Semi-deaf

For the past( umm..let's see ) 2 months , I often woke up from bed with a semi-deaf left ear. My right ear, on the other hand, worked just fine every time. From what I notice, it happens when I'm tired and/ or when I happen to sleep on my left side( with my left ear against the pillow). Even while I'm writing this, I can barely hear the music playing from my laptop at all. However, this is nothing new. Going back about 8 years ago, I once had to go see a doctor.

I remember my sensitivity with the ear. The obvious time was when I went swimming and got out of the water with some water left in my ear. Sometimes, it ruined my whole trip. It was so annoying but as a kid I could do nothing to prevent it. The most serious time was when I, somehow, got home with water still in my ear and, losing temper, used a cotton-bud to get rid of the water by sticking it as far as I could into the ear( without destroying my ear-drum). The result was interesting. Not only did I reached the drop of water in my ear but I also hardened my earwax, and thus, my ear went from semi-deaf to REAL deaf with painful ache. After a couple painful days I spent, I realized that the cause was related to the amount of earwax I had. ( just like my High school teacher used to say " Why you never understand what I tell you. Try taking out some of your earwax, kid ! " ). No longer able to resist the pain, I told my sister that I needed to see a doctor. Literally taking out my earwax this time.

The first thing the doctor told me to do was laying down on an operation seat. I did as told. He asked me several things about what I did and one of the things I told him was that I sticked a cotton-bud in my ear. He got a little upset and lectured me that a cotton-bud is for cleaning around the ears not ruining your ear-drums. At the moment, I learned my lesson but, the generous doctor, helped me further. He used what it looked like a vacuum cleaner but was smaller in size and had a tiny nozzle about the size of average person's ear hole. He sticked it into my left ear and started the machine. It hurt a little bit at first but after I got used to it, it was kinda fun. You could literally feel your earwax being sucked leaving you with a good old, empty, sound-resonated ear. Another good thing was that, in Thailand, the medical cost wasn't that expensive so I felt so satisfied and came home happily.

Unfortunately, I don't know how much does it cost to get my earwax sucked in the US. It would cost more I'm sure. The semi-deaf that I have now is likely caused by the amount of earwax I had in my left ear. Good thing is during the day it normally goes away and I will be back to normal usually after some hours of waking up. But what if one day I woke and it went completely deaf with no returning? How much would it affect my music making lifestyle? Like hell! Even if that happens, I just have to become a second Beethoven. Losing an ear or two would not stop me.

Same Day Delivery

I came home after a tiresome afternoon. As soon as I saw Mr. Postman, I walked down to check my mail found a second hand Alan Watts's book " The Meaning of Happiness" that I ordered online. Early Alan Watts writing is something I needed to get my hand on. To be honest, I wanted to read everything the man wrote. On top of a mailbox, I also found the delivery from Sub Pop and Mark magazine addressed to me. It's about time I get to read another issue from Frame publisher " Mark " magazine. Been hooked on them since a couple years ago. If you're into architecture and interior design, you don't need to read any other magazine at all. Trust me. Mark and Frame are all you need. Their editors and contributors are real artists who really put a lot of work into making an interesting read. The photographic works, the materials, the writings, the concept of an issue. Everything is done in hand-selected manner. It really opens up the world for me.

I also pre-ordered Vetiver's new LP plus a T-shirt from Sub Pop. Check out Vetiver and Andy Cabic.  Great music!

How great all these came on the same day!