It is 2am, a light rain is dripping off the eaves and splashing on the hard pavement below.  Cars rush through a thin slick of water on the road in the distance, but widely spaced in time as it is late.  It'll be another 5 hours before the bustle of industry is heard.  My apartment is near a major city street where I live, not entirely dissimilar to where I grew up as a child.  Our home was not only near one of the fastest cross streets in town but also in the flightpath for the nearby airport and about a mile from the train station.  So, I like a constant din of noise at a low level.  In fact, I am somewhat unnerved when silence sets in at night.  Then I hear things I'd rather not hear: distant conversations (real or on someone's television - I will try to figure out what is being said, or what show is on if it is at all audible), doors opening and shutting, and even the shuffling of my own sheets.  I find it hard to sleep only a few hours after work ends, a cost of working nights and having to be the most alert just before leaving the shop.