"What beverage?" You might ask.

According to the USDA, the number of farmers markets in the United States has grown almost 6-fold since 1994—from 1,000 markets to over 6,000 markets in 2010. Americans are getting hungrier for real food, and they want to meet the farmer or chef behind their meals.

If you’re one of the ambitious individuals looking to bring a new market to your neighborhood, you’ve got a large undertaking on the way. You’ll be in charge of bringing a new life force to your town or market, and you’ll be coordinating one of the most powerful acts of community participation we have in our modern lives—all in the name of getting down on good food. Here are seven steps to jumpstarting a farmers market in your town.

After running a pile of clothes through a cycle in the washing machine, I get a certain satisfaction out of seeing them emerge clean and smelling fresh. I know I didn’t do any of the grunt work, but still. There’s a sense of accomplishment that goes with turning stained, possibly smelly clothes (every family has that one family member who’s especially stinky; am I right?) into neatly folded, spotless garments.

What you might not think about when you’re folding your freshly laundered clothes is that the chemicals in commercial laundry detergents could actually be dirtier than a grass-stained, mud-caked, sweat-encrusted pair of pants.

Although you talk to your dog like he’s a person and understands, there’s no way he’s talking back to you. And talking back to yourself in your dog’s made up voice doesn’t count, sorry! Like a baby who can’t communicate yet, owners learn to read their dog’s attitude and body language to judge what they're thinking. Here’s your guide to reading your dog’s body language..

Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome May: A month that unofficially marks the beginning of summer, the period of perpetual outdoor activity, grilling and, for the luckiest, romance. Here at OA, we always like to find the best ways to mix the Earth’s business with much-needed pleasure; what better mash-up than the hottest season of the year and a love affair? 

We all know that staying healthy and thriving involves much more than the food you eat and the colds you don’t catch. Having a positive outlook may affect your health more than environment and even genetics, and being an optimist has been linked with greater quality and quantity of life.

Modern life inundates us with negative information and bad feelings, from the morning commute to the nightly news, and it can be overwhelming. However each human being possesses a weapon more powerful than any army or any written word: Laughter. 

Hairspray is expensive and chockfull of chemicals - straight up (and let's not even get started with aerosol)! But we've got a super subversive secret that's going to change the way you look at hairspray forever...

With summer right around the corner, you have to be prepared for emergencies of all kinds. Your dog will be frolicking outside a lot more and that means splinters, stings, bites, and more. Although you can’t shield your dog from all the summer dangers, you can be prepared when they happen. Make this DIY Doggie First Aid Kit so you can fix your pup in a flash.

Non dairy milks are easy to make, super healthy and they taste incredible. These recipes require little else, but you can sweeten with maple or brown rice syrup, agave or pureed dates. Add vanilla, nutmeg or cinnamon if you like, too. Yumm…

A glowing complexion doesn't come from the right foundation, bronzer or even from the right lighting. Because really beautiful skin runs anything but skindeep. For what is the skin but an outer reflection of your inner workings? A healthy glow comes from a healthy body filled with healthy foods. Probably not a huge shocker, but maybe it's time to look at things before you eat them and ask, "what would my skin do?"

 Dogs love to chew. And chew. And chew. If we don’t give our dogs a snack to chew on before we leave the house, there’s a good chance we’ll return home to find clothes, furniture or bedding ruined. Unfortunately, many chewable dog treats come with dangers. Bones can splinter while your dog is chewing and cause lacerations to their mouth, throat or intestinal lining. Rawhide chews can sometimes break off into large pieces and become lodged inside of fido, causing “dog bloat” and requiring surgery. But there is one natural treat that your dog can safely enjoy: Bully sticks.

Despite its name, the blackberry is not a true berry, botanically speaking. It's actually an aggregate fruit, composed of small drupelets. But for all intents and purposes, it's a berry gosh darnit! Also called a bramble because it grows on thorny bushes - or brambles - the blackberry is a childhood favorite for meandering children. Purplish-black in color, it ranges from 1/2 to 1 inch long when mature, making for quite a large burst of sweet and/or tart deliciousness in the mouth. Just watch out for those thorns.

"Yoga butt," coveted by many, worn by few. Yoga can be viewed in many lights, one of which is how the light reflects off your derriere. The physical practice of yoga can be used to target specific parts of your body, but yoga is truly holistic -- a full body-mind experience -- and should be viewed as such. That said, there need not be any shame in your game if you seek a yoga routine to give your backside a little lift.