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After a particularly rough day of classes, few things in life are better than relaxing to the festive croon of Michael Bublé’s voice as he sings all the holiday classics. It’s around this time of year that I begin counting down the exact number of days until Christmas Day, blasting Christmas music around the house on my laptop speakers, and nagging my housemate endlessly about the next time she plans on visiting her home in Toronto to pick up our decorations. All of this probably makes me guilty of propagating the widespread pre-Christmas consumerism rampant in early to mid-November, but I love it.
For Western society, Christmas probably marks the largest marketing event of the year. I remember heading to Fortinos a couple of weeks ago, only to find the shelves already cleared of markdown post-Halloween candy and readily stocked with ribbon-and-tinsel wreathes. When I went to the Eaton Centre that very same weekend, I found it swarmed with what must have been half the city, flocking to the mall to get their holiday shopping out of the way. This was weeks away from December, let alone Christmas.
Most widely perused streets now have their trees adorned in Christmas lights, and every coffee shop I pass by is promoting peppermint-flavoured drinks emerging to reclaim their menu space after a yearlong slumber. It’s almost as if November itself doesn’t exist: the transition from Halloween to Christmas seems to occur in the blink of an eye.
And yet, despite being a highly commercial time of the year, the thought of Christmas is usually the one thing keeping me sane in the weeks leading up to exams. There is something intrinsically happy about the preparatory Christmas atmosphere, whether it consists of curling up on the couch with a book in one hand and a steaming cup of hot cocoa in the other, dancing to Jingle Bell Rock during house cleaning and seeing the slight smiles on my housemates’ lips as they mouth the words in tandem, or even simply knowing that the gift you intend on giving someone will be absolutely perfect in letting them know how much you appreciate them.
Christmas isn’t something that has an expiration date. If there’s one thing the retail sector has done right, it’s in saying that it’s never too early for a bit of Christmas spirit. Underneath all the seasonal holiday promotions and crafty Christmas-themed ads (here’s looking at you, Coca-Cola) lies a far less tangible and far more valuable feeling, shaped by a time dedicated to our personal experiences with the people we love in the places we call home. The energy that comes with Christmas hype can and should be harnessed for motivation in getting you through the last few gruelling weeks of school, and the many social events hosted in its honour leading up to Christmas Day also serve as a reminder to take some time off for yourself, rather than working to the point of keeling over.
Winter is coming, and maybe the white walkers are coming with it, but if winter is coming, that means Christmas is too. And let’s be real: if you can handle multiple courses’ worth of exams, taking down a couple of white walkers in the meantime before Christmas gets here should be no problem at all.
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By: Naeema Bawa
‘Tis the season for holiday fun, but American department store Bloomingdale’s steered us in the wrong direction with their recent Christmas advertisement that sparked a worldwide conversation about rape culture.
A young man is fixed on a laughing young woman who is unaware of his anchored gaze. Between them lies the caption, “Spike your best friend’s eggnog when they’re not looking.”
To think that this advertisement made its way through a team of marketers and advertisers and managed to be authorized right through to its publication speaks loudly of the issues regarding rape culture. Spiking someone’s drink is illegal, yet this retail powerhouse assumed that it could be part of holiday festivities. The emphasis of the words “best friend” makes it clear that Bloomingdale’s is not concerned by the fact that 82 percent of sexual assaults are committed by non-strangers. It condones the cause of 75 percent of all reported rapes, which are committed by a date or an acquaintance, and the 25 percent of rapes that are facilitated by drugs, with alcohol being the most common.
After the company received immense backlash through social media, they apologized with the most poorly deficient tweet they could craft:
“We heard your feedback about our catalog copy, which was inappropriate and in poor taste. Bloomingdale’s sincerely apologizes.”
To describe the endorsement of drug-facilitated sexual assault as being in “poor taste” belittles the entire concept of date rape even further than the advertisement succeeded in doing. It is advertisements like this that take us backwards in making any progress to help men and women truly understand rape and consent; and yes, both genders would benefit from education on the matter. While consent may seem to be straight forward enough, many are still in need of clarification of standards like affirmative consent (which is relying on a clear and enthusiastic ‘yes’ from a partner) and continuous consent, to better grasp the legalities of sexual assault.
Memories of Bud Light’s appalling “Up For Whatever” campaign earlier this year resurface as another disturbing verification of rape culture. Bottles with slogans reading “The perfect beer for removing ‘no’ from your vocabulary for the night” stocked the shelves. The campaign perpetuated rape culture, displaying complete ignorance of the strong relationship between alcohol and sexual assault, and invalidating the fundamentals of consent. Bud Light issued a public statement attributed to the company’s vice president, explaining how they regret the campaign’s message and “would never condone disrespectful or irresponsible behaviour.” Multiple other spokespeople acknowledged the mistake made, apologizing on behalf of those behind the campaign. Bloomingdale’s, on the other hand, chose to make a weak apology through an incredibly impersonal and brief tweet that fails to address the experiences of victims of date rape and sexual assault. Since the advertisement is part of a Bloomingdale’s print catalogue, it cannot be retracted. Greater measures should definitely be made to exhibit corporate social responsibility and display a stronger understanding and regret for this insensitive wrongdoing.
A decent apology is a great place to start.
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By: Gizelle Panton
#1 - Emoji
Simple, cute and funny. All you need is a yellow dress or t-shirt and a matching skirt or pants, black shoes and fabric markers. Simply choose an emoji face and draw the face on your shirt with the markers (try to make it look as close to the iPhone emojis as possible). However, if you are not confident with your drawing skills, simply print out your emoji on an iron-on transferable sheet and iron it directly onto your costume.
#2 - Netflix and Chill
Affordable, easy to make and guaranteed to draw a chuckle from your friends. Costumes that embrace puns are especially useful for all you lazy folks out there. A popular one this year is the simple “Netflix and Chill” costume idea. All you need is a red t-shirt with the Netflix logo printed on it, a pair of black shades and a bag of ice that you can carry around to really heighten the punch line. Bonus: If you don’t want to carry ice around all day, you can use an old stuffed pillowcase, and label it “ICE.”
#3 - Pumpkin Skull
For those who are skilled in art and are willing to do a costume that is equal parts horrifying and economical, this is for you. The materials needed for this costume include an entirely black outfit, gray eye shadow and black and white face paint. Start by covering your face in white face paint, leaving circles around the eyes (you can set your paint by lightly dusting it with white face powder). Fill in the eye sockets with black face paint, making the black circles wide enough to reach the tops of your eyebrows and to the top of your cheekbones. Create a triangle outline with black face paint on the nose, creating two peaks at the top instead of one and fill it in completely. Now it’s time for the jagged smile! Extend your smile by drawing two black lines that start at the opposing mouth creases and end along the same line that your eyebrows end. Draw and fill in medium-sized triangles along the top and bottom of your line, covering the lips. With gray eye shadow, draw a set of frowning eyebrows above the area where your real eyebrows are to emphasize the serious look of your face, and dust-grey eye shadow along your hairline to add depth to your skull. Voila! You’re ready to go out and scare the town.
#4 - Throwback Hippie
It’s always nice to bring back old fashion statements and embrace where our current trends have come from. Whether you choose 20s fashion, 70s hippie fashion or retro fashion from the 90s, throwback costumes are always easy to recreate and fun to do. Just break out the old bellbottom jeans, a tie-dyed shirt, platform shoes and a bandana to tie around your head and pull the entire look together. Go out there this Halloween and prove that the past styles haven’t been forgotten.
#5 - Super Mario Bros
These costumes are best for a group of friends. You’ll need multicoloured t-shirts and hats (red for Mario, green for Luigi, pink for Peach, etc.) and a set of denim overalls for each character. For Princes Peach and Daisy, you can either choose to wear overalls as well, or wear a pink/yellow pleated dress or a matching t-shirt and skirt. Bonus: if you are travelling to your destination with your friends, you can choose to travel on bikes with balloons that match your colour tied to the back to help enhance the effect.
Photo Credit: vrpowell2000 on Imgur
By: Olivia Mondaro
With Christmas right around the corner, students are finding themselves in the same predicament: how to give great gifts without spending a lot of money. Although candles and Tim Horton’s gift cards are always a great alternative to jewelry and expensive clothes, there is another way to wow your family and friends: homemade gifts. DIY is the new black, and it has something for everyone.
What is something that every mom, dad, aunt, or uncle lives off of? Coffee. And what do these lovely people need to drink their coffee? A mug. One great D.I.Y. gift is a personalized mug, which is super easy to make and affordable, because all the materials can be found at the Dollarstore. First you need to choose a mug — white is the best option because it allows colour to show clearly. Next, round up whatever permanent markers you have shoved in your desk drawers and start drawing. Once the ink is dry, bake it in the oven on medium heat for 30 minutes, and voila! A personalized gift that won’t go to waste.
Another great gift to complement the D.I.Y. mug is a jar of hot chocolate. This gift employs the same draw-and-bake method as the mug. Choose a jar of any shape or size, like a mason jar. Using permanent marker, draw either a name or a pretty pattern, and then bake it in the oven for 30 minutes. Once it has cooled, fill the jar with hot chocolate mix and any other ingredients that you love in your cocoa, like marshmallows, sprinkles, or pieces of candy cane. Wrap a ribbon around the top of the jar and you’ve got a fabulous addition to your fabulous mug!
Sarah O'Connor
Staff Reporter
Dear Christmas,
You're my favourite holiday, and I know I’m not alone on that. I just can't resist you. I love the Christmas music, the Christmas specials, the candy canes, the Santa hats, the multicoloured trees and singing ornaments. The looks on my family’s faces, excitement and love, sitting around the Christmas tree and opening presents with glee. It’s a chance for us all to be together with no work or school. And once it snows, it will feel like you're right around the corner and the countdown can begin!
But while I love you dearly, you do get on my nerves from time to time. It's only November, Christmas. And that means one thing – it's too early for you!
Last week, I saw you in every store in the mall. Your red and green sweaters, flashing toys, ridiculously early sales and neon twinkling lights[1] - you were practically shouting that you were on your way. Halloween hadn’t even arrived yet! I’m sorry, Christmas, but that’s just a little rude.
Even though Halloween isn't my favourite holiday, I enjoy the appearance of black cats and witches’ hats, but I certainly don't need you breathing down my neck so much. Halloween gives you no excuse to be so creepy.
Christmas, it’s only November. We still have Remembrance Day, and our neighbours in the States still have Thanksgiving, I know we don’t have any more days off until you arrive but these holidays are just as important as you, maybe even more so since they haven’t been commercialized like you have.
Every time I leave my house I’m afraid to see your telltale LED lights because you’ve convinced another person that Christmas is only two months away. I shiver looking at my Newsfeed on buying propecia Facebook in case one of my friends has posted a daily countdown to Christmas.
I love you Christmas, but let’s slow it down. By the time it's really your moment to shine, people will be sick of you. With the way you're acting now, people are going to replace you with Boxing Day. Perhaps some already have.
In a nutshell, people are starting to think you're desperate, Christmas.
Sincerely,
A Christmas lover who likes the wait
Sarah O'Connor
Thanksgiving is over and as the last leftovers of turkey slowly depart from our refrigerators, a new holiday is quickly approaching: Halloween.
Yes, Halloween. A night to dwell into the supernatural, to stay up late watching horror movies, to dress-up and be something you're not. It's the one night we allow ourselves to re-kindle those warm feelings of childish glee from Halloween. We stuff our face with chocolate and don’t have to worry when our next exam is due.
But like anything that brings the slightest bit of joy, Halloween comes with a price.
Even D.O.T. Patio and Home have gotten into the spirit of Halloween by selling costumes and accessories for that haunted evening. And as I've wandered through that store on lazy afternoons, I can't help but notice one thing - the price of the costumes.
The price range for most women's Halloween costumes is between forty to sixty dollars. And let's be honest with ourselves, there isn't much to them. A typical woman's costume is sexy and sparkling with tight-fit tops and skirts that look like belts. A skimpy thing like that for sixty dollars? I don't think so.
On the other hand, the price range for men's costumes is typically between $20 - $40. True, there isn't as much variety as there is for women's costumes, the costumes tend to focus more on pop-culture or being hilarious parodies instead of being sexy. But people seem to care greatly about what they will wear on Halloween night, no matter the price.
It's not just D.O.T., all companies that sell adult Halloween costumes have these prices. We allow companies to commercialize holidays that are dear to our hearts. We empty our pockets on the conviction that by doing so we ensure the greatest night of our lives, when all we really have an over-priced costume hanging in our closets only to be replaced by a new, over-priced costume next year.
We always mourn the commercialization of Christmas but what ever happened to Halloween? What happened to the night of chills and thrills, of fear and excitement? What happened to a holiday about fun? When did money start ruling our lives?
