http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/life/ en Gabrielle.Clemens@gmail.com Copyright 2010 2010-01-19T16:33:38-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/filing-taxes-after-divorce-advice-from-the-expert/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/filing-taxes-after-divorce-advice-from-the-expert/#When:16:33:38Z Continuing our comprehensive “Smoothing the Transition” series on divorce with financial guru Gabrielle Clemens aka “The Divorce Lady,“ we turn this month to the issue of filing taxes as “Single” or “Head of Household.“ While daunting, Clemens notes that many of her clients ultimately find the experience illuminating, as they learn more about their finances and themselves. Preparing your income taxes for the first year following your divorce can be a daunting task.  However, with the help of a good accountant and/or tax preparation software, you will get through it, and learn a lot about your finances in the process. life 2010-01-19T16:33:38-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/whats-on-your-wish-list/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/whats-on-your-wish-list/#When:15:59:42Z The things on people’s wish lists reveal a great deal about them. It’s fascinating in an almost voyeuristic way to get a glimpse of what people are wishing for, at least those items they are willing to make public. Misstropolis asked friends in Boston and beyond to share what’s on their lists this year and found the creativity and diversity to be quite inspiring. What’s on your wish list this year? Let us know. Who knows what Santa will bring?!The things on a person’s wish list reveal a great deal about him or her. It’s fascinating in an almost voyeuristic way to get a glimpse of what people are wishing for, at least those items they are willing to make public. Misstropolis asked friends in Boston and beyond to share what’s on their lists this year and found the creativity and diversity to be quite inspiring. What’s on your wish list this year? Let us know. Who knows what Santa will bring?! life 2009-12-21T15:59:42-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/christmas-in-nantucket-land/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/christmas-in-nantucket-land/#When:16:31:07Z It’s not just for summer escapes - Nantucket’s annual Christmas Stroll draws visitors from all over the world to enjoy the traditions, cuisine, shopping and breathtaking landscapes. “Nantucket Noel” and Christmas Stroll are this weekend - always one of the year’s most festive on the island. Former resident Marie-Claire Rochat takes us strolling through the charming treasures that await along the cobblestones. Of all the quaint, storybook towns that dot the New England coastline, Nantucket is certainly in the running for the one that does Christmas best. The skinny Blue Spruces that line the main streets have been up for weeks, bedecked in colored construction paper ornaments crafted by local school children (droopy from those early morning frosts); the shop windows are filled with tasteful decorations and displays (think antique sleds adorned with red velvet bows) and the restaurants have posted seasonal menus coaxing passersby in for hot toddies and steaming soups. life 2009-12-04T16:31:07-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/navigating-divorce-the-question-of-underemployment/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/navigating-divorce-the-question-of-underemployment/#When:05:32:31Z Gabrielle Clemens, aka The Divorce Lady, is back with expert advice on how to deal with alimony issues when one spouse claims the other is “underemployed.“ What does this mean and how does one argue against the claim in divorce proceedings? Gabrielle explains and lists case law which supports both sides of the argument.Many potential clients in the early stage of divorce proceedings write to me with questions. Recently I have been receiving a lot of emails concerning the notion of “Underemployment.“ When one spouse claims another is not living up to their earning potential and is asking for too much alimony as a result, this may fall under the concept of “underemploment.“ Meredith, a woman in Boston wrote me a letter regarding her concern on this matter. My response is below. life 2009-11-05T05:32:31-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/celebrate-the-opening-of-stil-studio-with-misstropolis-and-many-more/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/celebrate-the-opening-of-stil-studio-with-misstropolis-and-many-more/#When:17:52:38Z If you like to shop, or just have something you’ve got to get, Dedham’s sparkling new Legacy Place is a good place to be. An outdoor mall on performance enhancing drugs, Legacy Place sprawls across what used to be the Dedham cinema parking lot - offering shopping, dining, watching (a new cinema replaced the old one) and yoga. Yoga? Yes! Betty Riaz, owner of clothing boutique Stil in Chesnut Hill has opened a bright, serene yoga studio in the folds of Legacy Place, near Portobello Road and Urban Outfitters. Whether you are following one of the many great teachers now holding classes at Stil, looking to try yoga for the first time or assuaging your guilt for spending money in the Place, Stil will hook you up much more than Ann Taylor Loft ever will. Join Misstropolis at a Grand Opening Celebration tomorrow, Saturday,  October 17th from 10am to 4pm. If you like to shop, or just have something you’ve got to get, Dedham’s sparkling new Legacy Place is a good place to be. An outdoor mall on performance enhancing drugs, Legacy Place sprawls across what used to be the Dedham cinema parking lot - offering shopping, dining, watching (a new cinema replaced the old one) and yoga. Yoga? Yes! Betty Riaz, owner of clothing boutique Stil in Chesnut Hill has opened a bright, serene yoga studio in the folds of Legacy Place, near Portobello Road and Urban Outfitters. Whether you are following one of the many great teachers now holding classes at Stil, looking to try yoga for the first time or assuaging your guilt for spending money in the Place, Stil will hook you up much more than Ann Taylor Loft ever will. Join Misstropolis at a Grand Opening Celebration tomorrow, Saturday,  October 17th from 11am to 4p life 2009-10-16T17:52:38-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/charym1/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/charym1/#When:16:27:45Z Despite extraordinary advances in medicine and fitness, more Americans than ever suffer from disease, depression, fatigue, insomnia, obesity, eating disorders, manias and phobias. Why is it that when we should be as healthy and happy as ever before we are sicker and more stressed? Many believe an east meets west approach to wellness can successfully combat the ailments of modern life. At Charym, a yoga and wellness retreat in Litchfield CT, a powerful and visionary group of women have created an oasis of beauty and health. On the eve of my 40th birthday, I went to check it out.I won’t sugarcoat it, forty was staring me in the face and I loathed the looks of it. I tried to embrace my next decade like everyone wanted, but the stubborn brat inside wouldn’t have it. Denial and avoidance kept me company through my thirties; but then, just weeks before the “big day,“ they skipped town and left me with an underachievement complex and new anxiety about the age appropriateness of my wardrobe, my music and my bucket list. There was nothing to do but get out of town. I knew a place; I was like Dorothy on the way to Oz. I needed to go see the wizard who would tell me to get over it and be happy I wasn’t sleeping on a dirt floor or begging for change to feed my family. I needed yoga, counseling and hot oil massage. I needed Charym. life 2009-10-07T16:27:45-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/run-my-errand/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/run-my-errand/#When:01:09:01Z Part of the Misstropolis mission is to make women’s lives easier. With every new reader we meet, we get a clearer sense of how over-scheduled we all are. The end of summer brings added pressures of car pooling, sports scheduling, wardrobe switching and game-day pigs in a blanket making. RunMyErrand is a Boston based, woman owned company, launched with busy Bostonians in mind. Whether the errands entail picking up dry cleaning, mailing packages or selling wedding dresses on eBay, RunMyErrand connects the to do list with the do-er. It’s easy, cost effective and transparent. Misstropolis speaks with founder Leah Busque and offers a special reader discount. On you mark, get set, let someone else go.Many famous discoveries, inventions and businesses began with an aha moment. Just consider Sir Isaac Newton and his head-banging apple, said to have helped him discover gravity. Karl Bühler the German language theorist and psychologist who reportedly coined the term aha experience almost a century ago called it “a peculiar, pleasure-oriented experience within the course of thought that pops up with the sudden insight into a previously intransparent context.” But it is not the moment itself which becomes the new company, it is the courageous action of the entrepreneur, the persistance in the face of doubt, the ability to meet each new obstacle with resourceful perseverence and passionate belief. That’s what turns an aha moment into a real company. life 2009-09-18T01:09:01-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/urban-interns-comes-to-boston/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/urban-interns-comes-to-boston/#When:22:03:17Z You’re inundated and over-scheduled, unable to take a bathroom break, let alone search for discount airfares. Your small business is growing, but you work out of your house and don’t want someone staring at you across the kitchen table all day. You need an intern, but Craig’s List is scary and you don’t have time to look. Lucky for you, Urban Interns opens today in Boston. The search is over, you may now begin your search.With drastic budget cuts and increased layoffs, many small businesses across the country have too much work for their remaining skeleton crews to handle. (And yes, Misstropolis can count itself in this group.) Increasingly, innovative, resourceful companies are turning to a source of talent that some analysts believe is richer now than ever - Interns. life 2009-09-08T22:03:17-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/handling-distractions-with-ease/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/handling-distractions-with-ease/#When:18:03:08Z Each day we face a series of choices; some obvious and simple, some confusing and complex. On life’s journeys there are constant distractions which push and pull us, hijack our attention and make simple choices complicated. Yoga teaches us that distractions only have as much power as we give them. Yoga and meditation teacher Sheryl Light sheds light on making the most of positive mental distractions, and letting go of the harmful ones. When something disrupts your axis - your concentration or flow - don’t fight it. Notice it and decide whether it merits any more of your awareness. If not, cleanly and peacefully allow it to go. Pause, inhale and connect back to your axis as you consider your intentions and travel on. Whatever moves you, centers you, brings a smile to your lips and lightness to your being, that’s the thing to focus upon. life 2009-08-24T18:03:08-05:00 http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/a-spoonful-of-trouble/ http://www.misstropolis.com/index.php/arts/a-spoonful-of-trouble/#When:17:30:17Z When your child is up all night hacking her poor head off - or his adorable little nose is running so fast you can’t keep up with it and he can’t breathe - your biggest decision seems to be whether to reach for the bubble gum pink, the purple grape or the cherry red cough and cold elixir. Right? Apparently not. It seems those over-the-counter medications well-meaning parents have been giving their children for years not only don’t help, they could actually cause harm.The cough and cold aisle in the CVS looks more like a candy counter than a drugstore. Yet the medicines found there in cartoon-baby-emblazoned boxes are a godsend for exhausted parents of cold-ridden kids. Or are they? ... According to a recent CDC study, a March petition from a group of prominent pediatricians, and years of warnings from doctors’ groups, colds medicines for kids not only don’t work, they are also not as harmless as the marketers will have you believe. life 2009-08-24T17:30:17-05:00