Sunday, July 20, 2003
"Love thy neighbour as you love thyself"- Of noise and neighbours.
I was in the midst of preparing dinner for Luana and me when I received a call from Sara who invited me over for a chat. Abandoning my kitchen ( which looked like an overenthusiastic typhoon had just swept through) I crossed the landing and was delighted to see my other neighbour, Wan come through the security door to receive me.
Once we were in Sara's room, Wan started complaining big time about the girl next door whoes room was sandwiched between hers and Sara's. Apparently the lass comes home in the dead of the night dead drunk, sings tunelessly for a few hours into the wee hours and ends with the grand finale of endless retching in the toilet. " I wanna go slap her," Wan muttered darkly. " Unfortunately, she has that boyfriend of hers who is always behind her,backing her up." Sara smiled wanely and added that that the girl would often visit the neighbour on Sara's left to gossip BIG time about Sara and how much Sara complained about the racket that issued everynight. All this despite the fact that Sara was the one losing sleep. DOesn't help that they are both from Thailand and the neighbour commands a pretty colourful Thai vocab list which is entirely comprehensible to poor Sara.
Wan was positively fuming. " I swear I"m going to break my bond," she pointed a finger at the offending wall. I reminded her that it wasn't so easy to leave the contract. My poor long suffering neighbours were not the only ones with complains about the place I was staying in. I spent my first semester stuffing my ears with ear plugs in a valiant attempt to block out my neighbours pounding bass super woofer, the loud guffaws of drunkards who flooded the road from the pubs every weekend as well as the incessant, tuneless warbling issueing from the pub across the road on a nightly basis. I tried at first to remind my neighbour about the noise pollution. He was a nice guy and apologied profusely everytime I came over. But after a few days of quiet, the racket would start again. The disturbance was more due to his super woofer than the volume of his music. I hated to go over and complain half the time because I didn't want to sour relations. I complained incessantly to Luana and Wan, but now I realise how lucky I am to have 2 pleasant, albeit a tad inconsiderate, immediate neighbours. For when I complain to my neighbour, he graciously says sorry and obliges to my demands. However, I've taken to studying in the library to avoid future confrontations. My parents are freaking about the fact that I'm coming home at 12am in the dead of the night. They much rather I fail my exams then have me pulverised on the street.
Luana's neighbour plays football in his room everynight, leaving Luana to fear for her glass window which was continuous with his. Well if he's not living out his football fantasies, he's kicking his girlfriend around. Wan's neighbour on the right bangs on the adjoining wall for kicks, shouts expletives and pounds on her door for no reason.
" We are all dying to move out," I chuckled bitterly. " We pay a shit load of cash for this joint and we're all dying to move out because our neighbours give us hell."
Wan's mother had to come down to give their neighbour a dressing gown because it is considered improper for 2 younger girls to reprimand an older Thai girl. A formidable and dignified looking lady, she had been prowling the lobby downstairs for 2 days and glowering at every girl that walked to the lift. Quite unnerving actually.
" The bible says:' Love thy neighbour as you love thyself'," Sara quipped later on when Luana had joined us for a late night movie. " But I can't bring myself to." Luana and I looked at each other and shrugged helplessly.
A guest speaker at the temple spoke about the discrepencies between expectations of people which leads to conflict. So I guess i shouldn't rage at my neighbour because the music is being played at what he considers a tolerable level. However, I don't feel very angelic at the moment. Guess I'm not your typical placid buddhist. :P Got a long way ahead to mental cultivation.
What do you do when you live in such close quarters, which such inconsiderate souls who make life a living hell for you and can hear your every complain through the paper thin walls?
The chinese saying goes: Yuan qing bu ru jing ling. In times of trouble, your relatives who dwell far away are no match for your neighbours.
Yeah right. Too bad, the trouble in your friendly neighbourhood is being brewed by the very people you're suppose to turn to.
I was in the midst of preparing dinner for Luana and me when I received a call from Sara who invited me over for a chat. Abandoning my kitchen ( which looked like an overenthusiastic typhoon had just swept through) I crossed the landing and was delighted to see my other neighbour, Wan come through the security door to receive me.
Once we were in Sara's room, Wan started complaining big time about the girl next door whoes room was sandwiched between hers and Sara's. Apparently the lass comes home in the dead of the night dead drunk, sings tunelessly for a few hours into the wee hours and ends with the grand finale of endless retching in the toilet. " I wanna go slap her," Wan muttered darkly. " Unfortunately, she has that boyfriend of hers who is always behind her,backing her up." Sara smiled wanely and added that that the girl would often visit the neighbour on Sara's left to gossip BIG time about Sara and how much Sara complained about the racket that issued everynight. All this despite the fact that Sara was the one losing sleep. DOesn't help that they are both from Thailand and the neighbour commands a pretty colourful Thai vocab list which is entirely comprehensible to poor Sara.
Wan was positively fuming. " I swear I"m going to break my bond," she pointed a finger at the offending wall. I reminded her that it wasn't so easy to leave the contract. My poor long suffering neighbours were not the only ones with complains about the place I was staying in. I spent my first semester stuffing my ears with ear plugs in a valiant attempt to block out my neighbours pounding bass super woofer, the loud guffaws of drunkards who flooded the road from the pubs every weekend as well as the incessant, tuneless warbling issueing from the pub across the road on a nightly basis. I tried at first to remind my neighbour about the noise pollution. He was a nice guy and apologied profusely everytime I came over. But after a few days of quiet, the racket would start again. The disturbance was more due to his super woofer than the volume of his music. I hated to go over and complain half the time because I didn't want to sour relations. I complained incessantly to Luana and Wan, but now I realise how lucky I am to have 2 pleasant, albeit a tad inconsiderate, immediate neighbours. For when I complain to my neighbour, he graciously says sorry and obliges to my demands. However, I've taken to studying in the library to avoid future confrontations. My parents are freaking about the fact that I'm coming home at 12am in the dead of the night. They much rather I fail my exams then have me pulverised on the street.
Luana's neighbour plays football in his room everynight, leaving Luana to fear for her glass window which was continuous with his. Well if he's not living out his football fantasies, he's kicking his girlfriend around. Wan's neighbour on the right bangs on the adjoining wall for kicks, shouts expletives and pounds on her door for no reason.
" We are all dying to move out," I chuckled bitterly. " We pay a shit load of cash for this joint and we're all dying to move out because our neighbours give us hell."
Wan's mother had to come down to give their neighbour a dressing gown because it is considered improper for 2 younger girls to reprimand an older Thai girl. A formidable and dignified looking lady, she had been prowling the lobby downstairs for 2 days and glowering at every girl that walked to the lift. Quite unnerving actually.
" The bible says:' Love thy neighbour as you love thyself'," Sara quipped later on when Luana had joined us for a late night movie. " But I can't bring myself to." Luana and I looked at each other and shrugged helplessly.
A guest speaker at the temple spoke about the discrepencies between expectations of people which leads to conflict. So I guess i shouldn't rage at my neighbour because the music is being played at what he considers a tolerable level. However, I don't feel very angelic at the moment. Guess I'm not your typical placid buddhist. :P Got a long way ahead to mental cultivation.
What do you do when you live in such close quarters, which such inconsiderate souls who make life a living hell for you and can hear your every complain through the paper thin walls?
The chinese saying goes: Yuan qing bu ru jing ling. In times of trouble, your relatives who dwell far away are no match for your neighbours.
Yeah right. Too bad, the trouble in your friendly neighbourhood is being brewed by the very people you're suppose to turn to.
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