Glam Spirit: Living in the moment is the only way to really feel alive. Ever find yourself checking out or going on autopilot? All of a sudden awakening to the moment and discovering you don’t remember anything about your walk to the store or your drive to work. Just a little scary! Rebecca reminds us in this thought provoking post that mother nature has a way of making us mindful. Even if it means almost getting blown off the road.

Zen Habits: How can you ensure 2008 will be your best year yet? Leo over at Zen Habits offers 7 tried and true essential tips to achieving goals and creating a positive lifestyle. My favorite tip: focus on happiness. Making an effort to stay positive and give to others is the best way to truly be happy and most importantly stay happy.

FitSugar: Get in killer shape by working up a sweat with your favorite person, your sweetheart. Kickboxing with your significant other is a fun way to burn tons of calories and probably get out some frustration. Tori Spelling is just one of the starlets who’s trying it.

Life Organizer: De-clutter to de-stress. There is nothing more stressful than coming home from a long day at work to find your house in total chaos, knowing that it’s just one more thing you need to make time for. Not to mention, all that unorganized stuff makes it even harder to find what you need (like a clean pair of socks when you’re already late for work), creating more tension. Set aside one whole day or perhaps a weekend to organize with some great tips from lifeorganizers.com. Once an item has a set place in your home it makes it that much easier to put it back. This site offers all you’ll need room by room to declutter and stay organized.

Yeah! Christmas is almost here! The season of giving is upon us and what better way to show your friends and family you care then by giving health conscious, green gifts? Here are a few great green gift guides (say that ten times fast) for all of your shopping needs!

Treehugger.com: Just released their 2007 holiday gift guide for all things earth friendly. Their annual guide “Shades of Green” allows you to pick light, medium and dark “green” gifts based on the type of person your looking for. For the yoga fiend, gifts range from the light green bamboo yoga block, to the dark green organic Simple shoe line. For the epicurean, great choices range from the light green Oceana cookie cutters, to the dark green Ecopod recycling center. Treehugger’s guide is thorough and simply awesome!!

Gaiam.com: Has recently expanded their Fair Trade initiative offering more fabulous fair trade goods from around the world. Categories cover it all from jewelry, to fitness gear, to clothing, to bedding, to home decor. Why shop fair trade? Because fair trade shopping empowers artisans with livable wages, skills training and sustainable business development, while helping to break the cycle of poverty. Gaiam is a company, similar to Amazon in structure, which offers all sorts of products to support wellness and healthy living. So if you don’t find anything in the fair trade section, check out their other products, which are fantastic eco-conscious options.

Christmas is without a doubt my favorite time of year, but it’s also the most wasteful time of year. With all the boxes, wrapping, multiple trips to the mall, and unwanted gifts, we create a giant amount of waste and CO2. This season reduce your impact with these tips:

1. Shop Online: Reducing your trips to the mall or around town cuts CO2 emissions. Buying from one company, like Amazon, in one delivery, reduces how many trucks or planes are involved. You can also reuse the delivery boxes for your gift-wrapping needs instead of buying boxes. Plus buying online is easier, offers millions of options, and is a lot of times cheaper!

2. Go Without Gift Wrap: Wrap your gifts in things like scarves or cute reusable bags or totes. If you need gift-wrap, stay away from plastic bags/wraps and stick to paper that you can save and reuse or simple recycle.

3. Forget The Box: How many gifts have you given that really don’t need to be put in a box? Reduce your waste by either choosing to wrap a gift in only a box or only paper. You definitely don’t always need both.

4. Give Usable Gifts: So many times we find ourselves scrambling at the last minute and end up buying a bunch of useless crap that no one will ever use. Plan ahead this season and reduce waste by giving gifts that you know your loved ones will enjoy for years (and not throw away!).

So give the gift of wellness while helping to reduce your impact! Happy shopping!

I am a huge fan of several of HGTV’s design shows, but I always wondered why Feng Shui was never utilized or talked about. Feng shui, the ancient art of placement, has become extremely popular in the West over the last 5-10 years, so it’s about time home and garden programs caught on.

Well, at last all of us feng shui lovers out there can get some great inspiration and tips from HGTV’s Fun Shui design show. The show aires on Friday at 9:30pm… can you say horrible time slot… but you can still get some awesome tips from the Fun Shui website. Here is an excerpt from their Home Office Feng Shui Dos and Don’ts:

Dos:

• Place your desk in the power spot, the area directly opposite the door.
• Add sensual objects and artwork to inspire resourcefulness and productivity.
• Bring in rounded shapes and move sharp-edged furniture out of the traffic flow.
• Add healthy plants, which are beneficial to counter-balance the effects of electrical equipment.
• Create a filing and storage system that is clearly labeled and easy to use.

Don’ts:

• Sit in the line of energy coming in through the door.
• Hang uninspiring or mismatched artwork.
• Paint the room in drab colors.
• Use broken or uncomfortable office chairs.
• Pile up paperwork or create clutter and disorganization.
• Sit with your back toward the office door. If you must, hang a mirror to see behind you.

The Fun Shui website also offers an interactive floor plan where you can learn quick tips for changing your space to improve certain aspects of your life. Like how to spice up your love life…

To learn all their is to know about feng shui and how it can benefit your life pick up some of these awesome books that go more indepth.

Mark your calendars! On November 9th, 10th and 11th is the annual Green Festival in San Francisco!

I was only able to attend the Sunday of last years festival and was amazed at the power of the green movement. All I remember was walking in to find hundreds of exhibits on just about anything you could ever want to know about being “green”. I felt so inspired just milling around the booths. With so many people, organizations, and companies all working together to make our world a better place, it made me want to run home and change every light bulb, start a compost bin, and even wear hemp clothes! (Well maybe I didn’t go that far) But, if you have the time and live in the area it is a definite must see festival.

Oh yeah and did I mention the keynote speakers. Just buying an admission ticket gets you in to hear some of the most revered people in the industry and for that matter the world.

Here’s the list of top speakers:

1.) Paul Hawken: environmentalist, entrepreneur and author, brings to light the worldwide grassroots movement of hope and humanity that exists across cultural and geographic boundaries.

2.) Dr. Andrew Weil: integrative medicine expert and bestselling author, answers pressing questions regarding the profound interactions of the environment and our health.

3.) Dr. Deepak Chopra!!!: Acknowledged as one of the world’s greatest leaders in the field of mind/body medicine, Dr. Deepak Chopra continues to transform our understanding of the meaning of health in his special event The Environment as Our Extended Body.

And that’s not all people…You can enjoy more than 125 visionary speakers and 400 green exhibits, practical how-to workshops, great green holiday shopping, community networking, delicious organic food, beer and wine—sample from a variety of green breweries and wineries, and live music and entertainment from more than 18 local artists.

All for only $25 for a weekend pass, $15 for a day pass!!! It’s going to be awesome!
For more information and to buy tickets check out their website: www.greenfestivals.org

If you’re in the process of looking for a new job or hoping for that big promotion, up your odds by making your home ready to accept opportunity. The front door is the mouth of chi flow, where chi travels in and out of the home. To make sure opportunities come knocking on your door it’s essential to welcome chi with a clutter free, noticeble entrance.

The ideal pathway to your front door is wider at the street end and narrower at the door, creating a gentle curve. If your path is stick straight chi will flow too quicly, so place some flowers or a windchime near the front stoop to slow down the flow. Make sure to keep trees and shrubs pruned and move all other obstacles, like toys, recycling bins, etc… otherwise you may feel like your life is an obstacle course.

For apartment dwellers who don’t have a walk-up path, try painting your door a bright, standout color to attract chi. Also make sure to always use the front door to access your home, otherwise opportunity will not know where to knock. Replacing or fixing your house/apartment number will also clear up any confusion as to where opportunity should arrive.

Making these subtle changes to your entry way may bring that job to you. Happy job hunting!

For more feng shui basics and fast feng shui books click here.