What I Hear - The Soundwalk

It was a Friday afternoon after class, around 4 o’clock, the perfect time for my soundwalk.  I got out of the 6 subway station at 33^rd street and continued on 33^rd until I found a nice place to sit for the next hour.  The spot I chose was in between 4^th and 5^th avenue, a bench outside of a coffee shop, that’s name is escaping my mind.  Naturally, there was a sign that said “Customers Only,” so I went inside and bought one cup of coffee along with a sizable blueberry muffin.  I sat down after a long day of school, and the most prominent keynote was the traffic coming from the avenues, loud honks and beeps that would drive someone from the quiet Midwest mad.  The sound of traffic doesn’t irritate me however; I actually find it kind of tranquil and relaxing.  For me, it’s proof that I’m never truly alone.  Yes, I came to the bench alone to think about sound, but the honking and the beeping immediately reminded me that I’m among people living their own individual lives, lives that they wish to keep on this Friday afternoon so they honk to avoid collision.  It’s truly a beautiful thought.  I then focused on more specific sounds, particularly sound signals.  I stumbled upon this coupling arguing.  It might not have been their intention to draw attention, but people were giving them looks and I heard them from across the street.  It was happening outside of a deli, and the argument was apparently about food.  The woman was not hungry and didn’t want any food, but the man bought her a salad anyway.  She walked out saying that he doesn’t listen to her and/or doesn’t respect her choices.  The man argued that he was just trying to be nice and that he just wanted to share a meal with her.  Crazy stuff.  Besides that, another keynote was the sound of walking and lots of it, more than usual.  It was rush hour.  People were trying to get home, wherever that may be.  The walking could even be considered a soundmark.  5^th Avenue is a busy avenue, and Penn Station is on 7^th Avenue.  It makes sense that a lot of people would be walking west.  That certainly was the reason as to why I was walking west from the 6 train.  The remaining time was filled with the same sounds along with birds and occasional passing phone calls.  Overall, I had a great time on my soundwalk.  It was a relaxing way to end my stressful week full of midterms.  I may just do a soundwalk every Friday.