Blather

An excerpt from Suttree by Cormac McCarthy. Music by Chris Brokaw.

I liked the way Gonzague Van Bervesseles sang "Sylvie" in Jean-Paul Civeyrac's A Paris Education (2018) so much that I recorded it so I could share it with you.

An excerpt from a work in progress. Music by Arvo Pärt.

An excerpt from a work in progress. Music by Ran Blake.

An excerpt from from a work in progress. Music by Mute Duo.

An excerpt from a work in progress. Music by the Dick Slessig Combo.

I read Canto 27 of Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself" as part of a celebration of his 201st birthday. The entire poem, read by many people, here.

What happens when you set up a book talk and no one shows up? Paul Durica (of the Newberry Library) and I talk about Soviet Stamps and the writing racket to a bunch of empty chairs in the secret back room of Uncharted Books in the Andersonville neighborhood of Chicago.

I make my triumphant return to The Green Arcade in San Francisco and discuss Soviet Stamps, art, cabdriving, and other related and unrelated topics with Ben Terrall (Namaste, Motherfucker!)

Kyle Beachy (author of The Slide and many, many essays about skateboarding) puts me through my paces about Soviet Stamps, art, writing, making a living, and much else at Logan Square's City Lit Books.

Christian TeBordo interviews me about my new book, Soviet Stamps and other related topics at The Dial Bookshop in Chicago.

Tim Kinsella interviews me about my book, art, writing, and all that jazz at the Rainbo Club in Chicago on August 31st, 2019.

Christian TeBordo meets me at the Rainbo Club to talk about his forthcoming short story collection, Ghost Engine, teaching writing, and how he got from being the son of two pastors to where he is to day—the author of six books and the director of an MFA writing program.

I talk to Ben Terrall (of Namaste, Motherfucker! fame) about my new book at The Green Arcade in San Francisco. Andy Gillis—a longtime store employee—does the introduction.  More info about my book here: http://www.tortoisebooks.com/store/music-to-my-eyes

Daniel X. O'Neil talks about Arte Agora—art made, sold, or placed in the public way. More info here: http://www.arteagorabook.com/.

Musician Peter Prescott's talks about Mission of Burma, Minibeast, fighting nostalgia, and continuing to stay vital and creative in his 60s. Read more here: https://aquariumdrunkard.com/2019/04/15/catching-up-with-peter-prescott/

I read Chapter 57, "Of Whales and Paint," as part of Newberry Library's Moby-Dick Read-a-Thon. It was about 12:30am on Sunday, January 20th.

I talk to Stan Klein at Firecat Projects about how he got his start in art, opening a frame shop, working for other artists, and the whole kit and caboodle.

Cofounders Malia Haines-Stewart and Alan Medina talk about their Pilsen community storefront cinema. Then Ashley Cooper talks about her series of classic Hollywood films and how she learned to love movies from her grandma.

Ken Krimstein visits the Dial Bookshop to talk about "The Three Escapes of Hannah Arendt.