Image from Wikipedia

So I went caving, aka “spelunking,” this weekend. I came away with so many bruises but it was all worth it considering how much fun I had. Now for those of you who don’t know what caving is, go here.

I swear that having escaped all of those — what I consider to be — “near death” experiences really changed my perspective on things like how strong our instinctual survival abilities are. I had to climb, crawl, lean against walls and whatever else, whilst holding a tiny flash light in my hand, as I was sure I was close to plunging to my death. Alright I might be exaggerating a bit, considering how much of a wimp I am. I kept having to ask my fellow cavers (yes I made up that word) to help me out, like by telling me how the heck they were able to climb up or down and in or out in the first place.

If you’d like to give caving a try, why not join our very own U of T Outing club (UTOC)? There are several opportunities to go caving with them at their cabin near the Niagara Escarpment. The club also offers other amazing outdoor events and activities.

In my honest opinion, Saints Alive! is one of the best student productions I have ever seen! I laughed almost the entire time and the music was stuck in my head even after the performance. The performers were so talented and, in, addition to acting, sung marvelously as well. Each actor had his or her own unique quirkiness and charm. The piano accompaniment was solid and lively and the musical numbers were choreographed well; not a single note was off tune (to me, anyway, the tone-deaf girl).

The actors were so well versed in their dialogue, as any actor should be, I kept thinking to myself, How could they possibly remember all those lines and lyrics? They pulled off such a grandiose play with ease.

I was impressed by (more…)

Being in U of T makes it really, REALLY hard for me to pick up the controller and start playing games. As the homework and readings stack up higher than the CN Tower, I find myself aching for the joy of shooting aliens in the face but never get the chance to do so as much anymore.

So what can a gamer like myself do to alleviate the itch for playing? Change genres.

Thanks to the wonders of Internet, many games are available for the incredibly cheap price of zilch. On top of that, they provide a fun challenge for about 30 minutes or so. Despite the seemingly tiny number, these 30 minutes are usually some of the most amazing 30 minutes you’ll ever spend with your life. Like, ever. The indie PC market is brimming with amazing ideas and innovations that we barely see in our bloated shoot-every-alien-you-see-as-a-cool-space-marine-with-a-gruff-voice market.

Here’s a nice, chunky list for you to chew on: (more…)

When: From Thursday, October 15, 2009 at 8:00pm to Saturday, October 17, 2009 at 8:00pm (3 shows, all at 8pm)

Where: The George Ignatieff Theater, just North of Hoskin Avenue

How to Get Tickets: Outside Strachan during lunch, or at the door on the night. You can also reserve tickets by emailing [email protected]

If you’re looking for something unique to watch, then Saints Alive is definitely it. Brought to you by your very own U of T students (including seasoned director Victoria Wang), this 1940s Trinity Classic, a play written by Keith MacMillan and Ron Bryden, is sure to impress. Along with great music, this play is expected to bring a barrel of laughs as it spoofs life at St.Hilda’s, Trinity College’s previously all-female residence. This wonderful piece has been showcased numerous times in places such as the Trinity College Centenary.

Having witnessed the rehearsal process myself, I have to say I was truly impressed with the amazing talent as well as the amount of detail they have invested into this production (i.e. costumes). With such a great ensemble cast, production team and original, one-of-a-kind musical to present, Saints Alive is a definite must-see.

Image from the Trinity College Dramatic Society

So unless you’ve been living under a rock or have been busy helping NASA bomb the moon today, you should know that the Obamster has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Isn’t it amazing how the world seems to just be going down that downward spiral faster and faster these days? Personally, I’m loving all the commentary I’m hearing online, offline, on screen, on everywhere…nothing better than controversy that’s powerful enough to rile up the masses!

But seriously now, what’s going on here? Last time I checked, to win the Peace Prize, a person had to a) do the best work to encourage fraternity between nations b) abolish or reduce standing armies and c) hold and promote peace congresses. And so, Obama won the Peace Prize because? Because he’s the commander-in-chief of three wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and two other lower-scale ones in Africa and the Philippines? Because he’s given plenty of lofty speeches full of equally lofty promises? Because he’s apologized for America around the world? Because it is his fervent hope that peace will be achieved one day? Oh right! How could I have overlooked that?
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Image from CBC

After seeing ads all around the subway, I discovered that the CBC would be doing a new show about skating. I had no clue what it would be all about but I knew that figure skating somehow fit into the equation. Since seeing Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, my love for the sport had rekindled and I hoped that my schedule would allow for me to watch the program, which I did.

If you were wondering what the show is all about, it’s actually rather simple. Eight pairs, composed of a famous male hockey player and a female figure skater would skate in a figure skating competition. Each pair will do one routine per week and viewers will have to call to vote for their favourite couple; a format similar to So You Think You Can Dance. To help viewers with the technical aspect of the sport, a panel of judges (Sandra Bezic, Dick Button and a guest judge) will give their comments along with a score in the archaic 6.0 format where skaters are given points out of 6. The winning couple will win $100,000 for a charity of their choice (very Canadian, eh?) and the title of… Canada’s favourite skaters? (I just made that up.)

Although the competition sounds rather interesting, what really got my attention were the competitors. They are listed in their pairings as follows: (more…)

So, I was having tomato soup this evening while I was doing some research for my anthropology essay. I had my binder of notes sitting open on my lap, and the soup on my desk, and a whole swirl of other stationary, USBs, and a complementary Cirque du Soleil egg shaker around my computer.

Today just happened to be one of those days when my inner klutz kicks in, and as I was reaching over to my keyboard to ask Google to look up something for me, I knocked my bowl of soup right into my damageable (and very biodegradable) paper notes. Great.

As I was taking out all my notes and spreading them on the ground to dry, I was surprised at how little my papers were damaged. Only two pages were significantly soaked (half of them); all the other pages were either completely untouched or had just a couple of splatters on the edges or corners.

How could a half a bowl of soup not turn my lecture notes into a pile of pulp? Well, the pages were saved by the sheet protectors I used as dividers. Even though the notes themselves weren’t in the plastic sleeves, the sheet protectors were able to section off my binder, like how ships have separate locked compartments in their bellies. The soup could only get as far as the end of the anthropology section in my binder…and I’m quite thankful for that. If it got to my psychology notes, well, let’s just say that calling upcoming mid-term exam a “nightmare” would be an understatement.

So, the moral of the story is, if you’re as clumsy as I am, and if you like eating at precarious locations such as your desk, invest in some sheet protectors. Believe it or not, they do save your pages, even if you don’t put your notes in them.