January 10, 2025: New Year, Same Person
Good Morning,
Happy new year and welcome to 2025. Is January 10th too late to say that? I'm not big on arbitrary calendar dates, but I know I personally could do with a reset to shed 2024 and start fresh in 2025.
For me, 2022 was an absolute dumpster fire, so 2023 felt like a raging success. Unsurprisingly, 2024 fell somewhere in the middle? It wasn't bad enough that I want to risk insulting the universe, but also not so hot that I want to receive the same thing again this year, you know?
I'm sure you've seen eons of listicles and newsletters with their glorious plans for how to improve your work/life in 2025. I'll spare you (although this was a pretty good one, if you have somehow managed to avoid such content.) What I will say about 2024 (relative to past years) is that I did a pretty job of saying "Not my circus, not my monkeys!" when people were completely unrealistic. Like the organization opening a $100m+ recreation facility and choosing (I refuse to say 'cannot') to train only two pool operators. God speed to you! My phone line is open on the back end of this.
This might seem a bit out of left field, but I have two video recommendations for you this week that are actually relevant to working in aquatics and facilities.
¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor! (2024) on Paramount+ or AppleTV
Even if you never went to Casa Bonita pre-reno (it was filthy), this is a great documentary about deferred maintenance costs and revitalizing a building you can't afford to let go. The pool - first shown at 17 mins - is the most horrific commercial site imaginable, with divers swimming through small spaces with exposed pipes; showering next to high voltage panels; and uncovered lightbulbs amongst sharp rocks in the splash zone.
This video was timely because I just spent a week at a facility that is only 6-7 years old, and the mechanical room was absolutely trashed. It was so upsetting given the last time I visited was right after it opened!? We're talking garbage all over the floors (empty chemical bags, pieces of feeding tube); water and chemical stains/drips down the sides of valves and filters; supplies piled up everywhere with no rhyme or reason; dirty looking emergency showers; and parts of the public-facing pool decks also headed in the same direction.... Casa Bonita is a really good, albeit extreme, example of the final consequences when people just don't care.
All the Queens Horses (2017) free on YouTube here
Before Christmas, you probably heard that President Biden pardoned a bunch of people. One of those people was Rita Crundwell of Dixon, Illinois. Don't Google her! Watch (or listen) to the documentary about her crimes. If you work in a municipal or non-profit environment where responsible stewardship of ratepayer resources is part of your job, it's absolutely horrifying and a lesson to all of us.
Lastly, some pool news!
Autopsy of Lazar Đukić Finalized; No Signs of Cardiac Arrest
Updates on a drowning fatality we've covered extensively since last summer.
Man lay at bottom of pool for more than five minutes while lifeguards stood by chatting, court hears
Lifeguards chat for 5 mins ~ on CCTV during a rotation while man blacks out from extended lungbusters (underwater swimming).
Pipe Price Fixing
A bit out there, but this one has been making the rounds this week.
Suspected Drownings Claim Lives of Two Tourists in St. Kitts and Nevis
Sadly, I was at nearby Frigate Bay when the hearse came to collect the deceased. One was from our cruise ship, Oasis of the Seas.
N.B. commission turns down Fredericton's request to help settle pool-funding squabble
Every community wants a new pool, but no one wants to pay for it.
Nordic spas booming amid 'unlimited' consumer appetite for wellness
Almost every day I get an Instagram ad for a new Nordic spa. And the list of facilities in the article is just the "big" ones. In Calgary alone I'm aware of two smaller ones opening soon in strip malls in early 2025 plus one I worked with in Edmonton.
Lastly, I'm currently in the process of writing new year cards (thank you Canada Post for going on strike Nov/Dec). Please click here if you'd like to receive one!
Katie Crysdale
Lakeview Aquatic Consultants
ICYMI - we were on hiatus for two weeks due to Christmas & New Years. Our last newsletter on December 20, 2024 had aquatic facility updates from Yellowknife, Prince Albert and Winnipeg; Thermea purchasing a new mega spa in Germany; and more.