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    “Dry Clean Only” (Don’t Believe Everything You Read)

    As I was doing my laundry yesterday, most of which I line-dried, I thought about the fact that I have not been to the dry cleaner in nearly a decade. This is one of the small things I have chosen in order to be a little kinder to the environment.

    Some of my clothes, especially things I bought several years ago, say “dry clean only.”  This includes knits made of wool, tencel, modal, or rayon (all of which are natural fibers) and linen and silk unconstructed clothing.  All of these do fine with hand washing (or on the gentle cycle in the washing machine) and being hung up to dry (this also applies to cotton, button-down shirts).   Of course, if it doesn’t say to dry clean then you definitely don’t need to dry clean.

    Always believed the label?  How was clothing made of natural fibers cleaned before there was such a thing as a dry cleaner?  Think they look better or it is easier to get them dry cleaned?  Think about the solvents, the plastic, the energy for the cleaning method, and whether you drive to the dry cleaners.  Then make a decision.

    Most things do not need to be cleaned by use of poisonous solvents (just because a solvent is “organic” or “natural” doesn’t mean it is good for the environment) and then wrapped in non-recyclable plastic to take home (many dry cleaners will take back the hangers, but will say they need to use the plastic wrap because their premises are too dusty for your clothes to stay clean outside the plastic wrapper).

    So look for clothes that say “gentle wash, line dry” instead of “dry clean only.”  If it says “dry clean only” think about whether it really applies.  It will not apply for a wool sweater, most knits, or unlined clothes.  A business suit — yes, it won’t keep its shape unless you dry clean.  Do you really need to wear a business suit?  Will a choice not to wear a suit impact whether some people think you are truly “professional”?  Possibly.  If you decide you need to wear a suit regularly, how many times can you wear it before taking it to the dry cleaners?

    PS.  Don’t experiment with things that are new and expensive.  Try it on older clothes and discover whether you need to believe everything you read.

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    State of the Garden (and Samtulana)

    The grapes are not nearly as bountiful as last year.  The first 90F week was too early and sudden, which blasted dozens of newly formed grapes.  And then it was too wet and cool.  The few figs dried before ripening.  But it was a great spring for kale and chard, and the cherry tomatoes are pretty happy.  That the weather makes some things happier and some less happy is a tangible reminder why mono-cultures are so risky a venture.  One of the greatest gifts I get from the “failures” in my edible garden is gratitude.  I am reminded of how fortunate I am that the only repercussions of something not growing or producing well is that I have to buy more produce at the farm market or the grocery store.

    The rains and now the heat are  wondrous lovely for the mosquitoes.  Here’s me dressing for a morning’s work in the garden. You might laugh, but I only got two bites in over three hours in the garden, which included watering.  It likely would have been at least a dozen in loose trousers or shorts and a t-shirt.  This is also the outfit of choice when hiking in the woods filled with deer and mice and lyme-disease bearing ticks.

    garden 1a

    garden 1b

     

     

     

     

    I picked the marigolds yesterday to put on the altar.  The puja card of the day was “balance” or “samtulana.”  It was a perfect concept to meditate on for the day because little brings me back into balance better than spending a few hours gardening, and I’ve been feeling off-kilter.

    garden 1c

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Uma, of course, was there to lend moral support.

    garden 1d

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The “before” picture gives some idea of how simultaneously overgrown from the rains and heat-blasted from the past week everything was.

    garden 1e

     

     

     

    The “after” picture doesn’t reflect as much as I would like how much of a difference three and a half hours of weeding, deadheading, clipping, rearranging, harvesting, feeding, and watering made.  When I got hungry, I just picked sun-warmed, just ripened grapes and then got back to work.  Lunch, of course, emphasized contributions from the garden.

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