Lifestyle

A hearty "Haha" or fit of laughter may just be the key to a happier and healthier life. By: Kammie Daniels LuxEco Editorial Assistant A person must smile nearly a quarter of a million times to create one wrinkle. 15 seconds of laughter alone can add two days to your life span. One hearty chuckle burns over three calories. In today’s image and age-conscious society, where children want to grow up, adults want to hit the rewind button, and those in their twenties are considered to be in the "prime of their life", modern research is revealing that laughter is much more than just funny business.

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant The hot sand between your toes, the refreshing cool water splashing against your legs, the high sun warm on your face. Summer is approaching fast and the beaches beckon us in all their golden glory. But before you rush off in your swimsuit, take the necessary precautions to make sure you have a safe celebration of this season.

By Galen Crawley's, author of A Path To Survival Against All Odds and LuxEco Advocate In 1979, the British colonization of Zimbabwe came to an end under Ian Smith. After sustained social unrest, the ZANU party, led by Robert Mugabe, came to power. Initially, there was a pervading sense of optimism as this charismatic, highly intelligent individual began to educate the country. In the 1980’s, the economy was growing and Zimbabwe was the breadbasket of Africa. Unfortunately, what began as a democracy became a dictatorship. During the 90’s the Zimbabwe spiraled into decline. At the beginning of the millennium, the Land Reform Programme was initiated. The white farmers, who fueled the economy with their tobacco and food production, were brutally kicked out. It was the beginning of mass starvation, hyper-inflation, and when the diamond fields were found, murder and torture.

by Mary Elizabeth Williams-Villano, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Approximately one billion Valentine cards are sent worldwide each year, making Valentine's Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year behind Christmas. One billion. How many trees does that represent? Perhaps you ought to reconsider. By LuxEco Editorial Assistant Mary Elizabeth Williams-Villano

By: Joanna Bateman, Luxeco Editorial Assistant I’m a mid-west girl who recently moved west to California to spread my wings and fly. And if it weren’t for this past August, I’d be one stressed-out-Sally in the big sea of crazy known as Los Angeles. I needed to ground myself so that I didn’t float away in La La land. I needed Yoga camp!

By Bernadette Bowman, Comedienne and LuxEco Advocate who writes the LIFE GOES RETROGRADE series. My apologies for being a few days late with my third...

By Nancy and James Chuda founders of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World Travels with Journey, The Hallmark Inn Davis, California "The capacity for hope is...

By Lacey Szczepanik, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant I have two beautiful pet babies; Diggs, my proud, empathetic and cautious boxer, and Mo, my silly, sleepy Staffordshire terrier. I take my role as their guardian very seriously. When my pet Diggs was two years old, he was diagnosed with mast cell tumors, a form of cancer prevalent among boxers. I was devastated. I went through all the stages of grief. Denial; “Excuse me Mrs. Veterinarian, my dog has a small ‘bump’ on his side. Bump. Not lump. Lumps are scary. This is simply a ‘bump’.” Anger... directed more at God than anyone in particular. I lost Diggs’ brother much too early in life and found it cruel to be faced with another premature goodbye. Bargaining. Depression; full on who-needs-food and why-would-I-get-out-of-my-pajamas-or-leave-the-house-when-I-could-sit here-and-stare-at-my-beautiful-dog kind of depression. And finally Acceptance, and by acceptance I mean he’s alive today and he’ll be alive tomorrow SO THERE. Maybe the anger and denial are still sprinkled on top of the acceptance. A shocking 20-25% of our furry four legged pets end up dying prematurely due to Cancer. (Perdue University Department of Veterinarian).

By Basil Vernon, LuxEco Editorial Assistant As we all know it, summer finally came to an ended, and going back to school was in the wind. For some students the end of summer means leaving the nest and venturing off to new lives in college. Going green in a college environment not only makes life a little more comfortable, it also allows for trends to be set for a mass group of people to follow, which ultimately impacts the ecosystem on a grander scale. Here are some green friendly products that are essential to a college students life. Before moving on to your campus, you made a good choice by stopping at your local Target and picked the Schwinn Gateway City Bike. This bike is unique in that it is made out of 93% recyclable material. Honestly, having a bike on campus makes a great impact, it gets you to class on time, takes you into town with ease, and its an amazing way to exercise. At the end of the day a bikes’ main contribution are is gas emissions, and not paying the cost of having a car oncampus.

By Jessica Borges, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant We can all thank the sun for making trash disposal a more eco-friendly task; and while we’re at it, we can also thank the creators of BigBelly Solar Trash Cans. These solar powered beefy looking trash cans are sprouting up on street corners in several metropolitan areas with goals of being more cost, time and energy efficient.

By Brooke Rewa, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Being vegan can be a chore; constantly checking labels, feeling left out at gatherings, salivating over things you can't have. However, at the Natural Products Expo I found some exciting vegan products that will make even the biggest meat and dairy lovers drool.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Whole body, mind and spirit Olivia helps others heal In July,...

By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Whole Foods Market is a forward-thinking grocery chain that has broken down barriers and paved the way for progress in the green movement. In addition to its organic standards for food and non-food products, and its existing recycling infrastructure, Whole Foods is now starting a wine cork recycling system. The popular grocery franchise will implement this new program at all of its 292 stores across the U.S., Canada, and the U.K.

By Amanda Nisenson, LuxEco Advocate “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I – I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.” This Robert Frost quote has stayed with me from the first day I heard it in eighth grade English class. It has continued to serve as a metaphor throughout my evolving journey as an artist. My road less traveled is calling me in new directions. I need to keep the faith and know the opportunities will come in order for me to reach my goal. It is the relationship and connection with the audience that drives my performance, inspiring hope through music and bringing joy through song. “Operatunity” is about transformation through music. Our journeys, no matter how difficult, must be accepted as life is accepted. I am grateful for my “gifts”, and for the chance to help others find joy in the moment.

By Merry Elkins, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Ken Kragen knows what it’s like to accomplish the impossible. He’s done it time and time, again. This time every California Community College Campus and Student is his beneficiary with his Hands Across California campaign on April 17th, 2011.

    Green Lighting By Lush Huxley, Editorial Assistant LuxEco Living On a bright and sunny Wednesday in Los Angeles, I am sitting in a pleasant backyard under...

By Bernadette Bowman, Comedienne and LuxEco Advocate who writes the LIFE GOES RETROGRADE series. This week marks the one-year mark of my being out of...

By: Leslie Harris, Interior Designer, Leslie Harris Interior Design and LuxEco Advocate. Jill Salisbury, founder of Chicago based el: Environmental Language, formally educated and trained as an Interior Designer, has found her true calling and passion in the design and manufacturing of furniture. Ten plus years ago, while working as an interior designer, she began learning about the benefits of sustainability but wasn’t able to find furnishings that were stylish and had any kind of environmental initiative. “There wasn’t anything available and I felt the Interior Design community needed to have what I call the Eco-Chic Alternative where you can have style with environmental integrity and promote a healthy indoor air quality for your clients.”

By: Linsley Oaks, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant Propaganda can do good when properly executed.  I vividly remember a cartoon aired on Sesame Street circa 1985. ...

We thought this was a funny yet poignant video, written and sung by The Capitol Steps, about knowing and having confidence in the source...

By: Linsley Oaks, LuxEco Living Editorial Assistant Running across a field might seem like the last thing anyone should do after slinging $12 dixie cups...

Masura Emoto says that he thinks "music was meant to bring our vibrations back to our intrinsic state" and that before it is art,...

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World "If you aren't living on the edge, you're taking up...

By DENNIS OVERBYE Physics; somewhere over the rainbow. What in the World Is a Higgs Boson?  Peter Higgs, an Edinburgh University professor, discussed the particle that bears...

By Bernadette Bowman, Comedienne and LuxEco Advocate who writes the LIFE GOES RETROGRADE series. It all started when I updated my Facebook status this past week. Bernadette Bowman thinks that children should be carded at Starbucks. This bold statement after witnessing an nine-year old boy, who I honestly mistook as a “little person” speaking in tongues, spouting the following in rapid-fire speed: “Venti half-white-mocha-half-caff-vanilla, easy ice, with 3 shots, pour affogato (this means: to drown) with extra whip, and caramel drizzle frappuccino.” Parents, it’s three o’clock on a Wednesday afternoon: DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR CHILDREN ARE??

Olio & Limone is now my favorite Italian restaurant in the world.... and what a pleasure not to experience the burden of airplane pasta and worse, long lines for US Customs.... when all you have to do is find West Victoria Street in Santa Barbara and indulge.

It's no secret that when plants are harvested for their life sustaining and nutritional qualities that every part of the plant that can be used is.......Of the various plants that serve multiple purposes, the nutmeg plant is the only plant that yields not just one, but two spices.

Hands on instruction in the garden transfers young students green learning at school to green living at home. Johnna Walker, the garden instructor, teaches the importance of sustainability. By Alanna Brown, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Larchmont Charter School, an alternative neighborhood school within LAUSD, takes green living to the future—to our children—with the implementation of green learning. Our precious earth is in their itty-bitty-but-quickly-growing hands, so best to start showing them how to take care of it, and themselves.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor-in-Chief of LuxEcoLiving and co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World Get outdoors and enjoy the breeze it's good for you   I...

By Alanna Brown, a LuxEco Living Advocate, creator of Brown House Online, and author of Moonpennies   We all love the feel of a new paperback...

By Florence "Flip" Ross, LuxEco Advocate As I sit here, and gaze proudly at all my "going green" products, I feel I am doing something...

By: Molly Rovero, LuxEco Editorial Assistant Imagine a world without fossil fuel powered cars! This is what the Los Angeles chapters of the American Planning Association and the American Institute of Architects teamed up to do when they created Rail LA, a group dedicated to "healing the wounds of past infrastructure projects" and helping transition from "an automobile based society to a transit based one." They seek to raise awareness about the myriad of benefits that high speed rail can have for Southern California, such as a reduction in emissions, mitigation of traffic congestion, and countless other environmental concerns related to society’s daily reliance on fossil-fuel-powered transit.

You could say he's spoiled. Or you could say so are we. You're right. Living the life with a Lab in Luxury can only happen at the posh and prestigious San Ysidro Ranch. No one does it better than Ty Warner. Where in the world can experience a couples massage while your dog stretches out on your private terrace and gets one too.

By Nancy Chuda founder and Editor in Chief of LuxEcoLiving and Healthy Child Healthy World Solvang California, Buttonwood Farm Winery and Vineyard Step out of...

Tune into Part 2 of Laura Turner Seydel's interview with Nancy Chuda, co-founder of LuxEco Living and Healthy Child Healthy World. In today's interview, we learn about the results of Laura's body burden test. Even Laura, who lives a lifestyle committed to health and environmental wellbeing, found that she had several toxic chemicals in her body. Imagine how many chemicals would be found in the average person's body!