Feeling like you don't have enough time?

This statistic will blow you away. Americans watch an unbelievable amount of television. Next time you reach for the remote, think about this... The average American watches 1,672 hours of TV a year. That is about 70 days worth of TV. Or about 10 weeks. What could you do with 10 more weeks this year?

I know... I know... It probably isn't you. Right? Well, I bet you don't even realize how much you are watching.

GET INTO ACTION:
Put a piece of paper by the remote and track how much time you are watching. You may be surprised what you discover... After a week or two, ask yourself what you could have accomplished with that time. read more...

Bring Clean Water to Ethiopia - Dink 1 Give 10

For every liter of Volvic bottled water you purchase between April 1st and August 31st, Volvic will make a donation to enable UNICEF to provide at least 10 liters of clean, safe drinkable water to children in Ethiopia. Your participation will help supply clean drinking water to 25,000 people! Over 2/3 of the households in Ethiopia do not have access to safe water and the water supply and sanitation coverage in the Benishangul-Gumuz region in Ethiopia is one of the lowest in the country.

Next time you are standing in front of the shelf buying some water, please remember the difference you could make by purchasing Volvic.

Learn more by going to www.drink1give10.com

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Take the Coffee Cup Challenge

By some estimates, Americans drink more than 100 billion cups of coffee every year. Of these, a staggering 14.4 billion are bought in disposable paper cups. Placed end-to-end, these cups would wrap around Earth 55 times and weigh around 900 million pounds.

Here is a fact about paper cups I didn't even know. If you don't know, it will blow you away also.

Are you ready? Paper coffee cups are NOT recyclable. That is right. They go right into the landfill. The thin lining that makes a paper cup waterproof also keeps it from being recycled. Yes, that is 900 million pounds of coffee cups filling our landfills.

What can you do?

It is really simple. Stop using disposable cups.

You can also join our Yogi Times team at CarbonRally.com where we will be tracking the difference we are making. CLICK HERE and click on the "Join this team" link in the left hand menu bar. Accept the "De-cup Your Decaf" challenge. 180 people have already reduced CO2 emissions by 131 lbs in the first week of this challenge.

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The Yogi At Home {Natural Inspiration}

Living in San Francisco, I am always inspired by the beauty of nature. Whether looking in awe at how the fog slowly creeps across the Bay, watching sea gulls fly overhead in a cool breeze, or just looking to the mountains in the far-off distance, natural elements inspire me each and every day. They can also be inspirational in your home decor. Here are a few things that can bring the beauty of the outdoors into your abode:

1. I love this porcelain Owl Lamp. Absolutely beautiful and with just a little bit of whimsy.

2. These hand blown Sea Urchin Vases are reminiscent of warm days by the sea.

3. A Driftwood Vase pays homage to wood's inspirational form.

4. This Dove Coral Pillow will bring the beauty of coral into your home without harming any reefs.

I hope you will find as much inspiration in these finds as I do, and bring a little nature home. read more...

The Yogi At Home {Sanctuary}

{Image from White Webb}

Happy New Year to all of you! It is a new year and a time for new beginnings. For many of us we take this time to think about the future; we try to steer away from the mistakes of the past; and will make impossible resolutions like starting an all grapefruit diet in hopes of losing the weight gained from holiday delights.

With an entirely new year in front of us, it is also an important time for deep, inner reflection. For many of us, we will reflect inward during yoga class, at our place of spiritual worship, even at work (depending on what you do), but this year I invite you to focus on home as a sanctuary for deep reflection. I am the first to admit that I am guilty of using the yoga studio as my only place for inner reflection. I will go to class, really get to the core of my being, and by the time I have made the evening commute home I am completely flustered and have lost the sense of peace I once had.

This year it is my resolution to make home the inner sanctuary I seek. Whether by creating an alter for meditation, creating a small space for morning and evening asanas, or simply removing distractions like TV from the bedroom, I am ready to make my home the place where I can find and maintain a sense of peace.


{Image from White Webb}

This year I invite you to make your home a sanctuary. And please, share with other Yogi Times Blog readers what you are doing to bring a bit of peace home this new year. read more...

The Yogi At Home {It's Holiday Time!}

The holidays are upon us. For many, right now you are finishing up holiday shopping, preparing your home for guests in the new year, and some are even preparing to do 108 sun salutations for the Winter Solstice this Friday. It is truly the busiest time of the year, which is why it is so important to remind ourselves to sit back and enjoy the true spirit of the season.

Here are some holiday gifts to truly lift and refresh your spirit: Peace Cards from Five to Five Photography; Lions and Leaves Yoga Mat Bag in grey velvet; Organic Full Moon Polkadot Eye Pillow filled with organic lavender and flax seeds.

Wishing you peace for the holidays! I will be back and posting in the new year. read more...

The Yogi At Home {Re-Nest}

Green design lovers must visit Apartment Therapy's newly designed green home site, Re-Nest. A daily blog that's dedicated to all that's new in green design, this site is chocked full of sustainable and environmentally friendly ideas for the home. For the month of December, visit their Home for the Holidays Kit from method. Enter by Thursday night and you could win a five-piece set from this eco-friendly brand. Bring the holidays home with scents of holly berry, peppermint vanilla and cinnamon bark, and create an environmentally friendly home for the holidays. read more...

The Yogi At Home {NOVICA}

NOVICA, National Geographic's online store, is a wonderful way to support the work of artisans from around the world. Offering home decor with a personal connection to the artist who created it, this site offers a new and unique way to shop for your home. At NOVICA, buying with a sense of social responsibility and creating a global connection is key.

The Yogini in me loves these beautiful handcrafted pieces that emulate yoga asanas. From the graceful Lithe Gymnast statuette, to these gorgeously crafted Yoga Cobra Pose statues, each piece is sure to enhance your life - mind, body and spirit.

If you seek inspiration and home decor that is truly about more than superficial fashion, visit NOVICA. With such a rich showcase of work by artisans from as far away as Bali, Thailand and West Africa, you will be richly rewarded by what you discover.

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The Yogi At Home {The Gracious Home}

{Image from Marthastewart.com}

Tis the season to give thanks. Today, like many of you, I am preparing for a Thanksgiving feast with family and friends. For the last few days I have been running around preparing my home for guests, dusting, cleaning the carpets, washing the windows, doing everything I can to make my one bedroom apartment look absolutely beautiful. However, there is one thing I forgot -putting a little grace into my home.

This time of year is all about self-reflection. Giving thanks, reflecting on the love of family and friends, it is a time to turn inward, and also to create an environment for ourselves and for our family and friends that is warm and inviting. While scrubbing the floors until they glow may make your home look clean and spotless, think about the warmth you want to share with those who you're spending the holidays with. Be a gracious host by sharing with them a little of yourself in your home for the holidays.

Make everyone who comes this year feel welcome with your own unique styling. Whether through a crafty table setting in your favorite colors for the season, a personalized note on everyone's table setting that speaks to why you are thankful for them, or even a handpainted pumpkin in metallic gold and silver to add to your holiday table, do a little bit extra to say thank you to those in your life.

Turn your home into a gracious home, and have a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends! read more...

The Yogi At Home {Really Linda Barker}

It is true that a picture can say a thousand words. The photos on Really Linda Barker speak volumes on creating a home with both style and serenity. Filled with decor and design elements that take you to a more relaxed place, Really Linda Barker invites us to view our home as a place where we really practice the art of living.

So many of the pieces that Linda offers are an invitation for a home that is quiet, peaceful and nurturing to the soul. I am inspired by the Sleeping Buddha statue above. A gorgeously crafted reminder of the need to rest and relax our minds and bodies at the end of the day.

For many of us, the yoga studio is where we find relaxation. Home can be beset with so many things that we move away from really enjoying the environment we live in. Today, picture a new environment for yourself - a haven that nurtures your body and your soul.

Home is where the heart is, and likely where we find ourselves at the end of each and every day. In invite you to envision a space where you can really live your best life - a bedroom oasis, natural dining room, a warm living room.

At Really Linda Barker discover that perfect treasure or a trove of beautiful elements to make your home that space in which you can really experience the art of living.

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The Yogi At Home {JOY by Mel Lim}

Hello, this is Jeanine Hays from the daily design blog, AphroChic. It is with great pleasure that I join the team at the YT Blog to author a new weekly series, The Yogi At Home. As author of AphroChic, I am accustomed to writing about modern interiors, and how they can transform your environment. Here at the YT Blog, I will be writing about more than just the latest in home decor. The Yogi At Home will offer an opportunity to examine how to create that serene, restful and spiritual place that all of us are looking for in our lives. One in which the environment we live in truly supports our path for peace and spiritual enlightenment.

Every Wednesday enjoy a feature article that will cover the latest in sustainable design, eco-friendly interiors, and tools to help you focus on the home as a healing space. This week I am happy to introduce the work of lifestyle designer Mel Lim and her inspired collection, JOY. Featuring a new line of organic home accessories, Mel's focus on creating a joyful interior extends to her eco-friendly throw pillows, wall prints and stationery. More than just basic eco-friendly design, Mel offers an expressive and vibrant line of home accessories that will truly uplift the soul and bring a smile to your face. The philosophy of Mel's JOY collection is something that we all can hold onto - living should be fun, colorful, and always conscious.

If you are looking for a way to bring conscious style into your home, check out JOY by Mel Lim, and visit the YT Blog every Wednesday for more on The Yogi At Home. I look forward to your questions and your comments, to new conversations on how to create a healing space in your home, and to this new journey together.

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Natural & Non-toxic Drain Cleaner

Have a slow draining sink or shower? Wondering what to do besides dumping toxic drain cleaner into the drain and then into the environment? Well, here are some alternatives. Check them out...

Baking Soda Drain Cleaner
If water hasn't yet backed up in your drain, pour 1 cup of baking soda followed by 3 cups of boiling water. The boiling water will change the chemical composition of baking soda, making it more alkaline. Repeat a few times until the drain is clear.

Washing Soda Drain Cleaner
If the water isn't going down the drain, pour a cup of washing soda over the drain area and let it set for a while to work its way down to the clog. Once the clog is loosened, use the baking soda method, above. Washing soda is more alkaline than baking soda, with a pH of 11. You never want to use washing soda if a commercial acid drain cleaner has recently been used in the drain, as they will strongly react with each other. You also shouldn't overuse washing soda if you have PVC pipes, as the caustic nature of washing soda can slowly damage the plastic.

The Bubbling Method Using Vinegar and Baking Soda
Baking soda and vinegar react with each other to cause bubbles and fizzing. Sometimes the fizzing can unlodge clogs. Follow the baking soda and boiling water formula, above, with 1 cup of vinegar.

Enzyme Drain and Garbage Disposal Maintenance
All natural living enzyme culture drain cleaners will actually eat and break down any organic matter. Using enzyme drain cleaners once a month, such as Bi-O-Kleen's Bacout, will help not just your drains, but your septic system. They will also significantly reduce odor from garbage disposals. Colonies of enzymes will actually continue to grow and break down organic matter in your drains .

Washing Soda Maintenance
Enzymes don't work as well on hair clogs, so to keep drains clear that tend to collect hair, such as in the shower and bath, a few times a month pour 1 cup of washing soda followed by a thorough flushing of water. read more...

Live in an apartment? Now Los Angeles will even pick up YOUR recycling!

Brought you by Sri Kesava:

The Sanitation Department of Public Works is offering a new recycling service for multifamily residential buildings. All single family residences have the black, blue and green bins, but many apartments do not and all the trash ends up in landfill. Even YOU as the tenant can put the city and your apartment management together and have a recycling program implemented in your building.

AT NO COST TO YOU, MANAGEMENT OR PROPERTY OWNERS

Click here to learn more: http://www.larecycles.org/tenant.htm

Tenants need the consent of the property owner or property manager in order to register to participate in the multifamily recycling program. To assist tenants, City staff would be happy to contact the property owner or manager on behalf of the tenants. All tenants need to do is call 1-800-773-CITY (2489) or send an email to multifamily@lacity.org. City staff will need the following information from the tenant in order to contact the property manager or property owner on the tenant's behalf:

Please include the following:

Address of residence and zip code
Type of multifamily residence (apartment, condo, etc) and number of units
Tenant name and phone number
Owner/Property Manager name and phone number






Any other tips you have regarding recycling? Click on "Comment" and please share!
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We launched YT TV - first episode "Alter Ego"

Yogi Times has taken another step in its mission to provide the community with uplifting, informative coverage of modern healthy lifestyle with YT•TV, our new web TV offering. With YT•TV, visitors to yogitimes.com will be able to see behind the scenes footage of YT photo shoots, events, special exclusive interviews and interesting tidbits from our vibrant community.



Take a look behind the scenes of our special July/August fashion shoot titled, Alter Ego. You’ll see exclusive interviews with some of your favorite teachers. Also go inside Cisco Home where the Fashion Group International of Los Angeles (FGI-LA) presented a panel of green authorities offering their experience on incorporating sustainable business practices into their companies, inspiring others to do the same.

Click on "comment" below and tell us about your alter ego or what you thought of our first show! What other episodes would you like to see? read more...

That 'new paint' smell

The real estate boom over the last several years has turned nearly everyone in to some type of property investor. When I’m out in the field looking at properties one thing I notice is how responsive people are to the ‘new’ home smell or the ‘freshly renovated’ home smell, most notably caused by fresh paint.

What’s funny is that, that smell that we sort of love in a weird way, is actually a bad thing. That smell may be the smell of someone else’s DNA being painted over, giving us some sense of purification, but that smell is also the smell of our lungs being slowly poisoned.

The EPA says that indoor air quality is one of the top 5 leading healthy risks in the USA. Several of the leading causes for this poor indoor air quality are the paints, varnishes and solvents we use containing VOC’s. VOC stands for Volatile Organic Compounds and are key components in the composition of oil based and traditional latex based paints.

Exposure to VOC's in paint can trigger asthma attacks, eye irritation and respiratory problems, nausea and dizziness among other symptoms. Prolonged exposure has been linked to kidney and liver disease and even cancer. Oiveh!

Alternative paints have been coming on the market over the past few years and now present a well rounded, economical choice over VOC intensive paints. Check out this link for a comprehensive list of non-toxic paints and finishes. This site rocks!

EarthEasy

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Home & Sustainability Mindset

Before launching into different topics, I want to talk about attitudes toward sustainability and how some may negatively impact otherwise noble efforts.

Sometimes we hear that we must ‘fight to save the planet,’ but I can’t help but wonder if that attitude itself is counterproductive.

The world I want to live in is one of abundance, where we as a community and government choose clean, sustainable energy and healthy products because they are ultimately superior in form and function. Our thoughts are as real as the rain forests we wish to protect, so why not keep our thoughts as positive as our actions?

My aim with the Home and Sustainability blog is to share products and methodologies that increase our joy as well as help maintain a happy and healthy mother Earth. - Sri -

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