Don't believe everything you think

It's Easter today, and it's cold. I was feeling somewhat cautiously optimistic when the weather started to get warmer, but now it's gotten cold again. It's even snowed a few times in the past couple days. When I was in school, the day after Easter was always the make-up snow day, which I think was a bad idea. Sure, nobody wanted summer vacation to start too late, but I think having one extra day off on a short break means a lot more than on a long one. Anyway, it's just been flurries, and not the kind of snowfall that could cancel school, but it's still annoying to have that happening when I was just about ready to break out the short-sleeved shirts.

I haven't done anything Easter-related this weekend, but bethje and I did brave the not-very-bitter-but-still-annoying cold to see a Rasputina concert in Philadelphia. I'd seen them open for Belle and Sebastian before, but I ended up missing most of their set due to problems with the elevated train, so this was the first full set of theirs I'd seen. The opener was a band called the Bowmans, which consisted of two girls, one playing acoustic guitar and the other various portable percussive items (tambourine, shaker egg, and xylophone in a case). They were pretty good, and sounded like something they might play on WXPN. Hey, for all I know, maybe they DO. It's been a long time since I've listened to that station.

For the Rasputina set, Melora Creager by a second cellist named Sarah (or possibly Sara) and a bearded drummer named Jonathon. Songs that they played included "Saline The Salt Lake Queen," "Watch TV," "Hunter's Kiss," "Signs Of The Zodiac," "Things I'm Gonna Do," "If Your Kisses Can't Hold The Man You Love," "Barracuda," Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here," Led Zeppelin's "Rock And Roll," and "Rusty The Skatemaker" (this last one played solo by Melora). They also did several new songs, including one about how 1816 was a year without a summer. One thing that appeals to me about their live performances (aside from the costumes) is how Melora is able to deliver totally absurd pre-song banter while generally keeping a straight, even somewhat solemn, face. Granted, I'm sure it's all been rehearsed many times and is basically the same from one show to another, but it's still really effective. I can't remember everything she said this time, but she claimed that the lyrics to one of the new songs were from a speech by Osama bin Laden translated into English, and "Watch TV" was described as "a fight to the death in the afterlife."

After the concert, Beth and I went out to eat at Denny's, where I had the fruit-filled pancakes (the blueberry ones, to be specific). They were all right, but I don't think I'll be getting them again. And now it's probably about time to take a shower and get back to bed.