With the last few days of Ramadan in full swing, it seems appropriate to reflect on this month’s experience. This year, in particular, was a different than the usual. I have been taking summer courses for the past few months…
“Choose Your Own” Pride
Hey! My name is Avneet and I will be one of your bloggers at Life@UofT this year. One interesting fact about me is that I am not very good at writing general introductions. I prefer to introduce myself through discussing…
Now, A Break
On Tuesday afternoon, I finished my last exam of undergrad. It has taken some time for that fact to sink in. I'd imagined walking out of the exam centre skipping with joy in the sunlight. Instead, I spent a half hour calculating the…
Openness at TEDxUofT 2017
To me openness is the ability to embrace that which you don't know. "OPEN" happened to be the theme of this year's TEDxUofT. Throughout the day, speakers from the U of T community shared with the few hundred of us…
Lessons in Etiquette
To be completely honest, I felt out of place. I recently attended an etiquette lunch that my college invited me to. I like to think that I know enough about etiquette in formal settings to prevent breaching significant social faux…
A Week of Love
Six years ago, I found myself heartbroken on Valentine's Day. As I met up with my friend, crying, at our local Starbucks, I cursed all the hearts and pink decorations around me. "How about you try to think of it…
U of T’s first Afro-Caribbean dance workshop: 10/10 would go again and again
This past Monday, Move U and U of T’s Black Students’ Association hosted the university’s first Afro-Caribbean dance workshop. It was one of many highlights of my four years at U of T. Seriously.
The hour-and-a-half long workshop was a total blast! It was led by Arsenio Andrade, who was born and trained in Cuba and has performed internationally, and accompanied by the wonderful drumming talent of Richard “Popcorn” Cumberbatch who has been playing Caribbean indigenous drums since the age of 11. There was a great turnout and every single person seemed to be having the time of their lives – I know I was.
Nuggets from the 2017 Hancock Lecture
Language. Language is a river that flows and is ever present in all aspects of my life. As a blogger, it allows me to express my experiences and world views with those who read my posts. As a student, it…
First Generation with First in the Family
I'm a first generation student. This means that I'm the first person in my family to attend a post-secondary institute. Being a first generation (or first gen) student has had its benefits, but it also had many downfalls for me.…
In Which I Attend a Leadership Conference
For students new to it, learning how to lead can be hard, not to mention intimidating. Even for students with some experience, leading is a concept that isn’t the most intuitive. Are you supposed to just take charge in every group assignment? Make sure your voice is the loudest? Delegate responsibility until all that’s left is you as supreme overlord of the Sith and—ok, maybe not that last point. The truth is, leadership is something so dynamic and diverse that there isn’t a single way to learn it. That was one of the main guiding principles behind this conference I attended last Saturday called UConnect, a leadership conference based in University College.