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Contact: Elliot Chan, Opinions Editor
Mopinions@theotherpress.ca

¥ Sensitivity braining
(Y Flags don’t kill people
(Y Pack an extra change

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Get your filthy stinking sunlight away from me

» Why I hate the outdoors

| Cazzy Lewchuk
Staff Writer

 

oa is here, and the sun
is shining brighter than ever.
As the sun beats down upon our
faces, the ultraviolet rays cause
us to develop sunburns, sweat
profusely, and complain about
the weather. I’m definitely one of
these heat-hating people. I don’t
care how “nice” the weather is, I
don't like the beating sun, and |
don’t like having to spend more
time outdoors than necessary.
Sure, playing outside is fun
for an hour or so. You can soak up
some rays, drink a Coke (because
beer is still illegal) on the beach,
and throw a frisbee around. But
pretty soon the drinks are empty,
you're sweating profusely, your
skin is charred, and you're asking
for the sweet relief of losing
consciousness.

It’s hot out—much too hot

: out—and it’s just not something
: we're used to. Spring is a good

: time, when the sun is shining

: and the temperature is still :
: reasonable. You can doall of your :
> summer activities then, without
: all the terrible things summer

: brings.

There are so many

: alternatives to going outdoors.

: Spending time indoors

: surrounded by air conditioning,
: cold drinks, and Netflix is still

: enjoyable, without the heat

: getting the best of you. There’s

: social pressure to go outside

: and spend time outdoors for no
: real reason except to enjoy the

: weather, but some of us don’t like :
: what it offers.

Besides the heat, outdoor

: activities may exacerbate

: allergies, lead to overexertion

: and dehydration, or bring us into
: contact with crowds of people.

: Avoid those situations by heading
: indoors this summer; you might

 

 

: find it to be a more enjoyable

: experience than whatever was

: out there. You can see a movie

: in an air-conditioned theatre,

: enjoy a beer in an air-conditioned
: pub, or simply not leave any of

: the comforts found in your air-

conditioned home.

oo

It seems to be getting

: hotter every year, and it’s hard

: to plan for activities even after

: checking the forecast to avoid

: the heat wave. Perhaps many

: of us are used to the scorching

: temperatures, especially if we're
: originally from an area that gets

 

: this type of weather. But in BC,
: this type of heat only occurs a

: few months of the year. I prefer
: the cooler months, when you

: can go outside and the sun is

: still shining, but your shirt isn’t
: molecularly bonding with your
: body.

Image from thinkstock

 

Burning bridges

» Why closing public infrastructure for amusement is always a poor idea

Elliot Chan

».. Opinions Editor
M opinions
@theotherpress.ca

 

activities. It was Father’s Day,

ational Aboriginal Day, and of
course, International Yoga Day.
In Vancouver, the plan was to
close off the Burrard Bridge and
have one of the biggest outdoor

Jes 21 was a day of many

Bridge, sponsored by lululemon,
YYoga, and AltaGas, received

approached. Celebration turned
into hostility and mockery—at
one point, Premier Christy Clark
posted a photo of herself in front
of a Tai Chi centre with a caption
calling out “yoga haters.” Not
surprisingly, the event collapsed
as sponsors bailed.

I don’t have any problems
with large gatherings of people
doing yoga as long as I’m not
required to participate. What
tends to bug me is the misuse
of public infrastructure and
taxpayers’ money. Needless to
say I’ve never been a big fan
of parades, and the money
spent on an event like Om the

: Bridge could be better used

: maintaining the bridge itself. It’s
: not because I’m not flexible or

: that my Chaturanga pose needs

: significant work, I just think that
: if you want peace and harmony,

: closing off a major artery ona

: busy day is a bad idea.

That is not to say that all

: International Yoga Day events

: are failures; in fact, many large

: cities with greater congestion

: than Vancouver pulled them off.
yoga events in the world. Om the Paris hosted their event beneath
: the Eiffel Tower. New York yoga

: fanatics joined together in Times
enormous backlash as the big day : Square. It’s a little ridiculous

> both how chill and how stuck-

: up our city is. Vancouver is

: like a spoiled brat. You throw a

: party for it and it’ll just end up

: throwing a tantrum back, stating
: that it deserved more gifts and

> cakes.

This city just can’t handle

: large-scale events, because

: Vancouver always has to create

: mountains out of molehills.

: Remember when the Canucks

: were in the Stanley Cup Finals

: against the Boston Bruins, and

: the city decided to build a big

: outdoor screen so that we could
: all gather together to cheer for

: the team? The result was billions

: of dollars of destruction and four
: goals in the Canucks’ net.

One of Vancouver’s most

: annoying traditions is the

: Celebration of Light. For years,

: residents of the West End have

: had to deal with hundreds of

: thousands of rambunctious

: people coming into their

: neighbourhood, taking up

: parking spaces, blocking off

: streets, and making a mess. All

: for what? A few nights of bullshit
: fireworks, polluting the sky

: with smoke, and disrupting the

: peacefulness of summer. It’s true
: that the Celebration of Light is

a great opportunity to get your

: friends together, spend the day

: onacrowded beach, and then

: mosey on home via two hours of
: transit, but it’s really just a large-
: scale corporate handshake.

A city functions through

: organized chaos. Someone is

: always unhappy with something,
: be it transit, the weather, or

: some dumb event. I love this

: city, it’s full of diverse people,

: but somehow whenever we try to
: plana party, a group has to cry

: and make it all about themselves.
: Our events become more

: polarizing—alienating instead of
: building the community.

Om the bridge
International Day of (Ter

 

AltaGas

 

Image from BC Gov on Flickr