Shops that sell swimming gear often have them. Not wax, though – silicone. They work well.[/quote]
Sandman, I’m going to trawl the swimming shops in search of decent earplugs. Just to check – are those silicone plugs pretty similar to the wax ones in appearance and function?
Cheers.
you could just get some earphones and nature cd’s
then when you fall asleep and dream
you are in a meadow dancing with flowers and when she comes home at 4 am you can her her yell
your dream will be a dasmil in distress and in the morning
your sheets will be all sticky
“The Garbage Lady stops us on our bi-weekly (I mean once overy two weeks, not twice a week. Maybe I should write 'twice monthly?”
fortnightly
[quote=“Illah”]you could just get some earphones and nature cd’s…you are in a meadow dancing with flowers…your sheets will be all sticky[/quote]Thanks for your help but I feel that earplugs will suffice.
Any chance off blocking traffic on Roosevelt Rd. so that I can get a good night’s sleep?
[quote=“Rascal”]Any chance off blocking traffic on Roosevelt Rd. so that I can get a good night’s sleep?[/quote]I also live right next to a busy road. Wax earplugs are amazing. I feel that they are at least twice as good as the orange foam kinds. They’re especially good at blocking out penetrating low-frequency noise. You may not like the idea of sleeping with earplugs in but after a few nights of deep uninterrupted sleep you may feel differently.
The trouble is that my stocks (brought from the UK) are low and I can’t find wax earplugs here. But I’m going to have a look for some of these silicone ones that Sandman mentioned, and I hope they can do the same good job.
[quote]are those silicone plugs pretty similar to the wax ones in appearance and function?
[/quote]
Maybe they’re not actually silicone – maybe they’re some kind of polymer. Whatever. They’re just bullet-shaped lumps that you can mould with your fingers and they give a good tight seal. About the same size as those orange foam plugs, but don’t confuse the two – they’re very different.
[quote=“sandman”][quote]are those silicone plugs pretty similar to the wax ones in appearance and function?
[/quote]
Maybe they’re not actually silicone – maybe they’re some kind of polymer. Whatever. They’re just bullet-shaped lumps that you can mould with your fingers and they give a good tight seal. About the same size as those orange foam plugs, but don’t confuse the two – they’re very different.[/quote]Great! Sounds exactly what I need.
I was told that the cells in your eardrum get their oxygen from the air, and that blocking your ears for long periods can damage them. I use earmuffs when I need to block noise to sleep. The power-tool type is a bit bulky; you can probably get muffs designed for shotgun shooting mailed to you from the U.S.; these block less noise, but are much flatter and easier to sleep in.
Disclaimer: it could be hooey. But my ears are bad enough that I’d rather not risk making them worse.
Maybe if you’re an amphibian – I don’t think mammals absorb oxygen through the skin. 
Anyway, here’s what the Australian National Occupational Health and Safety Commission says on its website:[quote]Facts about hearing protection:
Is there any danger in putting earplugs in your ears?
Earplugs are soft and not long enough to reach far into the ear canal so it is virtually impossible to do any harm. However, if you have an ear infection or have ever had ear surgery, check with a nurse or doctor before using earplugs.
[/quote]
[quote=“Southpaw”]“The Garbage Lady stops us on our bi-weekly (I mean once overy two weeks, not twice a week. Maybe I should write 'twice monthly?”
fortnightly[/quote]
Ah! Thanks!
In further developments in the ongoing audio saga that grips my neighbourhood, on Sunday night, The Fighters started screaming and shouting again, so we assumed spying positions to see what was up. A small group was staring at something on the floor. Later, we heard what sounded like trolley wheels in the alley outside. The Husband was strapped to a stretcher, with flustered and concerned paramedics darting about. I hope the guy’s okay.
Of course, an hour later, everyone else was back at the apartment having a fight, probably about whose fault this whole ordeal was.
I know everyone else likes quiet, but I LOVE neighbours I can spy on or listen to! I’m up until 2 or 3am anyway, might as well have some entertainment! 
Maybe if you’re an amphibian – I don’t think mammals absorb oxygen through the skin. [/quote]
As I noted, I’m not sure about eardrums, but the corneas definitely absorb oxygen directly. We may not breathe that way all around, but a few small parts need their air.
[quote=“sandman”]Anyway, here’s what the Australian National Occupational Health and Safety Commission says on its website:[quote]Facts about hearing protection:
Is there any danger in putting earplugs in your ears?
Earplugs are soft and not long enough to reach far into the ear canal so it is virtually impossible to do any harm. However, if you have an ear infection or have ever had ear surgery, check with a nurse or doctor before using earplugs.
[/quote][/quote]
You’d trust the gummint on such an important health issue?? 
It’s not the putting-them-in, it’s the leaving-them-in-for-eight-hours. 
Q. What’s the similarity between a walrus and a pair of wax earplugs?
A. They both like a tight seal.
and you are complaining? 
Anyone know where I can get one of those little devices used by Meg Ryan in Kate and Leopold? She used it on an upstairs neighbor, it’s like a shocking gun or something, I don’t know and this kind of thing probably doesn’t really exist anyway…
[quote=“Kahna”][quote=“Southpaw”]“The Garbage Lady stops us on our bi-weekly (I mean once overy two weeks, not twice a week. Maybe I should write 'twice monthly?”
fortnightly[/quote]
Ah! Thanks!
In further developments in the ongoing audio saga that grips my neighbourhood, on Sunday night, The Fighters started screaming and shouting again, so we assumed spying positions to see what was up. A small group was staring at something on the floor. Later, we heard what sounded like trolley wheels in the alley outside. The Husband was strapped to a stretcher, with flustered and concerned paramedics darting about. I hope the guy’s okay.
Of course, an hour later, everyone else was back at the apartment having a fight, probably about whose fault this whole ordeal was.[/quote]
Great posts ! As Sandman says, they should be published !
Fred:
Someone a few windows down is learning to play the recorder. Seriously, how many times can a man hear “When the Saints Go Marching In” without resorting to violence?
This old chestnut.
I can put up with the alarm clock that rings every morning for about 45 minutes without being switched off (first, it was an electronic “It’s a Small World”, now it is an old-fashioned ‘ringgggggggggggggggggggg…’).
Even the guys upstairs who have installed an air-conditioner with prerequisite pipe hanging flacidly down the wall and dripping water onto my own air-conditioner (ping! ping! ping!) all through the night.
The sign posted on our gate in ENGLISH ONLY about please closing the gate quietly out of respect for the newborn baby nearby. This is while the guy over the road is doing heavy remodelling (POW! CRACK! GRZAZZZZZZZ!)
The person screaming “FUCK OFF!!” outside our front door on Sunday night while the significant other and myself were cuddling on the couch watching Big Fish (wow, really enjoyed that, although still get bothered by Ewan McGregor’s accents nowadays - at least it wasn’t as distracting as his one in Black Hawk Down). She jumped, cracking her head into my chin.
BUT!!
Whoever it was who decided to turn off the water, without telling anyone what their plans were, when I’m trying to multi-task a shower, a load of washing, the washing up and cooking some pasta can BURN IN HELL!
EDIT - wait, landlady just buzzed upstairs to say everything is back on. Shouldn’t have spoken so soon. Sorry.
Oh these lovely neighbours.
Crying babies.
Arguing neighbours.
Loud music.
Orgies.
Karaoke bars.
Gangster fights.
…
Taiwan is such a lovely place.