The Red White and Blue

I bought a new flag this year, placed it on a pole in front of our office window on Flag Day in June and I light it up every night as proper flag protocol dictates. I'm so proud of what it stands for ... the men and women who have fought and even died to keep it our proud symbol of a free nation. My prayer is that all Americans will appreciate it's true meaning. Perhaps we could each take a few minutes to share with our children or grandchildren the history of our Red, White and Blue. See a condensed version below.

Our flag carries American ideas, American history and American feelings. It is not a painted rag. It is a whole national history. It is the Constitution. It is the Government. It is the emblem of the sovereignty of the people. It is the NATION.
-Henry Ward Beecher, 1861

"From its controversial beginnings, the American flag has been an important part of our culture. It has survived over 200 years and two World Wars. The flag has evolved physically and symbolically in times of crisis and achievement. During the Vietnam War, the flag took on conflicting meanings that split the nation, and by the Gulf War, the flag was again a uniting force. September 11, 2001, the flag became a symbol of hope and pride. Though tattered and dirty flying above the rubble of the World Trade Center, it, like our country would prevail.

Unlike other countries, America only has two national symbols, the bald eagle and the American flag. While the bald eagle is internationally recognized, the American flag is a symbol known worldwide. The flag has been the inspiration for holidays, songs, poems, books, artwork and more. It has been used to show nationalism, rebellion and everything in between. The flag is so important that its history tells the story of America."

The Magic of Service

My daughter (also a business owner) and I were lamenting the fact that service in business seems to be a dying practice. For instance, my office phone line was slammed about three months ago by a carrier that provides my cell phone service. When I called to cancel it, they BLOCKED any outgoing long distance calls from my number! How incredibly foolish of them. I'm now considering another cell phone carrier after all the years I've been faithful to them. I established a new account with my FIOS provider, and they assured me within 24 hours I'd have my outgoing long distance line again. Wrong! 30 days later I was still without. It seems my order sat on someone's desk unattended for a month. After an hour and four operators later on the phone, I was again assured I now had new long distance service and they would "expedite" manually if necessary, the removal of the block on my line. Wrong again! A third attempt was made a day later and I'm still waiting to see if it "took". Many apologies were given, along with excuses, but what rotten service is that??? Our business has grown on service as an essential component. The customer may not always be right, but their opinion certainly carries a LOT of weight at Clean Reflections. We listen, we correct when necessary and more importantly we do everything imaginable to head complaints off at the pass. We screen our maids with national criminal background checks, they are given a personality screening as well to determine tendencies from punctuality to thievery with much in between. It's not foolproof, but at least we have a headstart on getting to know the character of those we hire. We also train on best industry techniques before anyone sets foot in a customer home or business. We take your concerns seriously. That's one reason we affiliated with SERVICE MAGIC who ran background checks on us just like we do our employees. They also required we show proof of bonding and insurance and only then were we admitted into their exclusive membership. Yep, we believe in old fashioned service. Don't believe me, just give us a try. You can check us out on our profile page at http://www.servicemagic.com/ too. Click on cleaning and maid service and you'll see us there.

Earth Day

Saturday April 17th is Earth Day! What enterprising person thought that up? And how far we've come since Colombus' day in 1492. Back then we thought we'd fall off the earth if we wandered too far from home. Now we celebrate it in all it's roundness while wandering all over it's surface yet cautioning ourselves to not take it for granted. A good idea I think and we at Clean Reflections are in a unique position to be aware since we are in the what I affectionately call the "chemical warfare" business. That's why we use only environmentally friendly products with rare exception. It started from a purely selfish motive I admit. We became highly sensitive to some common products that had bleach in them. We noticed a burning sensation in our throats and worse yet, the following day breathing was labored and we experienced a general sense of malaise. Not good in a labor intensive business! We figured if they weren't good for us, then we didn't want to expose our customers to them either. So, enjoy and celebrate Earth Day in your own way. Never mix bleach with ammonia and always use chemicals in a well ventilated area. Better yet, let our experts show you how new fangled products and equipment can customize a cleaning program for your home.

Spring has definitely Sprung

I heard from our daughter in Idaho today that it is SNOWING there! Not so in Texas ... at least for two weeks now. We did have a strangely late snow for one whole day in March and that was after some of the shrubs and trees had started putting on buds. We survived it though and it's now more like business as usual -- WARM. A good time for cleaning out one's garage (which we need to do in the worst way) or take care of touch up painting around the house (also something on my list) or just a plain old deep Spring cleaning. That means baseboards, pulling furniture away from the wall ... and might as well rearrange the contents of the room with those coaster-like slides while you're at it ... dust the ceiling fans, clean under, around and behind all things normally neglected; the treadmill, the television, the top of the fridge, the lint-y utility room and on it goes.

A friend of mine suggested Spring Cleaning is a hoax perpetuated on already overly busy women. I guess to keep us "off the streets and out of the pool halls" as my now deceased character of a father-in-law often joked. Who knows? But spring does inspire me to get up and DO more than any other season of the year. Perhaps with the greening of the trees and shrubs, and the first peek of the sun, I am motivated to think I can do it ... the days are longer.

If you however, still can't bring yourself to think about piling one more task on your shoulders, I hear and I understand. Give Clean Reflections a call. We can come only once or regularly ... whatever helps you the most. It's an easy number to remember too: 940-566-MAID! Happy spring to you!

Hearts and Flowers, Puppies and Kitties

We just passed a sweetheart's celebration ... Valentine's Day which I've always enjoyed. It's another opportunity to correspond with those dear friends we didn't get to at Christmas for one thing. And this year my sweetheart gets extra points for remembering to bring home a dozen long stemmed yellow roses with the sweetest card I think he's ever chosen for me.

Now that brings me to the house cleaning part. We all know that live flowers say "I love you" almost better than anything, but they do die and they drip in the process. I even resisted clipping off their stems of my beauties to draw more water because of the mess it makes while pulling them apart. Just keep in mind to place them on something that won't be harmed by damp babies breath buds or vase bottom. Pull out of the vase over the trash can when it's time to say goodbye to them and you're clean up will go much faster.

Other oddball things that go into the mix to create household dust would be: pet dander, soot from the fireplace and believe it or not dead skin cells (probably the biggest culprit) and of course just plain old dirt that seeps in when the door is opened or around windows not well sealed. Be sure to invest in placing a good scraper type fabric door mat at those well used entry doors. A good swipe of one's shoes over a mat goes a long way toward saving your floors from muddy scuffs.

I hope this helps. If you're still overwhelmed, give us a call. We're here to pitch in and help be it one time or on a regular basis. Our number is 940-566-MAID (6243). And all this applies to offices as well. My valentine to you!!

Dirt by any name is still Dirt

Isn't it fun to secretly gloat over someone else's dirt? I hate to admit that I enjoy seeing the cracks in someone's beautiful facade but it's a sad fact of life. We all try for that perfection whatever it is to each of us but alas no one will ever achieve it. In fact, I had a speaking coach suggest that when speaking before a group publicly to NOT look perfect ... allow an uneven hem, a turned collar or whatever so that audience members would focus on that imperfection rather than on my stumbles in speech. Crafty, but I can't say I allow that intentionally. It's the same with our homes. I like a picked up, clean house as much as the next housewife but don't get so picky that you can't truly live in your own home. Our dear Maids and night crews encounter just a few fortunately, but they do encounter those homeowners and building managers who appear to have attained masters' degrees in complaining. It's off-putting to say the least. So here in the wake of Thanksgiving ... while we still live in the grandest nation on earth, let's BE thankful we can hire someone to do what we don't have time nor inclination to do ourselves and give one another some slack. Call Clean Reflections if you're the current clean up person and are sick and tired of spending your time mopping up after all the others in your home or office. "We don't cut corners, we clean them!" Visit us online at www.cleanyoucansee.com anytime.

Aubergine, beautiful aubergine

Because I have my house cleaned every week, I can now focus on my achievements in the kitchen. I ordered a natural cookbook a few weeks ago having seen a segment on TV by the author. Because I want my husband and I to enter the 'golden years' in good health, I've been focusing more on organics and vegetables in cooking. Anyway, turns out the author is British. My roots are in Great Britain, in fact my grandparents landed here right off the boat, so I am grateful to the Brits for all they bring us. They do however, speak English a bit differently than do we. All measurements are in grams and liters ... so I Googled a conversion chart. Check, got that handled. Then flipping through the recipes I discovered some strange sounding food items. Ever hear of a "courgette"? Me neither. Back to Google. It's a zucchini; go figure. How about an "Aubergine" which I thought was a designer color. Well, it is that too, but it's an .... eggplant! That's a much prettier name than eggplant, isn't it?