Here's to you Mr. Ear Muff Man....

I came across this interesting little tid-bit today. Where would the world be without innovators such as this man?

Chester Greenwood of Farmington, Maine, invented earmuffs when he was just 15 years old. As he was ice skating, he wrapped his head in a scarf to protect his ears from the cold, but found this method too bulky and itchy. To solve the problem, Greenwood constructed two ear-shaped loops from wire and asked his grandmother to sew fur on them. He later patented an improved version, Greenwood's Champion Ear Protectors in 1887, that featured a steel band that held the earmuffs in place. Greenwood established Greenwood's Ear Protector Factory and supplied earmuffs for US soldiers during World War I. Greenwood accumulated over 100 patents in his lifetime, including one for the steel-tooth rake.

Ahh... I just love ingenuity. Where would we be without the steel-tooth rake? Would we still be picking up leaves by hand, or just letting them decompose on their own in our messy yards. And the ear muffs? I mean that stuff paved the way for headphones and we all know how I feel about the heaphone... it paved the way for IPod earbuds!!! I want to invent something one day... I'm just not sure what yet. Any suggestions?