It’s that time again.  Spring is here (even though we had snow in Nebraska last week) and it is time to initiate spring housecleaning.  I think spring cleaning is a process and should be conducted at two levels or stages.   Well, Level One was accomplished on Saturday.   The objective of Level One is to clear out the clutter in the house and sell everything I possibly can at our spring garage sale.  It is so much easier to maintain a clean house and control the nanobugs if the dust collectors and knick-knacks are kept to a minimum.  Five individuals/ households contribute to our semi-annual garage sales.  We have a few rules: one day only (8-4), sell low to get rid of it all, donate the useable items left over and trash the rest.  The current economy contributed to one of our best garage sales this time.  Every paying customer and every child received a nanobugs temporary tattoo and the nanobug-adorned VW Beetle parked out front stimulated a lot of good questions about the business. 

Interestingly, lots of men were buying items usually purchased by women.  They were not buying early for Mother’s Day gifts.  Turns out they were buying tools and materials to facilitate their gainful employment.  Two guys were painters and were buying fabric remnants (cotton) for painting rags.  One young man bought used pillows and “batting” along with his fabric remnants in dark colors – he makes dog beds to supplement income. And 2 Hispanic men purchased a Wolfgang Puck hot plate (“stove”) to use in their motel rooms to prepare their meals when they travel around with their jobs. 

The women seemed to be pretty traditional in their purchases but I did find one artistic woman buying chipped bright colored dishes to take home and break in order to make a mosaic.  And one pregnant woman and her husband bought an antique dresser to adapt into a changing table for their baby.

By dusk on Saturday, the garage sale event was over, the mess was cleaned-up and we discovered some sunburn along with the usual exhaustion.  But it is so good to know that this unique method of exchanging items benefited so many and brought laughter, smiles and  fellowship as we burned a “boat-load” of calories in the 12 hours of  moving, loading and packing all the stuff as it changed hands.
 
Now I am ready for Level Two of the spring cleaning process. 

Today I want to publicly thank those generous people who, at some time or another, planted tulip, daffodil, jonquil and/or hyacinth bulbs in Lincoln!  Thank you - for planting it forward!  As I drive down the street, I can't help but notice the gorgeous vivid living color displays of these spring flowers.  They justify my slow travel speed (that's right, I drive under the speed limit these days) and take my mind off the price of gasoline.  The beauty of these flowers helps me stay "in the now" or "in the moment" but sometimes I catch myself wondering how the planter (either last fall or years before) decided which kind of bulbs to bury in the dirt or which colors would get the most attention.  On occasion, I attempt to select a favorite color, flower or scheme.  Then I realize my job is to observe and enjoy this beauty without worrying about how many more days these gorgeous flowers will be in their annual prime - reflecting sunlight and making me smile. 

In the past,  I have taken my grandchildren around town on May Day with disposable cameras and instructions to photograph their favorite signs of spring.  Unable to limit their selection to a few favorites, they took many many shots of the grandeur.  Didn't matter; they learned photography skills and we had a great outdoor experience thanks to God and someone planting it forward.

I suspect you are tired of hearing about global warming.  We are inundated these days with so much shocking scientific data, celebrity campaigning and down right - fear mongering.  But I want to put my "two cents worth" in on this topic.  Some of my friends and relatives say that I relate EVERYTHING to infection and the adverse outcomes it produces - maybe so.  But I want you to know that global warming causes more infectious disease in the world - especially those diseases spread by vectors (insects and mosquitoes).  Rising temperatures around the world is a surprising but significant contributor to an increase in infectious diseases.  The number of insects that carry disease can increase and these vectors which thrive in warmer areas will relocate to new areas which have warmed up.  So vector-borne diseases like malaria, encephalitis, Dengue fever may increase in number and expand their geographic area of destruction.  Malaria is found in >100 countries now.  As temps rise, the mosquitoes that carry malaria, may spread to new areas like Scandinavia and the UK where it is currently too cold to support them.  More than 900,000 Africans die each year of malaria - most of them children.  We should also consider the morbidity malaria causes - I don't think those statistics are computed but malaria causes a terrific infection with pounding headache, fever and chills, muscle aches, back ache, vomiting, and diarrhea.  So many people around the globe survive the infection but are very ill feel like they are dying - 2-4 times a year! 

As temps increase - so does the number of people who get infectious diseases.  Example: cases of Dengue fever are projected to double with an increase of 3.6 degrees F.

In North America, we tend to think of these infectious diseases as "someone else's problem" but they may be coming to our neighborhood soon.  .....................I thought you should know.

Ok. It's been a week now since Earth Day.  Are there any sustained changes in your lifestyle?  I did find out that Earth Day started 38 years ago.  Before Earth Day, I can remember the "Don't be a Litterbug" Campaign in the 1960's.  Before that effective national campaign, we would (without guilt) just roll down the window in the moving automobile and throw out our Kleenex tissue, soda bottle, chewing gum wrappers, whatever.  Hard to believe, isn't it?   When I was in Africa in 2000, I was shocked to see everyone throwing litter on the ground.  Granted, they had far less "disposables" per person but there were so many people without environmental consciousness that the litter was noticeable - especially to me.  I organized a 2 clean-up campaigns for the children in my community that year to teach environmental respect and principles of sanitation.   It was "a big hit".  We spent a designated Saturday collecting paper and other trash in wheelbarrows.  The waste management method was either open burning or digging big holes and burying items.  There were consequences to both but they were better than littering and negligence.  These clean-up days ended with mass handwashing with powdered laundry soap and a tub of "clean" water from the well.   Then it was time for popcorn and Kool Aid - the favorite snack of children and adults. 

Well, we've come a long way - not many "litterbugs" around any more and now there are families, groups and organizations which "adopt" highways and clean up after the disrespectful minority.  Still we have a long way to go and we need more than one day in April each year to fulfill our responsibility to the Earth and our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.  The changes needed are pretty simple but everyone must join in with sustained engagement.  You can't do it all but pick something(s) and get going and keep it going: walk or ride a bicycle instead of driving short distances; when a light bulb burns out, replace it with one of those "kinky" low-energy bulbs; wash your dishes by hand one day a week and recycle your paper, plastic, cans and bottles.  And please don't whine and complain about these contributions.  If we don't take care of this Earth - where are we gonna live?  

Today is Earth Day.  I don't know how many years we have been recognizing this day but it seems to have grown into a meaningful reminder for us of our responsibility to maintain this planet.  I have recently been researching about "Living Green" concepts in preparation for my upcoming articles on Green Spring Cleaning.  Today's Oprah Show had many good suggestions for recycling, cleaning green and living in ways that will help shrink our carbon footprint.  I do have some concerns about reusable grocery bags.  I, too, use reusable grocery bags which I keep in my car so they are always ready for use.  But the suggestion of keeping them in your trunk might be a mistake- depending upon the cleanliness of your trunk (or "boot" if you are in UK).  Those bags are filled at the store, loaded into the trunk of the car and then taken directly to the kitchen counters.  Later, sandwiches are often prepared on that surface without cleaning it.  Now, I am not suggesting that countertops be sterile or high-level disinfected like we do in the hospital - but one must consider these potential sources of contamination and act accordingly.  I think it is wise to keep the reusable bags in the car - but in a clean place - either inside the cabin or the trunk but not where they can be walked on by kids and dogs. Bags should be routinely cleaned.  And the countertops cleaned after groceries are unloaded and before meal preparation.  There is a commercial on TV for an "antibacterial" product that dramatically demonstrates the need for cleaning countertops.  It shows a housewife wiping the countertop with a piece of raw chicken.   Hopefully, it is hard to watch and will remind us of the need for cleaning countertops in food preparation areas.  But hot soapy water is enough - no sense adding all those chemicals.  But that is a whole other story I will save for later.......................    Anyway, Happy Earth Day!