I read this thread from work earlier and was surprised to see the comments about leaf blowers. I couldn't remember seeing anyone around my neighborhood using one in recent years. I came home for lunch today, which I rarely do, but after eating lunch, I walked out the front door, and there was a woman with a gas engine leaf blower! Figure the odds. I hadn't heard it in my house, despite the fact that it was quiet in here. The only time there is a rider mower near-by is when someone has hired out some lawn work, so that's usually not a big deal.
My most significant noise complaints in my neighborhood include the low frequency rumble of passing freight trains (about a 1/2 mile away), neighbor's dog barking, neighbor's push mower (particularly the neighbors on both sides of my house,) and the car with the thumping subwoofer which can be a block or more away, and occasionally a basketball bouncing in the neighbor's driveway or less often used power equipment like a weed wacker or chainsaw. I've never once noticed a snowblower running while home (except mine).
Ear plugs are pretty much useless against the train rumble and subwoofer sounds because they don't help much with those very low frequency sounds, and can actually make them even more annoying since the natural environmental sounds are the ones that get masked out most leaving only the low rumble and some "ringing in the ears" behind. In fact, I've found the opposite to be more effective, actually adding additional sounds to mask those low frequency sounds, or a combination of both blocking and masking (IEM's with music, closed cans with music.) Fortunately, some light music or TV sound is enough to mask most things while in the house. Only when the neighbors' lawnmower is mowing near my side of their houses does that get to a level that I can still hear it easily over the TV or music.
As others have mentioned, this still beats the excessive noise of the more urban areas, with more cars, loud exhausts, more subwoofers thumping, music playing, horns blowing, screeching tires, sirens, people yelling, people yapping on cell phones. My suburban living seems pretty quiet by comparison - and very peaceful the majority of the time.