What's on your MP3 player?

(I'll get back to Twhirl. I promise.)

When the children are home, our house is the place to be. And when the doorbell rings, Max the Wonderdog feels it's his duty to announce the doorbell as only he can, just in case we didn't hear it. And then there's the inevitable yelling match between my two lovely children about computer time or who has to empty the dishwasher or whatever indignities they're heaping on each other.

Sometimes the only way to write is to seal myself off from everyone in the world. And because I don't have an invitation to the Vice President's secret location or a lifetime membership to Yaddo, I have to make due. Fortunately, I own an MP3 player and a reasonable set of earbuds.

Stephen King often writes to the hardest of rock music. Others are inclined differently. Some must even stoop to country music or contemporary rap (abbreviated as c-rap). For me, whose musical tastes are wonderful and eclectic, here's a sampling what's on my MP3 player:

U2 (Almost anything)

Dropkick Murphys (Kiss Me, I'm ****faced is my favorite. Yes, I have deep-seated issues.)

Electric Light Orchestra (Almost anything, but I like Do Ya)

Kansas (Almost anything)

Talking Heads (Almost anything)

NFL Films music

Patsy Cline

AC/DC

Chicago (earlier material)

Brian Setzer Orchestra

Sinatra (The Way You Look Tonight)

Genesis (I tend to like Phil better than Peter, but respect you if you disagree)

INXS

The Cars (I like the later stuff, but the earlier stuff is great, too)

John Denver (Looking for Space has amazing lyrics)

Paul McCartney/Wings and the Beatles

I'm fairly certain that my MP3 player is the only place where you can hear Patsy Cline followed by AC/DC, then Johnny Cash covering Depeche Mode followed by the ? and the Mysterians and the Hives.

Does music work for you? If so, what kind of music?

And would you like an Australian sheep dog who likes to announce the doorbell and gets scared at thunderstorms?