Shake it and see what happens

The weekend hasn't been without its frustrations. But in the way my sweet friend Natalie says the universe gives you what you need when you need it, there were some nearly perfect antidotes in the mix.

Friday night brought an 11th-hour, super-secret show by the magnificent Andrew Bird, in a divey club just about a 10-minute bike ride from home in the slush. Andrew's playing Carnegie Hall January 28, so you can imagine the rare treat of seeing him in a tiny converted garage with a capacity of around 75.

Later he brought his violin on stage to back Baby Alright, the soul band headlining that night, and my friend Unsoo and I danced enough to let some of the cobwebs out. (Just as a point of reference, the African-American singer is local legend Marvin Tate; the guy with dark hair to his right is a mechanic at our neighborhood bike shop).

Saturday I had the pleasure of seeing the Redmoon Theater winter pageant with my adorable godson Diego. Redmoon used to be headquartered right here in the neighborhood, and every

Halloween they'd turn our boulevard greenways into what can only be described as a sort of bacchanalian 'happening.' Unfortunately, the theater's moved a little closer to downtown now, and these photos don't really do justice to the experience of seeing one of their shows. But the whole thing turned Diego into a wind-up toy for about 30 minutes afterward, so that probably says it all.