Recently, I wrote a blog post telling you all about our magazines from Canada.  Now I'd like to let you in on a magazine we get from our other neighbor to the north - North Carolina.  (No joke - I have an aunt who told us upon crossing the North Carolina border, on our way to a funeral in Philadelphia, that she had never been "up north" before.  I think she may have expected our Pennsylvania relatives to speak another language altogether, and for the whole endeavor to require a currency exchange.)

Charlotte is the closest "big city" for us here - it's pretty much the farthest I'll drive for a shopping trip, for example.  (How 'bout that Ikea?)  Coincidentally, it also has a great local magazine (called, shockingly, Charlotte.) 

The magazine is so pretty and so full of great restaurants and things to do that it gives me city envy.  Now, normally I think Charlotte (the city, not the magazine) is all well and good if you want to go to the Apple store or eat some Swedish meatballs while you decide if you want to buy the Ektorp or the Karlstad, but Columbia is where it's at in terms of personality and interest.  Charlotte (the magazine, not the city) has so many great pictures and mouth-watering dining reviews that I get a momentary hankering to relocate a hundred miles north.

Each month, Charlotte covers personalities, events, performing arts, shopping, dining, and nightlife.  It also offers feature articles on doctors and hospitals, schools, places to live, and more.  Supplements cover weddings and homes and gardens.  You can see more at their Web site, charlottemagazine.com.

Even if you don't plan on moving to Charlotte, the magazine is a great resource for day trips and helps you take advantage of the benefit of having a bigger city close enough to drive to but far enough away that it isn't in your way all the time.  Come by Periodicals and take a look at Charlotte (the magazine - if you want the city you'll have to go up I-77!)