Tuesday, November 13, 2012

The Hell of Earworms, Cell Phones, and Chatting Me Up

What is it with the universe that the minute I get an hour of free time for one thing or another, something happens or someone needs help with something? I mean really. Just now, I had an hour after the guys left for the Scout meeting at the pool but the neighbor came over to chat.  I didn't want to chat.  She chatted for thirty-five minutes.  Call me antisocial if you will. 

Truthfully, I usually like to chat.  I really do.  I have trouble getting out of the library in just a few minutes because the librarians want to tell me what they're reading. They wouldn't do that if I hadn't asked a million times what they were reading.  Hey, it's a good way to find out what's worth picking up.  It's just that even when I don't feel up to chatting, they still start talking the minute I walk through their doors anyway. 

It's like that at the market too. 

"What are you having for dinner," Jody asks.

"I don't know.  What should I have?" I usually reply.  Then we're off talking about stew, goulash, and tater tot casserole.  I've never made the tater tot casserole, but doesn't that sound good? 

The problem with all of this is that when I'm done chatting, I want to be done chatting and I don't want to have to listen either.  I'm a great study in black and white. 

Sleep works that way too.  This morning, I fell asleep for an hour after everyone left for work and school.  I figured I might get a total of seven hours of sleep if I worked at it some more.  It was one of those mornings.  My phone buzzed at least three times with reminders, texts, calls, and such. I finally figured out how to keep my phone from buzzing when my Scramble and Word friends played against me.  The damn phone was buzzing and chirping at all hours of the day and night before I got that figured out.  Right now, my phone buzzed to tell me that I have a meeting in a half an hour.  I know, I know!

My phone is a nag. 

This afternoon, the kids had the television on and I was already tired because I only really got six hours of sleep last night and there was no way I could concentrate to do my own thing. I crave the sounds of silence. The television can drive me absolutely batty.  I'm not one of those people who keep it on all the time just for the sound of it.  I'm fine with the quiet.  Besides, if you listen, there are a couple of clocks ticking, cars going by outside on the highway, the dog groaning, and the cat shuffling around inside the plastic bag that has my new quilt in it.  God forbid I give that quilt to someone who's allergic to cats.  He's had his paws in every level of the work.  He even pushes stuff off my work table to make room.

Yes, I crave the sounds of silence.

Now, that song is going to spin through my head for the next three days before something else catches up with it.  It could be worse.  It could be 'It's a Small World After All' or 'Tiptoe Through the Tulips.'  That can drive you nuts, can't it? It's almost as bad as the phone chirping and buzzing.  There my phone goes again.  It's one of Jack's friends asking what his Xbox name.  I have no idea.  He changed it over the weekend because of some software glitch. 

Yes, an earworm is preferable to the nagging of the phone.  At least I don't have to leap up to respond to the ear worm. How easily can you catch an ear worm?  For me, all it takes is a reference to a song.  Right now, 'Small World' is vying for the top spot with 'The Sounds of Silence.'  Frankly, I hope that Simon and Garfunkel win.  I loved that album when I was a kid.  It's ingrained. 

I give up.

I'm going to try to figure out what the Xbox name is before I have to go to my meeting. 

Thank you for listening, jules

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