Squamish Doesn't Feel Safe Anymore

Added: 2026-06-03

[00:00:00]Hello.

[00:00:02]I'm back in Squamish and I've been back a little over a month, I guess.

[00:00:08]And it's been kind of rough. I came back trying to feel more optimistic about living here and kind of giving it another go, if you will. And it's just been really rough.

[00:00:26]It feels like the universe just does not want me to be here anymore.

[00:00:31]And I'm not a spiritual person, but I think a few people are kind of thinking the same thing, that there's something telling me that my time is done here and I'm kind of just hanging in.

[00:00:45]So, when I first got back from the UK, I was like a little bit more reset, felt good.

[00:00:52]And [snorts] within a week, I had my car broken into and it was completely emptied.

[00:00:57]And I honestly haven't seen my car look that clean since I got it years ago.

[00:01:05]They took all my surf stuff, my work gear, camping stuff I just kept in my car and all my dog stuff and more.

[00:01:14]And it sucks.

[00:01:18]>> [laughter] >> There's no other way to put it, like Like, I didn't want to cry about it, but I did.

[00:01:26]And it's not about the the things that were taken, it's just the frustration of the whole situation around it. Last year, I had my locker in my storage unit broken into in this building and things were stolen then.

[00:01:46]And now this.

[00:01:48]And amazingly, I actually got my stuff back, or 90% of it. I was walking past the homeless shelter a couple of days later and I spotted Rupert's car seat.

[00:02:00]So, I went over and had a little look.

[00:02:03]There was no one protecting all this piled up stuff around the homeless shelter.

[00:02:08]So, I ended up finding my things, all 90%, and some homeless people came over and actually helped me.

[00:02:17]And they were very sweet.

[00:02:19]And of course it was a win to get all this stuff back.

[00:02:24]But I still didn't feel great about it. Like the whole thing like it shouldn't have happened.

[00:02:31]Um this is not like your things are not secure here downtown Squamish.

[00:02:38]Um but it just seems like nothing gets done about it and everyone's just like kind of like accepting of it almost. Like this is just the way things are. I don't know if that's like the Canadian kind of laid-back attitude, but to me it's just not good enough.

[00:02:56]Um anyway so, the car breaking happened. I got my stuff back.

[00:03:03]Then a couple of days later an article came out about live ammunitions and knives that were found in in the same building in the homeless shelter. And that just made me feel so unsafe. And I honestly feel like if I don't listen to the greater universe that's telling me to get out of Squamish, then I'm probably going to get stabbed or my dog's going to get stolen cuz I'm like, what next? Seriously.

[00:03:32]It's getting out of control here.

[00:03:35]Anyway, I ended up having a massive mental breakdown and telling my roommate, my landlord, that I was moving out and going to move to the island and I needed a change. And also I can't afford to live here anymore. I uh my work has completely dried up. My projects and everything with my environmental job.

[00:03:57]Um, there's nothing coming down the pipeline for me right now.

[00:04:02]Uh, and I'm working at the vets as well, and that's just not like good just not well paid.

[00:04:10]Um, enough to live where I'm living now.

[00:04:14]And I know that there's cheaper rent on Vancouver Island.

[00:04:17]Um, but it was so hard and painful telling my landlord that I was wanting to leave.

[00:04:29]That I ended up backtracking and telling him that I changed my mind and that that I was staying.

[00:04:35]Um, so it's like I realized that I suppose I value the people like a lot.

[00:04:47]Um, and I'm like in this battle between people and location.

[00:04:56]And that's what I'm trying to figure out right now, and it's taking its sweet time, but I'm also very aware that I'm living unsustainably right now.

[00:05:05]And paying rent is becoming a struggle.

[00:05:09]Um, after getting my car broken into my family were just like, "Come home.

[00:05:15]Come home." And it's feeling like a real possibility. Like I know that I'm very homesick.

[00:05:22]And maybe it wouldn't be a bad thing to start over.

[00:05:25]But I'm just not feeling fully ready yet. And I just don't know how long I'm going to hang in here and keep trying to make it work.

[00:05:34]Um, I've been living in survival mode for so long.

[00:05:40]And that I'm just feeling so stressed all the time.

[00:05:44]And I just don't know how long I can keep going on like this.

[00:05:48]So, uh yeah, we'll we'll see.

[00:05:54]Um I guess some positives is that I do I have been painting a lot and um I do have my first commission, which is actually proving to be kind of harder than what I thought it would be, even though it's a cool challenge. Um it does make me realize that it is tricky.

[00:06:14]And but it's good. It's a good challenge.

[00:06:17]So, um yeah, I I guess that's it for now.

[00:06:22]That's my little update on the on May uh 2026.

[00:06:27]And yeah, we'll see we'll see what happens next.

[00:06:33]Oh, and another reason that I stay here, which is actually a really big factor, is the happiness of my dog.

[00:06:41]Um he's a nervous dog and I can tell that he's very comfortable here. He has his friends. He's very picky about who he likes and I feel responsible or I am responsible for giving him the best life and keeping him happy.

[00:06:58]And I do want to give him the best life I can and just seeing how happy he is here, it makes it a lot harder for me to just up sticks and move and take him away from his friends and where he's comfortable as well.

[00:07:12]Anyway, if anyone relates to this or feels stuck, I would love to hear [clears throat] from you. Um I'll keep you guys posted.