Mr. Fate examines the oft overlooked notion of psychological arbitrage, specifically as a component of geographic arbitrage, in the context of early retirement.
I currently happen to live in the the 2nd largest metropolitan statistical area in the United States. As of 2019, Southern California is home to over 24,122,237 residents and continues to grow each and every year. Consequently, it is also one of the noisiest places in both the U.S. and the planet Earth. With exceedingly little effort, one can, at virtually any time of day, discern amid the perennial white noise that blankets the area, the individual sounds of automobiles, airplanes, helicopters, sirens, construction, and my absolute favorite, the goddamn leaf blowers (which I assert is the official noise of Southern California). There is literally zero silence any where, at any time when out of doors, but let’s not simply just take my word for it.
BRING THE NOISE!
In a fascinating study, the City of Los Angeles commissioned a third-party to examine the noise levels in the downtown area. Over the period of the study, the average noise level was 68 decibels which is the equivalent of listening to a vacuum cleaner at 10 feet and got as loud as 87 decibels which is the same volume as a gas lawn mower at 3 feet. This occurs all day and all night long – without interruption, without surcease. And you know what, I cannot stand it.
I’ll be the first to admit that making this statement squarely positions me well within “cranky old man” territory and that may well be. However, I honestly do not believe that any reasonably intelligent person would consider living in an environment with this much ambient noise consistently present to be a primary or an ideal choice. Can one adapt to it? Well, me and the other 24 million folks here kinda answer that question.
To exacerbate an already barely tenable situation, my sensitivity to noise pollution has incrementally increased over time. I’m uncertain if it’s a function of having played rock music for over 20 years without ear protection (which is why I have tinnitus, what?), old age, some form of late-onset misophonia, or perhaps an aural cocktail containing each. Nevertheless, all this noise has had a progressively deleterious impact to my overall conviviality, interpersonal dynamism, and psychological well being. For years, I thought that this unfortunate cause/effect rot was simply a function of me…until I put on some noise canceling headphones and read me some scholarly journals.
PRESSURE, TENSION, ANXIETY
I can’t say I was shocked when even a cursory level of research yielded that the link between chronic noise and psychological stress had been studied for a goodly period of time all over the world. What was captivating was all of the empirical evidence proving that acute noise has an impact on such a wide variety of human mental and physical functioning including:
- Complex task performance
- Annoyance levels
- Elevated neuroendocrine & cardiovascular markers of psychological stress
- Decreased cardiovascular functioning among children
- Reading deficits
- Learned helplessness
- Restorative slumber
- Speech perception
More recent studies have proven that even a 10 decibel increase in noise can result in a 28% increase in anxiety medication use and an increase in traffic noise resulted in a 25% increase in depression. Even those just living in loud places like Los Angeles are significantly more likely to have heart problems like arterial fibrillation.
What I found most intriguing though was the physiological reaction to stressful noise which triggers the brain to send a distress signal that, ultimately, results in the adrenal gland going nuts and pumping large amounts of adrenaline into the bloodstream. This, as you may have guessed, is our standard evolutionary response to life-threatening situations – the good ol’ “Fight or Flight” response. This helped me to better understand why I get very aggressive every Saturday when I am subjected to the leaf blowing across the street from my home.
Beyond all this adrenaline coursing through the veins another stress hormone, cortisol, also gets released causing a spike in both heart rate and blood pressure. When one is chronically exposed to noise, these two reactions, over time, simply wear the body down, thus resulting in the litany of mental and physical health problems listed above.
So, as it turns out, it wasn’t all just me. Frighteningly, the ramifications, I discovered, are of far greater consequence than I originally anticipated.
SEEKING SILENCE
This is the point in the article where I would expect a smart reader to say something akin to, “Yeah, yeah, yeah Mr. Fate. If you hate it so much why don’t you just leave.” And to that reader I could only exclaim, “Great advice!” You see, me and the FOF family, well, we’re getting the fuck out of Dodge. I’m acutely aware that my current situation is a direct function of the life I have chosen and I am now choosing a different one. Since we tend to go all the way here at Fates On Fire, we are moving to a very rural and picturesque environment out of the state. It’s about as one-eighty as one can get. We’re kind of like the Frugalwoods on crack! To wit, our current home consists of 1415 people per square mile while our new one has 17. Our current city has a population of 140,560 while our new one has a population of 262.
To be fair, this has always been part of our FIRE plan. I have been going to this part of the country for over 25 years and knew it would be the site of our retirement home. I’ve been in Southern California my entire adult life and, the cacophonous din notwithstanding, I’m well over it. The relocation also has the benefit of being an ideal way to capitalize on geographic arbitrage which all us FIRE folks are always rabbiting on about. Examples include a 29% decrease in overall cost of living, zero state income taxes, lower property taxes, and the like.
THE CASE FOR PSYCHOLOGICAL ARBITRAGE
While the above examples are very significant and very compelling financial reasons to move to our new area, the case of noise pollution, as stated throughout this article, is one of many examples of exploiting psychological arbitrage (others could include congestion, air quality, crime, overpopulation, demand on resources, avoidance of Hollywood assholes, etc.).
When I am on the property at our new home (actually even in the general vicinity), I can literally feel my heart rate decrease, my blood pressure drop and within hours of arrival I gently slip into a totally different, and much more agreeable, me. I breathe easier, I breathe deeper, I smile, I laugh, I am infused with a magic that is near imperceptible when I am in Southern California. Simply put, I become the best version of me there is. For the longest time, I was a bit mystified as to why. Now, having read all of the scholarly articles on the psychological stress of noise and it’s mental and physical consequences, it is abundantly clear.
SILENCE IS SEXY
While I cannot claim to have paid millions to hire a 3rd party to test the decibel levels at our countryside property, I can effectively assess that it is consistently about 10 decibels. I feel comfortable with this estimate because 10 decibels is equivalent to the rustling of leaves which is the predominant sound. Shit’s so quiet there that one time I thought that a B-52 bomber was buzzing the homestead and I looked up and realized it was only a hummingbird about 5 feet away. Yeah, it’s that quiet. Goddamn bliss. In the immoral words of the groundbreaking band, Einsturzende Neubauten, “Silence Is Sexy”. Sexy indeed.
To me, the benefits of psychological arbitrage are equally and, in a certain perspective, more, powerful than the financial aspects of geographic arbitrage. What’s the point of early retirement and financial independence when you’re a belligerent stress monkey who wants to come out swinging at the sound of a leaf blower? When your mental and physical capabilities are atrophied merely as a function of where you have chosen to live?
HOW ABOUT YOU?
What is your opinion on psychological arbitrage? Have you moved to exploit geographic arbitrage only to realize there are, perhaps, positive impacts to your psychological well being? If so, what were they? As a FIRE aspirant, how much have you contemplated the “head” aspects of your retirement plan relative to the “money” ones? I’d love to hear from you!
I know what you mean!!!! I too live in a small rural area and absolutely love it, If I want the BIg ciTY all I have to do is drive about 60 miles down the road and there I am. Great article by the way.