Quiet Time

I really like this place over the lunch hour.

It's the quiet. I know that. You see, this is by no means a quiet place to work. It's an office, sure, but it's a loud office. Always, always I am surrounded by conversations, ringing phones, computer noises, other people's radios, and for the last few months, various construction noises. One of the first things I do every morning is start up my noise replacement -- my MP3 player, without which I would likely never concentrate.

Except from 12:00 to 12:30 every day. Computers are abandoned; the conversations move to the lunchroom and nearby fast food joints; people stop calling in; construction workers take a break. For half an hour, it's gloriously empty and quiet.

Normally, I'm off with my own crowd, yukking it up at the lunch table. This week I've been staying in my cubicle, usually because I have work I need to finish before some afternoon meeting. Today? Today I just wanted to enjoy the quiet for a bit and read a magazine.

I miss the quiet.

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