When it comes to shopping for adult videos, it doesn't get much pinker or cuter than Cindie's -- the red-and-white awning covered in hearts, the frothy lingerie in the window. But don't let the candy-coated packaging of this adult novelty store fool you. Cindie's also stacks top-of-the-line adult videos and DVDs, guaranteed to get you in the mood. A $10 membership fee is required (movies are also for sale), but on Mondays and Tuesdays you can rent one and get the second for just a penny. There are films for every taste here -- although porn novices may want to start out with something other than Granny the Tranny on their first go-round. The best part about Cindie's is it employs many female clerks, creating a comfortable environment for women shopping alone. But don't worry, men are always welcome, too.

Where can you find rows and rows of hard-core gay porn -- and cheesecake? This place is like The Chocolate Bar meets the News Stand. It's like the Kroger Signature Store of the Hollywood stop-and-shop porn chain. Of all Houston's various XXX stores, this one has to have the most varieties of Wet (the lubricant gay men prefer, according to Sex Tips for a Straight Woman from a Gay Man by Dan Anderson and Maggie Berman). But next to the numerous lube and condom variations is an entirely unexpected case of tasty chocolate turtles and other sweets. In case you need even more juxtapositions, in the same Hollywood complex you can also hit the hair and nail salon, the Vietnamese and Chinese restaurant, and the investment and realty store.

Too few tattoo artists do more than stencil work. Such is not the case with Dan Martin, an artist for Scorpion Tattoos, Houston's only shop to be published in a national tattoo magazine. A graphic designer for eight years, Martin worked at The Houston Post and elsewhere before taking to skin art. Now he specializes in color and neotraditional work, tricking out old-world designs like panthers, daggers and roses. Martin also came close to the world record for longest tattoo session last year, working on Henry Elliott for 27 hours and 27 minutes. But unfortunately, before verification could be made, a tragedy occurred. In November, Elliot suffered a heart attack and passed away. The record now lies in the British hands of Chris Goodwill, who beat Martin by less than six hours. Still, this inker is well within the top five artists on the planet, and more than enough reason for Houston pride.