Regional Living

My November magazines have been sitting in a pile on my desk for about a week now. I already went through them, but as I read, I always earmark pages to tear out later -- recipes I need to try, places I want to visit, pictures that make me smile, even quotes that I want to stick in my journal.

So this morning, I decided to tear out the stuff I wanted to save. And sitting there, ripping out pages, I realized I was ridiculously happy just have access to all this information, all that lush photography, all those drool-worthy recipes. I guess I'm a magazine girl.

About this time last year, Boo Mama posted a link to a great deal on "Southern Living" magazine. I think it was something ridiculous like $5 for a year subscription. Since my Google Reader is filled with Southerners, and I like all y'all, I thought I might subscribe to "Southern Living" for a year and see if it didn't help explain the culture of the south to this combination Midwestern-North Woods-California girl.

It did. And I love it. I think it didn't really add new dimensions to my understanding of southern culture -- your blogs do that in a more personal, adjective-filled way -- but it did reinforce what I already believe. Southerners are charming. You eat strange foods like okra and collard greens. You embrace the heritage that is sweet tea. And you always, but always, bake your cornbread in a cast iron skillet.

Another regional magazine I love with equal zeal is "Midwest Living." Midwesterners, by nature, are a quiet, laid-back, unassuming bunch. They aren't ones to toot their own horn. I think that's part of the reason coastal dwellers view the midsection of the country as "fly-over territory" that has about as much flavor as a bucket of glue.

But that's not true, as anyone who lives here will tell you, if you give them a second. And "Midwest Living" is a grand collection of all the wonderful places, people and foods that make this part of the country home to so many. The photography alone stirs my heart -- snow-covered woods, prairies of grasses, lakes sparkling in the sunlight, vibrant fall trees, lilacs bushes heavy with blooms. They all speak home to me.

And the recipes. Talk about comfort food. Some of my all-time favorites have come from that magazine, including this recipe for chili, which has come to be known as Man Chili at my house since it contains three different kinds of meat.

When we lived in California, I subscribed to "Sunset," which could be called "Western Living" but isn't because it's published in California, and have you ever known California to do anything like the rest of the country? But it too was a slice of regional life for people who live west of the Continental Divide.

But surely there are some other regional magazines out there. What magazines speak home the loudest to you? (And if I've already mentioned it, go ahead and agree with me in the comments. I love to find other people who love magazines.)