I’ve found that life at home is a lot more tranquil at times when you can shut off the TV, computer, radio, vacuum cleaners, and all of those other devices that contribute to noise pollution in the house. In recent years, I’ve rediscovered the pleasure of reading and try to put some time aside to do it.

Try sitting down to relax and read a magazine or book while one kid is watching Spongebob, the other is playing a game on the computer and your spouse is raging around the house with the Hoover. When it’s like this, I feel like I’m being pushed to the edge of insanity.

Sometimes, I will gather up the kids and tell them it’s time to shut it all off, grab a book and sit down to read. Sometimes, I’m lucky enough to have the house to myself for a while. I grab my book and we’ll relax. The sound of rain or a crackling fire seems to add to enjoyment of this quiet time, but that noise isn’t always available.

This past Christmas, I was given an XM Satellite Radio, and at first wasn’t sure if I really wanted another electronic device in my life, which already seems inundated with gadgets that distract and clutter up our lives.

But I like having the XM Radio. It does something that the regular FM radio doesn’t do. It plays whatever kind of music I want, when I want it, and is generally commercial free.

Where I live, the FM selection is terrible. It’s usually impossible to find music suitable for relaxing in the early evening hours. Local, listener supported stations might have about 4 hours a week of jazz and it’s not on when I would like to hear it. Instead when I tune in the station, it’s polka time, or death metal hour, or it’s news or commentary programs.

XM gives me well over 100 channels. About 5-6 channels with various styles of jazz, a similar number of classical channels, a few good channels providing an eclectic mix of music, and all sorts of other channels providing something for just about anybody or any mood… Most of it commercial free.

I put this on quietly during our reading hour, and for that matter, while I’m cooking, straightening up. I feel it’s a positive life enhancer, unlike the FM stations that are playing more commercials than music, hyped up DJs, and nothing but the worn-out hits on a heavy rotation.

If you don’t want to invest in the satellite radio, but have a computer in the living area of your home, you can get the same effect with some Internet radio stations. I’m partial to www.radioparadise.com, but others may prefer something like www.smoothjazz.com. I’m sure there are many others out there. In fact, you can even subscribe to XM’s channels over the Internet.