You’re about to leave town. As you gather your self for the trip, you feel suddenly drained. Traveling always makes you unsettled.
You hate packing; maybe you’ll forget something? The chaos at the airport can be unnerving; you could end up on the wrong plane? The whole idea of flying makes you edgy, what if the airplane breaks down, in the sky! You know statistically it’s the safest way to travel; yet there you are again, a muddled mess.
A week ago in the heart of the West Village, the Urban Zen Foundation welcomed the return of functional medicine expert Mark Hyman, MD. The workshop focused on the fast emerging problem in America: obesity and diabetes. Dr. Hyman uses the term “Diabesity” to describe a condition that has become epidemic (nearly three out of four Americans are obese) with serious health consequences ranging from mild blood sugar imbalance to full-blown diabetes.
A few months back we ran a story about ways to create a stress-free home, and since then, I've been obsessing about my ever-growing pile of mail. I used to move it from surface to surface. (The typical journey was usually entryway bench to kitchen counter to living room coffee table to "to-be-filed" heap next to the file cabinet.) Now, a simple piece of metal has changed my whole life. This rocker key switch by Areaware screws over your switch plate and gives the mail (and your keys) a place to be. The best part is that it doesn't hold more than about 15 envelopes—so I'm forced to go through it every few days. No more messy piles—no more unnecessary stress.
Need more storage space? Here's how you can use a box–well, half a box–to take advantage of wasted storage space. You'll need a big box, I got one when my new desk chair arrived, the over-sized box was perfect.
1 Board games and puzzles fit well under the couch.
2 Need more places to store books? Try under the bed.
3 Out of season clothing, extra totes, and even shoes slide under the dresser.
4 To make a handle, start with an empty box.
5 Use a spare pet collar as the handle!
6 Thread the collar through the box, then close the clasp.
7 An instant handle the pull the box!
Karol's mom (left) with her friend Estelle
Last week I talked about what angels fun people are, and this week I want to introduce you to one of mine – the funniest mother I know. On September 23rd , my 87-year-old mother had open heart surgery. She got a new coronary artery from her left leg, and a new aortic valve from a pig – an idea she accepted without reservation because, in her words, “There’s no chance of rejection. I love pork.”
If you're primarily an outdoor runner or walker, the thought of turning to the treadmill for the winter can be enough to derail even the most dedicated exercise routine.
But say it with us: There's no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothes.
Even if it's cold, wet, or dusky, these pieces, featured in our November 2010 issue, will keep you on track all season. Read More...
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