Do you hear what I hear?

So, its day two of me having barely any voice to speak of ( more of a croaking sound...Improvement from no sound at all yesterday I suppose) and this no talking is a strange thing. Living in Los Angeles, there is always noise. But, when you can't talk you hear more of it. Like, the apartment building next door is getting a new roof ( I hope their roofers work faster than ours did), and I-10 is always full of cars. Then there are the occasional squeals of children running around the building ( and me hoping one of them doesn't step on a nail the roofers next store are sure to have flung into our buildings driveway). But, these are all new noises in some ways. Growing up in a fairly small town, you hear things like birds, and school bells, things I don't hear out here. In fact, I can't remember the last time I heard birds in LA. But in Los Angeles, I get to hear my husband laugh and the sound of instant messages coming in from good friends who are now far away. Not being able to talk is making me appreciate those sounds so much more, and it makes me wonder what else I'm not hearing when I can talk.