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Turning Down the Volume
As I write this, the “neighbors” in the nearby building are blasting their TV. My hunch is that the husband in the couple is hard of hearing, because his wife is always yelling at him. They speak in Russian, so I don’t know what they’re saying. (It could be that she’s just angry.) I’m about to enter my weekly 24-hour zone of tranquility and would love for the universe to meet me half way. Wishing you all some peace and quiet.
Illustration by Marc Johns
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Yep. Been there, done that. I live in a neighborhood where the houses are very close together. All of my current neighbors are very peaceable, but my previous next door neighbors were a couple of young guys who liked to play video games every night with the volume on full blast. They were mid-twenties so hearing wasn’t the issue – it was just that they liked their games LOUD and never considered the possibility that the neighbors weren’t enjoying it as much as they were. Sometimes the universe meets you half way, and sometimes you have recognize the reality of the situation, close the windows and turn on the AC.
Jane, thanks for your great attitude about this. I have a ceiling fan in my bedroom, and that’s my go-to noise equalizer.
I recently heard that 50 million people in the U.S. have enough hearing loss to affect their day-to-day lives, and that the daily noise that we now consider normal is a big factor in that.
I also have some noisy neighbors. As long as it doesn’t happen after 9pm, I keep quiet about it, since there’s nothing in the local regulations that prohibit that. But last Thanksgiving Day, I did end up calling the police at around 10am, as it sounded like they were having an argument that had turned violent. After the police arrived, they were quiet as church mice for the rest of the day. I hate that it had to come to that.
Personally, I like a little background noise in my life, with the emphasis on the word “little”, and with the words “background noise” being translated to “some kind of music that I like on the radio”. Beyond that, I’m out.
When my noisy neighbors aren’t arguing with each other, they’re blasting their AC. And I try to visualize it as background noise. My success rate on this has a lot to do with my mood.
I am curious what your 24 hours retreat consists of…?!?
So curious!
The biggest retreat is from worrying. It’s my 24 hour worry free zone. What a relief that is.