STUART NEATBY photos Top left: Langara business student Parmeshar Toor with a tapered cut. Bottom left: Langara history student Craig Tilloston with a close- cropped textured cut. Right: Satish Kohli, owner of Kohli’s Master Cuts, says most of his customers prefer a very close cut. Men still fond of classic cuts Modern twists on 20th century hairstyles trending in fall of 2016 By STUART NEATBY ike most things with men, accord- ing to Stewart Anderson, hair- styles don’t change much. Anderson is the assistant pro- gram director of hair art design at the John Casablancas Institute. He said the well-groomed look has been popular for a long time, although specific well- groomed styles vary in prominence. “The very barbered look is almost vintage looking, you have that sort of 40s sort of look where they’re super cropped and tapered around the base,” he said. Classic 1950s styles like the pompa- dour or the quiff are also experiencing resurgence, according to Anderson. Hani Shilimon, owner of Mario’s Bar- ber Shop on the corner of Oak Street and 67th Avenue, has been cutting hair since he was 14 years old. Although he agreed that tapered, cropped looks are in style, he noted that the fauxhawk has largely disappeared from the scene of men’s hairstyles. “A couple years ago or something, all day it was fauxhawk, fauxhawk, faux- hawk. Now they have changed,” Shili- mon said, adding “The most popular these days? I would think it would be a comb-over.” Many barbers would agree that side- part styles have been a reliable classic for longer than most Langara students have been alive. Shilimon tends to up- date that classic hairstyle by tapering the sides. Tapered sides are also increasingly becoming shorter, according to Satish Kohli, owner of Kohli’s Master Cuts, lo- cated near the corner on Main Street near 49th Avenue. “For men, it’s usually short hair, ta- pered, using a one or two razor,” he said, in reference to length settings on his trimmer. Modern barbers must be increasing- ly flexible and knowledgeable about an increasing number of hairstyles. Sul- tan Hall, owner of Sultan’s Hair Design on 49th Avenue near Main Street, noted that many men often suggest their own twists on popular styles. “Before we kept pictures [of styles]. Now we don’t keep the pictures. Every customer, they have phones!” he said. “T follow the customer. What they say, do it!” COST men's cuts 1 Oslo, Norway US$77.72 2 Jakarta, Indonesia US$4.50 3 Taipei, Taiwan US$26.89 4 Paris, France US$26.31 5 Montreal, Canada US$23.14 Source: businessinsider.com Students weigh In on ‘ghosting Blogs claim millennials are most likely genera- tion to drop a relationship without explanation By TANNER BOKOR tionships without explanation wasn’t pioneered by millennials, despite a stereotype that they are us- ing the tactic more than any other gen- eration. Fortune published a blog post in March alleging that ‘ghosting’ - or a sudden halt in contact between friends, lovers or family members — has become more prevalent among millennials over the past few years. The post cited a 2016 Plenty of Fish poll, which found that 78 per cent of millennials reported having been ghosted. The Voice set out to determine the validity of these claims. A Langara student named Veronika, who asked that her full name be with- held to protect the privacy of her ex- partner, said contact with her boy- friend ended so abruptly that she was left with more questions than answers. “Tt was like a light switch was turned off,” she said. “One day, they just stopped talking to me, and that was it. Done.” Sarah Wong, a Langara marketing student who admitted to having ghost- ed someone in the past, said part of the practice stems from an urge to avoid direct confrontation. “A lot of people are afraid to reject others, I feel, so they’ll say yes at first, but when the days come, they’ll make up an excuse,” Wong said. Mahfuja Dewan, a Langara nursing student, said that her experience of be- ing ghosted was an isolating one. “Friends just started not talking to me anymore and pulled away,” said De- wan. “I just felt ignored.” The Voice reached out to six sociolo- gy and psychology professors from UBC, SFU and Langara to ask whether millennials are more prone to seeing relationships end in such an abrupt manner. None of them had heard of ghosting as a phenomenon or of any mainstream research on the topic. Te dubious practice of ending rela- Dungeons & Dragons thrives at South Van shop —_ PI n fe! MATTEO SMITH Employee, Players Wanted Games & Collectibles 66 [D&D is] no longer a game for nerds and geeks. If you can imagine it, you can do it Role-playing game en- joys uptick in popularity, plenty of enthusiasts at local game sessions By MELANIE GREEN well-used reference books, four players debate about whether or not they can enter the rubble of a fallen city until the dungeon master silences them with a firm “No.” They are gathered at Players Want- ed Games & Collectibles on Victoria Drive near 54th Avenue. The shop sup- ports a local community of Dungeons & Dragons players by hosting weekly open sign-up games for regular enthu- siasts and curious newcomers. Employee and avid D&D player Mat- teo Smith said the open-world builder game is “no longer a game for nerds and geeks. If you can imagine it, you can do it.” In fact, D&D has become increasing- ly popular in recent years, featured in the storylines of TV series like Strang- er Things, Community and The Big Sus by empty pop cans and Bang Theory. Smith’s friend and player, Benson E]- phonsa, said he loves the vibrant hub because it is close to his home and he has “met a lot of cool people here and [they] stick together.” The first Sunday drop-in had 50 peo- ple show up, half of them new, accord- ing to Smith. He added that the numbers keep growing because of social media and because the recent fifth edition rule- book is simplified. “Now it’s easier to get into and easier to learn the game,” he said. Players Wanted currently has only two dungeon masters, which means D&D games are capped at seven to 10 players on a first-come first-serve ba- sis. Smith said the shop looks forward to being able to host more games in the future, and they are planning to train more dungeon masters. “It’s cool to see people trying to make characters that they wish they were in real life. I like the idea of being able to create your own story, like the movies, or I guess, to be someone else,” he said. MELANIE GREEN photo Dungeon master Alexandros Katanas oversees a tumultuous campaign.