Whisper it quietly but I have to say I quite enjoyed the weeks of Covid lockdown earlier this year. No cars, deserted streets, nobody in the parks. It was blissfully quiet. Then the lockdown ended and everything went back to normal, including the noise.
If this year has helped me realise anything it’s that I’m not as good at processing noise as other people, which I see now has shaped how I live my life in many ways.
I’ve never enjoyed going to noisy pubs and nightclubs, parties or mass gatherings – apart from sports events where you can focus your attention on a specific thing. The sensory overload gets overwhelming and induces a feeling of panic, needing to get away to somewhere quieter.
It also helps to explain why I’ve plugged myself into a Sony Walkman / CD Player / iPod / mobile phone when out and about. Curating the soundtrack to my life gives me some control back and filter out the noise.
The increased stress levels brought on by the joys of 2020 have served to heighten my sensitivity to noise, especially the car exhausts as they accelerate up the hill next to our house, and the neighbour’s frequent “garage parties” that go on to the early hours.
The good news is that we’ve ordered some retrofit double glazing – replacing the single panes in the existing frames with double glazed panes – for the rooms facing the road/party house, including my bedroom. We’ve just had an installation date of 5th October, and providing it’s effective I’m looking forward to hearing less in the near future…
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