Green Cleaning Products
There are numerous reasons to clean using natural eco-friendly products and methods.
Did You Know?
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According to an EPA study, the air in homes has chemical contamination levels 70 times greater than outdoor air.
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50% of all illnesses are caused by or aggravated by polluted indoor air.
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Approximately 15% of the American population suffers from chemical sensitivity.
Researchers have traced this to synthetic chemicals in consumer products and furnishings. -
The typical American household is the number one violator of chemical waste per capita.
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The average American home has 3-10 gallons of hazardous materials.
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Nationwide more than 32 million pounds of household cleaning products are poured down the drain each day.
Many of these products contain toxic substances that are not adequately processed by sewage treatment plants and septic systems -
Chemicals in household cleaners break down slowly in the eco-system and can lead to harmful algae blooms and accumulation of toxins in the fatty tissues of fish and wildlife.
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U.S. industries reported manufacturing 6.5 trillion pounds of 9,000 different chemicals and the prevalence of many diseases and illnesses - including cancers, birth and reproductive system defects, asthma, nervous system disorders is on the rise and environmental factors may play a significant role in these increases.
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The U.S. government has not conducted even basic toxicity testing for about 75 percent of the 15,000 high volume chemicals in commercial use. More than 90 percent of these high volume chemicals have not been tested for health effects on children.
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A study by the New York Poison Control Center found that 85 percent of product warning labels they studied were inadequate.
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In 1999, 2.1 million human poisonings were reported to the poison control centers in the United States. More than 50 percent of the cases involved children under the age of five.
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Over 150 chemicals found in the average home have been linked to allergies, birth defects, cancer and psychological abnormalities.
Did you know that if you have regular commercially sold cleaners in your home, you have hidden and not-so-hidden dangers.
Laws requiring manufacturers to disclose the existence and possible side effects of contaminants are lax, offering you and your family insufficient safeguards. The poison, explosive and corrosive warnings on containers & packaging only tell half of the story.
Most people don’t know that:
85% of product warning labels are either inadequate or incorrect in identifying a poison.
Indoor air is 3 to 70 times more polluted than outdoor air.
Products must list active ingredients, but not the (often-significant) number of inert chemicals they contain.
More than 150 toxic substances linked to cancer are present around the average home.
The human body can absorb chemicals left behind by household products several months after they were used.
“Volatile organics” are chemicals that rapidly evaporate into the air at room temperature, contributing to multiple chemical sensitivity and a range of symptoms including breathing problems, depression and fatigue, autoimmune disorders, a “flu-ish” feeling, and many other complications. Many detergents and cleaning supplies contain volatile organics.
Cancer rates have double since 1960.
Asthma has increased 600% since 1980.
Experts cite household chemicals as a factor.
Formaldehyde, phenol, benzene, toluene, xylene can cause cancer and erode the immune system~~ These are in many household cleaners.
Naptha depresses the central nervous system. Diethanolsamine is a possible liver poison. Chlorophenylphenol is a metabolic stimulant and considered toxic. All three chemicals are common to most dishwashing detergents.
Most air fresheners don’t clean the air.
They either coat your nose with an oily film or release a chemical that deadens the nerves we use to smell.
Indoor chemical “pollution” can contribute to allergies, multiple chemical sensitivity, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, arthritis, lupus, multiple sclerosis, circulatory disorders, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s disease, irritable bowel syndrome, depression, hormonal problems, fertility problems and sudden infant death syndrome.
To help in your daily or weekly cleaning, use microfibre clothes and mop-covers with water only.
Microfibre is more effective in picking up dust, dirt, hairs and lint, and microbes!
If you’re interested in green products from Shaklee, email me for a discount directly from me on your Shaklee order.
Topics: Eco Friendly, Recycling, Green | No Comments »
Cries & pleas for help in business
If you belong to any wahm groups, forums, networks I’m sure you’ve seen what I’m talking about.
Many think it’s “professional” or “business like” to cry out and beg and plea for donations (be it money or orders) to keep their business afloat.
This can range from the cries of “help me meet my quota before I get deactivated”, “order from me so Johnny can go to camp” to “paypal me some money to pay for my hosting before my site is taken down”.
Or the bribes of “if you order from me, I’ll give you….”
or “if you paypal me, I’ll give you a lifetime banner ad”.
Hmmm that one’s always interesting because what exactly is a ‘lifetime’?
Is it a week, a month or? Because reality, if they’re out begging to get money now won’t they be doing the same thing next month? So “lifetime” could be til next month or if you get lucky a few months from then.
Wow, you’re a business owner and you don’t have $4/month for hosting your site? Perhaps it’s time to think about a different business.
Nobody will take you seriously when you’re out begging for donations. Who would even consider doing business with a person who obviously isn’t ‘making it’.
Why not market your business, promote your business and spend time generating clientele rather than begging for free handouts and ruining your reputation.
I have a daughter who needs dental work done and I’d like to buy a house but you don’t see me crying for free hand outs.
C’mon, as Niecy Nash of Clean House says “time to take a big girl pill” so wahms do just that take your big girl pill and be professionals.
Topics: Business, Ranting & Rambling | No Comments »
Lying, scamming so called fundraising people
Well, don’t you just love when a company calls your cell phone, wastes your time and your minutes to try to scam you out of your money…and all in the name of the Police Athletic League.
I suppose there are suckers born every day but I’m not one of them.
Had a male call from 786-363-2770 but he’s not really at that number, nope..he’s actually calling from
608-260-8818 which also belongs to:
James Co Fund Raising
1541 Comanche Gln
Madison, WI 53704(608) 241-8750
When you call back, you’ll either get hung up on or if the person actually says hello and you ask for a supervisor, THEN you’ll get hung up on.
They call and ask for the owner of the business, if you say they’re not in and can you take a message they’ll refuse and call you back in about an hour!
Then they’ll claim they’re with PAL (Police Athletic League) –which by the way PAL in Pembroke Pines does their own fundraising (as confirmed by an officer of PAL moments ago) — meanwhile the scammer will claim that you donated before and that you helped them before. They will proceed to argue with you profusely until you either get annoyed enough to cuss them out, hang up on them or til you’re dumb enough to give in and listen to their nonsense.
I took the 2nd option, hanging up on them. Which leads to them calling from other numbers, after hanging up on the person when showing the 786#, he called showing the 608#
geeez do these idiots not know about google and reverse phone number look ups??
Wonder how many people actually fall for this and make donations and have no clue where the money really goes?
Too many I’m sure. 
So, if you want to donate to PAL or any other organization, your best bet is to make the donation directly to that organization and not via some jerk on the phone who’s 2000 miles away from where he’s even soliciting.
Topics: Ranting & Rambling | No Comments »
Buy Green Back to School Supplies
Sadly, it’s almost time for some of us to send out children back to school
As much as I don’t like the thought, I have to accept it’s soon time to start buying school supplies. I’m buying green supplies, my DD insists on it so she can help spread the word in middle school about going green and making a difference.
You can get these
folders that are stylish and made of recycled newspaper and cardboard, and available in 5 different designs - each a tribute to a special animal.
or get
Smencils- the world’s only gourmet pencil.
As per the site:
Smencils are pencils made from rolled sheets of newspaper instead of wood. You can see the layers of newspaper when you sharpen them.
They sharpen the same as all other wood pencils and they smell way better. Not only do they smell great, but they are good for the environment too.
Please put the tubes and bucket into your community recycling bins and not the garbage. We’re committed to our responsibility for sustaining the environment.
Being responsible for the environment is an important part of doing business in today’s world. That’s why we’ve made sure the materials and processes that go into making Smencils are healthy for the environment. In manufacturing Smencils, we use recycled newspapers, environmentally friendly fragrances, recyclable ferrules and biodegradable erasers. The scents used to make Smencils are the same as those used to make soaps and candles, which are safe for reasonable personal use as tested by the manufacturers. By using recyclable plastic, even Smencil packaging is environmentally friendly.
Did you know:
- An average sized cedar tree will make about 172,000 wood pencils.
- 172,000 Smencils can be made from 430 newspapers.
- Recycling a single run of the Sunday New York Times saves about 75,000 trees.
- The average tree can filter about 60 pounds of air pollution per year.
- If everyone in the US recycled just 10% of their newspapers, we would save about 25 million trees each year.
Buy your green school supplies here knowing that you’re making a difference, and your children can help spread the word about how easy it is to live a green lifestyle.
Topics: Eco Friendly, Recycling, Green, Eco Tuesday's | 1 Comment »
Affordable Mineral Makeup™ is PETA approved
If you visit Affordable Mineral Makeup™ you’ll see the logo below.
That means we’ve been approved by PETA as a cruelty free company. It’s an honor to be recognized by them and be able to provide products to our clients that they can be comfortable knowing that not only are we associated with SafeCosmetics but we are also associated with PETA and ensuring our clients and animals that Affordable Mineral Makeup™ is a natural, safe company.
Click on the banner here and you’ll find out more about
CaringConsumer.com
Topics: Affordable Mineral Makeup, Eco Friendly, Recycling, Green | No Comments »
One second…
Did you know that one second can really add up.
In a preteen life it can actually equate to about 3600 real seconds or an hour for those who don’t want to do the math.
When a preteen says “one second” be prepared to wait for more than a second.
You know the drill…you need to get going, have places to go, things to do and your preteen is slowly getting ready.
You tell her it’s time to go and you get the “one second” response.
You may as well sit back and do something…laundry, dishes, work, make a few phone calls, answer a few emails, blog about something 
Because, you see, if you rush and constantly remind them that it’s time to go, you’ll get more of the “one second” response and when you remind them that “one second” is “one…mississippi…time’s up” they’ll get all frazzled and you’ll waste even more time explaining that and or listening to the “one second” offender explain how lame the “one mississippi two mississippi” way of counting really is.
In a mere 24 hours there are 86,400 real seconds. In a preteen life there are apparently closer to 311,040,000 “seconds” if we were to apply their “one second” equals an hour (if not more!)
Where can I get some of the preteen seconds, then I’d be ahead of schedule and have no problem getting everything done that I need to get done!
With that said, I’m going to go do a few work related things now as I’ve still got about a “half second” til the “one second” is up, so I guess I’ll be leaving in about 30 mins!
Topics: Ranting & Rambling | 1 Comment »
Eco Tuesday: Swap, Sell or Donate
If you have something you no longer want or need, consider swapping it, selling it or donating it.
It keeps the item from landfill and trash and enables someone else to use your item without having to buy brand new, thus extending the life of the item and minimizing trash 
There are places online you can go to do this:
www.Freecycle.org you can find groups in your direct area and swap there.
You can also search Yahoo Groups for various swaps, freecycling groups too.
For paper back swaps visit Paperbackswap.com
Also visit Craigslist and check for items in your area, along with same type of set up on BackPage, both have numerous large city listings and you can find nearly anything and everything there.
Visit iShareStuff.org to swap and share items.
I personally haven’t used this yet but have used the others.
Topics: Eco Friendly, Recycling, Green, Eco Tuesday's | 1 Comment »
Campaign for Safe Cosmetics: Affordable Mineral Makeup™
Affordable Mineral Makeup™ is a proud signer of the Campaign For Safe Cosmetics
Affordable Mineral Makeup™ took the pledge
to not use chemicals that are known or strongly suspected of causing cancer, mutation or birth defects in their products and to implement substitution plans that replace hazardous materials with safer alternatives in every market they serve.
Actually Affordable Mineral Makeup™ doesn’t use any chemicals or preservatives nor harmful ingredients in our products. You can see a list of our ingredients here.
Meanwhile, as per SafeCosmetics.org they note that on any given day a consumer may use as many as 25 different cosmetics and personal care products containing more than 200 different chemical compounds.
That’s a scary thought, imagine just swimming in chemicals that can destroy your skin, your body and do damage to you.
Is your health work jeopardizing in the name of beauty? I don’t think so.
That’s why Affordable Mineral Makeup™ refuses to use anything that’s harmful to you or the environment. We want you to look beautiful, (and at a price you can afford and love) and we want what’s best for you as well as the planet.
Toxic chemicals are not required to produce quality cosmetics so why use them?
Educate yourself and know what’s in your makeup before applying!
It can only help you.
Topics: Affordable Mineral Makeup | No Comments »
Eco Tuesday: Lowering utility bill & Tankless Water Heater
Heating water in your household accounts to close to 13% of your utility bill.
There are ways to reduce that:
Set your thermostat on the heater to about 130 degrees.
You could insulate your existing heater with heater blankets, insulate the pipes connecting to the heater as well.
Or invest in a tankless or solar water heater. Initially they cost more, but they save energy and will save you in the long run.
You may also be eligible for tax credits and rebates if you use a tankless or solar water heater.
In Hawaii they’ve instated a new regulation that new homes have to have solar water heaters, there are no exceptions now.
Wish the rest of the states would get with the program!
Topics: Eco Friendly, Recycling, Green, Eco Tuesday's | No Comments »
Win a $30 gift certificate from Affordable Mineral Makeup™
You can win a $30 gift certificate to Affordable Mineral Makeup™ by visiting
http://shopwithavengeance.blogspot.com/2008/07/affordable-mineral-makeup-giveaway.html for your chance to win.
Enter now for your chance to Affordable Mineral Makeup™
Topics: Affordable Mineral Makeup | No Comments »