Companies Are Giving You $1K For "Mental Wellness Chicken Coops"

The days are getting shorter, and everywhere I see signs that fall is approaching: from back to school signals to my garden. Soon enough there will be a pumpkin on your front porch (If you’re growing pumpkins, you’re my hero).

Tea and Hot Zucchini Summer

These days I tend to drink less coffee and more tecito (tea), especially in the afternoons. Lately I’ve been wondering about the history of tea in some of our ancestral homelands. How did tea get so entrenched in Señora culture? Here’s an interesting story around how tea got from China to Brazil (hint: thanks to Emperor Dom Joao the 6th, and 500 Chinese tea-farmers ) and another about how Chileans turned tea - called once - into the “fourth meal” of the day.

Right now I’m a huge fan of Tea Drops’ Rose Earl Gray drops for my Señora once. It literally tastes like roses, and it’s so easy to make.

Today I harvested a monster zucchini from my jardin (garden). That’s because I didn’t yank it soon enough. Turns out you can still eat it but it won’t be as tasty as normal sized ones. Who knew!?

New Books

Did you know that Nestle shipped snacks to the Indigenous People in some of your homelands (Brazil), which in turn made kids in the Amazon prefer junk food instead of their wholesome roots and berry-based meals? Read about this and more in the new book Ultra Processed People by Chris Van Tulleken.

Are you cup-curious?

What are the best period products? You’ll be surprised at what this research study found. If you’re cup-curious, try this Rael reusable cup, which provides leak protection all period long.

Beauty & Wellness

Have you been seeing more and more of those on-demand IV drips? I swear I saw one on every block on a recent trip to the east coast. It’s where they pump you full of vitamins, as a type of wellness hack using an IV. Did you know that one IV experience caused a Kardashian to go to the hospital? Find out if they’re worth it - and how they could even be risky.

My hair is prone to breakage in the summer, and I’ve been trying out this Sienna Naturals Plant Power Repair Mask. This vegan repair mask is formulated with their vegan protein complex to bind moisture, hydrate hair and prevent breakage. What’s cool is the the brand is co-owned by HBO star Issa Rae (‘Barbie’, ‘Insecure’ and ‘Awkward Black Girl’).

Check out Issa’s morning beauty and “go to the office” routine over at Vogue. She gets up at 4am and says getting her workouts first thing help her feel like she’s tackled the hardest part of the day early, and that during busy days she swears by Vitamin C serum.

Speaking of the office, some companies are starting to give employees wellness benefits - but not in the “get fit” sense; rather anything that could create mental wellness. For example, one company is giving employees $1K to do things like plant a fruit orchard, install solar panels or plan a chicken coop. I can get behind that.

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