I tried hard not to gag while writing this column. No luck.
A few days ago I met John Nutter of North Canton, an interesting young man with a 2-year-old. Somehow we became engaged in a conversation about babies and boogers. That’s when he asked me if I had heard about the NoseFrida Snotsucker (no kidding). He said it was a real hit with moms and dads with small children who had stuffy noses.
Hmm, I thought. I’ll be the judge of that. So I posted a question on my Facebook page to learn the truth. And I found a YouTube video that demonstrates how it works: http://bit.ly/23Jp1Aq.
Basically, one end of a tube goes near the child’s nostril and the other end into the mouth of an adult who sucks out the snot. The Swedish-made device that sells for about $15 at area stores and on the Internet, has a filter that keeps the mucus from getting into the mouth of the inhaler.
Chrissy Lockhart Gashash: “I can attest that this is awesome!”
Me: “Did it take you a few seconds to get over the gross factor? I would have to imagine myself on a secluded, serene beach before I sucked in.”
Gashash: “LOL. At the time, my infant daughter had a terrible cold and we were desperate to get rid of the boogers because the traditional [bulb] sucker just was not cutting it. You think it’s going to be super gross, but seeing all the boogers instantly fill the chamber and your child’s nose is completely clear… is extremely gratifying.”
Me: “Gag.”
Gashash: “The funniest thing to me is people want to demo this online. They definitely are doing a public service for parents, but I draw the line at posting a video of myself sucking boogers. That’s for my eyes only.”
Chrissy’s enthusiasm for the Snotsucker was repeated again and again on Facebook. But there were others who weren’t fond of the invention.
Stacie Morrison: “Makes my dinner want to revisit.”
Lois Heffernan: “Not on your life. Love ends at the tip of the nose.”
I think she might be right. I offered my husband, Chris, $100 to use it on me.
“There is no amount of money that would make me do that,” he said, more interested in watching a CSI rerun than assisting in my little investigation.
Cindy Kindig: “Gross. No way.”
Sandi Vasko: “Oh yuck!”
Donna Stillo Aller: “I don’t want to know what they do when the kids are constipated.”
Me: “Gag.”
Jaime Kirbawy admitted using the Snotsucker was strange at first.
“But,” as she said, “desperate times call for desperate measures.”
When we become parents, we do all sorts of things we couldn’t have imagined doing pre-kid. That, of course, includes using things like the now wildly popular NoseFrida Snotsucker, which is a popular baby gift. After all, we want our children to feel better when they are ill.
John, who first told me about the Snotsucker, admitted that his daughter does not like when he or his wife use the device on her. But, once she is able to breathe, it melts his heart when she looks up at him and shyly says, “Thank you.”
Me: “Aw.”
Dude Wipes
John also mentioned another product during our discussion that he was keen about.
“Have you ever heard of Dude Wipes?” Nutter asked, completely innocently.
The product was pitched successfully on ABC’s Shark Tank on last fall. The Dude Wipes’ website describes the product this way:
“Whether it was some unexpected physical activity or the aftermath of the lunchtime burrito, we [guys] were destined to smell. So we set out to change history and the bathroom forever by creating the award winning Dude Wipes. These flushable wipes are guaranteed to combat stank and put you back on your game wherever or whenever nature calls.”
Me: “Gag.”
Kim Hone-McMahan can be reached at 330-996-3742 or kmcmahan@thebeaconjournal.com. Find her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/kim.honemcmahan1.