The online home of the Abubilla project is now available at http://www.abubillamusic.com

The debut album Six Months of Saturdays, should be available in a week or two… You can register for the newsletter, as well as listening to the album and reading their blog etc. Enjoy. Cover image © to Abubilla Music 2009.

So yeah, I’ve got this fear that pertains to cats and it’s one I can’t shove under the welcome mat. ha- ha. Get it?! ha- ha-ha.

But seriously, cats freak me out like woooah. I’m talking about to the point where I won’t even consider petting them. Now, I can’t exactly recall when I first started getting creeped out by them, but I know it had to do with pretty much every cat I was around at that time had either bitten me or scratched me. Wait, I think this fear first set in around like 14-years old. Oh and before I forget, that flick Sleepwalkers, yeah, it really fucked with me. “Nomadic shapeshifting creatures with human and feline origins. Vulnerable to the deadly scratch of the cat, the sleepwalker feeds upon the lifeforce of virginal human females.” Not cool. Really, not cool!

Well even with this horrific imagery in my head, I some how managed to address this fear of cats that I have conjured up. While at my sister’s house on Long Island today, I pet her family’s cat. I placed my hand on top of his orange head and quickly pulled it beneath his chin, keeping a close eye on that creepy mouth of his. It was a typical ‘ 1, 2’ I’m outta there thing. Just couldn’t separate the previous experiences from the ‘what- ifs’, so I kept with what I knew would happen, which didn’t happen. Talk about you don’t know, what you don’t know.

But yeah, I pet a cat. A cat that let me just mention, woke me up at 4 a.m. meowing, pacing back and forth in front of me and – for a few seconds in between – clawed at my feet (freaken jerk). And I’m still hesitant on petting this one as well as others. Hey, at least I didn’t walk away from the opportunity, and probably won’t in the future no matter how freaked out I am. So that’s what matters most, right?

Featured Guest: Mike Park

Mike Park is the man behind Asian Man Records and plays with The Chinkees, The B. Lee Band and ex-Skankin Pickle. He also squeezes handfuls of solo shows into his schedule from time-to-time. And since Park is one of the most outspoken guys these days on the punk scene when it comes to human rights, he’s also put some time into getting his precious gem, The Plea for Peace Foundation, on the map. The nonprofit not only sponsors tours to promote peace through music, but it’s also broken ground on a Youth Center that will give youth an outlet to perform music, create art, dance, and talk to others with similar interests. (Psst… they’re looking for people with experience writing grants for non-profits and anyone with fund raising ideas/projects, etc, so get in touch.)

Umm, yeah, I could totally go on-and-on about the work Park does, yep, he’s a role model of mine, but I’ll let you click around to find out more.

So yeah, listen as Park shares an experience that – while at the time was scary – eventually helped prove the benefits of nonprofits in punk rock and dropping the tough guy attitude to help at least a little bit.

this has been an interesting summer of injuries so far.
i have always prided myself on being physically fit, but if i were to be honest, the last several years i have turned more and more into a ‘weekend warrior’.
i never stretch before (or after) doing any activity and up until now i have been very blessed not to suffer any major injuries… but i am beginning to feel more and more aches and pain from day to day activities. i fear i might be due up for a major mishap!  :(
for instance, both of my achilles tendon feel sore after doing some light jogging and my ankles get sore during certain climates.
anyway… this summer alone, three close friends of mine have been the victims of some heinous injuries. please keep them and their road to recovery in prayer:

1. matt “lawdawg” law.
- injured playing softball: was rounding 3rd base on his way to score and collided w/ the catcher.
- result(s): lost a front tooth, had his upper lip stitched up and incurred misc. cuts and deep abrasions on arms and face.

2. pastor eugene cho.
- injured playing basketball: in the last ten minutes of the open gym, was going to the hoop and made a sharp cut and then “snap, crackle, POP”.
- result(s): ruptured his OTHER achilles’ tendon!

3. mike park.
- injured playing softball: was running to 2nd base when he misstepped and his foot got caught underneath 2nd base and stopped in place… while the rest of his body kept going forward.
- result(s): broke his ankle in 3 places (didn’t even know you could do that!). his ankle almost looks like a softball!  and someone pointed out to me later that the sign in the background also happened to spell his last name!

lesson learned: STRETCH, work out to strengthen my body and BE CAREFUL!

I dare not…

… break my streak of posting “every day” for maybe a week now…. even though i technically missed May 1st, I’m still updating before I sleep.

I dare not…

… do my usual Facebook and Twitter updates about this post for the sake of the subject of the picture.

Here’s a picture that I kept quiet for a bit (and put partially on private on Flickr) though I uploaded earlier this week. Now it’s time to release to the world. Don’t judge him. I told him to pose so yeah.

A seminary-nerd-alert pastime that I’ve recently undertaken has involved different theological discussions with various people, particularly rich and mike.  These guys have rekindled an interest in contemporary theological issues, particularly recent renewal movements found in the emerging church (which includes, but is not limited to, the emergent church from my understanding).  I’m thankful for their insights on infallibility, liberation theology, and the lebron vs. kobe debate.  Ah yes, we have a fine time in the NLF office.

In general though, New Life Fellowship is outside the mainstream evangelical sphere, and that’s demonstrated in NLF’s unique ethos and theological leanings, I believe.  Meanwhile, even when Rich and I were at the monastery last week, the Catholic priests were shocked that we used language like “the daily office” and “rule of life”.  Even mainstream Catholics don’t speak in those terms, apparently. So yes, our church is hard to decipher for many (as Greg mentioned Saturday), especially since we’re non-denominational too.

Nevertheless, since the three of us have had most of our training from evangelical seminaries, we’re mostly familiar with what’s happening in the evangelical world.

One such group that Mike informed me about was the gospel coalition (GC from now on).  He mentioned some names associated with it, and the list included DA Carson, Tim Keller, John Piper, and Mark Driscoll.  I was immediately intrigued because I have a great deal of respect for these men (well, I know very little about Driscoll).  I’ve read books from the first three gentlemen, and have just recently heard of some of Driscoll’s contributions (he seems like a really bright, blunt, and funny guy).

Carson is a brilliant theologian and Piper’s paradigm of Christian Hedonism was very formative for me because it seemed as if every Korean Christian in Berkeley read Desiring God.  I certainly have some disagreements with these gentlemen, but I willingly concede that they’re much smarter and godlier than I am.  I’m almost positive I can beat them in a game of one on one basketball, though.  See, they’re probably humbler than I am, too.

Keller is obviously a giant when it comes to Christianity in NYC, and I’ve absolutely loved his teaching and contributions to a number of churches around NYC.  Plus, he’s a giant in that he’s a very tall man.

But seriously, I have so much respect and admiration for Tim, and I’m so thankful for Redeemer.  Mike Keller has become a good friend as well, and I really appreciate him as a friend, leader, and pastor.  I think Tim, Mike, and I should start a church on Roosevelt Island some day.

But I digress… when I heard that Tim was part of the GC, I looked on the website and was thrilled to see so many resources by way of video and audio, any seminary-nerd’s dream of a website (mike p and rich are two of the biggest i know, btw).  As I navigated through the site, I started to feel a bit uneasy, and I had to pause and think about why I was uncomfortable with this new group that was being formed by men I respected so much.

To make a long story short, there are two basic reasons why I didn’t join the coalition.  Now, keep in mind it’s not like they were banging down my door begging me to join.  Truth be told, no one has invited me to the group, which is a shock to none of you.

Either way, here are two reasons I do not want to join the GC:

1.  Diversity – I’m not quite sure how to describe this, but I’ll give it my best shot.  I don’t hold this against the coalition at all, but I do feel a bit uneasy about the lack of diversity amongst the council and the members.  I don’t blame the GC for this because I think this kind of network naturally draws groups of people who are:

- theologically trained at an evangelical institution,

which tend to be comprised of

- white or asian males.

Now, this isn’t the case for all the council members or the members of gc in general, but after reading the bios and researching churches, I believe that most of the pastors (and churches they lead) represented in gc look a lot like our evangelical seminaries (white, asian, and a very small minority of blacks and hispanics).

I think this is a challenge that evangelical institutions have been trying to overcome for quite some time, but I know that it’s been an uphill battle.

I don’t have any real solutions to this, but I’m wondering if there’s something about the theological emphases of evangelical seminaries that appeals to the lens of whites and asians.  Rich can probably better comment on this.

In some respects, I see this group as a recapitulation of an evangelical “seminarians club” of sorts – simply by observing the theological jargon that’s used (it’s pretty sophisticated) and noticing the ties that many of the council members have to seminaries and seminary training (this is a gross generalization and I might be wrong).  This makes me believe that I should actually be in this group, but…

2.  Women – There’s no explicit mention of the stance of women in leadership in the foundation documents, and I’ve been told that there are some council members who are egalitarian and believe in women in church leadership, but nonetheless

- there are no women in the council of 50 (or however many are in the council)

and

- the video resources on the subject of women espouse a complementarian position.

So in other words, I’m pretty sure they’re complementarian.

I hold to an egalitarian position, and have actually become more convinced of this biblically as the years have passed.  (If anyone would like to have a discussion on this topic, I’d love to chat over some hot chocolate!)

I don’t want to go into the nuances of the positions here (some of you have been to a class I taught on the subject at church), but I’ve found that there are many Bible trusting, thoughtful, and intellectually honest individuals who hold to egalitarianism, and I’m really sad that the gospel coalition isn’t equally represented by egalitarians.  The egalitarians I know have an equally fervent and persuasive commitment to God, Scripture, and the Gospel.

I’m most disappointed because of the title the gc used – “Gospel Coalition”.  I firmly believe the women in church leadership issue isn’t a make-or-break topic for people who are gospel-centered.  It saddens me that the GC wanted to include this issue as a dividing point.

Again, no one was knocking on my door.  Instead, I suppose I’m knocking on theirs.

EDIT: Most recently the GC had their conference, and I must say, although I will not be joining because of the aforementioned reasons, their resources and user-friendliness are quite stellar.  For this, I must say thank you, and I’m glad that they are willing to resource anyone in this way!

Apparently BTMI and Mike Park are supporting Lemuria but it’s top secret, Gore Bless the Internet.

I’m a pop punk kid at heart. I always have been.

We just found we get to go to Seattle on Sunday to meet some family. Tessa suggested we try to jump on show. These are results. I’m about to wet myself!

March, 14 2009 07:00 PM – GRNSTRP HAUS w. CLASSICS OF LOVE (feat. Jesse Micheals) & MIKE PARK!, w/The Damage Done 819 NE 70th, Seattle, Washington 98115 – $5

Come out early we play first.. probably before the start of the show. This will be epic!

O Pioneers!!! (Houston, TX) will be leaving for a month-long tour of the U.S. beginning next Tuesday, August 26th.

The trip will take them westward to California, back through parts of the Midwest and will eventually wrap up with a week throughout the Southeast and Texas with The Gaslight Anthem. The band will also be playing shows with Polar Bear Club, Samiam and American Steel.

TOUR DATES
AUG 26 – El Paso, TX @ House show w/ Buckeye
AUG 27 – Tucson, AZ / Albuquerque, NM – Need Help!
AUG 28 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Trunk Space, w/ Andrew Jackson Jihad
AUG 29 – Riverside, CA @ Awesomefest / Worthington’s Tavern
AUG 30 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Glass house (early show) w/ Cobra Skulls, The Anchor
AUG 31 – San Franscico, CA @ Thrillhouse Records, w/ Mike Park
SEP 01 – Reno, NV @ The Eyeball
SEP 02 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Rugburn
SEP 03 – Ft. Collins, CO @ House Show
SEP 04 – Boulder, CO @ House Show
SEP 05 – Colorado Springs, CO @ Triple Nickel Bar
SEP 06 – Lincoln, NE @ The Ghost House
SEP 07 – Oklahoma City, OK @ TBA
SEP 12 – Austin, TX @ Red 7 w/ Samiam
SEP 13 – Houston, TX @ The Mink w/ Samiam
SEP 19 – Houston, TX @ I Heart U House w/ Paul Baribeau, Good Luck
SEP 20 – Pensacola, FL @ Sluggos
SEP 21 – Chattanooga, TN @ TBA w/ Loki The Lion
SEP 22 – Birmingham, AL @ The Bottle Tree w/ Gaslight Anthem, American Steel
SEP 23 – Jacksonville, FL @ Jack Rabbits w/ Gaslight Anthem, American Steel
SEP 24 – Gainesville, FL @ Common Grounds w/ Gaslight Anthem, American Steel
SEP 25 – Tallahassee, FL @ The Beta Bar w/ I Made This Mistake
SEP 26 – New Orleans, LA @ House of Blues w/ Gaslight Anthem, Polar Bear Club
SEP 27 – San Antonio, TX @ Rock Bottom Bar w/ Gaslight Anthem, Polar Bear Club
SEP 28 – Dallas, TX @ Prophet Bar w/ Gaslight Anthem, Polar Bear Club
SEP 29 – Little Rock, AR @ Vinos w/ Gaslight Anthem, Polar Bear Club

Gli Alkaline Trio sono un’altra di quelle band che ci piace tanto e da tanto tempo. Se volevi del buon punk-rock melodico agli inizi del Duemila semplicemente non c’era niente di meglio dei loro primi tre dischi e la cosa buffa è che non c’è tuttora. E per forza di cosa gli Alkaline Trio continuano a piacerci tanto, nonostante tutto: perchè Good Mourning sembrava l’inizio di una fine poco decorosa , Crimson è stato la gloriosa rinascita e Agony And Irony si fa rispettare pur perdendo qualche colpo. Tra alti e bassi, quello sì, ma sempre lontani anni luce dallo sputtanamento definitivo: mentre aspetti il loro nuovo disco nemmeno ti passa per la testa che Skiba&co si siano bevuti il cervello e inizino a fare puttanate tipo urlettini sparsi qua e là o altre pacchianerie simili. L’unica cosa a cui pensi è quante canzoni perfette alla loro maniera riusciranno a mettere insieme questa volta. Ve lo dico io, almeno quatro: Calling All Skeletons, I Found Away, Do You Wanna Know? e Into The Night. Il resto del disco mantiene il decoro a parte un paio di episodi, tipo il ritornello un pò idiota di Love Love, Kiss Kiss che poi ovviamente ti ritrovi ogni volta a canticchiarlo.
Per stavolta insomma tocca un pò accontentarsi e non fare troppo i preziosi. In alternativa, nel frattempo, per i più nostalgici – come me – è uscita per Asian Man la ristampa dell’esordio Goddamnit. Il disco sapete già che razza di capolavoro sia. Ora aggiungeteci pure una confezione ben curata, un dvd spettacolare con interviste, live show e tutto il resto, quattro bonus track, un booklet con scritti di Brendan Kelly (Lawrence Arms) e Mike Park. E quest’ultimo che scrive: “just know that Goddamnit is the best record by the best band in the world. For those who disagree, i’m sorry to say you’re wrong.”
Beh, anche se siete wrong vedete di prendervi ‘sta chicca che fidatevi vi procurerà orgasmi multipli.

Mattia