Lygenztia *660 (Look at all they give you, or don't.....) December 27, 2023

Listened to an interesting podcast on "shrinkflation" and how food producers are putting less product into a package but selling it for the same price, or in some cases even more. I guess, when you are mass producing an item putting less in means more profit. A definition of shrinkflation can be found, here.

Maybe, though, shrinkflation may have an unitended positive health consequence. Less food=less consumption?

The truly ironic piece to this is that North Americans (especially our southern neighbours) are being served and consuming overly large portions of food at restaurants and fast food establishments, etc. This, in turn was/is causing an epidemic of obesity.

Perhaps a consequence of shrinkflation is decreased consumption which could lead to increased health and wellness.

And I am certain this was an intended consequence of the food producers, right? Right?

Yes, sure it was.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8. Help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

First Responder Assist, Wellness and Resilience resources can be found here.

Lygenztia *659 (Happy birthday, Isaac, from the CFSM...........) December 25, 2023

Isaac Newton was born December 25, 1642 in Woolsthorpe, Lincolnshire, England (died March 20 , 1727).

On the calendar of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster (CFSM), today is the celebration of (Sir) Isaac Newton's birthday. You know, they guy that had an apple drop on his head, thus proving gravity and his theories (to this day), which refute and dis-prove "flat-earther's" I take no issue with flat earther's other than all scientific evidence proves they are incorrect, along with a few anecdotal pieces of evidence, such as pictures from space. I also think flat-earther's to be somewhat insane, or at the very least..... weak in the old corporeal faculties. But enough of that!

Today, we as members of the CFSM celebrate the birth of the esteemed Issac Newton. It coincides with that other holiday, Christmas, apparently? I am told this Christmas thing is a big deal. Members of the CFSM celebrate by enjoying lavish meals, exchanging presents and watching Hallmark specials, while wearing only thongs.

Feel free to join in the celebrations, even if you are not a member of the CFSM. And hey, let us be good to eachother.



If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8. Help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

First Responder Assist, Wellness and Resilience resources can be found here.

Lygenztia *658 (Involvement vs. Investment.....) December 24, 2023

(I wrote this through the lense of a firefighter, but this may translate to other professions. Take from it what you will.)

Involvement vs. Investment

Your involvement in a call and your investment in a call are different things. One is positive and the other can be negative. Your INVOLVEMENT level in a call will increase your skills, confidence and ability to make sound judgments when under pressure. This is where learning, positive reinforcement and improvement occur.

Involvement is a task or series of tasks that are assigned by a senior firefighter or officer. These tasks are fixed and have a desired outcome. You are in control of the task, once assigned. With your training and experience you carry out the task. This builds on your experience and confidence. Every call, every task builds your confidence, your knowledge base and generally gives you a feeling of satisfaction on completion.

A good leader will recognize your efforts, provide feedback and give positive reinforcement.

So what’s the big deal with investment?

Your INVESTMENT level is completely different and can have the opposite effect. Your investment level has the potential to trigger the forces of negative feelings, feelings of despair or potentially trigger PTSD.

Investment is how you feel about a call, or the manner in which your emotions can interfere with your judgements. Maybe the casualty looks like your child? Maybe the casualty is a friend or family member? At that point, you become “invested” in the call in a completely different way.

You may be unsatisfied with your assigned task, or distracted from its completion. You may wish to have a higher level of involvement, because you have a higher level of investment. You may try to interject into the decision making process. That’s when it gets dangerous for you, the casualty and your fellow firefighters.

The problem with investment is, unlike a task you are not always in control of the outcome. When a firefighter becomes too invested in a call, they make poor decisions. This is not on purpose, but is the result of emotion over-riding your judgement. A perfectly human reaction.

Think of it in these terms, a police hostage negotiator would never take charge of negotiations if his wife was the hostage.

As a firefighter on the scene you must be in control of your body and your mind. Your training, experience and ability to know your own imitations are critical for everyone’s safety. Your goal should always be to increase your involvement and to be self-aware of your level of investment.

Some level of investment is not always a negative factor. But, you must be aware of your limitations and be wary when making decisions that could risk the safety of yourself and someone else.

Would your decision(s) on an extrication be the same if it was your daughter in the car, as opposed to an unknown citizen?

After the fact, having been too invested in a call could also have negative effects on your resilience and mental health. If you are too invested and the call ends in tragedy, you may find that you are (unnecessarily) blaming yourself, or find yourself second guessing your actions. Self blame and doubt will ultimately wear away at your confidence, resilience and well being.

With all that said, to find the balance we should all seek to increase our level of involvement as firefighters. We should also be keenly aware of our investment and know when it is time to step back.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8. Help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

First Responder Assist, Wellness and Resilience resources can be found here.

Lygenztia *657 (It's a Festivus for the rest of us.....) December 23, 2023

Today, is Festivus. A festive occassion, to be sure. And, yes it is a thing.

"Festivus (/ˈfɛstɪvəs/) is a secular holiday celebrated on December 23 as an alternative to the pressures and commercialism of the Christmas season. Originally created by author Daniel O'Keefe, Festivus entered popular culture after it was made the focus of the 1997 Seinfeld episode "The Strike",[1][2] which O'Keefe's son, Dan O'Keefe, co-wrote." (with thanks to Wikipedia)

Like many others, I thought Festivus just to be the creation of George's zany father, Frank. But, it is a thing. I encourage you to take a hiatus from the commercialism on this day and take up a few of your own Festivus traditions. Here are a few suggestions for those with limited creative leanings.

Place a pan in bag and nail it to the wall.
Pour food colouring into your hot tub
Tape grocery bags (re-usable of course) to the hood of your car.
Go to the pub, loudly declare a Festivus miracle and drink only out of paper cups.
Declare yourself a pastafarian and wear a cauldron on your head. A concept borrowed from the CFSM.
Take one lesson on Swahili on duolingo and only one, on Festivus each year.

The world is your oyster, my friends. Go forth, celebrate Festivus! But most importantly create your own tradition.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8. Help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

First Responder Assist, Wellness and Resilience resources can be found here.

Lygenztia *656 (Oh, the weather outside is frightful.....) December 22, 2023

Weather patterns are changing. No matter what your stance is on global warming (either...."yes" or "rubbish") it is clear that weather patterns have gone amok. In areas of Central Ontario where snow was once common in December, this is no longer the case. Sure, we may get snow in these areas but then comes the mild days and rain. It's not uncommon to see lasting snow not happen until mid-January. Just ask the snowmobiler's, they can attest to this.

I have been producing maple syrup for about ten years. Even in that span of time I have noticed the spring weather patterns have become varied. The sap runs the last few years have not been great and are unpredictable. Ideally, you need temperatures of -5 celcius at night and +5 during the day. The issue being the transition from "cold" to spring-like is far too rapid. When it comes time for the sap to run it becomes mild too rapidly and it does not get cold at night. So just what is nature telling us?

I have always maintained that nature is perfect. There are endless writings on this topic and this opinion did not start with me. But, I do subscribe to it. Nature functions in a relationship that I don't think mankind will ever truly understand. I posit this is because some people think of this concept as hocus-pocus. Don't take my word for it, there are many books on this topic. "The Hidden Life of Trees" is a good start.

So, whatever is going on, it is not good for mankind but maybe it is good for the planet. Did "we" cause it, or is it just the great circle of life brought on by Mother Nature and planet Earth? And, can we stop it? As I mentioned earlier, nature is perfect. If this is what Mother Nature wants, it will happen....like it or not.



If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8. Help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

First Responder Assist, Wellness and Resilience resources can be found here.

Lygenztia *655 (Big shit going down at work.............) December 18, 2023

Alight, alright...so I am stealing a bit from my last blog. Sue me, or stop reading. That's if anyone actually does.

If you want my eyes to glaze over and have me make my best attempt at faking active listening, simply start talking about your work. A funny story or some anecdote? Fine. That's fair game. Now, I hate to break it you folks but......do you know who cares about your work? Your co-workers and your co-workers, only. Not one single other human being on this planet could care less about your work or the day to day happenings that are common to the microcosm that makes up every workplace.

Ok, to be clear, a good friend will pretend to be interested and polite as you droan on endlessly about some new piece of equipment that arrived, or some co-workers kid that now needs to take the bus to school. Or the meeting that you had about the Christmas party. Oooooh please, do tell me more!(What is the emoji for sarcasm, again?)

People that commit this social interaction faux pas do not understand that nobody cares about what goes on in their workplace. I think some of the offenders actually think that others want to hear about their work. That "amazing" story about the co-worker that doesn't do their job to your liking, or is frequently late? This is not the stuff of which fascinating conversations are made. It is in fact, how a good conversation is destroyed.

I am willing to exempt brain surgeons, secret agents, veterinarians and professional athletes. Anyone else with work stories, shut the fuck up.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8. Help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

First Responder Assist, Wellness and Resilience resources can be found here.

Lygenztia *654 (How not to be a dick) December 17, 2023

COVID (such a nasty word) robbed me of my creative fiat, but alas it may have returned.

Social etiquette eludes some of us. Rude people generally don't realize (or care) that they are rude people. To that end, a few tips for those that will never use them anyway. If you don't want to be known or regarded as a dick, try these tips.

1) Don't interrupt, especially when someone is telling a joke.
2) Don't be a phone fact checker.
3) Don't be the "one-upper".
4) Actively listen to the person speaking and don't just sit there eagerly waiting to grab the first opportunity to speak.
5) Admit when you are wrong.
6) Don't discuss your finances, good or bad. It's tack, shabby and nobody really cares except you.
7) Don't humble brag. (If you don't know what that is, look it up.)
8) Get off your damn phone when you are speaking to someone.
9) Don't steal someone's story.
10) Don't talk excessively about your job. A funny story, fine. But your work stuff? Literally nobody cares.

There you have it, tips for the ones that need it most but will never use them.












If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8. Help is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.


First Responder Assist, Wellness and Resilience resources can be found here.