Don’t blame the devices
Attention distraction has been around a long time. It has had thousands of years to build up to this moment. In Roman times, the noisy chariots charging down the rocky road interrupted conversations often. Early river explorers had to contend with pesky bugs and man-eating things. The eight legs of an octopus must be an attempt to distract a lot of predators. The hotdog salesmen at many stadiums hawk their wares much too loudly unless you are hungry. Then you can never find them.
Amount of distraction
It’s more likely that the amount of distraction is causing more problems. In a world where everything seems to have its own beep or alarm, the constancy of ringing is catching up to us. I have not heard an actual phone ring in so long that I think the next generation will be the first to not recognize that ringtone option. I have been wondering lately who decided that all of the microwaves would share the same sound. If they had chosen differently, it could have been a whistle or a trumpet and we all would have started salivating when we heard those sounds. My appliances all talk to each other letting you know when the clothes are dry with a cheerful chime, or that you left the frig door ajar just enough to show how weak you are. I still don’t know why the dishwasher was built to be very quiet. He usually works alone at night. I guess it was disturbing the others.
The sound of silence
Missing from most days is enough silence. Working from home has certainly added another level to noise some days if there are multiple occupants. Working from home alone makes you want to talk to yourself when you trek to the kitchen to fill up your coffee cup. You don’t want to get out of the practice of greeting your colleagues in the break room. But there are added distractions of the visual variety also. The semi-professional walkers in my neighborhood take their dailies at specific times. I keep up with their faithful companions and try not to guess if they are on a break from work or choose to walk for exercise. I can even tell you if the mail is late now. Maybe these aren’t distractions; maybe they are the new rhythms of my world.
Do not disturb
When we first entered our digital world, there was no clue how many devices would be available and what our life would sound like with them as constant companions. Most of us have turned off a lot of sounds by this point. Most of us have headphones that don’t increase your ability to hear; they cancel sound. Not many of us would have seen that coming. The best sounds are still made by us though. Conversations, meetings on screens, pet sounds, the music of games, secret whispers when we tuck youngsters in at night and of course, laughter when we remember to delight in the new world. Maybe we need manufacturers to add a few new sounds to our devices and appliances. We like company.
Can you count all the electronic noises you hear in a day? Whose voice still gives you shivers? What sound would you like to hear when you wake up?
