Kevin, I think you're absolutely correct. Most of the books I read when I was coming along were for people with greenhouses. Even the Rebecca Northen "Home Orchid Growing" assumed that the home grower was using a greenhouse! And sadly, many of the newer books have just translated practices that were valid for greenhouse growing without saying much about the whys and wherefores. The worst reason (in my own orchid society) for using a fan I ever heard was because that's what they get in nature. What tiarella said about breaking up air and providing slight movement is very valid - no one contests that orchids dislike stagnant air. But there's a huge difference in fanning your growing area so the little leaves wiggle the way they tell you to do it in books, and providing a little gentle air movement in the entire room. This is why Jack Kramer suggested that natural currents would probably be sufficient. He seemed to understood our tendency to overdo. So truth be told I put a small circulating fan on unless humidity is really awful, but only to provide the slightest movement of air in the overall room. The higher the humidity the more air movement I provide. And in my space it almost never amounts to fans blowing directly onto plants or enough even to move the thinner leaves of an oncidium. What I do is suspend a length of thin twine over the edge of my light fixture, hanging down to the level of the plants. If that moves a little, that's enough air movement for moderate humidity. To see leaves move, you want humidity at least 60-65% I'd say. John

I have this very same situation happening to me all the time at work. Only I'm the quiet one. There are two people in two different offices near mine, one male and one female, who both have what I call "strident" voices. They, as you say, project very well. Their voices are loud and strong, particularly when they are on the phone. The noise is quite disrupting and distracting to me. I haven't had the nerve to close their doors. I wish I did. When they are really really ticking me off, I finally get up and close my door, tune in soft music on my computer, and/or turn on my tiny heater/fan. All to mask their noise. And fume to myself that they have the ability to bother me like that. It's gotten so bad that I have to force myself to be civil to one of them. She just irks me so, especially when she is working on her computer and talking to someone on the phone via the speakerphone option. Augghhhh! That really drives me nuts because then she talks even louder. In a small way, I sympathize with you because you say you just speak loud naturally and don't mean to offend. On the other hand, since you have become aware that it apparently bothers others, I suggest that you investigate every option available to minimize the disturbance you create.

I grew up listening to baseball with my Daddy on the radio, and later when we got electricity I watched it on TV with him. In high school, I went to every basketball and football game. My best friend was a complete nut and, no kidding, had memorized every little piece of stats about all the college and pro teams since the game was first invented. Drove me nuts and bored me to tears, but at least I knew how the game was played. Now I rarely do unless DH has the games on TV, but between plays and at halftimes, he channel surfs and that drives me crazy!!!!!!! So I just read or find something else to do.

I'm thinking RA is more likely, though. I woke up with pain in my wrists this morning, and I learned that the weird taste I've had in my mouth on and off for weeks could be an RA symptom, too I never had any taste symptoms, only bouts of extreme pain and stiffness, accompanied by severe swelling. The swelling comes from the immune system attacking the joint. Never chills with a flare. RA flares are so painful, it overwhelms. My first flares were in the shoulder....family Dr said it was probably Bursitis. This went on for years. When I finally got a DR to order a test for RF, it came back at 2300. Any idiot can diagnose that one, and I finally got treatment. I had a bad flare while out of town...wrist swelled up so bad, ER first thought it was broken. In fact, had a flare a couple of months ago, and even though I said it was a flare...insisted on an Xray. Only thing that can calm a bad flare for me is a shot of Demerol, and these days they are years apart. Now, with RA, morning joint stiffness is normal. When I get up in the morning, I have to pull myself on my feet by holding onto bureau, and the first few steps are excruciating. And my RA is under control :)