Since the weather was so pleasant today, I hurried into the shower and got dressed quickly so I could go visit my friends in the assisted care facility where they live. It was so good to get out, and to drive my car with the windows down instead of using the air conditioner. A few more days like this, and I may decide to stay in Sacramento.
Now if there was some way to get rid of boom boxes in cars, life would be wonderful.
The apartment complex I live in is comprised of eight 4-plexes. (Two up, two down. I live down.) The building I'm in is the third building off the street, a busy, noisy street. There's a traffic light at the corner, and my ears are frequently assaulted with high decibel boom-boom while cars are waiting for the traffic light to change. I've even been wakened at night with same boom-boom.
There's a noise abatement law in Sacramento, but I haven't noticed much enforcement.
I don't really care what kind of music other people like. I'm not judgmental about that. But why do I have to listen to it, too? I've been in my car and have been able to hear the noise from a car three cars back. That seems excessive to me. And when one of them is in the lane next to me, I have to hold my hands over my ears, and sit there "Please light, change. Change. CHANGE, dammit!!"
I have a 50% hearing loss in both ears, but it isn't from excessive noise. I was given some medicine many years ago that caused hearing loss in some people. I was one of the people. I would not have dared turn up the radio so the whole neighborhood would be able to hear. I would have been strongly lectured and probably sent to my room to think over my misdeeds. As a matter of fact, I don't think cars had radios when I learned to drive. And we had one radio in the house--in the living room. Turn up the volume to BLAST? It never occurred to me.
Now, these young people who play their stereos so loud are going to end up deaf, and probably already have partial hearing loss. How can they be in their cars surrounded by all that noise? How can they be in their rooms with their stereos turned up so loud the walls vibrate? Oy, gives me a headache just to write about it. Ear plugs help, but I can still feel the vibration in my body.
Well, that's my kvetch for tonight.
Type atcha tomorrow night, and maybe a little more generous-spirited to what passes for humanity.
Shalom
Comments (8)
Hurray for you that you got relief from the heat! That's a welcome respite, indeed.
I feel for you about the noise polluters. Tell me about it. I have inconsiderate neighbors whose teenage sons think it is a public service to blast VERY LOUD Tamil music at 11 p.m. or so.
I can't stand inconsiderate people. I hope they all go deaf before they turn 30.
Love,
E.L.
Re your Comment: I have read Farenheit 451, The Illustrated Man, When Elephants Last In The Dooryard Bloomed, Dandelion Wine, Something Wicked this Way Comes and one or two other Bradbudy books that I can't recall right now.
The 'elephants' one is a volume of poetry. Very surreal and unusual.
Hurray, you're a Wyndham fan too!
Love,
E.L.
everytime i come here to read of the heat you're enduring i can't help but feel sorry for you :(
i definitely am not looking forward to summer if its as hot as what yours is, and am quite enjoying the days of cold cold mornings but brilliantly blue clear skies. beautiful!!
re the boom boxes: i couldn't agree more, they are a nuisance, and i'm sure they'll highly regret doing what they do when they hit 30 and have lost something as valuable as their hearing!
sez
Great topic, it made me get up and review my anatomy notes.
It bothers me also when sitting a light and having another car's boom boom vibrate through my ears. I'm always warning my daughter about that, how it can cause hearing loss. I am sorry to hear the medicine affected you in that way.
I'm glad it's cooled off a bit for you.