by Wendy J. Miller
According to The New York Times, The Globe and Mail, and the scientific journal Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics, we are living in a cloud of dust and have a dust problem. I could have told them that!
Apparently, the amount of airborne dust doubled in the 20th century, and cleaning can have an unintended consequence - it actually breeds dust. I could have told them that, too!
Charlie Brown's buddy, Pig Pen, was the first to self actualize the cloud of dust he was living in. I didn't realize the impact dust had until I left my Mother's constantly clean home and found that my dark brown furniture became a soft gray colour over time.
So what is the problem, really? Cleaning is one of the three main sources of household dust. Cooking is second, and movement is the third. Every step disturbs tiny particles of dirt, fibre, soot, pollen, paint, food and dead skin. And as soon as you move anything (even a TV remote), you induce air currents that propel dust particles around the room.
Those of you who know me personally know that cleaning and cooking are not sources of dust in my home. Moving the TV remote, however, is a big contributor as I go through life emitting my personal cloud of dust.
But don't sweat the small stuff. It continues to grow until you have something large enough to weave into a melton jacket suitable for winter wear. There you go, something positive that can come from dust!
