by

I had too much time on my hands this morning. I came across a little-known fact and wondered whether it was true and why it existed.

The video claimed that hot dogs were packaged in different quantities than hot dog buns. Often, it was 10 to 8, respectively.

First, I wanted to check the validity of this claim. I went online and stopped just short of ordering home delivery of these two products from a major grocery chain. There was some truth to the mismatch. Depending on the brand and total weight, hot dogs were packaged in 8 or 10 packages. Buns were packaged in 6, 8, or 12. So sometimes the match was there, but it took work to find it.

Why the mismatch? Why history, of course? Sausages came over from Europe when wieners and hot dogs were in their infancy in the USA. Sausages were purchased from small businesses and often served from street carts at fairs and baseball games. The owners would find any low-cost bread.

Over time, bakeries began making buns to match sausages. The sausages gradually became consistent in size to match the buns.

This was happening independently between the meat makers and the bun makers. The meat was sold by weight, and the buns by the number in a package.

You can see where this will end up. Yup, a mismatch 100 years later.

So why can’t they get together? Well, just follow the money, or in this case, the cost.

It is so expensive to change the process for highly manufactured products. One small change in one place on the production line triggers changes in multiple places further down the line.

Likewise with baking buns. Ovens need to be replaced if the internal oven measurements change. Trays of buns are spaced to ensure proper cooking and crusting. The trays are clustered to match current package numbers further down the line. Squeeze more in, and the ovens need to change. Put less in, and the buns will cost more.

Some research shows that this mismatch actually increases sales. Shoppers buy extra buns to ensure they have enough for each hot dog, then use the extras to make fancy sandwiches for the kids.

I was thinking about how this dilemma has affected my life; how difficult it is to change my behaviour or my thinking, which is past its best-before date. They served me well earlier in my life, but there are questionable benefits today. A quick example is the ritual of writing the ‘Christmas Letter’ to include with my Christmas cards. Some of these letters had been sent for several decades without ever meeting the person or even speaking on the phone during that time.

I decided to prune my letter numbers. After that, I decided that the letters to folks I had frequent contact with didn’t need a catch-up letter. This reduced my annual chore of sending Christmas cards to zero within about 3 years. 

I don’t recommend this approach for others. We each need to find our own way along our life’s journey. I encourage others to have a mindful journey.

Please give this a bit of a think. Can you think of any lingering behaviours or thoughts that may have served you well at one time, but whose benefits are less obvious today?

Please comment by sending me an email with your bit of a think. I am curious about your thoughts.

Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Unsplash

If you enjoyed The Blog, please share it with others. Thanks.

And my thanks to St. Albert’s 50+ Activity Centre for making this Blog possible.

Volunteer Blogger

glenn.walmsley@icloud.com