A week of books, art, and music. Being 42 is okay, so far. We’ll see how the rest of the year goes.

I haven’t been to an art museum in a long time, so I trekked into Chicago for the Nick Cave exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art. Some of you may be familiar with Nick Cave’s art, some of you won’t be. For those who are not familiar, no, this is not Nick Cave, the extraordinary musician. This would be Nick Cave, the extraordinary sculptor and performance artist.

The exhibit is wonderful, and features several short films and many of his sculptures and costumes. The show is still on, so if you are in the Chicago area, then I would encourage you to go and see his work. It’s an incredibly moving exhibit. Big, bold designs contrasted by more somber pieces, this collection of Cave’s work covers decades of his output as an artist and performer. It’s like walking into someone’s soul.

A few days later and I was back in Chicago. This time, to see a live performance by Sigur Rós. I’ve been very fortunate to see them play in the past and was happy to see them, again. Just as beautiful as they’ve ever been. Always helps when the venue is as gorgeous as Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre.

And, of course, I took time to visit a new (to me) bookstore. Again, if you’re in the Chicago area, make a trip to Exile In Bookville. They have a great selection of titles. You can always feel the difference between a store curated by a corporate list and one curated by an individual. Exile is, happily, of the latter variety. Plus, bonus points for naming your store in homage to Liz Phair, not to mention their excellent business card:

I also managed to get into a few movie theaters, seeing both Alex Garland’s MEN and David Cronenberg’s CRIMES OF THE FUTURE almost back to back, which was nearly overwhelming but they’re honestly two of the best films I have seen in a theater in a long time.

If you want to know what I bought at the bookstore, or what I thought of MEN and CRIMES OF THE FUTURE, then sign up for my newsletter. I’ll have one going out next weekend, and it’ll have details on a new short story, “Lupus Lingua,” and how to get a copy for yourself.