Expert Voices Today

Health and Happiness

I just returned from a lengthy trip which included Israel, Egypt, Morocco, and Spain. The trip was planned with a loose itinerary because the best travel is the unexplored and the adventures you experience along the way. When you travel you open your self up to experiences outside the safety of your nest. More…

A Bad Idea -- Understandable Though It May Be

Bank of America is currently running ads that on the surface sound appealing. They are offering to let you put your retirement savings in things that are guaranteed. Given the recently performance in the market, who wouldn’t want that? The answer should be: You. Guaranteed investments are the not the way to go, if you are saving for a long-time goal (like retirement.) The returns on such things as money market funds, and certificates of deposits, even if they are guaranteed may not be enough to keep up with inflation, let alone produce the long-term growth that you need. More…

The Real Scoop on High Fructose Corn Syrup and Sugar

Bob sent me an email wanting to know if bee honey is more fattening than jelly or jam when used on a piece of bread. Bob, it’s your personal preference. The calories in a tablespoon of honey, jam or jelly average 55-65 and there is very little difference nutritionally so enjoy your favorite. The key to weight maintenance is portion control and the total calories you take in every day against how many you burn off in daily activities and exercise. Your question, Bob, ties in with the current urban myth that high fructose corn syrup is the evil sweetener that is making everyone fat. It reminds me of when eggs got such a bad rap and people stopped eating them because they were told their cholesterol would go up. More…

Being Grateful in Difficult Times

No doubt, you are all aware that the Holiday Season is upon us. The calendar says so. Perhaps some of you are hosting the Thanksgiving dinner and, therefore, are a bit more sensitive to the upcoming traditional time to celebrate. Yet, in these recent economic times, for many of you, it will be difficult to think in terms of celebrating. Rather, in times when things are tough, the contradiction in emotions may even bring on a sense of intense anxiety. Clearly, soon after Thanksgiving, Christmas and Chanukah and Kwanzaa occur. This year, especially, it may be a hardship to make the usual purchases. Hard to find the good More…

Life Is Unfair. Deal With It.

Over the weekend, friends were complaining about the fact that the worth of their retirement accounts have plummeted this year. I told them the following: In a perfect world, the value of our retirement savings would climb every single year from the time we put the money in, until we decided to finally use the funds to pay for the retirement of our dreams. We would never suffer a financial crisis caused by divorce or illness. And we never find ourselves suddenly unemployed or the victim of the plummeting stock market like the one we experienced in 2008. More…

Odorprints – Yours Are Unique so Come To Your Senses

The nostrils are the quickest route to the brain so along with those ‘first impressions’ from our visual senses comes the sense of smell to influence our intimate decision making processes. I often wonder why we are so obsessed with perfumes, after-shave, oils and lotions that are scented. Every variety of scent is offered, all to change how we smell. What’s wrong with our smells? Are we afraid of smelling too ‘randy’? Are we actually afraid of not having control over how we present ourselves? Are we that self-conscious? More…

Bad News Bargains

I know this could sound callous, and I don't mean it to, but all the bad economic news has created bargains everywhere you look. Stocks (of good companies) are cheap. Banks are offering suprising high rates on CDs and retailers are offering incredible inducements. I am down in Florida as you read, and restaurants are offering meals for 50% less than the last time I visited a couple of months ago. The takeaway message: If you husband your money in good times there will be wonderful opporutnies when things turn bad (as they invariably do.) More…

Thanksgiving stories

Sometimes we spend so much time worrying about, planning, shopping and making Thanksgiving Dinner, even as we give thanks for our many blessings, we miss really connecting with our families.  We assume that we know them; yet often we don’t know the most important things about them.   This is especially true of our older relatives, our family elders.  Somehow we get so caught up in what’s going on that we miss seeing them in their glory, in the richness of their life experience. More…

Happy Thanksgiving!

This is just a short post to wish everyone the happiest of Thanksgiving holidays.  The astrological aspects for Thanksgiving this year are pretty darn good, and I hope that all of you enjoy the good vibes in the sky.  This year, the sun, Venus, and Jupiter will all be in the Sagittarius for the holiday.  That's three happy planets in a sign associated with optimism and abundance.  Venus brings harmony to the Thanksgiving table. Jupiter brings a healthy appetite for both life and food, so it will be cheering us on as we all over-indulge a bit in yummy goodies.  The sun, meanwhile, gives us the consciousness to be grateful for all we have; it allows us to reflect on all the good in our lives.  More…

Write to Make Your Relationship Right – Part 2

Last week, I discussed with you the benefits of writing in order to help relieve the pent-up emotions you feel, whether they’re brought on by some incident with your mate or from something else. As I said, pent-up emotions that aren’t expressed, don’t go away. By doing free association writing, it allows you to purge them. When you do, not only will you feel better emotionally, but it will help to ensure that these feelings will not leak onto your partner. For the two of you But writing can also be a wonderful tool to use with your partner. More…