some people question why i would have such a loud cooling system for my computer, but the fact is the combined low tones of the box fan and high tones of the exhaust fan serve to cancel an unbelievable amount of noise so i can listen to music in peace. i built it like this on purpose.

i think i’ve figured out an “algorithm” for my misophonia and general noise-based problems

my mind operates on a “baseline noise level,” which is the volume and pitch balance of the ambiance around me. whenever something goes above that baseline, through volume and/or pitch, my mind processes it in the foreground to form a response

the misophonic irritation comes in when my brain determines the above-baseline noises it’s processing are useless, but cannot stop processing them as they are not consistent enough to be considered ambient.

this is why i sleep well with loud fans and the like; they’re consistent enough to raise that “baseline” noise level so that other noises of equal or lesser volume are tuned out

in layman’s terms, whistling, barking, snoring, etc. bother me because they take up my brain’s resources for no valid reason. it’s how i imagine a computer feels when you test its processor with a benchmark program