Earworm, a loan translation of the German Ohrwurm,^[1] is a portion of a song or other music that repeats compulsively within one’s mind, put colloquially as “music being stuck in one’s head.” (Courtesy of Wikipedia)

I thought today’s focus was going to be on a silly melody stuck in my head that was fun and encouraging like “Quiet Town” or “Manana Iguana” or even “Happy Ending.” I would have been quite content with Tommy Dorsey’s “Precious Lord” to pass the time!

No, there is some popcorn, air bubble, prickly-like-barbed-wire song stuck in my head that played repeatedly on the ‘current hits’ radio station I started my day with and ended my day.

I don’t know 90 percent of the musicians on the radio today that are deemed popular on pop, rock, country or easy listening.  And yet Murphy’s Law is against me in dooming me to hear the most irritating songs more times than I should have to. In regards to the last hearing of said irritating song today, it is the cost of being held captive as passenger in someone else’s car.

In my last place of work, if anyone suffered from an earworm, it could almost always be countered with a Weird Al song for two reasons: 1) we were weird enough and 2) who didn’t know Al Yankovic? Now if we suffer the misfortune of an earworm, it takes a bit more cunning, some internet radio playing, website surfing and frantic humming (we don’t dare sing) to force the offending tune out.

If only we could have an internal ‘mute’ button to protect us from such intrusions, to dismiss other mosquito-like buzzings such as cell phones ringing in restrooms, yelling in restaurants (and no, this is not always to be credited to a child or infant), booming bass blaring from the BMW beside you or the latest ‘isn’t this funny’ commercial at full volume on the television.

Hmm, I think Dory’s wise words turned sing-along is coming to mind….”Just keep swimming,  just keep swimming, just keep….”