Lauren Karch

It's really cool.

It's a nice experience, and I'm having fun with my two friends.

And then it's over.

We walk back to the arts garage where we all parked and get in our car.

Katie's driving.

We get to the garage exit, and we're just hooting and hollering about how funny we are and should we wait by the stage door and all this.

And like the garage, like the arm thing lifts and she kind of guns it to pull out of the parking garage and then slams on her brakes because they're in the middle of North Ludlow and we're barreling right at him.

It's the hot cellist and he's got his cello on his back.

He's got his headphones in his ears.

He's on his own audio journey, clearly.

And Katie's mom points straight through the windshield and screams, Don't hit him.

And at that moment, I realized this is something of a universal experience, really.

Whether I go deaf or not, everyone's going to hear their last thing.

And so now I get my hearing tested annually.

And the last few times, yeah, I am pretty deaf in my right ear.

But I always ask the tech, like, ooh, is there any change?

And she usually tells me no before the doctor, like, even comes in, at least the last two times, which is such a relief.

So I might still get to hear Reputation Taylor's version with my own natural ears.

But I learned about, like, a new way to connect with people.

And I supported the shit out of the arts.