Village Sounds 2023-06-05
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I went for a walk at lunchtime, the other day, to the church at the
top of the hill in the nearest village. It's about a mile and a half
each way, along some country lanes and through the village.
I thought it'd be interesting to listen, and take note of all of the
sounds along the way. Rural / village life isn't just birds and the
rustling of leaves in the breeze. Let's ignore car sounds, though...
they are everywhere.
* The distant crackle of the high pressure monitor hose washing china
clay out of rocks in the quarry that overlooks us.
* The metallic scraping of excavators in the quarry, picking up large
granite boulders.
* The rustle of leaves blowing in the breeze.
* Three or four different types of birds tweeting from the hedgerows
and fields.
* The moo-ing of the young cows in the field.
* The engine of the tractor spreading slurry to fertilize the grass,
in a field just over the brow of a hill.
* The neigh-ing and snorting of horses in the small livery on the
corner.
* The feint hum of machinery at the county's waste incinerator,
which looms over the village.
* The impatient whirr of a circular saw, escaping from the window of a
house where work is being done inside.
* The gurgle of water in the leat surrounding an old mill,
now a private house.
* The rythmic hum of a motor in the small sewage works.
* The distant horn of a train on the branch line between Par & Newquay,
passing along the Goss Moor.
* The barking of dogs, as they and their owners pass on their walks
past the village football club.
* Metallic clanging, of a hammer hitting something metal in a garage.
* The sizzle and crackle of welding in the car body repair workshop.
* The cacophony of sounds from children on their lunch break at the
primary school.
* The woosh of an electric mower, hard at work on a front lawn.
* The loud buzz of 3 youths riding their 50cc scooters up a steep lane.
* The rumble of a small airliner passing far overhead.
That's all I can recall, for now. I wonder if you stopped and noted
each sound how many there'd be, and how long it'd take to cover the
mile and a half :-)