The other night I clicked onto the Movies On Demand station. As I scrolled through possible selections, a young woman’s voice relentlessly reviewed other possible selections. I became more and more perturbed by her faux cheeriness until I realized that I could hit the mute button and her barrage of words would be eliminated. The relief I felt from the silence was immediate. I also realized that we somehow have transitioned into a society that is always bombarded with someone talking about something.

There was a time when television stations shut down and all you saw and heard was static. I often yearn for static. At least it doesn’t share any kind of information. Most often you don’t have any choice whether you want to hear the incessant “blah, blah, blah” that seems to permeate every public area.

Try going to a restaurant and simply enjoying a meal with some quiet background music. Not a chance! More often than not, there are two or three flat screen TVs each airing different programs. After all, we don’t want the customers to go into withdrawal. Many people have the TV on all day so they don’t miss anything that might be happening somewhere on the planet.

The insanity lies in the repetition. Take the recent hurricane alerts. Every station reported and went over it until most of us could have gotten a degree in meteorology. Yes, I could have turned it off, but my passion is the observation of absurdity, and nothing was more absurd than watching one of the reporters describing waves as she was buffeted about the beach in an almost horizontal position.

Talk shows not only have guests but include a panel of so-called experts who engage in verbal boxing matches.  Interrupting and shouting over one another to get a point across is par for the course. I guess listening while someone else talks and then responding has gone out of style in exchange for being rude. But then, what’s new? We have all seen the erosion of civility over the years as we marched into the era of “self-absorption”. I am always optimistic that we may wake up some day and actually start listening to one another, but until then I have a new best friend— the mute button.

Lighten Up Your Week:

For one hour every day this week, turn off all the noise and tune in to your favorite music, meditation or the sounds of nature. Do you feel calmer and more relaxed? You may want to add this exercise to your regular routine.