So, what I described it the opposite of that assertion. No one has to be around to observe difference in time, it is inherent to the fabric of reality.

Also, if a tree falls in the woods and there is no one to hear it, it still makes a sound as sound is the propagation of a fluid compression wave, which occurs regardless of an observer. What it doesn't make is a noise, since noise is the conscious experience constructed by the brain using the stimulus of sound.