I’ve been in Nova Scotia for ten years now. It may not be where I was born but I certainly consider it home. That being said, I often find myself making comparisons between Nova Scotia and Ontario. It’s only natural I think that when you in a place for 24 years and then move to a new location – you can’t help but compare the two spots.
Disclaimer – these are my own thoughts and opinions, meant to be shared in fun. I hope you’ll find a laugh in the two comparisons from this “Here-by-choice”.
#1: There’s a difference between fog and FOG!
One memory that stands out from my high school days in Ontario is the fact that we had “Fog Days”. Similar to Snow Days – a Fog Day meant buses were delayed or school was cancelled because the fog was deemed too thick to safely drive in. I also remember when I would have to go to my summer-student jobs, my parents would be sure to get me up extra-early when it was foggy so I could leave in plenty of time to drive to work at a slower speed. You know, safely.
And then I moved to Nova Scotia and I saw fog. And I saw more fog. And the fog went on for days and days and crept in and out with the tide. And the longer I’ve lived here (ten years and counting), the more I laugh when I talk to my parents who say it’s foggy in Ontario. It’s not foggy. Ontario doesn’t know fog. Yarmouth – you know fog. It’s such a part of you that it’s something that your life-long citizens miss when they’re away. It’s thick as molasses and hangs heavy over the town. And if school was to be cancelled for fog, well children would never get through a school year. They’d be out more then in.
I’ve learned that there is fog and there’s FOG. And after ten years, the only thing that slows me down on my commute in the Nova Scotia FOG is taking an extra moment to turn my fog-lights on.
#2: The Morning Commute is Non-Existant
While we’re on the topic of commutes let me throw a comparison at you. When I got my first “real job” out of school my morning commute was about 60-75minutes. I didn’t think that was bad actually. Most of my family had a minimum 30-40min commute and some friends drove 60min to the train station only to catch a train for another 60min to downtown Toronto where they then walked 25min to their office. This was just normal.
At the time I drove a little Dodge Neon car and filled it up with gas about twice a week, three times if I was jetting around visiting friends on the weekends. To get to work for 8AM I left home at about 6:20 and hoped that there would be no traffic in the Ancaster Roundabouts. I also hoped that I could find parking less than a twenty minute walk away – anything much closer had a $15 price tag attached to it. “City Parking” led to a few parking tickets if I didn’t make it outside every two hours to put more change in the meter. I aimed to be in my office chair by 7:45am.
After ten years in Yarmouth, I am happy to say I would NEVER want an hour or more commute! That was each way – by the way! I now drive less than ten minutes to work. I start work earlier then when I was in Ontario but leave later than I ever needed to there. And parking? A parking pass for the entire month in downtown Yarmouth is only $10! And even monthly parking at the Yarmouth hospital is only $25! I would have paid $15/day at most hospitals in Ontario.
While there are some Yarmouthians who of course drive 20-30 minutes+ to work, the drive is different. It’s not 400 series highways filled with stress. The commute is just better in Nova Scotia!
I can even cycle to work!
#3: “On Time” means two very different things
I mentioned in the last point that when working in Ontario, I aimed to be in my desk chair by 7:45am when my work day started at 8am. The same could be said about most of the first 24 years of my life. If the bus came at 7:30am, I was to be at the bus stop at 7:15am – if not sooner. You never know when that bus is going to be ahead of schedule. If class started at 9:30, I would be in the classroom by 9:15am. If I was invited to dinner for 6pm, I’d be rolling into the driveway at 5:40pm – because nothing says you’re the cool kid more than showing up ridiculously early. I will say, this was ingrained in me by my parents. They taught me it was rude to show up late – even to an informal, drop-in at your leisure, open house.
Nova Scotia – you’re much chiller. And this has been the hardest thing for me to get use to! I remember heading in to my first work meeting when I started working in Nova Scotia. It was at 9am. I showed up at 8:45am – coffee in one hand, notebook and pen for taking notes in the other. And I sat and waited… and waited… and waited. I felt my anxiety go up thinking, “Am I in the wrong spot? Did I get the day wrong? I’m the new kid in town – is there a different meeting room?” Alas, I was in the right room, just way too early. Because the meeting started at 9am and that’s when everyone arrived. AT 9am. Not early to sit and mingle. It began at 9am therefore everyone gathered at 9am(or a few minutes past because, well, Nova Scotia – you’re chill!).
I now call my inability to show up late “time-panic”. This irrational fear that you’ll always be late and therefore you get everywhere extra early. It’s something that I just can’t shake. When I’m waiting on a co-worker to head to a 10AM meeting together and it’s approaching 9:55, 9:56, 9:57 and we’re still not in the meeting room my anxiety is high even though I know I’m not late! It’s just the expectation that an “early arrival” means you’re on time is something that I just can’t get rid of.
#4: Waterfront Homes are… affordable?
I grew up not far from Lake Erie in Ontario. Everyone wanted a home on the waterfront. Communities along Lake Erie saw populations boom and housing prices went up and up and up! In fact, as I write this blog I took a peak at the lakeside community of Port Dover (just 15minutes from where I grew up). It’s a town that I would say is similar to small Nova Scotia communities – touristy in the summer but pretty slow in traffic in the winter. An empty waterfront 50x120ft lot is for sale for $299,000! Bump up to an empty lot at 2acres – $850, 000! And those are empty! A 1350sq ft one bedroom row/townhouse on the water is $599,000! And these prices are for lakeside!
I am happy to say I own an acre of ocean front property(house included!) for a fraction of those costs! It doesn’t take much viewing of Nova Scotia housing prices to see that homes here are a bargain. Even as prices started to climb over the past few years, I still send my family real estate listing that make their jaw drop! Gorgeous Sea Captains homes for under $300,000. Ocean front property for what seems like unbelievable prices! Just this week I saw a home listed for $25,000. Sure, it needs some TLC but for that price – you can give it the TLC it needs! And maybe a little more!
The view from my ocean front property
#5: Driving to get somewhere is just the way it is
Ok – I mentioned commutes. But driving for anything other than work is seriously a thing! I love living in rural Nova Scotia but my only complaint is everything you want to do outside of town is FAR! I lived 30 minutes from a fairly major urban centre in Ontario. I lived 90 minutes to Toronto for goodness sake! Almost everything was just a ‘day trip’ away.
I shed a tear when my truck hit 100,000kms
Enter my move to Yarmouth. When I talk to people about the KM’s on their vehicles it is staggering to me! 300,000, 400,000+ KM! And the car is how old – what?! Just five years! Wild! But now I get it! There is a lot of driving that takes place for sports, conferences, etc. And Yarmouth – you’re four hours away from the airport! Jeeze that was a surprise! Just when you think you’ve arrived in Nova Scotia and are almost “home” – Nova Scotia says – NOPE – enjoy the next four hours on the highway before you get to your house and your bed! I remember sitting on the airport park-n-fly shuttle once in Halifax and hearing a couple complain that they still had to drive home to Chester. CHESTER! I couldn’t help but speak up and say, “I’ll trade you – I’m going to Yarmouth”. They didn’t have much to say to that, haha! If there is one thing I would change about Yarmouth(because the area is pretty much perfect), it would be revitalizing the airport. I truly think one or two flights a week to an urban centre (IE Montreal or Toronto) where you could connect to ANYWHERE else would be a wonderful thing.
Until then, I’ll just crank up Y95 until she fades out, telling me I’m too far from my ocean front home for my liking.
