Sound Walk: Astoria, Queens

I decided to walk along my block, located in a half-suburban, half-urban neighborhood right by Astoria, Queens. Though a generally quiet neighborhood, it is surrounded by distinct noises. The ambient background noise is disrupted by the to-and-fro chirps of birds unseen in the distance. The wind blows and the noise of rustling leaves pollute the ground. As I pass by my neighbor's house, the small otherwise quiet dog lets out high pitched barks that fade into the distance as I move further from him. When I approach the highway intersection, you can hear the subtle zooming of cars but not a single horn. I walk around the block, towards the park where you can heard the inaudible shouts of children playing. Amidst the quietest of sounds, I forget that I live by LaGuardia Airport. A single plane flies over my head making me look up, the noises of the turbines are the loudest when closest to me and fade away in just a matter of seconds. Now, not everything is as peaceful as it was. The airplane has set off car alarms, more than one, with repetitive beeps that aren't in sync with each other. The dog starts again, and the car alarms come to an immediate halt, and just like that everything is serene once again.