When driving in Nova Scotia you will see two things in almost every home. First is the clothes hanging on the line. Most homes have clothes dryers, but every one hangs their clothes out to dry, so you see long lines of clothes every where you look. I am told that there is an order for hanging clothes but all I know is they are decorative blowing in the breeze. When the sun shines, everyone puts their clothes outside to dry but even on dull days you see the lines full of gaily dancing clothes. People like the smell of the clothes drying in the sun. And Nova Scotians are frugal. They do not want to waste energy if not necessary.
The second thing you see is stacked wood. They are experts at putting the wood into an orderly fashion where it will stay dry but is easily available. Many homes have wood sheds, where the small building is full to the top with cut wood. It is impressive to see these 8x10 sheds all ready for the stacked wood. You see stacks of wood close to the home beside the garage or at the back of the yard. There are multi rows of wood all stack to four foot height. The men in the family really do know how to stack wood so the wood will not fall over even when you remove some wood. It is impressive.
On the way home from town today, I saw a pile of wood being unloaded in the driveway. I can guarantee that the next time we drive past that house that wood will be neatly stacked, all ready for the winter. The climate of Nova Scotia does impact the culture. Unless you make the wood ready for the winter, you would freeze from the cold. For hundreds of years, if you lived here you looked after the wood. Now although everyone has a furnace fueled by oil or gas, every home has a wood stove that runs all winter. It is culture. If you see lots of clothes outside on the lines and you spot stacked wood, you are probably in Nova Scotia. So just enjoy.
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