AN OPEN LETTER TO ALL READERS OF FORGOTTEN HITS
Dear FHer's
You
read Kent's blog because if music isn't your life, it's a damn big part
of it.
Some of you are professional musicians, some of you are
journalists, some are DJs, but I venture to say most of you are fans
(genre is unimportant.)
A few things prompt this letter to you. One was
the recent passing of Helen Reddy and Mac Davis, within 24 hours of one
another. Another was the 85th birthdays of Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny
Mathis and, if I read Kent's comment page correctly, one of his readers
is also 85.
So how does
this tie in with music?
Simply put music is more enjoyable when you can
hear what's being played.
I've got about a bit more than seven years before I
reach 78 (both Helen Reddy & Mac Davis were that age) and then another seven
more after that until I reach 85. I'm a couple months short of 71, but I've
probably lost at least half my hearing.
I guess you first notice it
while watching TV. You turn up the volume and think nothing of it until
someone asks, "Why is the TV so loud?" Of course, you don't think it is. I
don't know if I've watched an hour's worth of TV thus far this year. At
this point I have to turn the TV volume to where it starts to distort.
Yes, I have hearing aide devices. They can help with slight and maybe
moderate hearing impairment, but I've passed that point. I'd look into
closed caption, but business here at the Rock And Roll Never Forgets
megaplex isn't THAT good, not to mention other ailments are front and center and have priority in the pocketbook. Actually, Covid is the best
thing that's happened to my business in years. You don't want to know
what a top of the line hearing aid costs, and insurance pays about 20%
(maybe.)
It also affects how I listen to music.
I don't listen to
records/CDs any more ... I can't hear them at normal volume. In the car it's
a bit easier, as you're in an enclosed place. Of course, all bets are off
if the windows are open.
Oh, I know there's music ... it isn't total
silence ... but it sounds like if you were listening to some thrash metal
band, rather than Helen Reddy or Mac Davis. I can't play grade records ...
I just have to go on how it looks. If it looks like crap, it probably plays
like it, too.
It's sad because music has been an integral part of my life
since my teens. In a way it's like losing a friend. Unless someone is
speaking directly to me, I have no idea what's being said. Forget about
having your partner whisper sweet nothings in your ear. They might as
well be whispering the Pledge Of Allegiance. I have hearing impaired
telephones, so I can sort of carry on a conversation. If you find that
this applies to you, make an appointment with an audiologist.
Jack
As we all get older, we all start to experience the loss of senses we always took for granted. (I keep three grades of reading glasses nearby because on any given day ... and sometimes even within the SAME day ... I have to try them all on to see which pair helps me see the best at that particular moment in time.) I, too, have experienced at least some level of hearing loss, although not to the degree that Jack is describing. (With all the rockers on the list, I'm sure most would acknowledge being in at least some similar type of boat, especially after playing music on stage for decades on end!)
We have readers who are blind (yet still "read" Forgotten Hits every day!) Others who are fighting one type of disability or another and some that have been legally declared "disabled." Others use "speak and type" devices in order to stay in touch.
Yes, we're ALL getting older. I would hate to have to miss ANY aspect of the music I enjoy. (Kinda like that scene in "Baby Driver" when Jon Hamm shoots the gun off just outside of Baby's ear ... or the Burgess Meredith bookworm character in that episode of "Twilight Zone" who shatters his glasses at the very end and can no longer read his now personal library of books.)
We all have to deal with it in our own way and with whatever enhancements may be available to us.
But, thanks to modern technology, there ARE several options available to us. As Jack says, they're not necessarily cheap ... but they do exist.
My advise is to simply enjoy as much out of each day as you possibly can by appreciating the little things that give you pleasure. Savor every note, every word or every drop as best you can. Ac-cent-tchu-ate the positive, as they used to say back in the day. (Now all I've got to do is start heeding my own advise ... 'cause it ain't easy!!!) kk
