Local Geography

Increasingly, there are times when you have to turn off the global Geography (aka news media) and rediscover local Geography.

Today, we did exactly that.

We left the house in Middleton, wondering whether we could find straw to spread around our strawberry plants. We started at the AnnaVale Coop. Closed on Sunday. It did not look too promising. We noticed a sign on the Mount Hanley road, “hay for sale”, with a phone number. Duly noted.

We continued our drive through Clarence East; took the Leonard road down to Paradise. At Neily’s nursery, we turned for home.

It was nearly lunch time, so a stop at Bees Knees in Lawrencetown was in order (read posts Buy Local; Read Local and Wild Mind/Wild Earth).

The store was busy for a Sunday. We put our feet up, with a coffee and a sausage roll. The store has a variety of interesting souvenirs, as well as books by local authors. I checked out “People of Cove and Woodlot” by Ted Leighton and Alexander Leighton (1908-2007) — stories across 100 years of memories.

When we returned home, I went online to check out other Moose House publications. There were several books of interest, including Anne Crossman’s “CommonPlace“; just published. It includes a number of her columns from the Annapolis Valley Register.

The take home message is a simple one. Enjoy the pleasures of the local Geography. Note the small changes. Don’t fret the global Geography and the things that are outside of individual control. There is a rich literature, supported by local publishers. There are subtle changes in the rural economy which can be shared with other Geographers.

Acknowledgements

Heather shared the short drive. Edward added the links and graphics.
I shared an earlier draft with John Wightman.

References

Ted Leighton and Alexander Leighton, 2025, People of Cove and Woodlot: stories across one hundred years of memories, Moose House Publications

Anne Crossman, 2025, CommonPlace, Moose House Publications.

Postscript.

From my evening conversation with John. We identified two thoughts.

1) How do we think local, and act global ?
2) How does Geography play a prominent role in the Canadian response to the post-Trump economy?

In particular, what is the role of the Centre of Geographic Sciences and the application of the Geographic Information Systems and Technology? Management of the Canadian landscape depends on accurate, current geographic information.

I would appreciate feedback on this blog post.

PS Edward logs the Geography of Art-Lover-tourists during his shifts at the Fisherman’s Cove Gallery in Eastern Passage. He notes a surge in Western Canadian and European visitors this year.