Today we bring you another sample of one of the chapters you’ll find in our latest publication now available on Amazon in Kindle or paperback. Nova Scotia & PEI Armchair Adventures is the first volume in our Ten Provinces, Zero Crowds series. You can find it HERE. Basin Head Provincial Park is on the map. … Read more
The trail ends at a headland and the headland ends at nothing. Stand at the tip of Gaff Point on the South Shore of Nova Scotia and the next solid ground in the direction you are facing is roughly five thousand kilometres away, somewhere on the other side of the Atlantic. The wind makes this … Read more
(This week we’re bringing you something a little different for your Sunday enjoyment. Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing advance sample articles from our upcoming book series, Ten Provinces, Zero Crowds, guides to more than 1000 of Canada’s most overlooked and underappreciated destinations. We hope you enjoy this sneak peek, and we’d love … Read more
From a very young age, I have always been quite creative. Starting with making mud cakes at four, I soon graduated to more widely accepted mediums. Learning to knit and crochet at a fairly young age, I soon graduated to needlepoint and embroidery, then painting. While I sometimes struggled with the techniques involved, the resulting … Read more
We live in challenging times, not only for seniors but for everyone. Some say our economy is failing; costs of groceries and housing are rising, gas prices are steadily increasing every week, and everything is getting more expensive by the day. Depression for many members of our society are at an all-time high. More people … Read more
Maple trees stay frozen most of the winter, but once the days get longer and the temperatures warmer, they begin to thaw and start drawing water up through their roots to get ready for the growing season. Walking home from school, we couldn’t help but notice pails hanging on the trunks of the maple trees … Read more
During the 1950s, Charlie’s Barbershop was in the heart of Great Village. It was a two-story building, with the shop on the ground floor and an apartment above it. Charlie’s shop was a single room with large windows facing the road. A red and white striped pole spun outside the door, the universal symbol for … Read more
My memories of the 1959 winter season were marked by intense, long-lasting storms and heavy snowfall, which created extensive, hard-packed snowbanks. This caused significant challenges for Father as he drove to and from work in Truro. Driving was difficult at times, especially when the plows hadn’t been out yet and there were whiteout conditions. But … Read more
What is the first thing you think of when you see or hear the word “sponge”? The most common association is a dish sponge, specifically the yellow ones used for washing, cleaning up spills, or absorbing liquid. Some might say it’s a common metaphor—a “mind like a sponge,” representing someone who quickly absorbs information. Other … Read more
Some of you will remember back in the sixties, Art Linkletter had a television show called Kids Say the Darndest things. I wish to expand that to Kids Do the Darndest Things, and I as a four-year-old child, was no exception. In fact, some of my actions were unpredictable, even to me. I found them … Read more
Mother was admitted to hospital on a Tuesday in June 1960, and a couple of days later, she had surgery. However, she had complications, and her stay would be indefinite. After getting off work, Father would drive over to the hospital, spending time with Mother until visiting hours were over. She was in what they … Read more
For many years there was an orphanage in Brookside, which is a residential neighbourhood within the Greater Truro area of Colchester County, Nova Scotia, often associated with the adjacent village of Bible Hill. During the 1950s, the facility, later known as the Nova Scotia Youth Training Centre was located in Brookside, near Truro, opened in … Read more
Monique was a little 6-year-old French girl who was a bundle of energy and endless curiosity. Her dad was in the military and travelled back and forth to Camp Debert every day. That fall, the family of three had moved into what was known as Ed and Earns old house. The brothers had lived there … Read more
From what I was told, William McLean was born in Scotland. He’d travelled by ship across the Atlantic Ocean to Canada. It must have been a scary decision to leave your country and begin a new life in a foreign country. However, he married Alice MacDonald, and together they started their married life on a … Read more
Many people wrongly believe that babies do not notice or remember traumatic events. According to Mother, I never forgot this frightful experience. Mr. Barkley was in his early 70s and had been a farmer all his life—a lifetime of hard work and dedication. Life for him, his 68-year-old wife, and their two sons, both in … Read more
The Springhill Coal Mine Disaster in Nova Scotia was a catastrophic explosion in the No. 4 Colliery on November 1st, 1956. It started when runaway coal cars struck a high-voltage power line, igniting coal dust and causing widespread devastation, the explosion killed 39 miners and trapped many more. Massive rescue efforts saved many lives, including … Read more
My mother and Muriel Henwood had been best friends since their early school days. Their friendship continued throughout the war years, and even after they were both married. Muriel’s husband, Henry Brine, was a miner who worked underground in the Springhill coal mines. During the summer months, Muriel and Henry often visited us on the … Read more
What a winter we had back in 1960. So much snow fell in December and January that it made the road behind the barn leading down to the lower field great for tobogganing on. The snow began once again at the beginning of February. One Saturday morning, the weather started with light snow combined with … Read more
Lois and Howard were an old couple who lived on our road. I will always remember Lois, who as a young girl, got her hand caught between the rollers of her mother’s wringer washing machine. After surgery, she was left with just a stub of an arm above the elbow. Occasionally, as I was on my … Read more
After 30 years of marriage, Laura, his wife and soulmate, lost her fight with cancer. They’d known it wasn’t a winnable fight, but as a team, they’d laughed and cried through all the operations, chemo, and radiation treatments. In December, just a few days before Christmas, she passed away in her sleep at home. The … Read more
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