The Best Earplugs in the World

22 decibels sound attenuation: earplugs don't get any better than that.

This past Sunday's New York Times Magazine featured Jamie Lauren Keiles' love letter to Mack's Foam Earplugs (below).

Trust me: the silicone iteration works much better.

$2.48 (fluorescent orange — top) to $6.75 (neutral grey — below).

I've used these for over 40 years: they are the best earplugs in the world.

Note: I prefer the orange version for four reasons:

• They're more fun

• They're much easier to locate should they fall out of your ear

•  They are perfectly sized for use right out of the box whereas the grey iteration is so large, you have to break them in half before using them

• The orange ones cost only about 1/3 the price of the grey ones