Clean Hands Spritz

Yield: 1 ounce

2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon plain aloe vera or lemon witch hazel
1/8 teaspoon tea tree oil
24 drops of essential oils of lavender, lemon, cinnamon, peppermint and/or thyme (use 2 or more for good action and a
balanced aroma, and also because these oils are potent).
4 drops of grapefruit seed extract

Mix all the ingredients in a 1-ounce glass spray bottle (available at natural food stores and online or reuse a bottle that something else came in).

Shake well before using.

Spray 2 or 3 times on dirty hands and rub them together.

Note: Use this to sanitize hands on the go. It has an indefinite shelf life. Add a handwritten label for a nice touch—use an address label or simply tape one on with clear shipping tape. Give bottles of this spritz as gifts during the winter holidays or when colds and the flu are rampant. —Easy Green Living by Renee Loux

More than a whispering...

I know that I felt a hint of fall in the air a few weeks ago before there were any signs, at all.
Now, I am sure that autumn is lurking, even as we try to celebrate the last summer holiday, Labor Day. Earlier, the rainy days came and were followed by clear and sunny ones with no humidity. The oaks are starting their long process of dropping leaves and my show-off Japanese maple is shifting to a brighter red. Still, we will be a bit in denial as we drag out the BBQ and hot dogs, trying to believe that the warm sun is still a summer one.
I should be sad, but I look actually look forward to the beautiful brights and tawny tones of this coming season. Hiking, actually walking, in the Rollins Savanna near my house gives me the full, fall experience with the high grasses, dried and tanned by the sun, sky-high, yellow flowers—prairie dock, late sunflowers—that fall scent of so much green turning to crunchy brown—gravel underfoot, birds flitting, swooping or riding high. It is the full 360 degree show of autumn. Enjoy the long, sultry weekend and what’s to come.