If you don't like gross things, this post is not for you

Something is happening with the ears of my family members.  Specifically, my mom, my brother, and most recently, me.  This strange phenomenon is gross but also incredibly fascinating.

Earwax balls.

A few months ago, my mom thought she had an ear infection and went to the doctor.  After a quick looksie into her ear canal, the doctor pulled out a piece of earwax the size of a bean.  (When my mom reported this to us, we all quickly replied, what KIND of bean?!?)  Sadly, no photographic evidence was taken of this earwax, but she said that years of ringing in her ear ended right that instant.  Incredible!

This week, my sister texted me a photo late at night (10:00pm is late, right??) of a kleenex with earwax buildup that she had just flushed out of Tyson's ear.  She said the pieces were about the size of a jelly bean, and that he too felt instant relief the second it flushed out.

Not to be left out of this trend, today I joined the club.  I noticed that when I was chewing, I was hearing kind of an echo-y clacking noise to the right of me.  (And lets be real, I'm snacking quite frequently these days, so I was hearing this noise a lot).  A quick prod to my ear made me realize there was something in there.  I quickly texted Britt and Tys to say, ME TOO!  HELP!  Britt is coming to see me tomorrow, so I figured she could just bring her trusty syringe and flush it out then.  Nope, no way.  This earwax wanted out, like meow.  I went for a walk after lunch, and all the movement must have brought the ball to the surface.  Another quick ear prod, and I realized this earwax was ready to emerge.  One second later I was trying to find a blank sheet of paper to lay it on so that I could text it to my siblings (see below).  I hadn't really been having any discomfort before today, so it wasn't like a huge relief when it came out, but I have inspected the mass closely and plan to do a full dissection later in the afternoon.