Noise

I grew up in a very small, very remote town in the middle of the dessert. The loudest noise there was never much. Maybe a group of teenagers walking by, a car driving by, or, at most, the rare siren was all that was ever heard. I remember waking up one morning thinking that the owl hooting outside was almost too loud-I believe it actually woke me up. When the power went out-a very common occurrence-it got so incredibly silent. I absolutely LOVED it when the power went out. The power generator for the grocery store was all that could be heard.
I miss those days.
I currently live on a main road that is only a few blocks away from both a fire station and the hospital. Not a day goes by that at least 2-3 different sirens can be heard screaming by. Every time I hear a siren I feel a small brush of anxiety inside.
I also live in an apartment building that is such that I can hear the dogs and cats clearly outside my bedroom window. The tenants upstairs are loud enough I sometimes fear that the ceiling will fall down on me. The tenants across the outside hallway scream a lot. And they slam the door a lot as well. I can also hear noise from beneath me where many cars are parked.
I always thought that I'd like to live in the city, but now I know without a shadow of a doubt, I need silence. I long for the day when I can live in a house that is not connected to anyone elses.
I long for silence.
Oh, how I long for peace and quiet!