Green Living by Janet Marchant: A Heartfelt, Green Tribute to the Greenest Journalist I Know

Oh, I was just so excited when I found out that Roger Grumbel is editing the Alameda Daily Noose this week! I thought, "How can I rise to the occasion and write a special column to celebrate Roger's return from retirement?" Then it hit me: recycling! Roger loves to recycle old items by running them again in the pages of the Alameda Daily Noose, so in the spirit of Roger Grumbel, I am re-running one of my best columns from a time when Roger was the regular editor of the noosepaper. When you're done re-reading it, I'm sure you'll agree that this week feels just like old times!

Green Living by Janet Marchant: Green Spring Cleaning

In Spring, a person's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of cleaning. But wait! Before you pull the trigger on that bottle of spray cleaning solution, have you read the label? I've read a lot of labels in the course of my in-depth green living research, and let me tell you, some of the things on those labels are scary! For your own peace of mind, take a look at what's in your cleaning closet. If you see yucky-sounding words like "Chlorinated phenols" or "Perchloroethylene" on your usual cleaning products, it could be time for a change.

When you see a label like that, immediately remove it from the container of cleaning product. Then, cut out the Green Cleaning label below, and tape it onto the container where the old label was.
Presto! No more scary words. By the way, you might also want to write in a description of what the product is for, so that you don't accidentally wash your clothes in bleach, or Armor All your carpet instead of shampooing it.

Once you get those nasty labels out of your life, you'll rediscover the joy of cleaning with a clear conscience. So come on, everyone, and let's do some green washing!