"Eh?"

That cold I caught has kicked my butt.  It hangs on still and one of the effects is a hopefully transitory hearing loss.  As someone who, as my daughter said, made my living listening (medical transcription), it is extremely frustrating.  Years ago Deb and I took sign language courses (ASL), purely out of interest.  At the time, I realized how difficult it was for a hearing person to really understand a world without sound.  I'm getting a lesson now.  I can't hear the telephone ring, but I can (mostly) hear the voice on the phone.  I can't hear the birds, their constant chatter and calls.  I can't hear milk pinging into the bucket.  When the clan gathered on Thursday, I could hear the laughing but not always the reason for the laughter.  "Eh?"  My family patiently repeated themselves for my benefit, patience being the definitive term here.  I knew I was invading personal space as I got close enough to catch what they were saying.  I can't tell whether I'm shouting or whispering.  When sound does penetrate, it is monaural, one-sided, so the sense of direction is lost.  I have learned to lip read Bessie Anne and Pearl; I can see their mouths open and close, but no sound!  That's actually pretty funny, and so are some of the misinterpretations of what I think I've heard said.  "Eh?"  (Text me.)