What? WHAT?

 I’m listening to content on my ipod for about 12 hours a day, be it news (MSNBC), sports/talk (Michael Kay), hot talk (Don Geronimo), or podcasts (SomaCow: the greatest internet talk show ever).  If I’m at work, I have my docking station and speakers set up.  But all other times, I’m plugged into headphones.  I’ve been plugged in on the school bus, now the train.  I mow the lawn, take out the trash, paint the house, and even as I type this out, I’m listening to some kind of content.  And they’ll wear out with use, as I know from my Sony Walkman days.

The first to go are the original ones that come with your Walkman/Discman/ipod.  Let’s face it, you’re buying the music player, not the headphones.  Sony or whoever is doing you a favor by essentially giving you the equivalent of a doughnut.  Not Dunkin, but the small spare tire that you can use to limp to the next gas station.  But if you want performance tires, go get them yourself. 

Over the 20 plus years of slowly destroying my hearing (and not even to good music), I’ve found the original Sony ear buds are a workhorse, last a while, store easily, and are a great value overall at about $10.  Now Sony makes them in white to mimic the original ipod ones.  I prefer black, as it hides the dirt better, but Santa Claus brought my current pair, so who am I to complain?  Let’s face it, I don’t need the current Bose version of the circa 1978 Tattletales headphones for the crap I listen to. 

But the one thing with the white headphones is that they are more visible than the black ones.   Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you see two white wires, and you instantly know what they are.  There is no doubt in your mind.  And somebody is walking down the street with them, either they’re listening to something, or they’re a sociopath.  Or both.  But you’re going to assume they’re on.

So can anybody please explain why people come right up to me and strike up a conversation when I have my headphones on, and they don’t even give me a chance to pull them out, or turn my ipod off?  Tourists, strangers on the train, neighbors…it doesn’t matter.  But I get the dirty look when I ask them to repeat what they said?  I could just ignore you instead…