Love the mix CD.

It’s the ultimate in adolescent self-expression. The preferred way to commemorate major hookups and breakups. The best cheap gift since, well, the mix tape.

It’s also the perfect way to share a bit of yourself with someone new. Which may be why Josh Benton created the Monthly Mix CD Club. It works like this: Every month, you make a mix CD and send it to him. In return, he sends you one. If you send two copies, he sends two back — his and another club member’s.

His mixes are damn good, by the way. A Dallas Morning News staffer by day, Benton has eclectic taste (the Flaming Lips, Tricky, Chuck Berry, Joy Division, Yves Montand, the Who) and an endearingly self-deprecating indie-rock-boy wit. (“I was madly in love with Liz Phair for about two years, and she with me. Except the second part.”) In short, it’s like having a new friend, but without all that boring talking and hanging out. He keeps you up on his music collection, and all he asks in return is that you do the same for him.

Finally. A club that will have us as a member that we actually want to join.

For more information, check out crabwalk.com.