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The shine of excellence

» An unctuous ode to greasy pizza

 

Tariq Ghanzi
Contributor

 

Gs pizza is the best pizza plain and simple. I think
a lot of people care about the healthiness of their
pizza and think the grease is bad. But if no other food
exemplifies eating for pleasure, it should be a hot, greasy

slice from your local pizzeria. That’s like the apex of ‘get in

my belly and make me smile’
Some people look at it and want to mop it up witha

Any grease that didn’t come from the cheese must
have come from the pepperoni and I have never heard
a good argument against greasy pepperoni. Some
places make or buy better or worse pepperoni, but the
fat content is undeniably one of the best things about
the good ones. Close your eyes and imagine a nice
shiny slice of pizza with the edges curling up on the
pepperoni. It's like little meat hugs aimed at your test
buds. The very fat that the pepperoni releases onto the
pizza is just further evidence of the tastiness in store.
Doesn't that just sound delicious?

napkin or something and I think this is wrong; they should
think of the grease as food enjoyment sweat. Imagine that
the food is sweating in excitement for how good it will
taste when you eat it. Like when a dog is wagging its tail so

Next up is the flavour that it adds. If I remember
correctly, the flavour is called Umami and J learned that
from Netflix’s Chefs Table. | mean the word even feels

hard their whole body moves. This is how people should
see pizza grease; a good thing meant to make you happy
and happy to see you.

The thing that makes greasy pizza so good is that a lot
of that grease comes from the cheese. All that extra fat and

cholesterol just bubbles up to the surface in anticipation

good to say, so it has to be good when you eat it. It's
that unspeakable greasiness that coats your mouth and
excites your tongue. That little film that covers your lips
and gets on your chin. That sleazy taste reminds you of
the days when you didn't have to care too much about
your grades or rent. I mean clearly, the flavour of that

of being eaten. That’s always a good thing when your food
anticipates you eating it. You don’t want a dry, tasteless and
unexciting piece of cardboard to eat; no, you want your

food to be sparkling with exuberance.

greasy pie.

pepperoni and or cheese grease is important.

So there you have it, incontrovertible evidence
of the superiority of greasy pizza. It's undeniable,
unquestionable, even unreal. | encourage you to go
down to your local pizza place and get you a big ole

opinions // no. 12

¢ Thanksgiving may best represent what

Canada is as a country.
e An unctuous ode to greasy pizza

..and that's everything!

 

Photo by Billy Bui

Thanksgiving: Canada’s best holiday?

» Thanksgiving may best represent what Canada is as a country.

Craig Allan
Business Manager

 

his Monday will be Thanksgiving. The

day where we all gather around and eat
turkey, I guess. Canadian Thanksgiving is
not really considered one of the marquee
holidays like Christmas. People may
not even consider it better than pseudo
holidays like St. Patrick’s Day or the other
October holiday, Halloween. Of all the
holidays though, Thanksgiving may be the
best holiday in Canada due to its changing
traditions and what it represents.

When Canadians think of
Thanksgiving, they may think of it from a
very American point of view. It celebrates
the landing of settlers in North America
and has images of sharing a table with
Indigenous people (as misrepresented as
that may be). It also includes the eating
of turkey and watching football, with
Canadian football acting as the substitute
for American football. However, Canadian
Thanksgiving is very different in terms of
its origin from the American version.

Canadian Thanksgiving does have
an Indigenous component to it, as it was
also a celebrated day in some Indigenous
communities. Traditionally, it was
celebrated at the end of winter as a reward
to the tribe members for their hard work
during the tough winter months. It was
celebrated with feasts, dancing, and other
ceremonies of thanks.

The first time it was celebrated
by Europeans in what would later be
known as Canada, was in 1578 when crew
members led by English explorer Martin

 

Frobisher celebrated arriving safely in
what would later be known as Nunavut
before sailing to Newfoundland by eating
a meal at communion. Some consider
this the first Canadian Thanksgiving,
even though it occurred well before that
name would ever be associated with North
American holidays.

Thanksgiving in Canada wasn't a
formal holiday until 1879. Before this,
the day was mostly celebrated whenever

Illustration by Athena Little

a major event happened. When it was
declared as a holiday it was set for
November 6. This is where it stayed until
the finale of the first World War. Because
of the significance of the date of November
u, the government decided to move
Thanksgiving to its current second Monday
in October date. This is unfortunate
considering that as of 2021, the holiday now
bumps up with another commemoration
of loss: the National Day for Truth and

Reconciliation for Indigenous people who
were subjected to residential schools.

While the origins of Canadian
Thanksgiving may be conflated with the
American Thanksgiving, the traditions
are influenced by our neighbours to the
South. The eating of Turkey, squash,
and the watching of football of both the
Canadian and American variety also occurs
in Canadian Thanksgiving celebrations.
The one major difference is that Canadian
Thanksgiving happens in October on
the second Monday, unlike American
Thanksgiving which occurs on the last
Thursday of November.

So, why is Canadian Thanksgiving
Canada’s best holiday? I feel it is because of
how the holiday has evolved. The holiday
was once a day for Indigenous people to
celebrate making it through harsh winters.
It was also a day for sailors navigating the
difficult seas to celebrate making it to the
scantly mapped continent. It then became
a holiday to celebrate major events and
bountiful crops. Now it is a day where we
celebrate being with family and friends
while enjoying their company over food
and drink. The fact that the holiday’s
significance has changed so much over
hundreds of years is a great representative
of Canada. A country that changes, and
like Thanksgiving, gets better as the years
go by. Thanksgiving is a truly great holiday
because it reflects changing traditions.

This Thanksgiving, consider adding
some new traditions to your Thanksgiving
celebrations. It may very well be the best
way to celebrate a holiday that is more than
just turkey alone.