Happy Anniversary to BITNF!
Six years ago today, I published my first blog post here. And just over three years ago, I moved home to Nova Scotia from Seattle.
With all the downsizing I did out west, I don’t regret not having more stuff here, but there are some silly things I frequently think about. For example, face cloths. I have five pairs of bath towels still in good condition that made the trip east with me but, apparently, I thought I no longer needed the 10 matching face cloths. Why? Why? They wouldn’t have taken up much space and I actually do use face cloths. I had to buy more here. That’s just one of many minimizing decisions I have lots of time to question now.
When I started this blog in 2014, I had something different in mind for where I’d be about now. But I’m sure EVERYONE reading this could say the same thing about 2020. Here’s an update from my little place on the planet 4.5 months into the pandemic:
Current as of today 07/29, Nova Scotia has no known cases of COVID-19. On July 3rd, the province “bubbled” with the other Atlantic Provinces, allowing travel within the four provinces without requiring the previous two-week quarantine. Wearing masks at indoor businesses becomes mandatory starting Friday, schools are scheduled to start in less than six weeks, and there are still rumblings that Nova Scotia will open up to the rest of Canada without the two-week quarantine to “save” part of summer tourism. I find it odd that the toilet paper shelves in grocery stores still look depleted. Did people fill their drive-in garages full of the stuff? I need to buy more earlier than expected since 1) Enid the Cat has discovered the fun of unrolling the TP across the bathroom floor and 2) I keep forgetting to put the TP in the cupboard as a solution to 1.
Since the Nova Scotia Massacre on April 18 and 19th when 22 people were murdered, Nova Scotians have waited for the government to announce a Public Inquiry. Senators, law professors, and women’s groups weighed in as we waited. And we waited. And we waited. Last Wednesday, the families of the victims held a peaceful march to demand the inquiry. Last Thursday, a government press conference was held to announce … a panel review (without the legal clout of a Public Inquiry).
After three months of waiting patiently during a pandemic, the outrage of Nova Scotians was immediate, absolute, and loud. The public took to social media and they called and emailed politicians. On Monday, I joined one of the peaceful demonstrations (wearing a mask and physically distanced) demanding an open Public Inquiry. Yesterday (Tuesday), the government changed tack and announced what the victims’ families and their supporters have demanded all along since April: a Public Inquiry. It’s ridiculous that it came to this, but the people were forced to act and I’m proud that Nova Scotians (and other Canadians) quickly rallied and made it happen.
Related links:
- worst (post #138)
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