I had a comically bad day yesterday, like dropping things, almost lost my keys down the drain on the sidewalk, spilled soup at the store near a makeup section, almost tore my pants, got back from the store only to find out I was out of TP, etc.
It was more funny than anything else, like so much random trivial bad luck in one day is like something out of some 90s Tom Hanks comedy.
But there was one thing that actually annoyed me - on my way back from the store on my grocery trip, my phone suddenly went from a healthy 7% to 0% and died. I was stuck with no music for the remainder of the walk back.
Soooo I was forced to listen to the sound of well - nothing at all basically.
Just birds chirping, wind blowing, leaves rustling, all as I walked the same path I walk all the time and see the same things I’ve seen hundreds of times, just waiting to get home.
Don’t get me wrong I love where I live and everything, it’s a really cool city with good pedestrian infrastructure, I almost never even get close to a car and it’s not some smelly euro village either, but seeing the same things I’ve already seen and having no stimuli at all, it wasn’t that big a deal but it was unpleasant.
That got me thinking - I sometimes see folks not wearing earphones outside, and I’ve heard on more than one occasion from some acquaintances that they don’t listen to music outside, and I wonder - why’s that?
Why would you choose to do that?
And, what do y’all like, do, exactly? How do you deal with the monotony of your grocery trips or things like that when you don’t even have music on? Do you just never get bored of walking the same roads/neighborhoods w/e day after day?
Do you ever spend even a second with your own thoughts?
I like music, love music, keep it on in the house and car but do not like headphones and wouldn’t dare use them on a walk or run because I’d get run over by a car.
I like the sound of the city, the birds singing, the crows cawing, kids yelling, even the distant sirens and LOVE the distant music of parties, so much. Cars going by with music. Incidental sound is engaging IMO not boring.
Yeah if being runover was a concern I’d definitely also not listen to music for sure.
I do actually like those sounds as well, just not every day on my way out for chores obviously.
It’s interesting how some people by way of their responses seem to suggest “a walk” and “a run” are something special a unique, and not their main and only way of getting around, probably as a result of car-centric design of some places and zoning laws?
I take it that’s the case for you as well, because of how you phrased “a walk or a run”? I’ve personally never gone for “a run” as an adult, but I rack up thousands of steps daily just getting my groceries home so I can eat food.
I bike to work and walk to anything close (have electric bike so that is my 1-6 mile ride usually, and under a mile I use my feet.). Also go for a Pokemon Go walk often, not to go anywhere. Or walk the dogs if husband can’t. A Run though, that I only do for exercise, and not if I can avoid it.
Car, I have one but my kid takes it to university so I don’t usually get to drive it. And I do prefer moving at a human pace, and not having to park the car.
ETA you asked about car-centric and yes oh yes my city is exactly that. Which is why I worry about getting run over.
And another add - I do kind of get where you are coming from - I can’t let go of thinking without enough to focus on but not too much. That is why I loved Jazzercise, not kidding. Exactly the right amount of paying attention that I could achieve “flow” and just dance, following so I didn’t have to think, not so complex I had to think, but complex enough I didn’t think about anything else. Running was SO boring. Real dance class too complex. Going out to dance, have to decide how to move. But to stop thinking here while moving around town is hazardous as fuck.
Weird how you’re getting shit on for asking a question in “no stupid questions.” Fucking NT people acting high and mighty.
Aye
We all know what’s really going on ITT.
Ableism and then acting like we’re the assholes for defending ourselves.
I don’t even have a disability or anything. I have mild ADHD at best and I’m pretty medicated for it.
Why would you choose to do that?
I’m easily distracted and am usually occupied with my own thoughts. So, not hearing traffic, other people, and my general surroundings is actually stressful for me; relying on vision alone would be dangerous. I do a lot better keeping my ears open so I can relax, muse about this or that in my head, and let any sudden sounds or irregularities in my environment catch my attention.
Edit: By musing, I’m actively problem-solving fix-it situations in my house, thinking about software projects I have going, exercising mindfulness for better mental heath, self-assessing where my body aches/hurts, building fictional narratives for D&D, and so on. It’s seldom idle time up in here.
Sometimes I enjoy just basking in the dark morass of my own thoughts.
Outside with other people is a dangerous place. Environmental awareness is needed. You’ll need your eyes and ears to sense danger.
I’ve got a layer of conscious that constantly plays music in the background of my mind…personal private organic music machine.
I’m taking steps to stop myself consuming content constantly so I’ve stopped listening to podcasts when I’m out. If I’m on a long train or plane journey in the future I’ll probably bring my earphones along but only then. Now I just walk and think.
Yeah I don’t listen to podcasts, but art isn’t content and music is definitely the former.
I don’t even listen to music on a regular basis when I’m inside. It’s more something I would do actively from time to time, say a couple of times per month.
Did you write this post deliberately to trigger us? Some examples; The phone died when it should have 7% left, spilling soup at a store, smelly euro village and of course the main question.
This is 100% ironic bait.
But to answer the question, you shouldn’t use headphones because they are dependent on your phone. You use this because it runs on its own D Cells and doesn’t need cell service.
Keeping good music to yourself is rude.
Lol, well jokes aside apparently people think that with how many are blasting brainrot tiktoks on full blast on public transport.
Edit: literally downvoted for saying you shouldn’t blast tiktoks on public transport. God help us all. I haven’t kept tabs on Lemmy for a loooong time but this ain’t the same place it was when I left.
Huh? No I didn’t write this to trigger anyone. The walk is only like 10 mins each way, 7% is usually more than enough to last another 10 minutes. The sudden drop to 0% is unexpected and unusual.
I don’t get how spilling the soup at store is meant to be ironic either.
If you drop one of these, they tend to crack open and spill slightly:
Obviously I told a staff member about it and she took it and told me not to worry.
The smelly euro village is a bit of sass on my part, just a more fun way of saying “walkable and modern dense city”.
It feels like satire to actually say you cannot imagine life without constantly listening to music. Is it satire?
No? Lolwut. I don’t constantly listen to music. I mostly listen to it when outside when I’m on a grocery store walk, because there isn’t really anything else to do except walk to the store and walk back
Really focusing on the wrong thing here. I hope this is satire
So are you gonna explain your point or just keep feigning shock at what is fairly normal and common IRL?
I’m starting to think you must not go outside very much, because when I look around, people who don’t have earphones in are very much the exception, they stand out, hence the question, and on a personal level I honestly don’t even know any people IRL who just march on alone without music or like some podcast or audiobook or something.
My girlfriend does this, all my friends do this, the only people who do not do this are usually some older people with kids when they’re out with their kids, but then again they’re not really on their own, and obviously I wouldn’t listen to music on a walk if I was with somebody for that walk like on the weekends etc.
I didn’t think I needed to explain that talking about experiencing reality as though it were a burden is…odd. Even if half the thread weren’t saying that specifically.
I use headphones a lot, too much, but I would probably seek therapy if I ever had my headphones stop working and subsequently thought hearing the natural sounds of the world around me was notable enough to talk about negatively.
When there’s no novelty of course it’s a burden lol, staring off into things I already have seen and know is not exactly intellectually stimulating or enjoyable.
And idk, it’s not odd at all, we humans have put massive amounts of time and resources into entertainment for this very purpose, the vast majority of people don’t enjoy staring off into nothing till their eyes unfocus, only the extremely online people think that’s what people want.
Like I said elsewhere, the few people who do not have earphones in going about their chores stand out, they are very much in the minority, and they are few and far between and I don’t know a single person like that IRL.
Were this not the case, we wouldn’t even have entertainment, nevermind billions of dollars spent on movies, shows, albums, fiction and non-fiction books, newspapers etc.
Heck I’d go as far as to say that all religion, science and philosophy that did not serve immediate purpose of finding the next meal was created so we could better our lot - which inherently is maximizing happiness, and that inherently includes intellectual stimulation and fulfillment.
I prefer to keep my brain going all the time if I can, it feels much better, always engaging with new art or new ideas inner and outer alike.
What you’ve done is develop an unhealthy addiction and you think literally everyone else has too. But they haven’t. You literally miss the entire world around you and declared it boring. I assume you’re quite young and developed an addiction to screen time since an age before you can actually remember any other way. Talk to any mental health professional, they’ll tell you what I’m telling you.
Would you like to elaborate on how exactly it’s an addiction and how exactly it’s unhealthy?
Do you want to describe why you think others don’t do it when many others clearly do and it’s obviously the case otherwise there wouldn’t be headphones and millions of hours of music made every day and listened to every day and why it has been a thing since the dawn of civilization itself, if not before, that people create art and consume art?
Why do you think I said “everyone does it”, even when I never said anything of the sort and posted comments directly contradictory to that ITT like the fact I said I personally don’t know anyone else who does not listen to anything outside, (never even making it specific to music!), and I’ve stated that I do actually see people without earphones on - but they are a small minority amongst the earphone-wearing majority.
Would you like to elaborate on how exactly I miss the entire world around me when time and time again I’ve responded to this accusation within this thread by clearly stating that in fact - I do not “miss” much of anything, with one poster even literally creating a little test question I was easily able to answer.
Would you like to elaborate on why you assume I am young? Especially since I’ve literally stated elsewhere in the thread my age, but I’m almost 30, I’ve not had a smartphone until 2012, and had dial-up until after the GFC. I actually remember my childhood quite well and it was a happy one, I remember playing with actual physical toys for most of it and going outside and getting into all sorts of hijinks with the kids around the neighborhood.
Why do you assume I hadn’t spoken to a mental health professional before?
I actually did therapy back when I had a brief bout of the sads due to experiencing institutional violence and medical neglect from the government and developing a gnarly stress response, we went over all sorts of coping mechanisms and healthy mindfulness and all that and not only did she never mention anything about my listening to music outside, but she was quite happy to hear me get excited and talk all about it, this wasn’t some private paid yesman thing either, so she really didn’t have to be nice or even keep me as a client, she’d be paid the same government pay either way.
So:
Is it possible that I do not have an “addiction”, nor have you established in any way how even if I did it would be “unhealthy”?
That in fact - I do not “think literally everyone else has too”, because I never said such a thing?
But that in fact many do as evidenced by the sheer size of the industry and the universal nature of the concept of music and the timeless nature of the arts plus the uniquity of headphones?
That in fact - I do not miss the “entire world around” or much of anything?
That in fact - I never declared it boring, nor made the accidental implication as you have that your world is little outside of a small, immediate environment?
That I have actually never met anyone IRL who finds anything at all about what I wrote in this thread weird whatsoever, nevermind jump to the conclusions you do or make the weird judgemental assumptions you do - and in fact, they listen to music roughly the same amount of time as me, sometimes frankly - more, even though we don’t even listen to anything in common or talk about it?
Is it possible, that in fact, I am not quite young, as I have literally stated elsewhere ITT before you made your response?
That in fact - I have not developed any screen addiction, nor even had the time or option to as a child, and can certainly remember things every other way?
That in fact - as I stated, not only have I talked to a medical professional for unrelated matters and not only was she not seeing it as a problem, but actually saw it as a good thing that I would engage with the world?
That in fact - every point you’ve made so far has been so wildly off-base, every assumption wrong, every reasoning faulty, that maybe, just maybe - if you strain your big brain muscles real hard - you maybe just think some people are just different, and that instead of judgement, you could actually learn to appreciate other people’s experiences, a food for thought, something to uh, meditate on, perhaps.
Is it possible, that maybe - just maybe - you are just plain wrong, on almost every level?
Because If I try on your shoes for just a moment - and pass down judgement like you have to me.
Then to me, it seems that the drivel you pass off as some sort of truth or reliable objective observation is merely armchair buzzword regurgitation undeserving of even the label of analysis, coming from a small, pitiful mind, resorting to judgement and condescension because it can handle little outside of your narrow and distorted view of normal built entirely on projecting externally the insecurities and issues deep within?
And it is your first steps to reflect and analyze what went wrong, why you treat people like this, how you can intellectually be honest and deal with and confront this narcissstic superiority complex that you unleash on any passerby who challenges your mental gospel?
That perhaps, it is worth critically reflecting on why anyone would treat people like this, online and god-forbid, IRL, if you do, and perhaps speak to a professional, or maybe just a friend, if you have one, about that?
Hey, at least you’re not alone, many other snoozefest normadrones ITT for you to share that experience with, provided they are real people of course, and are not what they show themselves to be - low context length LLMs.
This is really, really sad. If this had always been the case, most of the world’s inventions and art, including entertainment, wouldn’t exist today. It’s objectively a fact that people need to be bored/idle to be at their most creative.
You really think artists don’t also consume art? Heck, what inspired me to make music is listening to music.
Also, I do like your misuse of the word “objectively” and “fact”.
No, that’s not true at all. Proneness to boredom is actually a predictor of negative mental health outcomes: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S019188691930217X
Wow I finally meet someone without adhd.
What’s it like? I bet it’s awesome. So do you just wake up and get stuff done? It’s like being a wizard I bet.
I have severe ADHD. Rules my life. Doesn’t mean I cannot imagine a moment without headphones.
Damn. One day I’ll meet one.
It was a joke.
I have severe ADHD as well. Not everyone has the same symptoms. Good job on keeping your comment short and concise. I can’t do that.
Do you have trouble memorizing facial features. Can you hold eye contact? Do you know your age without doing math?
There are so many symptoms one can have with adhd. A lot of us get really frustrated if we have to focus on one thing. I need my podcasts. I’m listening to Robert Evan’s talk about Jamaican slavery while writing this.
I can’t just do one thing. That’s crazy to imagine. I love listening to nature, I just do it while doing something else. I’m able to focus on both, I have to focus on both.
The reason op is getting the response they’re getting here is they’re acting like it’s weird not to always use headphones. When in fact it’s not, at all
So was I. I just did it with humor because I already know it’s normal and why I’m the way I am. I’m illustrating an idea in an attempt to maybe make it “click” for op. Because once an idea click hundreds of dominos fall into place. Many ideas click as a result. At least for me. On click leads to a network of clicks. It’s actually kind of beautiful.
It’s absolutely strange to me that you all can do that. I’m just not shocked by it anymore. I’m old. I know that I’m the different one and I know why.
Op isn’t clicking. I approached it “my way” and we’ll see how much clicks for them.
Just is weird in my experience. Again - I rarely see people without earphones in.
Are you trolling us?
If not, try getting into meditation, so you can learn to appreciate the moment for what it is, rather than seek constant stimulation.
Technology is ruining humanity, no wonder so many people are lonely and depressed.
Da hell? I’m not lonely or depressed, are you nuts?
Carrying grocery bags to and from my flat isn’t “appreciating the moment”, I do this every other day, it’s just boring and routine so I throw some music on to keep it fun and so I can do something more proactive mentally rather than just stare off towards my feet or surroundings I literally always see anyway.
All I’m saying is it’s clearly a big issue for you not being constantly stimulated if you took the time to create a whole post about this and answer every other stranger’s comment. Meditation is just one of the options to address this issue, the best one IMO. You don’t have to be sad or depressed to practice meditation.
you took the time to create a whole post about this and answer every other stranger’s comment.
OP’s not here for an answer. They’re here for an argument. That’s why they’re replying to everyone to disagree.
Or maybe I just disagree with the insane amount of judgement and projection aimed at me in this thread for no fucking reason at all, after posting about something fairly common and uncontroversial, therefore I am replying with what I think.
Some of us are actually intellectually honest, we agree with the ideas we agree with and disagree with the ideas we disagree with, not everything is motivated by some animalistic desire for an argument like you seem to imply.
I’d much prefer to agree with likeminded folks or hear some well-reasoned perspectives but alas, I’m not going to agree with shit takes parroting LLM pop-psych influencer buzzword bullshit about muh stimulation muh technology in a condescending tone like I have a problem - when i never implied the opposite even though I easily could have done so and would have if I really wanted a fight - (and I would’ve made an art of it, too).
I will keep replying and stating my point and my case no matter how many cookie cutter morons yap about “meditation” or w/e else comes out their monkey-ass cranium.
I fundamentally don’t care about any of this, but I will keep replying because I want folks here scrolling by this thread - horrified by the behaviour of the commentariat swarm - wondering what they must have smoked that people parrot pop-psych bullshit about dopamine as if it were gospel and hold up their life in a Christian heaven/hell dichotomy like a 50s housewife all clued up on what’s the trendy oppressive shit to spew.
I want those folks to know that the hivemind is frail and weak and cannot stand the smallest challenge, challenge that I pose purely by existing and just saying the inoffensive and largely uncontroversial IRL things I think in a calm manner and that they are not alone in being reasonable and rational and normal people still exist out there in the world, I’m just sorry they have to read through the rest of this thought toilet of a comments section.
Thank you for proving my point.
How have I proven your point? Did you even read what I wrote? Or is that too much to ask from your buzzword spouting ass?
You’re still here five days later trying to provoke an argument. You’re proving it over and over again.
I’m sorry you’re so stressed and frustrated that you feel the need to get online and fight with someone. Have you considered unplugging for a while and going for a peaceful walk?
I created this post on the toilet while I was taking a dump at work.
It’s a random thought that occurred to me. It’s not an issue and it’s not big and I don’t have an “issue” or any fucking “issues”, and it’s fucking insulting for you to insinuate anything of the sort.
Meditate on that you condescending prick.
You also might wanna work on your anger management.
Already have, I found it’s well managed when it’s directed at assorted internet morons setting new records in retarded shit they say.
It’s not so much anger though, more like disappointment. Do better.
I think the question is best answered by reversing it. Why do you choose to listen to music?
Now don’t get me wrong I listen to a ton of stuff. I have an mp3 player for air travel and I listen to all kinds of things in my car and for my whole shift at a manufacturing job I used to have.
But out on the street, on a bike or on the trails I never have any music on. From a practical standpoint it’s simply safer to be aware of what’s going on, but that’s not the point for me.
I use that time to just let my mind wander and internalize info I learned that day or to look back on things that happened recently. That boredom is soon replaced with thoughts and daydreams and feelings and memories. And it’s nice to see my part of the world as it is, without any filter and seeing how places and people change day by day.
Same exactly for me. I listen to tons of music at work and at home on my own time. But never outside.
I don’t use a car, almost all of my travel is by walking. So I listen to music for the same reason you listen to anything in your car or at your job.
But for me it is also a way to forget about work and tune out the shit around me and focus my inner thoughts and inner life and also observe the world and get inspired.
Y’all must live some pretty unsafe places if you need to pay attention to your surroundings that much. My condolences.
I don’t listen to music in my car or at work, music is more of an active thing for me. I want to pay attention to it and sing along! If I’m focusing on something else, like driving, I just tune out the music anyways. Sometimes I’ll get stoned and play the OoT soundtrack in the background while I draw, but that’s about it. I don’t even think I own headphones, unless I have some packed away with my old iPod nano. It’s pretty cool how we all experience the same world in such different ways, isn’t it?
This reads like satire but I assume you’re being serious.
I’m not really doing anything instead. I’m listening in both cases - only the what I’m listening to changes. Listening to music - or podcasts in my case - is a bit of an distraction. I don’t want to be distracted all the time. I’m more present when I’m listening to the world instead, and it gives more space for my thoughts. I never even have the radio on in my car because to me, driving is almost a meditative experience and I like to just sit there in relative silence and focus on the driving itself. I’m stimulated one way or another for the vast majority of the day anyway. I think it’s good to have these intentional moments built into your daily routine where you let yourself be bored. It’s good for you.
That’s interesting, for me music helps me focus, otherwise I just end up endlessly distracted and completely away from the world.
Obviously I understand the point about boredom and am aware of it, only the most brainrotten people think boredom isnt good for you, but I am still bored when walking, out of all the senses, only my ears are occupied, almost everything else is kind of an autopilot, like in those studies where people who drive down the same roads for decades end up being dangerous because their brain is no longer actively processing their surroundings.
For me it’s more like music is a way to direct my thoughts or to set a tone for them. Maybe I’d like to think about something nostalgic, or something new, and music sets the tone and tunes out distractions in the world so I can stay cognitively engaged.
otherwise I just end up endlessly distracted and completely away from the world.
Can you dig more into what you mean by that? I assume you mean distracted by your thoughts, rather than the world itself.
No, distracted by the world, away from my thoughts on the world.
When I pick my music, I set a tone and vibe of the mental journey while my body autopilots to the store and back, then everything else - inner ambitions, dreams, ideas, thoughts, observations immediate and past etc. slots in.
Edit: downvoted for a literal description of my life lol.
I don’t use earphones outside because it’s unsafe: Awareness of surroundings is paramount. You say you rarely see a car but not everyone is so lucky. I’m guessing you’re younger, too: When I was a youth, walking with headphones or earbuds meant you had a tapedeck or CD player (and later iPod or smartphone) that could be stolen, making you a more attractive target, as well as one that was easy to sneak up on.
What do I do instead? Listen to the birds sing. Listen to snow or leaves crunch underfoot. Sing! Read a book. Skip! Admire the sun through the trees. Look for cool bugs. Have a conversation with a friend. Rehearse a future conversation in my head. Solve math problems. Philosophize.
When I was a youth, walking with headphones or earbuds meant you had a tapedeck or CD player (and later iPod or smartphone) that could be stolen, making you a more attractive target, as well as one that was easy to sneak up on.
I started off with a cheapo MP3 player, then a PSP as a kid, now it’s just my phone.
don’t use earphones outside because it’s unsafe: Awareness of surroundings is paramount.
No offense, I get it bad things happen but where tf y’all live that this is something you even need to worry about? I’m not getting mugged in broad daylight in a city centre wtf.
What do I do instead? Listen to the birds sing. Listen to snow or leaves crunch underfoot. Sing! Read a book. Skip! Admire the sun through the trees. Look for cool bugs. Have a conversation with a friend. Rehearse a future conversation in my head. Solve math problems. Philosophize.
Yeah I’m not talking about a hike, I’m talking about walking to the grocery store. If I saw someone skipping and singing randomly on the pavement I’d probably ask them if they were alright and maybe call the services.
I obviously can’t teleport my friends or S.O. to me every time I go to the store.
The rest of those I do just fine, while also listening to music. Idk how many times you can listen to “leaves crunch underfoot” before it gets a little stale.
I’m not getting mugged in broad daylight in a city centre wtf.
My life may involve a lot less broad daylight than yours, but I’m not just talking about muggings, which are rare in Chicago. Bad drivers are a much more prevalent concern.
If I saw someone skipping and singing randomly on the pavement I’d probably ask them if they were alright and maybe call the services.
That’s just rude.
Bad drivers
That’s crazy. I had no idea it’s that bad in America.
Honestly in my 27 years on this earth I have never actually first party witnessed anyone run a red light or anything like that. Seen plenty of crashes along the roads and been witness to a bus driver that decided to off-road around traffic and almost flew into a ditch once as a kid with me and mom in it.
Otherwise I just don’t see them as a concern though.
That’s just rude.
No it is not. Someone having a mental health event/crisis might actually appreciate you reaching out to them, and to me that would be an indicator of such behaviour. It is not normal behaviour, which can be a sign of some sort of delusion or a psychotic break from reality someone is experiencing.
Not always, of course, just plain oddball people exist, but if I saw a fully grown ass adult SINGING OUT LOUD or SKIPPING down a fucking sidewalk I’d definitely pay attention and keep my distance and my hands around my valuables.
