I don’t sing because I know better. I don’t want others to suffer.
Forgive me, I rant again. It doesn’t seem nice or appropriate because of the season but it’s the most requested topic in my address as everyone here is suffering.
I am aware of where I live — not in some posh, gated development where no one would be projecting their voices to the entire neighborhood for fear of being evicted by the homeowner’s association.
I live in the middle of the city where neighbors, unfortunately, love to sing to their heart’s delight and disturb the entire neighborhood with much greater frequency and ardor during this holiday season.
I’ve lived in this neighborhood for 57 years. And I can tell you that life was so much better during the pre-karaoke era. But things weren’t as bad then, even when karaoke became popular in the 1980s.
People still had manners. They had boundaries. They cared about respecting their neighbors. Well, not today. These days, when I meet someone with manners, I’m actually surprised. Especially if they’re under 40.
Forgive me but it’s like meeting someone who belongs to an endangered species.
Someone who doesn’t keep bringing up their rights. Someone who actually understands that while freedom is their birthright, such freedom is not without limits. Someone who is grateful to be alive as opposed to someone who believes in going live. Every. Single. Moment.
People with manners are a disappearing tribe.
So, yes, I have sat through many, many nights and early mornings at my desk listening to the non-stop singing of people who are tragically off-key. The singing is so bad, I have to wonder if they just want to punish the entire neighborhood or if they are completely delusional.
In the beginning, I let it go. After all, it’s the season to be merry. When people hold parties and their voices carry, that’s completely understandable. But you don’t hold a Christmas party every night for two weeks.
This mindless karaoke singing all year has ignited a conversation in our house.
Everyone has the right to sing but as my sister adds, in an enclosed space where no one else can hear you except yourself and perhaps an audience that actually wants to listen to you.
I, myself, had a karaoke machine at home — a lifetime ago. I also sang with it. And that’s how I discovered that my talents lay elsewhere. But I didn’t impose my substandard singing on the entire neighborhood.
Today, however, no one seems capable of singing without a microphone or an audience, willing or otherwise. Do they care that no one wants to hear them sing? No. In fact, their message seems to be: I don’t care whether or not you want to hear my singing but you’re going to hear it.
Our neighbors were not doing anything to lower their voices. In fact, the more off-key they went, the louder they sang. If anything, I think they delighted in projecting their voices as far and wide as possible.
Were they expecting applause? Well, they couldn’t have expected any from our direction. We’ve been suffering from their atrocious singing the entire Christmas season. I didn’t hear any applause from the neighbors, either, so we’re probably not alone in our suffering.
So, can I say it any louder for the people at
the back?
You have every right to sing but that right comes with the responsibility that your singing does not disturb others or their peace. And when your singing is heard outside of your space, that already constitutes a disturbance.
I don’t sing because I know better.
May 2026 bring all of us the wisdom to know when to sing and when to stop so no else may suffer further.