Thursday, October 23, 2008

NOISE


I get crazy sometimes. By the noise at work and at home. Am my ears getting more sensitive I often wonder? Or is it because the world is becoming more crowded? 

The days are getting shorter and the nights longer. I check the clock the moment the sun begins to sink. That's around 5 p.m. By 5:20 p.m. It's dark na and all the street lights are on. The next day, I'm awakened at 5:30 a.m. by loud music about God. Five-thirty! I grumble and try to go back to sleep but the lyrics penetrate my head. I can't listen to my own dreams. Covering my ears doesn't help either. The music is simply too loud - and my room is right next to the neighbors.For a while I tried sleeping early and waking up early to go to the gym. It worked. I felt invigorated. Exercise in the morning and i feel like superwoman. 

But you know, sometimes, a hardworking girl like me who stays in he office often till 8 p.m. or longer, likes to sleep in till 7:30 a.m. It doesn't help if the neighbors are early birds and want the whole neighborhood to wake up with them. Hay naku uy. 

So anyway, one day, when my eyebags were chin deep na, i decided enough is enough. I wrapped myself in a towel against the morning chill and with disheveled hair, went to the neighbors to plead with them not to play loud music until after 8 a.m. For a while, the music stopped. When the music started again, the volume was much softer than before. 

These past days, however, it seems the neighbors have forgotten our deal. So I think that soon, I'm going to send them a Christmas card, thanking them for trying to keep the music low. I'm still thinking about how to write it nicely yet concisely in order to achieve my desired results. Any other suggestions anyone? 

4 comments:

Pieter said...

The miracle of the magic earplugs? Worked for me when I lived in a neighbourhood where every other house had a sabongero with at least three roosters...

Pieter said...

The miracle of the magic earplugs? Worked for me when I lived in a neighbourhood where every other house had a sabongero with at least three roosters... by the way, I am always puzzled by the volume of noise Filipinos can stand... Whereas we are tempted to turn the tv and the radio off when taking a nap, Filipinos seem to have en urge to turn it ON...

MayaFlaminda said...

hehe. Bitaw Piet. When I'm rich enough I'm going to buy a big plot of land far away from noisy neighbors and sleep to my heart's content. Meanwhile, earplugs will do. Maar ze kietelen. Daarom heb ik geen keuze en moet ik vroeg slapen als ik niet wil wakker gemaakt worden door de buren. (I let papa check my Dutch and he says this sentence is perfect! hehe)

istin said...

that's so true haha! and i probably speak for most pinoys here. i grew up in a hustling, bustling, noisy household (extended families) and the sounds of (yes) crowing roosters and tricycles and the occasional yells of taho-sellers. so, living in a different part of the world now, i often feel desolate with all the quiet and wish for the comfort of tricycle sounds. crazy 'no?

may, i can't think of any other solutions. earplugs and the christmas card sound good.