James Shedden (he/him)

A vibrant graphic celebrating African Heritage Month, featuring colourful kente cloth patterns with the text “Celebrating African Heritage Month” overlaid in white.

Nova Scotia's African Heritage Month starts today! This year’s theme “Strength in Unity" celebrates unity as a driving force for change that builds strong communities, pushes justice forward, and opens the door to new possibilities.

Learn more at ahm.bccnsweb.com

Interior of the Black Loyalist heritage centre visitors look through the glass floor at the archeological dig site.

February is African Heritage Month, a good time to start planning to connect with the rich history of African Nova Scotian culture with visits to museums and cultural centres, including the Black Loyalist Heritage Centre.
#AHM2026

Lonely in plain sight: Why so many gay men feel unknown

Loneliness is a common struggle for gay men, often stemming from a fear of sharing our true selves. How can we break free from this isolation and find genuine connection? Chris Tompkins, a therapist specializing in working with gay men, offers insight and guidance on the path to healing and belon...

Welcome 2026

Poverty has been steadily declining since 1820.

Every person living in #poverty is one too many. But only if we acknowledge how far we have come in reducing poverty, we can go even further. More at suchanek.name/texts/atheis...

Firewood Banks Aren’t Inspiring. They’re a Sign of Collapse. Rural communities are banding together to chop firewood so that people in need can heat their homes. This shouldn’t be necessary.

Collapse isn’t a single moment. It’s what happens when the systems people rely on keep existing on paper but stop functioning in practice. trib.al/UtqzfcJ

October 1940.
A member of the London Auxiliary Ambulance Service holds a cat that's just been saved from the rubble, after a daylight raid in London.

Pope returns 62 artifacts to Indigenous peoples from Canada as part of reckoning with colonial past The Vatican on Saturday returned 62 artifacts to Indigenous peoples from Canada as part of the Catholic Church’s reckoning with its role in helping suppress Indigenous culture in the Americas. Pope Le...

👏 This is awesome ... "Pope returns 62 artifacts to Indigenous peoples from Canada as part of reckoning with colonial past" ground.news/article/pope...

Gift inspector reporting for duty.

Our 6mo kitten (now Cat) got the go ahead to venture outside solo and immediately morphed into ancestor warrior.

Almost twice as many Canadians see immigrants as being unfairly scapegoated and most believe that we should continue to welcome newcomers while fixing housing and healthcare shortfalls.

Source: broadbentinstitute.ca/research/shifting-borders/

The Lonely New Vices of American Life Booze is down and weed is up, and that’s doing something to us as a country.

Booze consumption is down and weed consumption is up. The development has benefits, sure, but American culture may also be losing something along the way, Dan Brooks writes:

10% rise in people needing food banks in Nova Scotia, new report shows People going hungry across Nova Scotia and the nation is a “new normal” according to Food Bank Canada’s latest report. Each year, the national organization records visits and surveys people at thousands of food banks in March to gain a snapshot and compare data to see if the issue of food insecurity is getting worse. […]

10% rise in people needing food banks in Nova Scotia, new report shows
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· By Natasha O'Neill ·

halifax.citynews.ca/2025/10/28/1...

Raven.

Raven (Corvus corax) taxidermy specimen. One of the primary ways to distinguish a raven from a crow is by their larger beak.

Thanks to Dr. Brenna Frasier Curator of Zoology for these posts.

#halloween #spooky #nsmstrange #novascotia

For the first time in 200 years, the Parthenon’s exterior is entirely free of scaffolding on every side. It’s also the first time in two decades that the western facade is fully visible. At least six generations have never seen the monument unobstructed.

Japanese Maple.

Snug as a bug.

Spooky season is my favourite season🎃

Suncatcher

Up and at ‘em😈