A Weekend of (for) Good Fun

So the past month has been absolute madness on my end but this weekend, I took the time to kick back, relax, and have a few drinks in support of some really amazing causes.

On Thursday night, I joined hundreds of people at Tryst Nightclub for TwestivalTO (see entry below) where collectively we raised $20,000 in Toronto and nearly $350,000 globally for Concern Worldwide. Truly an amazing feat that I'm just so humbled to have played a small part in. I got to spend some QT with my fave tweeps and as usual, met some fantastic people. Only downside to the event? The music was pumping way too loud for me to have any real meaningful conversations with the people I met. Best part about it? I now have an excuse to catch up with them some time in the near future!

with @coleyeung @andrealiew @carinaaaaa and @aMAYzin

But I have to say, Friday's Night for Rights, Journalists for Human Rights' annual fundraising event was a whole different ball game. Now I realize my position in the organization may undermine my credibility here but really, I played almost no role in putting this whole night together. In fact, my volunteering gig at TwestivalTO was probably a more significant contribution than my role at Night for Rights. See? I'm keeping it real over here!

Having said that, I have to give kudos to Aileen Doyle who did an absolutely stellar job at orchestrating the entire evening. Let me just say that that night I was truly proud to be part of such an amazing team of people who work hard everyday to make this world a better place.

jhr interns

The night oozed with class and sophistication with a live jazz band, African drumming, and Garvia Bailey's wit. And of course, it marked the unveiling of our latest project, Make Media Matter, with a video that gets me giddy and excited every time I watch it (high 5 to Jon Wong on that!). With delicious food, unlimited drinks (took advantage of that open bar, yes I did!), kickass music, and a happening crowd, Night for Rights is mos def the party to boot!

 

with Strombo himself

 

on the dancefloor

 

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Twestival Toronto

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It’s a Twesti-whaaaat? It’s a Twestival! …A global fundraising event that is bringing together the online Twitter community from hundreds of cities around the world to support  and celebrate a good cause. And yes, it’s coming to Toronto! This Thursday, March 25th at Tryst Nightclub, join hundreds of Torontonians as they rally behind Concern Worldwide, raising funds for an international humanitarian organization dedicated to reducing suffering and ending extreme poverty. Organized 100% by volunteers, the team behind Twestival Toronto ensures that 100% of all tickets and sponsorships go directly to Concern Worldwide.

Now I know the question that’s hanging on all of your minds… “I don’t have Twitter, can I still go?”. Of course you can! You don’t need to be on any social networking site to go out and support a cause that you believe in! So this Thursday, take a break to kick back and meet some cool new peeps all while supporting a more than worthy cause!

When: Thu, March 25, 2010 1:00 AM – 1:00 AM
Where: Tryst Nightclub
More Info/Ticket Purchase: http://www.twestivalto.com/
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Tales of a Commuter: UTSU and the Disconnect

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Ah, the last day of the 2010 U.T.S.U election! It's been quite an exciting time at U of T these past few days as our campus has been filled with orange, green, pamphlets, solicitors, music, and why yes, even scandal! At around the same time last year, I wrote a blog post that described my pretty shameful lack of knowledge about the election, campaign slates, and the U.T.S.U in general and so I promised myself that this year, I'd get myself a little more involved...actually take the to learn about each side's platform, and why yes, even chat with a few of the candidates and campaigners that we try so hard to avoid on our way to Sid Smith (I know, right?)! And this wasn't one of those things that I said I would do but wouldn't actually...I've actually been pretty involved this election campaign. I know what each slate stands for, watched the debates, actually knew the people I voted for (and didn't just use the innie, minnie, mynie, moe trick), and omg even read The Varsity for the first time in a very, very long time.

But here's the thing. I'm a student and I'm a commuter. And though I've educated myself about both Change and Stronger Together's campaign platform, I still feel there's this sort of disconnect between myself and U.T.S.U. I've spoken to many commuters about this same issue and almost 100% of them share the same sentiments. True, this wasn't a scientific poll and I really only talked to maybe 20 student commuters out of the thousands at U of T, but something tells me that this is a pretty general feeling. I honestly don't see how some of these things affect me in any direct or tangible sense. The closest thing that might is probably the discount on TTC metropasses (amazing feat btw). But I don't even buy a TTC metropass. It still comes out to be more expensive for me personally than to just buy tokens. And okay fine, fighting to reduce fees is incredibly important but I'm graduating in a year (fingers crossed) and this probably won't happen anytime soon so once again, irrelevant and not applicable to me...

Don't get me wrong, I care about this school and I'm incredibly proud to be a part of it but I can't help shake the feeling that there is and might always be this unbridgeable discord between us. And with all these candidates constantly talking my ear off about how I matter...how they're going to make student life better...and how this is our U of T and that they can and will make a difference...I find myself questioning all these broad, sweeping, and optimistic claims. Anyway, just thought I'd give my thoughts and hopefully a different perspective. Here's hoping that the slate I voted for will bridge that gap for my last and final year at U of T and really, make a change ;)

Original blog post on blogUT.ca