By Juan C. Ayllon We’ve all been there. Making good time on my morning commute, I was excited about sipping coffee while getting extra work done, however, just as I approached my turnoff, a large yellow school bus sauntered into my lane and turned on its left turn signal. Ugh. Instead of zipping down this long two lane stretch adjoining an airfield, I was stuck bumping along going 35 behind this ungainly beast belching diesel fumes. Worse yet, about a mile down, it decelerated as it approached a residential corner. Up ahead, a tiny grade school girl wearing a parka, bluejeans, sneakers and a backpack stood with her cigarette-smoking father several yards off. The bus stopped. Its red stop sign swung out. I halted. The child skipped forward–then froze at the curb. In a blur, a silver sedan swept through the exact space where she would have stepped last, had she been unaware. I gasped. Her father emitted a wisp of smoke. Another driver, the father and I watched bug eyed as the offender sped off. This small child had just dodged death by a driver who couldn’t be bothered with a school bus stop sign. All too often in today’s society, people put others at grave risk because they’re in a hurry. Numerous times, I have had to slow down and pull over to avoid deadly collisions with drivers who ignored double yellow lines or red lights in order to pass someone or get somewhere faster. But, this is different; the thought of an innocent child being crushed by 3,300 lbs of steel in such an impulsive, narcissistic act is sickening. But the reality is that we all have time and financial pressures that, in unguarded moments, could result in bad choices with far reaching consequences. What do we do with that? Creating margins is one thing: give yourself extra time to get things done. Don’t try to squeeze so much into one day. Prioritize. Take your time. Think things through. Balance is another; Have a healthy mix of work, play, relationships, and things that feed your soul, as well as your budget, family obligations and other demands. Exercise. Pray. Meditate. Binge watch a show. After I arrived home later that day and chatted with Belle about our days, she sensed my agitation and suggested that I go downstairs and listen to some music before dinner. I put on some jazz on my streamer, and even considered slowing things down even further by unpacking, then wiping down a record, cuing it up, and dropping the stylus on my turntable – until a friend called to chat about our latest quests in audio. And after our conversation wrapped up, it was time for dinner, followed by binge watching a serial on Netflix before turning in. The next night, Belle visited our daughter, Colleen, a wife, full-time teacher, and mother of a toddler with another due in April who handles the majority of household chores at her house. Clearly, she was overwhelmed. So, while Belle provided her support and companionship, I had planned on picking up Mexican takeout and spending quality time listening to vinyl, futz around on the computer, and maybe, just maybe, work a bit on a review.
Unfortunately, by the time I arrived home, I had a headache and a fever. So after gobbling a burrito, watching a recording of 60 Minutes, hashing out some internet service issues and returning emails, I brushed my teeth and crawled into bed early. So much for best laid plans! However, going into the weekend, I decided that since I still have the 432 EVO High End Music Server review sample on hand (its U.S. distributor delayed sending his return shipping label pending an anticipated sale), I am going to enjoy using it to listen to some music over the weekend in soothing 432 Hz as I recover from this bug. As the late Hiram Bullock croons the current cut playing, "it's been a long time coming." ( Hiram Bullock. "Long Time Gone". Late Night Talk. Venus Records, 1997).
1 Comment
Bjarne
2/13/2022 09:20:37 am
Good read, thanks
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Juan C. AyllonA writer, artist, educator and owner of Prairie Audio Man Cave, he lives with his wife, Isabel (AKA Belle), and their Goldendoodle, Liam, enjoys listening to high fidelity music and all things hi-fi at their home in the greater Chicagoland area.. Archives
March 2024
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