granted, we were lifeguarding a pool of 13-year-old shit disturbers who couldn’t seem to follow simple rules and seemed intent on torturing us — but still. A friend of mine turned down a marriage proposal the day before she left for an eight-month trip to Australia and Southeast Asia. Her boyfriend, an attentive older dude who was hopelessly in love with her, took her to a chalet in Whistler and sank down to one knee. “Put that away,” she said. Within weeks, she was partying hard and having a beach threesome in Oz. Every week I’d get a Facebook message about some new boy she’d met. The messages usually incorporated phrases like “living it up” and “best sex of my life.” Last summer, I briefly dated a girl who told me she would “never” con-

MARC JUNKER

sider having kids and that she viewed marriage as a humiliating defeat. Though I pretended to be chill and casual, I was the one crying when she disappeared to Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria and a random assortment of other countries.Sometimes I feel like one of those army wives left behind while her husband fights overseas. Most of the women in my life have little or no use for a man.

They have careers, a rockin’ social life, ambitions. Why screw it up? If I ever have a daughter, I’m happy I’ll be introducing her to a world that doesn’t automatically condemn her to a domestic life as some guy’s slave, but gives her an opportunity to live her life however she wants to. Even if that involves getting into street fights with bouncers.

You could be studying in Bamſeld! www.bms.bc.ca Bamſeld Marine Sciences Centre 3 & 6 Week Summer Courses • Upper-level UVic Credit • Hands-on • Field Research • Small Class Sizes August 13, 2009

OPINIONS 7

Martlet Fiction Contest Winner

LAVENDER By Erika Van Winden I can’t move out—not until I tell her what’s happened. I don’t feel like telling her yet, and I want to keep her safe. Having a man around the house deters robbers and I told her this, but she replied: “I could get a dog. It would eat less, too,” but everyone knows once you throw a dog a steak he’ll grind his teeth on it while the thief crams his bags with an old lady’s silverware. I bet God makes sure there is always one less set of silverware than what’s demanded—that way when silverware is pinched it gets bought at the pawnshop. For example, let’s say Mrs. Robinson’s silverware is stolen in February. She goes into the pawnshop and they have nothing. In March, my mom’s silverware gets pinched and when Mrs. Robinson enters the pawnshop she sees it and buys it right away. By the time my mom realizes the police aren’t going to catch the thief she goes to the pawnshop and is told to try again next month. I think God does this to conserve the planet’s resources, or maybe it makes a great show. I had another episode when I walked into my room. I tripped over my slippers and knocked the lamp over onto the hardwood. The bulb didn’t break but glass pieces of the lampshade shimmied colours on the wall like a Bollywood film, you know, the vibrantly dressed Indian actors who sing and dance every time the main actor sees the main actress from a distance. The lamp also hit the TV on its way down but I can replace it with the old one in the storage room. I was watching Braveheart, and Mel Gibson’s blue face turned black and little sparks split the screen into tiny vein-line cracks that creaked and popped as they spread. I should sweep the glass up before I cut myself but the broom is at the top of the stairs and I have the new Incredible Hulk movie downloaded on my laptop; besides, Mom will be home from church soon. It’s probably a good idea that I don’t go to church because I’d ask too many questions. Why did God make glass if it’s so breakable? Or gravity for that matter, I mean, what’s so horrible about floating around all the time? Nothing. So what if we wouldn’t have muscle mass, we wouldn’t need it, or bones—we could all be floating blob-masses, FB-Ms with no need to fear falling down the stairs, or going up them.

FEATURE

On the topic of up the stairs: Mom’s home. Her footsteps bang against the kitchen floor above my bedroom and one of her heels is missing the padding so her steps make different sounds: a whomp, and a bam, whompbamwhompbam. We have a code now that started a month ago. When she needs me upstairs she stomps three times, and sometimes yells, “Jay!” This time the stomping is bambambam. Her back is against the fridge while she waits for the water to boil. The mint in the tea bag smells like there’s lavender in it too. “Cup?” she asks me. I nod. “Good boy. You haven’t eaten much lately—although that could be a good thing.” “Tea isn’t food.” She smiles with the right side of her face, a little smirk, “Always trying to be clever.” She follows the rim of her cup with her finger and then switches to her thumb, “You’ve been spending a lot of time in your room. Is everything—” “—I’m fine,” I force a smile. “How was church?” Mom goes on about the sermon but the kettle is screeching too loud. She takes it off the burner and pours her cup but forgets mine. “He asked about you again today.” “Who?” I ask. “Father Jacob.” She frowns and crosses her arms, “Are you alright?” The lights in the kitchen are so strong that they make the floor cast a green hue on my legs—it’s odd. “You should shave,” she says. “What was the sermon about?” I ask. It’s only dayold stubble. She takes a large sip and winces at its temperature. “Damnation.” “Great.” “Interesting, really.” I saunter to the door and leave my coat on the hanger, “I’m going for a stroll.” My back is to her but I know she hasn’t swallowed her tea. “Mom,” I start, “If you were sick, like truly sick, would you—” “—Well, I’m not. No use thinking ‘bout that.” I nod. Neither of us talks. “Will you remember me in a week?” “What is this?” “In a month, a year? “Jay.”

“Will you?” “Yes, I’ll remember you!” I turn around and bite the inside of my cheek, “Knock-knock.” “Who’s th—” she puts her cup down and rubs her forehead. She shakes her head like she’s shaking off her wrinkles but when she looks at me all her wrinkles return. Last month I was on a long walk home, and it was early but cars were on their way to work and on one road the cars were pulled over for an ambulance, then another. The ambulances stopped not too far away, and behind a row of old red trees a fire shone orange and yellow and a lot of red. I hustled to get there and when I arrived five people were huddled in a tight circle on the lawn wearing pyjamas. I was in my pyjamas too. A guy in a suit stood next to me; his hands were in his pocket and he rocked onto his heels and toes. “Are you a neighbour? Never seen you around,” he said. “Nope,” I replied. There was a long silence and he started to rock again. “Part of the family? A cousin?” The fire was smaller and the colours were more white and orange and less red. “I just thought because of the PJ’s.” I pointed to the family, “They’re not facing the fire. I am.” Some firefighters were kneeling on one knee on the lawn with the hose cradled under their arms, while others were standing and pointing the giant hose at the top windows; the window on the upper corner of the house busted and quick screams and yelps came from everyone who watched. When the fire was out people cheered for the firefighters and gave them slaps on the back when they lumbered to the trucks. Their steps were heavy and laborious like trudging through deep sand but their eyes, man their eyes were so white and alive and they smiled big smiles. I think firefighters do it because afterwards there’s an overwhelming gratification of aliveness. If they extinguish the fire and even the family ferret makes it out alive, and even if a firefighter almost died they feel better than they did before. They know very well that when they drive home the poplars that line the streets or the colour of brick on the Town Hall is more striking and majestic than before. And as they pass the spelt fields,

August 13, 2009

Illustration by M

arc Junker

the dried stalks don’t talk in the wind, they sing. It’s said that the same thing happens to soldiers—that if they’re not dead they’re more aware of their living, breathing existence. I wonder what that’s like. You watch your best buddy get blown to pieces because he took a wizz at the wrong time behind the wrong tree and afterwards you can look at a boulder—a thing that’s never lived—and it looks so alive that you walk up to it, poke it, and expect it to tremble or wobble like jell-o, like flesh. Or hold a letter from home to your ear and expect to hear a heartbeat. What part of the psyche plays with humans like this? This odd paradox that makes our minds go, “Yeah, it’s road kill, but look at the way it’s muzzle resembles a velvet pouch, so soft.” I guess the word could be appreciate. You understand that life isn’t supposed to go by in a blur. Another way to appreciate life is to have an illness—the kind that won’t go away. Terminal. Last month, I woke up to a pain in my lower back. I rolled over and every muscle in my back tingled. The day before I planted a large tree in a clayie area and I filled wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow with clay and pushed them up the driveway and into the rubbish pile. It was hard work and I could barely brush my teeth before bed because my arms were so tired; even holding my fork was difficult because my fingers didn’t want to close. I wasn’t surprised my back hurt, but when the muscles spazzed and I puked bile onto my pillow. I knocked on my mom’s door and told her we had to go to the emergency. I sat in my pyjamas on the emergency room floor because I couldn’t stop moving and writhing and I needed all the space of the floor to do my twists and squirms—at three a.m. the floors are empty. I had a kidney stone. The nurse said I would have a CT scan done, and depending on where it was located she’d either give me painkillers to bring home with me or wish me luck it wouldn’t hurt too much when it passed. The results showed the kidney stone was out of the kidney and on its way to pass; the results also showed a tumour in my stomach. The doctor asked me to stay another two hours for examinations and I told my mom she could go to work because I agreed to let the doctors do extra tests for kidney stone research. On my walk home and invented scenarios and interviews with God. I asked him “Why me?”

August 13, 2009

And He said, “Why not you?” So I retorted, “Why make junk food taste so good if it’s unhealthy?” “Free will. Indications. A bloated belly, growing waist line, head-aches, heart-burn.” I imagined Him looking at me all-knowingly and that’s when I stopped the discussion. If we were still talking I’d let him know that it’s not fair; that it’s in my stomach but I can feel its heaviness in my hands, my neck, my back, when I hold up a glass of water I see it pumping in my blood. Torture. Really. When I was ten, my rabbit died and I held her while my dad dug her grave. It wasn’t too much work because dad shovelled out the roof to the tunnel she dug and lived in. So, yeah, she dug her own grave. I had Bunny for nine years and then she was dead, but a soft breeze moved her fur and pushed the butterscotch brown to reveal the white underneath. When I laid her down no matter how I put her she looked like she was running. The blue veins in my hand popped up against fatty translucent skin and when I moved my fingers thin bones down the back of my hand rose and fell like piano keys. A black plastic bag the size of a large man’s jacket was cornered between the fence and the house. The wind was stronger than earlier and made the bag swirl and climb up the wall a bit then fall and twist itself within itself. There was a thump.pause. thump.pause and I thought, “What the—it…” but I turned my head and my dad was beating the ground to compact the soil in the grave. I stomped my foot, I couldn’t speak. My dad stood hunched over the child-sized mound of dirt with the shovel in mid-air and his eyebrows staring at me like I held a remote control and didn’t realize I pressed pause. His eyebrows said, “Well?” Today it’s not windy, but frosty, the coldness is in the ground, in every blade of grass, it’s in the dog’s breath that stands on the front doorstep while his owner pushes his rump outside. I don’t have to look to know mom is by the dining room window, and she’s probably behind the curtains but if she poured herself another tea the steam would show

on the glass. If she’s not there, she’s waiting at the door. I go around the block and sneak through neighbours’ backyards to get to mine then climb through my bedroom window. The Incredible Hulk is still paused and a TV guide is flopped on my duvet but almost on the ground. The only thing on at this hour is reality shows. Movies are better. On my laptop, Hulk is in the midst of a fight with a guy, I think his name is Blonsky. The paused scene resembles a canvas with thick oil paint that didn’t dry and the artist wiped his hand across, fast at first, slow in the middle and then quick at the end. My hand is hovered over ‘play’ when mom’s heels whompbam down the stairs. She stops in front of my door and turns the knob slowly but it’s locked. She tries again and the door bows in a bit and then her fingers scratch above the door frame but the key is in my pocket. I want to shout, “Yeah?” then hear her stagger backwards and tip-toe up the stairs, but she goes up them anyways. She starts lethargically then hurries near the end. Hulk is still frozen; he looks like he’s in pain. When I press play, Hulk’s huge shoulder muscles relax but then he hunches forward with a chain in his hand. When I press pause, the chain blurs and Hulk’s hair looks like bed-head. Play: his girlfriend pleads and tells him to stop. Pause: Her outstretched arm and her expression lack the fierceness of her yelling. In the background and just above the woman’s hand is something yellow and grey that resembles a faded flower, or a beer can with a yellow label. Play: amongst the commotion and debris, there’s a figure standing in a shadow. Pause: a spark of light shines on his face and I can see swollen bags under his eyes, sweat the size of marbles crystallized on his forehead. The house is silent. I know mom is back in the kitchen, it’s almost supper time but she’s not opening and closing drawers or clanging pots, she’s sweeping the floor — a couple of strokes and then she quits. A chair scrapes on the hardwood — funny how it reverberates like a fart — if I was God I’d do this more often, sprinkle a little humour here and there and everywhere. Like the pop! when you open a jar of pickles, I would replace the pop with a burp. And that sweeping sound? I’d change it the sound of dirt falling through your fingers.

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Arts

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The Hurt Locker opens up a painful reality by IAN VENABLES

PROVIDED Shaan Rahman (left) and Alex Plouffe will perform in one of the UVic-produced Victoria Fringe Festival plays, Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me, an act that discusses the break-down of cultural borders and intolerance.

Fringe Fest offers new twists by SARA TUPPEN WHAT: Victoria’s 23rd Annual Fringe Theatre Festival WHERE: Various Victoria locations WHEN: Aug. 27 to Sept. 6 HOW MUCH: $15 for single tickets, $99 for a pass Whether it’s your brain, heart or smile that has atrophied over the course of this sweltering summer repose, Victoria’s 23rd Annual Fringe Theatre Festival promises to tickle your culture bone back into shape in time for the upcoming fall semester. The Fringe is an internationally celebrated arts festival, with long-standing events in nearly every continent. This year, Victoria acts as the penultimate host on the world circuit. With over 50 productions, both foreign and local, running from Aug. 27 to Sept. 6, hundreds of performances will be provided for every palate. The festival isn’t only an opportunity to see theatre from across the globe, but also a great chance to observe talent from our very own bunny-ridden campus. This year, three productions will showcase individuals in UVic’s theatre programme.

BOYGIRL

any indication of what to expect in BOYGIRL, audiences should prepare to have their hearts warmed by these charming performers. You can catch this production at St. Andrew’s School (1002 Pandora), or for more information visit boygirl2009.com.

Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me Plouffe can also be seen with Liam Volke and Shaan Rahman in MBUH Productions’ Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me, written by internationally-acclaimed playwright, poet and translator Frank Guinness. The play, which received a Tony Award nomination for Best Play in 1993, discusses the break-down of cultural borders and nationalism within a climate of terrorism and intolerance. Directed by UVic’s Darcy Stoop, one dollar from every ticket sold for this production will go to Amnesty International. For a topical play that entertains as is challenges worldviews, seek out this production at St. Andrew’s School.

The Peter ‘n Chris Show! You can’t get much more topical than a play that deals with students trying to cope during a recession.

Starring UVic theatre graduates, Peter Carlone and Chris Wilson, The Peter ‘n Chris Show! With Peter ‘n Chris!! is a loosely autobiographical story of “Peter” and “Chris,” who find themselves with Bachelor degrees and empty pockets when the recession threatens to rob each character of what little dignity he has left. The play encapsulates how graduates are being forced to work jobs they never went to school for, and how each person deals with that differently. Through physical comedy and outrageous characters, Carlone and Wilson take the quarter-life crisis on with an absurdist edge to their humour. Partake in this wildly unpredictable comedy at the Downtown Activity Centre (755 Pandora Avenue). With such acts as these to delight and provoke, it is plain to see the fuel behind the theatre department’s reputation for excellence. Of course, this is a mere sprinkling of the wonders you’ll find at this year’s festival. For more on all acts available at the Fringe Festival, tickets and information can be acquired online at victoriafringe.com or by phone at 250-590-6292.

For some time now Hollywood has attempted to translate the turmoil and confusion of the Iraq conflict to film but, for the most part, has come up well short. The most recent instalment, Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker, not only blows others of its genre out of the desert, but is a sure candidate for best film of the year. Locker is fictional, but is based on Playboy journalist Mark Boal’s experiences while embedded in the dayto-day lives of a bomb squad in Iraq. The story follows three members of an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit, whose jobs require them to respond to calls regarding the discovery of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), or road side bombs, along the streets of Baghdad. Jeffrey Renner plays Staff Sergeant William James, whose responsibility is to strap on the bomb tech suit and disarm the explosives. However, the suit does not guarantee one’s survival as we discover in the harrowing first few minutes. James is a Maverick who approaches each mission like a game of chess, with the bomb maker having already made his move. He sleeps with past detonators under his bed like they were medals of declaration and he breathes adrenaline. James’ counterparts are Sgt. J.T. Sanborn (Anthony Mackie) and Specialist Owen Eldridge (Brian Geraghty). Their job is to provide cover for James as he disarms the bombs, as well as to watch for snipers, advancing insurgents and the like. The three of them depart on one terrifying mission after another. With only a short period left on Sanborn and Eldridge’s tour, they are in no hurry to embrace the impetuous habits of their new leader, who views protocol like a punch line. While most Iraq war films tend to focus on the home front and the

inner struggle within returning soldiers, Locker thrusts us to the front lines and forces us to experience the real dangers of urban warfare. Using several handheld camera’s, Bigelow gives us some sense of how hectic and unpredictable modern combat can be. Yet Bigelow’s confident grasp allows us to never lose track of the action or the protagonists. The result is an incredibly effective documentarytype experience that will resonate long after viewing. The film excels largely in part to how human the central characters are, and to some superb acting. By casting smaller, but talented names, we do not immediately side with the main character; in this case, that’s James. Instead, we are given a glimpse into fictional “real life” Iraq. Consider a more widely distributed war film like Saving Private Ryan: we instantly sympathize with the character Tom Hanks portrays because he is a recognizable face and has been a hero in so many films. Locker does have its share of those faces – Guy Pearce, Ralph Fiennes and David Morse – but they have cameo roles. Maybe, as the opening quote suggests, “war is a drug.” Yet unlike movies like Transformers, The Hurt Locker does not glamorize war. It is agonizingly intense. Suspense is generated not with things jumping in front of the camera or by tinkering with the music, but by the reality of real people in mortal danger. While the film is full of action, we are not made to like the violence. Although The Hurt Locker remains relatively free of political bias, it does ask that we acknowledge the bravery of troops overseas. It is a frighteningly realistic illustration of the chaos of modern warfare and the impact it has on the psyche. This is an important film that is not to be missed.

BOYGIRL, written by Phoenix sweetheart Rielle Braid, examines the struggles and joys of changing relationships throughout the stages of a person’s life by highlighting the awkward, humorous and painful moments that come with all maturities and lifestyles. Directed by UVic graduate Madeleine Wilson, the play is grounded by forces of the university, as Alex Plouffe and Samantha Richard, both students in UVic’s theatre program, will star as “Boy” and “Girl” respectively. If their recent performances with Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre are

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August 13, 2009

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Twitter road trip offers inspiring direction for blogging by KIM MAGI Road trips are a summer staple for many young people, but this year, three UVic students are jazzing up the typical vacation. Fourth-year Commerce students Amir Arani and Sean Crosby, along with fourth-year Health Information Science student Jeevan Grewal are planning a two-and-a-half week trip down the coast to San Diego and back, starting in Vancouver on Aug. 24. What makes their trip different is that they’re promoting it through social-networking and micro-blogging site Twitter. “Basically we are going to hit the cities that we decided on,” said Arani, noting that cities will include Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Anaheim, Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Denver and Salt Lake City. “If a suggestion is on the way, we will do it. This includes food, bars, clubs, hotels, motels, tourist attractions, beaches, national parks; anything that our followers think we should be hitting up on a trip like this, we most definitely will.” Leaving your trip’s fate in the hands of total strangers isn’t standard, but these men aren’t worried. In a way, they’re planning to not plan at all. “Our main goal is not to really restrict ourselves on this trip,” Arani said. “Restricting something like this may take away most of the excitement that could potentially happen. By not really having a timeline, the stories may be more ‘real’ and ‘adventurous’ rather than set-up.” Through Twitter, the men already have suggestions as to where to eat and stay. A friend has already offered to put them up in Los Angeles, but other than that,

they’re looking for suggestions – on the cheap. “The suggestions have been more geared toward low-cost ideas, which we are very grateful for,” Arani said. “We still need a few more, though. Not all cities have been covered … and with the date soon approaching, we are going to need some serious suggestions from our followers.” Some of the suggestion that they’ve received so far are to stay at the Jupiter Hotel in Portland, to visit Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado and to eat hot dogs at Pinks in Los Angeles. Other suggestions for eating on the cheap have included the Costco cafeteria and the American chain restaurant Chili’s. To save money on gas, the group will be driving Arani’s Volkswagen Jetta TDI. “The TDI is very crucial, as it goes 1,000 kilometres on a tank of fuel due to the diesel engine,” Arani said. Driving through the cities will be left up to Arani, but the other two will take turns on the long stretches of highway. “I actually refer to [Crosby] as Map Man because he knows his way around every city,” Grewal said. “Anytime I’m lost and need directions, no matter what city I’m in, I’ll just call him and he’ll tell me where to go.” The friends, who will be back just in time for when classes restart at UVic, planned out the cities to visit using MapQuest. “If we’re going [all the way down to San Diego and back], [we] might as well hit a couple of cities that would not be visited on a regular basis unless you were going there for business,” Arani

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August 13, 2009

AMIR ARANI

Amir Arani (left), Sean Crosby and Jeevan Grewal will pile into this Jetta and engage in an epic road trip.

said, referring to Phoenix, Denver and Salt Lake City. “We have no family there, so unless something major was happening, I wouldn’t see myself hitting those destinations on a regular basis.”

As the date approaches, the biggest worry that the men have is the extra money they’ll have to shell out for cell phone roaming charges, which is essential in order to update Twitter throughout their trip.

If you would like to follow the group on Twitter, you can go to twitter.com/epic09roaddy, or visit their official blog to keep track of their adventures at epic09roaddy. wordpress.com.

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LIFE 11

•Going somewhere cool? Turn it into a portfolio clipping, and get famous! •See our website at martlet.ca for other amazing adventure stories. Editor

travel@martlet.ca

HEELS AND HOSTELS

Please, for the love of god: don’t skinny-dip in Cambodia by MEGHAN NAY It was five months into my trip that I found myself in the last place I ever thought I’d wind up in my travels — in a relationship. Turns out, one of the friends I left with was more than just a friend. By the time our group arrived in Cambodia, Luke and I were inseparable and even decided to spend an extra week in Sinoukville all by ourselves. We stayed at an amazing hostel right on the beach. Okay, so the rooms weren’t exactly the best (the walls were paper-thin and there was that time a rat crawled over my face), but other than that, we were in heaven. I remember one particularly rowdy and romantic night we decided to go skinny-dipping. Normally, I’m shy about this sort of thing; normally, I’d say no, but that night, on the beach, under the stars, it was just so friggin’

beautiful I could have written a poem about it. And the alcohol didn’t hurt either. For hours we splashed about in the calm, warm water. I felt daring and free. It wasn’t until we were mid smooch that I noticed — out of the corner of my eye — a group of people walking towards our clothes. I detached myself from Luke and motioned for him to look. “Hey — those people are going for our clothes,” I cried. “Oh shit,” he quickly looked. “It’s a group of kids.” Now, anybody who has ever been to Cambodia knows a few things about the children there. As an extremely poor country and one that attracts a lot of tourists, the local kids are often expected to bring money in for the family — usually by selling

bracelets, begging and often by stealing. And that’s exactly what they were doing. But what could we do? Clearly my yelling and screaming wasn’t working, and Luke only got up to his, well, bellybutton before he lost his nerve. Seems that I wasn’t prepared to run naked after them and neither was he. So we watched as they walked away with our clothes, our shoes and what little money we had left. After about an hour, time was starting to pass very fast and the water was getting cold. The romance had definitely died off and I was ready to be dry and clothed. Luke figured since it was late we could probably make it back to our bungalow without anybody noticing. I was freezing, and too tired to argue. Before I knew it, we were walking naked to the

JENNIFER ZHOU

shore and doing our very best to cover everything we could with our hands, arms and a seashell or two. It wasn’t really working. But as we crept towards the light of our hostel I thought we might just be in luck. The main lawn chairs were empty, and I couldn’t make anything else out in the dark. Wrong. As we got closer, we were startled to find out it was movie night at our hostel. There was everyone, huddled around the TV by the stairs. Twenty heads looked

up at us. Twenty mouths dropped open. It was horrifying. I didn’t know whether to cry or to laugh or to sit down and start watching Legally Blonde with the rest of them. Luke stood next to me, equally stunned. Finally, I grabbed his arm and dragged him upstairs to our bungalow as fast as I could. Mortified, we collapsed on our inch-thick mat on the floor laughing hysterically, the sounds of Legally Blonde, and “ohmy-gods” echoing up from below. Even the rat was smirking.

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12 TRAVEL

August 13, 2009

Exploring the great San Juan Islands — by bike by GRAHAM SPENCER The San Juan Islands between Washington State and Vancouver Island offer an excellent opportunity for an affordable foreign, and paradoxically local, cycling adventure. The San Juans consist of four primary islands and offer a wide variety of history, culture and arts, as well as outdoor activities and attractions. San Juan Island itself is the busiest of the four, and offers the greatest number of attractions to travellers. Cycling is heavily promoted on the island, and many people rely on rental bikes.

What You Need Bring a patch kit and tire pump, and maybe a spare tube. Mountain bike gearing is ideal, but mountain bike tires are not. You’ll need some panniers to carry your clothes, food, a tent and a sleeping bag, too. Bungee chords can secure the bulky items to the top of your rear rack. Beyond a portable cook stove and pot, perhaps some proper Lycra cycling shorts to minimize chafing, expensive specialized equipment is hardly necessary. Scrounge what you don’t have from friends or family. Water bottles are a must and sun screen and sunglasses are also vital as you will be bathing in UV rays from the moment you get up until the sun sets. Food is not too expensive on the San Juans, but bringing your own pasta, oatmeal and bagels will save you a few bucks. Finally, don’t forget your passport and U.S. dollars — Washington State Ferries, for example, do not accept Canadian bills and coins.

Cheap stuff to see and do If you only have a few days to get away, San Juan Island offers plenty for the touring cyclist to experience. The island is home to a National Historic Park that preserves the British and American encampments left over from the 1859-1872 Pig War border dispute. The earthen defenses at American camp can be walked around and, at English Camp, living history demonstrations every Saturday, such as blacksmithing are put on by local enthusiasts. American Camp is also home to Mount Finlayson, an 88-metre climb with fantastic views of distant mountains and exotic locations (like Saanich), and the more than two-kilometer long South Beach. Lime Kiln State Park, on the west side of San Juan Island, features some short hiking trails that lead to a restored 150-year-old lime kiln, as well as a small lighthouse that is now used to monitor local whale pods. The water off the west side of the island becomes very deep very quickly, allowing orcas to swim close to shore. Other marine mammals such as porpoises and seals are common, and don’t be surprised if you meet a deer or a fox on shore.

At the northwest point of the island is Roche Harbor, a frenzy of mega-yachts and tourists in an otherwise breathtakingly beautiful bay. Numerous expensive eateries supply the frenzied masses, and a small store sells expensive provisions to deeppocketed power-boaters. It’s worth a quick look, but there are other, cheaper attractions nearby. An eight-hectare sculpture park with more than 100 sculptures and only a $5 suggested donation is adjacent to Roche Harbor, though many of the sculptures can also be seen from the road. Most interesting is Afterglow Vista, a mausoleum that appears steeped in mystery and symbolism. In one pleasant forest setting, six Doric columns surround a stone table and chairs with inscriptions on their backs. An additional pillar is intentionally broken, and one chair missing from the table — the local story is that one member of the family married outside the Methodist religion. Follow the easy walking trail through the cemetery on Tangeny Memorial Drive to find it.

than many of the paved sections. Watch for the mannequin stuck in a hay bale, a worthy photo stop. In the northern part of the island, consider a ride along Egg Lake Road, especially if you are in the mood for a dip in a public lake, or a bit of fishing.

Getting there The ferry to San Juan Island leaves Sidney at 6 p.m. daily and arrives at 7:20 p.m. Delays are not unusual, especially on weekends, and the cost is $22 eastbound and $8 westbound. Maps and information are plentiful on the ferry. From Friday Har-

The Riding A two-night stay on the Island is about the perfect length to see and do everything by bike. Distances may appear short, but the roads are hilly and mostly chip-sealed, which makes for slow riding. The Island is crossed by three major eastwest routes. Bailer Hill Road to the south, not surprisingly, requires cycling over Bailer Hill — a long, steep, steady climb. Beaverton Valley Road in the middle has a handful of hills, but is the quickest way to get from Friday Harbor to San Juan County Park, a gem of a campground with whalewatching potential and stunning sunsets from your picnic table. Beware of major potholes at the bottom of this route’s long descent. The northernmost route, Roche Harbor Road, offers a steady gradient without any major climbing. This road is also home to a massive three-building thrift store complex worth checking out. Bathrooms are also available here. The best way to see the island is in two loops, one around the top of the island and one around the bottom. Beaverton Valley Road is the best way to travel west, as this minimizes the amount of steep hill climbing you have to do. Washrooms and water are available at American Camp, Roche Harbor, Lime Kiln State and San Juan County Park.

Detours On the southern portion of the island consider a detour along False Bay Drive and False Bay Road. This will take you to or from American Camp along a scenic detour. The road is dirt, but makes for easier riding

JESSIE PORTE AND GRAHAM SPENCER

Camping and mausoleums are only a few of the treats that await your San Juan trip.

bor it is about an hour’s ride, maybe a bit more, to San Juan County Park. This truly is a beautiful campground and worth trying to get to before dark. At $10 per person, large groups will want to investigate some of the private campgrounds to save some money, but the park is worth the expense for solo cyclists or pairs. Kings Market in Friday Harbor offers all the groceries you’ll need while on the island. If you have a few more days, consider exploring some of the other islands as interisland travel is free for cyclists.

Few hills, the excellent Odlin County Park campground, Holly B’s Bakery and numerous coastal parks make friendly Lopez Island an excellent choice for an extra day of riding, but don’t rule out the Shaw or Orcas Islands either. The return ferry to Sidney departs once daily at 3:50 p.m. from Friday Harbor. Note that state and county parks do not have showers, but public showers are available in towns or marinas on most islands. Alcohol-free baby wipes make an excellent alternative before bed.

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Comics

•How about you draw things and send them to us so we can profit from them? •Visit our website at martlet.ca or email grafx@martlet.ca. Do it right now! Editor Marc Junker

grafx@martlet.ca

Pepsi, The Pepsi Globe Design, Love Life and Share Joy are trade-marks of PepsiCo, Inc. Used under licence. © PepsiCo Canada ULC, 2009.

14 COMICS

August 13, 2009

Sports

•Attention athletes: get involved this year by writing for the Sports section! •What great things haven’t we covered? Who’s new in town to watch? Tell us. Editor

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Yoga boasts benefits, brings truth

Fall into something great! Follow your heart by offering hope, dignity and respect. Volunteer with us at the NEED Crisis & Information Line. Training starts Sept. 26. Next Information Session: Tuesday, Sept. 1, 6:30 – 7:45 p.m. at UVic Sub. Call 250386-6328 or www.needcrisis.bc.ca for more info.

by AMANDA ROTH THE BROCK PRESS ST. CATHERINE’S (CUP) — As summer crests the corner, some are turning to a beneficial and happy alternative to their good weather fitness resolves – yoga. But, more than an act of physical health, yoga has been recognized as a rehabilitating antidote to daily stresses. “Yoga is a great way to connect the body and mind. Oftentimes, we live so much in our minds, with our busy schedules and lives, that we don’t pay attention to what our body is [trying] to tell us,” said Julie Pozzebon, a graduate student and yoga teacher at Brock University in St. Catherines, Ont. The term yoga is a derivative of the Sanskrit word “yuj,” which means to unite or join. The culture of yoga is believed to have been born in India 26,000 years ago, during what was known as the Golden Age. Culturally, yoga serves the purpose of achieving individual fulfillment, while uniting with cosmic consciousness or the universal spirit. However, in modern times and in Western culture, yoga serves advantages both mentally and physically, rather than just being related to the “search for eternal truth.” “Physically, yoga both tones and stretches the body. Most people think it is strictly about bending yourself into pretzel-like positions, but it is about building strength and challenging the body in ways you might not have explored before. It’s about balancing strength and flexibility so they can complement each other.” said Pozzebon. “Mentally, yoga helps to calm the mind. It de-stresses you, teaches you how to breathe and shows you how important it is to live in the moment, letting go of obsessions with the past and expectations for the future.” Yoga, according to tradition, is es-

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NEW Mental Health & Addictions support group to Victoria. Meetings are Tuesdays, 7:30 to 8:30 p.m. @ 941 Kings Road. For more info contact john. dravictoria@yahoo.com. FUNDRAISING EVENT for the Queen Alexandra Foundation for Children: European & Classic Car Picnic hosted by the Vancouver Island Porsche Club. Sunday, Aug. 23, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., 2400 Arbutus Road. This family event raises funds for hearing test equipment for newborns. There will be lots of activities for kids, including a bouncy castle, magic shows, pedal cars and more. There will also be a barbecue, a silent auction and of course a wonderful display of classic cars. If you are interested in volunteering please call 250-721-6855.

CLASSIFIEDS ROOF AND GUTTER INSPECTION, repairs, re-roofing, power washing, 250-380-5685, BBB. The Martlet now accepts Classifieds payments through paypal. Email ads@martlet.ca for more information. AHMED MUMENI

Yoga culture began over 26,000 years ago. The word comes from Sanskrit, “yuj,” which means to unite or join.

sentially a restorative process, which is favorable for physical, mental and spiritual development. Practicing yoga helps to develop a state of mind which is optimistic or benevolent toward one’s self and others. “Consistently moving the body is good no matter what you’re doing,” said Pozzebon. “With frequent practice moves get easier with added strength and flexibility. It becomes easy to quiet the mind and de-stress.”

ALL SUMMER LONG!

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SPORTS 15

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