Innovative solutions include traveling by boat, Greyhound bus — even bicycle. When a band is onstage, the musicians are supposed to be focused on performing — or that cute girl (or boy) in the third row. These days, a more mundane, but far more pressing, concern is likely to be cluttering the brain of the average working band member: Whether they'll have enough money to pay for the gas it will take to reach their next destination. With gas prices in some parts of the U.S. soaring close to $4 a gallon, indie-rock bands — for whom touring and merchandise sales are often their key sources of income — are increasingly feeling the pinch and struggling to get from one city to the next. If you plan on going to shows this summer, you'll probably notice it too, as the price of everything from T-shirts and tickets to beer could be on the rise — assuming, of course, that your favorite band can make it to your town at all.

While they didn't set out to combat gas prices with their tour, the Ditty Bops are sending a clear message by biking from Los Angeles to New York on their upcoming three-month outing in support of Moon Over the Freeway (due May 25). The folk-pop duo of Amanda Barrett and Abby DeWald are on a major label, but they're pedaling for their tour, which will hit large and small cities for shows in theaters, clubs, bike stores, houses and farms."We're not doing it to save gas money, because we'll be flying out band members and running a support vehicle — my hybrid Toyota Prius — with our gear," said Barrett. "We just love riding bikes and want to encourage people to do that. It's more for environmental reasons, but think of all the gas money we're saving by riding bikes!"

With some experts predicting that gas could hit an average of $4 a gallon this summer, the question is, are things really that bad? According to CNN, we have it pretty easy. In the Netherlands, gas costs $6.73 a gallon, while French drivers are ponying up $5.80 a gallon, with the average price per gallon across Europe around $6 a gallon. Then again, in the oil-producing countries of Iran and Venezuela gas is cheaper than some high-end bottled water at (respectively) 35 cents and 12 cents a gallon.

Today marks the birthday of my Grandmother, Agnes Hahn. I'm not going to tell you how old she is. You wouldn't believe me anyhow, as she hasn't aged too much in the last 40 years. She still presides in the kitchen during family togethers. No matter how many times she's told, "Sit down, Mom!", or "Take it easy, and relax a while.", she insists on making sure that everything is just right. From if the meat is cooked properly, to where everyone is going to sit, she has her say. No, she has THE say. And no matter how crowded it gets, she insists there is always room at the table.

When she and her husband had 5 kids of their own, they took in a refugee family of 4 from Latvia. It was difficult back then, but it would be impossible now. And yet she did it. How did she do it? She probably doesn't know herself how, except to say that she had God's help.

Jesus feed 5000 men with a few fish and a couple loaves of bread. What she did might not have been on that scale, but it operated on the same principles. Those of faith, hope and love. These Grandma has in abundance, the rest is just gravy.