The Seductive Fix | WHY A LITTLE COFFEE CAN DO THE BODY GOOD

By Dominick H.

It's #NationalCoffeeDay, which has us thinking about this national obsession of ours. Coffee in its purest form is a bean said to have Ethiopian origins dating back to the days of the ancient civilization in Africa. The stories are often told of farmers witnessing their goats eating the beans and becoming excited from the affects of the coffee bean (hence the the transition to human consumption) Some of us are proud of our "cup'a joe".  Some of us feel overly bad for craving it: let alone drinking it. Some of us have way too much of it. But everyone could use a little bit of it.  

La Dolce Vita | FOUR THINGS I LEARNED IN ITALY THAT CHANGED MY LIFE FOREVER (10lbs later)

After the long flight and a blissful tussle through airport security and customs, we finally arrived in Italy's largest city: Milan. We didn't plan for a Milan visit and stay this time around. So we immediately jumped into the hustle and bustle of the mass transit taking a shuttle bus to Milan's main station. Then off and on to the ever so beautiful--and comfortable--Frecciarossa: Italy's high-speed rail, and now our preferred choice of travel. Whew. We made it that far. My trusty side-kick Katie is quite fluent in Italian and made the craziness of traveling and moving about much easier than it would've been were it just little ol' me and my American accent: my smile only gets but so far. An hour and a half later, we arrive in birthplace of the Italian Renaissance and fashion capital of the world, Florence.  We will spend more time here in Florence later in the trip, but for now the rolling hills of Northern Tuscany were calling us. A family friend swooped us up and we hedged forward to our final destination: the beautiful mountain town of Covigliaio.  Almost on the verge of carsickness because of the twists and turns up and down the mountains, we finally arrived at our final destination to the sweet sounds of "Ciao. Ciao. Ciao Katie. Ciao Domenico".

How I'm Doing It In NYC | THREE OF MY FAVORITE THINGS THAT KEEP ME HAPPY AND HEALTHY

Hiddo / project: Clean Food

It is so hard out there to stay focused, and motivated, and inspired to live an authentic and honest life that is filled with health and happiness. I've definitely battled and struggled with it every single day of my life. But instead of focusing on the terror and negativity of society and the media, I'm just focusing on doing me. Instead of worrying about what is going to happen or not going to happen, I'm just focusing on doing me. Don't get me wrong, it's super hard out there to be consistent. It is a lot of work and commitment and dedication required to stay healthy both mentally and physically. It is lot of work to keep your body and mind physically fit. It is a lot of work to keep your surroundings healthy and pure each and every day. So it is important to follow your intuition and your heart and your spirit; let it guide you to all that you wish for. Let your intuition and your spirit continually guide you towards that beautiful life that you've always dreamed of. It's a challenging battle to get there, but we have to work hard and devote ourselves to that healthier, happier life. We deserve at least that much. 

So what am I doing these days?

The End of Sadness Forever | THREE WAYS TO TELL DEPRESSION AND STRESS TO PISS OFF

Can you say, "Fuck Depression"? I knew you could. Some of you who are super upright, religious, or of high moral standard would never say such a thing. But let's be real: if there were ever a time you wanted to use a colorful expletive like fuck, it would be towards depression and stress. Sometimes we experience depression and stress in small doses. But sometimes those moments can be overwhelming, burdensome, woeful, and extremely terrifying. We turn to family, and they don't get us. We turn to friends and they "kinda get us", but not really. We turn to teachers and mentors, but sometimes their perception and understanding of our situation sounds like it comes from a cloud in heaven where white doves fly and trumpets sound: almost if they can't even relate. We read self-help books, and sometimes the advice there is good: really good. But then, our ability to sustain the tactics necessary to keep us strong, loving and blissful begin to wane and become mundane again. And that in turn puts us back to square one. And then what? WTF.

So how do we eliminate depression and sadness?