Overheard at... Starbucks

The random beeping of a hearing aid.

Does it become like music eventually? It must, as the older gentleman wearing the hearing aid didn’t even seem to notice the sound. But I kept thinking, how on earth does he stand it? It would drive me crazy, and might explain why people are reticent to get a hearing aid to begin with.

Soooo, I did a little sleuthing to learn more about this problem and came to find it is rather common and can be caused by a number of different reasons; not the least of which is wax in the ear.

Really???? This seems hilarious to me. So, not only is the hearing aid beeping at you, but people around you also know you don’t clean your ears very well. Lovely!

The good news is that, like everything, hearing aids are going digital. This, for some reason, alleviates many of the causes of feedback ringing/whining. I am glad to say I am not an expert on hearing aids, yet, but it is nice to know that technology is improving in this area along with many others.

It makes me wonder what else the digital age could do for us….
 - Speaking of whining… is there a digital solution for a child’s incessant complaining?
 - And, how about exercise… couldn’t we find a digital solution to the treadmill?
 - Oh, and as I watch the snow fall I wonder, what about bulky clothing… what if we replaced it with a digital jacket of some form.
 - Best of all, though, wouldn’t it be great to digitize fights? As soon as we got into the same old loops something would turn on and it would have the argument for us; and then we could just walk away and go on a fun date or something. 
 
(I am clearly wasting my time writing romance when it is obvious I should be writing science fiction.)

Until any of these great inventions are created, however, I will simply have to put on my ear phones to block out the whining (of either the hearing aid or my daughter) and hope that my ipod isn’t sending feedback too. I’d hate for those around me to wonder about my showering habits.