I don't know what got into me. I have been thinking about it for quite some time, and it seemed like a good idea at the time. Who is this guy? I look like I'm in 10th grade again or something...

I didn't expect to be blogging about this tonight, but it's all I can think about right now. I was just coming inside for the night with Zach. I had taken him and Emmy to the club while I worked out on the elliptical machine. As I was walking down the steps to our front door, I somehow slipped and fell down four steps... right on my butt... BUMP BUMP BUMP BUMP. It was so painful!

So now I'm on the couch sitting on a bag of ice and blogging. Jason Mraz is singing "Life Is Wonderful." Whatever.

Some great press for PCC's Skatechurch program here.

I'm always behind in my blogging, but I thought I'd write about my last gig... Ugur and I played the Koinonia Koffeehouse in Campbell, and it was really great. We played about 45 minutes... a mix of old and new... debuted our new song called "Over Me" and had a lot of fun. We opened for a guy named Bard Sherman... He is a trip! Very experimental stuff. Jazz/blues/newage stuff. Spoken word. Some Prog-like stuff. He had played for an hour almost when we realized he had only played four songs!

One of the more interesting things about his band was his bassist... San Francisco 49er and former Notre Dame Fighting Irish player Bryant Young. He was playing live for the first time. Very cool. He's a nice guy, very down-to-earth and friendly. It's funny... I'm not a sports fan at all... Wouldn't have recognized him. But some of my friends are really excited that I got to meet him. I'll have to watch a game now and then and check out my new friend.

The Matt Nightingale Band is coming together. This summer's incarnation includes Moi on keys and vocals, Ugur Taner on guitar, Brad Ciraulo on guitar, Steve Young on bass, and Geoff Anderson on drums. It's really fun to play live with a full band! We are leading worship tomorrow night at Recovery Rocks in San Carlos. Then we're playing Koinonia again July 21 and then opening for Sara Groves at PCC the very next night, the 22nd! Should be awesome...

My summer interns are here. Melissa from Iowa and Justin from Michigan. We're still in the "get-to-know-you phase," but I think it's gonna be great.

Have you checked out La La yet? I heart La La. And I still have eight invitations left if you'd like to join before it goes public on July 4. The first 8 people to email me at matt@mattnightingale.net will receive special invitations to join...

Hmmm... What else? I've been listening to a lot of Dar Williams lately. What an amazing writer and singer! I had some of her CDs before and got rid of them. Now I'm on a hunt to get them all back. I have them all except her latest, "My Better Self."

Went bowling with the kids today. Then swimming in the afternoon. That was nice. It was 100 degrees in Redwood City today...

You should meet our new pet Spike. He's a bearded dragon. He's only four inches long, but he's supposed to grow to at least 20 inches long in the next few years. He's awesome.

OK, I'm scraping the bottom of the barrel here for things to write about. Peace out.

Tuesday afternoon I had lunch with John Seybert at Taqueria el Grullense on El Camino in Redwood City. By 2:00, I was really uncomfortable. I was getting all bloated and gassy... I couldn't get in a postition that would make me comfortable. By 5:00, I was miserable, and by 7:30, I was doubled over on the couch, positive that my appendix had exploded.

Laura Kostrikin graciously agreed to come watch the kids so Luanne could take me to the hospital. I spent two hours in the Kaiser waiting room in excruciating pain. Every time I moved, I would have pain that was unlike anything I had ever experienced. I was running a low-grade fever. The pain was generally in the center and toward the right side of my stomach. I had all the classic signs of appendicitis.

Finally I was put in a bed in the ER. They tried to make me comfortable, but I was so sick. I would grab the sheets and moan as these pains would come... like contractions or something. (I have a whole new respect for women who've had children.) The doctor examined me around 10:00 and said he couldn't tell what was wrong. I would have to have a CT scan; he also agreed to give me something for the pain.

The scan was scheduled for 12:30, and my lovely nurse, Janelle, came and hooked me up to an IV. Then I got to experience my first morphine. Nice; very nice. I got three doses as I waited for the scan and then for the results. I dozed a little but. It really took the edge off. The second nurse I had, Marvin, said it was like a margarita right into the bloodstream.

So, the CT scan came and went. I got in a wheelchair, rather dizzy and somewhat groggy at this point, and the took me to Radiology. About an hour or so later, the doctor woke me with the results.

I had bad gas.

Yes, dear reader, I had nothing more than a bad case of gas. Let me tell you, when you're convinced you need surgery and they come back with news like "bad gas," you just want to disappear. I nearly asked them if they would just go ahead and take the appendix out anyway... just so my pain would be somehow validated and I wouldn't be humiliated!

I'm better today. A little gurgly in the tummy, perhaps, but that's about it. No pain, no drama. I guess it made a good story...

Look who's back... I remember a crazy month when I was trying to blog literally every day. I think I've blogged 3 times in the last 6 weeks. Sheesh.

Part of what's kept me away is the sneaking suspicion that I have nothing to say. But that's just my inferiority complex speaking. In reality, I have far too much to say. How can I whittle it down to something readable? Do the words I type really make a difference, or am I just an exhibitionist, revealing my life for cheap thrills? Who cares? Who reads this thing anyway? My thanks to the few who have emailed and wondered where I'm at and what's going on. I appreciate your interest.

OK, to start: It's Wednesday morning in Redwood City, California. I'm sitting in my favorite plush chair in the Woodside Rd. Starbucks. My beautiful new (church-issued) Dell Latitude D610 laptop is, appropriately, atop my lap. I'm plugged into iTunes and listening to a random assortment of songs. Currently playing: Tara MacLean "Hold Me Jordan" from the "Lilith Fair: A Celebration of Women in Music" album. Upcoming artists include Lone Justice, Sarah Masen, Sufjan Stevens, Jeff Buckley, the innocence mission, Michelle Shocked, Kevin Max, Jane Siberry, Evan Dando, k.d. lang, Sam Phillips and Ryan Adams.

Music... That seems to be what I keep circling around to. That seems to be the whole point of this website and my whole calling and passion. SO, music: If you look in the concert listings secion of this site, you'll notice that there are SOME SHOWS LISTED! Yes, my loyal readers, Matt Nightingale is going on the road. It's cool when God shows up and provides something you've really needed in a really perfect way.

Oh man... I love this song. "I'll Cover You (Reprise)" from Rent. Original Broadway Cast.

So, back to MN in concert. I'm partnering with a cool guy named Uğur Taner. (Say it with me, everyone... "OOOO-wer." Leave out the "g.") He's a great guitarist who really gets my music and brings a lot of his own style and passion to it. I'm excited to be working with him. If you Google him, you'll find out what his other passion has been over the years... He's awesome. So join us sometime... Hear the music live. It's always a cool experience to hear it breathe a little bit. I'm proud of the recording, don't get me wrong... Just love the freedom of performing live.

Speaking of performing live: Luanne and I got to see the Manhattan Transfer in concert Friday night at the Fox Theater in Redwood City. I have loved this group since I was in junior high and discovered their "Vocalese" album at the library. They really are amazing singers and performers, and it was an honor to see them after being such a huge fan for 20+ years.

What else? I have a budget meeting in about 40 minutes, so I gotta wrap this up.

The kids are great. Josh and Jake are heading to Simi this weekend. On a plane. By themselves.

Oh yeah, two very important and big things...

I'M AN UNCLE AGAIN! My sister Sarah is the proud mommy of her third child, Lydia Rose Gingrich, born yesterday morning. Congrats to Andy and Sarah, big brother Alex and big sister Maddie!

My brother Micah has a band called God's Lonely Man. They're really great, and they just released their latest EP. Please check them out here or here. The music rocks. Micah is a stud.

Okay, enough for now. I'll see if I can do this more regularly. Peace out.

I'm in Chicago today. It's Day Nine, and I still have eight days left. I am ready to be home. For those who don't know, I'm studying at North Park Theological Seminary, taking a class called "History and Theology of the Evangelical Covenant Church." It's part of my process of commissioning in the Evangelical Covenant Church. I am happy to be here, especially with good friends Tony, Brian and Sid, but it's a lot of work. 

Just a few highlights...

We arrived last Tuesday night and we've been staying at the Skokie Comfort Inn. Kinda old and run-down, but comfortable. There's a pool, weight room, free breakfast and (supposedly) free wireless access in all the rooms. Ours is intermittent.

Class... Eight hours a day learning about Swedish Covenant history. My brain reached saturation mode about three hours in. We had our first big exam yesterday. Blue book. 2-1/2 hours.

Last weekend, I was able to go to my folks' house in Mishawaka, Indiana. Saw my mom and dad; my beautiful sister, Sarah, and her beautiful family; and my grandpa... 87 next month! I can't say I miss snow, but it's fun to experience it sometimes.

While in Mishawaka on Sunday, I ran into a great old friend, Josh Petrillo, aka Wonderbox. Click here for a great account of our surprise meeting.

Watched The Producers with mom and dad before I headed out. It was  funny. Totally light, over-the-top, zany humor and great music. I think it would be much better live, but it was nice to see it...

Monday night I got to visit Jesus People USA, or JPUSA (pronounced Juh-POO-zuh). I have been interested in this community since I was in high school. I used to read their magazine, Cornerstone Magazine, and I always wanted to attend Cornerstone Festival. A small group of us got to have dinner with Glenn Kaiser (one of the founders of JPUSA and leader of Rez Band) and then get a tour of the place. It's remarkable. Hundreds of people choosing to live in community. Elderly people, handicapped people, young and old, Christian and not. It's amazing. Tons of outreach. Homeless shelter. Outreach to single moms. Education. Oh yeah, and they're a Covenant Church too. I was amazed to realize that Glenn and Wendi Kaiser have raised their family in this place... these little, hotel rooms and the community kitchen/dining room downstairs. Two of their daughters live at JPUSA along with sons-in-law and grandkids. I got to see the Cornerstone/GRRR Records offices, meet Tom, the guy who runs GRRR (gave him and Glenn copies of my CD), and hear unreleased mixes of Glenn's newest blues stuff.

Tonight Tony and I are going to see Walk the Line. Should be cool... Remember, I'm predicting Reese and Joaquin will win Oscars for their performances, especially now that they've won Golden Golbes. Unless of course Heath Ledger wins for his role in Brokeback Mountain. I think he's the only other possibility.

Over the next couple days we'll connect with some North Park University students who are connected to our church in some way: Debra, Rebecca, Jenny, Evan and Paul.

Then Saturday we move over to the Hyatt Regency O'Hare and start the next phase. Saturday and Sunday I'm involved in the Worship Connection, for Covenant worship pastors and leaders. Then Tony and I have another class: Mission and Ministry of the Evangelical Covenant Church. Then I stay for another two days, hear Brennan Manning speak at the Midwinter Conference, and head home on the 3rd. I can't wait!

Here are some cool pics from home. Apparently we've acquired a new family member in my absence. Jacob chose him. His name is Scamper.

Most of all, I'm anxious to be with my beloved Luanne again and to see these four awesome kiddos... Get ready for some big hugs, snuggles and TICKLES, you guys!