List December #1

Alright, December is here, and with it comes tons of year end lists! Just to reiterate a note from last year; I realize that this is completely self-indulgent and I don't expect anyone to care all that much what my favorite stuff is, but I love reading others year-end lists so I always find making my own fun as well. We'll get to favorite music, books, and movies of 2008 a little later in the month but I figured this one would be a fun one to start out on! What's on your list?

Speaking of lists, don't forget to check out who topped out Q's top 50. Wow. Speechless. Almost as bad as Paste's. Of course, nothing tops Blender's list of mediocrity (not surprising). I honestly think music magazines have lost their minds this year. Mojo and Uncut's lists are somewhat better...i guess.

Anyway, on to the first list!

Favorite Alternative Albums of the 90's

Pearl Jam - Ten










Nirvana –Nevermind

Nirvana -Unplugged in New York

Dinosaur Jr. - Without a Sound

Alice in Chains – Jar of Flies

Radiohead - The Bends

Radiohead - OK Computer

Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream

Soul Asylum – Grave Diggers Union

Stone Temple Pilots - Core

Live – Throwing Copper

Counting Crows – August and Everything After

REM - Out of Time

Weezer – Blue Album

Soundgarden - Superunknown

U2 - Achtung Baby

Neil Cole and Ed Young Jr.

Here's a good Leadership article interviewing two very different pastors: Neil Cole and Ed Young Jr. HT: Gentry

While I was in NYC I actually got to meet both of these guys. I met Ed Young Jr. at a church planters luncheon that the North American Mission Board had for about 30 or 40 pastors. And I did a two-day workshop on church planting with Neil Cole at the same venue ironically (thanks to my friend Paul Gomez). I cannot think of two different pastors than these two.

The luncheon with EYJ included popular catch phrases such as "It's the weekend stupid" and "People are people anywhere you go." Two phrases that I couldn't disagree with more. It also included pastors being giddy about meeting their idol which I didn't really understand at the time. One guy raised his hand and asked, "When are you going to plant a church in the city Ed?" followed by a flushed giggle. I almost vomited. But I will give Ed this, he remembered every single person by name on the way out. He certainly doesn't lack charm or charisma. But he also says things like, "That's off the chain."

The workshop with Neil Cole was about an organic style of church planting and the house church movement. This was something I was quickly drawn to and excited about. It seemed so much more natural and appealing, less about the Sunday production and more about relationships. Less about providing religious goods and services to demanding consumers and more about being a missional community. Neil Cole is one of those guys that if you don't like, it's your fault. He too has charm and charisma, but more in a toned down way. I think he could walk in anyplace and meet anyone and that seems to be key to his way of "doing church".

The article is a fascinating read. Enjoy!

How could you not like this show?

Guess I should post the original for a reference point:

A True Story

As I was approaching the elevator in an airport parking garage in Tampa I see about 8 people who appears to be one large redneck family looking around at the elevator whom appear to be having a hard time getting the elevator to work. I hear this:

"I think you might need a key or something."

As I approach they start to walk away. I hit the button and the elevator door opens and I hear:

"Hey, this guys got it figured out."

"Yeah, I cracked the code" I think.

The family gets in the elevator, the youngest boy of which has a filthy face and the father had a killer mullet along with a button up shirt with the sleeves ripped off.

I ask, "what floor should I hit?"

"Ah, we're just along for the ride."

I press 6 (the top floor).

He explains further, "I'm building the elevators on the other side of the garage and was just bringing my family to see what we're doing."

This is okay, but I'm confused on how you can be building an elevator but not know how to open the doors! Yikes. I still can't believe this happened.

Paste Magazine - Best Music of 2008

Since Paste Magazine rolled out their new format I've been less than impressed. This magazine used to be insightful, have articles I cared about, and good recommendations for new music. But all that changed when the swapped formats for a more shallow, "Blender-esque" type music mag.

So I guess I'm more surprised that Paste already has their best of 2008 music picks out (seeing that it's only November), than the fact that their list is horrific in places and their number one pick is a travesty.

Decide for yourself here.

Do you remember the NES Advantage controller? I think they should have made an NES Advantage controller nano.

I never understood how this enormous block controller was much of an advantage.

Yes, that is what this blog has come to. But the good news is, List December is right around the corner. And rumor has it that Devin is going to provide some lists. We'll see!

In The Know: Should The Government Stop Dumping Money Into A Giant Hole?

Huh?

Comedy Show in Philly

For all of those looking for You Tube clips seeking to expose my secret life as a comedian, unfortunately due to the headliner's contract, no recording was allowed! So the vault remains closed!

But here are a few bad pics from my camera phone. I'm looking to see if some other people I know there knew of anyone that took some good pics. I don't even have any of me! But the first pic was right after I was done which I took from the first level balcony, and the second is on the floor level right before Michael Jr. was done.



Over all the show went great. It was an incredible room, a sell out show of about 350 people, and very generous hosts (first time I had a driver waiting at the airport with my name on a
card.) I was very pleased with my 15 minute set and it was a good opportunity to try out some new material I have been working on. Actually, I think everything but two bits were new stuff so it was a risk to be sure! But it paid off.

I wasn't sure I was going to make the show because my flight from Tampa was delayed a few hours because of weather, and the flight before mine was canceled. That would have been a huge disappointment! But I made it and out of all of the comedy shows I have done this one will be an experience i won't forget! I also found out that Michael Jr., whom also started out in NYC was asked to open some shows for Jerry Seinfeld back in the day! Nice to know I'm now only one degree removed from Jerry!

Obama Win Causes Obsessive Supporters To Realize How Empty Their Lives Are

Vacation!

I'm extremely excited right now as Kelli and I will be chilling at the beach in Florida on Monday and going to a wedding that next weekend. We're taking an overnight flight tomorrow night and will be there by about 9am. Really looking forward to having a week away to rest and get away from school. We haven't been back since we moved over two years ago so it will be good to see old friends.

Friday night I've got a little excursion up to Philadelphia to do an opening set of stand-up for Michael Jr. and then back to Florida for the wedding on Saturday afternoon. Going to be a hectic but exciting weekend.

For those of you who didn't know I did stand-up or believe me, here is proof!

This was in NYC at Gotham Comedy Club which was kind of home base. I think I saw on Last Comic Standing that Gotham has a new space now which looks amazing! I love this picture though because I still can't tell if Bill Clark is about to sneeze or is laughing. I prefer to think he's laughing.

My favorite moment though was a New Talent show that Gregg Farah and I did at Caroline's on Broadway. It was amazing to be on the same stage where almost every comedian that I love has performed. We were interspersed with professionals like Eddie Brill and Judy Gold. I was right after Bill Burr from the Chappelle Show which was a hard act to follow! But I was very encouraged as Eddie Brill who has been doing comedy since before I was born encouraged me and said, "Hey kid, good stuff, you keep doing that, I mean it." That was a highlight of my comedy career! I'm hoping that Friday night will be a highlight as well! I've got some new material that I'm excited about so we'll see!

Obstinate

There are days when I wake up feeling "obstinate" for lack of a better word. It's a feeling of utter rebelliousness. For some reason I feel like not submitting to anyone or anything. I just want to do my own thing in my own way. This phenomenon cannot be explained and is not driven by any particular circumstances. I simply wake up knowing. I begin my day with my patience meter on 0. As the day goes on the little irritants (that on normal days probably would not bother me) accentuates and reinforces my overall obstinate disposition. I simply cannot find a way to refocus those feelings into something positive. It's almost like it is impossible to overcome for the day. I just have to wait it out knowing that waking up feeling that way 2 days in a row is improbable at best.

This does not play out well on days when I have class and have to sit for 2 hours under someone's teaching and listen to a select few students say absurd things. Yesterday was one of those days. Under the pressure of all that was irritating I lost it on some student that was talking to hear himself talk. The class laughed at my outburst assuming that what I was doing was with the motivation of humor, but it wasn't. It was out of anger. Humor has been a pretty natural way for me to express anger though, it always has. But that's probably another topic. I'm finding it harder and harder to hold my tongue when class gets out of control on inane discussions that seem completely removed from the world I live in or the context which I "do" ministry.

Now with that said, don't misread what I am writing. Seminary has been a place of incredible growth for me personally and has made me a MUCH better and more balanced thinker than I was before Seminary. I didn't realize how much I did not know but now I definitely realize all that I still don't understand and that has be invaluable. I wouldn't trade it for the world. And I think the professors at Western are fantastic! But there is something about that third year that is getting very tiresome. No wonder they give you 25% off your tuition to finish your third year in the MDiv program rather than take the M.A.!

I'm not sure how to conclude this blog post. I don't write too much that's serious on here anymore. But this is the best I can do at written processing. As most of you know, I'm definitely not a great verbal processor!

Has Halloween Become Overcommercialized?

In The Know: Has Halloween Become Overcommercialized?

Where is your sting?

Thinking through death and resurrection this week in preparing for the last passage in 1 Cor. 15 has brought up quite a lot of thoughts and emotions as one who has typically not dealt with death well and has experienced quite a bit of it in the past 15 years. As a pastor I have done one funeral and would rather never do one again.

In light of this I thought of my friend Bill Reiter who passed away a little over a year ago now. This is still tough for me to handle.

O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?”

This certainly doesn't mean we don't mourn, but that we mourn like those who have hope.

Bill's mom sent those of us who were involved at Mosaic together this email and it's still hard to read without tearing up but this meant a lot to me.

"I was going through his bag that he always carried with him and his id card from Mosaic was still in there- he loved your church so much. You had a profound impact on his life and heart and I believe he is carrying the name of your church to the throne of God with him."

Still miss ya Bill.

Some More Music Recs

I'll admit it, I can't get enough of the singer/songwriter genre right now. I'm hooked. I usually listen to music to mellow me out and/or to hear thought provoking writing and this genre seems to pull both of those off. So, with no further apology, a few artists I have been listening to:


Aaron Espe - Songs From a Small Town

His Myspace here.







Brown Bird - The Bottom of the Sea

Myspace here.

A little more folk flavor here.





Anthony da Costa - Typical American Tragedy

Myspace

Out of Context? Not really.

Last night a few of got together to watch the Trailblazers get lit up. Two quotes stood out:

"Greg Oden looks like a freaking Pound Puppy." - Chris Leonardo

"Did you guys hear that they're not making Zima anymore?" - Devin Vaughn
(I wish I could say about this one that there was some context to it, but there wasn't. He just stated it out of nowhere like this is information we needed.)

Peter and Lois Griffin

David and Dawn's Wedding

This past weekend in Peoria, IL, I officiated the wedding of Dawn (my step-sister) and David Francis. It was an outdoor wedding and the weather turned out beautiful.

It is always a humbling experience to get to be a part of someone's wedding day. With the five weddings I've done up to this point, I think I've thought every single time, "what in the world am I doing up here?" Not because I feel unqualified or lack confidence in what I'm doing but because it's such a HUGE day in someone's life that I can't believe I get to play such a role!

I really enjoy doing weddings and have always done fairly well at them, but there is an immense pressure to not screw anything up (like saying the wrong names or something). It's a quick ceremony but that pressure just wears me out! I'm usually exhausted by mid-reception and feel like I've worked for 8 hours unloading UPS trucks.

I've got to say however, this was a great wedding to be a part of. Easy rehearsal, smooth wedding, no complaints! It was beautiful. Plus I got to see family I don't see all that much. I'm not sure I could have had a better time.

Here is my Dad and sisters Molly and Sarah.
(some people say there's a resemblance between my Father and I).










Kelli with Aidan.


















Kelli with Ava.
(Can you tell how ready she is to have one of her own?)






























This is Sarah with Ava and Aidan.













Dawn, Sarah, and Molly.

Tropicana Field Double Booked

Seriously, how could the Onion get any better?

Check it out.

Settlers Cupcakes

This was so awesome I had to post it.

ht: aubrey via erica.

A Critique of "A Christianity Worth Believing"

Recently I have written a critique on Doug Pagitt's theology of sin from his book A Christianity Worth Believing. I have met Doug a few times, have mutual acquaintances, sat in on a theological discussion about the book at Western, and think he's a fantastic guy for what it's worth. All that to say, I disagree with his theology of sin on a few levels which is apparent quickly.

You'll probably find this Doug (crazy Google Alert) so I'd love to hear your thoughts on some of my critiques or where I may have misunderstood you. I am not setting out to misrepresent what you have said so feel free to correct (if your schedule allows)! At the outset I will admit this critique is lacking because I did not spend time at the beginning with what I saw as strengths or what I enjoyed. It is certainly not because I don't see any. I appreciated much of what you said and the pastoral heart that is obviously behind your book. In any case, I'll probably see you in February at NPC with Bob and Chris.

A Critique of Doug Pagitt's Theology of Sin

If anyone wants a PDF of this, just email me and I'll send you a copy. It's much easier to read than Google Docs!

Driscoll - always focusing on what's important

Or not...

Bob already has some good thoughts on this ridiculousness here so I won't add much.

But he also brought up a great point at the end of his post. Isn't that a woman teaching Scripture? What happened to not having women teach a man Scripture EVER? So it's okay as long as it's your wife?

This video just adds to the various reasons why I wouldn't pay a dime for a Driscoll book.

While we're on this topic, have you women signed the True Woman Manifesto yet?

Another Seinfeld Moment

I will never for a second disguise my love for Seinfeld (both the show and the person). I've been a big fan for a while, a bigger fan when I lived in NYC where SO much of life reminded me of the show. I'll admit that I know every episode by heart and generally something reminds me of an episode on a daily basis. I even did a list of my favorite episodes here last year for "List December" which I will be doing again this year (the lists anyway, not favorite Seinfeld episodes).

One time Kelli and I saw Jerry for a split second. We were waiting in line at the best comedy club in NYC (Comedy Cellar) when Jerry walked by and went downstairs to try out some new material. He didn't stick around for the next show which was unfortunate! I'll always be wishing we went to that earlier show but who could have known?

In any case, on Tuesday I was telling Kelli about a young man in class who begins every sentence with "At the end of the day..." and she immediately asked, "you mean he's always concluding?"

SO funny. This is why I love my wife so much. It's like we're living in the show.

The Cubs

Most likely I'm going to have to respond to the Cubs ridiculous loss to the Dodgers so it might as well be now. First, let me say that the Dodgers played incredibly well. Their lineup is really solid and their pitching was surprisingly good also. The way they are playing they should have beat the Cubs! I hope they kill the Phillies as well. That would at least help me to sleep at night.

Second, the Cubs played like a AA team at best. Couldn't hit, couldn't pitch, couldn't field. When you walk 7 guys or have 4 errors, you're probably not going to win. They were awful. They had spells like that in the year a few times, but fortunately you have 4 or 5 games to get out of them and go back to normal. This was an unfortunate time for the Cubs to have a spell like this.

So what's next?

As Mark Derosa said on his blog not everyone on the team is going to be around next season. And for that I am thankful. My first two picks to go are:

1. Fukudome
2. Soriano

Here's why. First, Fukudome turned out to be a joke. Excuse the frankness, but the only reason he made the All-Star game is because he was a novelty item from the beginning. He hasn't hit well in the past two months and honestly it's not hard to look at his mechanics and see why! It looks like a little league swing. He never looked like an All-Star, that I think we can all agree on.

Alright, now to Soriano. Many of you wonder, why would you want to trade a guy who hits a home run now and again? That's easy. Because if he doesn't hit a home run he's going to strike out, guaranteed. He's almost an automatic out, but once in a while he's a solo home run. Not all that helpful. Do I need to mention his fielding skills or the routine fly balls that just bounce out of his glove? Do we need to mention that not at one time has he looked like he's cared about the team, his teammates, or baseball in general? I've never seen one ounce of passion out of that guy. He gets up, he strikes out and then he strolls back to the bench, has a cool drink and ponders what he'll have for dinner when he gets home. Worthless. Get rid of him.

I've also resolved as I've pointed out that it is needless to get excited about the regular season in any way and I refuse to do so until they win a playoff game. I don't care if they win 100 games next year, that will mean nothing to me. When they win a playoff game, then I will start getting excited again. So let me end this on a gentle note by simply saying: You suck Cubs....you suck.

Amazon Recommendations

Tonight Kelli and I were browsing on Amazon so I thought I would take a look at what was recommended for me which is based on past purchases, wish list additions, and what kind of books you look at. Well, needless to say, I was a little surprised to find this as the first book to pop up:


Dewey: The Small Town Library Cat Who Touched the World.

Portland Library

Cheers to whoever it was at New Folks home group last Sunday that told Kelli and I about this.
(I believe it was Brandon and Sara(h).)

Kelli and I are totally in for some of these. Bring on Moby Dick!

This will also be a good way to make me read Great Expectations which I have started three times and can't seem to get through 50 pages. I've read a good number of classics but for some reason I just can't hang with Dickens!

Speaking of books that will never be classics. How about this?

Really Zondervan? Really?

Some Interesting New Music

Eureka Birds - Myspace













Wars of 1812 - Myspace












The Shaky Hands - Myspace














Small Sur - Myspace

Rock of Ages Hike

Today Clay, Emily, Kelli and I braved the Rock of Ages hike in the gorge and let me just say that this is by far the most difficult hike I've done in the gorge. 10 miles, 3000 feet elevation gain (all of which come in the first 2.5 miles!). We're talking hand over foot climbing for the first two miles it's so steep. That alone took about 3 hours! The next 8 miles took 5 more hours.

It wouldn't have been as bad but the first 2 miles, it's all straight up with no switchbacks, absolutely brutal. By the time you get to 3200 feet you're exhausted and unfortunately have 8 more miles to go! Ouch.

This is a hike I've been wanting to do for a while but I can honestly say, once was enough! About 6 creeks to ford, a brutal initial climb, poison oak all over the place, it's all there! The last 3 miles were nice though, we got to go by Triple Falls which we love but unfortunately we were too exhausted to really enjoy it. In any case, I'm glad to be home!

Got some more pics here on Facebook if you're interested.

The Devil's Backbone.
This was a cool rock formation, kind of scary to walk out on. As you can see, the right side drops off to a couple of thousand feet also known as certain death. Fun stuff.















A better pic of Devil's backbone.



















Kelli and I on Devil's backbone.













Me about the push Kelli off of Devil's backbone.












The Rock Arch


















Got to go by Triple Falls on the loop back which is one of our favorites in Oregon.

Kelli

--My wife is truly hilarious in a very Seinfeld-esque way. She texted me earlier and said:

"A guy in my class has really big finger tips. The biggest finger tips on a hand I have ever seen."

I love that girl.

Prettiest Band of 2008?

Wow, it's a toss up on which one of these "guys" is the prettiest. I'll let you decide.

I saw this and I thought, "I think there is about a 0.1 percent chance that I will like the music that comes from what I see here.

Judging a book by it's cover? Maybe.

But you know what?

I was right!

Classic Bill Simmons

Bill comes up with some much needed new sports rules here.

One of my favorites is this:
New Rule: No more bullpens* emptying during baseball fights. All those relievers do is clutter the field and make it harder for me to see sucker punches and headlocks on YouTube. Stay put, bullpen guys.

Amen.

*Chris: the bullpen is where relief pitchers sit and warm up before they come into the game.

Pastor's Wife Role

Darn the luck, Kelli's out of town this week! :)

Breast Milk in Ice Cream? What?

Peta is asking Ben and Jerry's to use breast milk in their ice cream instead of cow's milk.

I'm speechless.

The Greatest

This may have been the greatest Cities and Knights game played in the history of the game. Devin put up a noble battle and led most of the game, but it wasn't enough for one brave man who fought until the end and pulled off one of the biggest upsets of all times over Devin Vaughn (in case you didn't catch it) and two characters from the sitcom Friends in a 44 minutes battle of wills.

The absolutely joy that I experienced in this victory is hard to describe, but the heartbreak that Devin Vaughn felt will probably be talked about for days, even years to come. Epic, thats the only word to describe something like this.

McDonald's Christianity

My mom took this picture today of a church right by her place I believe strictly for the sole purpose of feeding the cynical monster that lives inside of me.

I'm going to warn you that if you go to the website, be prepared for the longest (and most dramatic) flash introduction you've ever seen! I will say this, they sure have a lot to live up to with all that they promise to be!

This idea reminds me of the Seventh Day Adventist church that has the "Community Prayer Box" in their parking lot with a big sign on SE 60th, by Western Seminary.

I certainly won't criticize the loving desire to serve people in the community that on my less cynical days I believe leads to ideas such as these, but I do wonder what the response has been. Many people will say that the response does not matter if their motives were right. I disagree. I honestly think gimmicks like this are just more fodder for mockery from Christ-followers and those who don't follow Christ alike, ultimately coming from a church that has no idea of how to "get more people" to come to their church but is desperately willing to try any and everything.

How many non-Christians are going to find this appealing in any way?

A History of Bad Health

The family genes that have been passed down to me could be called anything but healthy. All of my grandparents have passed on from this life, the last one going several years ago now. Two bouts of cancers, a heart attack, and…well, just plain ol’ death took the four of them away.

In my own life, I’ve experienced some odd things for only being 28. Two knee surgeries, some random things that can only be labeled as embarrassing (which some of my college friends would remember), and a grand mal seizure that stopped the N train in New York City for about 45 minutes one night to name a few.

So it wasn’t all that surprising to get my cholesterol checked and find out that it’s less than impressive. This as well runs in my family. I didn’t know I even had such a thing as Triglycerides but apparently I do and they are fairly high (540), and wouldn’t you know it, the good cholesterol is low and the bad is high. The blessing out of all of this is that I have the privilege of finding out early enough and today I got to lay out a plan with a Cardiologist of what life looks like so that I do not end up going from a heart-attack at age 63 like my grandmother did (for similar reasons). Unfortunately she also had this knowledge but chose not to do anything with it.

Looking back through my families health history I feel that the cards are stacked against me on many levels and I’ve always kind of thought that it would be a miracle to make it to 75 but I also know that I want to do what I can to take care of my body regardless of what I was dealt. Part of this, I have brought on myself in the past 5 years and I accept responsibility for that. The other part seems sort of unfair and makes me angry. But regardless, this whole thing starts today with my 6-week plan to see how much I can naturally lower my Triglycerides and then start hitting the other things.

I guess this is a good time to say a formal good-bye to every kind of food that brings me joy in life. Good bye chocolate milk, good bye ice cream, good bye sugary drinks, good bye Trans fats. (as you can see, this isn't all hereditary!

Some Music Recs

Chad Vangaalen - Soft Airplane

Myspace
















Blitzen Trapper - Furr

A Portland band!

Myspace














Horse Feathers - House with No Home

Another Portland band!

Myspace

Random Music Rant

A little Kimya Dawson on the Juno Soundtrack is one thing, but a whole album of her?

Unpleasant if not downright annoying.

Kind of reminds me of what an album would be like if Phoebe from Friends recorded one.

Not helping any of that is the fact that the record is called Alphabutt.

Come on, really?

Onion Greatness

Pre-Game Coin Toss Makes Jacksonville Jaguars Realize Randomness Of Life

Thoughts I have had today.

-Welcome to the blogosphere Rob Grant!

-Uh, how did the Bears win today and why didn't I know more about Matt Forte?

-Guess I picked a bad year to be a Seahawks fan. :(

-The Oklahoma City Thunder? Seriously? What is that, a WNBA team?*

-Can't wait to see the new Coen Bros. film.

-Wayne's World is playing at the Laurelhurst Theater this week.

-Andrew gets the quote of the camping weekend with "that's why my beats is so dark" after explaining his pair of suicidal goldfish.

-Is their possibly a better source for comedy material than the local news?

-Why did I smile when I heard the line, "Tom Brady could be out for the year"?

-Hey Cubs, remember that whole, "we're good" thing you've had going on for a good portion of the season now? Remember? Yeah, uh, let's get back on that train.


*no offense to women who play basketball, this is targeted solely at the team names. ie. Sparks, Shocks, Mystics, Fever, pretty much any of them.

Ocho Cinco

It's official for Chad "I'm desperate for attention" Johnson, I mean Ocho Cinco.

NFL

What's their not to love about the NFL?

Awesome.

Blockbuster, what is this?

I was returning "Return of the Jedi" this morning when I saw this window advertisement outside. I can't quite figure it out.

What is actually going on here? Who is that man? Why does he have a clipboard?

I'm wondering what they're trying to get across here. Anybody venture a guess at this?