On a somewhat related note...

I am way behind on my news because I have been working for days on getting my paperwork ready to submit to the state so they can allow me to homeschool my own kids again this year. Heaven forbid they actually trust parents and back the heck off. (Hey, can you tell that I'm resentful?)

At any rate, did you guys see this article in Seven Days about the problems that some people are having with the new water treatment at the Champlain Water District? Back in April, they replaced chlorine with a chlorine-ammonia compound called chloramines.

At least two dozen people have contacted the group [People Concerned About Chloramines] complaining of symptoms such as bloodshot eyes, rashes, burning skin, sinus and nasal congestion, coughing, wheezing and choking.

The change does not affect Burlington because we have our own treatment center, but this article is disturbing, not only for the symptoms that these people are experiencing, but also for the fact that the powers that be at CWD deny the link between their problems and the chloramines.

I totally understand the reason for chlorinating the water supply, but people really need to take some control over their own health and consider filtering it out, whether it's chloramines or old-fashioned chlorine.

We bought a shower filter for chlorine a while back after reading about the effects that the vaporized chlorine you breathe in and absorb through your skin in the shower can have on your body. The first time I showered with the new filter, I could actually breathe. All these years, I thought it was the steam making it hard to breathe, but it was the chlorine! Scary stuff.

My chlorine shower filter was only $50 and the filter is good for a year. I just looked on the website and it also filters out chloramines. Of course, I have to use another filter for my drinking water at an additional expense, but it still beats the $1500 system a woman in the article bought in terms of affordability.