Many people in my (extended) family will tell you that I'm a bit of an ecological nut. I think it was my brother Andrew, who suggested we name our next child "Organica." Ella knows to check with me before putting anything in the trash- lest it be recyclable. :) We are card-carrying members of our local CSA, and we do most of our other grocery shopping at Whole Foods. In addition, we try to make alternative consumer choices, for example, trading in:
-Disposable diapers for cloth
-Traditional lightbulbs for low-wattage, compact fluorescent lightbulbs
-Plastic AND paper grocery bags for canvas
But now comes the confession. (This is the instant in which you should picture me ducking under my dining room table to dodge flying tomatoes....)
Swiffer dusters are my new best friend.
That's right- this self-proclaimed eco-mama buys Swiffer Duster refills in bulk (gulp), and then tosses chlorine-bleached waste into my trash, and consequently our landfills, each and every time I take to dusting my house. And I can attribute it to just 2 things-
-The self-serving: I love that these things PICK UP my dust, rather than just pushing it around
-The mama reality- I am a mom first...and if there is a disposable product that can speed up my cleaning, and help me turn my attention back to my daughter sooner, then *for this season* I'll lay down a small piece of my idealism, and pick up that Swiffer Duster, happily and without an ounce of guilt.
(Okay, maybe just an ounce....)
"The cleaning and scrubbing will wait til tomorrow,
for children grow up, as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down, cobwebs. Dust go to sleep.
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep."
-Anonymous
5 comments:
i bought lysol mildew cleaner with bleach and continue to poison our family with the rich scent of dioxins. jonas wears MAYBE one cloth diaper a week [and we can't use a cover or it's instant rash.] i also stopped composting about a month ago. it's a mouse haven out there, and nothing breaks down in the winter here anyway. :)[i'll start in the summer-the garden loves it]
maybe i'll give swiffer dusters a try, lol. i never liked the mops.
LOL! Lauren, I LOVE it. I hide my head in shame along with you as I look at the myriad of cleaning products under my kitchen sink. I AM washing our dishes in grapefruit seed extract though, does that cancel out the other bad deeds?
I understand. . . I've gone to simple, bio-friendly cleaners for just about everything. BUT, have a big ol' jug of bleach for the shower. Florida mildew is just nasty, and nothing else I've tried really seems to work. And trust me--I've tried!
Matthew's mom gave me a crewel piece she made when he was a baby with that saying about "cleaning can wait" -- I have it in Evan's room. Oh, and I just started using cloth diapers with him now that he's a bit bigger and they don't make him look like a diaper monster.
Crewel: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crewel_Work
Diaper Monster:http://i1.tinypic.com/4gou39h.jpg
Johnny often sings "organica" around the house because of me - it's a little song he made up.
I am a Swiffer fan myself, but I recently purchased washable Method microfiber cloths at Target - for dusting, glass, and stainless steel! You might want to check 'em out:
http://www.methodhome.com/
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