Yes, I know that Winter just officially started so why I am talking about “Spring cleaning?”  We are spending much more time indoors right now and unfortunately it may not be in an environment that is that healthy.  As a Home Performance contractor we get to see quite a spectrum of sick houses out there.  Actually, since I am a bit more sensitive to the environments that I live in- most houses make me sick.  I have a bit congested tight now since I have been exposed to several sick environments within the last few days.

Since indoor air quality can be many times more polluted than the outdoor air we would like to give you a few tools to make a difference.  If you live in Atlanta, you are in luck.  There are more and more green cleaning services that are available for you to choose from.  One such company is A Peaceful Space.  We are fortunate enough to have them clean our office using non toxic cleaners.   Many of the chemicals that smell great, actually can do more harm than good because of the solvents that are in them.  These chemicals aka VOC’s should be avoided if possible.  There are cleaning agents that you can make yourself from non-toxic household items such as vinegar and baking soda.

Here are some green cleaning tips from A Peaceful Space: more…

OK- yes I know that I was drinking green tea a few weeks ago.  That is my daytime beverage of choice now.  Although I do link mint tea also.

A friend of mine (thanks Carol) was very thoughtful and gave me a bottle of wine a couple of weeks ago for hosting an event at our office.  Since I am a green builder, she pointed out that the wine was green also.  On the bottle it lists why it is sustainable:

• Locally owned and operated
• Grapes from the family farms
• Protecting the environment
• Earth- friendly packaging
• Carbon Neutrality
• Solar Power
• Taste great (I added that- I am drinking a glass right now just to verify that it is true)

Oh yeah- it is red wine which has it’s own list of health benefits as well.

Here is the website listed on the bottle: http://www.mendocinowinecompany.com/parducci_sustainability/

Post of comment if you know of any other green or organic foods that taste great also.

My 3 year old son just mailed a letter to Santa.  Got me thinking about old Saint Nick and if we was green or not.  For fun, let’s work through this and see how green he actually is.

1. He drives a hybrid.  Reindeer that magically fly around.  Since he mysteriously get’s to all of the the rooftops in the world overnight I am assuming that there is some teleporting reindeer that we have not heard about as well.
2. Zero Carbon Footprint. His reindeer do not run on fossil fuels.
3. His elves make their the gifts. At least they use to.  I am assuming that the wood used is FSC certified for my son’s rocking horse.
4. He eats organic food. Not too sure about this one.  Since he take a bite out of roughly 800 million cookies, he is not setting a good example about maintain proper body mass.

Let’s have fun with this.  What else makes Santa green?

Log in a post your suggestions for why Santa is green.

I used to drink at least 3 to 4 cups of coffee a day.  I started drinking coffee regularly when I was in the Marine Corps.  I was full time active duty and part time in school at night also.  I needed the extra caffeine to stay alert for work and my studies.

Recently, with the stress of owning a company and my body’s reaction to so much caffeine, I dropped down to 1 cup a week.  Since I am a green builder I decided that I should give green tea a chance.  (Just trying to support the other green businesses) My stomachaches and heart burn have dramatically decreased as my energy levels and awareness have increased.  I did a little research on green tea to see why this was the case.

First of all green tea has been used as a medicine in China for over 4,000 years.  Many studies have shown that drinking green tea lowers total cholesterol levels, as well as improving the ratio of good (HDL) cholesterol to bad (LDL) cholesterol.  Some of the other medical conditions that green tea has been helpful in alleviating cancer, rheumatoid arthritis, high cholesterol levels, cardiovascular disease, infection, and impaired immune function.

I feel much better and my stomach feels better as well since green tea is not as acidic as coffee.  I still get to enjoy my weekly cup of Joe without the dependence on the caffeine from it.  Green tea still has a little caffeine in it, but not as much as coffee or even black tea (which is just fully mature green tea leaves.)

For more information on green tea visit: the world’s healthiest foods