Songs in my head
Jun. 21st, 2006 12:00 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
johnridleyWhen I'm riding without headphones, I inevitably get songs in my head, owing largely to the rhythm of the bike.
They do not seem to come from anywhere, just random synapses firing. It's actually probably some combination of pedal rhythm, a bird chirping, and some other random noise that triggers recall. It's hard to know, since the recall seems to be delayed by minutes, and I don't realize the song is there until the 2nd or 3rd time through.
Anyway, a sampling from today:
Random Muzak that I try to chase out with anything else (a rock, if necessary).
Pretty Paper (Hank Williams)
Tennessee Waltz
What I find interesting:
- they are not usually songs that I have heard recently (AFAIK).
- the songs do NOT typically repeat much from one day to the next
- having the songs run in my head for 30 minutes at a time doesn't seem to bother me
- happily, they're usually songs I like (though John Denver's "Sunshine" attacking me from behind a bush on Island Lake Rd when the sun broke from behind a cloud a few weeks back was NOT appreciated). Even the Muzak is tolerable in general.
I think the music repeat loop is just something to keep my conscious brain from interrupting while my hindbrain is actually working; often my mind really idles once I'm out on the rural roads, doing nothing but spinning music loops, listening to birds, and looking for interesting stuff, but when I get to where I'm going I find that I've figured out how to do something, or thought of a whole new idea. Quieting my forebrain so the hindbrain can get some work done is probably good.
Maybe I need to load up my player with music again. I've been deleting stuff to make room for more audiobooks, and about all I have on it now is the essentials; a couple of Johnny Cash's American albums, some Bob Marley, and a few U2 and Blink 182 tracks. The problem is that I don't really feel it's a good idea to listen to music when I'm cycling; audiobooks are OK, but music is too distracting for me.
It seems odd that I listen to music so little, since I like it so much. The problem is that I find I can't really do anything else while I'm listening to music. Anything that requires my brain at all will get sidelined by music, so I can't really listen to it while working, reading, or even surfing the web. So cycling WOULD be the perfect time to listen to music, but I don't think it's a good idea. I know people who can't work very well if they DON'T have music; I can't work at all if I do. Nearby conversations don't even really bother me.
They do not seem to come from anywhere, just random synapses firing. It's actually probably some combination of pedal rhythm, a bird chirping, and some other random noise that triggers recall. It's hard to know, since the recall seems to be delayed by minutes, and I don't realize the song is there until the 2nd or 3rd time through.
Anyway, a sampling from today:
Random Muzak that I try to chase out with anything else (a rock, if necessary).
Pretty Paper (Hank Williams)
Tennessee Waltz
What I find interesting:
- they are not usually songs that I have heard recently (AFAIK).
- the songs do NOT typically repeat much from one day to the next
- having the songs run in my head for 30 minutes at a time doesn't seem to bother me
- happily, they're usually songs I like (though John Denver's "Sunshine" attacking me from behind a bush on Island Lake Rd when the sun broke from behind a cloud a few weeks back was NOT appreciated). Even the Muzak is tolerable in general.
I think the music repeat loop is just something to keep my conscious brain from interrupting while my hindbrain is actually working; often my mind really idles once I'm out on the rural roads, doing nothing but spinning music loops, listening to birds, and looking for interesting stuff, but when I get to where I'm going I find that I've figured out how to do something, or thought of a whole new idea. Quieting my forebrain so the hindbrain can get some work done is probably good.
Maybe I need to load up my player with music again. I've been deleting stuff to make room for more audiobooks, and about all I have on it now is the essentials; a couple of Johnny Cash's American albums, some Bob Marley, and a few U2 and Blink 182 tracks. The problem is that I don't really feel it's a good idea to listen to music when I'm cycling; audiobooks are OK, but music is too distracting for me.
It seems odd that I listen to music so little, since I like it so much. The problem is that I find I can't really do anything else while I'm listening to music. Anything that requires my brain at all will get sidelined by music, so I can't really listen to it while working, reading, or even surfing the web. So cycling WOULD be the perfect time to listen to music, but I don't think it's a good idea. I know people who can't work very well if they DON'T have music; I can't work at all if I do. Nearby conversations don't even really bother me.
