I was beginning to think the time wouldn’t come this year. That it wouldn’t really get warm enough to turn on my window fan. Now that it has, I have to say I enjoy it in some ways.
I’m not sure if the sound of a fan is officially white noise, but it would have to be similar. Officially, white noise is a sound that contains all frequencies across the spectrum of audible sound in equal measure. There is also pink noise, which is a bit different. But it’s just a noise that drowns out pretty much all others. And, in this case, happens to be attached to a cooling breeze at the same time, which is a major bonus.
I like it when I’m trying to get to sleep. I find it relaxing. But it has one small problem. I have to figure out a way to turn it off just before dawn, without actually waking up and doing it myself. Because I also like listening to the birds in the morning. And if you have a background noise that drowns out other sounds, like the sound of a fan tends to do, I don’t hear those pleasant bird songs in the early morning.
I know. Some bird songs aren’t always pleasant. Add in a squirrel or two and it can just be nasty. Buy I still like to hear them. Even if I do occasionally yell at the birds to go back to bed and get up a couple hours later.
Some people may go for air conditioning or crank up the cool on the heat pump. I don’t have a heat pump. And I’m not a fan of air conditioning. Which is why I opted for the window fan. I like the breeze it gives me, and I find the sound soothing.
There are people who sleep with a fan running all year long, just to have that sound. I like it, just not quite that much.
But this time of year, I find the hum of a fan soothing. For more than just the cool air.