With the August heat getting up to “What fresh hell is this?” levels, dog owners need to be particularly diligent when they’ve got their pets outdoors. It’s important to keep your dogs cool and hydrated when you’re out and it’s best to do the same for yourself while you’re at…
Texas is a flummoxing place to be a gardener. With abbreviated planting windows, heat waves, prehistoric-seeming insects and downright crappy soil, it’s a wonder anything grows at all. But pros know the tricks, like that fall planting is the most rewarding, underrepresented gardening cycle of the year. It’s when you…
Sometimes the draw of a culture convention is the costumes, or sharing an experience with like-minded fans. Sometimes it’s even going to educational panels and learning something new. In this case, it’s a perfect storm of smoldering celebrity panels, more smoldering and a … dance party (fans may also enjoy…
You know what sucks about the State Fair? OK, nothing. Nothing at all. Except that it doesn’t start for more than a month. But fortunately, our good friends in the northern hamlet of Denton can patch up the fried hors d’oeuvre-sized holes in our hearts — at least for a…
Almost 30 years ago, a cultural movement began. What started as 20 like-minded friends gathering on a San Francisco beach to mark the summer solstice has turned into a week-long communal experience shared annually by tens of thousands. Yes, it’s the Black Rock Desert phenomenon known as Burning Man. Hard…
It’s the year’s most sought-after ticket, born from the twisted, brilliant brains of Trey Parker (South Park), Matt Stone (South Park) and Robert Lopez (Avenue Q). It’s won nine, count ’em, NINE Tony Awards while retaining its street cred. Seats on Broadway are STILL ungettable and the touring production has…
Our city’s skyline is modest by big city standards — a concentrated cluster, for sure, but it packs an iconic punch. There’s no mistaking that you’re home when you see Reunion Tower’s big glowing ball or the stately lights of the Arts District — it’s a silhouette that comforts and…
I’ve been meaning to take a self-defense class forever. Seriously. You know the day dinosaurs were invented? It was the day before that. As a single girl who lives alone — I write under a pen name so don’t try to abduct me, you dummies — I have a pretty…
Fire hoses. Bazookas. Carnival acts. These are the shooting-things-out-of-themselves experts. I know this now. Probably should have consulted them before attempting to blast a 9-pound-11-ounce boob destroyer out of my favorite part. Ah, well. Hindsight, much like a newborn baby person, is a total motherfucker. And once the baby’s out…
You’ve been a mess since missing San Diego Comic-Con. Even that kind-hearted robot you built won’t listen to any more of your blubbering. This is what’s meant by “rock bottom.” Your local a-hole alt weekly didn’t help either. The Observer ran ran story after story after story about the California…
You understood that an underground community of arm wrestlers exists, because you’re savvy. It’s just that until today, you’d based your knowledge of said subculture entirely on the 1987 documentary film Over the Top, Hollywood’s definitive instructional manual to the sport and its key players. Pick up where Stallone’s primer…
Last week, Oculus VR announced that John Carmack, The co-founder and lead programmer of classic Richardson-based game developer id Software, has joined the gaming hardware startup as chief technical officer. Oculus VR’s pilot project is a head-mounted display called The Rift. This direction-tracking headset hopes to deliver interactive, 360-degree, high…
If you’ve ever dreamed of becoming a star in the circus, you were probably raised in a time before iPhones, animal rights groups or the inherent creepiness of a Cirque du Soleil show. Such a strange life goal comes with a number of unique challenges. First, you have to have…
“It was never my intention to die at this place. If so tell me to wake up and walk out of here.” That’s how Ann Williams, the founder and artistic director of the Dallas Black Dance Theater, succinctly sums up her thoughts on her pending retirement. It must be apt…
Dallas teen Sam Horowitz had his professionally choreographed Bar Mitzvah last summer, but this amazing video footage was just picked up by a Jewish website, which brought it to our attention. Now it’s spreading, and it is, unarguably, the craziest entrance to a religious celebration and ceremony we’ve ever seen…
Hello! We’d like to share the most amazing story with you! The national touring production of Book of Mormon will not hide its light under a well-financed bushel, instead they’ve announced a limited number of tickets will be released for $25 a seat before each performance. That’s great news for…
What started as an experiment, a refined water cabaret for high-end parties and marketing affairs, has become a phenomenon. Synchronized swimming troupe The Aqualillies are now engrained in pop culture thanks to Glee cameos, performances in Justin Bieber videos and roles as hired glam for major brand celebrations across the…
It’s well into August and you haven’t made a dent in that super-ambitious summer reading list you made for yourself back in May, have you? Whether you aimed to catch up on the classics or relax with the latest beach-reads, time is just not on your side. Poolside boozing and…
You don’t need this writer to tell you that the most hotly anticipated televisual extravaganza of the year is upon us this weekend, as all-time great TV series Breaking Bad returns for the start of its final eight-episode hurrah. It’s been a show based entirely around one question — What…
NOTE: To any PR or media relations people out there: all future press events should include bottomless Champagne. Thank you. Alamo Drafthouse’s new Richardson location had its official ribbon-cutting/giant robot-unveiling last night. Founder Tim League and Chief Operating Officer Bill DiGaetano were joined by various local figures including Richardson Mayor…
Fox’s gut-wrenching cancellation of the cult series Firefly didn’t stop Joss Whedon and the Serenity from giving it’s characters the closure they deserved through the film of the same name. A decade after the show’s cancellation, fans across the world continue to prove year after year that you Can’t Stop…
MTV is launching a new “reality docu-series” called Big Tips Texas. It’s not a porn-based reality series about Texan penis sizes, FYI. We asked. Turns out, it’s about “an eclectic group of women” who work at a bar. In Texas. Allegedly, “Whether they’re partying on Lake Lewisville, planning their futures,…
