We'd imagine that lots of strip-clubgoers feel the urge, now and then, to take off their own clothes. La Bare holds monthly Pajama Jams, when the ladies are encouraged to show up in their jammies. The term is a little deceptive, though -- you're not likely to find plaid, flannel sleepwear at the event. Instead, there'll be lots of lacy, silky numbers that'll remind the Fabio look-alikes strutting the stage that they're not the only hotties in the room. Management says it stopped short of calling the event a lingerie party in order to maintain a little control. Can you imagine a similar event at The Men's Club? Guys would be popping out all over the place. Doors open at 6 p.m.; free mimosas until 10 p.m. La Bare, 6234 Richmond Avenue. For more information, call 713-780-0930 or visit www.labare.com. $4 cover; free for the jammie-clad.
Friday, May 23
Long before Mo'nique penned Skinny Women Are Evil, comedian Thea Vidale
said, "They say that inside every fat woman is a skinny woman waiting to get
out. Well, all I can say is, I ate that bitch." Vidale is best known for her
role in the ABC sitcom Thea, in which she played a single mom in Houston
who worked at the grocery store by day and ran a one-seat salon on her porch
in the evenings. The former Pasadena waitress, who performs at the Laff Stop
this weekend, is known for both her big heart and her love of dirty jokes. She
even appeared in the '80s stand-up film Comedy's Dirtiest Dozen. Let's
hope that along with the nastiness, she sets aside a little time to berate the
skinny. 8:30 p.m. Thursday, May 22; 8 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday,
May 23 and 24. 1952 West Gray. For more information, call 713-524-2333 or visit
www.laffstop.com. $12.50 to $16.50.
Saturday, May 24
Good old Power 104 KRBE. Even though you'd never tune in when a pal's riding
shotgun, you've gotta stop there once in a while to get your dose of crap. Yeah,
you might overdose on "Houston's No. 1 Hit Music Station" at the 104 KRBE/Green
Mountain Energy Earth Day Festival, but don't lie: You know you want to
see Bowling for Soup moon the crowd and sing "The Bitch Song." Also on the roster
are Jewel, Lisa Marie Presley, Michelle Branch, Kelly Clarkson, Simple Plan
and Lucy Woodward. If you happen to wander away from the stage clutching your
gut, there's other entertainment, including environmental demonstrations and
carnival games. 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eleanor Tinsley Park, Allen Parkway at Taft.
For more information, call 713-266-1000 or visit www.104krbe.com.
$13; $10 with your 104 card (don't ever leave home without it).
Sunday, May 25
It's Memorial Day weekend, and most folks won't have to go to work tomorrow,
so why not spend the day drinking? The Ginger Man will be marking the
holiday by hosting a barbecue with entertainment by the Scattered Pages. And
Under the Volcano (popularly known as Volcano) will hold its annual gumbo
cook-off, with music by Tommy Dardar and a moonwalk and games for kids. Festivities
start at noon at the Ginger Man, 5607 Morningside. For more information, call
713-526-2770 or visit www.ginger manpub.com.
The cook-off runs from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. up the street at Under the Volcano,
2349 Bissonnet. For information, call 713-526-5282.
Monday, May 26
No school today. If you're the proud owner of a child or two, you've gotta provide
some entertainment. We suggest a free day at the Houston Zoo. The family
can check out the new spectacled-bear habitat; the species has finally gotten
to move out of its concrete jungle into new digs that boast a 17-foot waterfall,
a stream, pools, natural grass and a place to climb. Also, three giant eland,
named Houston, Austin and Travis, have recently bought some real estate at the
zoo. The huge rare antelopes spend their days grazing near zebras, camels and
kudu. And don't miss everyone's favorite: the babies. Among the new arrivals
are a Brazilian tapir, a bongo, a North American porcupine, a Nigerian dwarf
goat and two crested screamer chicks. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. 1513 North MacGregor.
For more information, call 713-533-6500 or visit www.wild.houstonzoo.org.
Free.
Tuesday, May 27
Unlike many artists, Fred Wilson does not kiss gallery ass. For his exhibitions,
Wilson studies the galleries by interviewing staffers from curators to security
guards, going through storage spaces and examining catalogs. Then he sets up
exhibits that mock the galleries themselves and comment upon the sites' underbellies
of conscious or unconscious race and class prejudice. To their credit, though,
the galleries come to him. "Fred Wilson: Objects and Installations,
1979-2000" has been touring the United States since November 2001. The exhibition
includes photography, sculpture, video and re-created site-specific installations.
One piece, Atlas, mocks racist figurines. It features a waiter holding
a tray, but in the tray is a towering globe covered in pushpins denoting areas
of the world with large black populations. Today, see what Wilson's got to say
about the Blaffer Gallery. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, and 1
p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Fine Arts Building, University of Houston
(entrance no. 16 off Cullen Boulevard). For more information, call 713-743-9530
or visit www.blaffergallery.org.
Free.
Wednesday, May 28
If you assumed that the author of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency,
which takes place in Botswana, is a lady from Botswana, you'd be wrong on both
counts. Alexander McCall Smith was born in Zimbabwe and is a law professor
in Scotland. The prolific writer has published more than 50 books, including
academic titles, short story collections and children's books. His popular No.
1 Ladies Detective Agency series now includes four books, the most recent
being The Kalahari Typing School for Men. In it, Smith continues to recount
the adventures of Mma Ramotswe, her lover and her ambitious assistant. Smith
reads today at 6:30 p.m. Murder by the Book, 2432 Bissonnet. For more information,
call 713-524-8597. Free.
