For more than 20 years, The Last Word Bookstore on Windsor Street has provided stocked shelves for newcomers, north-enders, and bibliophiles alike. “Lots of students, lots of regulars. they’d sort of just come in, plop down and they’d be there for eight hours,” says Nate Crawford, who used to work at the store about 10 […]
Victoria Walton
Victoria was a full-time reporter with The Coast from April 2020 until mid-2022, when the CBC lured her away. During her Coast tenure, she covering everything from COVID-19 to small business to politics and social justice. Originally from the Annapolis Valley, she graduated from the University of King’s College School of Journalism in 2017.
Posted inFood + Drink
Buy a pint for your favourite nurse, doctor, or hospital custodian
These past few months haven’t exactly been a cakewalk for medical professionals, and though we’re all thankful for the work they’re doing, clapping your pots and pans together on the front porch at 7pm isn’t exactly a tangible way of giving back. Why not buy them a beer? “They deserve more than a beer, but […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Halifax is dining together, at home to support Feed Nova Scotia
Colin Bebbington got laid off from his culinary position at the prestigious Claridge’s Hotel restaurant in London in the early days of the COVID pandemic. Forced to return to his hometown of Halifax for mandatory 14-day isolation, Bebbington got to thinking about how to give back the only way he knows how—through food. Bebbington called […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Laid-off restaurant staff in Atlantic Canada can apply for this fund every week
The Bartenders Benevolent Fund was originally started in Ontario back in 2013, but with the onslaught of COVID-19 layoffs it has expanded across the country. “It was definitely a lot more Ontario-focused before this happened,” says Lindsay Jones, bar manager at The Ostrich Club in Halifax and one of the BBF’s Atlantic region disbursement panellists. […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
What you need to know about COVID benefits: May edition
Since the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit AKA the CERB opened to Canadians in early April, over seven million people have applied. Stats Canada reported almost two million jobs lost in April, as the employment rate dipped by 11 percent. In Nova Scotia, unemployment is below the national average of 13 percent, but still climbed three […]
Posted inFood + Drink
Some Tidal Bay for you city rollers
P icture yourself in mid-June. The first wave of COVID-19 has passed (hopefully) and you’re allowed to be with your friends again (or at least your family bubble). You’ve booked a cabin for the weekend, away from the hustle and bustle of the city, on a quiet lake in rural Nova Scotia. It’s Friday night, […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
Response to violence against women shows how far we still have to go
It took 30 years for the Polytechnique massacre to be officially recognized as an act of violence against women and femicide. When 22 people were killed in Nova Scotia the RCMP skirted around the notion that the killer’s actions were spurred by misogyny. When we learned that the first victim of the attack was GW’s […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
RCMP investigation christened “H-Strong” in latest update
Nova Scotia RCMP have now been investigating the country’s largest shooting massacre in history for just over three weeks. Police say the events of April 18 and 19 have been given the name of H-Strong, a portmanteau of the Nova Scotia “H Division” of RCMP and the #NovaScotiaStrong hashtag on social media. In a May […]
Posted inFood + Drink
How to quench your thirst in a COVID-19 world
Sick of waiting in long lines wrapped around the NSLC to pick up some wobbly-pops and maybe that banana liqueur that’s always on sale? We’ve got you. From cider to craft beer to mixed drinks, Nova Scotian producers have stepped up their game to offer curbside pickup, delivery, and special deals to get you through […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
It’s quite easy to get RCMP and HRP memorabilia online
Nova Scotia’s most recent massacre was committed by a man who has been described to have an “obsession” with policing. Across social media, there are many more with the same obsession who fit a similar profile: middle-aged, white men with conservative values. On Facebook, you can search “police collectors” and come across dozens of groups […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
New take-out joints open despite challenges COVID brings
Opening a new restaurant is never easy, and the public health order that shut down dining rooms isn’t making that any better. But even in the time of COVID, local food entrepreneurs are still starting businesses. These vendors have been limited to operating solely online, getting their goods to customers via either curbside pickup or […]
Posted inNews + Opinion
From day one, advocates knew shooting was linked to domestic violence
Although it took RCMP over a week to address the Nova Scotia massacre’s relation to domestic violence, Canadian feminists and activists say they saw the telltale signs from the start. “I immediately thought this probably had a domestic violence event that precipitated it or was an element to it,” says Leighann Burns, a founder of […]