Recently in this section, I mentioned my country and western music phase, which played a crucial part in my greatest heartbreak. Just before that, I went through a whole smooth jazz/New Age stage that was brought on by my discovery of the Oasis radio station. Why I latched onto that,…

Even with the trendy Bishop Arts district and now the fancy Belmont Hotel, I still find myself defending Oak Cliff. And I don’t even live there. My Plano friend Klint had some reservations about a dinner outing down that way, but what do you know, I think he was pleasantly…

If you’re like me at this time of year, you’re scrambling to catch up on all the movies that get nominated for whatever upcoming awards only because they seem to all come out in a three-week period between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. Yes, it’s mostly good stuff, but every couple…

Back in the early to mid-’90s, I had the biggest crush on my friend Jon. When we hung out there was always this undercurrent between us that said we were a good match…in my mind anyway. Unfortunately, youth on both our sides and naïvete on mine resulted in nothing happening…

With a film title like The Cave of the Yellow Dog, I’m not sure what to expect. My first thought was a mashup of Crouching Tiger and any Jim Jarmusch film. However, when I read details about the movie, six words killed any interest there might have been for this…

The Pegasus Theater’s black and white shows are a true Dallas tradition. For a while, I was going year after year to their small theater digs just outside of Deep Ellum, and then poof, they seemed to disappear. They ended up moving to Richardson but are definitely worth the drive…

What better way to drink your cosmopolitan than with a splash of culture? Try it at the Nasher Sculpture Center this Thursday night. And if you’re scratching your head then you are sooo out of the scene. Everyone who’s anyone knows every third Thursday, the Nasher goes lounge-like and becomes…

A few years ago, I played the small role of Mr. Martini in the stage version of It’s a Wonderful Life. Back then I thought my future was on the stage and figured my fewer than 20 lines would somehow amount to awards and accolades in the near future. Alas,…

I never really understood the whole solstice thing; I only knew I needed to add it to my holiday greetings along with Kwanzaa and Hanukkah. Otherwise, I would be deemed politically incorrect. By whom, I have yet to figure out. If I’m not mistaken, the solstice itself has something to…

I’m too old to understand the phenomenon of Disney’s High School Musical, about two teens who meet at karaoke, discover mutual interests and, coincidentally, attend the same school. The only way I knew about it was through the weekly Target circulars in which the soundtrack was consistently on sale. This…

There are four things every human should do. Plant a tree, write a poem, be intimate with someone of the same sex and kill a person. At least, that’s the notion Senta has in the Hitchcockian French film, The Bridesmaid. Poor Philippe falls in love with Senta only to find…

Since I lived a big chunk of my life in Mesquite, home of the rodeo, imagine my embarrassment when I thought a Celebrity Cutting Event had something to do with ribbons. Kanye was going to wrap my Christmas presents? Hardly. Turns out cutting is where a rider selects a calf…

I’m afraid to admit that I may not be the best person to write up this German Christmas Festival. I say that because so much of it seems to revolve around German food. A live holiday pastry demonstration, grilled bratwurst for sale, a 16,000-square-foot European grocery store—all of which have…

I’ve been called the whitest Hispanic ever. And that’s by my closest friends. The slightest hint of jalapeño has me gasping for water. I’m lost when someone speaks to me in Spanish. The closest I’ve gotten to actual Mexican culture was a resort stay in Cancún. If I have any…

Here’s a random piece of city trivia: The Dallas FrontRunners, the gay social running group, was inspired by the book The Front Runner by Patricia Nell Warren. I wonder if she’ll join them on her visit to Dallas. Warren signs her new book, Lavender Locker Rooms: 3,000 Years of Great…

I wondered once if I could be a comedian. I was doing the whole theater thing, and a couple of people said I was funny, so I began to ponder. After coming up with one joke in the course of a week, I gave up. This probably had something to…

I have mixed feelings about haunted houses. There is nothing like that thrill of some blood-covered ghoul lunging toward me from the darkness. But when I notice the same masks I saw at Target while shopping for my own costume, the experience kind of loses its fear factor. I long…

I hope I haven’t missed the yearly presentation of It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Even as a thirtysomething, there’s a certain nostalgia that I gladly suffer watching it. And each time, my heart always goes out to poor Linus. Whether it’s suffering at the hand of his verbally abusive…

I am an idiot. At least one with tunnel vision. When I agreed to write about the upcoming International Gem and Jewelry Show, I only thought back to my geology class in college. I harked back to the days studying about quartz, feldspar and my personal favorite, muscovite. I loved…

I keep meaning to make it to GayBingo, but it just never seems to happen. Why that is, I don’t know. The appeal is tantalizing. Campy drag queen hosts, hunky dudes, extravagant theme nights and opportunities to win some cash—who can resist that? (Well, other than my dad…) But I’m…

I may be one of the few that didn’t discover Rent until the failed movie attempt last year. I had low expectations of the film, and they were soon being met with the eponymous opening number. Fast-forward to two hours later, and I’m bawling into my popcorn. Soon after, I…