The noise from next-door has been bugging me since nine
Music is playing on my headphones yet the noise behind the music is still bugging me, just a tiny little bit. I can't quite relax, can't get to sleep. My brain keeps thinking "hey, something's up" because I can hear the voices next-door so well. Normally voices heard that clearly are nearby, as in right outside my house. Voices right outside my house means there are people outside my house, people in my garden, people by the door, people who shouldn't be there; strangers who are too close to the house. Hearing noises outside my house signals DANGER danger DANGER and means I need to call the police, need to be sure the doors are locked, need to be sure the windows are closed, need to be ready to scare intruders off, need to be ready to hide, need to... No. Stop. Wait. There is no danger.
It takes only a fraction of a second for all those thoughts to run through my head. Less than a second of alertness, yet my ears keep hearing noises, my brain keeps trying to make sense of the noises. No. Stop. Wait. There is no danger. It's just the neighbours. There are no doors or windows on the side of the house the noise is coming from, just a solid wall. There is no danger there. Only my brain doesn't seem to get that, or perhaps it is my ears that refuse to let me relax enough to sleep. I can hear the ebb and flow of the conversation as the sounds drift through the wall. One will speak, another will answer, another will comment and eventually it sounds like several people are trying to be heard at once. They sound like they're having a lively debate or perhaps a friendly argument.
The noise from next-door has been bugging me since nine this evening. It's just people-noises, the kind that are normal when you share a building with others, nothing to be alarmed about. Normally distant sounds don't bother me, yet tonight my ears keep trying to make out words, my brain keeps trying to make sense of what I hear. The soothing classical music helps me relax, as does writing this post. I remind myself the neighbours are just having a good time with friends; they are drinking and talking, probably not at all aware that the noise carries.
Years ago I lived next-door to a nightclub featuring live music several times a week. I liked the bands that played there which means I loved living next-door to my old neighbours very much and wasn't bothered by the music or the sound of voices. Noise-wise, my current neighbours don't even register compared to my old neighbours. Yet tonight the noise seems to bug me, even if just a little. A bubbly voice in my head tells me I should just ignore the sound of voices and be grateful that my current neighbours aren't as loud as my old neighbours. The voices will stop soon, or you'll just be too tired to hear them. One way or another, you'll be asleep in no time! An image pops into my head of a cartoon-like angel and devil, the kind that might sit on Homer Simpson's shoulders. The little devil is laughing at the shoulder angel who just spoke those optimistic words.
The little devil seems to know better. "I can change all that in an instant..." he says with a wickedly evil grin. I yawn and the moment passes but not before I decide that maybe, just for tonight, I'll wear my bright yellow earplugs to keep the noises out. Just in case the little devil is right, you know.
It takes only a fraction of a second for all those thoughts to run through my head. Less than a second of alertness, yet my ears keep hearing noises, my brain keeps trying to make sense of the noises. No. Stop. Wait. There is no danger. It's just the neighbours. There are no doors or windows on the side of the house the noise is coming from, just a solid wall. There is no danger there. Only my brain doesn't seem to get that, or perhaps it is my ears that refuse to let me relax enough to sleep. I can hear the ebb and flow of the conversation as the sounds drift through the wall. One will speak, another will answer, another will comment and eventually it sounds like several people are trying to be heard at once. They sound like they're having a lively debate or perhaps a friendly argument.
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| Homer Simpson (search engine screen capture) |
Years ago I lived next-door to a nightclub featuring live music several times a week. I liked the bands that played there which means I loved living next-door to my old neighbours very much and wasn't bothered by the music or the sound of voices. Noise-wise, my current neighbours don't even register compared to my old neighbours. Yet tonight the noise seems to bug me, even if just a little. A bubbly voice in my head tells me I should just ignore the sound of voices and be grateful that my current neighbours aren't as loud as my old neighbours. The voices will stop soon, or you'll just be too tired to hear them. One way or another, you'll be asleep in no time! An image pops into my head of a cartoon-like angel and devil, the kind that might sit on Homer Simpson's shoulders. The little devil is laughing at the shoulder angel who just spoke those optimistic words.
The little devil seems to know better. "I can change all that in an instant..." he says with a wickedly evil grin. I yawn and the moment passes but not before I decide that maybe, just for tonight, I'll wear my bright yellow earplugs to keep the noises out. Just in case the little devil is right, you know.
