When sweeping, the grit is being flipped along surface of the floor to an area and then picked up in a dust pan. At work or school, if you give the floor a "white glove test" (wipe with a white rag) after a wet mopping the glove/rag will be dirty. In other words a quick slinging of a wet mop across the floor will not remove all of the dirt. If your home floor is cared for in the same manner, it will not pass the "white glove test". I love a clean floor, socks don't get dirty, bare feet do not feel gritty and dirty. Dirt on socks or feet will transfer the dirt to the chair cushions, etc. if you tuck your feet up in the chair or sofa. Think about how dirty chair/sofa cushions will become if there are children running around on the floor and then getting on the furniture. Their little legs are too short to reach the floor in order to sit like adults.

Got reunited with CI a few years ago when I found 3 different size "name-brand" (Lodge, griswold, etc.) skillets for next to nothing at a yard sale. It took SEVERAL applications of oven cleaner to get the unknown GOOK off. I reseasoned like my Grandmother always did... HOT pan and a dab of bacon grease smeared all over... inside and out. As for cleaning, if cooking something "dry" like eggs... once pan was seasoned, only needed to be wiped out with paper towel. If something "wet"... scrape with metal spatula... HOT water, cheap salt and a scrubber. Then on burner till hot and another dab of BG. IMO, KEY to cast iron is USE IT!! I think it's easy to find... CHEAP at yard sales, thrift stores, flea markets... cuz it is HEAVY and some people think it's "old-fashioned"... they don't know what they're missing. When I first started "collecting" CI, stored several pieces in oven. Then noticed minor rust?? Figure from steam coming off whatever was cooking while pieces were sitting there. Just scrubbed it off, a little more BG... but I moved pieces to where I saw them everyday and then use them frequently.

Lukkiirish - not saying your's isn't but if someone put caulking on the trim and did not paint over the caulk, dirt and dust will stick to it like glue. When we installed new trim, we primed and painted two coats before the installation. Of course my carpenter had to caulk sunken nailheads and the cracks between wall and baseboards. It took me several months to do the "touch-up" painting over the caulk, so I know how sticky they can get. Clean-up is much easier after applying a nice semi-gloss paint. You have to make sure that every bit of the caulk is covered with paint. Tina, if I have the sweeper out, I clean the dust off baseboards with the round soft brush attachment. I also do the "tilt and swiffer" thing on the top of my baseboards and on the shoe mold. Sometimes, I "quick" sweep using an Old Cedar broom. The bristles are nice and soft (almost feathery on the tips) and I sweep the baseboard tops and crevices with it. There is just something about bathrooms and rooms close to bathrooms that seem to get dustier/lintier. I think it comes from towels, TP, hair and hair products, cosmetics, etc all mixed in with a little steam. A combination of hairspray and bathroom lint and fuzz makes for a very sticky floor! I use those microfiber pads that velcro on to the base a lot as well as my dry swiffers - just according to how much cleaning I intend to do. Swiffers are my life saver for quick-cleaning. When one get too dirty to be effective, I use it to clean under the furniture or the laundry room before I toss it. DOes anyone remember the old string dust mops? Those things were totally useless - all I did was chase dust bunnies around the house! I think that is why I appreciate swiffer sheets and microfleece pads. Tuesday

Urine, animal or human will turn copper green. Weird but true. When the parliament building in Victoria, Vancouver was built, they put on a copper dome. The government wanted it to be green before they dedicated the new building. They put the word out that they needed cow or human urine. The people of Victoria were happy to donate to the effort. When the building was dedicated, the dome was a beautiful green.