Originally published at: This voice-activated gadget is made to torment your upstairs neighbors | Boing Boing
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Leaves out the most important detail: how is it attached to the ceiling such that (a) it doesn’t tallywhack itself off (2) doesn’t leave a dirty great grease spot when the impressive inventor gets bored and removes it.
etymology
Uncertain. Possibly from tally (“mate, counterpart”), from Middle English taly (“a tally stick” [from sheep herding]), from Anglo-Norman tallie, Old French taillee, taillie, from Medieval Latin tallia, talia, taillia, from Latin talea (“stick, twig”), or alternatively from tail, + wag, likely influenced by whack, + -er. Compare tallywag, an eighteenth century dialect term meaning “penis”. Attested as tallywhacker or tallywacker since the twentieth century.
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The noise needs just a hair of “legitimacy” as if it is doing “real work” or some close facsimile.
Examples: Hammer Drill, powered drain snake (especially as it snakes its way up the vent stack near the neighbors unit, power washer. Water damage remediation truck for good measure.
Bonus points if the sounds are convincing enough for the neighbor is torn between “cut that racket out” as opposed to “Ugh, glad it is not me; I understand; carry on.”
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He deserves to have is tally firmly whacked for his crimes against the English tongue.
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Walloped. With a cadwalloper.
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but…what does it sound like from upstairs???
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Asking the real questions.
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Like dubstep?
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Sort of approaching the Michael Keaton character in Pacific Heights, but less malicious?
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I’m sticking with the broom stick rammed against the ceiling repeatedly, time tested and cheap.
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Whatever it sounds like, its sounds less of it than it does in the apartment below.
What is the sense of a revenge device that serves you the same and more?
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Are you my downstairs neighbor?
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Needs to be triggered by any utterance of "Hey <pos iot device>", by the neighbor!
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Another option:
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I wonder what his upstairs neighbors did to deserve this?
Opened and closed a really noisy sliding door every two hours throughout the night, every night? Just a guess*…
*Thank goodness for my Dreamegg, or I’d never get any sleep.
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It sounds like a tally being whacked, of course!
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Thank the Dog, no, but was once the downstairs neighbor of a family of elephants. It was taxing on the nerves.
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