Popes, Pasta, and a Porn Star.

It seems like everywhere I look this year—popes are popping up.

First there was all that Conclave Oscar buzz. (Foreshadowing!)

Then I just happened to re-read Irving Stone’s The Agony and the Ecstasy. Poor Michelangelo—so many popes to keep happy. Too many. Savvy popes. Warrior popes. Popes with very good taste. Popes obsessed with the size of their tombs.

Which brings us to Sunday’s sad goodbye to the people’s pope, Francis, buried in a more humble resting place than many of his predecessors: the Papal Basilica of St. Mary Major. Well—humble for a pope I guess. Now if I may (finally!) wrestle the focus of world events back onto myself for a second: Pope Francis and I have something in common. My friend, artist David Lee Csicsko (who also created the artwork of me for this site), designed “Flat Francis” for a Catholic group’s social media campaign during the pope’s 2015 U.S. visit—a project that apparently tickled the pontiff.

Finally, there’s yet one more pope to report: this one quietly waiting for visitors at the Intuit Art Museum’s inaugural show (which I mentioned in my last post), stationed ever so perfectly with St. John Cantius Church looming in through the window in the background.

Go on. Tell him your sins.

---

Something completely different to noodle on:  As anyone who has ever invited me to a dinner party will attest, I rarely eat any form of noodle. But, in fact, mostaccioli was a major part of my childhood. It was all we ever ate. Leftovers were breakfast. It was packed into school lunches. Hot, saucy, steaming ladlefuls were slopped into the eager trick-or-treat bags of neighborhood children. Well, Linze Rice deserves a Pulitzer for capturing the peculiar Chicagoness of it all for this article in Block Club, including answering the question of what exactly makes mostaccioli different from penne. And the cookie that goes by the same name.

Penne vs. Mostaccioli: The Great Debate Continues

---

Gaze in the Locker Room

Soft Core Art.

Textiles were hot hot hot at EXPO this weekend. And for my money, Nathan Vincent stitched up first prize for originality with his installation: a scale model of a 1970s men's locker room, fully hand crocheted, right down to the combination locks and urinals. I'm hoping Colt Studios rents it for their next shoot. (Just throw the whole thing in the wash afterward, right?) And speaking of Colt Studios (or was it Falcon?), check out this interview with Tom Chase over at Caftan Chronicles. Tom’s still working hard(ish) at 60!

And speaking of locker rooms, read all about Jock Insurance! it’s progressive, but not available from Progressive. That's all for now. XoXo, -The Sallow Ghost of Troubled Joe.