Compositions for the Young and Old

Laura and I saw Bob Mould last night at the Belly Up in Solana Beach. Great show, even if we're old and have a hard time staying out so late. But Bob looked and sounded great. At 47, he puts us to shame! He was full of energy, and probably for the first time of all his live shows that I've seen genuinely seemed happy playing some old Husker Du tunes as well -- I Apologize, Celebrated Summer, and Divide and Conquer to close the set.

The best sounding songs were from the new album, including The Silence Between Us and Stupid Now, which I guess shouldn't be a surprise. But he also rocked a lot of Sugar and few tracks from Body of Song. He even broke out See a Little a Light early in the show.

So many of these songs bring back a particular period in my life, much like Poi Dog Pondering.. . hearing Workbook for the first time in Israel; Warehouse: Songs and Stories shaping my senior year; seeing him solo acoustic at Georgetown University soon after moving to DC; listening to Body of Song non-stop around the time my grandfather died... and I taken back to each of those moments last night.

I would be remiss if I didn't include a video clip here. I should choose If I Can't Change Your Mind as it is one of Laura's favorite songs. But I have to go with Gee Angel if only because the video is much more memorable, and less gloomy.

Religion is teh awesome

One-and-a-half-year old Chihuahua dog 'Conan' prays with his owner and chief priest Joei Yoshikuni during a morning pray at the Shuri-Kannondo temple in Okinawa islands, southwestern Japan, Monday, March 24, 2008.

(AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)

I love that the dog's name is in quotation marks, but "prays" isn't.

Competitors await their turn onstage during San Francisco's annual Hunky Jesus competition in Dolores Park on Easter Sunday March 23, 2008. The tradition is officiated by the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, a group of social activist drag queen nuns.

REUTERS/ Erin Siegal (UNITED STATES)