It was an ordinary day when I awoke to the scream of my alarm. Ripped from the depths of a dreamy haze, I sat up in my bed. It was an early morning, crispy and threatening with its whisper of cold, an unholy hour for any person to rise. Unholy as it is, ten AM always comes earlier then it should. With a heavy fist I mash the sleep button, commanding submission from the screeching alarm. For a moment I fall back onto my pillow and my eyes flicker. Justification for why I should stay in bed swirls through the sleep induced laziness of my mind. The wind scratches at my bedroom window moaning out the word, “Lethbridge”, in its droning voice—like a zombie at a boarded up door.
My eyes closing, I convince myself that I could drift off for just moments more and still make it on time. With sudden surge of panic I awaken fully, with the inherent knowledge that more than just a few moments have passed. Springing from bed I cross the room into a pair of dirty pants from the floor in a single motion. The shirt I wore to bed will do fine if only I can find, in the pile near the door, a pair of shoes that are mine. A jacket slings around my shoulders and my pack back fills in record time, I just might make it. Dirty looks and a frowning professor, the images play in my head as I rush toward the door. Wait! “Why are you still here?” I ask of the blanket shrouded figure on the couch. Pajama clad and adorned with slippers my roommate sits on the couch. The remnants of readying for the day clinging to him, in his washed and styled hair. This person is never late for a class that starts more than an hour before mine; nonetheless they sit on the couch watching terrible morning TV. He cocks his head to the side and with a menacing smile says, “It’s poo day! Don’t you know?” The moments that follow fill my heart with joy as I learn of the happenings of NOV 5th. The University has flowed forth with filth, and the halls have been shut down. With classes cancelled I return to swear pants and settle on the couch next to him. A snow day framed in brown has turned my frown upside down. Later that day a group of us go to Oshos to enjoy food and beverage, the puns swirl like the leaves outside in the Lethbridge wind. A new holiday is born—Nov 5th is the first year anniversary of Poo-Day.
Author Archive for suinternal
A day down the toilet
Post-secondary education is not always easy to obtain, especially when students are struggling financially. Alleviating some of the pressures placed on students is the purpose of the ULSU Food Bank. Being able to put food on the table is one less thing students have to worry about, so they are able to focus on their studies. Sodexo, the corporation that operates the Food Services on-campus, announced it will be making a very generous contribution to the ULSU Food Bank. John-Barry DeYoung, Sodexo Executive Director at the University of Lethbridge declared that the Company would be making a donation of $1000 to the ULSU Food Bank, on Friday October 23, 2009 at 2pm in the Students’ Union Office. The ULSU Food Bank was established in 2004 to deal with the increasing awareness of hunger and poverty on campus. “Our Food Bank is a program that distributes emergency food hampers to students, faculty or staff at the University that are in need of assistance,” said Allan Hall, ULSU Vice-President Administration. The Food Bank relies on generous donations like this, and Needs-Based Funding from the Quality Initiatives Program. Students who are in need of a hamper can email food.bank@uleth.ca or stop by SU180 and a hamper will be ready and waiting for pick up the day after the request is made. Food Bank users can request a hamper every two weeks and all information is kept confidential.
For more information contact:
Cole Lehto ULSU VP Internal
403-329-5155
su.internal@uleth.ca
Everyone knows that feeling they get when they are told to get “involved in something” or “there are so many opportunities you should take advantage of”. It seems to me that the feeling is not one of “screw that”, but rather a distant “maybe I should, but I wouldn’t know where to start, so I won’t”. If I’m completely out to lunch well then I guess I’m sorry, and crazy. Assuming I’m not completely crazy, I know about something that just might be simple enough to do and feel good about without cutting into too much of your summer fun. This something is called a City Circle. A City Circle sounds great in the first place just because it is one of the best geometric shapes, far superior to any city square, which means Lethbridge is better than New York and Beijing. However, a city circle is not something that we are going to build but rather something that is going to build us. Before I tell you what they are, consider how much we all love Vancouver (or would if it were not so rainy, or unless this is another one of my crazy person moments.) Van is a pretty sweet city that most people love. They have a city circle; or rather city circles, or more accurately they had City Circles. Vancouver used the idea of small groups of citizens sitting around the proverbial kitchen table or coffee shop talking about what their city should be. Long story short, it worked and it worked well. The city listened to ideas and problems that had never crossed their elected minds. They even listened to the solutions that these citizens thought were reasonable, then took all those ideas and suggestions and used them to create the urban development plan for the city. It lent an ear to the people and in a real way: the public’s concerns were not just heard but listened to—almost like democracy.
Okay, so have I come close to telling you what a city circle is? No. here’s the formal definition {“A City Circle is a self-formed and self-managed group of Lethbridge residents who want to help with preparing the new plan. To form a City Circle get a group of friends together; they can be from work, school, sport, extracurricular, an existing organization, your family, or all of the above—there are no rule for how your Circle organizes itself. Your City Circle will meet when and where its member want and discuss any community related issue you choose.”} Some social activism for your summer might be a pretty good way to explore what you think a city should be. Address any issue you think it is worthwhile. Maybe consider something like the cancerous growth that is Calgarian urban sprawl. Urban sprawl is one of the topics started in a facebook based city circle on housing so if you’re not starting your own then contribute to this one. These city circles are a major part of a smaller oversight committee that will be charged with the task of going through the suggestion of each and every city circle, and designing the new Lethbridge City Plan around them. Last year the Students Union fought for a seat on this committee and now we have it. SU President Jeremy and VP internal Cole sit on this committee to make sure post secondary students, who make up 10-15% of the population, are in that plan. But we need more students to spark a city circle and send those ideas strait onto the mayors desk. The City Circle work ends sept 1st so take the summer down time and get started on it right away.
Beyond the geometric shape of social activity there is a list of amazing opportunities for students within Canada and globally; in my personal opinion, I would give up a lot to take part in some of these. One I just heard about this morning: As part of its 2009 FilterForGood campaign, Brita has partnered with the award-winning organization Students on Ice (SOI) to launch the Filter For Good Eco-Challenge Student Grant Program. This means a major grant that will take you to the Arctic all summer studying ice with leading scientists, might be the start of an amazing career.
Some are more of a job- you may even get paid for it: http://www.sierraclub.ca/prairie/
Some are grass roots lobbying- The Canadian Youth Climate Coalition (CYCC) is in the early stages of organizing an event called Power Shift Canada. We need YOU!
..Could be one hell of a summer if you really feel like getting out there.
Bring on the Little Kids!
Last week the U of L officially broke ground on the lastest addition to the campus – construction has begun on the new Daycare Facility here. This is a pretty big deal considering that this push for on campus daycare has taken nearly five full years to come to fruition.
Ground was broken by student leaders, senior level administrators, members of the Daycare Action Committee (DAC), and the outside service provider for the daycare facility. For many of the students present this opening was a large victory as the movement to bring daycare onto campus began as a grass roots movement. DAC was formed with the support of faculty and staff here at the U of L, but largely was made up of students. Their study on the need for daycare on campus was the prime spring board that got this issue moving along in the upper levels of administration. You can find many of their studies here.
All of those who worked so hard to bring this service to campus, congratulations – here’s to 2010, when the facility will officially open its doors for service.
Cheers,
Eric
VP Internal
Congratulations are due to the Gay and Lesbian Integrity Association (GALIA) here at the University of Lethbridge for winning the ULSU Club of the Year Award!
Out of the 5 clubs nominated for this award, GALIA was selected by the ULSU Clubs’ Council as the best club on campus for this year. GALIA has shown a high level of professionalism and spirit in all of their events – they have renewed the face of their club by increasing the number events they host. They have sponsored advocacy events and social nights alike, and very shortly will be painting a brand new mural in the tunnel.
On behalf of the ULSU General Assembly, I would like to extend a well deserved congratulations to GALIA.
Cheers,
Eric
VP Internal
This goes out to Tim, Derek, Kyla, Dan, and Kathleen – the 5 brave students who are taking a proactive step to bring homelessness to the foreground as an issue right here in Lethbridge.
I really support the work that is being done right now by the 5 Days for the Homeless crew. In order to show our support, the ULSU executives took it upon ourselves to spend a night in the cold with our friends. The wind was a bit bad (it blew some of the food away that was donated and seemed to threaten to suck the roof right off the house) but all and all it was a pretty relaxed night – if you consider relaxed sleeping in tight quarters with 9 other people, including some who haven’t showered in 4 days, all while the cold ground is sucking the heat out of your body through your sleeping bag.
The 4 execs looked pretty haggard this morning (especially considering we only spent 1 night out there.) Being out there made me think about something that was brought up in a class I had earlier this week. The ability to go in and do this kind of awareness work feels good – you raise money, raise awareness, and in the end have some impact on the problem. But imagine what living like this all time must be like – all those good feelings I have about this cause are supported by the fact that I knew I would get to go home and have a shower. I knew I would get to leave the cardboard box house and get into a change of clothes. The prospect of living like this day in and day out for even a small amount of time seems truly draining.
The proof is in the once smiling faces of the 5 brave students who even as I type sit outside right now. Don’t believe me, just go out and say hi to the homeless kids in front of the SUB and see for yourself – they have been pretty good at putting on a happy face, but they are starting to show some serious wear.
Please, ff you have any change in your pocket, or a couple quarters you know are hiding under a sofa cushion, then put that money to good use. Donate. Every little bit counts – help 5 Days reach their goal of raising $10,000 right here in Lethbridge.
Cheers,
Eric
VP Internal
I blogged on my experience from last night at jpro86.wordpress.com, so feel free to check it out. I echo Eric’s sentiments in giving serious credit to the five students who are spending their last night outside the SUB tonight. The wind is howling and I am sure they are huddled in the shelter right now trading stories of the week and discussing what they have experinced. Their blog is really interesing and a great reflection of thier experince, check it out at 5days.ca
Jenn Prosser
VP Academic
Awards, Awards, and More Awards
***NOTE*** The deadline for the Student of the Year award has been extended until March 24, 2009.
I am pleased to announce that the ULSU is accepting nominations for two awards that are given out each year – The “Student of the Year Award” and The “Students’ Union Club of the Year Award.“
Student of the Year Award
This is an annual award presented to the student who embodies leadership, commitment, and contributes to the betterment of U of L students; this may be exemplified by involvement in clubs, non-profit organizations, student organizations, community and volunteerism.
The DEADLINE for nomination submissions is March 24, 2009. The winner will be presented with this award at the annual ULSU Changeover Reception on April 16th.
Students’ Union Club of the Year Award
This annual award will be presented to the Students’ Union ratified club that has demonstrated the most outstanding effort and dedication in its endeavors over the past year. This club should have preformed successful initiatives and should be in excellent standing with Clubs’ Council.
The DEADLINE for nomination submissions is March 18, 2009. The winner will be presented with this award at the annual ULSU Changeover Reception on April 16th.
If you would like to nominate a club or individual for either of these awards please email VP Internal Eric Hawthorne at su.internal@uleth.ca
Please include in the email:
- The Nominee(s) name
- An email address to contact the Nominee(s)
- A well written description of why the nominee should be chosen for this award
Cheers,
Eric
VP Internal
RUSH WEEK!
January 12 – 16!
In the atrium, U of L clubs will be out in full force. Sign up for some exciting events – with over 50 ratified clubs on campus there is bound to be something that you will be interested in.
You can also head to our website and check out the full list of clubs we have ratified: ULSU Clubs
Remember, classes are important but so is staying sane. Put the books down and go do something!
Cheers,
Eric
Sloan Live @ The Zoo
Fresh off the madness and muscial mayhem that occurred less than a week ago in the Far West parking lot, the ULSU is proud to present another major concert for the month of September:
- Sloan Live @ The Zoo
Tickets are available online! Click the picture above to head to the ULSU website to order them. (Technical Difficulties, thank you for you patience.)
Tickets will be on sale at the Service Centre Monday, September 15th, 2008.
$15.00 IN ADVANCE
$20.00 AT THE DOOR
Check Sloan out at : www.sloanmusic.com
Check out Will Currie & The Country French at: www.thecountryfrench.com
Cheers,
Eric
VP Internal
Hedley is Playing Fresh U Jamboree
Hedley is coming to Lethbridge for Fresh U Jamboree!
We have been hinting at it for a while now and the ULSU is proud to announce that Hedley will be the headlining act of Fresh U Jamboree.
Tickets are available on-line now for $25! (Click Here or on the image above to purchase)
Please note: If you have already purchased your Fresh Fest package, this includes a ticket for Fresh U Jamboree. If you have not purchased a ticket for Fresh Fest or Fresh U Jamboree, what are you waiting for?! Do it now!
You can purchase Fresh Fest tickets here.
You can purchase Fresh U Jamboree tickets here.
The final Fresh U Jamboree line-up looks like this:
Sleeping with Tuesday
Mahoney
Vacation on Mars
Hedley featuring a special guest
Michael Bernard Fitzgerald
Hot Little Rocket
Dan Mangan
Cheers,
Eric
VP Internal
