One of the magazines that intrigues me is "Maine Food and Lifestyle." It is published in Rockland and focuses on statewide food, restaurants and culinary profesionals.

It has got to be the most lavishly illustrated mag in Maine. A recent story on Brian Hill, owner and chef at the Francine Bistro in Camden, ran eight pages and had 16 color photos and/or illustrations!

A story on Maine grapes and vineyards had 15 illustrations over six pages - and the vineyards are works in progress, not established entities.

As one aware of the southerly spiral of print media as it relates to finances, Your Scribe is astonished that a 64-page, full-color magazine can prosper, especially through the lean winter months. But God Bless if publisher/editor Merrill Williams can make it work.

I must have picked up a dated issue, because all stories in the edition I am looking at depict warm-weather foliage and subjects in short sleeves. Great idea. I hate seeing Maine in winter because the summer is so much more pleasant.

(An aside: The current issue of "Down East" magazine features Bangor on the cover, whose downtown streets that the writer is lauding are buried under about two feet of snow. I didn't buy a copy. Wouldn't it be interesting if a Maine monthly publication insisted on running warm-weather stories and photos throughout the whole year?)

(Another aside: On the theme of food . . . several Ice Ages ago I was on a junket of food writers in New Orleans. One restaurant we visited was Antoine's, a world-renowned eatery in the French Quarter. Because the press was there, owner Roy Guste IV came out to speak with the free-loading scribes. When he saw by my name tag that I was from the tundra, he asked, "You're from New England . . but your regional dinner is boiled meat, boiled vegetables and boiled potatoes. Do you really call that good food?" As a genuflecting guest, I did not challenge the mindset of the host. How can you, anyway? New Orleans has more rues and spices than any city in this country. But we do have our share of good food in Maine.)

Back to the point at hand: "Maine Food and Lifestyle" whose subhead reads "Connecting People to Local Resources" is a gloriously handsome (quarterly) publication. I hope it can generate enough readers and advertisers to become a staple of those who relish Maine dining.

Its website is www.mainefoodandlifestyle.com.

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