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I’ve recently read a book about the concept of “soundwalking” and listening to the beauty of your surroundings exploring your city and neighborhood. I used to become pretty over stimulated by the sounds of the world and would used my headphones religiously to block any sounds of the outside world from getting in. But I started to wonder if the things I use to protect myself from the outside world also isolating me from experiencing it to its fullest potential. Maybe the sounds of construction and people talking and birds and busses aren’t just “sound pollution“ but a reverberation of society and life. An organic inprov performance just for me where I am right now in the world. it made me think that anything has the potential to be a work of art depending on your perspective. I’ve started walking with a tape recorder everywhere I go and I record the sounds around me as an auditory diary of sorts. it’s fun to listen back and be reminded of the sounds of the bowling alley or the cafe or the sound check at the punk show. Since this perspective shift I’ve become allot less over stimulated by the world and become more creative with my greatest resource: the world around me.
Jan 10, 2025
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sound is acting all the time! you would love this https://youtu.be/pcHnL7aS64Y?si=pYpFBp8Z_8QxJl5a
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I have had an ear infection the last couple of days and I literally cannot wear headphones without considerable pain. the unintended benefit of this is that I’ve had to walk my dog without music blasting and it’s so nice.
we have a cacophony of bird sounds in the late afternoon/evening here in Australia (magpies, cockatoos, lorikeets, plovers) and usually my music drowns this out, but having no headphones means I have to listen to the sounds and it’s low key beautiful. the sounds of nature are beautiful. noticing the birds is beautiful.
life is richer than we realise if we choose to notice and listen to the sounds around us instead of insulating ourselves from them.
Jan 7, 2025
my headphones broke recently, so i’ve been wandering without them! to be honest, especially in a city like boston, ira beautiful. no, this is not cope for my broken headphones. boston really comes alive in the spring and summer, and that is the PERFECT time to wander around and listen to the ebbs and flows of traffic, chirping birds, arguing drivers, and footsteps on the sidewalk. there’s something i find very calming and pretty about these sounds. going to try not to wear my new headphones 24/7 :)
Mar 14, 2025
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I saw a quote somewhere that read “Silence is the language of God,” and a couple of days later my AirPods finally stopped working. I interpreted this as divine intervention, and began experimenting with quiet in various scenarios and settings.
I’m typically the type of person who has some sort of music/podcast/video/voice in their ears at all times, and frankly I believe it was stunting my ability to think freely and withstand discomfort. I was beginning to feel that I was almost cheapening the media I consumed by multitasking, and I am hoping to renew my imagination and sense of mindfulness/presence by developing a better relationship to Quiet.
I am training myself to listen to the naturally occurring sounds of my own existence rather than drowning out the world all the time. So far so good.
Mar 16, 2025
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