Working in Ottawa today --I'll keep an ear out for you

Good morning folks,

I will be working in Ottawa today.  Montréal tomorrow and Toronto on Friday.

You may consider today's Pulp as a bonus edition, and I ask you to judge its thinness by that measure.

Today while on my way to the airport, the gal on the radio mentioned something about travel tips and should I be listening to the radio later in the hour I could hear them.

I won't be, so I can't.

Now what did occur to me is that I don't need to hear the broadcast as at a very basic level, all travel tips are exactly the same.  So I wondered, is there some travel or driving tip that has a high probability of never being uttered before?

I came up with one.  Often I have observed other drivers performing personal grooming tasks whilst in their driver's seat, you have surely observed as well.

The lipstick and eyeshadow gal in the next lane, the guy shaving with the cigarette adapter powered electric razor in the express lane of the 401.

Hey Varouj, it was that Andrew guy that used to perform Smart1 work for you in the 90's shaving.

All of these dangerous, yes.  From a pay attention to the road perspective.  From a personal injury.. meh.  Probably won't lose an eye from a lipstick smear if she clipped the bumper of the car ahead.

But it occurred to me that the most dangerous personal grooming activity my result in deafness or even a brain injury...

Never clean your ears with a Q-Tip while driving.

I am reasonable certain that if you examine the box of Q-Tips that you will not see a warning, "Do not use while driving or operating heavy machinery." and I ask, Why not?  Do the product liability folks at Q-Tip simply not care?  This dangerous practice must stop, and that stopping starts here.

Yes, grammatically that seemed awkward, but nonetheless, it remains.

Please pass this public service announcement forward.  The hearing you save could be a loved one's.

Have a great day.