Ball Point Pens – the cap on disposable pens has air holes in it to prevent choking in case it’s swallowed by a child.

Burning – burning of brush, grass clippings etc. is restricted to certain times of the day and may be completely banned during high risk conditions. Always check before you burn!

Cannabis – is legal for purchase and consumption in Nova Scotia, available for purchase ONLY through selected government NS Liquor Commission stores. Private citizens may grow a maximum of FOUR plants for personal consumption, NOT for sale. It is NOT legal to consume in public, or to consume & operate a motor vehicle or heavy machinery.

Cannon – a single cannon shot is let off at 12:00noon precisely every day from Citadel Hill in downtown Halifax. The historic "Noon Gun’ is audible from most points in downtown Halifax, around the Harbour and into downtown Dartmouth.

Coins for Ca$h – loose change can be counted by Coin Star machines in lobbies of Superstores & Sobeys Grocery Chains – machine deducts 12% fee and generates a voucher, cashier scans voucher and issues cash.

Corn on the Cob – can be safely cooked in micro wave oven. Cut both ends of flat, cook 2 to 3 minutes depending on your power setting. Husk can then be slit off easily and silk plucked off. No big pots of boiling water sucking out the nutrients, no ripping at husks.

Coupons – some coupons come regularly in your mail, as long as you DON’T check ‘no flyers’ for your address at the Canada Post Office:

• monthly fast food restaurants such as McDonalds, A&W, Burger King, KFC, and sometimes Dairy Queen (plus Subway Sandwiches & Irving Big Stop Restaurants twice a year.)
• bagged coupons for household services like rug cleaning & flooring also come regularly.

Also watch for:

• Grocery food coupons on pegboards in Superstores lobbies.
• Clip & Save coupons in print newspapers & magazines.
• Grocery chains – watch for in-store peel off coupon books on shelves, plus peel off-sticker coupons on clearance items; also look for watch for ‘this store only special’ ‘no tax’ and ‘clearance’ stickers too.

Fireworks – are legal for private citizens to own & use; family celebrations and significant holidays will often involve fireworks. In Nova Scotia, Canada Day (July 1^st) normally sees many official local displays, Natal Day in Halifax (August 5) and New Year’s Eve are also large celebrations. Year-round, any group or family may set off consumer grade fireworks without notice.

Garbage & Compost collections - Every TWO weeks - for curbside pickup garbages goes in black or green bags, recycling goes in transparent blue or clear bags, and compost goes in the big wheeled green bins.  $ - each municipality also has Recycling Depots to exchange sorted ‘Refundables for cash – BEVERAGE containers for soft drinks or alcoholic beverages must be clean, sorted and counted for the staff – includes aluminum cans, glass & plastic bottles, tetra juice or milk paks etc.

Grocery Carts – some chains like Sobeys have a few ‘kiddie carts’ ie shopping carts in the form of a car for the little ones to ‘drive around’, most branches will also have carts suitable for customers with mobility issues or wheelchairs. (All major chains currently have hand sanitizer nearby to wipe down cart handles.)

Highway cameras – Provincial highway cameras are easily accessible on smart phones to check weather & traffic conditions.

Kitchen Parties – most Nova Scotian parties end up crammed into the kitchen, because that’s where the food and drink it. Just sayin.

Lobster – lobster is harvested by independent licensed fishers who can only fish in the legal ‘season’ for their specific coastline area, limited in dates and geographical regions. Live lobster is sold from trucks during that area’s season (often announced on local Facebook groups), but live & cooked lobsters are available year round for a higher price at grocery chains, international airports, and seafood outlets know as ‘lobster pounds’.

Points Programs/Loyalty Cards – paper, plastic & digital accounts to earn discounts & freebies.

Paper cards such as McDonalds McCafe club card get filled in and then turned in upon claiming the reward. Plastic cards such as Tim Hortons Coffee cards are kept after claiming a reward to be recharged with points from future purchases. Digital accounts can be used to claim rewards online with most devices.

• Car Wash & Gas Station points programs – varies by owners
• Chapters Indigo Book Stores – Plum Plus program
• McDonalds Restaurants McCafe – Paper & stickers
• Movie theatre chains – varies by owners
• Sobeys Grocery Stores - AirMiles* being fazed out shortly
• Superstores Grocery Stores - President’s Choice Club
• Tim Hortons Coffee Shops – Rewards Card

Check your local independent restaurants & businesses for collector cards too!

Recycling for Ca$h – garbage for curbside pickup goes in black or green bags, recycling for your Blue Bin goes in transparent blue or clear bags. $ - each municipality has Recycling Depots to exchange sorted ‘Refundables’ for cash – BEVERAGE containers for soft drinks or alcoholic beverages must be clean, sorted and counted for the staff – aluminum cans, glass & plastic bottles, tetra juice or milk paks etc.

Ticks – have become a problem in recent years, always check your clothing if out in the yard or woods, especially shoes and socks. Check pets carefully after every outing.

Tides – changing tides (every 12 hours), move faster than a running horse on the floor of the Bay of Fundy, much faster than a running human.

Train crossings – train whistles can be startling if unexpected; as an example approximately 11 trains go through the Enfield crossing in East Hants in a 24 hour period. (It is always illegal to try and cross the tracks after the red lights are flashing.)

Wildlife – things that run across the road in front of your car include: bears, bobcats, chipmunks, coyotes, coy-dogs, deer, domestic dogs & cats, gophers, mink, porcupines, rabbits, raccoons, SKUNKS, squirrels etc.

Birds – larger birds you might see include Bald Eagles, Canada Geese (protect yourself), Cormorants (salt water), Cranes & Herons (fresh water), Grouse, Loons (salt & fresh water), Partridges, Owls, Osprey fishing hawks (fresh water), Red Tailed Hawks, Seagulls (protected).

Quarries – Such as National Gypsum in Milford, East Hants, may carry out regular blasting audible in local areas.