Can you Turn Down the Noise, I Mean Music

Sometimes the best of intentions get lost in their application. What was intended to be soothing can turn out to be annoying and frustrating. Too often recently I have found myself straining to hear a conversation with a friend while sitting in a restaurant. I will admit up front that I wear two hearing aids, and so my perspective is biased. But I know I am not the only one who finds background music annoying in places such as restaurants. My point is, that when background music becomes loud enough to drown out normal conversation, it has lost its purpose. Sitting across a candle-lite table staring into the eyes of your loved one, while soft, romantic music plays in the background is one thing. Having a coffee with a friend and having to ask them after every second sentence to repeat themselves because you can’t hear over the blast of noise coming out a ceiling speaker right above you, is another. But even more frustrating? Having to hear the news, weather, and sports-cast while eating out, because rather than dialing in a “music station,” the proprietor leaves the radio on the local news-talk station.