Am I some sort of environmentalist?

Well, yeah, sort of. In fact, when it comes to doing laundry, I have done quite a  bit of research and trial and error. Yes, in the Holdraker house I do the laundry. I also order all supplies for the home, including dog and cat food and medicines, paper towels, napkins, toilet paper etc. We keep on hand months/weeks of assorted items. My motto, never run out!

Okay, back to laundry supplies. I am anti-plastic whenever possible. When the new revolutionary laundry sheets arrived, I tried almost all of them. Just toss in a sheet and it dissolves into some sort of laundry detergent.

They are all but practically worthless. Most are made in China and have dubious ingredients. The same with the fabric softeners and dryer sheets.

The quasi-new liquid pods cannot deny they have a certain amount of plastic surrounding their ingredients that has not been proven to create micro-plastics in our water supplies.

Late to the environmental thing was Proctor and Gamble, who introduced their version ECO30, with a series of home cleaning products, including laundry, that are "green" and free of harsh chemicals. Their cleaning pads are good, but way too expensive.

So, what is a happy homemaker like me going to do? First, the scores of laundry sheets simply do NOT clean clothes to my satisfaction. Some homeowners are fooled thinking their clothes are clean.

 Yes, you can buy liquid Tide, or whatever, but you still deal with the fact that you are buying a good percentage of water.

Powdered detergents come in cardboard boxes that are recyclable and the best buy for the buck. That seems to be contrary to common thinking for an environmentalist type of guy, but facts are facts.

You simply cannot escape with totally ‘green’ products with today’s technology.

Also, pods, sheets, whatever that claim to possess fabric softening attributes are scratched from this home. They simply are inadequate. Quality liquid fabric softeners are the best...ARGGH!

The same goes with toilet bowl cleaners, body washes, shampoos and assorted soaps.

To be a clean quasi-environmentalist, some plastic use is still necessary, but try using products in industry desirable recyclable containers.

We recycle as much as possible. By the way, pizza boxes definitely are recyclable, but for crying out loud, take all the leftovers and other crap out before recycling.

Beyond Ronnie homemaker...

A reader reminded me that grass clippings distributed from lawn mowers to roads are dangerous, especially to motorcyclists.

In the upcoming weeks I will describe in detailed story form how this home went from all RG&E (NYSEG) dependent to an almost purely electric house that cut utility bills by way more that half.

Okay, now back to politics.

Regular readers know I started out as a Republican, but could not fathom the Parties god-devotion of former President Donald Trump. I watch/read hours upon hours of news daily and question some media’s presentations. I have learned to sort out and research facts from fiction and express those in this column, separate from the rest of the paper. You can only do that when you are independent from outside incursions.

I know I reside in a quasi-right county, but that has not stopped me from taking shots at both the left and the right.

For example:

This week Trump has abandoned his take on mail-in vote states and now encourages voters to mail early. His latest move has resulted in losing some prestige even in Republican circles.

Meanwhile President Biden has waffled on border control, student loan surprises, China and support for Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu.

Meanwhile, Republicans claim Biden’s latest ploy for border control is too little, too late, but months ago Trump squashed any meaningful border policies, hoping to delay any such positive move by both Republicans and Democrats working together...at least until after the election.

Meanwhile Trump claims the legal system is rigged, especially due to his 34 felony convictions in New York. This, while calling for Biden’s son Hunter’s head through the very same system.

and more...

Decline in local news outlets is accelerating despite efforts to help...

NEW YORK — The decline of local news in the United States is speeding up despite attention paid to the issue, to the point where the nation has lost one-third of its newspapers and two-thirds of its newspaper journalists since 2005, according to an article in the Boston Globe by writer David Bauder.

An average of 2.5 newspapers closed each week in 2023 compared to two a week the previous year, a reflection of an ever-worsening advertising climate, according to a Northwestern University study issued Thursday. Most are weekly publications, in areas with few or no other sources for news.

Thankfully, that is not the case with the Times of Wayne County. We are healthy and very stable. It wouldn’t hurt to buy a subscription, or encourage friends and families, to subscribe.

Finally, congratulations to Don Alhart, who retired from ABC Channel 13WHAM last week after 58 years in local broadcasting. I met Don when we interviewed him after becoming a 13WHAM news partner. 

His personality and likability is the same as his on-air persona.