I was recently visiting with a friend I don’t know all that well. I like him, he likes me, we ride scooters together, but we seldom get to just sit together and visit. But a couple of weeks ago, I sat with Dave and his girlfriend Kim at the Hofbrau House and got to know them better. They are both about my age…maybe a couple of years younger. He owns the very hip scooter store and auto repair in town. I asked him what he does for fun. He said he’s into (among other things) “hi-fi.” I’m like, “hi-fi?” Yes. As in…stereos? Yes. As in…records and turntables? Yes. I’m like, “What does it mean to be ‘into’ hi-fi?”
So, it all boils down to this: Dave and Kim love music. They listen to it. A lot of it. All the time. They always have music around them. At night or when they have down time, they sit in a room with a stereo and listen to music. No, they do not read as they listen to it. No, they do not do calisthenics as they listen. They sit in chairs and listen with intention. They seemed appalled (they were polite, but appalled) when I admitted that I lately prefer silence to music.
I told them that sometimes I wish I were really interested in or knowledgable about music, but I can’t seem to muster up the desire for it. Dave said that if I want to get back into the swing of it, I could come over to his house and experience it with them. Nice offer. Or, he said, I could start by listening to all the Beatles’ music. He considers that a fundamental. I’m thinking of trying it.
