I’m graduating this spring, which means you’re reading my last editorial. I’ve been on The Nav’s masthead since 2016 and contributing since 2014. Originally, I planned for this editorial to be a sappy goodbye to both The Nav and VIU. But, in the spirit of making the most of this space (which I will never again occupy), I’ve decided to rank the best 7-Eleven snacks instead:
15. Root Beer Slurpee
14. Nachos
13. Starbursts
12. Oreo Sandwich
11. Big Bite Cheddar Smokie
10. Hershey’s Cookies ‘n’ Crème
9. Mario’s Gelati Bliss Bar
8. Pringles Salt & Vinegar
7. Coffee Crisp
6. ...
“'All Alone, In The Zone' is a sympathetically observed, precisely detailed piece about a momentary but profound human connection. The journey it takes us on, from the usual assumptions about the homeless, hastily made, to a fuller appreciation of its subject, is impressive.”
— Non-Fiction Judge: Frank Moher
All Alone, In The Zone
Alex has dreadlocks. They hang like tangled ropes over his face and shoulders, some of them bleached peroxide-blonde. Despite the patchy beard, his youth still shows. He doesn’t want his photo taken. He stands in the parking lot of a Tim Hortons, ...
"This narrative has been compressed and pared down to its essentials; the result is an original and distinctive flash fiction in many ways akin to a poem. It’s a story that has a powerful emotional effect. I admire the way the writer has taken our current terrifying situation—inaction on climate change—and made it into a piece of art that reminds us of what we might prefer to forget, but at the same time, by its very existence, offers at least a whiff of hope.”
— Fiction Judge: Kathy Page
By Degrees
He lay in the dusty bed of a long-dried river underneath the hull of an ...
“The poem has a very clever title and is delightfully inventive from there on. The word choices are stunningly original throughout. This poem does what all good poems do: surprise and delight. The poem uses vivid details in lush and original ways. From the opening line: ‘The morning ripens,’ through to the end, it remains consistent in metaphor and continuously inventive. Some of my favourite phrases include: ‘the cabal of Spring gurgles,’ ‘cocoon of frost,’ and ‘grumble of the furnace.’ This poem renders familiar experiences in completely new ways. It is a thrilling poem to read and ...
This semester VIU visual arts students end the year by showcasing their eye-popping artwork in two shows at The View Gallery and building 325. Both shows begin on April 18.
Progressions, an exhibit hosted in building 325, showcases work from first, second, third, and fourth-year students. Before the exhibit starts, there will be an awards ceremony for the students from 6:30 to 7:30 pm in building 210. Classrooms 123 and 213 in building 325 will be converted into galleries, as well as the hallways and corridors.
Progression has run for over 30 years, though each year the title of ...
We’re at the end of another semester. For some, this means escaping into the summer months before returning in the fall, for others it means sun-filled days spent indoors … still on campus. But for close to 500 students, that the day is soon approaching when they will file down the aisle, with tassels bouncing, towards the convocation stage. Brimming with smiles, tears, and memories of long days and longer nights.
There will be speeches by valedictorians and program chairs. Audiences filled with parents who still remember the first day of kindergarten (and inevitably remark on how it ...
Last week, I spent a Sunday afternoon with my girlfriends Britt and Shelby, day-drinking at a local brewpub (as you should). As we walked into White Sails Brewing in Nanaimo, I immediately noticed the long line of people reaching from the till to almost out the door. When we eventually made it to the counter, I leaned up against the bar and looked at the list of beers available. They ranged from IPAs to lagers to stouts, to ales. I decided to order a flight—four small tasters of beer—and turned around to look for a place to sit.
The place was crowded. There were young families holding ...
Eliot White-Hill’s family has been engaged with the Snuneymuxw community for generations. His great-grandmother, Dr. Ellen White, was a life-long advocate and teacher, and an Elder-in-Residence at VIU for thirteen years. She and his great-grandfather, Chief Doug White I, worked together to advance Indigenous rights and combat social inequality. His grandmother, Joyce White, was instrumental in creating the First Nations Studies program when VIU was Malaspina College in 1994. White-Hill’s father, Doug White III, graduated from Malaspina with a degree in First Nations Studies, then pursued ...
Fall 2018 saw the opening of VIU’s new Health and Science Centre (HSC), a state-of-the-art facility now home to many of the university’s Health and Chemistry programs which offers high-end amenities for future students. There are already plans in place to further improve the building. What might surprise some is that the potential next step for the HSC lies in its multi-stall bathrooms—and that plans for these bathrooms could lead to a shift throughout the whole campus.
Current design features alluding to this change aren’t exactly in your face, but they’re there. The wide entrance ...
Nanaimo Campus’s Elders-In-Residence Program welcomes Maxine Hayman Matilpi (Lakwa) and Barney Williams (Klith-wii-taa) to the team.
Elders-In-Residence programs can be found in universities across the country. VIU’s program has run since the 1990s, starting at the Cowichan Campus. At VIU, Elders can be found in roles that encompass student support, classroom instruction, teaching traditional protocols, and cross-cultural sharing. Elders are valued for their knowledge and experience, and the two newest elders each hold a long list of these qualities.
Maxine Matilpi, of ...
I’m graduating this year, which means you’re reading my last editorial. I’ve been on The Nav’s Masthead since 2016, and Managing Editor since 2017. Originally I planned to do a little poem about my time at The Nav, but then I saw Spenser’s 7-Eleven snack list. While I cannot abide his erroneous list, I thought I’d utilize my space by ranking every 7-Eleven in Nanaimo from best to worst, so you know where to get your snack on.
Nicol Street (R.I.P)
If you’ve been around long enough to remember the Nicol Street 7-Eleven, then you know what I’m talking about. Best selection, cleanest ...
This season, the VIU Mariners women’s volleyball team became the first team in CCAA history to win back-to-back National Championships. This was their third National title in four years.
“It feels amazing,” Head Coach Shane Hyde said. “It’s awesome to be the first team to win back-to-back National Championships. We knew our team was good, but to put up that kind of a performance over the weekend was outstanding. To see the girls work that hard is all you could ask for as a coach.”
The Mariners travelled to Niagara College for the tournament after finishing their regular season atop ...
LIBRA · Sep 23-Oct 23
Libra, I’m going to drop a real truth bomb on you here: you don’t need to please anybody but you. I’ve got three simple rules for you to live by this spring season; live, laugh and love. (Live under a rock, laugh until you pee, love pizza).
SCORPIO · Oct 23-Nov 22
Joe asked me for a nice Scorpio horoscope this month so here you go. In case you were worried about it, you’re a good person Scorpio. You’re trying your best to achieve your dreams but you don’t step on other people’s toes on the way up. That’s only going to serve you well in the long run and ...
Nestled in Wesley Square of the Old City Quarter is Bend Over Backwards, a yoga studio run by Kelly Murphy. Bend Over Backwards is a fair-sized studio, with cork board flooring, a treasure trove of yoga props, and in place of the usual wall-length mirrors, a “rope wall” with adjustable straps that help yogis achieve advanced poses.
Classes at Bend Over Backwards are taught in the Iyengar tradition. Iyengar yoga is named after the late yoga master and scholar, B.K.S. Iyengar. Iyengar has published several books, including The Path to Holistic Health, The Tree of Yoga, Core of the Yoga ...
I was going to try and write a recipe that wasn’t for the Instant Pot, wondering if I should message my mom and ask her how to make puffed wheat squares. But our graphics team was very adamant I write up the lasagna recipe I was humbly bragging about the other day. And I am not one to deny the requests of our graphic team.
Now, for this recipe you need to get a little fancy. Time to find a dish that will fit in your instant pot and handle the pressure and heat pretty well. There are various ones you can use, but I snagged myself a 7” springform pan. Look at us, getting high ...
The little fish yawns like an operatic tenor,
as if he wants to sing to the clams that are digging—
to the coral reefs who are judging
that b-flat that he is belting.
The little fish yawns like my dog Buttons
after she wakes from her nap and then shakes her head—
trying to loosen her neck
and then scratch those fleas!
The little fish yawns like a child riding the bus
who holds her mom’s hand as she bumps in her seat—
trying to get a view through the window of the geese
that are eating grass in a park.
The little fish yawns like a big cat on the Sahara,
waiting for the ...
To start 2019 off on a positive note, my partner Peter and I decided to partake in “dry January.” After the alcohol we drank over the Christmas holidays, we figured that our livers (and wallets) would thank us. I’m not much of a drinker anymore, and I predicted that dry January would be a breeze. As it turned out, the cravings I experienced were tenacious.
The first time I noticed an alcohol craving was when I wanted to ‘relax’ and put on a movie. Shortly after, I identified the desire to drink after a long day. My alcohol cravings came up again and again when I felt the need to ...
This season has been one of the most successful in recent memory for the VIU Mariners across the board.
Our women’s volleyball team defeated the King’s College Blue Devils 3-0 to win gold in the CCAA National Championship 3-0, becoming the first team to defend their championship title and the first to win back-to-back. The men’s volleyball took bronze at nationals against the Keyano Huskies in a 3-2 victory.
Both the women’s and men’s basketball teams won the PACWEST Provincial Championships. The women triumphed over the Capilano Blues 82-77. The men pulled out a win against the ...
Western Edge Theatre’s upcoming play weaves audience members into two high-stake storylines that intertwine like a fragment of DNA.
From March 29 to April 7, the local theatre company presents Sequence, a multi-award-winning play by Calgary playwright Arun Laka, at Harbour City Theatre. Sequence, a comedic science thriller, is the last play in Western Edge Theatre’s current season.
“It’s not your typical straight-up storyline, identifiable-characters type of play,” Director Brian March said. “It’s a play about big ideas. Each of the four characters really represents something that ...
On March 24 and 31, the Nanaimo Art Gallery will host the athut / Words Bounce reading series, which consists of two afternoons of poetry from emerging and celebrated poets.
The Nanaimo Art Gallery annually devotes an entire year’s programming to a specific thematic inquiry. This is the gallery’s third year in which they’ve come up with a theme that takes the form of a question. This year’s inquiry: “scekwul yuxw ‘alu kws nec’s tu sqwal ct,” which is in Hul’q’umi’num, the language of the Snuneymuxw people, and translates to “how can we speak differently?”
The athut / Words Bounce ...
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), timing and secrecy is everything. The release of Black Panther in 2018, just before Avengers: Infinity War, introduced MCU fans to the kingdom of Wakanda and T’Challa (Black Panther). This increased the emotional blow when the audience saw him disintegrate into dust from the snap of Thanos’ fingers in the latter installment. While crumbling superheroes came as a shock to everyone, the set-up felt natural and unforced. Captain Marvel is a great movie, but, this time, in anticipation of another Avengers blockbuster, it feels like an unnecessary ...
How long have you been Head Coach of the Mariners Men’s Volleyball team, and how did you get the position?
This is my ninth year as head coach of the Men’s program. Chris Densmore was the head coach at the time, and he asked me to help out as a team physician. As an athlete all my life I never thought I’d be a head coach, but after establishing my clinic I had more time so I figured why not. That kind of got my foot in the water.
How would you describe your coaching style?
I’d consider myself a motivator first. I’m not the yell-and-scream-to-get-his-point-across type of coach. ...
Sandwiched between the old Island Highway and Wallace Street is a gallery and classroom, dedicated to the development of ceramic arts. Facing Wallace Street, four floor-to-ceiling windows showcase pillars of pottery and ceramics, while to the right of the building a courtyard homes the large crowns of trees, flooded with sunshine.
In May of 2018, Bronwyn Arundel transformed the bright, open space into something that could host large workshops and show off the delicate skill of the artists that practice in it. The studio and gallery share the same roof and aqua-blue flooring, with the ...
In January of this year, I started an internship at Windowseat Books in Nanaimo, in partnership with a creative writing course at VIU. The object of the course is to familiarize students with areas of interest, primarily in the editorial industry. This parallels my interest—my hopes, I suppose—for after graduation, but conceptualized as more of a means to the end than something pursued out of passion.
The internship at the independent bookstore taught me many valuable things, but foremost it was a confirmation that doing something you’re passionate about will always bring pleasure. ...
