Episodes

Do you understand your homeowner’s insurance policy? It’s time for a refresher course. It only takes one major plumbing leak, a fire, hurricane, or other disaster to bankrupt you if you don’t have adequate cover. Find out what you must know to protect your investment. As a certified California interior designer for over two decades, Cynthia Brian, ASID, learned a few tricks to update a home on a budget. Discover ways you can make your residence look fresh, new, and current with a few DIY tricks ...

Are you a coffee aficionado? Did you know that coffee is now considered good for your health and longevity? Learn more about America’s java cravings, cautions, claims, and benefits. As summer draws to a close, it’s natural to want to grab the last rays of outdoor living. Tips on how to enjoy the outdoors at the end of summer including how to get rid of a skunk’s stinky spray on your beloved pet. Sometimes our adult children make choices that are destructive. As a caring parent, we have to step i...

Do you know how to protect yourself from danger? Did you ever take a self-defense class? In these days of terrorist attacks and increased muggings, your security is paramount. Learn some deterrents to keep the bad guys away. You’ve heard the saying “You are what you eat!” The reality is that what you imbibe can help or hurt, nourish or poison. The correct edibles offer a prescription for health. Nature has a built in medicine cabinet. Health Hero, Heather Brittany, talks about the movie, the met...

Do you remember when you were a kid you dreamed about vacation time? In 2016, American workers left 662 million vacation days unused. Many people skip a vacation believing that they’ll get behind on work or they can’t afford the time off. The truth is that you are more productive, happier, healthier, and creative when you take vacation days. Cynthia Brian eliminates the guilt and gets you on track for a break. No matter who you are or where you come from, you will have setbacks and challenges in...

Are you pestered by debt collectors for bills that you’ve long forgotten or already paid? Zombie debts may come with steep fees and penalties. Find out what you can do to protect yourself. Is there anything more glorious that Naked Ladies dancing in the sunshine? Every summer these long necked beauties raise their pretty pink faces when little else graces our gardens with blooms. You’ll want to invite these ladies to your next garden party. The suburbs have become a wild kingdom with coyotes, fo...

Research indicates that it’s the little things in life that lead to a joyful life. Do you notice the small moments that make you happy? Learn how to practice being blissful. According to a 2015 Harris poll, 95% of pet owners consider their pet part of their family. Is it any wonder that scientists are spending time investigating how animals can increase our mental and emotional health. Animal therapy is on the rise. Hug your pooch today! We all know someone who is a constant complainer and blame...

America was an agrarian society until the early 1900’s. Today we are a technology-focused country. As of the last census, only one percent of Americans are farmers. With the global population expected to exceed nine billion by 2050, farmers will have to grow sixty percent more food to feed the masses. Farmers are the foundation of our civilization and we need to honor and respect their art. Cynthia Brian praises farmers. It’s time we get back to our roots. Do you know where your food comes from?...

Couples are marrying later than in previous generations with the average for women being 29 and for men 31. In bygone days, the bride’s parents were expected to foot the bill for the wedding but those rules have changed. How can you keep this happy occasion on track and who pays for what? Cynthia Brian shares ways to make it work. Millennials may have surpassed boomers in numbers, but more than 70% of the disposable income in the US comes from baby boomers. Boomers are interested in saving and s...

Laughter could be the best medicine. Laughing makes you and everyone around you feel better. Instead of holding on to grudges, learn to laugh more. The nation’s deadliest drug epidemic is hitting Americans of every age. Doctors have overprescribed painkillers for years not knowing the swiftness of addiction to opioids. Find out what opioids are and how the Department of Health and Human Services is responding to the crisis. Rodents are inundating homes and gardens this year in search of water an...

We all want to save money and time when we shop. By following a few of these tips curated by Consumer Reports you can save up to 40% off your weekly food bill. Find out how to keep your food fresh and be a safety expert too. What are you waiting for? Tune in for more. The number one problem in the gardens that Cynthia Brian visits is the quality of the soil. There is a difference between dirt and soil. We can be dirt rich and soil poor. Unfortunately, many gardens are filled with lots of dirt an...

According to motivational author Alan Cohen, “Nowhere is so highly populated that it seems like somewhere. When billions of people agree that illusions are solid, it is tempting to pitch your tent on a swamp.” How can you make every day count? Helene Stapinski talks about her new memoir, MURDER IN MATERA , a story of ancestry, self-discovery, Italian traditions, and the mystery that lies beneath it all. Since the age of four, Helene heard lurid yet inspiring tales about her great-great-grandmoth...

In the summer of 1967 over one hundred thousand young people descended upon San Francisco, Golden Gate Park, and the Haight-Ashbury area to experience a season of love, peace, sex, drugs, and rock ‘n roll. The Summer of Love, as this counterculture revolution was called, celebrated with free concerts, performances, protests, and flowers. Cynthia Brian was never a hippie, but she has always been a flower child. Follow her through the garden. What is the ideal age to give birth? Did you know that ...

The benefits of being a reader enhance every moment of our life. From the moment a child is born, reading is an essential activity. Get ideas on how to grow readers for a lifetime of success. As we say at Be the Star You Are!®, “To be a leader, you must be a reader. Read, lead, succeed!” How do you teach your children the importance of financial independence? Are they financially literate? Tips on how to talk early, often, and help them invest regularly. The power of a smile has been documented ...

In this empowering book, Dr. Maisel shows how to stay sane when family isn’t, providing practical strategies that can be implemented immediately. Overcoming Your Difficult Family is a “field guide” to common types of dysfunctional families, and a big helping of real life success stories that are dinner table tested and approved. Listeners will learn to maintain inner peace in the midst of family chaos and maybe even create a better life for the whole family. When determining what college you wan...

You adore your pet. Actually, your cat, dog, or other critter is part of your family. When you go away for an extended time, do you know how to get the most out of your boarding experience. Cynthia Brian shares tips on how to find the best place to planning for emergencies. All around us, animals are acting as our therapists, trainers, mentors, and gurus- but only if we pay attention. Through their “misbehaviors”, challenges, and unwavering love, animals are conscientiously guiding us to the nex...

Today everyone walks around with a smartphone. Taking photos has become a snap. But are you taking the best photos you possibly can? Master photography with a few professional tips. Health Hero, Heather Brittany, offers tips to men to stay healthy, including the latest scientific research on prostate cancer detection and how best to maintain vigor and strength. Father’s Day is Sunday and the best gift you have give you Dad if you are fortunate enough to have him around is to write him a note to ...

Going on vacation in your car? Do you know how to pack for safety, fun, and flexibility. AAA has numerous helpful tips and we’ll glean the best ones to save you the effort. Happy Traveling. You’ve heard of creating garden rooms. Take a stroll through an eclectic landscape with Cynthia Brian as she describes the various rooms created by a collector of all things cast off and cast iron, who converted salvaged junk into artistic architecture that transforms his garden into an alluring adventure of ...

There are great reasons to get married. Love, companionship, children, ego balancing, partnerships, tax breaks. Discover a few tips on the positive reasons for getting hitched. Did you now that those luscious strawberries that you just bought could be loaded with more than a 100 different pesticides? Goddess Gardener Cynthia Brian tells you the clean and the dirty and how best to grow your own. When you have to delegate a task, sometimes communicating your wishes is challenging. Show, don’t tell...

From the Greek words “holos” meaning whole and “kaustos: meaning burned, historically the word Holocaust described a sacrificial offering burned on an alter. In the 1940’s, Adolph Hitler changed the meaning of Holocaust which we now know as the horrendous mass murder and torture of over six million Jews plus four to six million non-Jews in his campaign for the “Final Solution” inhi quest for racial Aryan purity. Cynthia Brian discusses the history of the Holocaust and anti-semitism then intervie...

When you visit your family physician, do you know the right questions to ask? Most doctor visits last less than fifteen minutes and most patients leave without understanding their diagnosis. Cynthia Brian sheds light on how to listen, understand, and communicate what you need to know. YELP was founded in 2004 with the purpose of connecting people with great local businesses. By the end of 2016, 65 million unique visitors used the YELP mobile app, 24 million visited monthly via YELP, and more tha...

Between the copious showers and the solar assistance, spring is alive and lush with the grandeur of flora. Cynthia Brian’s entire garden is bursting with surprises of color, textures, and forms. Join the Goddess Gardener for some gardening playtime. In the past few decades early childhood learning has changed radically. Now that kindergarten serves as a gatekeeper, not a welcome mat, to elementary school, concerns about school preparedness kick in earlier and earlier. Kids are being forced to wo...

Want to look great, feel awesome, and be more attractive? Want to brighten the day of strangers, help people feel better, and be happier yourself? Trying smiling more. Find the power that smiling offers and show your pearly whites! When you affirm that the world is good and you recognize the sources of goodness are outside yourself, you’ll feel happier, healthier, and grateful. Set your intention to give thanks for everything you are and have. Cynthia Brian will help you appreciate the little th...

Nutritionists and cooks are once again touting the health benefits of eggs, but the controversy over cholesterol and diabetes is ongoing. Life-long chicken raiser and cottage industry egg-seller, Cynthia Brian, sheds light on the scramble with the newest statistics and research. Purple, the color of royalty, wisdom, and luxury is favored in the majority of Cynthia Brian’s botanical blooms. The nobility of the season is highlighted with the elegantly perfumed lilac, the scented grace of cascading...

Genetics account for only 25% of a person’s longevity. The rest is how you live your life. Learn tips from centenarians for a new model for aging. Join Christopher Sowton as he shares five steps to receiving the inner guidance of our dreams: Catch, Clarify, Orient, Connect, Respond . With hands-on techniques, examples from the author’s psychotherapy practice, and guidance for working with fourteen common dream motifs, his book, Dreamworking–How to Listen to the Inner Guidance of Your Dreams, sho...