The Big Green House

Thursday, June 12, 2003

 

Hope I die before I go deaf

When I was young and snotty and working at the record store, I tended to wear a few rock & roll related buttons, as was the fashion at the time. Personal faves included Elvis Costello, the Ramones, and Pete Townshend, if memory serves, as well as a few �humorous� ones: �Disgusting Mess�, �Buy or Die�, etc. Did I mention that I was young and snotty? The one that got trotted out just about every day said, �If it�s too loud, you�re too old�. Well, that one has come back to haunt me now.

I�ve had tinnitus since I was around 17 or so. Not as bad as Roger Miller�s case, but there�s been steady, high-pitched ringing in my right ear my entire adult life. Most of the time I don�t even notice it, unless I�m thinking about it. (Like right now.) With the tinnitus has come a loss of hearing in that ear. It started out small, but over the years, as I�ve been exposed to loud noises in various jobs and, of course, loud music, it�s gotten worse. It�s difficult for me to follow conversation if the person I�m talking with is on my right side, which makes driving interesting sometimes.

The upshot of all this: since I�d like to preserve what�s left of my hearing for as long as I can, I�ve started to wear earplugs at shows. I feel like something of a dork wearing them, but it is nice to leave a club and still be able to hear clearly (or at all, for that matter � the last couple of shows I attended without hearing protection left me pretty close to deaf on my bad side for almost a day afterwards). I should probably not use my Walkman so much anymore, either, but one thing at a time.

I�m not writing this to elicit pity or anything. What�s happened is of my own doing, for the most part. I will suggest, though, that if you spend a lot of time around the rock and the roll, it might be worth your while to look into some sort of ear protection, even if it�s just wadded-up tissue paper.

bmarkey 6/12/2003 06:10:00 PM