the sounds of silence

I had some of my stuff stolen last week - the usual sneak-thief menu of wallet, watch and phone - basically things that can be picked up quickly and stashed in pockets without causing too much raising of eyebrows from other people.

One of the things that was taken was my ipod - which has meant that rather than the world going past with my own personal soundtrack, I have had to immerse myself in the sounds of the streets. It has taken some getting used to - rather than giving the streets of London a cinematic feel, and being able to choose from different styles of music in order to enhance my mood, I have heard whispered conversations between lovers, caught the beginnings of arguments, heard cars honking, cabbies cursing, drunken snoring and jabbered talking of teenagers out on the town.

It's been quite entertaining in some respects - either intentionally, in the case of a man trying his best to be the "group clown" on the tube late at night, or unintentional in the case of a girl trying to make sense of an advert. But it has been, on occasion, more than a little annoying - the braying arrogance of a guy talking about Charles Dickens was a particular low point. I'm looking forward to being able to shut it all out again.