One thing I do not want to be without. Noise-canceling wireless headphones! Picture yourself doing anything in a 900 sq ft space. Being constantly surrounded by sounds – the loudest dishwasher and washing machine you ever heard, the upstairs neighbors with their dogs, running back and forth – moving furniture or playing tag (I’m totally guessing based on how it sounds).
Add three little humans speaking in their outside voices all the time, one human playing video games while yelling at friends through the gaming microphone. Then there is the sound of a toy race car that was left running in the bedroom, or a TV show someone forgot to turn off, and music coming from the bathroom. Oh, and we can’t forget the PS4 fan; so incredibly loud I honestly have thought a drone was in the patio!
I feel the need for a good set of noise-canceling headphones. And yes, they must be wireless because I do not want to be attached to my phone, or have dangling cords while I cook or wash dishes. I put these on and it is immediately soothing. A soft blanket wrapped around me after a cold walk. The feeling of floating in a pool, your ears submerged, facing the sky, and hearing the world through the veil of water. It is that “ahhh” moment. If it is really bad, it literally feels like I am being hugged and it is so comforting to my heart. I cannot explain it, but it works.
My noise-canceling headphones are more like “noise-buffering” because I can still hear people and noise. But the sound is muffled, so it doesn’t pierce into my brain like someone digging into an open wound! Which keeps me happily unaware of the din outside my audio bubble.
I grew up in a house with many siblings. It was always loud and there was always something going on, but even back then, my escape was in headphones. I would carry my portable CD player around with me so I could be kind to others. I found a picture of me when I was just little, probably around 3 years old. I am holding a small handheld radio up to my ears! Music has been my respite and my solace for as long as I can remember.
Now I listen to audiobooks, music, podcasts, or YouTubers. I will watch TV shows, or SkillShare videos, anything to keep my headphones on! Not because I want to avoid talking to anyone, or because I want to run away (well, most of the time this is true!).
But, lately, I have noticed that I am missing things. My kids might be talking to me and I don’t notice, or they are talking with friends, and I am lost in my own audio safety net. I am not sure if anyone else feels the need for a quiet space, as I do; even if it is limited to the area between the ears. Being my best self will require I remove my headphones more often. That I learn to balance the madness that occurs when everything is happening all at once, and the muffled sounds of audio – because I do not want to be absent while listening to a book on how to be present. XOXO