If having to watch countless children programmes on TV with your little ones isn’t bad enough, Igglepiggle, Upsy Daisy and Makka Pakka have now come to life and are doing a live performance tour around the country. It has been named the ‘biggest family event to hit the UK this summer’ and I’m going to have to sit through an hour of sing-sing with them.

I will have to be bringing some noise reduction ear plugs, not only to drown out the impossible singing, but also the tens of thousands of screaming toddlers. The level of noise that a group of toddlers can come out with can be incredible, I’m sure it could cause some sort of hearing damage, but if it lowers the noise of Upsy Daisy and Makka Pakka amoungst others, my day will be a lot more pleasurable.

The music played by instruments is normally a pleasant sound we love to hear on a daily basis. Depending on the melody and notes played, music can relax and sooth us, get us ready for a night out on the town and can even comfort us whether being played as background noise or to tune into our inner feelings.

But, with the summer here and kids at home they tend to occupy themselves by annoying you with irritating instruments. Here is a list of the ones we dislike the most. It’s time to reach out for some ear plugs!

At No. 6: The Recorder

There’s nothing more grating than hearing a room of primary school pupils playing a recorder – the sound is tuneless and can have a painful effect on your ears.

At No 4: The Ocarina

While it might sound fine with a skilled player, more often than not, it’s used by novices who are borderline tone-deaf. Now a new generation is buzzing to play the ocarina thanks to Nintendo’s The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Parents out there if you a have a Zelda fanatic in the house, it might be time to buy some noise reduction ear plugs!

At No 3. The Harmonica

The harmonica, popular because it is cheap to buy, easy to blow a tuneless …melody? and irritate family and friends in an instant. It is a great instrument if you know how to play it and can play it well, but for those who need some practice, practice in a room far, far away from us.

At No. 2: The Drums

Your child’s first instrument tends to always be a drum set. You haven’t bought them; your next door neighbour hasn’t either. No, it’s your friends and family members who think it’s funny to buy a drum set top send you mad. Kids love it, its loud, but most of it it’s annoying.

At No. 1: The Vuvuzela

Well enough said. Over June and July we have been subjected to the constant noise of swarming bees, but even though the World Cup is over people are still playing these wondrously annoying plastic horns. Please, please, stop!

From the first person to mass produce the highly annoying (in my opinion) vuvuzela, he is ready to branch out into a new industry, ear plugs. Neil van Schalkwyk must have had some sense knocked into him, having had enough of the sound of the vuvuzela, he now wants to block out the ringing (tinnitus) from his ears.

With the vuvuzela’s reaching an astonishing 140 decibels it is not suprising that people have had growing concerns about the damage it could do to your hearing. 

Neil van Schalkwyk spoke to the Telegraph commenting:

 “We have adapted the vuvuzela to make it a little quieter but there are still those who don’t like the noise so we wanted to offer them some form of protection.

“The earplugs will block out the noise and will also prevent the wearer suffering hearing damage.”

The stores are loaded with holiday decorations and the sales event of the year has begun. Given the current economy, many large discount stores are offering great deals on toys, appliances, televisions and other common gift items. The idea, of course, is to entice holiday spending as if we aren’t really in economic trouble. Are these sales enough?

As with any sale, you have to consider whether it’s really going to save you money to buy something simply because it’s on sale. It’s like using a coupon for a food product you just don’t like. What will you do if your son asked for a specific Transformer but a similar one is on sale? Is it worth the savings to give a gift slightly less than the one he wanted? Tough choices.
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