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Did you ever have an idiosyncrasy as a child? I did this rather ridiculous thing as a child, where I saved the best for the last. It started off by saving the best bite of food for the end. Slowly, that habit bled into other parts of my life. For example, if someone gave me…
99% of the feature stories about someone who has achieved “success” are because they have a special talent, create an awesome product, do something fantastic, or are hit by a brain wave which goes on to reach millions of people and change the world. There are very few stories about people who succeed and inspire…
Over the course of our collective social isolation during the pandemic, I’ve noticed that it’s sometimes much easier for people to validate the struggles and stressors of others before acknowledging the toll of one’s own. I’ve seen how COVID-19 can intensify my friends’ very difficult living situations at home, put strain on years-long relationships, and…
After celebrating Black History Month, we continue to hear loud calls for more diversity in newsrooms across the country, in corporations and in Parliament. Canadians have correctly pointed out a diversity gap in all those power structures. But the diversity deficit doesn’t end there; it’s also in the boardrooms of charities and non-profits. It’s always…
Each day, somewhere in the world, history is being made. Incidents happen, inventions are created and there are occasions in time which make their mark on the story of life. March is a month of cold rain, hints of sun and slowly opening flowers. In the book of history, March has also been the month of sensational crimes, major…
In March 2020, I was in my first year and second term at UBC Sauder. I was caught up in running to my next class, going to Timmies and finding a quiet space to study. Then UBC shut down and my life became boring. Instead of walking to class, I walked to my desk and…
Mansion Global is the website of choice to visit if you’ve got a spare $5,000,000, $8,000,000, $10,000,000 million dollars to spend on a new home. Luxury villas, grand estates, fairy tale mansions and elegant penthouses from around the world are all on view to discover, select and buy. The site has all the usual features…
Barely a year ago, the COVID-19 pandemic began when the first case arrived in British Columbia. The restrictions in Canada escalated at a jarringly rapid pace. Coming home to Vancouver in February after four years of university (in the Netherlands and Victoria, B.C.), I returned to my old room in my parents’ house. With loving…
Every year the travel industry releases a list of the best passports. There is actually more than one list, but the one travel pros and industry insiders pay attention to is called the Henley Passport Index. (HPI) A happy disclaimer: The index is neutral. It does not grade cultures, societies or governments. It’s also not…
It felt reassuring to see the “two-metre” marks on the ground at the London Heathrow Airport. In late October, I was travelling from Paris to Vancouver with a layover in London. Back then, France had consistently more than 50,000 new cases daily and was on the brink of announcing a second lock-down. In Paris, I…
I never would have imagined experiencing such different weather conditions in a single year, and even less to be discovering them in Canada during lockdown. Last summer, as the heat increased and restrictions were relaxed and Vancouverites seemed to once again appreciate the city’s beautiful summer scenery, I had to pack my bags and leave…
The Urban Dictionary has come a long way since it was first created by Aaron Peckham in 1999. The dictionary started its journey on the communications highway as a university side project and handbook for local college slang…which turned into a stand-in of Ask Jeeves.com when Peckham was 18 years old and in his 1st…
I think it’s safe to say that most of us are ready to leave the year 2020 behind. It was the year that kept on giving. Month after month, there was always some type of new unpredictability. As a student, seeing the chaos that ensued due to the pandemic was, quite frankly, unnerving. One more…
