Editor’s note: A comical glimpse into how someone from another culture perceives urban British Columbia.

By Mina Kerr-Lazenby, North Shore News, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Something horrific happened to me recently.

There I was, sitting on the loo. I’m doing my business, minding my own business, when I glance upwards mid tinkle … only to be met with the startled and unwavering stare of a stranger.

I had been sitting in the presumed private space of a public restroom cubicle when I had inadvertently peeped through the gap between the door and the stall’s wall at the same moment a woman, washing her hands at the sink in front, had glanced up into the mirror and locked eyes with my own. 

My stomach dropped (lucky I was on the toilet).