Finding Your Background Noise

I am not the type of person who works well with background noise. I prefer my work environment to be free from distractions- no TV shows playing in the background, no music with words (otherwise I am tempted to sing and use my brain power trying to remember the words), and no teenagers fighting and playing video games with cheers and screaming. With that said, there is one type of background noise that works to get my creativity going. When I need to get some work done, and I need to drown out the teenage noises, I put on "You've Got Mail". I have seen this movie so many times, that I don't need to pay special attention to it. I could probably recite the entire movie while it's running and still not break my work trance. The music, the witty dialogue, and the general happiness of this movie seems to ease my mind.

I don't only use it to help me write, but I put it on when I've been feeling blerghh or when I am feeling lazy and want to curl up on the couch with a cup of tea and let my mind wander. I look up every once in a while, especially when one of my favorite lines is coming up. "I'm going to the nutshop, where it's fun." "I tried to have cyber sex once, but I kept getting a busy signal." "That caviar is a garnish." "It's like they're an entire generation of cocktail waitresses."

I get sad every time I think of Nora Ephron's passing. Who will write such witty and profound dialogue for me to enjoy now?

It should be no surprise that I am, at this very moment, watching "You've Got Mail." "I live a small life. Valuable, but small."