You're oversimplifying two separate issues into one. It's not about silence vs sound it's about focus vs distraction. I like listening to music. By itself, not as background to some other task. I could never study with music or the TV going. Can't work in an environment where music is on. I can't fall asleep if the TV or music is playing. I'm literally afraid to drive with music playing. I hate dining in a restaurant where they've got music being piped in, I can't stand the TV going during a meal. When I listen to music I listen to music. When I watch TV I watch TV, I don't read the paper or a book simultaneously. People these days inundate their brains with a cacaphony of sound bites. No wonder the damn world is so screwed up, nobody can think straight and their nerves are on end from the barrage of stimulation.
Speech Is Silver But Silence Is Golden
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Oh how I love to just smoke my pipe!
Nothing better than taking a hour out of your day just to be by yourself.
Reflect, and enjoy the moment for what it is.
"I could never study with music or the TV going..."
Same here Shutter, I can't read, play chess or Scrabble or really do anything that requires concentration unless I have total silence. In this modern age no one seems to know what silence actually sounds like more's the pity.
Regards,
Jay.
Same here Shutter, I can't read, play chess or Scrabble or really do anything that requires concentration unless I have total silence. In this modern age no one seems to know what silence actually sounds like more's the pity.
Regards,
Jay.
I've probably only experienced true, absolute, silence a few times in my life. Only in a heavy snowstorm have I experienced such, no sounds at all, the snow damping all nearby sounds. I even thought I might be hearing the flakes settle. No wind, no birds, no nothing. It was a bit disconcerting each time. Certain sounds are reassuring. In my house there is always the air exchange unit or furnace in the background when that stops I know it's going to cost money. A power outage is the closest I've ever come to the silence of the snowstorm.
People raised in a big city probably do not notice most of what a few of us would call noise. What is normal noise often simply never registers. The brain doesn't hear it. Downtown Chicago or London is full of noise for me, I expect it and it quickly becomes the norm, registering but not disconcerting, unless the horn is directly behind me or a bicyclist's "left" is close enough to be perceived as a warning.
Most people never consciously notice the ambient, everyday sounds they are surrounded by. Silence is in the ear of the listener. Some people can only meditate while chanting. The threshold between noise and silence is like the palate, it varies with the person.
People raised in a big city probably do not notice most of what a few of us would call noise. What is normal noise often simply never registers. The brain doesn't hear it. Downtown Chicago or London is full of noise for me, I expect it and it quickly becomes the norm, registering but not disconcerting, unless the horn is directly behind me or a bicyclist's "left" is close enough to be perceived as a warning.
Most people never consciously notice the ambient, everyday sounds they are surrounded by. Silence is in the ear of the listener. Some people can only meditate while chanting. The threshold between noise and silence is like the palate, it varies with the person.
This is pretty much exactly me. As I write this I am watching Columbo and smoking my pipe. If I am gaming on my PC I often have on a film or the radio unless it requires multiplayer cooperation and when I go to sleep it is pretty much impossible without the TV on. Though, I never watch scheduled TV because I despise adverts. I am constantly researching things I see in books/documentaries/films and TV shows as I read or watch them. I am always curious and can never stop myself looking up something immediately. At home, I am constantly multi-tasking.
There are exceptions, however. Although I browse the internet while doing other things, when I read a book I care not to have any other distractions and feel no need to have any when fishing. I will quite happily go for a walk and sit on a bench with no requirement for diversion. I also never deliberately listen to music. When listening to the radio it is always BBC Radio 4 or 5 live where there is very little music. Music more often than not irritates me beyond belief and it is quite a violent reaction. I am unsure when this started to happen but was probably in my early to mid-twenties. I really really must be in the mood for music to tolerate it and when I can my choices are diverse. Music is an odd one to me and I would almost always prefer sitting in silence than it be the soundtrack to the misery it is causing me.
I'm probably quite, quite mad.
I read a lot about multi tasking. The purpose of this thread was never to blame and say what's right or wrong.
I actually do that a lot.
I just wanted to share some of my thoughts about it. That while we are doing a lot of things at the same time, can we be positive about the fact that we doing those things right ?
I read this forum, at the same time, have TR.com, my next order on SP.com, the TV is on with my wife watching some kind of TV show. She asks me questions here and there about it or simply comments and expects me to acknowledge said comments.
In the end, I am wondering if that's not a little too much. Although one might have done things that way for ever, that doesn't necessarily mean it's right. THe other way around is the same, someone who only does on thing at a time, might wonder if he can be more efficient.
My conclusion thoughts about myself were that, if I actually think about this, I have to admit that, while doing 5 things at the same, I am not doing any correctly. I am not tasting all flavours and benefits of the present action, because my attention is shared with several other things. It applies with pipes, it applies with food, it applies with work.
Now back to "silence is golden" it might be taken in different ways, silence for the silence, or silence as in "don't do a gazillion things at the same time"
I actually do that a lot.
I just wanted to share some of my thoughts about it. That while we are doing a lot of things at the same time, can we be positive about the fact that we doing those things right ?
I read this forum, at the same time, have TR.com, my next order on SP.com, the TV is on with my wife watching some kind of TV show. She asks me questions here and there about it or simply comments and expects me to acknowledge said comments.
In the end, I am wondering if that's not a little too much. Although one might have done things that way for ever, that doesn't necessarily mean it's right. THe other way around is the same, someone who only does on thing at a time, might wonder if he can be more efficient.
My conclusion thoughts about myself were that, if I actually think about this, I have to admit that, while doing 5 things at the same, I am not doing any correctly. I am not tasting all flavours and benefits of the present action, because my attention is shared with several other things. It applies with pipes, it applies with food, it applies with work.
Now back to "silence is golden" it might be taken in different ways, silence for the silence, or silence as in "don't do a gazillion things at the same time"
I guess I interpreted "silence" to mean the absence of distraction from one's thoughts. For some this may mean having literal silence, but for others such an environment would itself be distracting due to the absence of those minor sounds to which we've become accustomed: the hum of appliances, bird song, wind, etc. What I hear you getting at, carver, is the idea of mindfulness, of maintaining an awareness of oneself in the moment. It's a part of many Buddhist philosophies, and may be worth reading about.
There are different types of multitasking, that which is done out of boredom, but also that which is dons to further knowledge. While watching tv or movies there'll be references I don't understand. I do research while watching. In what way is this not better than letting questions I have pass me by? I'm not just piddling around. I have questions and I know where the answers are. You guys are assuming multitasking is frivolous. It most certainly is not.
Silence is highly undervalued. To really know what you are thinking, it is best to have relatively little noise, or for that matter background sound, coming at you. Even loving music suggests that you should either listen to it fully, or turn it off. I'm not suggesting people shouldn't have music they love as background, but not habitually. I don't like it when I go to a concert and much of the audience has come to the concert to drink and talk, just using the music as background. I'm not especially amenable to social control or pressure, but I do like more formal concerts where audience silence is pretty well enforced. It honors the performers and suggests that they have attained the skills to warrant the audience's undivided attention. I don't like music as a soundtrack usually. Now you all think I'm a depressing introvert and curmudgeon. I don't try to impose my inclinations on others, but if I have a choice, I think silence is often good.
I concur. Listening to music while doing other stuff = ignored music or ignored other stuff. No victory there.
I've got tinnitus, so I don't care for silence. TV or music is far better than the awful ringing I hear when it's quiet.
"...far better than the awful ringing I hear when it's quiet."
That's probably the doorbell or the 'phone :wink:
Regards,
Jay.
That's probably the doorbell or the 'phone :wink:
Regards,
Jay.
@carver yes I have told them, they don't mind, they think it is a bit weird, my wifes family, they don't like to be alone, they find comfort with just having some kind company, my mother in law has told me she would get the creeps when the house is quiet, they find it surprising that I actually love those moments of quietness, they dont fully understand, but they do not mind, although my brother in law does catch me sometimes, when I am smoking my pipe by myself, he told me that it is the best time when he can seek some good friendly advice from me and I dont mind at all, I welcome it.
+Another 1000 for "Generally, I prefer silence, solitude, and nature."
To fellow tinnitus suffers: I suffered some brain trauma several years ago and one of the fallouts was continuous, in my face, well, in my ears DMND RINGING all the dmn time. I was also a professional musician. My "ringing" is ALWAYS moderate to intense, it never stops... AND it's based on a Bnat-F#-Bnat overtone series about 7 or 8 octaves up. I play standard brass instruments that are tuned with Bb's, so it's a half-step of dissonance all the dmn time. I tried everything I could find for relief and generally don't get any... EXCEPT for this (this is why I write all this, which I wouldn't want to normally... in hopes of helping other sufferers):
I use the iPhone app "White Noise" to pop in ear-buds, and then dial up the best tinnitus-cancelling random noise that works that particular day. It does give me some decent breaks from the ringing.
Strangely, the other day I had to travel to a city a couple hours of driving away, and I did something I hadn't done for 30 or so years... I popped in Paul Simon's Graceland cd (my favored traveling music back in the day), rolled all the windows down, and cranked the stereo ALL the way up. EUREKA!!! The wind blowing through my head cancelled 98% of the tinnitus and the music overwhelmed the other 2% so I was blessed free for the 40 or so minutes the album lasted. And fellow drivers got a chuckle out of a bald, old man driving along, jiving to loud music, with the "top down" so to speak. Bizarre how life goes sometimes.
PS I have read that smoking tobacco is considered an aggravator of tinnitus by some medical authorities... I notice no difference... other than when I'm pipe smoking, I'm enjoying myself and therefore care a little less about the dmnd ringing.
To fellow tinnitus suffers: I suffered some brain trauma several years ago and one of the fallouts was continuous, in my face, well, in my ears DMND RINGING all the dmn time. I was also a professional musician. My "ringing" is ALWAYS moderate to intense, it never stops... AND it's based on a Bnat-F#-Bnat overtone series about 7 or 8 octaves up. I play standard brass instruments that are tuned with Bb's, so it's a half-step of dissonance all the dmn time. I tried everything I could find for relief and generally don't get any... EXCEPT for this (this is why I write all this, which I wouldn't want to normally... in hopes of helping other sufferers):
I use the iPhone app "White Noise" to pop in ear-buds, and then dial up the best tinnitus-cancelling random noise that works that particular day. It does give me some decent breaks from the ringing.
Strangely, the other day I had to travel to a city a couple hours of driving away, and I did something I hadn't done for 30 or so years... I popped in Paul Simon's Graceland cd (my favored traveling music back in the day), rolled all the windows down, and cranked the stereo ALL the way up. EUREKA!!! The wind blowing through my head cancelled 98% of the tinnitus and the music overwhelmed the other 2% so I was blessed free for the 40 or so minutes the album lasted. And fellow drivers got a chuckle out of a bald, old man driving along, jiving to loud music, with the "top down" so to speak. Bizarre how life goes sometimes.
PS I have read that smoking tobacco is considered an aggravator of tinnitus by some medical authorities... I notice no difference... other than when I'm pipe smoking, I'm enjoying myself and therefore care a little less about the dmnd ringing.
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