The Strange Sounds of My Neighborhood

I decided to work outside today so I could enjoy the gazebo while I punched away at my computer. And boy am I noticing all the bizarre sounds that circle the air in my neck of the woods. Here is just a sampling (remember, we live in South Austin which is queen of weird).

1. The lady who lives in the back corner of our property is a past life spiritualist, and I am pretty sure she is chanting a ceremonial spell right now. Its this weird trilling, singing, chanting noise coming from the back corner. When we first met her after moving in, she gave us her card which declared her divining services offered for a fee.
2. The family that lives just out our side door raises peacocks and today, they are quite chatty... peacock noises are pretty freaky if you don't know what they are. Its a strange combo of a honk, a squeal, and a scream. In fact, several homes in our neighborhood have peacocks (don't ask me why this is a trend in South Austin), so when mating season comes along, Lord have mercy-- there is some serious squawking as they try to find each other!
3. We are one block away from the train that cuts through downtown Austin, so as I have sat out here for the past hour, I get serenading with the warning honks of the incoming trains.
4. It just started raining and I am sitting under our tin-roofed gazebo... I love the pitter-pat of rain on a tin roof.
5. The neighbor just down the hill from our driveway is unemployed and sits in his driveway all day and listens to talk radio turned up real loud (not Conservative Talk Radio, just radio stations that talk) and drinks beer... from around 11am till dark. Everyday. For the 4 years we've lived here.
6. There is a day care about a block away, but up the hill, so you can always hear the gleeful noises of children playing trickle down towards us.
7. Our neighbor on another side has converted his yard to, essentially, a junk drop for old cars and motorcycles. Right now, he's working on one of the engines so every few minutes he revs up the motor to check the progress.
8. And lastly, it wouldn't be South Austin without the faint noise of music playing somewhere... In the condos that butt up to the far back corner of our lot, there is a musician practicing guitar in his amp. They all have to believe no one can hear them if they're in their own home, but we all know its true. No complaints from us though, becuase tomorrow it will be Andy's turn to add to the mixture of noise in our neighborhood.