I am writing in response to Nathan J. Smith's letter of Aug. 24, "Get over BMH noise."

I have a hard time taking the advice "get over it" from someone who is not even a resident of the city. Smith might feel differently about the noise coming from the new Butler Memorial Hospital addition if it was in his neighborhood.

I wonder how Smith would feel if I bought the house next to his and then decided that the best time to practice my new trombone just happened to be every single time he stepped out onto his patio or wanted to open his windows?

The residents of Institute Hill are not only upset about losing the simple ability to enjoy our backyards, we are worried about diminished property values. We deserve the equity of the money and years of hard work we have spent to keep our properties in good condition.

Nobody is denying that the hospital is a good and necessary thing. We don't even believe that the problem was created on purpose.

We don't want the hospital to move or change the way it serves the community. We just want the hospital to find a way to condition and compress air without bathing our neighborhood in noise.

We have a duty to ourselves and the community to speak up.

On the other hand, if we are to follow Smith's advice, maybe we also should write a letter to the residents of the Gulf Coast region. Let's tell them to quit whining about a few tar balls being washed up on the beach and focus on the big picture: We need oil to drive the economy.

They should all quit worrying about their properties and their livelihoods and just "get over it."