Hurricane Bill is barreling up the Atlantic coastline and due to brush Nova Scotia tomorrow. It is, of course, the talk of the town.

The year we moved here (2003) was the first year in a very long time that Nova Scotia had been affected by a hurricane to any extent. But that September, Hurricane Juan beat a path directly across the province leaving millions of dollars in damage (much of it natural resources), and tens of thousands of people without power for up to 9 days.

Nova Scotians were not properly prepared for Juan, despite warnings from the weather office. We regularly weathered Nor’Easters & bad winter storms without major mishap, so what was the big deal? And we (personally) really didn’t know how to prepare for a hurricane, since tornados are a more common threat in Ontario. The last major Hurricane there was Hazel in 1954.

But Juan changed things for everybody here. Our deciduous trees in full leaf in September could not sustain themselves against the winds that in winter might have left them unscathed. Tens of thousands of hundred year-old (or older) trees succumbed, falling on power lines and, in Truro & Halifax especially, houses.

Hurricane Bill may not be as devastating as Juan, as it is not projected to make actual land fall in Nova Scotia. Nonetheless, at least the Atlantic coast of the province (known as the Eastern Shore) is in for some really nasty weather. Perhaps we on the more sheltered North Shore will escape the worst of it.

But after Juan, no one trusts “escaping the worst of it” and so today the supermarket was packed with people stocking up on bottled water & canned foods. The weather office officially warned Nova Scotians to “put their patio furniture away and slacken their clotheslines”.

And THAT is the point of of my post. Even if we did have hurricane warnings in Ontario, we would NEVER be told to loosen our lines so that they don’t snap in the wind. It assumes that most homes HAVE clothelines, a no-no in many cities, suburbs and other communities.

But not here! One more reason why I LOVE living here!!