Dust: What is it Anyway?

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Whether you believe in the Bible and its promise of ashes to ashes and dust to dust, or if you are just not that good a housekeeper, dust is still a problem. It is there and just like Edmund Hilary climbed Mt Everest for that very reason, dust is here to stay. It will not go away; no matter how many subtle (or not so subtle) hints you give it. At least an unwanted guest will leave, and as Groucho Marx once said, “never darken your towels again,” if kicked in the butt enough times. Even a feather duster won’t help because in the blink of an eye, the dust is back again to cause you grief and disruption.

What is dust and what does it want? (We pay our taxes. Shouldn’t there be some law against it? There is for everything else!) According to Wikpedia, dust is a general name for minute solid particles with a diameter of less than 500 micrometers. Better known as finely divided matter, the dust, which collects in houses is composed of atmospheric dust combined with that generated by the house’s inhabitants. It comes mostly from sloughed skin cells and can easily be removed with a broom, dusting cloth, vacuum cleaner or the tender swipe of one’s hand.

Air filters and purifiers are technology’s answer for removing dust particles even though they never asked the question in the first place. Ionization traps them very effectively as do vacuum cleaners. The problem however, is that many of these appliances produce a certain amount of pollution in the form of ozone, which can be harmful. Dusting may also make particles airborne when they would have been happier staying where they were. This can make them malicious and sometimes dangerous. Try opening a window and sending them to your neighbor’s house. Allow a breeze to blow through, but remember to put away all your important papers first.

Watch out for those dust mites and generally express regret for all the dust that is in the world today. But cheer up. You can always copy the epitaph that writer, Dorothy Parker chose to put on her grave.

EXCUSE MY DUST!

How is the dust situation at YOUR house? Whatever you do, don’t send it over to mine!