a little comic relief

I have a problem with corporate marketing companies telling us (women) when, why and how we're supposed to clean. This hilarious video from Sarah Haskins says it best:

the story of stuff

I gave a talk last night on the subject of green organizing to the North GTA chapter of Professional Organizers in Canada. Today's post was going to be an overview of the points I covered in my talk, but then another organizing colleague of mine sent me a link that takes precedence - and actually explains - even better than I could - some of the ideas I was trying to share last night.

Check out the twenty-minute animated video on this website called The Story of Stuff. It's entertaining and extremely informative. I'll add my own two cents in a day or two...

dr. oz on oprah: de-tox your home to turn back the clock on aging

Do you want to clean green?
Dr. Oz from the Oprah show thinks eco-friendly cleaning will increase your lifespan. I just finished watching the second part of Dr. Oz's two-part series on You: Staying Young - his new book on anti-aging, and he spent one segment talking about how improving the air-quality and toxicity in your home can add years to your age. Check out some of the details from the Oprah.com website, here. Apparently Dr. Oz's new book will also be featured on the Discovery Channel tonight.

I'm so excited to think that the eco-friendly cleaning message is being spread to such a large audience. Cleaning green will not only improve your quality of life - it will help save the planet for generations to come!

20 things worse for your children than lead in toys

Do you want to clean green?
I saw this story mentioned in Debra Lynn Dadd's most recent newsletter, and thought it was worth posting here. The article mentions several hazardous household products, including air fresheners, dryer sheets, and fire retardants.

The mainstream media is amusingly irrational when it comes to reporting scare stories. The latest example involves the lead content of Mattel toys made in China. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a third recall of Mattel toys involving over 700,000 toys containing unacceptably high levels of lead paint (over .06 percent lead). Irrational parents are rushing back to retailers in droves, turning in their Mattel toys to "save their children" from the dangers of lead paint. Mattel, for its part, is being rightly blasted in the media for selling shoddy products made with toxic heavy metals.

But here's the interesting part in all this: Parents directly poison their children every day with products far more dangerous than Mattel toys. Don't believe me? I'll name twenty things in this article that are far more dangerous to children than Mattel toys. It doesn't mean Mattel toys are safe, of course. They apparently do contain unacceptably high levels of lead, and there's no question about the toxicity of lead. But children don't eat toys nearly as often as they eat some other toxic substances given to them by their parents, and even as parents are herding back into retailers to refund their toxic lead-laden toys, they're returning home and poisoning their children with many other products that are far worse.

The press, of course, reports nothing about these other toxic products. And why? Because they're made in America.

Read the entire article here.

zen cleaning moments

Do you want to clean green?
I love to clean. Not everyone does.

(Believe me, I realize that. People's distaste for cleaning afforded me a rewarding career for several years, after all.)

Sometimes I wonder if part of the reason people dislike cleaning so much is because they rush through it without really enjoying it.

(And yes, there ARE things to enjoy about cleaning. Trust me.)

Before I started my cleaning business, I worked for five years as a live-in domestic. I was responsible for the household's cooking and cleaning, as well as childcare. The house we lived in was enormous, and I spent several hours on housekeeping each week. By Friday afternoon, when I had to finish all my tasks before the weekend, I would find myself rushing through the rooms, frantically pushing the vacuum back and forth, frenetically wiping surfaces, and whipping through everything as fast as I could go.

Needless to say, I hated the work. Cleaning was a job to finish as quickly as possible so I could move on to other things. My back and knees ached when I was done. My eyes and nose were scratchy from the chemical fumes. My hands were dry and cracked from working without gloves. And it seemed that no sooner had I cleaned everything but that it got dirty all over again.

Eventually a personal crisis forced me to slow down. When I could hardly put one foot in front of the other, I started to notice how much I had hated all the rushing. I paid attention to what I was doing. I gave myself permission to take a long time cleaning - and enjoy myself while I was at it. I switched to eco-friendlier cleaning products that didn't leave me feeling so sick.

It wasn't until I left that job and started my own business that I truly enjoyed cleaning for others, though.

The secret? Find as many ways as possible to make cleaning something really enjoyable. Reward yourself when you're done, if you have to. (Just don't rush through the cleaning to get to the reward.)

Don't let things get too dirty before you finally "break down" and clean. Set aside frequent, regular periods in your schedule to keep your home tidy, and use small pockets of time throughout the week to do small, easily-managed tasks. (Delegate to others the things you positively hate, if you can.)

Many people aim to get their house cleaned all at once. Yes, it's lovely to be in a home that you know is spotless from top to bottom. But if it takes hours to get it that way, and you're the one doing the cleaning, then cleaning can't help but become a chore that you despise - just because it tires you out so much.

Entertain the thought that maybe it's okay to have everything more-or-less tidy, and only thoroughly clean one room at a time. Cleaning for half an hour every day rather than four hours every Saturday morning will seem like a lot less work, believe me.

Use products, supplies and tools that you absolutely love. Keep them clean and well-maintained, and store them in a space that's organized and easily accessible.

Play music that soothes you or energizes you. Try using essential oils in your cleaning products, and enjoy the sensory experience. Clean with a partner, and make a game of it. Keep each other company. (I still have the fondest memories of washing dishes with all the "womenfolk" at family holidays when I was a child.)

What do I love most about cleaning? Making something clean. I love seeing the dirt washed, swept, or vacuumed away. I love passing my hands over objects - wiping them, smoothing them. I love the way glass sparkles when it the dust is gone. I love the way laundry smells when it comes down off the line. I love the way porcelain feels when the grime is washed away.

Every moment when you are present (that's the "zen") is a moment when pleasure is possible. If you're not really "there" - no matter what you're doing - you're cut off from the possibility.

Don't throw away even one second of the pleasure that's your birthright. Enjoy it all.

"Put your heart, mind, intellect and soul even to your smallest acts. This is the secret of success." (Swami Sivananda)

"There is a Zen saying, 'Before Enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After Enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.' What’s the difference? The tasks are the same. The need is the same. What about the frame of mind? Who is chopping? Who is carrying water?

"When you labor, stay awake. Notice the frame of mind you bring to your work. Do you approach your work as if it were a nuisance? Do you remove your consciousness from work so that you are filled with resentment or worry? What would you need to do to be more fully present in your work?" (Tom Barrett, Interlude: An Internet Retreat)

why don't more people clean green?

Do you want to clean green?
After I closed down my full-time eco-friendly cleaning business in London, Ontario, I was surprised (and a little disappointed) to realize that most of my clients were not continuing to use the green cleaning techniques and products I had introduced into their homes.

Curious, I asked one of my former clients (a retired schoolteacher and a very perceptive, well-spoken man - who just happens to love toxic cleaning products) for his insight into this phenomenon. His answer rang true to my experience with my other clients.

He suggested two possible reasons for continuing to use toxic cleaning products:

1) They work.
2) Most people don't think their individual actions have much impact on the environment as a whole.

I would add to this that most people don't recognize the long-term hazards of toxic chemical use on themselves, their families, their homes and their environment.

If you are curious to know what's really wrong with standard commercial cleansers, have a look at the websites I've listed in the sidebar at right, or the ones below:

Toxic Nation - Pollution. It's in you. (a room-by-room description of environmental toxins)
Environmental Health Association of Nova Scotia - Guide to Less Toxic Products
VanessasGift.com - Toxic Cleaning Products

Do standard commercial cleansers work? Yes. They work quickly and well to remove dirt and other unwanted residues.

Do the cleaners you use in your home have an impact on the environment? Yes. They affect you and your family and pets, and they affect the larger ecosystem through water runoff, air pollution, garbage disposal and other contamination routes.

Are eco-friendly alternatives just as easy to use? Not always. Sometimes the least-toxic products and methods demand time and elbow-grease. Is the trade-off worth it? You decide.

Will eco-friendly cleansers have a positive impact on your health, and the health of your family? Almost definitely. I lived with my parents for several years as an adult, and over time I gradually transitioned the household's cleaning products to eco-friendlier choices. Both my mother and I (who suffer from migraine headaches) noticed that the heavy scents in commercial cleansers would trigger almost-immediate migraines. When we used unscented or naturally-scented eco-friendly cleansers, our headaches were reduced.

Many people feel overwhelmed at the thought of changing their long-standing habits and routines. Where do you start? How do you prioritize? How do you adjust to the changes?

I hope the information in this blog will help people realize that every action they take - no matter how small - is important. And that green cleaning techniques and products are not as alien or difficult as you might fear.

In many cases, the difference may delight you.

why eco-friendly cleaning?

Do you want to clean green?
It's not my intention with this blog to delve too deeply into the hazards of standard commercial cleansers. Suffice to say, most of them are made from non-renewable petrochemicals, and are toxic in their manufacture, use or disposal. There's a lot of reliable information out there for those who are interested, and I encourage you to explore the links I've listed in the sidebar to the right.

As consumers, you should beware of products which are labelled "natural." There are many cleansers on the market now (such as Method products) which claim to contain natural ingredients, but also contain scents, colours or other ingredients from petrochemical sources. (For a more in-depth discussion of Method products, see this blog post by consumer advocate Debra Lynn Dadd.) They may be preferable to traditional commercial products, but certainly don't go far enough in their attempts to be truly "green."

Read your labels well. True eco-friendly companies readily list all ingredients of their products, and often indicate sources for each ingredient. Look for ingredients that are vegetable-based whenever possible. Avoid artificial perfumes and colours.

Why go eco-friendly? It may be better for your health, and the health of your family and pets. Children and small animals with their lower body weights can harbour greater concentrations of toxic chemicals in their bodies. They also spend a lot of time on the ground, putting all sorts of objects in their mouths.

If you or someone you love suffers from allergies or chemical sensitivities, switching to eco-friendlier products may alleviate some of the symptoms.

Finally, using non-toxic products that are natural and renewable is better for our environment.