etp sound Erica

Beginning
Reading the words I feel everything around me. Then I close my eyes and feel everything. What comes out? The sound of the ocean seems to permeate the entirety of San Diego. Dogs bark and parasailors brace the wind, trusting it to only take them higher into the musky clouds. I hear the cars go around everything. My wheel clunks into a pot hole. The tire thuds around more and more until the tire finally retains it shape. Engines keep curdling and buzzing. When was my last oil change?
Middle
In bed asleep, the walls have other sides to them. Ghosts live in the hallway. I still can’t hear their stories. They still refuse a frequency that no one besides a whale could make out. One side holds a window. The dogs barking remind me seven dogs live on our property and the children’s laughter allows me to know my neighbors. I know their happiness and youth. The anger that resonates through the streets from the couple next door fighting reminds me both are brief. Still, the heavy curtain lets me forget the sun. The drip drops of rain let me appreciate the value of a roof. I can hear the sound of my roommates having sex and experiencing orgasms; both fake and real. It tells me I need to get out of this room. There is a world outside, something behind the walls I love to be surrounded by. I get dressed, put on some makeup, and find a bar.
Tangent
I’m asleep. Not a light sleeper, but today was not a light day.
“CHARLINE FOSTER! PLEASE COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP OR ANSWER YOUR CELL PHONE!”
I’m instantly awake, not even sleepy.
“CHARLINE FOSTER! PLEASE COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP OR ANSWER YOUR CELL PHONE!”
I run out my room to the front window.
What could be going on?! Were there cops in the street? Who was Charline Foster? What kind of crime had she committed? Around here, I’d expect random drug dealing and perhaps some unpaid bills, but maybe it was a real criminal. A contract killer finally caught or some escape con or even the rapist that had been suspected of being about ten miles from here. Were they dressed homeless and disheveled? Were they scary and how many cops lay outside? Were there police dogs involved?
I see the window, hearing the words repeated again. I guess she still hasn’t come out.
“CHARLINE FOSTER! PLEASE COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP OR ANSWER YOUR CELL PHONE!”
An old lady with bare feet and a hair wrap saunters out. I can hear her complaints and annoying cries.
“Alright. Geez. I’m coming.”
She walks up to the twelve cops and five police cars and immediately turns her back to them with her hands behind her. She’s prepared to go. She’s prepared to be cuffed.
They cuff her. We go back to sleep.
“CHARLINE FOSTER! PLEASE COME OUT WITH YOUR HANDS UP OR ANSWER YOUR CELL PHONE!”
End
And I’m going downtown. Cause my lady’s free. Going downtown. Gotta get in for free.
Tap taps tap.
Remember the movie taps? It had Tom Cruise in a rather tiny role.
Doors creak and I can’t help but hear more taps. Keyboards can get pretty annoying sometimes.
What sound does a body make when being put in a trash bag and dragged down stairs? Does it echo differently when the stairs are enclosed? Does the buzzing of the fluorescent lights soften the echo in any way?
I have heard that a punch sounds very similar to dropping a leather jacket onto the roof of a jeep. Or was it breaking lettuce heads. That one may in fact be bones breaking. I find I prefer authenticity in sounds whenever possible. Putting the sound of squealing pigs into the audio mix for the tornadoes in twister just doesn’t seem like a good idea to me. I now can’t help but associate Helen Hunt with pigs. An Oscar winner deserves better.
So what does it sound like for someone to drown? What does it sound like to suffocate from a pillow? Lately, these have become very important questions. Answers pending next week.