The noisemaker
About 12 to 15 years or so ago, I had a strange experience early one morning.
I was sleeping, and I heard a strange, loud buzzing sound.
I was instantly awake, and went rapidly out of my bed and across the room to where the noise was coming from.
It was coming from a little plastic box, sitting on a piece of furniture.
I had no idea what the box was. I picked it up nervously and looked it over, knowing that I somehow had to make it stop. On the side that was initially facing me, it had a clear plastic cover with writing of some sort under it. A rectangular button was on the top. An electrical cord was attached low on the back, and higher up some kind of thin prong stuck way out.
I had no idea what any of it meant, or why it was making this sound, but I felt it was very important that I somehow stop it. I didn't know what to do, though, or what to push. I didn't know what might happen if I actually did anything. I might do something unfortunate, something unwanted, if just started poking things.
I kept feeling, though, that the prong at the back was important, and that I should push it. Not knowing what else to do, and hoping that nothing bad was going to happen, I finally pushed it.
The noise went away.
Standing there in the silence, holding the object, it slowly came back to me that this was my alarm clock, and that the alarm had gone off, as it was supposed to. Pushing the prong on the back had turned the alarm off. The button on the top was the snooze button, which I hadn't been interested in using.
In a partial defense, I should state that at the time I had not been getting much sleep, but I have had many similar times without much sleep where nothing like this has happened. (Not to say that some confusion has never occurred, but nothing quite this bad.)
I was sleeping, and I heard a strange, loud buzzing sound.
I was instantly awake, and went rapidly out of my bed and across the room to where the noise was coming from.
It was coming from a little plastic box, sitting on a piece of furniture.
I had no idea what the box was. I picked it up nervously and looked it over, knowing that I somehow had to make it stop. On the side that was initially facing me, it had a clear plastic cover with writing of some sort under it. A rectangular button was on the top. An electrical cord was attached low on the back, and higher up some kind of thin prong stuck way out.
I had no idea what any of it meant, or why it was making this sound, but I felt it was very important that I somehow stop it. I didn't know what to do, though, or what to push. I didn't know what might happen if I actually did anything. I might do something unfortunate, something unwanted, if just started poking things.
I kept feeling, though, that the prong at the back was important, and that I should push it. Not knowing what else to do, and hoping that nothing bad was going to happen, I finally pushed it.
The noise went away.
Standing there in the silence, holding the object, it slowly came back to me that this was my alarm clock, and that the alarm had gone off, as it was supposed to. Pushing the prong on the back had turned the alarm off. The button on the top was the snooze button, which I hadn't been interested in using.
In a partial defense, I should state that at the time I had not been getting much sleep, but I have had many similar times without much sleep where nothing like this has happened. (Not to say that some confusion has never occurred, but nothing quite this bad.)
Labels: personal
posted by Stephen at 2/19/2006 07:48:00 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home