Got Ears? Get Informed!

Make Your Romantic Valentine's Day Getaway Even More Luxurious (Without Breaking Your Budget!)

There's nothing quite like getting away for a romantic vacation with the person you love. But while your Valentine's vacation to a romantic destination is bound to be fabulous, actually getting there may not be so great. With plane rides, crowds, and hotel rooms to contend with, even the most romantic of trips is sure to offer a little travel stress and discomfort!

But never fear -- we've got the knowledge and gear to make getting to your getaway much more comfortable, from take-off to touchdown. Smooth out those rough spots with some affordable travel-friendly items from Ear Plug Superstore, and make your romantic Valentine's Day Getaway even more luxurious -- without breaking your budget!

Flying
There are basically two big problems to contend with while flying: the pressure changes and the airplane engine noise. Pressure changes during flight can range from a minor discomfort to a big pain. Alpine FlyFit Flying Ear Plugs help regulate the pressure inside your ears, and they can also help block out the airplane noise... without blocking out your sweetheart's voice. If you're more concerned about the airplane noise, which can be irritating and fatiguing all on its own, a set of good Sennheiser Noise Cancellation Headphones can drastically reduce the background noise from flying.

Poolside/At the Beach
If your Valentine's Day getaway will be to a warm-weather spot, a pair of good swimming ear plugs like Mack's White Pillow Soft Moldable Ear Plugs will help keep the water out of your ears while you swim. If you'll be taking more than a few trips to the pool, beach, or even the hottub, some special water-absorbing earplugs or a Mack's Ear Dryer can comfortably dry out your ear canals after a dip, and keep swimmer's ear from putting the damper on your vacation.

Sleeping Well
No matter where you go for your romantic getaway, sleeping well while you're away from home can make your trip a whole lot sweeter. Pack a good sleep mask to make sure you can shut out the light for some quality shut-eye, and a pair of soft earplugs for sleeping to block out noisy neighbors in the next hotel room. (Our customers highly recommend Flent's Ear Stopples for sleeping and travel.) And for a touch of total luxury, a Sound Oasis Deluxe Sound Therapy System can let you create your own auditory ambiance with 120 sound possibilities, for extra-blissful sleep or to set the relaxing mood of your choice. The Sound Oasis also doubles as an AM/FM radio alarm clock, so this luxury item is also a very practical choice -- and it'll work just as well at home, too.

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman

EPSS Newsletter: Hearing Protection for a Happy New Year

We at Ear Plug Superstore want to wish you a very merry Christmas day!

By now, the presents have been opened and the Christmas season is coming to a close. But even if you're already packing up the stockings and mistletoe, we all still have one great holiday ahead this winter -- New Year's -- and it's right around the corner!

That's right folks, it's almost 2012 already. My, how time flies! And one of the very best things about the new year is celebrating its beginning. Whatever the coming year may bring, New Year's Eve (and New Year's Day) are all about kicking off the fresh new year with bright wishes and good cheer.

Of course, New Year's is celebrated differently all around the world:

• In Scotland (where "Auld Lang Syne" originated) the traditional celebration is called Hogmanay, in which neighbors go out shortly after midnight to visit each other with well-wishes for the new year; in the Edinburgh Hogmanay celebration, the event is observed as an all-night street party!
• In Japan, Bonenkai, or "forget-the-year parties" are held to scrub away the problems of the previous year in preparation for the new one, and Buddhist temples strike their gongs 108 times to represent expelling the 108 forms of human weakness.
• In the Netherlands, the Dutch have Christmas tree bonfires and enjoy fireworks.
• In Denmark, participants traditionally throw dishes at the front doors of friends' homes -- the more broken dishes on your doorstep on New Year's Day, the more friends you know you have!

Still, the most common traditions, like fireworks and New Year's Resolutions, seem to occur in cultures all across the globe. And many of our familiar American New Year's traditions -- parties, fireworks, singing, and gathering with friends and family -- are popular world-wide. In England, for example, people gather around Big Ben to hear the clock tower chime midnight, much as folks here in the U.S.A. gather in New York City to see the ball drop.

Of course, Big Ben is notably more noisy, ringing in at 118dB -- that's about as loud as a jet plane taking off, and is enough sound to vibrate your body from head to toes if you're standing in the belfry!

What do all these New Year's traditions have in common?

They involve making a lot of NOISE!

With this in mind, we at Ear Plug Superstore want to make sure your new year starts safely, no matter what kind of noisy events you plan to enjoy. So here's our New Year's Celebration Hearing Protection Breakdown:

Clubs & Concerts
Live music can be moving, powerful, or just plain fun -- but enjoying loud music with naked ears isn't a good idea. Rock concerts average an output of about 120dB of sound, and even a nightclub with a DJ can top 110dB. Bring some Musician's Natural Sound Earplugs on New Year's Eve to enjoy the music without distortion, and skip the ringing ears on New Year's Day. If you're bringing the kids, invest in some Earmuffs for Children; even a sophisticated symphony orchestra can be dangerously dynamic.

Fireworks
From 3 feet away, fireworks provide around an ear-shattering 163dB! But even from a much safer distance, those loud booms and pops can be distressing to the little ones. Make sure to equip your kids with Earmuffs for Babies and Children -- they'll keep their hearing safe so the family can enjoy the fireworks together. And don't forget the dog! Mutt Muffs Earmuffs for Dogs can bring some much-needed safety and calm to the family's best friend during New Year's Eve fireworks and other loud events.

Football Games
New Year's Day football is a much-loved American tradition -- but it's also a loud one, with cheering crowds reaching 117dB of sound! If you happen to be in the stadium this New Year's, bring a trusty pair of foam earplugs along, or pack your favorite reusable earplugs -- for example, Hearos Skull Screws, tough enough hearing protection for even the most macho of fans. For a more tech-savvy solution, pick up some isolation earphones with hearing protection to listen to the radio during the game, even when the crowd goes wild.

Parades
An outdoor marching band can trumpet out up to 100dB of sound, and paired with a crowd, parades can drum up a LOT of noise -- so don't forget your hearing protection if you attend a New Year's Day parade! A pair of Natural Sound Musician's Earplugs are an excellent choice for parades, as they'll block out dangerous sound levels while allowing you to hear music and voices clearly. And don't forget to protect the kids with Earmuffs for Children; they'll comfortably fit even small infants, so their ears remain blissfully safe as the floats go by.

Again, we hope you've had a great Christmas, and have a Happy New Year!

This year, resolve to protect your own hearing, and the hearing of your little ones -- it's an easy resolution to keep, and there's no better time than the start of the new year to start protecting the little ears in your life.

Until next time, be safe, and Happy Holidays!

Sincerely,

Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman
& the EPSS Newsletter Staff
Ear Plug Superstore
earplugstore.com

How Christmas Carols Could Save Your Hearing

This holiday season, you could actually combat hearing damage by singing Christmas carols.

It sounds counterintuitive, but according to the Journal of Hearing Science, it's true. Experiments have revealed that when muscles in the middle ear are voluntarily contracted, the increased pressure on the fluids in your ears regulates cochlear sensitivity by stifling noise vibrations -- effectively helping to protect your hearing. The formal name for this effect is the Intralabyrinthine Pressure Theory.

It sounds complicated, but the breakdown is simple: by actively contracting the muscles in your middle ears, up to 30dB or more of sound attenuation can be achieved. That's about as much attenuation as a good foam earplug, and it's built right into your ears!

So where do the Christmas carols come in?

Well, flexing your middle ear muscles probably isn't something you've practiced at the gym. But if you've ever heard that soft roaring or fluttering sound in your ears when you yawned, you've already heard your middle ear muscles contracting. And in fact, a whole variety of common movements can cause this same contraction, including chewing gum and talking or singing loudly.

This means that when you sing loudly, you're actually tensing your middle ear muscles, blocking out other sounds. (This is one good reason to sing along with the band at concerts!)

So the next time you're out Christmas shopping, and you find yourself in a huge crowd at the mall, and it's so loud you can't hear yourself think -- consider bursting into one of your favorite Christmas carols! Those "fa-la-la's" and "jingle bells" not only help share the Christmas spirit, but they could also help protect your hearing, too.

Until next time, may your days be merry and bright!
--Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman

Earplug Arts & Crafts for Christmas!

Now that Black Friday has come and gone, it's time to focus on what the holidays are really all about: showing your friends and family how much you care. Whether you're decking the halls, finishing up your Christmas shopping, or just spending time together as a family, it's time to relax and enjoy the holiday season with your loved ones.

'Tis the Season to introduce our very first Ear Plug Superstore Christmas Earplug Arts & Crafts Guide! The following crafts are perfect for the family to create together, and they're safe and easy enough for even very young children to enjoy (with adult supervision). They're fun, they're affordable, they're a great way to spend time together as a family, and best of all, they turn into great holiday gifts and decorations once you're done!

After all, nothing says "Merry Christmas!" better than a hand-made gift.

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A note on red earplugs: To create these sample Christmas crafts, we used Argus hexagonal red foam earplugs. However, we've sold out of these earplugs, and have had to discontinue them in our store! So for your crafts, we highly recommend substituting Veratti Red foam earplugs. These are round, rather than hexagonal, and they're shaped just like the bright green Moldex Pura-Fit foam earplugs you'll see in the photos below. Our Veratti Red foam earplugs will work perfectly for all of the following crafts, and in most cases, they'll look even better than the hexagonal earplugs we used! Your craft projects won't look exactly like ours, but that's not the point -- after all, no two hand-made crafts are exactly the same!

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Christmas Earplug Mini-Photo Frame

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What You Will Need: 1 Mini-Photo Frame 2.5in x 3.5in Krazy Glue (or Craft Glue for younger kids) Scissors 11 Pairs of red Veratti Red Foam Earplugs 4 Pairs of green Moldex Pura-Fit Foam Earplugs Stickers, bows, foam shapes, or any other decorations you like Tip: Consider picking up a couple extra pairs of both kinds of earplugs, just in case!

Instructions:

1. Clean picture frame with soft, damp cloth, and dry thoroughly.
2. Using a small stripe of glue, attach 1 red earplug to the top left corner of the frame, making sure the earplug lines up with the edges of the frame.
3. Using a small stripe of glue for each earplug, alternate attaching green and red earplugs all the way down the left side of the frame. Align each earplug with the inner edge of the frame so you get a nice, straight border.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 to cover the right side of the frame, working from top to bottom. Now both sides are done!
5. Using a small stripe of glue for each earplug, attach five red earplugs across the top of the frame. Don't worry if the earplugs stick out above the top of the frame.
6. Now it's time to decorate the last edge of the frame. Following the same method of gluing one earplug on at a time, attach five red earplugs across the bottom of the frame. It's important to make sure the earplugs don't stick down below the bottom edge of the frame, or you won't be able to stand it up when you're done! So before you start gluing, hold a red earplug in place at the bottom of the frame and see if it sticks down too far. If it does, just take your scissors and snip off the bottom of the earplug so it's the right height. Trim down all five earplugs (as necessary), and then glue them across the bottom of the frame.
7. Now you're done attaching earplugs! Allow to dry thoroughly (45 minutes for Krazy Glue, 24 hours for Craft Glue).
8. Once the frame is dry, you can now decorate it with craft foam shapes, stickers, bows, or any other fun decorations you like! We used some stickers, attaching a large "Happy Holidays" sticker across the top of the frame, and three small snowflake stickers around the frame. You can use any kind of decoration you like, gluing or sticking things right to the earplugs. Have fun with it!
9. Put in your favorite photo (you can trim down a 3x5 photo using scissors if you don't have a 2.5x3.5 photo to use), and your Christmas Earplug Mini Photo Frame is ready to display!

The Finished Product:

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Easy Earplug Christmas Tree

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What You Will Need: 7 Wooden craft sticks or popsicle sticks Krazy Glue (or Craft Glue for younger kids) Scissors 1 Star or other decoration to top the tree 18 Pairs of green MaxLite Foam Earplugs 2 Pairs of red Veratti Red Foam Earplugs Tip: Consider picking up a couple extra pairs of earplugs, just in case!

Instructions:

1. Place one craft stick horizontally (sideways) on a flat, clean surface. This will be the bottom branch of the tree. Don't use glue yet!
2. Take a second craft stick, and using scissors, carefully cut about 1 inch off the end. Try to trim the end so it's rounded, so the cut end matches the uncut end -- but don't worry too much if it isn't perfect -- once you put on the earplugs (later), it won't show much.
3. Place the trimmed craft stick above the first one so the sticks touch, centered so that the ends of the second stick are shorter than the first stick by about 1/2 inch on each side. Don't use glue yet!
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 with four more craft sticks, making each one shorter than the last, and arranging each stick so it's centered above the stick below it.
5. Now the branches of the tree are ready. You haven't glued anything down yet, so feel free to adjust them until they're all straight and centered.
6. It's time to attach the trunk of the tree! Take your last craft stick, and draw a squiggly line of glue down one flat side of the stick. Make sure to leave about an inch at each end of the stick without glue.
7. Place the trunk with glue on it down vertically (up and down) on top of the lined up branches, leaving about an inch sticking out at the top and bottom. Now your tree is assembled!
8. Now that the tree is put together, allow to dry thoroughly (45 minutes for Krazy Glue, 24 hours for Craft Glue).
9. Once your tree is dry, flip it over so the trunk is on the back, and all the branches are on the front. Your tree is now ready to decorate!
10. Take all your green earplugs out of the wrappers and put them in a pile next to your tree. These MaxLite foam earplugs are the perfect green color, but you'll notice the bottoms of the plugs are a bit rounded. We'll need to trim off the bottom of each earplug to make it flat and ready to glue to the tree.
11. Take a green earplug and mash it flat! (Don't worry, it'll expand quickly to its original shape.) Take your scissors and carefully trim off the bottom of the earplug, following the seam at the bottom. One easy snip will do the trick.
12. Repeat this process with all your green earplugs. Let the earplugs expand back to their original shape, and you'll see they have flat bottoms now. Don't worry if all the green earplugs aren't exactly the same; real Christmas trees have a little variation in their branches, and so will yours!
13. Put a dot of glue at the end of the bottom branch, and glue on a green earplug so that the flat bottom is glued down, the point sticks straight up toward you, and the earplug is turned so that the two little parts of the earplug bottom that stick out are turned pointing up and down. (See the photo above for a reference.)
14. Using a dot of glue for each earplug, glue green earplugs all the way across the bottom branch until the stick is covered. Don't worry if the earplugs stick off a little at the end, or point in slightly different directions -- this is a Christmas tree, so it's fine if yours looks a little organic!
15. Repeat step 14 for each branch. When you get to a place where you'd like to put an "ornament" on the tree, just glue on a red earplug instead of a green one and keep going. You can put red ornaments on your tree wherever you'd like!
16. Now every branch should be covered in red and green earplugs, and the bare trunk of the tree should stick out above and below the branches.
17. Finally, it's time to top your tree! We used a gold glitter-foam star to top our earplug Christmas tree, but you can also use a star cut out of yellow construction paper, or a star you drew on any kind of paper you like, colored, and cut out yourself. You could alternatively replace the star with a red bow, a shiny jingle bell, a sticker, or any other decoration you like -- it's your tree, so top it with whatever you like!
18. Allow everything to dry thoroughly (45 minutes for Krazy Glue, 24 hours for Craft Glue). Now your tree is complete. Congratulations!
19. (Optional) Glue a loop of string or ribbon to the back of the tree, let it dry, and it's ready to hang up on the wall -- or you can even use your mini earplug tree as an ornament on your own real Christmas tree!

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Child's Handprint Christmas Keepsake Decoration

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What You Will Need: A piece of white cardboard, craft foam, or even a round white paper plate Red or green finger paint Krazy Glue (or Craft Glue for younger kids) Scissors Pencil Compass or round bowl to trace around 1 Star or other decoration to top the tree 11 Pairs of green Moldex Pura-Fit Foam Earplugs 11 Pairs of red Veratti Red Foam Earplugs Tip: Depending on the size of the handprint, you may need more or fewer earplugs to complete this craft. Err on the side of caution and pick up a couple extra pairs!

Instructions:

1. First thing's first: the handprint. Using either red or green non-toxic finger paint, make a handprint in the center of your white cardboard, craft foam, or paper plate. For very small children, be sure to help! Allow the paint to dry completely.
2. Using a compass and a pencil, draw a circle all the way around the handprint, leaving about two inches of space between any paint and the line of the circle. Try to make sure the handprint is well-centered in the circle. (If you don't have a compass, you can trace around any round object -- we used a glass bowl!)
3. Cut along the circle line you just drew, so you end up with a handprint in the middle of your circular cardboard or foam cut-out.
4. Now, using a pencil, trace a smaller circle about 1 inch all the way around the inside edge of the circular cutout. This will be a guideline, so draw lightly. It doesn't have to be a perfect circle; if you don't have a compass, you can carefully free-hand this circle -- just make sure to leave about an inch between the circle you're drawing and any part of the handprint.
5. Now you're ready to start decorating your Christmas handprint keepsake. Using a small dot of glue, attach one green earplug at the top of your cutout. Make sure to point the rounded end of the earplug straight toward the center of the circle, and align the tip so it just barely overlaps the guideline you drew. Don't worry if the earplug extends a little past the edge of your cutout; that's how it's supposed to be.
6. Using another dot of glue, attach a red earplug to the right of the first green earplug, so that the earplugs are gently touching. Do the same thing here: make sure the rounded tip points directly to the center of the circle, align the rounded tip of the earplug so it just barely overlaps your pencil guideline, and don't worry if the earplug sticks out over the edge of your cutout.
7. Repeat step 6, alternating green and red earplugs, until you have a ring of green and red earplugs all the way around the edge of the circle.
8. Allow to dry thoroughly (45 minutes for Krazy Glue, 24 hours for Craft Glue).
9. Once it's dry, take a loop of red, green, or white yarn or ribbon and glue it to the upper back of the cardboard or foam circle, and allow it to dry thoroughly. This will make a hanger, so you can hang your decoration up for everyone to enjoy! Your handprint keepsake is now complete. Congratulations!
10. (Optional) Once your handprint decoration has dried, you can decorate it to your heart's content! You can add stickers, bows, glitter, etc. You could even tie jingle bells to pieces of ribbon, and glue the ribbons to the back of the cutout so the jingle bells hang down below. (We left ours plain; red and green earplugs are the perfect decoration for us!)

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Earplug Christmas Tree Ornaments

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You can make earplug ornaments out of any color earplugs you like! Any foam earplug will make for a soft, fun, colorful ornament, so the only limit here is your own creativity! Here, we've made three ornaments: a large star-type ornament, and one medium and one large mosaic dot-style ornaments.

What You Will Need:

• A 1-1/2 inch to 2 inch foam craft ball (available at Wal-Mart and craft stores). The left and center ornaments were made with 1-1/2 inch foam balls; the ornament on the right was made with a larger 2 inch foam ball.
• Red and green earplugs! How many depends on which kind of earplug ornament you want to make.
• For a star ornament (far left), you'll need:
  • 16 Pairs of green Moldex Pura-Fit Foam Earplugs (for a green star)
       OR
  • 16 Pairs of red Veratti Red Foam Earplugs (for a red star)
• For a mosaic dot-style ornament (center and far right), you'll need:
  • 12 Pairs of green Moldex Pura-Fit Foam Earplugs, and
  • 12 Pairs of red Veratti Red Foam Earplugs (for large size, far right)
       OR
  • 6 Pairs of green Moldex Pura-Fit Foam Earplugs, and
  • 6 Pairs of red Veratti Red Foam Earplugs (for medium size, center)
• Krazy Glue (use with close adult supervision in a well-ventilated area!)
• String
• Scissors (for mosaic dot-style ornament)
• Tip: You can make ornaments like these out of any kind of foam earplug you like! Check out our Industrial Foam Earplugs (you can buy exactly as many pairs as you need) and our Consumer Foam Earplugs (even more to choose from!) to find more colors and designs. When it comes to Earplug Ornaments, the sky's the limit!

Instructions:

1. For a mosaic dot-style ornament, the first thing you'll need to do is cut your red and green earplugs into round discs. To do this, flatten an earplug with your fingers, then cut off the rounded tip with scissors and discard. Then cut the remaining earplug into three equal parts. The little round disks may take a few minutes to expand completely, but don't worry -- they'll grow back into circles. Each earplug makes three nice, round, flat discs. For the mosaic dot-style ornament, do this with all your earplugs so you've got a pile of earplug discs ready to go before you start gluing!
2. Now it's time to glue. From here, the process is super-easy no matter which kind of ornament you're making. Put a small dot of glue in the center of a disc or the flat end of an earplug, stick it onto your foam ball, and hold it there for about 20 seconds so the glue has time to dry.
3. Next, repeat step 2 with the rest of your earplugs or earplug discs, placing the second one right next to the first one, and so on. If you're using whole earplugs for a star ornament, try gluing a ring of earplugs all the way around the middle first, and then work outward from that ring in a spiral pattern to fill in the top and bottom. If you're making a mosaic dot-style ornament, you can glue on the dots in any pattern you like! We made one random pattern (center) and one striped rings pattern (right).
4. Tips for the star ornament: Depending on what kind of krazy glue you're using, it may take a bit longer for each earplug to dry completely and stay put. Also, don't worry if your earplugs get squished while you're working on the ornament -- they'll expand back to their original shape!
5. Tips for the mosaic dot-style ornament: We found that the larger foam ball (2 inches) was best for creating this type of ornament. With the larger base, you have a lot more room to create fun patterns with your earplug discs!
6. Allow your ornament to dry thoroughly once you've finished gluing on your earplugs. This could take anywhere from 45 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the type of glue you used.
7. Cut off a piece of string about ten inches long. This is what will create the hanger for your ornament! Loop the string around your ornament; start by setting the ornament in the middle of the string, then thread the string in between the earplugs or earplug discs so it won't show, working up to the top of the ornament. When you've got your string around the ornament, tie a knot to secure it in place. Then, tie the very ends of the string together in another secure knot.
8. You're finished! Your homemade, one-of-a-kind earplug ornament is ready to stuff in a stocking or hang on your Christmas tree.

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We hope you enjoy these Christmas Earplug Arts & Crafts ideas from Ear Plug Superstore. These crafts will make wonderful gifts for your family to enjoy making and giving this holiday season.

Take the time together to enjoy some Earplug Arts & Crafts with the whole family, and you can make some truly unique hand-made treasures you can enjoy this Christmas --and every Christmas for years to come!

And from all of us at Ear Plug Superstore, we wish you Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Sincerely,

Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman
and the EPSS Newsletter Team

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Have earplug craft ideas of your own that you'd like to share? We'd love to hear from you! Email us your earplug arts & crafts ideas any time at sarah@earplugstore.com (please include photos!), and your craft ideas and photos may be featured on our site, in our blog, or in future newsletters jut like this one!

Three Unique Gifts for Everyone On Your List!

Gifts for KIDS

The EarSaver Volume Limiter plugs into between any standard sound source - iPhones, MP3 players, PCs, etc - and any pair of earphones or headphones, preventing the volume from being turned up harmfully loud. This is the perfect gift to accompany any kid's first phone, iPod, or other music device.

Silenta Kid Earmuffs are comfortable, light-weight, and come in two bright colors. These earmuffs are ideal for kids, and let babies, toddlers, and children safely enjoy live music, fireworks, and even NASCAR races. These colorful, effective earmuffs are suitable for even very young babies, and are sure to please kids and parents alike.

Pink Plush Headphones are pink and fuzzy! These luxuriously soft headphones make a perfect winter gift for any girly-girl. These headphones deliver good-quality sound with a very inexpensive price tag, and they're some of the only headphones that can make an ear-warming fashion statement.

Gifts for MEN

Radians Sound FX AM/FM Radio Earmuffs provide the ability to listen to music while protecting your ears from harmful or irritating noises. Available in black or blue, these earmuffs allow built-in radio listening, as well as having an audio jack so he can plug in his phone or iPod! This gift will definitely make his Honey Do list a whole lot sweeter.

ZonkOut Premium Foam Earplugs for Men are one of the only earplugs designed especially for men. With a larger size, these super-soft foam earplugs are designed to block out even the biggest of noises. Perfect for study, concentration, a nap on the couch, and ensuring he gets a good night's sleep.

Skull Screws Earplugs take hearing protection to the extreme! These earplugs are shaped like screws, and you literally screw 'em into your ears. Not only is the design cool, but it's also optimized to suit the way people naturally want to insert and wear earplugs -- making this extreme hearing protector an ideal gift for any guy.

Gifts for WOMEN

Sleep Pretty in Pink Earplugs are some of the softest, most comfortable foam earplugs available, making them the perfect hearing protection for her to wear while sleeping. These earplugs will block out snoring and other disturbing sounds so she can sleep soundly anywhere.

Remington M22 Hunter/Shooters Earmuffs for Women prove that being a girl isn't confined to sugar and spice! These stylish pink-and-black earmuffs come with a stock cut-out and an adjustable ventilated headband, making them the perfect gift for the woman who loves to hunt or shoot recreationally.

Mack's Dreamgirl Earplugs are made specifically to fit women with small or sensitive ear canals. The unique hollow and flared design maximizes comfort, especially during sleep. These earplugs feature a soft, small, silky smooth, contoured design that makes them ideal for sleeping, reading or concentration, loud events and travel.

Gifts for COWORKERS

Got Ears? Plugfones Workers Isolation Earphones are designed specifically to be used to safely listen to music in noisy workplaces. The earpieces are made of replaceable foam earplugs that surround the speakers, providing noise protection, comfort and music right in your ear.

Howard Leight Sync Stereo Earmuffs are the worker's friend! Now you can enjoy listening to music while on the job in OSHA regulated workplaces as well as the home workshop, the NASCAR racetrack, or other noisy events. A perfect gift for coworkers!

Marsona SoundScreen White Noise Machines provide pure white noise, and were designed for an office setting. One SoundScreen White Noise Machine can complete change the atmosphere of an office or cubicle. White noise blocks unwanted noises and aids concentration.

Gifts for MUSIC LOVERS

Etymotic ER-20 Ety-Plugs feature patented Hi-Fi technology that lets you hear all frequencies clearly, just as if you had no plugs in, but at a lower volume level. These reusable earplugs feature triple-flange tips that seal out sound without distorting the music. The prefect gift for anyone who plays in a band or loves live music.

Plane Quiet Platinum Active Noise Canceling Headphones are the newest ANC headphones from Plane Quiet. These headphones actually listen to ambient noises and emit an inverse sound wave to cancel them out -- so all you hear is the music. Comfortable enough for the longest flights, these work great anywhere noisy.

Westone UM1 Single-Driver Musicians Monitor Earphones are the perfect choice for musicians and audiophiles. The UM1 features a single balanced armature driver in each universal-fit earpiece. The UM1 provides truly excellent sound at an entry-level price, and is a surefire way to put a smile on any music-lover's face.

Gifts for HUNTERS & SHOOTERS

Walkers Bone Collector Digital HD Torque BTE is one of the most cutting-edge hunter's hearing aids on the market. Designed for all hunters, the Bone Collector Torque BTE sits behind the ear, providing sound amplification and protection from dangeous noises. Hear game or voices clearly, and still protect your ears.

Pro Ears Pro 300 Electronic Sport Shooter's Ear Muffs bring much of the power of the top-of-the-line Pro Mag model into a less expensive, lighter-weight, low-profile design. These earmuffs bring all the features hunters/shooters love -- without breaking the bank, making them a top choice for gifting this Christmas.

Peltor 30 Caliber Soft Foam Earplugs are is uniquely packaged like actual ammo; each plug is bullet-shaped, with a deep-insertion design created specifically to provide optimum protection for hunters and shooters. These earplugs are effective, fun, and promise to make for a delightful gift for the hunter/shooter.

Gifts for NASCAR FANS

NASCAR Team Series Earmuffs are officially licensed by NASCAR, and feature the color, number, and signature of your favorite driver. We only have a few of these collector's items left, and when they are gone, they're gone forever -- so pick up a pair for an unbeatable gift for your favorite NASCAR fan today!

Moldex Spark Plugs Foam Earplugs are an official NASCAR endorsed product! Made of extra-soft, extra-light foam, they offer the best noise protection available from an earplug, and they come in fun swirled colors! A great gift for anyone who loves to go to the races. (They're good for concerts, too.)

Plugfones Racing Fan Isolation Earphones are designed specifically to be used to safely listen to a scanner or radio while watching NASCAR or other noisy motorsports events. Plugfones work great for mowing the yard, too! Earpieces are made of replaceable foam earplugs that surround the speakers for comfy noise protection.

Gifts for MOTORCYCLE RIDERS

Windtamer Motorcyclist Earplugs provide variable noise reduction that increases as the volume increases. This means you can clearly hear voices and other traffic sounds in low noise environments, then instantly and automatically get the protection you need in the presence of dangerously loud noises, such as the wind noise at highway speeds.

Sensorcom Microbuds are tiny earbuds with such a low profile that they practically disappear into your ears. Because they fit easily under a wide range of hats and helmets, and their thin wires won't chafe or binde, these have been a favorite music-listening earphone for bikers for several years.

Alpine MotoSafe Natural Sound Professional Driver's Ear Plugs are the top-selling motorcycle ear plug all across the European Union! MotoSafe reduces volume evenly across all frequencies. This means that you can clearly hear your your radio, radar detector, voices, and traffic without distortion, but at a reduced, comfortable volume.

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If you still aren't sure what gift to get your favorite person this Christmas, feel free to drop us a line at info@earplugstore.com or call us anytime from 9am - 5pm (U.S. Central Time) at 918-478-5500. We'll be happy to help you pick out the perfect gift!

From all of us at Ear Plug Superstore, stay safe, stay warm, and have a very merry holiday season!

And until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman

How to Choose the Right Hunting Hearing Protection

We all know that firing a weapon is dangerous to our hearing -- so most of us who have fired more than a few rounds have probably tried a few different types of hearing protection!

In fact, people use a whole world of different types of hearing protection to keep their ears safe while hunting and shooting. The most common type of hearing protector shooters use is probably a pair of ordinary passive earmuffs. Coming in at a close second would be foam ear plugs. Other choices on the list include electronic shooting earmuffs, many other kinds of earplugs, hunters’ hearing aids, and finally dual protection systems -- that is, wearing a pair of ear plugs under a pair of earmuffs. So, given that there are so many choices when it comes to shooting and hunting hearing protection, how do we tell which one is the right one...?

Well, it depends.

So far this hunting season, we have taken a look at how hearing damage occurs for the hunter/shooter, and we’ve gone over some hearing basics like NRR. We’ve also discussed the pro’s and con’s of NRR 33 hearing protection, and we’ve explored other important hearing protection issues, including cost, weight, isolation, and more. With a solid understanding of all these ideas at hand, you should be well-armed to make a wise decision about your hunting and shooting hearing protection.

Still, there are so many choices out there that, even with a good understanding of your options, you might need a little guidance!

So what’s the hunting hearing protection bottom line?

If you need to hear what is going on while you are shooting (and between shots), get an electronic shooting earmuff or hunters’ hearing aid. For especially great hearing capability, we recommend Pro Ears Gold Electronic Earmuffs, which are really on the cutting edge as far as electronic shooting earmuffs go.

If you do not need to hear what is going on around you, get the highest rated hearing protector that (a) fits your budget, and (b) will not get in your way as you shoot. It is rare that we can disregard all sounds going on around us, but when the situation does allow that to happen safely, NRR 33 hearing protectors can be a good choice.

For high caliber shooting, and especially for intensive practice, use a dual-protection system: wear a pair of earplugs under a pair of earmuffs. The earmuffs can be passive earmuffs or electronic shooting earmuffs. The double protection won’t double your NRR, but it will ensure you’re getting the absolute maximum protection possible, when and where it's needed most.

And no matter what you are shooting or what ear protection you are wearing, pay attention to how the sound makes your ears feel! If your ears hurt or ring or the sound seems very loud when a gun is fired, stop shooting until you can get some better ear protection in place. And don’t forget about the shooters around you. Their gunfire noise can hurt you just as much as yours can.

Ultimately, just remember the golden rule of hearing protection: If it seems too loud to you, no matter what hearing protector you are using, get away from the noise!

We sincerely hope these bottom-line recommendations for hunting hearing protection will help you keep your ears safe and sound (no pun intended...) this hunting season. And as always, if you have questions, comments, suggestions, or just need some personalized help figuring out which hearing protector is perfect for your unique hearing needs, drop us a line at info@earplugstore.com -- we are here to help!

Good hunting, good hearing, and be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman

Hunting & NRR 33 Protection: When is it Right for YOU?

By now, you’re probably asking, “Why not just use NRR 33 hearing protection all the time?”

That’s an excellent question! There are three primary reasons NRR 33 hearing protection might not be ideal for you, at least not all the time: (1) Cost, (2) Cumbersomeness/Weight, and (3) Isolation.

(1) Cost
In general, the higher the NRR, the more a hearing protection device tends to cost. This is especially true in the case of earmuffs. If a $10 NRR 19 earmuff will suffice for your needs, why buy a $35 NRR 33 Ultra Earmuff? Earmuffs do tend to get more expensive as they get more effective.

As far as earplugs go, disposable foam earplugs at the highest rating of NRR 33 are, interestingly, usually not more expensive than lower rated foam earplugs. However, those NRR 33 earplugs can sometimes be more difficult to use properly, because to get the full rated effectiveness, you really have to insert those ear plugs deeply into your ears.

Finally, when considering cost, it’s good to remember that there is usually a pretty big price difference between a pair of earplugs and a pair of earmuffs. Of course, aside from basic NRR, earplugs and earmuffs offer very different benefits. Electronic earmuffs in particular can provide many advanced hunting features -- game sound amplification, speech enhancement for safety, etc. -- that earplugs cannot, but their cost reflects those benefits. Earplugs are a lot less expensive, but tend to offer significantly fewer helpful benefits. This is generally true regardless of NRR.

(2) Cumbersomeness/Weight
This is an important consideration when it comes to earmuffs, which get their effectiveness from having a bunch of foam inside a cup which fits over the ear. The higher NRR earmuffs will weigh you down a lot more than will lower rated earmuffs. More protection usually means more weight and/or a bulkier build. That means that lighter weight earmuffs with a sleeker profile might be a more attractive solution for you, despite the loss in NRR.

Of course, concerns about cumbersomeness and weight only really apply to earmuffs; ear plugs aren’t going to be particularly cumbersome or heavy, regardless of their NRR!

Lastly -- if a low-profile fit is important to you, but you also need game sound amplification or other popular hearing enhancement benefits for hunting, a hunters’ hearing aid might be the perfect solution for you. Hunters’ hearing aids fit inside the ear canal, similar to earplugs, so they are light weight and not cumbersome at all -- but they’re also battery operated, and can provide some of the same hunting/shooting benefits as a good electronic hunters’ earmuff.

(3) Isolation
In many shooting situations, you cannot afford to be isolated. You need to be able to hear what is going on around you for safety reasons most of the time, and this is especially true when you’re holding a firearm! For example, while you’re hunting, if you can’t hear quiet game sound, you might miss the shot of the season -- or while you’re shooting at a controlled range, you absolutely must be able to hear the commands of the range officer for proper safety. In these situations, you have to balance your need for hearing protection against your need to be able to hear sounds around you. When you’re in a situation where being able to hear what’s going on around you is just as important as protecting your ears, electronic hearing protectors offer the best alternative.

What About MORE than 33 NRR?

By this point, if you’ve decided that you do indeed need the maximum protection available, you may very well be wondering, “Why not wear an NRR 33 ear plug under an NRR 33 earmuff, for a total NRR of 66?!”

That would be simple enough -- but by now, you know it isn’t going to work that way… right?

The fact is, nothing about sound is simple. Sound is measured in dB, which is an exponential scale. That means a change in the number of dB initially results in a big change in the amount of noise, but as you keep going, the effects diminish. So, an increase of 10 dB in NRR (moving from 0 to 10 NRR) will reduce the sound you hear by about half, but the next 10 dB (moving from 10 to 20 NRR) will only reduce the sound you hear by one fourth -- and the next 10 dB increment will only reduce it by another 1/8th, and so on. So by the time you get to 30, the effect of any further increases in dB is almost imperceptible.

To test this, the smart guys at Howard Leight ran some experiments to see what the effect of using earplugs under earmuffs would be. They came to the conclusion that you can get about 6 dB of extra noise protection by using both earplugs and earmuffs. The 6 dB of extra protection was pretty well constant, regardless of what the noise reduction ratings of the plugs and the earmuffs were: when added together, the highest rated of the two hearing protectors would be improved by about 6 dB.

So knowing that the improvement in NRR for using a dual-protection system is not very impressive, why would we want to wear earplugs under earmuffs? Well, wearing both types of hearing protection could be highly beneficial if neither your earplugs nor your earmuffs are NRR 33 hearing protectors. But what if your earplugs and earmuffs are 33 NRR? In that case, there should technically be no benefit at all; as we covered in an earlier article, an NRR of 33 is the maximum possible, because at that high a NRR, all sound is being prevented from entering the ear canal. So why would a dual-protection system matter at that point…?

This time, the answer is simple: human error. NRR 33 earplugs tend to be fairly sturdy, so getting them inserted properly can be a challenge. But if earplugs are not inserted deeply and worn properly, they cannot provide their maximum noise reduction rating. Similarly, if your earmuffs do not fit snugly against your head, all the way around each ear, they cannot provide the acoustic seal they need to give you their rated noise protection. So when nothing else matters but keeping the sound out and keeping your ears safe, wearing some NRR 33 earplugs under a pair of NRR 33 earmuffs may very well be your best bet: that extra 6 dB of noise reduction could make up for a flaw in how your hearing protectors are being worn.

Still, as we have discussed, NRR 33 hearing protection is not always the best choice for your unique hearing protection needs. As you have probably gathered by now, there is a lot more to choosing the right hunting & shooting hearing protection than getting that maximum 33 NRR!

Long story short: if you’ll only be doing a little light shooting with a (relatively) quiet gun, the less expensive, light weight solution makes a lot more sense. On the other hand, if you know you’ll be firing off a lot of rounds, or your firearm is particularly loud, investing in a higher-quality hearing protector will definitely pay off big in the long run.

Stay tuned for even MORE hunting season hearing knowledge -- and as always, if you need help finding the perfect hunting/shooting protection for your unique ears, we're here for you: info@earplugstore.com

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman

Hunting & Hearing Protection Basics

Understanding Hearing Damage -- The Hunter/Shooter’s Perspective

First thing’s first: to understand your hunting and shooting hearing protection options, you need to know a little bit about why gunshot noises are so dangerous, and about how those dangerous sounds work to damage your hearing.

Hearing damage depends on two factors: volume (how many dB’s of noise you’re hearing), and time (how long you’re exposed to the sound). So if a noise is loud enough -- 115 dB or louder, to be specific -- then hearing damage can occur instantaneously. But you can generally get away with exposure to slightly less dangerous levels of noise for short periods of time without suffering damage. In general, the rule is this: the longer you are exposed to any noise, the greater the chance your hearing will be damaged. And the louder the noise, the less time it takes to do serious damage to your ears.

For the hunter/shooter, that means that the longer you plant to shoot, the more protection you need. If you’re shooting a .22 caliber rifle, you might get away with firing quite a few rounds without suffering any damage -- but try the same thing with your .357 Mag. and your ears are going to suffer. So one important thing to consider when choosing the right hunting/shooting hearing protection is how frequently you’ll be firing your weapon, and how loud your weapon is (relatively speaking).

Turning Down the Volume: Understanding NRR

The next thing to consider is that not all hearing protectors are made equal. The most basic information you need when comparing hearing protectors is NRR (Noise Reduction Rating). NRR is a single number, measured in dB (decibels), which indicates how well a given device can protect your hearing from loud noises. The higher the NRR, the more protection you get.

So how much NRR is enough? Well, the absolute maximum NRR earplugs or earmuffs can provide is 33 dB. A NRR of 33 indicates there is zero sound getting to your eardrum through your ear canals. (That’s why the maximum NRR you’ll ever see on a pair of earplugs or earmuffs is 33.) Yet, as you may have already noticed if you’ve tried it, you can actually still hear a gun blast while wearing NRR 33 hearing protection!

Why? The answer is that there are other ways noise can get into your head… literally! While most of the sound you hear comes through your ear canals, some sound is also simultaneously being conducted into your ears through the bones in your head. So even if you block all noise from reaching your ear canals (by, for instance, wearing NRR 33 hearing protection), you can still perceive very loud noises as they resonate through your head! This is particularly true of loud sounds with a lot of bass, as those low-pitched sounds resonate better with the bones in your head. (Further, even if you could cut off all sound transmission via the ear canals and the bones in your head, a third sound pathway exists via the soft tissues of the torso and up through the neck! Of course this pathway is not very efficient; you may never even notice the sound you’re “hearing” through your body -- so this third pathway can be completely ignored for purposes of protecting your hearing.) Still, in the vast majority of situations we are ever likely to encounter, it’s the sound that travels directly through your ear canals that can potentially cause hearing damage --

So focus on protecting your ears.

Stay tuned for more hunting season hearing info!

And if you ever can't find the answers or information you need in our blog, please drop us a line at info@earplugstore.com. We'll be glad to help you choose the right hunting/shooting hearing protection for your unique ears!

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman

Hunting Season: Hearing Protection & Speech Comprehension

With the leaves changing colors and the weather cooling off, hunting season is starting! And we at EPSS want to make sure you're well-armed -- with hearing protection knowledge! 

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Most people do not realize that the further away you are from someone speaking, the more difficult it is to understand what is being said, even if the volume is turned up.

The problem is even more acute for a person with high frequency hearing loss, which is all too common. (If you’re over 40 and don’t have at least some trouble understanding conversation in a noisy restaurant, you’re in the lucky minority!) That phenomenon is due to two facts: (1) the higher-frequency hearing range (from 2500Hz to 8000Hz) is very important to our ability to comprehend human speech, and (2) most hearing loss occurs in that critical high-frequency range.

That leaves many of us shouting to be heard. However, when we project our voice, the extra volume we produce comes from the lower frequencies (which we generally do not lose from noise-induced hearing damage), but the comprehension still comes from the higher-frequency part of speech (which is the first to go when sitting next to the speakers at a rock concert or spending a lot of time at the shooting range). So speaking up may not be helping as much as you might think.

(Coincidentally, this is also why it is easier for us to understand a male with a deeper voice than it is for us to understand a female with a higher-pitched voice. We can now explain to our wives that we are not intentionally listening only to our hunting buddies and ignoring her when she is trying to talk over dinner!)

So if we want to hang on to our ability to hear speech clearly, we clearly need to wear hearing protection, and protect that high-frequency hearing! But what about being able to hear speech while we’re so responsibly wearing our earmuffs…?

Most passive hearing protection (like your favorite pair of foam earplugs or non-electronic earmuffs) is better at blocking out sound on the mid-to-high end of the frequency spectrum. So, anyone wearing hearing protection will find it more difficult to understand what is being said around them -- but not just because the volume is lower (the reason we wear earmuffs in the first place!), but also because most noise attenuation blocks out the high-frequency sound that provides us with speech comprehension. This explains why, even if you can hear a friend talking to you from the next shooting lane, it’s still so difficult to understand what he is saying with your passive earmuffs on: without the high-frequency sound, your buddy’s voice just sounds garbled. To make matters worse, the further you are away from the person speaking, the more difficult it is to understand. This happens because low frequency sounds travel better through air than the high frequency sounds needed for speech comprehension.

So in short, passive hearing protection can protect your capacity for speech comprehension... but while you’re actually wearing that hearing protection, your ability to comprehend speech typically plummets. So what to do?

If you want to improve your ability to understand what is being said in a noisy environment, you need to be able to amplify low decibel (quiet), high frequency (high-pitched) sounds. There are a number of Electronic Earmuffs available to help amplify those low decibel speech sounds while still protecting your hearing from dangerous loud sounds (anything above 85 dB). The amplification these products use mostly works along the same principle as a hearing aid. The better products like the Pro Ears Gold Series even include various filters to enhance certain frequencies, boosting the quality of the sound enough to actually improve your comprehension of speech.

Generally, Electronic Hearing Protectors will employ “peak clipping” technology, which shuts off the amplification system whenever there is a sound above a certain decibel level. While this technology effectively protects your ears from damaging sound, it also means that while the amplification system is shut off, you can no longer understand what is being said. This creates a scenario where safe, low decibel sounds (like speech) are always interrupted by loud, high decibel sounds (like gunshots) – essentially creating a very choppy listening experience, like a cell phone that keeps cutting out.

If you want to be able to continuously hear those low decibel conversations (think: safety) then you need a hearing protector that employs “compression technology” to provide continuous amplification of low decibel sounds while not amplifying the high decibel sounds (those are being compressed). Pro Ears Earmuffs all rely on Compression Technology. Make it a healthy habit to wear this type of high-quality hearing protector whenever you may be exposed to dangerously loud noises, and you may very well discover you can hear speech a lot more clearly – both with and without your hearing protection on.

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The author is Gary Lemanski, hunting/shooting hearing protection expert and co-owner of Altus Brands, LLC., manufacturer of the Pro-Ears line of electronic shooting earmuffs, hunters hearing aids, and other hunting related products. http://www.altusbrands.com/

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Stay tuned for more hunting season hearing protection facts, information, and suggestions, and how-to's!

And until next time, be safe and do the right thing.
--Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman

White Noise, Earplugs (and Ear Plug Superstore) in the New York Times!

Hearing protection -- particularly when it has to do with getting a good night's sleep -- is serious business.

You (probably) already know that we at Ear Plug Superstore take issues such as hearing protection, noise-canceling, and sound masking very seriously -- but we're not the only ones. We're happy to report that we were able to share a little of our hearing protection expertise with the New York Times, for an article on noise-blocking devices for sleeping which ran earlier this week!

Restful, peaceful sleep uninterruped by outside noises is a rare and precious commodity these days... and missing out on the deep sleep we need due to disturbing sounds can raise our stress levels, make us more vulnerable to illness, and (when the sound is due to snoring) even end marriages! If you have trouble sleeping at night, whether it's due to snoring or to other night-time noises, you know first-hand how important getting good, quality sleep really is. And we at EPSS know just how very helpful a trusty pair of earplugs or some soothing white noise (whether from white noise machines or from in-ear white noise generators) can be when you're seeking a good night's rest -- and so does the New York Times!

From "Noise-Canceling Devices for a Good Night's Sleep," the article that ran this week in the New York Times, comes the following excerpt:

"Over the last few weeks, I have tested several other gadgets designed to help you sleep or save your ears. Some of them emit sounds (usually white noise or a variant) in an effort to mask distracting noises. Others block sounds in ingenious ways. Used correctly, these gadgets could change your life — you might finally get a reprieve from your snoring spouse, or vice versa; you might finally get your baby to sleep (so you can spend more time with your snoring spouse), or you might finally drown out those unashamedly loud neighbors."

The article also featured reviews of several of our favorite sound-killing, sleep-related earplugs and gadgets. For instance, the author recommended the Marsona Marpac SoundScreen 980 for couples seeking better sleep, calling the machine "drop-dead easy to use," and adding that there was "something deeply pleasing about it" that gave it an edge over alternative, digital white noise sources.

Of course, if one person in the couple doesn't enjoy white noise playing all night long, other solutions are called for; this excerpt from the same article sums up the problem nicely:

"Now, imagine this scenario: One half of a couple snores interminably, but can’t stand a white-noise machine. The other half can’t stand the snoring. What can save this marriage? What should our incompatible couple do? Try foam earplugs first, Mr. Bergman suggested. The best earplugs (rated NRR 33, meaning they reduce ambient noise by 33 decibels) will provide significant relief from unwanted sound, but only if they are worn properly... For some snoring victims, though, earplugs are not enough."

The article then recommended our personal favorite snoring solution: the SnoreMasker Pro in-ear white noise generator. The author described the SnoreMasker Pro as follows: "I don’t have a snoring spouse, so I can’t comment on the SnoreMasker’s effectiveness. But I can say that when I inserted it and turned it on, I did feel enveloped in white noise, an entirely pleasing sensation. But an expensive one."

And they're right: the SnoreMasker Pro isn't cheap, especially compared to a pair of earplugs! That's why we always recommend trying a good ol' pair of foam earplugs or a white noise machine (or both!) first, before choosing the SnoreMasker Pro! The less expensive solutions may do the trick, and if so, great! ...But if even the best earplugs and white noise can't give you the peace and quiet you need, the SnoreMasker Pro is available, ready to knock out even the most sleep-disturbing snoring, without disturbing your spouse. (Drastic noise calls for drastic measures!)

Before the article concluded, the Times even mentioned a few of our other favorite items that had nothing to do with sleep -- notably the Etymotic ER-20 High-Fidelity Earplugs for music, and the Mack's Ear Saver headphone volume safety device (ideal for kids). All in all, we're absolutely thrilled to see hearing protection, particularly noise blocking for a good night's sleep, getting the press and attention it deserves!

So we'd like to say a big thank you to the New York Times for helping us share our hearing protection and conservation information with the world. No one should have to miss sleep due to disturbing, irritating night-time noises, period. (Again, you can view the New York Times article here.)

Until next time, be safe and do the right thing -- and get some sleep!
--Tom "Dr. Earplug" Bergman