Subversive, or at least Interesting, Magazines

[browngirl]

So, yesterday at my appointments (I had some medical things done) I found myself rummaging through Women's Weekly, Women's World , and Women's Wonderfully Internalized Gender Roles and thinking about leaving the Saveur and Cook's Illustrated issues I had, just so that there would be some other options. That got me to thinking about leaving issues of non-stultifying magazines around at doctor's offices and waiting rooms. Maybe I should have bought that pile of back issues of Asimov's someone was selling the other day.

So, what sorts of magazines would work for this kind of thing? Not Outre', but at least less... normative, I guess.

Comments

[beetiger.livejournal.com]

I think ReadyMade ReadyMade (http://readymademag.com/) would make great doctor's office reading.

[flabosib.livejournal.com]

Asimov would definitely work. I think the wider the scope, the better the choice.

We definitely need a change. One office I go to sometimes has copies of the Gourmet magazine--not that I'd ever try to cook any of the things they suggest, but the magazine is a vast improvement over what is usually in the office.

Hope your medical things were not too invasive or painful.
Hugs!

[libitina]

I've always wanted a subscription to Women's Wonderfully Internalized Gender Roles!

Ummm... I'd love a good issue of Scientific American in the doctor's office. American Scientist sometimes also has funny cartoons in it. Ooo - speaking of cartoons, I bet the New Yorker would get stolen faster than anything, if you left some at the doctor's office (err... meaning people would like reading it).

[tibicina.livejournal.com]

My psychologist's office actually usually has old copies of the New Yorker in the waiting room.

[peteralway.livejournal.com]

If I didn't take all my old Sky&Telescopes to school as a resource for students, I'd be distributing them to waiting rooms. One thing I like about them is their absolute irrelevance to anything medical, which I think is a big plus. Astronomy magazine might be better for the general audience of a medical waiting room, though.

Scientific American would be nice, except that it contains medical stories. I don't want to read about innards when I'm trying to calm my nerves about my innards.

[hammercock.livejournal.com]

Leave copies of Bitch magazine and Adbusters around. Something like that. :)

[r-ness.livejournal.com]

Yay, Bitch magazine!

[chienne-folle.livejournal.com]

If you want the magazines to be a change from the ones they have but also want them to blend in enough not to be removed, how about O, the Oprah Magazine? It has -- god help us -- fashion tips and that kind of crap, but most of the actual articles are about empowering oneself. It's stealth subversive. :-)

[redbird]

Smithsonian. Definitely respectable, and has a fair amount of interesting stuff on art, history, and archeology. And some pretty pictures.

[tibicina.livejournal.com]

Magazines I am usually happy about finding in waiting rooms:

National Geographic
Smithsonian
The New Yorker
Time
Newsweek
Life
Local free newspapers

Magazines I haven't ever run across in waiting rooms that I remember, but which would make me happy:

Azimov's
SF&F
any other literary magazines
any photographic magazines
any puzzle magazines with some sort of note that it's okay to work on the puzzles.

Magazines I will pick up if there's nothing else which interests me and I mysteriously forgot a book/knitting/gameboy/etc.:

Reader's Digest
Cricket (Stop looking at me like that. Kids' magazines can be fun.)
Better Homes and Gardens
Sunset
cooking magazines
magazines which prominently feature stupid quizes.

Magazines I generally would rather stare at paint than read:

Sports Illustrated
anything about cars (I am designated 'take car to the mechanic' person around the house... this means I am most likely to be stuck looking at automotive magazines while waiting for a ride home.)
most 'women's' magazines... except for the quizzes in which I take a perverse delight. Well, and occasionally the clothing stuff which I take with a salt lick, but the pictures can be useful.

[vettecat.livejournal.com]

Funny how opinions differ... I love car magazines but would rather count ceiling tiles than read about sports.

On the subject of subversive waiting room mags . . .

[temima.livejournal.com]

Someone left a American Humanist Magazine in the local clinic waiting room.

[vettecat.livejournal.com]

In addition to those suggested:
The Week
Mental Floss
Chocolatier

[frauhedgehog.livejournal.com]

I like to leave my old copies of Brain,Child in the pediatrician's waiting room to counteract the truly awful Parents, Parenting, Cookie, etc. Spotboy leaves copies of Reason magazine in his dentist's office.