january 2013 • resources for inner peace, health and healing
Therapeutic Coaching® Certification Program The Meta Institute Presents:
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Reiki Trainings & Other Workshops Reiki I
Introduction to NLP & Hypnosis Class
Jan. 26, 2013 (Sat. 10am-6pm) $75
4 days of learning, fun & transformation! Feb. 20 (Wed., 9am-5pm), Feb. 21, Feb. 22 & Feb. 23 (Thurs.-Sat., 10am-6pm) $575 $50 discount if paid in full by January 1st!
Reiki II
Jan. 27, 2013 (Sun. 10am-6pm) $150
Reiki Master
Feb. 16, 2013 (Sat. 9am-5pm) $300
Reiki Master Teacher March 13 & 14 (Wed. & Thurs., 6:30pm-10pm) $300
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3 day class, Feb. 9 & 10 (Sat.-Sun., 10am-6pm) $295 (3rd day to be scheduled with class)
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5121 Winnetka Ave., Suite 200 New Hope, MN 55428
staff
inside january 2013
essential wellness digital magazine Twin Cities Wellness aka Essential Wellness 4270 Honey Tree Pass Danbury, WI 54830 Publishers Dee & Lynn LaFroth ADVERTISING Dee LaFroth sales@esswellness.com 715.259.3047 EDITOR Lynn LaFroth info@esswellness.com ART DIRECTOR Sunshine Sevigny WRITING SUBMISSIONS Click here for 2013 Writers Guidelines RECEIVE ESSENTIAL WELLNESS BY EMAIL Send us your email to receive twice-monthly Celebrate Wellness e-news and Monthly digital Essential Wellness info@esswellness.com 4 www.esswellness.com
8-13 Social indicators mark spiritual thirst gone awry BY ALAN L. PRITZ
16-19 Road to successful weight loss starts with positive self-talk BY JINA SCHAEFER
22-27 Make your intentions stick this year BY KATHY TOBIAS
30-33 Decluttering and cleaning your space, lightens your life’s loads BY RACHEL LOESLIE january 2013
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"Some books transform lives. This one may transform a planet." ~ Larry Dossey Julia Assante, PhD Columbia, scholar, author, and gifted intuitive and medium, is offering a weekend intensive covering her new book The Last Frontier: Exploring the Afterlife and Transforming Our Fear of Death.
Feb. 8: Author talk, book signing and introduction to the weekend 7- 9PM, Free will offering Feb. 9: Workshop: The Inner Senses and Afterlife Communication 9:30 – 5PM, $99 thru Jan 31, then $120
Feb. 10: Workshop: Living Your Death 1:30-5PM $75 thru Jan. 31, then $90 All events at SPIRIT UNITED, 3204 Como Ave. SE, Mpls 55414 Details & registration http://church.spiritunited.com, 612-378-3602
SHIFT YOUR LIFE
Social indicators mark spiritual thirst gone awry
T
HE WORLD is a challenging place. Our life roles, be they domestic, employed, or variations of either, require us to learn complex steps to keep pace with the rapidly shifting rhythms of our high-tech, variety-intoxicated society. This article suggests several strategies for balancing the continual bombardment of external stimuli that, unless managed, precludes inner peace. Consider Facebook. How many people are chronically fixated with observing or posting snippets of life for others to review or comment upon? Then there’s Twitter, the technological manifestation of monkey-mind:
“I’m inhaling! Now, I’m exhaling.” How marvelous. Then there are internet games, chat rooms, and a panorama of titillating cyber-wonders that go on and on. These are just some examples of activities in peoples’ lives where serious pruning can be considered. ENGAGED IN FAUX-LIVING
I may be a Yule-tide Luddite but, to the best of my knowledge, am not suffering from information deprivation. The truth is people find such stimuli of worth because it provides excitation and a corresponding sense of fulfillment. The feelings arising from hyper-involvement replicate life on some level— which of itself is a sad commentary; we’re more engaged with
faux-living than actual being. More, we confuse outer stimulation with inner gratification and in many cases, get addicted to stressors that define or make us feel significant. Then we complain when there’s an absence in the tempests that bombard us. We’re a bit crazy that way. So what’s the solution? First is recognition. Like any rehab program we must acknowledge the issue: Life has been highjacked by complexity. Then we must evaluate: How much of what we do is necessary? What percentage of our life jumble comes from personal or sociallyreinforced habits? Remember, businesses excel in making you feel that what’s only optional is necessary. Don’t be duped. Reject artificial busyness. Continued Page 12...
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BY ALAN L. PRITZ
y
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History's Sexiest Goddess, or the Most Misunderstood? Presentation by Julia Assante, PhD, Wednesday, Feb. 6 7 - 8:30 plus Q & A $20 thru Jan. 31 ($25 after)
Inanna, Sacred Sexuality, and the Rewriting of History Dr. Julia Assante, PHD Columbia University, specialist in the
ancient Near East, will show how Inanna's unabashedly sexy hymnal literature and bold sexual images were in reality used by protection and wellbeing. Her research is literally her people for rewriting history. With images and readings. Not to be missed!
At SPIRIT UNITED, 3204 Como Ave. SE, Mpls. 55414. For details and registration http://church.spiritunited.com, 612-378-3602
INTEGRATIVE HEALTH EDUCATION CENTER at Normandale Community College
JANUARY 12-13
Saturday & Sunday, 10am—5pm MINNEAPOLIS CONVENTION CENTER 1301 2nd Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55403
Understanding Your Full Potential
MIDWEST’S LARGEST HEALTH EXPO
Duncan Metzger as they explore 2013’s astrological and numerological influence for you and our world. You will gain newfound knowledge to drive and support your goals and harness the energies of 2013 to help you move intentionally through the year.
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January 30 – 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. To register, visit: http://normandale.augusoft.net or call 952-358-8343.
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SHIFT YOUR LIFE continued...
Discriminate in how you use time and to what end. Now here comes the kicker: Take a breath and see how the rabid engagement with others or fulfillment we seek is a manifestation of something much deeper. We crave connection, true, but not to an IPhone. What we long for
is connection to Life Itself, and more specifically, to the Source of Life. Yes, our hyper-active involvement is really a spiritual thirst gone awry. If you accept this analysis, the question is two-fold: Do you really care and, if so, what to do about it? If your answer is, “no”
– well, I wish you well and the story ends here. If you answer “Yes” and want to change, I advocate specific lifestyle changes that produce lasting positive results. The changes must be implemented in manageable degrees that won’t overwhelm but will provide positive results.
FIVE WAYS TO STILL THE MIND, Worry Fasts
Release Attachment Breath
If your mind automatically goes into hyper-drive with innumerable concerns, practice letting go for an hour or more. Unplug: Turn off news, radio, TV, computer. Attend to duties without fixating on endless peripheral details. Stay present and relax. Splitting attention won’t resolve issues; only focusing on them one at a time will.
There are 24 hours in a day and we can do just so much within that time. Give your best to duties imposed upon you then let go. This isn’t a lack of caring but wisdom: Worry cannot change outcomes so don’t do it if it won’t alter results.
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Various centering exercises use what I call therapeutic breathing. Easily learned, they have remarkable body-mind impact when practiced regularly. Strategic application of them is an excellent way to remain, or induce, a calm state throughout the day
Moving from the theoretical to the practical here are five options to choose from. See what resonates and apply what appeal. If they work, continue using and add to them as able. Remember, any form of behavior modification requires willing engagement. Commit to daily practice
for at least one month. This is time to test outcomes plus build a basic habit for what works for, not against, you. Rev. Alan Pritz is an Interfaith Minister and disciple of Paramahansa Yogananda who has taught meditation, yoga, and related
sciences for 38+ years. Author of Pocket Guide To Meditation and Meditation As a Way of Life Alan helps individuals and organizations with spirituality and work/life issues through a counseling and consulting practice. Fo r m o r e i n f o r m a t i o n s e e : www.Awake-in-Life.com.
ENJOY LIFE AGAIN Take a Yoga class
Learn to Meditate
Hatha yoga can elicit great serenity. Avoid classes that stress only a physical approach to this ancient system; it’s far deeper than that. The complex interaction of body-mind energies can be wonderfully harmonized if classes are taught mindfully.
Meditation is a science of consciousness, energy, and breathing that fosters, among other things, mental calmness and clarity. Regardless of whether a person prefers Eastern or Western systems—or practices devoid of such associations—regular meditation is the best way to produce
mental tranquility. More, a spiritual approach to meditation will address the unfulfilled aspects of being mentioned earlier. Through it we eventually come to realize that lasting peace, joy, and contentment are found through inner realization, not outer stimulation.
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Get exposure for your ideas!
How does Universal Law operates in our daily lives and in relationships? How do the Laws of Abundance and Attraction interact with the Laws of Reincarnation and Karma? Explore Soul Ages and Stages. What role do Spiritual Guardians play and how can we contact them? Learn the difference between Meditation and Channeling. Discover the akashic record – how do our past lives influence our current existence?
2013 Writers Guidelines now available for Essential Wellness Digital Magazine.
click here for guidelines.
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SHIFT YOUR LIFE
Road to successful weig starts with positive self-t
I
‘VE WORKED with over 1,000 people on their way to better health and weight loss. I’ve seen hundreds of people get to their goals and stay there and I’ve seen hundreds of people fail time and time again. What makes people some people successful and others not? If I’m working with you, I can tell by your outlook on your weight loss, getting better health, and your outlook on life in general if you will be successful or not. Long-term success starts with your motivation and motivation begins and ends with your outlook. Read the statements below. Do they sound familiar? “I NEED to get to the gym.”
“Ugh I’m so fat.” “I hate the way I look!” “I just can’t get motivated!” “My love handles are killing this outfit.” “My thighs are disgusting!” IMPROVE SELF TALK
If the above statements are part of your daily speech to yourself, it’s not going to work and it’s why you continue to struggle with your weight and your health. When someone has a goal of weight loss, it’s like saying, “I’m fat and that’s why I have to exercise and eat healthier.” This is the sort of motivation that will get you to buy the gym membership, but it’s not going to get you into the gym. Motivation that is negative in nature is not an effective motivator. Continued Page 18...
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BY JINA SCHAEFER
ght loss talk
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L o n g - t e r m m o tivation comes from a positive, compassionate and supportive mindset and environment. WHY THAT NEGATIVE TALK DOESN’T WORK
You avoid punishment. If your goal to eat healthy or get more exercise comes from a place within you that is negative in nature, subconsciously the fix is viewed as a punishment for being too fat or too unhealthy. Because it’s viewed as a punishment, subconsciously you avoid these behaviors. It’s the reason for your procrastination and avoidance. Not only is changing your exercise routine or eating habits uncomfortable, but now it is actually seen as a punishment. The result: No motivation and, at best, temporary improvements. Both are frustrating. CHANGE OUTLOOK TO POSITIVITY
Instead, shift your outlook about why you striving for a
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SHIFT YOUR LIFE continued...
healthier lifestyle. Do this by focusing on the positive emotions you feel after you eat a nourishing meal or go for a brisk walk or a workout: you feel more energized, confident and alert, less stressed, happier and stronger. Shift your outlook to get positive, instant gratification from these healthy lifestyle changes. In addition, shift your outlook about what success is. Lose your current beliefs about what success is. For example, many people don’t feel successful unless they follow a strict exercise or eating regimen. Instead find success in getting more physical activity than you did last week. Find success in eating more servings of fruits and vegetables than yesterday. Shifting your outlook on what success is will help you stay motivated because when you feel successful you are happier and more motivated to tackle the next item on your to-do list.
YOUR ACTIONS ITEMS FOR THE NEW YEAR
It is a very fine line between gaining weight and losing weight. Turning the scales either way doesn’t take much! Begin by taking an honest look at your current habits. You can do this by tracking your habits for two to seven days with a food and exercise journal. Once you have looked at your current habits begin to make some of the changes outlined below. Exercise: When it comes to increasing your exercise, get creative and think small. An increase in exercise can be as little as adding a 10 or 15 minute walk each afternoon or an extra day at the gym working out. This can look different for everyone so just see where you can add more physical activity into your schedule each week. Food: See where you can exchange typical food brands for foods with fewer ingredients. This means the food is less processed and has more nutrients,
which will energize you and keep your cravings lower. Also, see where you can add in more fruits and vegetables. Plan to exchange regular snacks for a fruit or vegetable and make half of each meal a fruit or vegetable. Plan: Take time at the beginning of each week to plan out your exercise and your menu. Prepare what you can on the weekend to make your weekly routine easier to accomplish. Remember every step, no matter how small, is a step in the right direction. I believe in you! Jina Schaefer is the founder of Discover Health. Her passion is to guide people to become happier and healthier. She does this through her blog and online healthy living classes. For more realistic and sustainable advice on becoming happier and healthier, check out her website and subscribe to get weekly updates. 612-807-7913. jina@jinaschaefer.com www.JinaSchaefer.com
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Shamanism Training Program
Healing the Wounded Spirit, Soul Retrieval, Recovery From Trauma, Space Clearing, Depossession
Introduction to Shamanic Journeying Class January 27, 9am-5pm, Isanti Animal Communication Class February 19-20, 5-9pm Normandale Community College Contact Mary Stoffel 763-444-8146 mlstoffel@innovatord.com www.humanimal.com www.practicalshamanism.com
VirtuWell Store
A personal growth and enlightenement marketplace
www.esswellness.com/virtuwellstore.aspx For details and to feature your products/services:
Dee, sales@esswellness.com
january 2013
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SHIFT YOUR LIFE
Make your intentions stick this year
A
LOT of people begin the New Year by making resolutions. We’ve all been there. We take a vow to lose weight, exercise more or spend more time with our family. We start the year with great intentions, but then we quickly relapse into old habits. Why is it so hard to stick to those New Year’s resolutions?
• Write down your intentions and keep them in a visible place, like taped to your bedroom mirror or the dashboard of your car.
• Be clear about what your life would look like once you achieve your goal. If you resolve to go to the gym more, how will this benefit you? Get connected to the result of your action, and • Get to the source of you will be more likely to stick whatever is keeping you in a with your plan. rut. Are you in a stressful relationship that causes you to eat • Share your resolutions with a pint of Ben & Jerry’s every friends and family. Hold each night? Are you stressed at your other accountable for achieving job and feel too tired to exercise your goals. If you want to go to after work? If you don’t tackle the gym more, have a friend call
True life is lived when tiny changes occur.
—Leo Tolstoy
Here are some ways you can the root of the behavior, it will you two or three times a week to make your intentions a reality be much harder to accomplish check on you or invite them to join you. your goal. this year: Continued Page 26...
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BY KATHY TOBIAS
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COLONICS DETOXIFICATION OXYGEN BAR and so much more!
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SHIFT YOUR LIFE continued...
• Reward yourself with every little accomplishment. If your intention is to lose weight and you lose one pound a week, pamper yourself with a massage. Big changes do not require big leaps. Permanent change is more likely to happen gradually than through one big restrictive plan. Allow yourself to climb the ladder one rung at a time. No one diet works for every-
one. As a Health Coach, I am your personal advocate for living an energized and passionate life. I work with my clients to help them create happy, healthy lives in a way that is flexible, fun and free of denial and discipline. By working together, we can discover the food and lifestyle choices that best support you. Making gradual, lifelong changes enables you to reach
Ingredients
Directions
• 4-5 cups spring water • 1-2 inch strip of wakame, rinsed and soaked 5 minutes (Soak in 1 cup of water until softened) • 1-2 cups thinly sliced vegetables of your choice (see notes) • 2-3 teaspoons barley miso • 2 scallions, finely chopped
1. Chop soaked wakame. 2. Discard soaking water or use on houseplants for a boost of minerals. 3. Place water and wakame in a soup pot and bring to a boil. 4. Add root vegetables first and simmer gently for 5 minutes or until tender. 5. Add leafy vegetables and simmer for 2-3 minutes.
your current and future health goals.
FOOD FOCUS: SEA VEGETABLES
In traditional Chinese healing, sea vegetables correspond to the winter season and to the kidneys, adrenal glands, bladder and reproductive organs. The strengthening, balancing and cleansing properties of sea veg-
mighty mis 26 www.esswellness.com
6. Remove about 1/2 cup of liquid from pot and dissolve miso into it. Return it to the pot. 7. Reduce heat to very low; do not boil or simmer miso broth. 8. Allow soup to cook 2-3 minutes. 9. Garnish with scallions and serve.
etables are known to help these organs as well as the hair, skin and nails. Sea vegetables (or seaweeds) provide a variety of minerals and vitamins, including calcium, iron and iodine, and can help balance hormone and thyroid levels in the body. Eating too many processed foods or foods grown in mineral-depleted soil can result in a lack of minerals in the body, leading
to cravings for salty or sugary foods. Adding sea vegetables to your diet can help balance your energy levels and alleviate cravings. Kathy is a Certified Health Coach; she received her training at Integrative Nutrition in New York City. She is certified by the American Association of Drugless Practitioners and has obtained
Note
Variations
Any combination of vegetables can be used in miso soup. Here are some classic combinations: • onion-daikon: cleansing • onion-carrot-shiitake mushroom-kale: mildly sweet • onion-winter squash-cabbage: great in wintertime • leek-corn-broccoli: great in summertime
• Add cooked grains at the start of making the soup. They will become nice and soft. • Add a tablespoon of uncooked quinoa or millet at the beginning and let it cook with vegetables for 20 minutes. • Add cubed tofu toward the end. • Add bean sprouts toward the end.
so soup
Continuing Education Units from Purchase College, State University of New York. Kathy leads workshops on nutrition and offers individual health and nutrition coaching to anyone who wants to make a life style change. Located in Hudson and Spooner, WI. http://www.kathy-tobias. healthcoach.integrativenutrition. com/ 612-310-1876. Kathy. whiterosespawellness@gmail.com
• Season with 1/2 teaspoon ginger juice for an interesting twist. • If using dry shiitake mushrooms, let soak for 20 minutes, slice and add at the beginning. Prep Time: 5-10 min. Cooking Time: 10-15 min. Yield: 4-5 servings january 2013
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SHIFT YOUR LIFE
Decluttering and cleanin space, lightens your life’
I
F YOU’VE ever felt stuck in a rut about any area of your life, lightening your load in your physical space will definitely loosen you up and get things moving both literally and figuratively. I found in my own life that simply washing my windows allows me to have clarity about the people and relationships I have in my life. A shift in energy must happen on every level of your be-
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ing to create a clearing. Without releasing, you cannot blossom into your next potential. This causes me to think about my own life and what am I carrying around with me just to get through the day. Sometimes I feel like a bag lady carrying around my purse, workbag, gym bag, shopping list, etc. Consider how your personal daily belongings serve you and how they make you feel. I like the days when my load is light,
it’s empowering. On heavy luggage days I feel overwhelmed. CAUSE FOR A PAUSE
In my line of work, it’s my job to help people feel grounded. In order to do that, I am a cause for a pause. I pull people back, have them stop, breathe, and really be in the moment of what is present for them. As humans, we are moving faster than we ever have before. Time flies as we move from one thing to
BY RACHEL LOESLIE
ng your ’s loads the next. This can make us feel like we are out of alignment or off center. The pressure to multi-task and “do it all” can hold us back from our intentions. To connect to your own purpose, I suggest pondering on the feng shui principle that “Your space reflects your life.” See how your space is a metaphor for what is happening in your life. What is your space saying to you or about you? Are you living in the past with too
many items from another time in your life? Do you hold onto other people’s things or collect free items or sale items not really knowing what you will do with them…but they are free and cheap so you take them? These questions will help you tap into some key clues about how your space works with you. For example, if you tend to be a closet or cupboard stuffer, you may think your clutter is out of sight and out of mind. Well, we
know better because everything is energy, even what we can’t see in clear sight. If your closets are jammed packed your schedule is probably jammed packed and overwhelming. If your wallet looks like it might explode your finances may be out of whack. See the correlation here? It’s real.
Continued Page 32...
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SHIFT YOUR LIFE continued...
some office décor that I no longer wanted. I cleaned my wallet and found a gift card I forgot Our space gives us clues as about, score! to what the bigger picture looks like. The metaphors we use help LIGHTEN YOUR LOAD BY us tap into the mind, body, and FOLLOWING THESE RITUALS spirit connection. These clues To lighten your daily load are our guide into the process I suggest a few rituals that you of restoring order and allow- could put into practice and see ing your space to better support what opens up for you. you. Look around and recon- Clean out your wallets or nect to what’s really important purses weekly and throw old and remember who you are receipts, coupons and file anycommitted to being. Re-direct- thing needed for tax purposes. ing and letting go of items and You could find money or that tasks that don’t serve your inten- code to your gym locker that tions will be the key to freedom went missing. and success. On your desk, clear the sur Here are some things I have face each day to allow a clean done recently that you could try slate for the next days work. with your own space. In my of- Dust weekly, don’t keep stagfice, I cleaned out my files and nate energy at work. old papers from two previous Not feeling creative? Clear jobs. This information was no those horizontal surfaces on longer relevant in my life. The shelves, counters and dressers next day after this clearing I re- to make way for those creative ceived two checks in the mail, juices to flow again. one expected and one unexpect- Stuck in the muck? Do the ed. Then I went to the consign- tango and pick up the clutter off ment store and made $50 on the floor to your favorite song LOOK FOR CLUES IN YOUR ENVIRONMENT TO MAKE SHIFTS
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and allow peace and joy to flow through you. Feeling heavy? Check the fridge and pantry for spoiled or expired items, then replenish with fresh abundant foods and you could find yourself on a cleaner diet. Junk in your trunk? Clean out your car by taking care of those items that are seasonal or on their way to a new home or put them back where they belong in your own space. All this “stuff” we carry or hold onto each day is another extension of our larger self. You can create a clearing for yourself and your life by simply taking action to nurture your home by organizing, vacuuming, dusting, sweeping, and washing away stale energy to allow the new and put a pep into your step. Take a look around and ponder how your own space may be a metaphorical messenger. Maybe it will call your attention to something that is out of alignment in your life.
Use this as your guide to begin your own sacred space-clearing journey. You can thank yourself, reward yourself, and forgive yourself or someone else in the process. I guarantee you will open up a whole new perspective about something relevant in your life and now your space can be set up to support you. Leaving you to say, “Watch out world here I come!� R achel Loeslie is a Master Feng Shui Consultant who has been practicing since 2008. To complement her professional organizing business she was certified in Feng Shui thru t h e Wi n d & Wa t e r S c h o o l of Feng Shui in 2009. As a member of the Feng Shui Institute of the Midwest and the National Association of Professional Organizers she continues to expand her skills. Follow Rachel Loeslie on facebook (www.facebook.com/RachelLoeslieOrganizing), twitter @rachel_loeslie or on her blog ( w w w. R a c h e l L o e s l i e . c o m ) . january 2013
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Live Well.
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