# What do you do when home becomes intolerable for a while?



## maxiogee

I am living about 1.5 kilometres from a large public park.
It is a lovely place. Lots of space for people to walk, cycle, play games, sit, admire the scenery and the wildlife.
There are mane trees between it and our house.
Every summer it hosts a series of rock concerts.
Tonight marks the first of them
They are tuning up and testing the PA at the minute.
There is a bass note being tested regularly which makes my chest throb in resonance.
The trees do not seem to muffle the sounds.

Later this evening/tonight we will be treated to four different groups. Over the next eight days there are concerts on five!

Does anyone else live near any officially organised anti-social behaviour?
What do you do?


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## timpeac

I used to have a street light right outside my window (and I mean literally right there) and would take a broom handle an bang it til it broke (the filament I mean, not the broom). It used to take them months each time to get round to fixing it!


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## cuchuflete

I live a few miles from the Wiscasset Speedway, where cars race on Friday nights in the summer.  When it's humid, the sound carries up the river, and makes things less than bucolic for a few hours.

I think that a few years ago a brilliant planner suggested turning it into a pig farm, but that idea was not embraced by the local residents:  





> Converting the *Wiscasset Speedway* to a pig farm, a housing development, or an office complex were some of the ideas tossed out last Thursday in the fifth roundtable discussion set up by Stafford Business Advisors. - Paula Gibbs


 source

I go to the back of the house, focus on WR or a good book, and hope the hours will pass quickly.


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## timpeac

Another one - although I never actually did this myself. At university they used to have these open-top buses going round all summer long all day long giving commentary really really loudly. The roads could be quite narrow sometimes so anyone with a room on the street was driven mad. They used to get water and eggs and throw them at the people out of the window. I think that one bus did start to change its route because of it.


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## Lykurg

In Germany one could take some photos of disorientated birds nesting in that public park, and send them to his local environmental protection agency...


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## moura

Well Tony, I should like to give you creative advices but all I can  remember are double windows, or joining the band concert or making a holiday during those days .

But if that may help, I tell my own experience. I live in a high floor of a building, without any buildings in front because...on the other side of the street begins a football field. It is a local club, which has some adjacents fields for hockey on rolls (?) and it owns one of the marches of the Popular Saints Festivities. They exercise the march, every night, since April/May till June. And on the right side of the club there is a beautifull park, more or less 400 meters across from my house, that in Summer is used for African concerts, also with high decibels. 
So, between football matches, during the day, the band and singing of the march and the African voices, there's a lot of sounds mixture in the neighbourhood. 
But for strange it may seams, this represents Summer arrival (except football happening all the  year) and I manage to enjoy. I even profit to dance sometimes at home...


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## maxiogee

I think we can all get used to the regular, I used to live in the city centre of Dublin. Between our two cathedrals. The bells rang on Sundays - and rang, and rang, and rang.
Eventually we realised that we had stopped noticing them.

My problem where I live now is that it is normally so quiet.
We are on the outskirts of the city - about six miles from the city centre, on the side of a mountain (hill, really) with not much traffic near us. There is a motorway about .7km behind us but its noise is well muffled by trees.

So you see, I can't "get used to" these concerts because they are so infrequent.


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## timpeac

maxiogee said:
			
		

> I think we can all get used to the regular, I used to live in the city centre of Dublin. Between our two cathedrals. The bells rang on Sundays - and rang, and rang, and rang.
> Eventually we realised that we had stopped noticing them.
> 
> My problem where I live now is that it is normally so quiet.
> We are on the outskirts of the city - about six miles from the city centre, on the side of a mountain (hill, really) with not much traffic near us. There is a motorway about .7km behind us but its noise is well muffled by trees.
> 
> So you see, I can't "get used to" these concerts because they are so infrequent.


As people who live near the sea know, sea-gulls can be incredibly, unbelievably, noisy. Sometimes I lay awake in the early hours hearing them scream like cats being skinned alive and imagine I had a gun and mentally take great pleasure in shooting them. Yes, shooting seagulls is a good alternative to counting sheep! Maybe you could play the same mental game with the party-goers?


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## stephyjh

They say you'll get used to it, living next door to the railroad tracks. It never happened to me. After ten years in the house, the train whistle always gives me a headache.


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## Kräuter_Fee

Maxiogee, is that park St Stephen's Green???

During the months I have classes, I live in Madrid... there is a lot of things you can do there, you can go shopping, to parks, to the movies...


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## .   1

I have recently and permenantly moved away from a house in a very similar situation to maxiogee and I believe that the only real solution is to do what I did.

.,,
How can you possibly get used to any type of amplified music be it Vivaldi or bad gangsta rap.


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## Kräuter_Fee

. said:
			
		

> How can you possibly get used to any type of amplified music be it Vivaldi or bad gangsta rap.



After reading this I said... s/he's from Australia for sure, and I wasn't wrong , I read on the Internet that the major of a town over there decided to play old-fashioned music very loudly so that people stop bothering with loud music coming from cars... lol


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## jj_anjin_san

what do i do when home becomes intolerable for a while???
i read, or just write anything. i hate when i can't be calm in home, i just hate it. so i write, since two until now i almoust write a story of 60 pages, i think that in two years more, i'll have a novel, jajajaja, that's funny....


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## cirrus

I used to run a mediation service for neighbours in dispute.  What used to really get on people's nerves was not knowing when noise was going to stop.  If I were you I'd be tempted to get the timetable of the concerts, put it in the calendar and organise something to distract me on those dates:  Cook for friends, get in a DVD, finally tidy the cellar and chuck out all that clutter - anything as long as it is positive.  Who knows you might even come to see the concerts and the change of routine as something positive.  

I imagine this might be a tad unlikely but aiming for optimism can't be all bad, can it?


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## Sallyb36

Home never gets unbearable for me.  If I want to go somewhere I visit friends or go for a walk on a nearby beach.


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## maxiogee

Kräuter_Fee said:
			
		

> Maxiogee, is that park St Stephen's Green???


Oh no - that's right in the city centre.
I'm speaking of Marlay Park —>just south of Rathfarnham, for those who know the city.

* As to moving away - we've only moved in here a little over 18 months ago. The concerts are not enough to drive us away - what's five nights a year.

* We don't have a cellar.

* The TV would have to be intolerably loud to allow a DVD to mask the intrusive noise.

* The unbearability only lasted from about 3:00 to 11:00 and there was quite a few silences in the early stages.


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## KaRiNe_Fr

Why not "boules Quies" (the best ear plugs, from France)?


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## timpeac

If you know the week they are doing this early enough, could you book a week's holiday then?


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## zena168

I've heard that there's a device that can actually cancel out the noises (waves).  But you'd be unable to hear any sound at all (could be dangerous in certain cases when you can't hear other's warning calls).  It's like the noise canceling headphones but with amplified effects.  I wonder if anyone knows what I'm talking about...


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## ElaineG

Take the missus out for dinner, Tony!


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## sarcie

maxiogee, you must live right on top of Marlay - friends of mine lived in an estate across the road during last year's concerts and said in the evenings anyway, with the windows and curtains closed and the tv/radio on, they could barely hear anything. The crowds coming and going all day were what bothered them. 

Let me know if you think of a solution though - I live right next to the site of the Oktoberfest, 3 whole weeks of drunkenness, rowdy behaviour and loud oom-pah-pah music! Which will be all nice and convenient during the one or two days I want to partake of all that, but the rest of the time...


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## maxiogee

sarcie said:


> maxiogee, you must live right on top of Marlay -


Wind-wise, yes. We are to the west of it.
The second concert wasn't as bad, and one of our son's friends, who lives nearer, but north of it, said they hardly heard anything. It was a dreadfful night weather-wise which probably helped to muffle it.

Dinner seems the best answer.


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## rsweet

I know what it feels like to have the quiet haven of home violated by noise like this. We live out a beautiful rural canyon where we usually hear birdsong by day and crickets by night. Around 5 miles (as the crow flies; a 10 mile drive) from us is Laguna Seca Raceway where they hold car races and the occasional concert. The problem is that we live very high up and the noise rises. Over the years on the days they're racing, we just grin and bear it. Several years ago I found the number and the name of the person to complain to about the noise: the person who approved the permit for the event. Each year there is a Christian rock concert that seems to be the loudest event of the year. I called and complained that I could understand lyrics at my house it was so loud. Apparently, they track how many complaint calls they receive and do respond by relaying a noise check warning. 

An alternate trick I use is a pair of headphone ear protectors--the kind you wear when you're shooting guns, operating heavy machinery, or directing airplanes on a landing field. I used to have an obnoxiously noisy woman sitting next to me at work. She dialed all her calls on full-blast speakerphone and yapped for hours at a volume sufficient for a hog calling contest. I used to put the ear protectors on hoping for some relief, and that she would take a hint. These are really very inexpensive. Ugly, but if you're desperate, they work.


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## ladybird

In certain situations there is nothing that can be done.

I grew up in West London where the Notting Hill street carnival takes place every year during the August holiday weekend.

My 85 yr old mum still lives in the area, and even though carnival only goes on for two days, the preparation and the clean up afterwards goes on for longer.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not a party pooper, I enjoy a celebration as much as the next person but the disruption caused is no small thing.
Cars cannot be driven in the immediate area, so if you are elderly or infirm you don't stand much chance of getting around.
The music goes on to approx 9pm, but hey, thats not too much of a problem.
What I really object to is the fact that security guards have to be employed each year to guard the entrance to my mum's (council) estate.
People who live there will have to provide proof that they are actually residents before they can get in and there are metal fences erected around the perimeter of the estate, the place looks like a fortress.

Not to mention the charges that residents have to pay towards the cost of policing the whole thing..and my mum has to pay towards the cost of the metal railings in her council service charges.

Pretty unfair, methinks.


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## maxiogee

ladybird said:


> Not to mention the charges that residents have to pay towards the cost of policing the whole thing..and my mum has to pay towards the cost of the metal railings in her council service charges.
> 
> Pretty unfair, methinks.



Do the carnival "entrants" or participants not pay anything? Does the event not generate _any_ revenue for the local council?


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## ladybird

maxiogee said:


> Do the carnival "entrants" or participants not pay anything? Does the event not generate _any_ revenue for the local council?


 
I honestly don't know the answer to this, I have never looked into it. As far as I'm aware, I don't think the participants have to pay anything.
There must be some revenue coming in for the local council it is such a big event, I believe there are approx 2 million visitors to carnival over the space of the 2 days.
I also believe that a large amount of funding comes from the Greater London Assembly.

ladybird


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## timpeac

maxiogee said:


> Do the carnival "entrants" or participants not pay anything? Does the event not generate _any_ revenue for the local council?


I see your point and I don't think you even need to get into the specifics that deeply. You live in a certain place because you want to. If certain events happen with predictable regularity and you don't like them then it's up to you to stay or not.

To give a personal example - I live in an extremely popular sea-side town. Because of the money tourism brings in it has one of the highest ratio of leisure facilites (however you want to judge, those - I'm thinking mainly of pubs and clubs here!) in the country. They stay open all year round because of the money brought by the influx of tourism which happens much more in summer months.

When it is summer I hear locals moan constantly - "oh, they push and shove" "oh they leave rubbish" "oh you have to queue to get into the clubs" "oh you have to stand on the buses" blah blah blah. Well those facilities wouldn't even exist, or be as frequent, or be such a high quality, all year round if it wasn't for the money brought in in the summer months. And, of course, if you don't like it there are many other towns and cities without much tourism. Of course they don't have festivals, or free movie shows on the beach, or impromptu free concerts by international stars or one of the greatest ranges of independant retail shops outside London - but you make your choice. 

You live where you are for its pros and cons and if you don't like it you move away.


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## ladybird

timpeac said:


> I see your point and I don't think you even need to get into the specifics that deeply. You live in a certain place because you want to. If certain events happen with predictable regularity and you don't like them then it's up to you to stay or not.
> 
> To give a personal example - I live in an extremely popular sea-side town. Because of the money tourism brings in it has one of the highest ratio of leisure facilites (however you want to judge, those - I'm thinking mainly of pubs and clubs here!) in the country. They stay open all year round because of the money brought by the influx of tourism which happens much more in summer months.
> 
> When it is summer I hear locals moan constantly - "oh, they push and shove" "oh they leave rubbish" "oh you have to queue to get into the clubs" "oh you have to stand on the buses" blah blah blah. Well those facilities wouldn't even exist, or be as frequent, or be such a high quality, all year round if it wasn't for the money brought in in the summer months. And, of course, if you don't like it there are many other towns and cities without much tourism. Of course they don't have festivals, or free movie shows on the beach, or impromptu free concerts by international stars or one of the greatest ranges of independant retail shops outside London - but you make your choice.
> 
> You live where you are for its pros and cons and if you don't like it you move away.


 
I'm not with you on that one I'm afraid!

For various personal reasons which I certainly don't want to go into here, it would not have been possible for my mum to up sticks and move.

Quite frankly, why should she? She was born in the area and has lived there all her life.

Yes, she does have a moan at this time of year, not about the music, not about the crowds but about the specific reasons I have given above.

Are you seriously suggesting that because she dislikes the amount of disruption that carnival brings she should have to move?


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## timpeac

ladybird said:


> Are you seriously suggesting that because she dislikes the amount of disruption that carnival brings she should have to move?


Absolutely! From a quick googling the carnival started in 1959. She's had a lot of time to decide if it is so annoying that she would rather not live in the area, and if she's decided to stay then put up or shut up in my book.


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## ladybird

timpeac said:


> Absolutely! From a quick googling the carnival started in 1959. She's had a lot of time to decide if it is so annoying that she would rather not live in the area, and if she's decided to stay then put up or shut up in my book.


 
I will make this my last post on this subject as I find your attitude quite confrontational, I don't believe that anything I said above warranted such a harsh reply.

I would ask you to read my post again. At no point did I say that she didn't want to live in the area and I also said that there were personal reasons that would have stopped her from moving, even if she had wanted to.

As regards your "put up or shut up" comment..she doesn't need to shut up. She's 85, ran the tenants association where she lives for 20 yrs.

She was also the person who started a fund for a young woman who was widowed when her husband was stabbed to death at the carnival a few yards from his front door.

I think she has earned her right to her opinion, even if you don't agree.


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## beakman

Hi!
I live in a small Andalusian town near Seville, in a narrow (from my viewpoint), long, well-like street. In summer, the noise during the night is unbearable for me due to cars, motobikes and our neighbours speaking loud every night in front of our windows. I can't close the windows because of extremely high temperatures during the daytime (we have our windows closed all day long and after sunset we open them to let fresh air enter the house). Ironically, during the daytime the street is like a desert as nobody passes over here, neither noisy people, nor motobikers and so on. (They supposed to sleep siesta). So, I have to put up with this noise every night. Although I go to bed a bit later (1-2 o'clock)- it's impossible to fall asleep before, it seems to me that I have already got used to it as I fall asleep very quickly and have a pleasant sleep till 7 0'clock. But a short time ago I was awaken every morning at 5 o'clock during a year when "el panadero" (baker) came with his bread. This panadero brought people their loaves of bread at 5 o'clock every day exept Sunday, riding a horrible moped which didn't have any silencer. It's impossible to compare the noise it produced with nothing on Earth! It tortured me almost a year. I woke every day at 5 and couldn't fall asleep afterwards. I'm a tolerant person but after such a torture one day I woke at 4.55 and went downstairs to receive the baker in the street. When he approached me at 5 o'clock on his horrible moped -he was very punctual- I stood on his way on the road. I explained him my problem, that I couldn't sleep because of his moto, that it was about to drive me mad, and I expressed to him my alternative variants suitable for both of us: to switch off the engine before coming to my street (by chance our street has an incline and its possible to go down it without engine working) or to stop on the corner of the streets and fetch the bread on foot. But the baker- he said to me that he was 25 and was born into this town and he knew better everything here because of his "origin"- refused to satisfy my request. So, when I asked him what alternative he suggested, he answered that I had to close all my windows. But, obviously, that didn't suit me. So, I asked him to wait for me for a minute while I was going to look for a pencil to copy his number. He "kindly" agreed to. Then I successfully copied his number and withdrew to my place. From that day on, I can sleep tranquilly till 7 0'clock because he gave up coming here at 5 o'clock every day. I don't know why he changed his mind. May be he got scared of the possibility of getting in trouble because of his old-fashion moto? I don't know. But whithout him around here at 5 o'clock every morning is better.
Hope not to have bored everybody with my story.
Regards.
(Please, correct my mistakes!)


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## timpeac

ladybird said:


> I will make this my last post on this subject as I find your attitude quite confrontational, I don't believe that anything I said above warranted such a harsh reply.


Hmmm, I'm sorry you found it confrontational, or rather I'm sorry you find such confrontation offensive. It's not personal - this is a discussion forum and thrives on exchanges which is always confrontational to some degree. Without meaning to make it worse, there are many other forums you could contribute to where being anodyne is the order of the day. You have injected the situation of an 85 year old woman into this discussion, which is very emotive. I refuse to temper my view on the subject for that reason alone. Also, if you find criticism of arguments based on your elderly mother's position offensive, perhaps you shouldn't bring that aspect into the discussion in the first place.


ladybird said:


> I would ask you to read my post again. At no point did I say that she didn't want to live in the area and I also said that there were personal reasons that would have stopped her from moving, even if she had wanted to.
> 
> As regards your "put up or shut up" comment..she doesn't need to shut up. She's 85, ran the tenants association where she lives for 20 yrs.


Actually, my put up or shut up referred more to this thread, and more to you mentioning it as a reason. Of course she has every right to go down to the local baker's and moan about local woes. Leaving emotiveness apart If this is seriously such a problem the obvious thing is to move. If there are other factors we're not aware of then we can hardly take those into account, and it also rather invalidates your comments in the first place in throwing light on Maxiogee's situation where he has explained all the criteria.


ladybird said:


> I think she has earned her right to her opinion, even if you don't agree.


I object to or, to put it less emotively, question not her opinion, but rather its relevance in your point in this discussion.


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