Laughing at the rain

Songs I used to listen to on repeat:

• In high school, Soul Asylum's Runaway Train and Guns 'n' Roses' November Rain and Counting Crows' Round Here and Chris de Burgh's Lady in Red, for my ladies in red;
• Freshman year of college, The Cure's Pictures of You and REM's Everybody Hurts and Tori Amos's Silent All These Years;
• Sophomore year, Little Texas's Say What You Want and songs sung by a might-have-been;
• Junior year, The Outfield's (I don't want to lose) Your Love;
• Since then: Sade's By Your Side, Beyonce's Upgrade U, Nine Inch Nails' Hurt, Jurassic 5's Contribution, Notorious BIG's Going back to Cali, Cat Power's Good Woman...

Not great music, but listening to these songs is like meditating, for me; my mind drifts away, away, away, and I'm hearing them but not listening, I couldn't tell you what they said, what the lyrics are, I couldn't hum them for you, but they make me feel peaceful.