I’d encourage you to use one headphone but face that headphone towards people you don’t want to talk to. That way you can still hear things around you and kinda tell people to fuck off.
The Sony earbuds I have have an “ambient sound” setting that actively brings in exterior sounds along with whatever you’re playing. Depending on the scenario sometimes I’ll wear my earbuds to send the “prefer not to interact” signal while not even listening to anything but with the ambient setting on. Yes, it’s like listening to the room with extra steps, but with the outward appearance that I’m not listening to anyone around me.
I’m usually aware of my surroundings even with the headphones. Apparently sometimes more than some people without them. I just remove them when I need to interact with others. If I really needs to hear the crap around me, like when I’m cycling, I use bone conduction headphones.
And if it’s so crowded that I need to hear the people around me not to bump in them, then it’s too crowded for me to be there in the first place.
As a city dweller without a car, headphones are part of the essentials when leaving.
✅ Keys
✅ Money
✅ Phone
✅ Headphones
And probably a backpack.
I never leave without a severed human head. It keeps the strangers from talking to you.
al snow is that you?
no this is al tilly, the bum.
I’d encourage you to use one headphone but face that headphone towards people you don’t want to talk to. That way you can still hear things around you and kinda tell people to fuck off.
The Sony earbuds I have have an “ambient sound” setting that actively brings in exterior sounds along with whatever you’re playing. Depending on the scenario sometimes I’ll wear my earbuds to send the “prefer not to interact” signal while not even listening to anything but with the ambient setting on. Yes, it’s like listening to the room with extra steps, but with the outward appearance that I’m not listening to anyone around me.
I started leaving one bud out when I’m in a public crowded place. You gotta be aware of your surroundings for many reasons, politeness being one
I’m usually aware of my surroundings even with the headphones. Apparently sometimes more than some people without them. I just remove them when I need to interact with others. If I really needs to hear the crap around me, like when I’m cycling, I use bone conduction headphones.
And if it’s so crowded that I need to hear the people around me not to bump in them, then it’s too crowded for me to be there in the first place.