Photo: ThinkstockBy Candace Braun Davison
In Your Office's Vacation Policy
More and more companies are allowing employees to "sell" back their unused time off at the end of the year, according to The Wall Street Journal. The money is treated like an extra paycheck--with regular tax deductions--but you can also choose to receive it as a 401(k) contribution or donate it directly to charity. For the average American, that's an extra two days' pay each year.
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At Your Local Gym
There's a new way to motivate yourself to hit the gym, and it's almost as powerful as your friend announcing that she ran into Ryan Gosling there. Some health insurance companies will pay you to work out. UnitedHealthcare, for example, reimburses members $20 for every month they visit a fitness center or YMCA at least 12 times. (Planet Fitness, one of UnitedHealthcare's participating gyms, offers memberships for $10 per month.) Similarly, Anthem will
Blog Posts by Oprah.com
4 Surprising Places Money is Hiding in Your Life
By Oprah.com | Financially Fit – Wed, Apr 3, 2013 2:51 PM EDT8 Trends You Must Try This Season (and 4 to Skip)
By Oprah.com | Fashion – Tue, Apr 2, 2013 7:51 PM EDTBy Adam Glassman
The 10 Best Lipsticks to Try This Spring
By Oprah.com | Beauty on Shine – Thu, Mar 28, 2013 6:33 PM EDTBy Jenny Bailly
The Most Important Ingredient in Your Kitchen Is
By Oprah.com | Shine Food – Wed, Mar 27, 2013 2:18 PM EDT
Read More »from The Most Important Ingredient in Your Kitchen Is
Photo: ThinkstockA Meal Extender for $1.49: Cannellini Beans
True story: We were once in the middle of throwing together an empty-out-the-fridge weeknight dinner for two that involved three-quarters of a box of pasta, some broccoli florets, garlic, olive oil and lots of Parmesan. A "be there in 10 minutes!" text showed up on our phone from a friend (oops, scheduling misfire), and we started ransacking the pantry to find something to turn the meal into a company-worthy dinner for four of us. A 15-ounce can of cannellini beans came to the rescue. The white beans added heft, provided a creamy contrast to the vegetables and turned pasta and greens into a one-dish, protein-rich supper.
RELATED: Taste Test: Canned or Homemade Beans
Photo: Lynn AndrianiInstant Crunch: Panko
Compared to other store-bought varieties, panko bread crumbs are more coarsely chopped, less toasted and lighter in feel and taste. They also have the power to transform whatever you're cooking--chicken cutlets, butterflied shrimp, a simple flounderBizarre Questions People Ask Personal Trainers
By Oprah.com | Healthy Living – Tue, Mar 26, 2013 5:26 PM EDT
Photo: ThinkstockBy Corrie Pikul
Will you be a bridesmaid in my wedding?
Personal trainers realize that some clients get a little more, well, personal than others, says Geralyn Coopersmith, the national director of the Equinox Fitness Training Institute. "They may spend more one-on-one time with you than with their friends or even their spouse," Coopersmith says. "They also know that you genuinely care about their health--that's part of your job." When one of Coopersmith's clients became pregnant, Coopersmith was the first person she told (before her husband!), and another invited her on an island vacation. ("Her friend had bailed, but I still felt uncomfortable.") During her 20 years of helping people get in shape, Coopersmith has even been asked to be in a client's wedding. "I tried to talk her out of it, but she said, 'You're such an important part of my life!'" (Coopersmith, who felt honored, went--and had a blast.)
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RELATED: The World's Best Jeans: Your Complete Denim GuideThe Worst Time to Buy a Mattress (and 5 More Purchasing Secrets)
By Oprah.com | Financially Fit – Mon, Mar 25, 2013 6:48 PM EDT
Read More »from The Worst Time to Buy a Mattress (and 5 More Purchasing Secrets)
Photo: ThinkstockBy Lynn Andriani
Don't Upgrade Your Mattress...
...in April. This middle-of-spring month doesn't have any major holidays, and mattress retailers love to hold sales around days that most people have off from work or school, like Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, the Fourth of July and Labor Day. Plus, in May, manufacturers tend to mark down old models to clear them out and make room for the new ones coming in, so if you buy in April, you'll be too early to score a deal.
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Photo: ThinkstockDon't Buy a New Grill...
...between March and June. As soon as people get their first whiff of warm air, they start thinking about burgers and hot dogs, which means they head out to buy charcoal and gas grills--and high demand means high prices. Leslie Wheeler, director of communications at the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, says you're unlikely to get a great buy early in the season. Wait until after the Fourth of July or, if you can hold out, autumn, whenPare Down Your Pantry in 30 Minutes or Less
By Oprah.com | In The Pantry – Mon, Mar 25, 2013 4:22 PM EDT
Photo: David TsayBy Meredith Bryan
Organization expert Peter Walsh shares his best pieces of advice for cleaning out your kitchen.
Time Required: 30 minutes
Check the Dates
Immediately get rid of those long-expired pickles and cake mixes and the can of chicken soup you bought to cure a nasty cold in 2005.
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Banish "Aspirational" Foods
The sun-dried-tomato tapenade you planned to serve at the dinner party you didn't get around to hosting? The hearty dry-bean soup mix whose instructions sound like a drag? "Let it go," says Walsh. "Anything you don't use regularly or have immediate plans to use is in danger of being wasted."
Group "Like" Foods
Assign each category--canned beans, pasta sauces, packaged snacks--its own section of shelf, and keep only what fits in the allotted space. Pack everything else into a box marked "donate."
Atone for Your Waste
In addition to dropping off edible non-perishables at a local food bank, "estimate the cost ofRead More »from Pare Down Your Pantry in 30 Minutes or Less5 Celebrity Chefs Share Their Biggest Cooking Disasters
By Oprah.com | Shine Food – Fri, Mar 22, 2013 5:00 PM EDT
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Photo: Donna SvennevikBy Lynn Andriani
Carla Hall and the Dangerously Rare Chicken
Carla Hall, a Washington, D.C., chef who co-hosts The Chew, still gets hot flashes when she recalls one of her biggest gaffes. She was catering an event and had roasted chicken breasts and thighs. The meat appeared to be cooked, so out it went to the guests' tables. Moments later, back it came, with comments from the waitstaff that the chicken was raw. It was true: especially near the bone. Had Hall tested the meat, she'd have seen that it wasn't at the finished temperature of 165 degrees. "I don't care if you're a home cook or a pro--a thermometer is your best friend," she says now.
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Bobby Deen and the Breakfast That Blindsided Him
When Southern cook Bobby Deen, whose new book is From Mama's Table to Mine, opened a restaurant with his brother and mother some 20 years ago in Savannah, breakfast was always their slowest meal. One morning, though, a men's softball team stormed thePut Spring in Your Step with Floral-Printed Heels
By Oprah.com | Fashion – Wed, Mar 20, 2013 2:39 PM EDT
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Photo: Gregor HalendaBy Adam Glassman
"If you're wary of the head-to-toe prints, try these shoes for a hit of the trend." --Adam Glassman, O's creative director
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Clockwise, from top:
1. Petal Pusher Jazz up jeans with this blue-blossomed cap-toe pump. (L.K. Bennett, $345; 212-309-7559)
2. Getting Graphic Digital-print stilettos add a burst of color to simple outfits. (Charles by Charles David, $99; nordstrom.com)
3. Gold Stars Fashion designer Peter Som teamed up with shoe designer Tabitha Simmons for a collection that includes this chic, metallic-tipped number. (Tabitha Simmons for Peter Som, $845, Bergdorf Goodman; 212-753-7300)
4. Flower Power The floral trend is in full bloom on this fabric pump. ($148; cwonder.com)
5. Jungle Love Spiky bamboo leaves give a feminine, bow-accented heel some tropical flavor. (L'Autre Chose, $345; boccaccini.it)
6. Call of the Wild Shades of blue and pink put a new twist on animal prints. ($69; ninewest.com)
7. Shine on A pointy-toe
Photo: ThinkstockBy Corrie Pikul
They Can Get It Up in the Womb
Fetuses as young as 16 weeks have been spotted with teensy protuberances that rise and fall throughout gestation, according to studies in the Journal of Ultrasound Medicine. Scientists aren't sure why this happens, but one theory, reported in the Los Angeles Times, is that these periodic movements help the penile tissue stay oxygenated and healthy.
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Even the Most Masculine of Them Aren't Exactly Surging with TestosteroneEarly in a life, males experience two bursts of testosterone: one tells their genitalia to develop male characteristics, and the other is believed to imprint a male pattern on their brains, writes urologist Abraham Morgentaler, MD, FACS, in his forthcoming book, Why Men Fake It: The Totally Unexpected Truth About Men and Sex. From shortly after birth and throughout childhood, though, little boys and girls have the same nearly undetectable levels of
Read More »from 7 Things You Never Knew About Men's Bodies
