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5 Productive Things to Do On a Snow Day


Guess what? It’s snowing. Or it’s going to snow. Or it’s been snowing for a while and there’s no indication that it’s going to stop anytime soon. Ever. Though we Blisstree staffers live in the heart of urban New York City, where snow days for working adults are as rare as an empty cab at 5 p.m., we’re very envious of those of you who live in cold-weather climates and have bosses who actually tell you not to come into the office because of a snowfall. And if this latest snowstorm pans out, you lucky folks may well have some snow day free time on your hands very soon. (In between sledding with your kids, and making them grilled cheese sandwiches, tomato soup, and hot chocolate, of course. Did we mention that we’re jealous?) So here are five productive ways to spend your next snow day, which will likely be tomorrow. And probably the next day. Us? We’ll be at work no matter what the weather, but we’re damn well at least going to buy ourselves a friggin’ hot chocolate. … More »

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5 Productive Things to Do On a Snow Day

Life Coach Laurie Gerber on How to Keep New Year’s Resolutions


There’s always debate over New Year’s Resolutions: One woman’s path to self-improvement is another woman’s waste of time. We’re cynical about the goal-setting ritual (and so are more and more experts and role models of success; even Oprah says she’s ditched resolutions). So we interviewed an expert – the president of Handel Group’s private life coaching division, Laurie Gerber – to find out whether it’s possible to make resolutions without failing (or turning our lives into scary versions of self-help books). Here’s what she has to say to us skeptics: … More »

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Life Coach Laurie Gerber on How to Keep New Year’s Resolutions

Oprah Doesn’t Do New Year’s Resolutions


Whether you love or hate Oprah, you have to admit: She accomplishes a lot. So what are the new year’s resolutions behind the queen of talk? None. In a recent interview with Wall Street Journal, Oprah advised not to make any new year’s resolutions for 2011: “I don’t make them, because I live in the space that I’m in right now,” she told WSJ. “I move with the flow, live in the moment.” … More »

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Oprah Doesn’t Do New Year’s Resolutions

5 Complex Questions About Self-Improvement for Real Simple (A Women’s Magazine We Actually Like)


Unlike most women’s magazines out there, Real Simple is one we actually like. But unfortunately, while life is always real, it’s rarely ever simple. So we cornered an expert, Danielle Claro, Real Simple‘s Editor-at-Large, to ask her five tough questions about the realities and fantasies of trying to simplify one’s life — during the holidays and beyond. Here’s her simple, yet smart (and sassy), advice.

Blisstree: Like millions of other readers, we really like Real Simple (in print and online). But here’s what we wonder: Are there some things in life that can never be simple, no matter how hard we try to simplify them? We’re thinking of moving, death, and divorce, but what do you think is absolutely NOT real simple?

Danielle Claro: Well, everything can be simple and everything can be really complicated. It’s that “see the world in a grain of sand” thing. So yes, death and divorce are complex. But, when challenged, I can reduce even my most painful experiences to six words. And I could probably talk for an hour about the weird specific shapes on different people’s fingernails, you know? And so could we all. Moving, however, is never simple. Period. … More »

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5 Complex Questions About Self-Improvement for Real Simple (A Women’s Magazine We Actually Like)