Hey Vanier,

Hope you all had a great November and an excellent first semester!

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to go to the Grey Cup (the final game for the Canadian Football League, or CFL). It was a fabulous event. I’d bought my tickets way back in June so it was especially excellent when I learned that our home team, the BC Lions, would be in the finals. By now, if you care, you likely know that the BC Lions beat the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and took the Grey Cup. It was awesome to share in the victory celebration on our home field at BC Place.

What was more amazing to me was the spirit of the fans and people of Vancouver. The game was at 3:30pm, but I headed downtown with my husband around 10am. It was already buzzing with people in orange attire yelling, “Go Lions.” I totally got into too – I waited 45 minutes to get the Lions logo facepainted onto my cheek. I was waiting in line with about 100 other people, all looking to get a bit of BC pride drawn on their face. The shocking part was that the majority of the people in line were men, aged 30 – 60ish. Perhaps my assumptions were wrong, but I never thought that was who would be getting facepainted. I was expecting children, maybe people your age or my age, but not the older men. I was pleasantly surprised.

I’m writing about this because also I was pleasantly surprised by the events downtown. There were activities in the streets and the morale of the city was high. It was reminiscent of the 2010 Olympics. People were high-fiving you as you walked down the street. It didn’t matter if you were wearing green for the Saskatchewan Roughriders or red for the Calgary Stampeders or orange for the hometown favourite, we were all downtown for a common purpose – to watch a celebration of Canada and celebrate our CFL sport. The only other time I’ve received more random high-fives from strangers was the day that Canada won the Gold Medal hockey game in Vancouver.

In reflection, the morale reminded me of life in Vanier. The spirit is high and you can usually trust the people around you. We celebrate successes together and you develop pride for the place you live. You may wear green for TweedSl, red for RobKoot, or orange for KU – but you know if Totem Park was our opponent in Ultimate, we’d all be supporting Vanier. The community at Vanier is one that you should not take for granted – it is unmatched. I believe we have the best community at UBC and hopefully, you feel the same affiliation to our lovely home. This is just a mid-point reminder to embrace this place – embrace the abundance of activities and the fact that you can walk down the hall when you want to talk to someone. Embrace that you have academic support in your home and that there are opportunities for recreation right outside your door. Most of all, embrace that you are a part of something and that you mean so much to the community.

Thank you for a great first term! Best of luck with your final exams and I look forward to seeing many of you back in January!

All the best,

Cate

A Word from your RLM

Contents/////////////////////////////////////////////// From the Desk of the Editor Study Smart, Snack Smart

Embracing Diversity and Differences

A Starving Student`s Guide to Holiday Dinners

Boring Winter Break in YVR? Think Again!

Tastes of Vancouver

Memory Fades but the Love Remains

Crazy Laws

Ask Coco

Horoscopes

Ads

///////////////////////////////////////////////FEARLESS LEADER: Lizzy DuGuayEDITOR: Leo MarchandDESIGN/LAYOUT: Nolan SagePUBLIC RELATIONS LIAISON: Courtney NorthrupMANAGER: Vineet SidhuSOCIAL NETWORKING/TWITTER: Danna Batara

ARTICLES CONTRIBUTED BY: Stephanie Lau, Sarah King, Courtney Northrup, Karan DSouza, Christopher Chen, Haitham HaidarILLUSTRATIONS/COVER: Nolan Sage

From the Desk of the Editor

Healthy Minds is a new initiative here at UBC that encourages all students to be their healthiest and therefore perform their best at school.

What is a healthy mind? This initiative states “a healthy mind is one that is primed for learning and success. A healthy mind can manage stress. A healthy mind is about balance and knowing who you are and what you believe. Having a healthy mind will help you to have healthy relationships and get connected to the UBC campus. A healthy mind is about taking care of your body, knowing your personal limits, and being resilient. A student with a healthy mind has fun and keeps long-term goals in mind to help stay motivated.” (Available from http://blog.students.ubc.ca/healthyminds/vision/defintio/).

What do you do to have a healthy mind? Check out the Health Minds blog for lots of great information and ideas: http://blog.students.ubc.ca/healthyminds/

Following this week we will take a break until the New Year. We hope you will join us in January-same time, same place!

Healthy Minds at UBC

Well Vanier, you did it! Classes are over, and you likely now only have a few exams standing between you and a relaxing winter break. That’s where the Vanier Vibe comes in. We have taken time out of our own study schedules to give you the lowdown on everything from exam preparation to fine dining. We’ve even got some great advice for how you can make the most of your break, and the rest of the school year. As always, don’t forget to read your horoscope and check out the Ask Coco advice page.

We sincerely hope you enjoy this brief respite from your studies, and that you have a wonderful winter holiday. If you’re so inspired by this issue that you want to help out with the Vanier Vibe next term, feel free to send us an email at vaniervibenews@gmail.com.

- Leo Marchand

Your Name HereDo you want your name known by every resident in Vanier? Submit something to the Vanier Vibe and become rich and famous get your name in the Vanier Vibe.

How? Its easy as 1) Writing an Article/Taking a Picture/Drawing Something and 2) Emailing us at vaniervibenews@gmail.com.

Its almost too easy! Do it. Do it now.

Study Smart, Snack Smart!

Embracing Diversity and Differences

UBC offers a vast array of opportunities for you to have experiences that were previously foreign to you. You can get involved with the international community by going on exchange with Go Global, hanging out in the Global Lounge, or attending events at International House. You can learn a new dance or a language through classes and clubs. The resources available to help you to engage with new experiences and perspectives are endless.

Yet, it is easy to neglect one of the most valuable and accessible resources that can challenge your perspectives and opinions, and expose you to new ideas: your peers .

As a student at UBC, you share a campus with 47,780 other students from all over the world, each with a unique perspective shaped by unique experiences. In residence, you live closely with a large handful of that community, and have gotten to know many of them throughout this semester. You have probably bonded over shared living space, classes, or interests. This is probably how you think of making connections with others - commonalities and shared experiences - but what about considering what others can offer you through differences?

In residence, you live with many individuals who have different skills, and knowledge and perspectives than you. There are residents who are well-versed in magic tricks, parkour and music, some who were involved in the Arab Spring revolutions, and even some who are devoted to changing the world. As the semester winds down, reflect on the friendships you have made and the experiences you have had. Consider what you have gained and how you have grown as a result.

If you haven’t learned as much from your peers as you could, seek out opportunities to learn more from them. Go beyond chatting about the day-to-day and talk about your unique skills, passions, and experiences with each other over lunch in the dinning hall, during a late-night Hubbard’s run, or while watching the sun set at Wreck Beach. Get involved with a residence committee, or a campus club.

Regardless of how you do it, appreciate the diversity you have around you at UBC and seek to learn something from it. Take advantage of the unique opportunity you have while at University in residence to learn from an incredibly diverse group of peers.

/////////////////////////////////////////////Article by Sarah King, RA

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Tastes of Vancouver Food, food, food — it’s comforting, satisfying, great, awesome, friendly, lovable and sometimes disappointing. Have a bunch of friends with huge appetite for good food? All-you-can–eat is the ultimate affordable and fulfilling choice.To help you make an informed decision about where eat and what to order, here are some top picks from one of Place Vanier’s food connoisseurs.

So first up on my list is POSH on Broadway and Granville, a short twenty-five minute bus ride from UBC. POSH is just for you if you like to savor the marbled goodness of thinly sliced beef and pork. Imagine swiss fondue but with a savoury twist. In Japanese this kind of dining is known as shabu shabu. The dish is prepared by submerging a very thin slice of meat or a piece of vegetable in a pot of boiling water or dashi (broth) made with kombu (kelp) and swishing it back and forth several times. The familiar swishing sound is where the dish gets its name (shabu-shabu directly translates to "swish-swish"). This dish is a must try for the beef or meat lover, or for anyone who would like to experiment with new ways of consuming beef cooked to their preference. Searching for a place with all- you-can-eat-sushi and a range of Japanese and Korean mini dishes? How about an extra bonus: Korean meat barbeque and the option to order as much as you want! If this sounds like something you like, Shabusen on Burrard in downtown Vancouver is certainly your choice. Shabusen delivers everything you would expect of a Japanese and Korean lavish feast. Most importantly it’s one price for everything you desire. Shabusen serves an assortment of California rolls, regular sushi, and a unique selection of marinated specialty meats that you can grill to your perfection. Each table has a personal barbeque pit built right in! Shabusen is a fun and fulfilling choice for all occasions. Wanting to splurge a little? How about going to a boutique Italian restaurant? Located at Denman and Robson, Nook serves up some of the best Italian pasta and authentic Italian thin crust pizza. One of its star antipasto attractions, Prosciutto with Buffalo Mozzarella, creates the most fantastic taste extravaganza in your mouth. The savory smoky flavor of the Italian prosciutto ham brings out the rich and creamy notes of the moist buffalo mozzarella, and the dash of rock salt and organic extra virgin olive oil just add to the magic. The main dishes at Nook consist of an assortment of pasta and pizza all priced below $15. The pasta dishes are sourced from a high end brand that is cooked al dente, and the texture is just right for a picky connoisseur like me. One of my favorite meals is Orecchiette, a pasta dish served with Italian sausage, fennel, rapini and chillies. What makes it so good, you ask? The right amount of herbs (nothing too overpowering) allows you to truly appreciate the aromas that exude from this traditional Italian dish. End your Italian adventure with their homemade tiramisu (if your are lucky, they don’t make it every day). The authentic Italian deal, this tiramisu is like a dance of romance in your mouth. The right ratio of espresso to Marsala liquor and the mascarpone cream cheese flourish right from your first bite down. All-in-all, Nook serves up simple, unpretentious Italian goodness. It is a definite must try if you are a big fan of Italian food.

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////Article by Christopher Chen, RA

Dear Coco;

So my first semester of university is coming to end. I started the year with what I thought was a clear idea of what I wanted to study, and what I wanted to get out of my degree. However, I now have no idea what is going on in my life – there are just too many options out there, and I don’t know how to choose, or where to start. Help?

Sincerely,Lost and Indecisive

Dear Lost,

Newsflash: You are in your first year of university. Despite what your parents might be telling you, you do not need to have your life planned out by the time you are 18. It is unfair that we enter university feeling like we need to have the next 50 years of our lives organized. I’m not sure about you, but I don’t even have a handle on what I am doing next week, not to mention what I will be doing 10 years down the road. It is not fair that we are expected to understand all the options that are available to us so early in life, or even fully understand our strengths, weaknesses and passions. My advice to you is this: find a piece of paper, and write down what you enjoy doing, and what things you want to accomplish in life before you graduate, before you retire, and before you ‘kick the bucket’. Once you have something concrete written down, go out and start getting those things crossed off your list. Get involved in things that you ENJOY doing, things that you find fun, not things that are simply resume boosters. We are still young enough to have big dreams, and now is not the time to start doing things because you have to, but because you want to. The question shouldn’t be “What do I want to be when I grow-up?”, but “What can Ido today that will make me happy?”.

Someone once told me that the work you do when you procrastinate is probably the work you should be doing for the rest of your life. Think about it. If it makes you feel any better, I have recently come to the conclusion that even the most put together adults still feel panicked and confused – they are just better at hiding then the rest of us. So relax, you don’t need to make yourmind up today, or even tomorrow.

Fake it til you make it, Coco

Is your life super awkward and embarrassing (AKA awesome)? Wanna share with the world how awesome you are? Have questions you want Coco to answer? Send in your questions to vaniervibenews@gmail.com

(Find Coco on her twitter @court_0220 or visit www.fakeittilyoumakeitdotcom.wordpress.com)

SCORPIO (OCT 23 – NOV 21) This month, the stars of destiny will give you 6 paper-cuts. Don’t cry too much

though, an attractive person will come to your rescue with a band-aid. Befriend them. Or more. Thefates can’t decide that.

SAGITTARIUS (NOV 22- DEC 21) Pulls from Pluto, although no longer considered a planet, will force you to try and

wear your socks backwards this month. Props to youif you figure out how that works.

CAPRICORN (DEC 22 – JAN 19) The fluctuations of the Sun will make you hot and heavy this month…for chocolate. Give in to your cravings, as eating chocolate

will be the only good thing to look forward to whilestudying for your exams.

AQUARIUS (JAN 20 – FEB 19) Gnomes will enter your dreams near the end of December. Tell no one. They will think

you are weird.

PISCES (FEB 19 – MARCH 20) You will sneeze four times this month, no more and no less. Keep a tally to make sure

you do not go over your quota, or you will cause asmall tree to fall down in the Nitobe gardens.

ARIES (MARCH 21-APRIL 19) Starting on the 21st of this month, your brain will enter hibernation mode for 10 days.

Prepare to not think like a real person until the startof the new year.

TAURUS (APRIL 20 – MAY 20) You will be bogged down by a herd of stags running through Vanier on December 22nd.

Just kidding - you will not be in Vanier on the 22nd.

GEMINI (MAY 21 – JUNE 20) Thoughts of a crusty dill pickle taken out of the jar in 1989 will come into your head

every time you hear a cat meow. Spend more time around dogs or parrots in order to think of nicerthings.

CANCER (JUNE 21 – JULY 22) On the 27th, instead of speaking, you will communicate through song and dance.

Spend a lot of time in large public spaces in order tofind friends to sing and dance beside you.

LEO (JULY 23 – AUG 22) . On the 26th, tripping over a candy wrapper will land you into a pile of ice-cubes. Spend

the day on the couch licking your wounds, with aglass of eggnog in your hand.

VIRGO (AUGUST 21 – SEPTEMBER 22) This month, a box of Kraft Dinner will fall out of a tree and hit you on the head,

knocking you unconscious for 3 days. You will haveno memory of this, nor will anyone around you.

LIBRA (SEPTEMBER 23-OCTOBER 22) This month, you will tell your family all of your fun experiences you have had living in Place Vanier so far, one of them being

reading the Vanier Vibe. Show your Gramma. Make her our top follower.

Horoscopes

Follow the Vanier Vibe on Twitter and Tumblr!Get the latest updates and learn when the next Vanier Vibe is out!

Twitter: @vaniervibeTumblr: http://thevibeblog.tumblr.com/

Email: vaniervibenews@gmail.com

let’s build community together$1000 Community Grants available to be won!UTown@UBC Community Grants are being awarded to students, faculty, staff and other residents who live on campus for creating fun and inspiring projects that build community on campus. Past recipients have launched musical performances, plays, parenting workshops and more.

Deadline for applications is December 31st, 2011.Visit www.planning.ubc.ca/grants and apply today.

UTown@UBC is UBC’s vibrant residential community on campus where over 18,000 students, faculty, staff and other residents live, work and learn together.