What the K?!
By Emmaline Spencer
A month has gone by since the start of the semester. I am exhausted by the trek of traveling between Building K and the SUB. All of my in-person courses are hosted 10 minutes away, in that ever-enduring Building K. When I’m not in Building K, I’m being asked, “Where is Building K?” Some students ask me, “When did we get a Building K?” I overhear the comments, “Building K? How many buildings are there?” Back and forth. Back and forth. Back and forth. My legs may be getting exercise, but my desire to return to a time when all my English courses were in Buildings B and D is ever growing. It felt simpler when I could easily cross between the two buildings and could rest or study in the nearby SUB. Now my semesters vary from courses scattered across buildings or being crammed into Building K.
I don’t have to give what I get, but I certainly get what I give
By Steve Hartwig
For some reason this back to school has been incredibly abrupt, in my face, and dare I say, aggressive? It’s like an exciting false awakening dream, maybe similar to Ryan Reynolds’ Free Guy, where I’m not sure if the action movie going on around me is just a dream. I’d love for my course load to be a dream. The rush hour has increased to near F1 speed, food prices and toilet paper bullying are at an all time high, there’s the threat of world war, and what? The person couldn’t hold the door open for me or say please and thank you? I must be dreaming.
Regardless, I get to choose my response. Life has taught me I don’t have to buy into any social expectation or narrative. I’ll have good, bad and even ugly days. I can stress or destress. The way I respond determines how I make my way through the world, progress in life or lose ground, smile or frown. In a world of new normals, I don’t have to give what I get, but I’ll certainly get what I give. Set goals, work hard, and enjoy the drive. Awake or not, I’m living the dream.
The Paper Box Queen
Teryn Midzain
Even after two years of living in my current house, any visitor would think that we have just moved in due to the number of boxes that litter the corners by the windows on the main floor. They’re placed so that each one aligns perfectly to get the best sunlight and airflow so that Mosey, the calico bitch, has a variety of box palaces to sit and gaze out her windows.
One box to catch the morning sun, another placed just slightly under it and away from an open window so she can cool down. A shoe box, so that if she’s in the mood can curl completely into a ball. A moving box to hide in, and her favourite Pabst Blue Ribbon flat by the stairs so she can lie down and yell at anyone who walks in and doesn’t feed her right away.
Costco boxes must have a two to three week stay so that Mosey can get full use. Placed by the stairs to the ground floor and stacked in a way that lets Mosey choose between the top flat or the bottom, depending on how long it’s been between meals and how angry she is at us.
You can use the app, or you can use the app
By Kian Johnson
Continuing students and faculty this semester may have noticed something different about how they access their Blackboard hubs. When using a computer on an off-campus network, everyone must now use another form of authentication in addition to their passwords every time they log in. For me, this happens through Microsoft’s Authenticator app. Others have needed to use verification through text via their phone number. On its surface, this new requirement may seem genuinely helpful. Besides, two-factor authentication is a proven asset against online threats. However, the requirement part means that anyone without access to a smartphone for whatever reason also loses access to many of the school-tools they need, and the whole thing is generally a hassle. In my case, the “I can’t use my authenticator app right now” button is no help either. Its two suggestions are both to ‘just use the app.’
Why a UFV student or faculty member would need such stringent security measures for their Blackboard login in the first place is beyond me. Regardless, I cannot judge the security preferences of everyone, but then neither can anyone else.
This may seem like an overreaction to many, and perhaps it is. Still, I don’t see the harm in letting us have a little more agency over our own security. An opt-out would be nice.
Teryn Midzain is an English Major with ambitious goals to write movies and a full-time nerd, whose personality and eccentrics run on high-octane like the cars he loves. More importantly, Teryn loves sports [Formula One], and doesn’t care who knows. When not creating and running deadly schemes in his D&D sessions, Teryn tries to reach the core of what makes the romantic and dramatic World of Sports, the characters and people that make the events so spectacular.
Emmaline is working on her BA and ambitions to become an English teacher. They always say, those who cannot do, teach. She spends her free time buying, reading, and hoarding books with the hope that one day she will have no furniture and instead only have piles of books.
Steve is a third-year BFA creative writing/visual arts student who’s been a contributing writer, staff writer and now an editor at The Cascade. He's always found stories and adventures but now has the joy of capturing and reporting them.
