Stress

Well I found out your body is like a big bank. But unlike big banks, your body can only hold so much. Once you reach your limit it doesn't take much.

I reached 95% with the deer. This week I felt like a stress magnet. I couldn't sleep one night and wound up going to work late. Two nights I got home from work and went straight to bed. They weren't the nights that I couldn't sleep

So where is all the extra stress coming from?

The fire course has a lot, but not all. We have half a manual the size of a phone book (big city) to know. There is a computer generated test with 50 questions on anything covered. I did do homework.

Today we have to do interior attack in a fire. This involves darkness, zero visibility, smoke, hidden obstacles, fire and air (by way of SCBA). The air lasts 20 minutes if you aren't straining. This is a lot of physical stress as well as mental.

Later we are voluntarily going into a flash over chamber. Voluntary, yeah right. I was not really on board for this as it is something I didn't need to know. But I did research and feel better about it now. As long as I can get out.

At work I am co-chair of a management / employee committee. I am on the employee side, but I am not a shop steward. The rest of the employee reps are. We had a big meeting on Wednesday. The Terms of Reference were on the agenda. This is like the Constitution. Before the meeting management and the union were having their strategy sessions. I wasn't invited, nor did I want to be. But the union got a hold of me and expressed there concerns. We got the Terms on Tuesday afternoon, not enough time to review, in my opinion.

The union started to pressure me. I told them as the document stood I was not willing to support/adopt it.

On this committee is a member who's sole objective is to stoke a war between union and management. This member takes everything negatively.

Anyway, at the meeting I am the Chairman. I adjust agenda and we start. On a housekeeping issue the fun starts. Anti-management goes on about a reprimand they got. I was going to ask if it were written or or oral, but I figured the management person could deal with this. Oh the union president was there. I figured this person wanted to put on a show, I didn't help them.

We got to the Terms of Reference and had a round table. For my part I had written my issues on the document and had it there. Management said it was a draft. I looked at it, Draft was not anywhere on it. I said I took this to be the results of a sub-committee. Turns out it was the result of a manager outside that committee and our committee. So we were tabling it. But, this document has been an item for 8 months. One of the sub-committee member's term expires in September. I told them I wanted this done by August. I ruffled some feathers, but I had a point. There is a deadline of next week to have all the recommendations submitted to the sub-committee. Maybe then we can have a better document to work with.

We got to Provost last night and got our rooms. It was a good ride. But some stressed was piled on me, stuff that would be normally handled blew up. I just about bailed on the course.

Speaking of bailing, a member of the workplace committee bailed. I wanted to, my supervisor told me that I should. I didn't figure it was a good time.

After this weekend it will be better.