UFV and COVID-19 are both a curse
By: Chandy Dancey
While wholly unrealistic, I really wish the semester was neatly wrapped up and over. At this point, I’m past worrying about my grades. Don’t get me wrong: I’m a student who loves what I’m studying, and I’m not one to skip classes ever, but this COVID-19 pandemic is majorly distracting students. Students are worrying about the health of themselves and their loved ones, stressing about money and the potential of being laid off, and hunting down essential supplies to protect themselves. And those that work in essential services like grocery stores and health care will be asked to come in for extra hours to serve on the frontlines amid frantic customers and patients. At least, I know I have. The last thing anyone wants right now is to gear up for final exams and have to learn how to navigate their classes in an online format they never thought they’d be using. What are the chances that UFV will shut down classes altogether? Slim to none. Will that stop me from complaining? As I sort through my upcoming assignments, midterm (yes, that’s right), and finals, the answer is a resounding no.
The need to escape
By: Andrea Sadowski
I am never in one place too long. In between high school and university, I had six long years where I did nothing but travel and work in exotic locations. The longest I ever stayed in one place was seven months. Being in university has been hard, because I am required to plant myself in one place in order to get this degree done. I still try to get away as much as I can: I’ve done an international internship, I work at remote fishing lodges in the summer, and I try to go on mini-road trips during every break. Even though I am here, I am always somewhere else in my head. I am constantly planning the incredible adventures I will go on once I graduate. I never fully appreciate the season of life I am in because I am always thinking about the next one.
I need to work on building a life for myself that I don’t feel the need to constantly escape from.
Daffodils for dreary days
By: Jessica Barclay
Sometimes on the dreariest of days, the best thing to do to cheer yourself up is to bring a bit of death into your home.
Joking aside, if you are lucky enough to have a yard during self-isolation, bringing in some fresh, fragrant flowers from the outdoors can really liven things up. No, not from their bright, cheerful colours and delightful scents that make parts of your home smell like tiny pockets of spring — it’s the bugs that live on the flowers that can really put a spring in your step.
Not sure what to do with your morning? Bring in a bundle of daffodils and put them in vases around the house. Which bunch has a giant spider, or one of those little pointy bugs that smell funny, or perhaps even a centipede? Only time, or your cats’ frantic pawing at 2 a.m., will tell.
Sims addiction is the answer to quarantine blues
By: Darien Johnsen
Unlike many of you who are using this time in self-isolation to “improve yourself” or “get some work done and stay in shape,” or the dreaded “start up an online business,” I’ve successfully done the bare minimum and let myself fall apart. Aside from making cringy, depressing posts on Instagram and then immediately deleting them full of regret, I’ve been eating blocks of baker’s chocolate (because I ran out of my quarantine candy in like, two days), listening to hours of true crime podcasts, and playing The Sims. The Sims is really the best way to pass time in quarantine. If you spend enough time playing, it’s almost like society hasn’t shut down at all. It’s just become cartoon-like, four-dimensional, and someone’s entire lifespan lasts about the equivalent of 10 real-world hours. I’m happy to report that I’ve successfully raised three generations of Sims. My current family is wealthy, just installed a pool, and is raising an over-achieving daughter, who, already in her teens, has come close to maximizing the creativity and body skills, and just got into private school. Now, when do I get my bumper sticker that reads “Proud parent of a Sims honour roll kid”?
Illustrations: Kelly Ning/The Cascade
Chandy is a biology major/chemistry minor who's been a staff writer, Arts editor, and Managing Editor at The Cascade. She began writing in elementary school when she produced Tamagotchi fanfiction to show her peers at school -- she now lives in fear that this may have been her creative peak.
Andrea Sadowski is working towards her BA in Global Development Studies, with a minor in anthropology and Mennonite studies. When she's not sitting in front of her computer, Andrea enjoys climbing mountains, sleeping outside, cooking delicious plant-based food, talking to animals, and dismantling the patriarchy.
Darien Johnsen is a UFV alumni who obtained her Bachelor of Arts degree with double extended minors in Global Development Studies and Sociology in 2020. She started writing for The Cascade in 2018, taking on the role of features editor shortly after.
She’s passionate about justice, sustainable development, and education.
