We're all a bunch of insomniacs

Insomnia as defined by the Oxford Dictionary "Inability to sleep; sleeplessness"

Insomnia as defined by Urban Dictionary "The state of sleep loss. No matter how much you desire dreamland, it refuses you entry. You stand at the gates, whining, crying, but stuck in the world of buzzing activity." (The first sentence needs a syntax evaluation...Sorry, English Major Pet Peeves)

I personally like the urban dictionary definition more, because well...it makes sense. I feel really bad, I was in one of my many last lectures (YES!!!!) and I fell a sleep. I couldn't even see the words straight. I just remember this...(Let me put it in a cute narrative)

The prof said "please turn to page 104 in your textbooks." I remember flipping to the pages. I remember the title. And then the text started to fade, maybe the font was too small for me to care. Maybe I need to reposition my head. I will read this text by lying my head on the table. You're heart starts to beat slowly. The voices are fading, but they're not completely silent. You can hear them in the back of your head like a distant cacophony. You can feel yourself sleeping, but you're not actually sleeping. I hope I don't snore. Damn! I think I just did. You, like a wave, fade in and out of consciousness. Sleep teases you and says "Come with me!" You say "I can't! It's the last lecture...maybe tonight?" The chair squeaks and drags, the bags shuffle and the binders open and close. Class ends and there's a wet spot on the page I was "supposedly" reading. I dozed off...again.Does anyone else have horrendously dark eye bags? Does anyone else look like the picture above? Like when I actually want to sleep, it doesn't come. It's like the sleep fairy comes at the most inconvenient times (Didn't you get my schedule??).

I was going to offer advice on how to avoid looking like a zombie and to sleep better, but I can't because I'm just as tired as you. Damn these exams. The worst part is, after you've had yourself a decent nap, your cognition process is a bit murky, you say random things that don't make sense...and well you look like #&*@! I remember my boss telling me I look like I hadn't slept for days and that I, "had the eye bags of a fourth year student."

Stick it out til' the end, yes? I feel like it's not JUST us first year kids, it's EVERYONE! Go ask you're friends at Ryerson or York. I'm sure they're all saying the same thing. I bet my life on it! I take that back...it's a rather risky price.

Just a few words of advice:
Good Luck on the exams! (I use that word loosely because luck and praying won't get you the grades, you have to ACTUALLY work for it.)

Epic Quote of the Week: I really wanted this to be the first November where it didn't snow the entire month, thanks to global warming. But DAMN! Mother Nature likes to screw with us. It's on the last day too! :( -Fatima Wahid


Epic Song of the Week:

Balancing the busy life

Hey everyone, Jessica here!

Along with Monday blogger Ranziba, it seems all nighters are a common pattern nowadays. It's been a full day of school and my evenings are shot with homework and playing sports. I notice many UTSC athletes are having a hard time balancing both. 

For example, at hockey practice only five or six girls would show up. The coach said everyone else was writing essays, finishing up labs, or other various school projects. It's not fun nor productive having a fraction of the players show up for practice, especially with semi-finals and finals fast approaching. 

If you know how to do it properly, balancing school and sports is simple.

I was lucky at a young age to have experienced the balancing act and compiled my top five list on how to keep an even scale.

1. Know your schedule

You should write down and know by heart all your due dates, practice, and game times. This is common sense. If you know you have an assignment due Thursday, but you have a game every Wednesday night - you should know to schedule your time accordingly. Word of advice, get your work done before you play. Two reasons. One, you won't be stressing about it at the game and two, when you get home, you can sleep peacefully once you walk in the door knowing your work is already finished.

2. Time management

If I could I'd bold this statement, make it 100 size font, and underline it in red at least 500 times - I would. This is the most important lesson in balancing a busy life. Everyone manages their time differently, here's how I do it. I know it sounds nerdy and a lot of work, but every day I plan out what I'm doing at every hour. This method has helped me for years because I know I don't have time to procrastinate. No time to slack. It keeps me focused and I always get my work done on time. Truth.

3. Don't stress

Balancing school and sports can be tough, but it doesn't have to take over your life. Of course most of your time will be dedicated to either of the two, but you should always make time for friends and family. Make sure you leave at least one hour in your day to just sit back and watch TV or go out with a friend. You deserve to. Just because you're busy, doesn't mean you need to sacrifice your social life.

4. Eat right

You need energy to keep going throughout the day! Duh! I know I shouldn't remind you, but it seems I keep reminding myself I need to eat properly. If I want to have the energy to play a sport, I need to eat food that will keep me going. Next week I will (possibly) post what you should and should not eat during exam time. According to a UTSC nutritionist of course. Stay tuned.

5. Have fun

Yadda, yadda, yadda, you've heard it all before. But, how can you have fun when you have a zillion things on your plate? Easy, develop a routine that's right for you. Once you get into the swing of things, you'll realize your stress levels will lessen and you'll actually have time to enjoy both school and sports simultaneously. Well, sports at least. Regardless, you should rarely sacrifice one or the other. These balancing skills are transferable. When you get into the real world, you'll be thankful you're one step ahead of the game.

Here's a fun fact: Back in the day, I was the prize you got in your Frosted Flakes.

Exams Schmexams! Looking on the brighter side of exam season :)

Hello blogosphere! Ranziba here, blogging to you from the dead of night (no, I'm not a vampire, just a regular student pulling an all-nighter), and hoping your Monday goes smoothly!

So my party people... are you getting excited yet?

You're asking me, about what? You're asking me, why should we be excited that exams are coming up? And you're asking me why I'm talking to myself? Well, the answer to all those questions is just one big (slightly creepy) smile.

Yes, yes, I know I might sound like a loony. But I'm a loony that's excited about exams coming my way. I know everyone is busy with exams and no one has time for more reading, so I'll make this one short and sweet folks. Literally!

I, like all of you, am pretty much dead from sleep deprivation, homework overload and hours of reading. BUT, I, unlike most of you (or at least I'm guessing) am also super duper excited to write those exams. Why? One word: freedom.


Imagine this: You're on a beach somewhere, with the calm summer breeze caressing your face and a cold drink in your hand. You're staring out at the ocean without a worry in your mind and ...well if you're actually seeing this vision, chances are that you've fallen asleep at your study carrol. But this could be you in just a few short weeks (wow did I just sound like a Bowflex ad?).


Once exams are done and dusted, you will have plenty of time to turn your dreams into a reality. The university closes for the Winter Break on Dec. 21st. and most of you lucky people will be done your exams by then and well on your way to your personal paradise - wherever that may be!

So in the spirit of positive thinking, I made a list of things to look forward to after exams:

-the holidays (presents, relation, warmth and food... does it get any better?)
-sleep all day
-no lectures, no tutorials, no assignments
-seeing your family (the jury is still out on this one)
-getting to hangout with friends
-curling up in bed and catching up on TV/movies
-seeing daylight (might not happen if you overdo the previous list item)
-having time to explore our beautiful city
-traveling out of the city, province, country
-no more concrete.. at least for a while!

So in this last week of classes and the next few weeks of torture, remember to look on the positive side of things, the light at the end of the tunnel the cake after the workout. And know that we're all in the same boat (headed towards graduationl). Also, in a few short weeks, the whole thing will start all over again. So cherish your time before you have to run in the crazy rat race that is life... or less cheesily, before you're back to being your regular ol' nocturnal, caffeine junkie of a U of T student!

In the meantime, take a study break and let me know in the comments below if you have things you're excited about doing after exams! Tweet me with your winter break plans @rantothezebra.

Until then, best of luck with you exams! There will always be a silver lining if you look for it. Happy holidays! :)

Students Party for a Cause!

Last Thursday November 24^th UTSC students capped off Movember fundraising at the 4^th annual Black & White Affair. The idea behind the event is simple – have a good time while doing something good for the world. This idea has seemed to have really resonated with students as it is one of the most anticipated events of the year. With that being said, the buzz around the Black & White Affair this year was unprecedented and unexpected to say the least. The buzz wasn’t without merit – the event was oversold at around 430 tickets, making it the first one to be sold out!

Everyone who attended looked fantastically chic and stylish in their black and white attire and DJ Armokidd and DJ Duo Good Times Sound provided the perfect sonic backdrop to the event and had everyone dancing till the end. The mix of groovy Top40, bouncy house music & powerful Reggae, Soca & Dancehall was the perfect musical concoction for smashing the dance floor. Overall, the event went smoothly but no event is complete without some hick-ups and setbacks.

The setbacks that caused the most grievances were the long wait times to get in due to a backlogged coat check. Some party goers were waiting outside in the cold for over 2 hours. Although organizing staff did as much as they could; it seemed futile to remedy any of the situations. As part of the organizing team I stayed outside with everyone stuck in line. Despite the setbacks, however bad they were, it seemed that once everyone got inside they were having a good time. I hope that attendees are not still disgruntled over the setbacks. The next event will be better because of the lessons learned, I promise.

Lastly, on behalf of the organizing team, I want to say thank you to everyone who attend the Black & White Affair and made it a success. Pictures will be uploaded soon and a link to them will be posted here, on my Twitter (@malcolmwong1), on the event page and various places on facebook. Keep an eye out for your glamour shots from the event! Till next time! J

OH NOES ASSIGNMENTS!?!

Okay guys, its me again Raphael back for Friday dose of weekly tips. As the Fall semester is coming to a close and exams are just around the corner, all the professors are trying to squeeze all the final assignments they can in their courses. And as every student in university is trying to finish their last minute assignments I feel that some tips are in need for those of us who don't know what to do. So here I am to the rescue!

1. Start early!

I'm serious, dead serious. Do not procrastinate. If you are a first year student reading this be aware! This is not high school anymore, this is university. No more pulling off all nighters, doing last minute, or copying from a friend. If your assignment is not a group assignment, you cannot rely on someone else to do the assignment for you. Just do little by little each day, separating the assignments into manageable chunks to avoid cramming and being stressed out like this kid in this picture. (I understand we only have a week left, but even starting a week before the due date is much better than last minute).

2. Seek help!

There are plenty of resources to help you get started. If you are working on a paper, book an appointment with the writing center at AC221 (but be early to book, as these spots are limited and fill up fast!). But if you can't seem to book an appointment, just drop in at around 12-2pm, and I am sure that someone there would be able to help you. If you are working on a math assignment, the math and stats center located at room AC312. And if you just need a quick question about an assignment, just e-mail your prof using your UTOR Webmail from portal. Make sure you use you .utoronto mail address or your e-mail may be sent to the junk mail of your professor. (Most students are actually afraid to e-mail their prof, but this may be the easiest and fastest way to get help without going through the hassle of going to their office hours. Fast and Easy, just don't be afraid, you're professors are there to help you!)

3. Work with others!

The best way to do well on your assignments is to work with other students in your class. This is a no-brainer because all of the students have the same assignment at hand, and any of your questions, chances are, your classmates know the answer to them. This is a great way to make new friends, and get a better mark in your course.

Work with others, and if my "google images" photos are not getting the message across, just take advantage of what the campus offers for you! (Also you don't have to study outside like the students above, but their smiles are proof that studying with others works!)

So because this week and next week are our last weeks of school before Christmas Break, make sure to get started early with your assignments, so STOP reading and GET to work! (just joking... but seriously don't procrastinate, I'm speaking from experience take my word for it.) So have a great weekend everyone, oh and work on your assignments!

...Truth causes peace

WAGWAN GUYS! You already know it’s Pulse Blog’s Thursday blogger, Moiz coming at you on this brisk fall (feeling like winter) day. So this week, I was reading the news and I stumbled upon something that flat out disgusted me. It wasn’t the first time I had read something like it. In fact, I was getting fed up from reading so many similar stories that I was actually cheeeeeesed.

Alright so, what I read was the case of the Shafia sisters. If you don’t know the story I’ll give you guys a breakdown of what it’s about. A man named Shafia, his wife and their son have all been accused for four counts of first-degree murder against their three daughters and his other wife. Shafia called his daughters “treacherous” because one of his daughters had been seeing another guy secretly for quite some time. The other two daughters had done nothing wrong, but Shafia believed that if one could do something like that, the others were bound to do the same. Basically, they were murdered because they dishonoured the family name according to Shafia.

The first problem here for me is that I have read different forms of this story way too many times. Most people would think that honour killing is only a problem in third world countries, but most of the recent stories I’ve read were stories from North America and the U.K!

The second problem is that it is the freaking 21^st CENTURY! Why this is still happening around the world makes no sense to me. I mean, I understand if your culture/religion doesn’t allow serious relationships until you’re older but there’s a certain line that one just cannot cross. Going back to the Shafia story, the youngest daughter once reported to the police that she wanted to be removed from her home because her father often threatened to kill them. She also told police that one day after they came home late from shopping, he hit her and pulled her hair, and her brother punched her in the eye. This is exactly my point, I understand that they were late and there should obviously be a consequence for that. But violence, making death threats and eventually following up on those threats CANNOT be justified in anyway. NOTHING gives any person a right to take someone else’s life away. Nothing can ever justify taking someone’s life away, whether it be culture, religion, “ruining the family’s name”, NOTHING!

The third thing that bothers me is (please don’t get me wrong on this, I am not putting down any religion in this post; so read the whole post before you form an opinion) how in most cases, people use religion to justify their actions. Now when the media realize this they’re always quick to mention it and the people who don’t know better end up forming an opinion of a WHOLE religion based on ONE person’s perspective of it (this one person’s perspective is normally wrong and doesn’t represent the view of an entire population at all). This sparks a chain reaction of more and more people misunderstanding the actual beauty behind EVERY belief.

Well that marks the end of this rant. Do you agree or disagree? Let me know where you stand in all of this in the comment box below.

Until next week readers.

Peace and Love.

Moiz’s quote of the week: A misunderstanding causes war, the truth causes peace.

Stumped. I need a musical pick me up!

Hey Guys,
It's E.A.P and right now I'm in a weird blank state of mind where everything comes but nothing stays.  I didn't think it was possible but my mind literally feels empty!
Is it that end-of-semester worn out feeling?

I thought I'd make this post about happy songs.
These are the songs I like to listen to when I'm down:











And finally...


What do you listen to when you're down? Comment below and let me know :)