Complexity of Life

July Spider Web by J. Binford-Bell

It has been an interesting week. At such times I am rather amazed at the complexity of life. I thought it was just allergies and resultant congestion, and had you asked me I would say it had been going on for just two to 3 weeks. That I might be losing my hearing only occurred to me in the middle of the night when I would wake up being only able to hear the roar of my own pulsing blood.

It was allergies and blocked Eustachian tubes, but it was also wax buildup in my ear canal. It it was not just two weeks bur more like four that the combo had gotten bad enough to notice. How long it was bad enough my cat noticed is hard to say. Living with just fur kids has its issues. There is nobody to tell you that you are not listening to them. I just figured Wee Willow was not meowing.

Finally got in to see the doctor and get the problem on the way to healing on Thursday. It was then I noticed that not only could I hear Wee Willow meow but I could hear her stomp! And who knew that tissue made a noise. At one point I actually considered putting cotton in my ears. The world was too noisy at times.

As an artist I am acutely aware when my vision is blurred. But the gradual dulling of my auditory senses was noticed only in that I was turning up the volume on TV and computer and stereo. When you finally get to 100% on all controls you sense that something might be wrong. Frankly I first believed it was my computer speakers. I actually went to Amazon and looked for some new ones. Thought I would get some for my flat screen TV too.

I blame it on the ear buds on my Ipod. I have changed to the buttons now. Some people think the ear buds like qtips push the ear wax down in your ear. That an toughing it through a horrid allergy season with the wildfire smoke and drought. I don't know if I will every turn up the volume on an audio device without asking myself why it is necessary.

I find myself really attune to Beethoven now. I plan to watch my DVD of Dearly Beloved again tonight. What he went through is so much more meaningful to me even though my brush with deafness was short and temporary it could have not been if ignored for much longer. We have blood pressure cuffs for home, and test devices for blood sugar. Why hasn't someone come up with a little box that emits certain tones (I found I was losing the low tones first) at a set volume so you could test your hearing? Why do we schedule yearly eye exams but not routine hearing exams?

So today I was at last able to sit down with a friend that mumbles, and looks down or away, and have a conversation with her. I didn't have to ask what once or stomp my feet like my cat because I was not being heard. But there is something to be said for silence. You see so much more.

Comments

  1. Diana mntsingerJuly 15, 2012 at 3:04 PM

    I know this one too well and probably need to get my hearing checked again now that you mentioned it :/ Glad to hear it was temp.

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownJuly 15, 2012 at 3:41 PM

    ahhhh m'friend, silencio is overrated at times. Then again, I'm more attuned to the sounds around me. Sadly, years of not wearing ear protection - we never considered it in all honesty, means that I hear cicadas continually (tinnitus) and not a lot else unless it's loud.

    I'm glad you got your problem taken care of. I abhor earbuds - they hurt after a while. I like the small earphones. Better sound.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

I write for me but I care what my readers think. Please be polite and no scamming.

Popular posts from this blog

Swimming

Image
For much of my college career my fitness workout was swimming on the B squad of the swim team. I remember it as the days before heated pools and women coaches. I also remember being so exhausted and cold I could only lean against the shower wall and throw up. Not exactly warm fuzzy images but I was in awesome shape. Needless to say it did not leave me with a overpowering desire to swim laps. Point of fact for years my swimming became really informal: Swimming to shore after the canoe tipped over, challenging my sister once a summer to across the lake and back, seeing how long I could back float without moving a muscle, and a scuba course. I also played around with other ways of staying fit: aerobics, bicycling, jogging, skiing and dance classes. All of which seem to be bad for the knees, back or feet. After my ski accident my physical therapist steered me back to the pool. Damn if I was going to swim laps! However, aqua fit was just getting rather seriously taken so I took it. It r
Read more

The Pruning the Crown of Thorns

Image
Crown of Thorns Before I am a lover of Euphorbias . They are from the deserts of Southern Africa and Madagascar. They have evolved physical characteristics and forms similar to cacti of North and South America and are often incorrectly referred to as cacti. My big Crown of Thorns was one of my first of a growing collection of these succulents from the spurge family of Euphorbiaceae. I picked it up as a 6 inch plant in a New Iberia nursery when my sister and I were touring the northern gulf coast. I believe that was 15 years ago. I made an attempt at limiting its height a few years back to allow it to devote more energy to the new branches and make it a denser plant. That failed. And the height of the plant continued to challenge the window space and soon the long branches were leaning over and leaning against the window. I googled and found the proper way to prune this treasured plant. Still it was very difficult to cut off the four longer branches. Even with a plan. The f
Read more

Eagle Nest Dam

Image
Tour of Eagle Nest Dam Eagle Nest Dam is the largest privately built dam in the United States. It was begun by the Springer family in 1917 and completed in 1920. It and the reservoir beyond it one was privately owned by the CS Ranch which recently sold it to the state of New Mexico. Eagle Nest Lake is now a state park, but the dam and the waters in the lake are another matter all together. Water is well regulated in New Mexico especially during a drought. The lake is now at 25% of its normal capacity, and the water in the lake are water right lease holds of Raton, Cimarron, and historic ranches in the area like the UU Bar and the CS Ranch. Game and Fish department also get involved because the Cimarron River is an active fishery of the state. Our guide was a state engineer and the Gateway Museum secured permission of the land owners below the dam for us to gain access to the area. Some 100 locals and tourists attended this rare event. I have lived here almost twenty years and th
Read more