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Going Green

Like most people these days, we have made an effort to reduce our "carbon footprint" and to, generally, find healthier ways to live. We buy organic food as much as we can (i.e. what we can afford) and use the car as seldom as possible. We replaced our toilets with water efficient ones, we got a tankless hotwater heater, we got a digital thermostat, we use canvas shopping bags and non-toxic cleaning products.

I am totally in favour of all of these changes but I will admit there are a few things I really miss. One is my favorite perfume that I wore religiously for years: Angel by Thierry Mugler. I love, love, love the scent but was getting increasingly uneasy wondering what kind of crap was actually in it. According to info I found through a Google search, some very, very bad crap. That, in addition to the fact that it is now politically incorrect to wear heavy scents thanks to all the (annoying) people who have sensitivities, finally convinced me to give it up. The crystal bottle remains hidden in my underwear drawer because I cannot bear to throw it away. Now I wear all natural perfume oil (vanilla) and body lotion (lavender) from Whole Foods. It's just not the same.

I also miss regular hairspray. I will admit, due to my fine, curly hair, I am a hairspray junkie. But it did start to concern me that I was inhaling toxins everytime I sprayed it. So I switched to an all natural one from the health food store. Frankly, it does nothing. Today I found a bottle of my old favorite under the sink in the downstairs washroom. Feeling as guilty as if I was secretly snorting coke, I spritzed my lid a few times. Oh glorious hair product! I am having the first good hair day since...well since I started using the all natural stuff. Now I'm feeling rather ambivalent...do I go back to the wonderfully effective toxic product or stick with the useless all natural stuff? I think I'll have to sleep on it.

The other thing I miss is plug in air fresheners. They work so well! Too bad they are incredibly carcinogenic. But as someone who is often trying to get rid of strong cooking smells (curry smell can linger for 3 days!!), I lament the end of the plug in air freshener era. The grapefruit oil spray from the health food store just doesn't work as well.

I may get struck down by lightening for saying this, but humans DO make some things better than nature. They just have some nasty and unfortunate side effects...

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