Why my MP3 player has to have a voice recorder

I use the voice recorder that is included in my Creative Zen MP3 player to record my thoughts whenever I get them, then writing them down when I get home.

I also use it to record a melody that comes to mind for my Arabic prosody project.

I use my voice recorder very often in the gym and while I am driving because that is where I often get ideas but don't have access to a computer or a pen and paper to jot them down.

Examples of times when my mp3 player really comes in handy:

* I often get thoughts while I am driving. Unlike Tom Waits who when driving his car on the freeway told the unknown source of a new song, “Can’t you see I’m driving?!”, I take out my mp3 player and record the thoughts while behind the wheel.

* I get thoughts while I am doing my regular work out routine. Whenever I get them, I go to a quiet corner and record them on my mp3 player with my voice.

* I have used it to record rhythms for my poetry project. I don't know musical notation, and so I had to depend on using the auditory method. I would record a rhythm with the mp3 player then go home and record it on my computer to upload on my website awzan.com.

* I sometimes hear interesting thoughts during yoga class. I record them as soon as I get out of the yoga class so that I don't forget them.

* I use it as a voice memo. When I here something on TV that I would like to look up or research further, I would pull up my MP3 player, record a voice memo and look it up later.

* I was once in a grocery store, I heard a nice song that I wanted to look up. I took out my voice recorder and recorder some of the lyrics. When I got home, I looked up the lyrics and found the song.