Anywhere you go there are noises. We get used to the everyday sounds. Sometimes so much so, they help us sleep at night. They can be endearing, if it's your partner snoring (or not), or the crickets chirping. It can also be disturbing when you realize what's helping you sleep are the sounds of ambulances, fire trucks, helicopters, and gun fire. But I digress that was long ago.
I have lived in a lot of different places and apartments. All of these places have had their own unique sound. Some have similarities, but still each have their own individual vibrations. The same is true of the place you live. Apartment, house, camper or tent. This my friends, is about the noises in the house.
When I was young, I had a very hard time falling asleep. Everything kept me awake. Then I grew up. "Grew up" might be an overstatement. Heh, heh. The point is, throughout my adult life I have been moving from one place to another. As a result, I am currently able to sleep through almost any sound. I am happy my body has adapted this way. It makes up for the sleep I lose staying up late writing stuff no one wants to read. Hee, hee. (I am speaking for you because I can. Post a comment if you want... I would love it!!!)
My boyfriend warned me about the noises from the street here. He was very worried about it. For me, I like it. I also enjoy hearing the people who walk by. One night while writing (quietly) I heard two guys outside the door talking. I innocently decided to listen in. Hey trying to learn Spanish... duh! I started to tune out once I realized it was Catalan, but I couldn't help but get a kick out of the laughing and obvious drunkenness of it all. Then right in the middle of a sentence... A big loud fart! It was truly awesome. Who wouldn't love that? They kept right on talking too. I am smiling now thing of it!
Moving on. This apartment has the normal sounds inside. The constant hum (with sporadic gurgles) of the refrigerator motor. The creaks. The after flush noises that last for ten or fifteen minutes. And of course the stove noises. The stove.
Our stove is just two burners. Electric. Set into the counter. Once you turn it off, it starts making a sort of clicking noise as it cools off. That intermittent clicking can last anywhere between a half hour and an hour. Pretty normal.
What I was not ready for was what happened about a month after I got here. Or should I say started happening?! Not every night mind you. But maybe once a week. My boyfriend would get out of bed about 5 minutes after the lights went out, saying, "Did you hear that?" "NO... I was about 2 seconds away from full sleep, half in a dream... of course I didn't hear, 'that'!" I think my actual response was, "hhhunhhh? ummm, whahht?" By then my curiosity was sparked. So I would wake up because I NEEDED to know what it was.
So I watched my brave man (and his cute butt) peek out our bedroom door to see (in the dark), what it could be. Eventually he would decide it was the refrigerator. The one time I heard it first, I went to check. I came up with another possibility. There is a minute chance that there is a rat stuck inside the motor scratching to get out. However, I do not believe this is the case. Phew!
Then he went away for a week of work. It was my first time in the flat alone at night. Okay I will admit I was looking forward to a couple of things. I was going to get to finish off the ice cream! And I was NOT going to have my covers stolen in the middle of the night! What I didn't expect was the noise at night to be something OTHER than the fridge.
First night. Suddenly the need to sleep hits me like a tornado hits a trailer park. So I slide into jammies, turn out the lights and put my head on the pillow.I can feel sleep slowly taking me over... and then I hear it. Crap. Every single cell in my body is now super alert. Right up front I noticed, it was NOT the fridge.
Okay. So it's not the fridge. It also was not the noise we heard before. I am alone however. Before I could have any funny images go through my head of what it could be (in a parallel universe), I sat up noiselessly. Then I soundlessly slid my ass to the end of the bed and sat for a second. The click, click, click was still repeating. In one more incredible, inaudible move I stepped to the door and peeked out. The noise was coming from the stove.
This clicking was almost like an irregular pulse. And it was not the same click as the cool down click. It was a sound I had heard before. A very distinct sound. One that I had made happen. With my own hands. I'm thinking all of that as I am staring at the stove, in the dark. I can see just enough to know that no one but me is in the house. Not even a mouse. Heh, heh.
To turn on the burner, I must turn the knob. The knob has a very specific CLICK to it. ThatUsually, when weird stuff happens, as soon as you are close to it, poof, it's gone! And for about two weeks this happened randomly, day or night. No rhyme, no reason. Sometimes I hadn't even cooked that day. And my boyfriend heard it too so I am not nuts (well, at least not for that). Although I don't think he is as convinced as I am that it is that specific sound. But I know my noises. Just as I know when he's taking more than half the bed (Heh, heh), in all fairness, I may not take more than half the bed... but my ass does take a lot of the bed space!
Now however it's been almost two months without the noise. And even though my boyfriend heard it that one night, I'm beginning to wonder, was it real? Or was it just my mind playing tricks on me? I would love to think it was a ghost, but I can't really sell myself on that one. I would really have to see a ghost to believe in it. Maybe you have an opinion. Or a similar experience...
I am going to sleep now... we'll see what awaits. My guess is nothing.
kimbersfrog
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