Picture it. You’re at the gym, cell phone tucked in your waistband because your yoga pants don’t have a pocket. Your car’s GPS just wants to send you on the freeway so you need your phone’s GPS to get the right surface street directions but you’re stuck with the wheel in one hand and a phone in the other. Altogether, not so smart.

Until this cute, colorful, bendable and flexible little gadget made an appearance: the Bondi. It’s a cell phone holder, propper, safekeeper…

There are dozens of ways to use this cute little gadget. In fact, the Bondi comes with 50 page picture notepad that demonstrate some of the the Bondi’s versatile uses.

The Bondi is made of high quality silicone that can be curved into any shape, so go ahead, just start thinking of all the instances when you could use it. It also comes in 10 fun colors.

Available at iBondi.com and on Amazon.

By Jennifer Urezzio, Contributor – Spiritual Affairs

One of the “things” that prevents me from choosing to live joyfully each day is all the doubts and fears of what I’m supposed to be “doing” with my life.

Which, if I really spent some time thinking about it logically and not listening to the little fear monsters in my head, I would laugh at myself. In reality, I do know what I’m supposed to be doing with my life and how I’m being of service to the world – we all do.

So what’s with the doubt and fear – oh yeah, I’m human. Living in joy is a choice. In fact, it is all a choice. And, yet what prevents us from living in joy more is how we fight feeling anything else but “good.”

We can spend so much time trying to be one way or another that we are not allowing ourselves to be. So for me, living joyfully means – living and experiencing all aspects of my life without judgment about the experience.

This way of being takes practice. Below are some ways to practice living your life with joy.

Acknowledge What You Are Feeling

One of the reasons you might not be feeling the “good” things is because you don’t allow yourself

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By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor

Although this might not sound very succulent, I was once an avid coupon clipper. But, quite frankly, I got tired of having coupons pile up at the bottom of my purse and getting all ripped and soiled and the whole thing just became too much of a hassle.

Now, before you mention that there are accessories to organize coupons, you should know that I also had a coupon folder to help organize but when I changed purses, it did not always find its way into the one I was using. By the time the coupon folder became too worn to repair, I tossed the whole thing out – coupons and all. I still do randomly clip coupons and, inevitably find them still at the bottom of my purse, past expiration date. Until now…. Digital coupons!

It’s quite by accident that I noticed that my two favorite grocery stores’ websites  had digital coupons. I initially thought they were coupons that I would print from their website. Au contraire! NO printing.  Digital coupons work by selecting specific coupons on the grocer’s website and these automatically upload to your loyalty (shopper) card. When you purchase the product, the coupon discount is automatically deducted (after you’ve entered your loyalty card). It’s like magic!

Little did I know that the concept has been around for three years at selected big chain grocery stores that have loyalty cards. Now widely used for all loyalty card based stores (i.e. Krogers, Safeway and so on), it is an easy way to save.

But wait, there’s more!!! Savings just got even easier. Yes, you guessed it!  There is now an app for that! It saves you the time from entering digital coupons on each loyalty card you own. Debuting next month, SmartSource Xpress allows you to register all of your loyalty cards (check participating retailers) and the coupons you select will be applied to all of your cards. If your favorite grocery store is not there, you should still sign up for updates. SmartSource Xpress is expecting to dramatically expand within the year. And really why would they not! They will carry every coupon in every magazine and Sunday paper savings, which makes it easy and fun to find and redeem savings from brands that you use everyday.

I suspect that this will bring a whole new generation of savers by making coupon clipping very succulent indeed!

We’re girls. We love the movies. We love the Academy Awards. Well, not really. We put up with them because we get to watch Hollywood glam for three (four?) hours. And, mostly, we get to do lots of backseat driving stylin’.

Just as we did last year, we thought we’d have some fun and gather ’round some of our favorite contributors to put together award winning (yes) looks for a few of the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress nominees.

Interesting note: each of our contributors chose her own nominee and was given no instructions on how to style her. And this resulted in the very interesting two-toned outcome that you see below. A trend of red and nude? We definitely think so!

ROONEY MARA’s Oscar look by Kristin Fast, Lifestyle Editor and In-House Wit-Cracker

Ridiculously beautiful and new face this award’s season, Rooney Mara is a top contender for the Best Actress award at this year’s Oscars. While I may not be able to predict how the Academy will vote (Viola Davis is my guess) I can guarantee that Rooney, with her gorgeous face and lovely figure, will be an absolute sensation on the Red Carpet.

Rooney is incredibly petite and in order for her to avoid being “worn by the dress” she tends to favor simple lines and solid colors. However, this is the Academy Awards and quite frankly, I want fashion which recognizes the evening for what it is: Hollywood’s Biggest Night!

This look, beginning with a Jenny Packham gown will send her to the top of every Best Dressed list.

The deep scarlet hue will be amazing against Rooney’s porcelain complexion and dark hair and the fitted, almost architectural silhouette is sexy without being vulgar. Giuseppe Zanotti sandals are elegant with a slightly modern flair and the Judith Leiber bag, with it’s quatrefoil design, continues the idea of classic Hollywood elegance. A stack of vintage Art Deco diamond bracelets compliment and complete the look.

Rooney, call me and I will hook you up.

MERYL STREEP’s Oscar look by Marjie Killeen, Contributor- Midlife Wisdom

Fresh off Golden Globe and BAFTA wins for her portrayal of Margaret Thatcher in Iron Lady, Meryl Streep

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By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor

Last year Amazon launched a Lending Library for Kindle and Kindle app with over 11,000 libraries across the US. This means that if you have a library card you can check out ebooks from your local library and instantly start reading them on your Kindle device.

Now, most people think that these free books include only the classics or terribly written books that authors have offered for free because they could not get published. Those were the bad old days. Currently Amazon offers over 100,000 titles, including what is on Best Seller Lists. Never read Dan Brown’s latest? You can now!

I am currently reading The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern and just finished The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time by Mark Haddon. I have read the Hunger Games and Matched Trilogies all from the Kindle Lending Library. Quite frankly I have read more since last fall when Amazon launched its Kindle Lending Library than I ever have.

It is so easy to get a book. I simply registered my Kindle app on my iPad with Amazon and any book I check out goes directly to it. I can check out up to 10 books at a time and can have the book for up to 21 days (although some libraries may vary). There are no late fees and I never have to worry about returning the book. And the best part is that this is all free!

Personally I think this is a great move on Amazon’s part. If the book is popular, there will be a wait list and it can exceed 50 people. Some people may not want to wait this long to read the next great title and may decide to purchase it instead. Also, when you do get a book and for some reason are unable to complete it by the time it expires you may not want to wait again to finish it. Amazon has a tab that shows up when your book rental expires, give you the option to purchase the title.

Amazon has also allowed readers to make notes and highlights in the book that you check out from the library. If you check the book out again your notes will still be there but are not visible to other patrons who check out the same book. How cool is that! This is a great tool that I use for my Book Club books.

If you do not have a library card, most libraries offer to apply for one on line. If you do not have a Kindle, Amazon’s Lending Library can be accessed though OverDrive, the leading provider of digital content to libraries in the United States that can be downloaded on a computer.

Happy reading!

No. Not that kind of swinging. We’re talking about the most beautiful (and clever) porch swings ever designed. Actually, these are the first improvement in porch swings since they were first developed in Ancient Greece some 2400 years ago.

The Weather…Or Not™ Swings (WON) are designed by Becky Irvine who came up with the concept after she wondered whether the swing she wanted for her porch should face towards the wooded area where she might watch a delightful family of foxes, or back across the terrace to visit with family and friends. She wanted BOTH and that’s what the Weather…Or Not swings deliver with backs that pivot and lifts out so  homeowners can enjoy the view -­‐or face the other way to talk with friends. Or take a nap when the back is removed. And, the WON swing can also come with furniture legs to transform the WON into a bench with all the features of the swing, except for the swinging.

Besides being so cleverly convertible, the WON swings are also beautifully handmade in Kentucky by furniture carpenters and woodworking artist who hand-carve the backs. Solid mahogany is used which makes the swings suitable for either indoor or outdoor use.

As Duke Ellington says, “It don’t mean a thing if you ain’t got that swing“. I’m heartbroken that I don’t have a porch on which to install Becky’s beautiful swing at the moment, but I know that the requirements for my next home will be to have a spot dedicated to a Weather…Or Not Swing.

Each swing is made to order (and signed). Select from four furniture styles and five paint colors and hand-carved designs on the swing back. Prices start at $2,800 and Weather…Or Not swings can be ordered from PushBackTime.com.

By Susan Keats, Contributor &  Seize-the-Day Propagandist

It was a dark and stormy night.

No it wasn’t. It was a fine night as far as the weather goes, but as we sat our two daughters down in the living room to tell them that I had breast cancer, the storm raging inside my brain was pretty harrowing. I attempted a brave face while my husband told the girls what was happening with me and I watched their faces fall and shock cloud their eyes. And then he said it….through the turbulent whirlwind of anxiety in my head, I heard my husband say it. “Girls, mom may be too sick to do the laundry or clean the house, so we will really need your help to pitch in. You will need to start doing your own laundry.”

What? I might be too sick to clean and do laundry? Really? AWESOME!! YIPPEE!!!!! Yes, that is exactly where my mind went. You know, there’s that part of your brain that we usually tell to hush up, or simmer down? Well, my little unedited thought bubble was doing a gleeful dance and telling it like it is. I didn’t realize it at that moment, but in this particular ordeal, this was my first of many silver linings.

They are always there, those silver linings. You just have to be paying attention. So consider this your heads up. No matter what bad stuff happens in your life, there is always one to find. A friend of mine, who has also struggled with cancer, told me that the only good she could figure that came from her experience was that she now wants

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