What to listen to in 2015

(Note: this post has sound)

"Every human being needs to listen consciously in order to live fully." 

Headphones are really the original wearable tech. Everyone loves the portability and freedom of taking sound and music with us. It shuts the world out and brings us back into ourselves for a moment in time.

What are you listening to right now? Music, podcasts, or other sound-bytes? I recently listened to Julian Treasure, Master of Sound, speak on the importance on listening  consciously in order to connect in space, time, and to each other. 

It was a great talk, reminding me to practice listening more to the surrounding world. The mini-rebel inside me said, I love to listen to music through my headphones! In my mind, it is polite, and even acts as a little fashionable accessory - note this fantastic matte pop of pink against a dark peacoat.

These headphones fold up and fit right into my little handbag so they are even more portable.

This is the track I'm currently obsessing over. Play it for a good 50 minutes of inspiration when you are working out or feeling creative.)




However... as Julian's talk continued, he urged everyone to put the headphones down and get outside of our "sound bubble" in order to reconnect with the giant sound system surrounding us.

Meditating on this, I walked around the streets of San Francisco, and began to obsess over how many people wore headphones when walking, cycling, and driving (yikes). We stopped to talk to a few people about their headphones and take some street style shots.

Subtle, white ear buds are the most popular

"I choose Bose for the sounds quality

"I got these because they reminded me of the eighties."  -Blaine Pascu in Panasonic RP-HTX7s

Headphones are clearly not going away, but at what price that are we missing out on within our personal headphone bubbles? The splash of water behind a waterfall...

a quote that speaks to our hearts...

...or simply to "make meaning from sound", which I learned from Julian's talk can make us more aware of our cultural surroundings, sizes of the space around, even the time. "Listening", he said, "is the main way we experience time from past to future".

Interesting. New Year's Resolution #2: To practice better listening. If we all try this, Julian urges that it will,

"Transform the world to one of connection, of understanding, and a world of peace."

Sounds good to me.

- XO Julia


Thanks for reading! All photos taken by local photographer, Andrew Zhou whom I'd highly recommend for all of your photography needs. Follow his Instagram here.

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