I’ve never been much for magazines. The problem I have with them is that they are too transient. The quality of a magazine’s physical material is rarely good enough to make it worth keeping an issue for more than a few weeks (an exception is inexplicably made for National Geographic and Playboy). Generally, they end up cluttering a magazine bin next to the toilet or a bookshelf and you never look at them again.
But a quarterly is a completely different beast. The Economist’s quarterly, “the intelligent life“, is one that is absolutely fantastic in all aspects (save its pretentious name). The physical quality of the material the magazine is made of is superb as are the photographs. The articles cover such a broad array of topics that one can walk away after an issue pontificating about David Hockney, Vintage Sunglasses, or Mexican Cliff Divers as was the case after last issue. The timelessness of the articles, the high quality of the photographs and the physical quality and permanence of each issue make it a quarterly not only worth investing in, but also keeping and collecting.
“the intelligent life” covers four broad areas simply titled Home, Lifestyle, Arts, and Places. There is something for everyone in each issue and there is always something involving fashion if one is interested in it as we are at small time crooks. But besides getting their take on fashion and style, “the intelligent life” can help educate you on various subjects for the culturally in-tune life you surely have, or hope to have.
For example, take a peak at this slide show on awesome dogs. This is just a taste of the eclectic magic that is “the intelligent life”.
Though it’s not available on American newsstands, one can subscribe to it and have it shipped at no additional cost. And when you receive your first issue, what will be better than saying to your philistine of a friend “Thanks for the invitation to watch the UFC fight at Buffalo Wild Wings, but I think I’m just going to have a cup of tea and read the latest issue of my quarterly “the intelligent life”? Nothing.
-brad
