2Jacketz Literary Rap Concert

This past Thursday, Sulli’s own 2Jacketz Nation hosted an event in the library, a fitting place to hold a Literary Rap Concert.  After noisily lining up in the foyer, we gleefully filed inside the library, and crowded up to the stage, which was, in actuality, just all the desks available pushed together.  Once everyone was packed inside, Mr. Begg hopped up onto the stage and gave a brief intro, occasionally interrupted by himself and his assistant Horatio (based on the Shakespearean character) throwing ring-pops into the crowd.  Obviously, this was so we could become as blinged up as they were.  Then the first piece began, a poem written and performed by Gatzby (based on the F. Scott Fitzgerald character).

“There has never been a day when I can walk down the street with blank eyes.

I saturate, associate, yeah, create narrations about the mundane inclinations of life.

And juxtapose the decrepit with the prose, which unscrolls itself before me,

A movie reel of parnassum beauty, projecting its fantastical hues upon the clouded expanses of the city.

You see, words have always been a part of me.

From the fumbling syllables and clunky consonants of second grade reading lessons,

To the pilgrimages made to the dust-shrouded bookshelves of the clouds

Those syntaxes have stitched themselves into the synapses of my mind.”

After the opening act, the official rap concert began.  The Wolfpack, assisted by Hazelle David, performed a slightly… modified, (and considerably cooler,) version of the Reading Rainbow theme.  It was great.

The event concluded with Mr. Begg presenting to the crowd a copy of the 2Jacketz comic book, telling the story of his defeat of Santa Claus, the greatest menace our world has ever seen.  Just then, said Great Menace turned up behind the crowd, proclaiming that Mr. Begg’s account of events was dramatically different than the truth.  He then challenged Mr. Begg and 2Jacketz to a battle, which will occur at the Winter Extravaganza this year.  Presumably this fight is to the death.

It’s time to pick sides:

“Santa And The Elves” or “Begg And 2Jacketz.”  May the best team’s name be honoured throughout history.

The Grad Boat Cruise

The Grad Boat Cruise is an annual event held for all the grade twelve students in which they go on a boat, party, and then try not to fall asleep during our classes the next day. I’m proud to tell you that the event went off more or less without a hitch, and to share some of my favourite moments.

First of all, when the bus arrived at the docks and we crowded off, we were incredibly dismayed to find a total lack of shelter from the cold, so penguin huddling commenced in a poor attempt to retain any amount of warmth.  After we were able to board the boat, (which was considerably warmer,) students slowly made their way to the outer portion of the middle deck to reenact Titanic. It’s worth mentioning that once the boat started moving, going outside became even riskier and colder.  It was about as miserable as one would think, when one is standing outside in 1°C (feels like -2) weather on a moving boat.

The party itself was excellent, and featured pizza and chips, two of the main food groups required by teenagers.  The dancing went exactly as well as can be expected, when it involved females in very high heels on a heavily rocking boat.  I heard that one person went down, but that is no more than rumour at this point.  After a certain point, most of the heels that were walked onto the boat ended up piled against the walls.  Music-wise, the selection was excellent, and the DJ was great.  Finally, the lower deck was almost entirely deserted for more-or-less the whole cruise, so refuge from the loud music and could be found there whenever the party got a little intense.  Overall, it was a very good event.

I attempted to take some pictures at the event on the high quality camera I brought (my iphone).  First of all, I saw most of the normal things you’d see at such a party.

Dancing.

More dancing.

A very cool dj.

That unique feeling of victory that comes from winning at arm wrestling on a boat.

A terrible staged photo from the only two people who agreed to have a clear picture of their faces put online.

Despite being crowded, loud enough that I almost lost my voice entirely, and at certain points rather like a pinball machine of people crashing into each other as the boat rocked, the grad boat cruise was really a fantastic party.  I’d highly recommend attendance next year for any grade 11s.

Trans Day Of Remembrance

In the wake of Remembrance Day, another event occurs each year to commemorate lives lost, though with considerably less fanfare.  This past friday was Trans Day of Remembrance, a day to recognize the violent acts committed against Transgender people.  Trans Day of Remembrance was started in the US 17 years ago, after trans woman Rita Hester was murdered in her home.  Despite the improvements in awareness of trans issues, the rates of hate crimes against trans people are still obscenely high.

According to National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs, a data collected from 16 US states showed that 72% of the victims of all reported hate murders in 2013 were trans women, a status that seems to incur ridiculously amounts of hatred.  Transgender people are twice as likely to be unemployed than cisgender people (those whose sex assigned at birth matches their gender).  In the workplace, 90% of trans people reported being harassed or discriminated against.

A noteworthy group for trans (as well as other LGBTQ) teens between the ages of 13 and 21 is Youth For A Change, a group founded in 2012 for the purpose of offering support to teens in need.  They work in the area of education, visiting schools to inform students about queer issues, healthy relationships, and queer-inclusive sex-ed.  Youth For A Change has also helped in formulating school board policies to protect queer students.  For the past year, they have partnered with QUIRKE, a writing collective for queer elders, to exchange prompts and written pieces.  The project is in the process of being published as an anthology.

Youth For A Change holds open meetings on monday nights from 6:30 to 8:30, during which anyone can drop in.  The meetings are held at the Newton Youth Resource Centre, on 76th Avenue and and just off King George.  Any member of the LGBTQ community within the age bracket is welcome to attend.

A Day To Remember

Sapper Jennifer Labrador lays a Canadian flag at the grave of fallen soldier in a military cemetery in Calgary.

Jeff McIntosh/Canadian Press, 2008

Remembrance Day has the unique power to bring people together by commemorating lives lost across 52 countries, (almost all of the Commonwealth,) while serving in the line of duty.  If there is one thing that any part of the world can relate to, it’s the feeling of loss when a loved one marches away, then the unique dread while waiting for the news of their possible return.  As November eleventh approaches, people begin to reflect on how the actions of those no longer with us have shaped the lives we lead today.  At the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour (11:11) two minutes of silence are held in honour of the people who never got the chance to see what their sacrifice had done for the world.

Though Remembrance Day was originally established as Armistice Day to acknowledge the date hostilities ceased at the end of World War I in 1918 “at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month,” it has evolved to encompass all lives lost in the line of duty since then.  Some notable Canadian acknowledgements of the lives lost in war include the World War Books of Remembrance in the Memorial Chamber of our Parliament building.  The books, which are open to public viewing, list the names of the Canadians who lost their lives in both World Wars.

The First World War Book Of Remembrance.

Veterans Affairs Canada

Also in Ottawa is the Canadian War Museum, a stark grey building meant to represent the horror and desolation of war.  However, the roof of the building is one of the increasingly popular “Green Roofs,” a device symbolizing the period of growth, relief, and regeneration that follows a war.  The inside of the museum is made of angled stone and concrete, providing a cold atmosphere, with an uneven floor meant to unsettle the visitor.  In the museum is the Memorial Hall, which vaguely resembles a concrete safe from the exterior, but the inside is made of concrete blocks that allude to tombstones.  A single window in the wall is designed to allow a beam of sunlight to show through and land on the headstone of the Grave of the Unknown Soldier, but only on November 11th at 11am.

A view of the museum at night.

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An aerial view of the museum, including the green roof. 

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The exterior of the Memorial Hall.

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A view of the Gravestone in the Memorial Hall on November 11th at 11:00am.

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Here at Sullivan Heights, assemblies are being held on November tenth, hoping to encourage students to reflect on the events that occurred so long ago, while still being incredibly relevant to the lives we lead today.  The eleventh is a statutory holiday in British Columbia, and consequently, schools are closed.  In years past, the school drama program has performed a piece thematically appropriate to the occasion, and the famous poem “In Flanders Fields” has been presented.  Additionally, the school choir will be performing in this year’s upcoming Remembrance Day Assemblies.