Housesitting in New West.

Agassiz to Coquitlam on the 7. #FraserValley #Highway7 #BritishColumbia pic.twitter.com/1n74jqFUeO

— Jeffrey Nordstrom (@jeffnords) July 10, 2017

I have jumped on the opportunity to do some housesitting for some friends in New Westminster. I am teaching, if it can be called that, a group of Chinese 11-13 year old students in Coquitlam, so it's good to be able to live closer to that job for time and money's sake, even if it's only or a week.

I don't know if I'm a good city-liver. I may have spent too many years out in the country to handle the traffic, but I genuinely enjoy using the SkyTrain to meander around the city. Tomorrow morning I will take the SkyTrain to work for the first time ever, and I might be practically excited about it. 

I'm a transit dork. But transit gives me a chance to read, to think, to not stress about traffic, and a good excuse to walk from one place to another.

​A few photos I took today:

#YVR #vancouver #skytrain #publicart

A post shared by Jeffrey Nordstrom (@jeffnords) on Jul 16, 2017 at 5:50pm PDT

Discovered a #treehouse on my run today. #newwestminster #YVR

A post shared by Jeffrey Nordstrom (@jeffnords) on Jul 16, 2017 at 12:21pm PDT

#YVR #cruiseship #cruiseliner #vancouver #vancouver2victoria #coalharbour #stanleypark

A post shared by Jeffrey Nordstrom (@jeffnords) on Jul 16, 2017 at 5:23pm PDT

Trying to teach the ESL kids how to play ultimate frisbee. #Coquitlam

A post shared by Jeffrey Nordstrom (@jeffnords) on Jul 13, 2017 at 3:21pm PDT

The mosquitoes have been brutal up in Agassiz, so I've been doing my runs closer to YVR when I have the chance. I've found running a useful way to explore the cities so I can get to know them better. I've discovered a little foot bridge in Coquitlam, run back and forth over the Pitt River Bridge, and explored a series of parks in New West, all with running. I kind-of hope that this housesitting venture will give me my first chance to run the seawall in Stanley Park, although I expect I will be passed by numerous chiseled, svelte native Vancouverites.

​And tomorrow I will return to my sparse classroom in Coquitlam to try to get these campers to speak and listen to some English.

This is my classroom for the next few weeks. Sparse, eh? pic.twitter.com/DcGunHkT7E

— Jeffrey Nordstrom (@jeffnords) July 13, 2017