Let’s hear it for white noise!

I am being sarcastic.

If you are not familiar with the term “white noise,” here is the “b” definition from the free online version of Merriam-Webster: “a constant background noise, especially one that drowns out other sounds.”

I often have white noise in my office—and not by choice. It is in the form of a heat/air conditioning vent which is in the wall some four feet directly above my work desk. Unlike the other vents in my condo, which blow air quietly, this one is so loud that it can be heard from my living room.

This vent also rattles as it blows air. It has done so since before my husband and I moved here. It is doing so at the very moment that I type these words. I am very glad that we made this room an office and not a guest bedroom.

Since I have to edit and do other work right below this noisy thing, you might be asking how I deal with it. Well, I have a few methods.

First, when the heat or AC starts and the vent starts blowing and rattling, I quickly remind myself that white noise is not the worst sound in the world. I would much rather hear it than, for example, a baby crying, a dog barking, a blender whirring, or (gulp) my smoke alarm screaming. Right after I give myself this reminder, I can quickly focus on work again.

Second, I emphasize the positive. The white noise drowns out other, more unnerving sounds that I often hear while I am home, such as the grounds crew using their leaf blowers or the three young children shrieking in the one unit near ours. (The latter should be the subject of another whole post.)

When I am home alone at night, I hear the white noise even when I am not working, and this is when I find it creepy. This brings me to the third method of dealing with the noise. I imagine that it is the ocean. It does somewhat sound like the waves. I love the ocean and the beach, so this is very therapeutic.

Some people love white noise and cannot work or sleep without it. How about you? Do you love or hate white noise?