You can love the fire service and still admit it takes pieces of you. We’re joined by engineer paramedic Tim Garren, the founder of Old Town Leatherworks, for a wide-open conversation about burnout, compassion fatigue, and what happens when the calls start to numb you out. We talk about the stuff most crews joke through, sleep deprivation, ugly scenes, and the quiet moment when you realize you’re not processing anything anymore.

Tim shares the personal path that got him here: chasing music as a kid, losing direction into substance abuse, a near-fatal overdose, and a faith reset that changed how he sees purpose, peace, and daily discipline. We also get into grief and family life, what it’s like to become a dad in the middle of a demanding career, and why routines like prayer and honest check-ins can be protective for first responder mental health.

On the practical side, Tim breaks down how he built Old Town Leatherworks into a real firefighter side hustle, mostly through Instagram, with custom leather radio straps, suspenders, wallets, and guitar straps. We dig into why handcrafted gear costs what it costs, how creativity becomes therapy, and how to set boundaries when a hobby turns into a business. We also hit a serious topic departments still struggle with: forced overtime, driving a 40,000-pound rig exhausted, and the liability that lands on the operator.

If you got something from this one, subscribe, share it with someone on your crew, and leave a review. What part of the job do you wish people talked about more?

Thanks for taking the time to listen in. Please leave us 5 stars on Spotify & Apple Podcasts with a review. THANK YOU!

Thanks for taking the time to listen in. Please leave us 5 stars on Spotify & Apple Podcasts with a review. THANK YOU!

A cardboard‑covered car on PCH. An eight‑man tent on the library lawn. A blue and yellow Lamborghini in a grocery lot. Brian’s journey threads through these unlikely scenes on its way to something hard‑won and beautiful: 780 days sober, a home, and a community built on service, humor, and relentless hope.

We open with the early hits—beer at 13, heroin before graduation, the long carousel of rehabs and cells. California was supposed to be the dream; Venice Beach made the spiral faster. Brian refused to “decorate the tent,” knowing comfort could become a trap. Then Huntington Beach cracked the story open: a red‑haired landlord who felt like family, a mirror that finally got the truth—“I’m tired”—and a stranger who called his supercar a “gift of sobriety” and pointed him to a 7 a.m. meeting. What followed was raw and real: a brutal 30‑day detox behind a bedroom door, employers who said “we’ve got you,” and a daily gratitude ritual that rebuilt a life one morning at a time.

The twist you won’t see coming is joyful. A porch moment—Elaine, a hose, and two sandy surfers—went viral and introduced millions to their odd‑couple magic. Brian started live streaming from the Huntington Beach pier, telling the truth about recovery, feeding neighbors, and letting people name the crabs that danced across his screen. The Crab Crew was born: resilient, adaptive, sideways‑moving when forward is blocked. We talk about faith as a steady nudge, the danger of living in fear of the next shoe, and why simple acts—a bottle of water, a held door—create ripples you’ll never fully trace.

Come for the wild ride from tent to TikTok; stay for the tools that last—community support, accountability, service, and daily gratitude. If you need proof that your worst chapter can seed your best work, this is it. Listen, share with someone who needs it, and if the message lands, tap follow and leave a review so more people hear they’re worth it.

Thanks for taking the time to listen in. Please leave us 5 stars on Spotify & Apple Podcasts with a review. THANK YOU!