Can you exhaust a city? Can you become so much a part of your hometown that it simply exhausts itself? Halifax has been such a force in our lives – neither good nor bad – but something I feel I have exhausted. Same people, same politics, same history. Same bus routes, same streets, same manners. The Halifax manners are dying with me. I am the last generation of young people who are polite and will hold doors open for you. Who smile when they pass strangers on the street. The last of a generation who were never feared. But, definitely not the last of my generation who will want to leave. See, Halifax is like Exodus. We must leave here in order to prosper, and not smother. Because, really, really, what is Halifax offering me if I stay?
A dead city? No. Not quite yet. A dying city. A city that has five universities and an upstanding community college, yet a city that fails to acknowledge the masses that attend them, nor take them seriously. Yet, you lament “brain-drain” and cry for help in regards to our retention – only for our opinion to be kindly disregarded, but disregarded nonetheless.
Halifax is too wrapped up in the past to may and strives to the future. A government that lacks backbone and a slanted media presence that is so quick (too quick) to publish only the thoughts that further substantiate their own opinions (i.e. Celine Dion). Oh, but how you desperately long for us to stay with our degrees coupled with advanced diplomas. But, for what use is it for us to stay if you only attract call centres? See, Halifax, you refuse to negotiate the history of the downtown core for the sake of progress. Build, for goodness sake, build! Create a downtown that thrives on industry – not history. No matter what you build, the Citadel will always be there. It’s a drumlin, which are notoriously difficult to move.
When you, with all of your power, restore Halifax to its historical glory, you will only have a short time to revel in it before you too are history and we whom you’ve driven out are too far away to act – but will merely whisper a collective “I told you so.”
It’s a shame you want to push us away – the enlightened ones who would carry you home from the drug store in a snowstorm. We’ll be gone and you’ll be left with the heartless thugs that you already fear, but have left the future of Halifax to.
We are an untapped resource, not the natural gas that you’ve been sending to American for years. Us – me – my friends – the 20-something’s who have education dripping from us, but whom you force to work in coffee shops, mall and the aforementioned call centres because you simply can’t loosen your collective chokehold on power. We pay dearly to be educated here, not to be looked at as a wondrous educated resource, but to be treated as a commodity.
Yet, you wonder why we leave. Cue the collective sigh of all educated Halifax 20-something’s. Maybe one day, Halifax, you’ll pull your head out of the sand – or get your behind off of your rocking chair. Someday, before all of the city’s potential is squandered and we’re all gone to make Calgary, Saskatoon, Victoria, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal and Regina better places.
This article appears in Jan 10-16, 2008.
Nicole, you summed it up perfectly!
My one regret in the 50+ years I’ve been on this earth is that I didn’t leave Halifax. Had not family commitments tied me to this backwater burg, I would have been a trail of smoke long, long ago. My advice to anyone who hates this city: RUN! RUN! RUN! GET OUT WHILE YOU STILL CAN!!!!!
No shit, eh? I’m leaving as soon as the stars are properly aligned for my leaving. Even in the past 15 years I’ve noticed a significant downturn in the quality of life here. Halifax : Love the way we leave.
Why does everyone hate Halifax so much? Try growing up in Sydney and then talk to me about backwater burgs.
I just spent the holidays in Calgary. I’m getting the hell outta here to move out west as soon as I possibly can.
Another big thing that ruins Halifax is it’s desperation to impress and to be something it isn’t; a big city, worthy of approval by the world’s cultural sophistocates. Halifax’s extreme self-consciousness (as an example, the whole embarassingly pathetic hoopla surrounding the Celine Dion concert on the Commons) and ego are abnormal, it tries WAY to hard to create this glamorous image for itself, to the point where it’s exhaustive efforts make it seem the exact opposite. It’s like: ‘Hey look at us everyone!! We rejected the Celine concert because she’s cheesy, dont you respect us now?? We’re too hip for Celine!! We only allow rock n roll on the Commons!’ It’s just one example but a good one.I love the scenery around Halifax, the fact that you can get out of town so quickly and easily and go for a nice drive along the south shore, I love it’s ocean proximity and trees, and my friends here that I’ll never stop visiting. But apart from that, the attitude (and economy) in Halifax is stifling.
Nicole, I agree and thank you for the article. It’s very true and i have experienced it. I haven’t seen many people around that do that anymore. You and I are a dying breed. I know people who complain when others hold the door open, they claim they’re being rushed. To them i say, look up the phrase “THANK YOU”, it may save your life some day. Also, I have been living in halifax since 1994, and for some reason the city seems to reject change. Why does our city still look the same and still has nothing to offer? Why do I pay $20 for 4 Items at a grocery store where in Montreal, I paid $10 for 15 items, included 6 MANGOS? Our waterfront attracts a lot of tourists, until they decide to drive on lower water street. I lived in Lebanon for 3 years and due to the 16 year civil war there, i swear sometimes driving on that street makes me wonder where the war happened, here or Lebanon. That street has been the same since 1994, i have not seen them touch it. the work that was recently done was due to underground work, if it wasn’t for that, you wouldn’t see that patch in front of the atlantic museum newly paved! Really, go check it out, you’ll see what i’m talking about!Regarding education, Nova scotia has the highest tuitions in all of Canada, yet we hold by far the crappiest universities! It still shocks me that we have a lot of international students attending, until i researched and found out why. Apparantly international students are attending DAL or SMU because they were the only universitie they heard of before registering. Most of them only learn about other universities in canada after the arrive here and other students ask why they chose Halifax. Reason why other universities don’t do the same, well let’s just say they take care of their students and communities by providing lower tuitions, better education and professors who don’t complain about making over $75k a year with the summer off, claiming that it’s not enough and go on strike.We have a lot of educated people in nova scotia but they have no choice but to leave this province. I experienced it myself and had to leave for a while. The only reason why i came back is because i missed the ocean. Due my decision to leave, I managed to come back and build a good career here in NS. Companies realize thay need you and they realize you were making $45k at least a year outside of NS, they have no choice but to pay that. I know someone who graduated from DAL with a planning and design degree, yet she makes more money working at a hotel in the city than she does as a civil planner and urban designer. I met with a design and construction company based in the maritimes, and exlpained to her what i do and what my salary and benefits are. She explained to me that with my experience they’ll be delighted to take me as an employee. I would get the highest pay in the department, it would be the cap, meaning no more raises since i start at the top, and that is a 20% cut in wages of what i make now. How do you reply to that?! Aren’t companies ashamed of prividing such childish answers?
Nicole,Right on! I have been here since 1997 and have hated every waking moment of it. I am in the Military and have not been given the chance to move. I have done 4 tours overseas and been to places like Afghanistan, Egypt, UAE, etc and seen more progress that has taken place here. Even PAP, Haiti has made some improvements, but don’t get me started on that one.Halifax is still in the 1800’s with its ideas for the future. We have a Premier who thinks he still living in Mabou playing the fiddle instead of looking after the province. We have a Mayor who thinks that there is nothing worthwhile outside of Bedford. The planing committee who thinks widening the road will make traffic flow smoother.Talk about head up your a** attitude.The day will come, not soon enough for me, when it will be time to move on and the best view of Halifax that I will have is from my rear view mirror.
What bothers me the most is the so called “Quality of Life” Yes, rent is somewhat cheaper here than elsewhere (especially Alberta), but cheapish rent is swallowed by the retarded cost of everything else.Example: Healthy food is so fucking expensive its no wonder we’re all (mostly) a bunch of lard asses. When it cost close to 4$ for 2 litres of milk and about 2$ for brand name soda (when its not on sale, and really, its ALWAYS on sale for 1$ somewhere), and then everybody whines about fucking obesity, it really makes me wonder where I can also buy these majical dugs. Cuz really, you have to be blitzed to not see the connection here and DO something about it. And taking soda and fries away from school kids IS NOT THE ANSWER!!!!Sorry about that, I got off topic……Oh no I didn’t! Because thats just part of the “Quality of Life!”Nova Scotia also in the midst of the whole “Bring ‘Em Back!” campaign.<--- Its like the Maritimes' own little Iraq! I find this wildly hillarious. Currently, I am enrolled at NSCC, and we have all these posters plastered everywhere on how the quality is so mega-awesome-wicked-cool and we shouldnt leave. Yet out of all the recruiters and companies that come to our school (and theres a shitload), only 1 has been from Nova Scotia, and that was the DND <-- Great gig by the way, pretty much one of the only well paying, consistant, reliable(ish) year round trade jobs in Nova Scotia. So why are all of my tax dollars going towards flyers and donair bilboards? Why arent more local companies recruiting here? Is it because the pay is such shit? Well then, RAISE THE PAY!!!!!Basically, as a trade student my options are:A- Aplying and praying for the DND job (which I have). PS did I menion that they recruited all the maritime trade schools, yet are only offering about 5 jobs per trade? Hence the praying..... B- Take a first year apprentice job in good old Nova Blowsha and pray I make at least 10$/hour and dont get a layoff in December, pay low(ish) rent, pay threw the nose for fruit, vegtables, dairy, gas, clothing, power, phone/internet/cable, property taxes, tuition, FUCK THE ONLY THING THATS CHEAP ON THIS PROVINCE IS COCAINE, ECTACY AND SODA!!!!C- Go out west/Ontario/ North/BC/ ANYWHERE BUT HERE! and make at least 18$ to start and not get the "NS Xmas bonus", pay a bit more for rent (exception Alberta, thats alot more), less for everything else, get more out of my (lower) tax dollars, perhaps send future children to non-shitty schools? But then again, if I choose C I would miss out on all this fabulous "Quality of life"!
I agree with this too. I have about a year left of school and even though I’m studying in a field that is said to be starving for people in the next coming years (Tourism at MSVU) I can’t help but feel a little like that’s everywhere but Halifax. I love this city, I agree it needs to open up and let growth happen, but I love it and would love to stay here, or at least end up here after a while, once I’m finished school. But I’m not sure I see it happening, and that’s rather disheartening. I believe Halifax is a good city that could be a great city, if the government, the attitudes, whathaveyou, would take the right steps.
We’ve got the highest tuitions in Canada and all for what? Everyone’s got a degree this day in age. Dalhousie can stick their high tuition up their asses. I am tired of being one on 200 people in my class. The prof’s rich, the school’s rich, the president and administration – way fucking overpaid.And they have murdered thousands of dogs and cats in their past in secrecy. So fuck the universities. My hard earned poor student loan money is going into a trade where i can get a real job and not furnish some presidents house and get him lots of new cars. When will students come first?
We’ve got the highest tuitions in Canada and all for what? Everyone’s got a degree this day in age. Dalhousie can stick their high tuition up their asses. I am tired of being one on 200 people in my class. The prof’s rich, the school’s rich, the president and administration – way fucking overpaid.And they have murdered thousands of dogs and cats in their past in secrecy. So fuck the universities. My hard earned poor student loan money is going into a trade where i can get a real job and not furnish some presidents house and get him lots of new cars. When will students come first? While I am eating Mr. Noodles these Halifax rich university administration and faculty are eating prime rib. No fair.
Pray for a nasty avian flu to wipe out the bulk of the baby boomers. They’ve outstayed their welcome.I know, wishful thinking.
I just want to say that I dont even think the housing is any cheaper here, plus everything else is waaaaay more expensive.I did come from AB and my current >$700 one bedroom basement suit with $50/month parking seems more expensive than my old 2 bedroom <$700 (nice) apartment with a parking space. Of course I happen to know that there is more to Alberta than Calgary and Fort Mac. Its brutal trying to find good restaurant food at a decent price in this town. God forbid you can get a coffee on your break and have the counter people serve you with any efficiency at all (laid back is great, but I only have 15 minutes people. Heritage is sooo damn important in this town, well now I hope you realize that empty lots in your downtown core has actually become part of your heritage (quick set up a committee to protect the empty lots!).I do enjoy living here, but when it comes time to leave I'll say a fond farewell to the short jaunt to the ocean, and a good riddence to the most bars per capita which all play the same type of music. Halifax is all potential, and no kinetic. I will come back to visit though, because while council ignores the citizens, it seems very concerned that the tourists enjoy themselves.
I have to agree as well. We are two middle-aged professionals who came to Hfx on a job transfer (near shoring) and have been here just over 4 yrs. This city is already dead, it just doesn’t know enough to lie down. One of the lures here was my husband’s salary (70k) and a relatively cheap cost of living. The cost of living is NOT cheap in Halifax. Unless you’re willing to live in a dump, rent runs over $1,100/mo. Utilities are way too expensive and food prices are off the freaking wall. I have not been able to secure a decent paying job despite my credentials and so in the end, we have lost an comparable income. At the end of the contract, we are leaving. We cannot afford to stay here. The entire political structure here is warped and bloated. The corruption in politics alone is obvious. We have 23 councilors who do not speak to one another and waste valuable resources on ridiculous by-laws (cat by-law comes to mind immediately). The worst part is the collective mindset. Halifax caters almost exclusively to the elderly who are the majority voters. Their needs, complaints, and wants are met first and foremost to the detriment of the young. This is geriatric central. Employers here are beyond cheap, they are irresponsible. Offeing $10./hr. to an experienced person with a degree is beyond ridiculous and they do ask for people with degrees, even to do administrative (clerical) work. If they want to hire a totally professional staff they had better be willing to pay for it. Another HUGE pink elephant in the corner is the appalling lack of upward mobility opps in this province. If you do find a good paying job with reasonable benefits, you are trapped in that job. There aren’t enough opps available for you to increase your wages or climb up the corporate ladder. HRM has a whole lot to offer in terms of it’s beauty and ocean side location, but it will never attract or keep young or mid-aged professionals unless it changes it’s business structure drastically.
Rob, you’re an asshole, who would wish death by disease on anyone, especially so that you can make yourself monetarily richer. Fuckin’ idiot. These “baby boomers” that you hate contributed all their lives into this corrupt system and they have just as much right as you to work, or draw from it. Sounds to me like most of you fuckers want to stay here but you want more money to do so. Well, too fuckin’ bad, the good paying jobs are out west,if you put more energy into finding the higher wages and taking the risks, you’d probably be able to DEMAND your salary. But nooo., you’re happy to wish sickness and death on people so that you can hopefully take over their position in life. I fuckin doubt you could fill their shoes with the shitty attitude, pathetic work ethic and sense of entitlement that you walk around with. It is expensive to live here, tell me a place that it’s cheap? You get what you pay for generally, so if you’re expecting the penthouse for a couple hundred a month, rattle that pea between your ears, it’s not going to happen.
I have to agree with Brad on the fact that housing is very expensive in Halifax. I have lived in Alberta for 3 years now and, depending on where in the province you live, rent is a lot cheaper or equal to halifax. There is nothing I hate more than talking to family and friends that still live on the east coast and hearing them complain about their jobs and lack of money. If you don’t like your situation then move. They are practically begging for people to work in Alberta and most jobs start at double the wage you get in Halifax. Lots of places will even provide you with a place to live until you find your own apartment! But, I have to say, best part about living here is that people are generally happier, have a better attitude, and are not always complaining that they’re broke!
I almost moved back to Halifax but the thought alone ran shivers down my spine. Crime, low wages, The Dome, Bruce Frisko, public transit, the harbour, pot holes, slushy streets and sidewalks, beggers and bums, anti-cyclists, city council, ah…no thank you.Well written Bitch Nicole. Absolutely Brilliant.
I was in AB myself and i moved back simply because i didn’t like livig in Edmonton, not because it was more expensive there. In fact, i was able to save money there, it only cost me $4 for a pack of chicken breast, about $3 for a steak at the local grocery store, and don’t get me started on how cheap apples are and they don’t even grow apples in AB. We’re apples country and we charge an arm and a leg for a pound of apples, only occassionally it goes on sale. 2 reasons i moved back, ocean and a company from AB offered me a better pay and they have an office here in halifax. In fact, most of the employees there were highered from AB and moved to NS with the office. I can tell you one thing, had we been hired by a compay offering the same service from NS rather than AB, it would have been $11 per hour. I looked into it. We have the highest cost of living and education in all of Canada. For some odd reason Nova Scotian’s aren’t willing to accept that.