We Dive With the Best of Em'

Hello Moto!



… dumpster dive that is! Ok, I use the term loosely … there is no dumpster involved, so I suppose it would be more accurately described as culturally acceptable garbage picking. To demystify it further, I should admit it’s actually like a city-wide free garage sale dominating the sidewalks of Halifax. We simply call it FUN!

Word on the treasure-lined street is that the end of August / beginning of September is the best time of year to refurbish your pad with discarded goods. This annual window can be accredited to the new school year lease renewal season.

Thus far we have rescued a plastic patio chair, a small shelf on casters, a mint Motorola scale (retailing for $50), a retro diner chair with original cosmic Mod vinyl, and best of all, a Scorpion Dirt Devil mini vacuum. We also scored one Venetian blind (which, when brought home, was discovered to be broken and has since made its way back to the curb for some other scavenger to decide its fate). Some worthy items we passed up include, an operational (as promised by the sign attached) microwave, a DVD player with potential, and a faux Persian rug.

Let there be no mistake, there is no stigma attached to scavenging. Diggers everywhere tote their garbage-gone-gold home with smug looks of “I found it first sucker.” It is a phenomena befitting the reuse and recycle culture we have observed in this salty city.

Elton, Laura, and Dakota have told tales of the garbage glory to be found in Montreal. Haligonians appear to have different tastes (or less disposable income) than the Habs because we have yet to come across any Ikea refuse.

The adventure continues for a few more days. We are no less than thrilled, borderline addicted … junk junkies!

Lawrencetown

It was in Lawrencetown, an Atlantic hotspot for surfers less than one hour out of Halifax, that Lydia had her 1st swim in salt water! Although the wind and fog make it look cold in this video clip, it was actually 20-some degrees. The water, however, was only 14 degrees. Before heading out to Lawrencetown for the day, seasoned surfers can consult the surf forecast for things like wave swell, wind, sea and air temperature.

The Streets of Halifax Come Alive … With the Walking Dead!

Ordinarily Jeff and I would have been confused, if not startled, to share the crosswalk with a zombie. However, this particular zombie, uncharacteristically solo, scared us not. Prior to our 1st zombie spotting, Shannon had enlightened us about the annual Halifax Zombie Walk.

“Subversive fun,” is how the event is described in Halifax’s local lefty paper, the Coast (comparable in scope to Regina’s Prairie Dog). With the 1st Zombie walk being held in Toronto in only 2003, zombie walks are a relatively new phenomena; however, they are fast becoming common annual events in urban centres across North America.

As defined by Wikipedia, a zombie walk is: an organized public gathering of two or more people who dress up in zombie costumes. Usually taking place in an urban centre, the participants make their way around the city streets and through shopping malls in a somewhat orderly fashion and often limping their way toward a local cemetery or other public space.

During the event participants are encouraged to remain in character as zombies and to communicate only in a manner consistent with zombie behavior. This may include grunting, groaning and slurred, moaning calls for 'brains'. It should be noted that zombie behavior is a hot topic of debate. Purists who draw their definitions from the original Living Dead films will claim that a zombie would never have the ability to call for 'brains' and furthermore that a zombie needs only living (or freshly killed) flesh for its sustenance and not the brain in particular. The online encyclopedia goes on to explain that some organizations “have used zombie walks to raise awareness for community service events being sponsored such as food drive and blood drives.”

This You Tube video clip does the creepy and creative event more justice than does my description:


If my brief description has given you only an unsatisfactory taste for zombie culture and subsequently left you craving more information, check out this Coast article detailing the 2006 Halifax Zombie Walk:
http://www.thecoast.ca/1editorialbody.lasso?-token.folder=2006-08-31&-token.story=147878.112113&-token.subpub=

It’s a Hard-NOQ Life

For the majority of our time in Regina we were NOD; for the rare few of you unfamiliar with this acronym, it stands for North of Dewdney. By definition a NOD is simply that, someone who lives north of Dewdney Avenue. It is however, a very politically charged term. The term NOD, whose binary counterpart is a SOD (south of Dewdney), generally marks the divide between Regina’s north and south ends.

Here in Halifax we are NOQ (North of Quinpool). Quinpool is to Halifax as Dewdney Avenue is to Regina; that is, Quinpool is both a social and physical border between the south end “haves” and the north end “have nots.”

The spirit of anarchism is very detectable north of Quinpool. The leftist ideology and strong sense of community have made the area attractive to many activists, artists, environmentalists, and anarchists, none of which are mutually exclusive labels.

With a view to offer insight into the atmosphere north of Qunipool, here are just a few example of the types of events and organizations found in the area: Shannon is a dedicated and integral member of a group called “Food Not Bombs,” whose members collect donated food from farmer’s markets and grocery stores to prepare food twice weekly for anyone who wants to eat it. Only 2 blocks from our place is the Anchor Archive, a Zine library and print making studio which offers novice and advanced lessons to members for a very reasonable fee. On Thursday we will attend an event where the Anchor Archive’s artist in residence (currently staying in the garden shed) will exhibit her work. Last week HCAP (the Halifax Coalition Against Poverty) organized a carnival in the park near our house.

The area is also home to many great vegetarian restaurants and independent businesses, one of which is the One World Café which we frequent daily; reminiscent of a communal youth hostel kitchen, the One World Café offers live music, fair trade organic coffee, delicious food, and occasionally, art exhibits.

Below are some examples of the inspiring NOQ graffiti that keeps residence and visitors alike thinking and acting.

Peggy's Cove

Before the rain transitioned from mist to sheets, Peggy’s Cove was arguably more charming in the overcast weather than it would have been in the sunshine.

As recounted on the official Peggy’s Cove website, legend maintains that “Peggys' Cove was named after the only survivor of a schooner that ran aground and sank in 1800...a woman named Margret. Local folk called her "Peggy" and her home came to be known as Peggy's Cove.”

After a slippery walk along the smooth rock that surrounds one of the most well-photographed lighthouses in the world, we made our way into a warm, dry gift shop where we enjoyed tea and latte. The barista sent us uphill to watch a free 3-man jazz “concert” being performed in the town’s original one-room red schoolhouse (our party made up 5 of the 8-person audience).

Dalhousie

Fenwick is Halifax’s tallest (and ugliest, I will add) building. As evidenced in the pictures, Dalhousie is an otherwise classically beautiful campus. Vines cling to the cracks in old stone buildings, while old Victorian homes make for unconventional administrative and Professorial offices. One might half-expect to see a tweed-clad Robin Williams clamor eccentrically toward his next poetry class. To feed the stereotype even further, you will see the campus is "complete" with (barf) frat houses.

When the original construction company building Fenwick declared bankruptcy in 1971, Dalhousie purchased the half-completed building for a debatable bargain. The basement of Fenwick houses the School of Human Communication Disorders (SHCD). The 33 stories stacked above SHCD are student residences. It is a well-known fact that the building sways ominously in high winds: “Halifax building regulations stipulated a maximum sway of eight inches in eighty mile-per-hour winds; Fenwick got in under the wire at a five-inch sway.” Equally dubious is the empty swimming pool situated on the rooftop; should this pool ever be filled with water, Fenwick would surely collapse.

Hali-FACTS:

• Halifax became a city in 1749

• Nova Scotia became a province in 1867 (which makes it one of the founding provinces of Canadian Confederation)

• The metro population of Halifax is approximately 360, 000

• The population of Nova Scotia is approximately 950,000

• Nova Scotia is Latin for New Scotland

• The most recent census determined Nova Scotia to have the nation’s lowest ratio of men to women, with women outnumbering men 100 to 92.9. Even before consulting the census, we had heard rumblings about the disproportionately female population - that is to say, singles in Halifax have noticed the dilemma and/or advantage, depending on your perspective.

• With nearly 200 bars and restaurants in downtown Halifax, the city boasts the highest number of bars per capita in Canada.

• There are 4 universities and 2 colleges in Halifax:
-Dalhousie University (student population = 15,500)
-Mount Saint Vincent University
-St. Mary’s Univesity
-NSCAD University
-University of King’s College
-Nova Scotia Community College

More Random Pics

Sorry we have not posted a new blog in a while. Judy and Bob Corkery have been here visiting Shannon and we have been spending some time with them.


More giant veg


One Growler down ... 364 to go. "Growler" was among the 1st Haligonian terms Shannon taught us - your personal Growler (the jug itself) is yours for the duration of your stay in Halifax. For only $8 you can fill the Growler with a variety of quality beers made locally by the Propeller Brewing Company. Never attend a party in Halifax sans Growler.


Jeff holds the evidence of the previous night's shenanigans brought on by one-too-many Growlers. Our neighbours were setting off midnight fireworks DIRECTLY in front of our bedroom window.


Our neighbour's cat had 5 kittens. This means Lydia is quite the Growler herself.

Saunders is going to hate this post. This is due to my head. It's greasy and, on a good day, glassy. Cheers.

Quinpool Road

This pic shows a sliver of Quinpool Road, located 1km from us (a 10 minute walk and an even shorter bike ride). The over 180 shops and services on this street will prove indispensable for us as we embark on our new pedestrian life in Halifax. The “central street in the heart of Halifax” is self-described on its website as “quirky.”

Quinpool “has family businesses and major retailers” giving it a unique balance between new and old, corporate and independent. Here you can find “Canadian Tire, Atlantic Superstore, independent grocery stores, major banks, bakeries and gas stations.”

Afternoon errands aside, Quinpool is also “known for its bright neon lights that come alive after dark, turning the street into an entertainment district, for dining out or eating on the run.”

While this district has a somewhat trendy mood at times, its shops and services are primarily pragmatic in nature; so far, for our specific purposes, we have determined the following stops will make their way into our humdrum routine: a place to buy Lydia’s food, a favorite Asian grocer, an alternative bookstore, an Art Deco-style theatre, and the most amazing independent movie rental store where you can, for example, even rent episodes of Fraggle Rock.

This is a huge house on Gottingen St. Although you may think this size of house is an anomoly, it is a common sight

They do it here too. And only blocks away from our place.

Lydia wishes she was a balla

We just 'hosta' take a picture of this to show you how big these suckas get here.

Greetings from Halifax - again. Here are some more pictures our place. The first pic is the highlight of the house. It's lovely.




Like a station wagon but for your bum



Our lovely kitchen



Where we do our living



More living



Lydia's new watch post



The office



The back door and stairs of our place



This is the bedroom



Another angle of the bedroom



This is where guests and visitors will enter




Kitchen window complete with locally grown garlic and flowers