Phone Ringing

I've noticed the phone ringing, and it makes it sound like he works in a busy office, rather than out of his house. I find it a little distracting. I also noticed that there is a barking dog that you hear in the background a LOT...it's almost like a form of punctuation. It seems like the dog always barks just after someone says something especially meaningful or deep. At first I thought it was just a way to remind us that he is working out of his home instead of an office (you know, like neighborhood noise that you would hear in the middle of the afternoon if you had your windows open)...but then I noticed that it happens when he meets with Gina at her house too. That darn dog must stalk them all over town, barking just as they make poetic, insightful comments. I'd hate that.

The phone and the dog were part of the excellence of this show - touches that were so subtle yet so meaningful. The phone and the dog reminded me that for all the depth and complexity going on in Paul's office, there were other equally deep and complex lives going on outside. Billions of other lives, in fact. I didn't notice these external sounds so much in the second and third seasons. I think there was the sound of a distant jack hammer at some point. Maybe the absence of external sounds (especially the phone) helped to amplify Paul's loneliness in seasons 2 and 3.