Shocque

My very first outing was a local gig at the York District Region School Board. I was nervous because we were going to meet some teachers and talk to them about hearing loss prevention and hearing protection. On the way there we stopped at a coffee shop because we were a bit early, and we found lots of teens hanging out 'cause it was their lunch hour. It was pretty noisy in there, with a crowd of high school kids on lunch break - my new ear was going ballistic!

I was surprised at how these kids were fascinated by me! I guess I am pretty unique! A couple of them came over and plugged their iPod earbuds into my ear so I could tell them how loud their music was. One guy had his set at 115 decibels! That's like having a chainsaw running three feet away from your ear!! And he said he listens to that volume ALL THE TIME!!! (Hel-lo - we're talking deaf by the age of 20! Dude! Can you hear me? Can you??) I hope he did.

Another one, a girl, had her volume turned up to 112 decibels. Then she asked "Does this mean I'm going to go deaf?" And she right away answered her own question: "Guess I'd better turn it down, then."

Is this further proof that girls are more intelligent than guys?

I had so much fun with those teens that I forgot to be nervous about meeting the teachers. I thought the teachers might disapprove of my hair and my clothes, but they were cool and they really liked my special listening ear. I think we're gonna do some good work together...

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Here is my very own place in the universe to blog about my new job!!

I am SO excited! I have a new job (my very first, I might add) that involves lots of travel and I get to meet kids and teens from all over Canada. I was a normal mannequin until I was brought into my new family here at Widex. Not only do they make hearing aids, but they care about making sure the message about using hearing protection when exposed to loud noise is spread from coast to coast. That's where I come in. They gave me a 'mechanical ear' so I can measure the loudness of earbuds or headphones connected to a personal stereo device. My job is to help kids and teens learn about loudness, help them understand why they should care about it, and how to safely listen to music and participate in noisy activities in order to prevent hearing loss.

While some people might think this is a tough crowd to convince, I think today's kids and teens are smart and creative, and they are willing to listen to my message. Keep checking my blog 'cause I will be blogging all about it here!

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