deliberateLIFE #3 'An Ode to Summer' Seduces Us As A Visual & Intellectual Feast For Smart Sensuality People

deliberateLIFE Magazine #3

I just read — not scanned — but absorbed with great pleasure the visual and intellectual feast that is the 3rd edition of deliberateLIFE magazine An Ode to Summer. Founder and publisher Fay Johnson has created a seductive, passionate, cultivated collection of excellent articles about living life with intention.

Above are gorgeous images from Cambodia, the “rising star in Southeast Asia and Stephanie Zito’s recollections of the morning sun rising above the Mekong and Phnom Penh’s saffron-robed monks shuffling through the streets.

The editorial voice of deliberate LIFE pulses between first person sharing and intimate writing with vivid detail, followed by the lists that are often intoxicating visually and emotionally, while lacking that commercial tone that undercuts the authenticity of so many lists that are really paid for product placements.

Bloom Cakes — too beautiful to eat — is a cake art gallery and not-for-profit organization that empowers and teaches skills to Cambodian women. Sak Saum handbags and accessories not only creates jobs but is devoted to anti-trafficking.  The Snacker ice cream shop makes its mouthwatering from local coconut milk and fresh fruit, using no dairy or gluten.

Total Seduction Of An Authentic Kind

Let me clarify my use of the word “seductive” in describing the pages of deliberateLIFE. After all, this is Anne of Carversville.

Seduction comes in many forms in nature. Flowers come to mind immediately. Music plays with our emotions, reducing us to tears one moment and joy the next. Exotic travel often seduces our minds and bodies. If I close my eyes this minute, I can feel the breeze on my face, drinking champagne and listening to jazz on the rooftop of Le Yacout in Marrakech in one of the most memorable nights of my life.

My own recollection of that night for AOC readers didn’t focus on whether or not the champagne came from grapes cultivated with sustainable farming practices. I wasn’t particularly concerned about the environment back then. And Fay would be horrified to know that as the then head of design and product development for Victoria’s Secret Stores, I was probably the worst polluter of water in South Korea, as the largest buyer of polyester in South Korea. 

With a particularly keen eye for color, I wanted colors that flare with metamerism. In fact, the chemicals that create those dyes were banned in America by the EPA, which is why I hated American dyes for being too drab. Years later, I hung my head in shame for polluting another country’s waters with my relentless pursuit of aesthetic perfection.

deliberateLIFE Is High On Aesthetics

Personally, I haven’t lowered my aesthetic standards one bit after reactivating my social conscience — which is why I’m so impressed with deliberateLIFE. The magazine inspires us to live a Smart Sensuality life, engaged with people, nature, community and philanthropy or actively giving of time and experience, without requiring us to give up style and beauty.

In words not particularly artful on my part, the pages of deliberateLIFE aren’t preachy. Rather, Fay Johnson and her contributors engage us with topics that matter, inspiring us with wit and wisdom. And let me add verve, because much of the writing sparkles as much as the images and overall layout.

Example in point is Ken Walczak’s The Deliberate Inebriate PRESENTS: Cocktails for a Cruelty-Free Summer.

First the bad news: Summer is here, and it’s as cruel as Bananarama advertised. The heat of blockbuster season has The Deliberate Inebriate hallucinating the late Don LaFontaine. “In A WORLD where every year is the Hottest One Ever Recorded … where Kyoto Protocol is nothing more than a Malaysian indie-rock band … In short: you’re going to need a cold beverage.

Ken then delivers the knockout punch.

The third issue of deliberate LIFE also touches on a summer soiree, backyard farming made easy, rain barrel installation, a city kid in summer, and many other great articles.

In their hearts, deliberate LIFE readers are globalists with cultural creative values. They become Smart Sensuality people because of a shared love of beauty and style — but only on the right terms in terms of how products and experiences are created. Throughout the pages of this luscious magazine, there is a general acceptance of the belief that s(he) who has the most toys doesn’t win.

Instead, the world loses. The way to a winning world is for us all to choose a deliberateLIFE of conscientious caring and engagement every day that we breathe. ~ Anne

Subscribe to deliberateLIFE magazine for iPad at a price of $3.99/issue (less for subscription) on the iTunes App Store. Visit the deliberateLIFE website. SUPPORT these talented young writers that are both hip and helpful.