Canine early-warning system

Dogs and humans have been together for some 30 000 years or thereabouts. We are so intertwined that our evolutionary progression is linked. Apparently, when hunter-gatherers domesticated dogs back in the day, they obviously served as an excellent early-warning system. Dogs are more alert and will detect any incoming danger well before us humans. This is a killer feature and no wonder that we have become good friends over the years. Here’s a cool fact about dogs. Your sleep quality improves if you have a snoring dog nearby.

DiaryRikard ÖqvistSeptember 19, 2024dogs, sleep, rest, labradorComment

Lifesaving habits

It’s been a couple of weeks now with late work-nights. A temporary reduction in sleep hours is usually no problem, but it is annoyingly easy to get stuck in a loop where you are active later in the evening or night, which both makes it harder to fall asleep and reduces the quality of the hours you get. Consequentially, it will be increasingly harder to get up in the morning and/or you will lose focus during the day, which will reduce productivity. And then you will need to work even longer hours to compensate, which only adds yet more gravel in the delicate machinery. It is a dark spiral. How do you break it?

Diary, HabitsRikard ÖqvistOctober 30, 2023health, habits, stress, dogs, musicComment

Lessons from man’s best friend

Recently, my sister had to put one of her beloved dogs to sleep abruptly. Things can change fast. What seemed to be a healthy guy and ran 15 km on the spring ice in the archipelago, was gone a couple of days later after an extremely aggressive cancer diagnosis. It wasn’t really expected because he was only seven years old and hadn’t shown any suspicions signs. Sad as it is, it is also a healthy reminder that the same rules apply to us humans, albeit over a somewhat more extended timeframe.

HabitsRikard ÖqvistApril 25, 2023dogs, health, life, habits, focusComment

How to mask a bad habit

A couple of years ago, when I was living in the city, I used to ride the bus to work. My destination was one station beyond the city´s primary bus station - Vasaplan. When the bus arrived at Vasaplan, the driver turned off the engine and waited for a couple of minutes before continuing the route. Sometimes, there were people talking with each other or on their phones, but you could usually never hear them in the noisy bus. But as soon as the engine sound vanished, the environment got quiet and you could instantly hear every word in the nearby conversation. And as soon as the bus continued its route, the background noise came back and consequently the conversation became inaudible. This is a perfect example of a phenomenon called “sound masking”.

PhilosophyRikard ÖqvistMarch 13, 2023habits, alcohol, addiction, dogs, walking, evilComment

Conversations reveal solutions

Last week I had a call with my nurse, a routine thing because I recently turned 40 years old. I had left some test samples and answered a lengthy questionnaire regarding just about every topic regarding my physical and mental health. Or Body and Soul, which are the terms I would prefer. In the questionnaire, one of the topics was “Is there anything in your life that you want to reduce?” or something similar. My gut response was screen time. I spend way too much time behind screens and just a little while of free thought here and there would make a huge difference. When talking with my nurse for an hour, I cracked an idea that is ridiculously simple on how to achieve it. Isn’t it fascinating how you can often find solutions to your problems yourself as soon as you articulate and define your problem to someone else?

Diary, Photography, PhilosophyRikard ÖqvistOctober 10, 2022soul, mind, addiction, screen time, dogs, walkingComment

Just do it!

A couple of days ago, me, my three-year-old son and my dog decided to put up a tent and spend the night outdoors. Easily the best decision this year. We simply put up the tent on our backyard. It doesn’t have to be more complicated than that. I had the best nights sleep in a long time. It is amazing how much the environment affects your sleep. The sound of clashing waves paired with singing birds is as natural as it gets. Combined with the sunset and sunrise you have your alarm clock figured out as well. I haven’t felt more alive in ages.

ParentingRikard ÖqvistAugust 1, 2022camping, parenting, dad, kids, dogsComment

The diarrhea-diaper cycle

Today is the first official vacation day for me, and never before have I felt such an urge to work! But wait a minute, isn’t vacation supposed to be about NOT working? Yes, but there is a difference between work and work. Running on and beyond the cognitive red-line for months on end has consequences and results in cognitive fatigue. No matter how much fun you have at the office. But this summer is unique. I just became a father for the second time and oh boy have I looked forward to all the “work” that follows. However, I would never call it work. Changing diapers on a screaming furious infant is relaxation. Pair it with a dog suffering from diarrhea during the worst thunderstorm I have experienced, and it is like a mental spa-treatment to me. I am now blessed with well-defined problems in abundance, something very different from the cognitively demanding role as an engineer.

ParentingRikard ÖqvistJuly 20, 2021parenting, family, dogs, vacationComment