A Letter To My American Friends…

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I have something to admit.

I’ve failed you.

In the past I’ve consciously not talked about: politics, religion, or world events; on my blog or anywhere else for that matter.  I rationalized this choice in a few ways: I did not want to exclude any of my audience, and I felt unqualified to comment (I am, first and foremost an artist, so who the fuck am I to talk about this stuff anyway?)

But I’ve realized that really, deep down I was just afraid.  I had fear about putting what I really think and feel out into the world.  So I kept quiet.  And I was wrong to.

I was wrong because the first and last responsibility of the artist is: to tell the truth and be unafraid and in this I failed.

But failure is not an endpoint – as long as you pick yourself up, learn from your mistakes and course correct.  This post is me doing just that.

Here are my thoughts about the American Election.

And be warned:

I do not hold back.

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Amor Fati: A Heathen Argument For Faith…

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This post contains:

  • An ancient Greek idea that could potentially change your life,
  • the real reason it doesn’t matter if something is true or not, and
  • a whole slew of zen ninja demon-slaying monkeys.

Welcome, to my parlor.

Welcome, to my heathen argument for faith.

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The Most Important Book I’ve Ever Read + Other Strange Tales…

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This post is a little different to the usual.  It is a cross-post of my most recent newsletter.

This is the only time that I’ll be putting one of these up on the blog – I just wanted to give everyone a chance to see what kind of thing I send out to the mailing list.

Let’s do this! Continue reading →

In Praise of Shadows…

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‘In Praise of Shadows’ is a book first published in 1933 by the notable Japanese author Junichiro Tanizaki.

The beating heart of the text is a deeply poetic and graceful exploration of: what beauty means, and where it is to be found.

And over the course of what first appears to be a brief and somewhat meandering essay concerning Japanese aesthetics, Tanizaki manages to take almost everything that we think we know for certain about this subject and, with the deft and matchless elegance of a master magician…

Turn it inside out.

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The Most Important Idea In The World…

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It’s no secret that ideas can change the world.

Ideas can move mountains, ideas can heal the sick; ideas can save lives, and ideas can start wars; ideas can put you to sleep, and ideas can wake you up; ideas can build walls,  and ideas can tear them down.

And it’s no secret that truly great ideas are often very simple.  Cliches are cliches for a reason, and that reason is: simplicity is power.  The moment something becomes unnecessarily complex it’s vitality begins to drain away.

The greatest ideas are, more often than not, also the simplest.

But which of them is truly the most important?

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How To Make The Perfect Cup of Coffee

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Once upon a time…

On a sunny Sunday morning I made a change to the way I make my morning coffee.  Which is not that interesting.  What is interesting is: when I took the first taste I almost dropped the mug because it was soooooo good.  It was the best cup of coffee I could remember tasting.  Ever.  Dark, sensuous, chocolatey, rich and clear, with zero bitterness and a highway maximum caffeine wattage.

It was perfect.

But!  Things are not SCIENCE unless they are repeatable.  So the next day I tried the same method and reaped just the same results; a smouldering whirlwind of orgasmically coffee-scented bliss.

When it worked for the third time I tweeted this:

…and promptly collapsed under the tsunami of messages saying: how? How? HOW?

I wasn’t sure if I was going to write about it but, if the end times are indeed upon us (which is pretty much the mood in the U.K. today) then at least we can go at them with the good java.

So, here’s how:

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New, Interesting, and Popular Things…

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If you have the right audience social media can be a barometer for what is: cool, valuable, and of worth to others.  It can let you know what connects, what is interesting, and what is needed in the world.  But there is just so much stuff online that sometimes good things can slip through the cracks.

With that in mind I’ve decided to post a different kind of blog this week.  A short, curated collection of the most interesting, popular, and impactful stuff I’ve put out in the last span; mixed in with some news about what’s coming up in the very near future.

This post is experimental so please feel free to let me know your thoughts in the comments section.  If enough people like it I may do more.

Shall we? Continue reading →