nevermind the bricolage: ministry of stories

I'm listening to...

Dynamite Steps
Twilight Singers: Dynamite Steps
More dark, brooding mood swings from Dulli's side project--like it.
Graduation Ceremony
Joseph Arthur: Graduation Ceremony
Arthur hasn't released a full-length studio album in a while. This one doesn't disappoint--sure we've heard some of these melody lines before, but for my money he remains one of the most under-rated singer-songwriters out there--this one may not win him any wider of an audience unfortunately---it should, but nobody said the mechanisms of pop culture were just or fair.
Rome
Danger Mouse: Rome
Nothing if not prodigious and experimental--Danger Mouse goes all Italian-movie soundtrack on us with this colaboration with Daniel Lippi--guest vocals from Jack White and Norah Jones--the good the bad and the danger mouse.

I'm reading...

David Tacey: Gods and Diseases: Making sense of our physical and mental wellbeing
Breaking free of a dependency upon modern medicine to alleviate social ills and addictions by turning to spirituality--meaning-making--is part of Tacey's thesis. I am with him on so much of what he has to say.
John Milbank: Paul's New Moment: Continental Philosophy and the Future of Christian Theology
I am revisiting Paul in my own theological journey so I had high hopes for this. It's a good read essentially reading Paul through a continental philosophical lens-like most books of this ilk--a bit of a slog, at least for me, but worth it.
Glenn O'Brien: How To Be a Man: A Guide To Style and Behavior For The Modern Gentleman
Glenn O'Brien has had a quite unique life. Editing Andy Warhol's Interview magazine, had a cult-followed cable tv show in 80s NYC and now, among other things, is the Style Guy for GQ magazine. This book is a series of essays on what O'Brien thinks on what it means to be a man. It's full of informative, thoughtful, funny and helpful--so be a man and read this book--then go buy a suit!

The latest issue of Think Quarterly, the Google online magazine, is dedicated to people. One of the features is on Nick Hornby's East London project, Ministry of Stories. Taking a cue from Dave Egger's pirate shop, 836 Valencia, the Ministry of Stories is tucked away inside The Hoxton Street Monster Supplies. It is a space dedicated to encouraging young people to write, to dream, to tell stories--worth a visit on the next trip to London I think. The image below is from a series of bespoke covers creasted by The Church of London-a design group doing some interesting work.

On the COL blog is another cool thing. In conjunction with the paperback release of Zizek's Living in the End Times, Verso books and COL launched a film project inviting people to create responses to Zizek's theory of the end times.