Good Morning.
The past few days have been cool enough to have all the windows open, and I'm not used to the noise that is finding its way inside because the air-conditioning is usually on. I live on a busy street and it's busier than usual because the main drag a couple of blocks away is under construction, the kind that makes people crazy in the head, so a lot of traffic going to and from work is using my street, and so are the fire trucks and cop cars. They don't bother me, but the motorcycles do. They are thunderously noisy, and I suspect that's precisely the reason why people, particularly men, buy them, Men like to make noise. Women make noise too, but they do it by laughing too loud or yelling at someone in a rather unattractive, high-pitched voice. Men think up ways to make noise because they're wired in the brain and elsewhere to do it. If you want to see this sort of programming at a level that qualifies it as an energy source, go to the motorcycle rally at Sturgis, South Dakota. It's getting underway shortly and it's very loud and leathery.
There's a certain segment of the population that hates air-conditioning, whether it's an old rumbling window unit or a quieter central system. AC foes claim they get colds, stiff necks, swollen glands, and who knows what else from artificially
comfortable temperatures. I am not an AC foe. I become extremely irritable when I'm dripping away in my house, especially if the humidity is high. The anti-AC crowd says humidity is good for your skin, but God and Oil of Olay invented moisturizers for a reason. For my friends currently vacationing at the shore, I'd do without AC in a heartbeat to be at the ocean, but not in the city and not where I live, which is why having a cool spell at the end of July is unexpected and weird.
The people a couple of doors away had a rummage sale on Saturday - that's a tag sale on the east coast - and I could hear everything, including a dog that barked on and off all day because there were unfamiliar lookers chatting about what they were looking for, if anything, in his yard. The neighbors behind me were using an implement that was digging I think, because it sounded like a slightly less noisy cousin of the jack hammer. I could hear the kids squealing on the front porch across the street and the mailman putting the bills and junk mail in the box. The street sweeper went by on Friday, a nice kind of noise, and yes, I'm grateful I can hear anything at my age.
Then there's the matter of what goes on at night. I live in a very safe neighborhood, but here again is a situation where people are divided. Some like to hear every bump in the night while others would rather not know if someone is snooping around and are happy the AC or a fan is on to somewhat block outside noises. I rely on my dog. If she is sleeping away, all is well. If she sits up and woofs a bit, I'm out of bed in a flash and checking things out with a broom and a cell phone. A dog can hear sounds far better than a human can, of course, whether the windows are open or not, including thunder three counties away and maybe even those bikers halfway across the state on their way to Sturgis.
Best regards,
Elisabeth
Comments