Comment of the Day: Q And Not U? Really?
We thought we were pretty smart when we came up with a list of awesome Scrabble words that can get you out of a gaming quandary yesterday. Among the categories were words with all consonants, words with all vowels, and words with Q and not U. But reader Hookaka caught…
10 Observations About The Rockets 2011-12 Schedule
I have to admit, when I saw the headline that the NBA would be announcing its 2011-12 season schedule, I chuckled out of confusion a little bit. I mean, do you really want to remind your hardcore customers (and trust me, those who care about the NBA schedule in July…
The Ten Coolest Animated Google Doodles
Today, Google’s logo looked like the image above and became a heated topic on Twitter. The logo — referred to as a “doodle” — had people wondering why anyone should celebrate the birthday of a dead guy and just who the hell Gregor Mendel was in the first place. In fact, Google…
Comment of the Day
We Houstonians love us some kolaches and Anamaris Cousins Price found The Original Kolache Shoppe (note the old world spelling giving it that extra…something) near Hobby Airport and she was, to say the least, impressed. Commenter ec gave us a helpful tip: If you have a big order, call in…
Intergalactic: A Playlist For The Space Shuttle’s Last Flight Home
If you’re an astronaut, you recently might have awoken you from a sound night’s rest on the space shuttle to the sounds of U2, Beyonce, Electric Light Orchestra, Aaron Copeland, or even some old Coldplay. On those more unlucky days, you may have awoken to Keith Urban, Kool and the…
Rick Perry’s Prayerapalooza: ACLU of Texas Wants to Know How Much Tax Money Is Being Spent
The ACLU of Texas has filed open-records requests seeking information on how much tax money, if any, is being spent promoting Rick Perry’s prayer meeting at Reliant Stadium next month. “We are concerned that Gov. Perry is using public office to endorse a sectarian religious event and to advance specific…
100 Favorite Dishes: No. 65, Boudin Balls at MerCheri’s
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
Paula Poundstone, The ’80s And a Time Magazine Phone
Paula Poundstone is on the road a lot these days. When she’s not in Chicago as a panelist for NPR quiz show Wait! Wait! Don’t Tell Me, she’s out two or three nights a week performing standup in clubs and theaters across the country. It’s actually not too different from…
Director Danny Ocean Aims Far Beyond BET Uncut
Each Wednesday, Rocks Off arbitrarily appoints one lucky local performer or group “Artist of the Week,” bestowing upon them all the fame and grandeur such a lofty title implies. Know a band or artist that isn’t awful? Email their particulars to sheaserrano@gmail.com. It’s time for the Artist of the Week…
MAJOR UPSET: The New, Improved Mugshot O’ The Day
We were pretty damn confident this morning when we declared we already had a winner in the Mugshot O’ The Day competition that we created as soon as we saw Sade Houghton’s police photo. Alas, we spoke too soon. Zyah Jones, 48, had yet to check in via KTRK, which…
The Generous Pour Wine Event at Capital Grille
To truly understand wine, its complexity, what distinguishes a good wine from bad one, and how it should pair with food, takes years of study. That’s why there are only 171 Master Sommeliers in the world, and to gain access to one, even for short period of time, one would…
LSU to Brew and Sell Its Own Beer, Leaving UT to Wonder Why They Didn’t Think of That
We’ve been to LSU football games, and if there’s one thing we noticed, it’s that there’s just not enough beer. Some would say that’s because people are guzzling bourbon and scotch instead of brews, but the keen minds in the LSU administration know better. The school will place itself on…
Cinema Slap Fight: Real Genius vs. Better Off Dead
In which Hollywood favorites are made to fight to the death for your amusement. It began, as most things do in my house, with an argument with my wife. The dispute was then taken to Facebook and, (unsurprisingly) finding no satisfaction there, I decided to bring the debate to that…
More NFL Drama: 75 Former Pros Suing League Over Concussions
The National Football League has been, for the past few years, one of the biggest proponents of concussion awareness. Now, all of that cheerleading may bite them in the backside. The Associated Press reported today that 75 former players are suing the league for hiding knowledge about the adverse health…
Tasting Notes: This Week in Wine Blogs
Know a Houston-based blog we should be paying particular attention to? Leave the address in the comments section below. Vintage Texas: “Come One, Come Y’all for Texas Wine,” writes top Texas wine blogger Russ Kane. He’s referring to a session called “The Other 46” to be held at the 11th…
10 Albums Guaranteed To Blow Your Car Speakers
It started innocently enough, leaving a friend’s house in the Heights, when during one of our epic air-drum solos to the Foo Fighters’ “Bridge Burning,” we heard the speakers on the left side of our car, a hearse-like HHR, just pop and die, reducing Taylor Hawkins drum work to a…
Dinesh Shah a.k.a. “Dennis Shaw”: The Nightmare of River Oaks
A man named Dennis Shaw wormed his way into some of the highest heights River Oaks has to offer and took it for all it was worth. In real life his name was Dinesh Shah, and he’s racked up a long, long courtroom record. Our John Nova Lomax examines the…
Beyond the Bakery: Lebanese Breakfast at Cedars
In this week’s cafe review, we trek out to Richmond and Dunvale to investigate the offerings at Cedars Bakery. Because despite the name, there’s much more to enjoy at this Lebanese bakery besides the pita bread. The bakery’s big draw on the weekends — besides the fluffy, freshly-baked pita bread…
Must Love Apple: 5 Style Apps We Love (and make us want an iPhone)
When it comes to fashion apps, I’m kind of a cranky fashionista. The hottest style apps for smartphones are designed exclusively for the iPhone. As a dedicated Droid user, this irks me to no end. Imagine my dismay when I was browsing through Vogue and discovered that the official smartphone…
Chris Cornell’s Best Non-Soundgarden Cuts
Today is Chris Cornell’s birthday, and the Soundgarden lead singer only seems to be getting younger, even at 47 years old. Seriously, last two times we have seen him, his voice keeps regressing back to the early Soundgarden days and he seems to be getting more spry. He lives in…
Texas A&M Athletics: No Longer a Bridesmaid to UT?
Maybe, just maybe, Texas A&M is about to stop being the University of Texas-Austin’s bitch. On Thursday, the Texas A&M Board of Regents will meet in a closed-door, informational confab, according to a San Antonio Express-News report, to discuss the Longhorn Network, a 24-hour-a-day channel that will carry UT-centric programming…
Chef Chat, Part 1: Domenica Catelli of Catelli’s
This week on a very special Chef Chat: the California wine country edition! Domenica Catelli might be the most prolific chef you’ve never heard of, with a hand in nearly every aspect of the food industry. She has been an executive chef, a private chef, a food stylist for The…
Last Night: Kid Cudi & Chip Tha Ripper At Reliant Arena
Kid Cudi, Chip Tha Ripper Reliant Arena July 19, 2011 6:58 p.m.: Pulling up. Holy crap. There is (what seems like) a neverending line of kids waiting to get in. Crazy. There’s also a KRBE truck here. Is Kid Cudi a KRBEian now? What’s happened? 7:29: Inside. 7:31: The way…
Wook At Dah Kittenfaces! Don’t You Just Wanna Squeeze And Wuv On Thems? #kittenfaces
This week I found a new site, Kittenfaces, for your productivity-wasting pleasure. I’m allergic to cats, so the closest I can really get to the animals is looking at pictures online, which sounds totally weeeeeird when you think about it. That’s what reformed child molesters probably say. Anyhow, even though…
Mugshot o’ the Day: This Sade Is No Smooth Operator
Houston police have made arrests in what they believe is a series of home invasions in the southeast/Pearland area. Three people were arrested, including Sade Houghton, 17, who has been charged with one count of aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon and obviously knows how to style both for mugshots…
10 Musicians Who Deserve A Pie In The Face
Rupert Murdoch, the head cheese over at NewsCorp (the company currently embroiled in the UK hacking scandal), narrowly escaped taking a pie in the face during his questioning before a parliamentary committee yesterday. Scotland Yard confirms that a 26-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of assault for allegedly trying…
The Original Kolache Shoppe, Really
I drove about 20 miles, waved bye to Frank’s Grill and just when I thought I would hit Hobby Airport, I fell in love with the kolaches, and everything else, at The Original Kolache Shoppe. A family business since 1956, their little shoppe is funky and colorful, once inside, you…
The World Wide SketchCrawl Scrawls Its Way into Houston
You’ve heard of a pub crawl: Friends and strangers gather at a designated bar, stay for a sip and move on to the next. By the time the day is over, you’ve seen a slew of bars in the city and you may even recall a few. Have you ever…
Calling All So You Think You Can Dance Fans: Step Up With Art Attack on July 30 For National Dance Day
In 10 days, Art Attack will take over the Houston Press parking lot to celebrate National Dance Day, and we’re asking you to come out and dance with us. After all, it’s not every day you get to be one with your fellow So You Think You Can Dance fans,…
PJ’s Sports Bar Gets Some National Love
You can travel ‘cross this entire land, as Randy Newman sang, and you will find only 11 — eleven — sports bars better than Montrose’s very own PJ’s Sports Bar. That’s according to The Chive, which is a Web site that from now on will be our go-to place for…
Racing Rachael: Steppin’ Out
After complaining last week about the number of chicken recipes that Rachael Ray seemed to whip up, I thought I’d do a little research to see if it was, in fact, her or if I was just gravitating to the poultry. After a little search on foodnetwork.com, my suspicions were…
Psych Legends Fever Tree’s Final Show Mysteriously Materializes
“The past is not dead,” William Faulkner once said. “It’s not even past.” Rob Landes, organist for ’60s Houston psych-rockers Fever Tree, found this out a couple of years ago when he discovered some old boxes labeled “Fever Tree Live Session.” Inside were some reel-to-reel tapes, but Landes couldn’t remember…
Rick Perry Gets the Colbert Treatment
The Colbert ReportGet More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video ArchiveStephen Colbert may have found the GOP candidate of his dreams — Rick Perry. Colbert sounded very enthusiastic about Perry’s platform and it looks like he really wants him to run. Because it would be good for the…
Imagine Rigney Turns Bioshock into Lego Reality
We have two artifacts that take absolute precedence whenever we move. The first is a frozen hollow chocolate bunny rabbit that was the last gift we received from our daughter’s namesake before she died. The second is a Lego pirate ship that was the first set we built with our…
Top 5 Cool Summer Snacks
Houston is notorious for its summers: unbearable heat making the mercury climb to the upper nineties and even hundreds, humidity that leaves you drenched in sweat in the two minutes it takes you to go from door to car. And don’t forget all the third degree burns from climbing onto…
Comment of the Day: If Twitter, Google+ and Social Media Were Around During the First Moon Walk
We have some great commenters here on Hair Balls, and it’s time we paid some damn attention to them. So we’ll be highlighting a Comment of the Day each morning, from the previous day’s work. Maybe two comments, even. This will all be determined by a highly rigorous scientific formula…
High Life: A Look Inside the NASA Shuttles
The Space Shuttle Atlantis is scheduled to touch down tomorrow, bringing the end of an era of space travel, and with it, an era of freeze-dried ice cream, using tortillas as space frisbees and using the toilet upside-down. Sure, there’s no “up” or “down” in a microgravitational environment, but there…
Is It Time to Fire Brad Mills? His Treatment of Jose Altuve Might Give the Answer
Is it time to break out the #firebradmills hashtag?The Houston Astros made some exciting news yesterday. The good kind of exciting news. Not their normal kind of exciting news, and not the kind of exciting news that comes from a war-profiteer-who-has-problems-with-women-and-minorities-purchasing-the-team-from-a-doddering-old-man type of exciting. No. This was legitimate exciting news…
It’s Pi Day, Pi Day, Gotta Get Down on Pi Day
In keeping with Rocks Off’s latest obsession, compiling soundtracks for oddball holidays, we were tickled pink as a chorus girl’s nipple to learn that this Friday is Pi Approximation Day. The holiday was first in 1988 by a physicist named Larry Shaw, who made everyone march in a circle then…
Caption This: Football Hero Rick Perry on His Knees
Another installment in our occasional series of “Caption This,” in which no fabulous door prizes or take-home games are awarded. Above is a screen-cap from EA Sports’ video of Governor Rick Perry as an Aggie quarterback, which is a step up from his actual role as an Aggie cheerleader yell…
Sampler Plate: This Week in Food Blogs
Each week, we put together a sampler plate of the most interesting links from both local and national food blogs. Know a blog we should be paying particular attention to? Leave the address in the comments section below. Dude, You Going to Eat That?: One of Dr. Ricky’s most recent…
Magazine Sales Crews: Now Exploiting Sick Kids
If there’s one thing sick and dying children are good for, it’s making money. At least that’s what the bottom-feeding sales agents for one door-to-door magazine subscription company are using them for, according to a temporary restraining order filed in Washington state. Why are we writing about something that happened…
Comment of the Day: The Legend of Hank Williams
Today, we posted Jim J. Tommaney’s review of Hank Williams: Lost Highway, the jukebox musical about the iconic country singer’s life that’s being performed now at Stages. Williams, who died before his 30th birthday, has gone down in history as one of the most influential songwriters of all time, and…
Today’s DVDs: Desert Flower and Beauty and the Beast
Desert Flower stars Liya Kebede and Sally Hawkins, Sherry Hormann directs. The set up: There’s a scene in Desert Flower (2011) that sums up the obstacles Somalian supermodel Waris Dirie faced in her life. The African immigrant (played by Liva Kebede) is at an English hospital. The female circumcision she…
Cam Newton Punks Jeopardy Contestant (With VIDEO)
As game shows go, I like watching those that I feel like I could win. Wheel of Fortune, The Price Is Right and the old Match Game are just remedial and random enough to where I could see myself celebrating on the set. Along those lines, I’ve never gotten into…
Comment of the Day
Mai Pham told us all about a no-name dumpling place that apparently has some amazing…surprise, surprise…dumplings. Numerous commenters agreed with Mai’s assessment, but there were also a few concerns raised. Toddyfree brought up one salient point: thanks for letting out the secret. here come the hipsters excited about the no-name…
Jeremy Dobbins & Bobby Dean Roberts: Ripped Off Schlumberger Via $3 Million in Fake Invoices, Feds Say
If you can clear $3 million in a little more than two years, you’ve got a pretty good scam going. Until, of course, you get caught. Jeremy Gene Dobbins, 35, and Bobby Dean Roberts, 51, who sound like a country-music duo (“Put your hands together for Dobbins & Roberts!!”), are…
Songs About Houses, Castles, Mansions, Shacks, And Apartments (And Yurts)
In Rocks Off’s seemingly never-ending quest to live alone, we have been looking at Craigslist listings (so, that’s where you got the idea for that blog!), getting help from a realtor friend, and driving aimlessly around the neighborhoods surrounding our office. We have even thought of buying a house with…
100 Favorite Dishes: No. 66, Snow Ice from Star Snow Ice & Teriyaki
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
Rick Perry, Aggie Football Hero
The closest Rick Perry ever got to playing football at Texas A&M was being a cheerleader — sorry, a “yell leader,” as the Aggies call them, because it’s so much manlier. But once he started giving tax breaks to EA Sports to attract them to Texas, he’s now a QB…
25 Winning Scrabble Words
I’ve searched through troves of card decks, game boards and the Internet and have yet to find a game as infuriating as Scrabble. It’s not the game’s theme of word-building that I object to; rather, it’s the humiliation novices and lexicographers alike are bound to experience when they happen to…
Deep Purple Rises, Repeatedly, From Its Own Hard-Rock Ashes
Deep Purple Phoenix Rising Eagle Vision, $14.98 DVD, $19.98 DVD/CD, 142 mins. Deep Purple has been through so many different lineups that fans and hard-rock historians often measure then in “marks,” abbreviated “Mk.” While Purple’s Mk II incarnation is the one casual fans remember most and had the majority of…
Atlantis Wake-Up Music So Far: Ranking the Good, the Bad & the Ugly on the Last Shuttle Trip
NASA, always on the lookout for good publicity, has made a cottage industry out of the wake-up music it uses to rouse crews orbiting the earth. They recruit artists to record messages that are played after the song, because the first thing you want to hear as you struggle out…
The Five Characteristics of Great Sandwich Bread
When I was growing up, I had the good fortune to spend a great deal of time with my paternal grandmother, who was an absolutely amazing cook. She had boxes filled with recipes on index cards I swear I will turn into a cook book someday. But, one of my…
Continental Told to Butt Out of Pilots’ Bedrooms
Continental Airlines kicked up a stir in 2009 when they went after nine pilots for having “sham divorces” in order to get early pension benefits. The airline apparently felt it could determine what is and isn’t true love, or true divorce, a skill almost as admirable as their ability to…
Owling at the Saint Arnold Brewery
Yes, owling is the new planking. Or, if you’re to believe the movement’s Facebook page, it’s the “evolution of planking.” (Side note: Are Internet trends moving at light speed these days, or am I already a geriatric at 30?) Personally, I’m a bigger fan of owling than planking. Mostly because…
The Five Best – And Two Worst – Rapper Actors
The hip-hop world is a less than sensible place – lots of times, you’re even required to clarify when bad means bad and when bad means good – so once a week we’re going to get with a rapper and ask them to explain things. Have something you always wanted…
Montrose Art Society Seeking Local Talent
Does showing art in multiple shows, participating in smaller group exhibits and having control over your own page on an art-based website sound good to you? Well, does it? Then you may be down with this. The Montrose Art Society, which has been bringing it for the past year and…
Texas Science Textbook Wars: Ed Board Slashes Time for Public Comment
The always entertaining spectacle of the State Board of Education assessing science through the filter of Jesus will be slightly less entertaining when things start up again this week, if only because the time allowed for public comments has been slashed drastically. New SBOE chair Barbara Cargill, who’s already admirably…
Bruce Campbell to Attend This Year’s SplatterFest
Last year, Houston saw the birth of SplatterFest, a horror film festival with a significant twist. Founded by Kelly Smith and the acclaimed director of Spirit Camp (seriously, get it, watch it, love it) Kerry Beyer, the festival is part showcase, part film school exercise, part mad dash for valuable…
Open the Taps: Houston Lobbies for Statewide Access to Better Beer
It’s one thing to sit and complain about the wretched restrictions the State of Texas has placed on the sale and distribution of craft beer. It’s quite another to actually do something about it. And because Houston is a city of do-ers, five Houston craft beer lovers have created Open…
Man Sues Four Loko Manufacturer, Saying It Gave Him a Stroke
Our old friend Four Loko hasn’t been in the news much lately, especially since they took all the alcohol caffeine out of it. But a Valley man is suing the drink’s manufacturer and a convenience store because, he says, drinking two cans of the stuff caused him to have a…
Tuesday July 19, 2011 Deals of the Day
Today’s VOICE Daily Deal from the Houston Press is good for 50 percent off ($10 for $20) English-style pub food at the Firkin & Phoenix. The menu features traditional pub favorites–think bangers and mash, shepherd’s pie, fish and chips–and a great selection of well-priced beers. Want something more “American pub-style?”…
Apocalypse Now: 2 DJs’ Playlists For The End Of Days
Sand, surf, carnival – and the apocalypse. It sounds like a lead-in to “One of These Things is Not Like the Others” (although probably a little heavy for the Sesame Street crowd), but that was the theme of Sweaty. Sultry. Sandy., an art/fashion show held over the weekend at War’hous…
Nolan Ryan Out of Hospital
Baseball great Nolan Ryan has been released from the hospital after a health scare, the Texas Rangers have announced. Ryan, 64, entered a Houston hospital yesterday after experiencing discomfort in areas that a man who has had heart bypass surgery doesn’t want to experience discomfort. Tests showed nothing new in…
Strong Performances and Exciting Music Carry Hank Williams: Lost Highway
The set-up: Hank Williams: Lost Highway chronicles the rise and fall of one of country music’s icons, as Hank Williams travels from rural Alabama to record-selling success and stardom at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry. The execution: The drama unfolds on an interesting set by prolific designer Jodi Brobowsky (whose work…
Houstonian Says His Gay Marriage Should Prevent Deportation
KHOU has an interesting story about a gay Houstonian who is arguing that his marriage to a U.S. citizen should prevent his deportation. Normally a no-brainer, but in this case the marriage is between two guys who tied the knot in California. The man’s name wasn’t publicized, but he’s being…
Keep on Truckin: The Modular
I woke up Sunday morning with a hankering for the comfort of some food truck sustenance — it had been a long Saturday night. I drove by the one spot I can always count on for just such an occasion, next door to Agora, the former semi-permanent home of Eatsie…
Honoring the Atlantis: TV’s Cheesiest Space Travel
Two weeks ago, folks crossed their fingers for the sun to come out, gathered in droves at Cape Canaveral to wish the Atlantis’s crew a heart-warming send-off, and now, it’s time for the shuttle Atlantis to head home. On Thursday, the space ship will touch back down in Florida, ending…
Rel The Chosen Creates More Beautiful Music
Back in late January, Rocks Off introduced you to Houston underground MC Rel The Chosen, a highly lyrical individual who favors soulful beats. Here’s the Reader’s Digest version of what we wrote about his debut project, Beautiful Music, nearly seven months ago: “Calling it Beautiful Music was accurate. This rock-solid…
Dennis Hollifield: Guns, Toddlers and Showing Cops Where He Keeps His Meth
Dennis Eugene Hollifield of (naturally) Splendora looks like Robert Plant coming off a wild night, but he shows none of Plant’s ability in Led Zeppelin’s heyday to explain away the occasional guns-and-drugs episode to the local constabulary. Police interrupted a domestic dispute between Hollifield, 47, and Carolyn Garrison, 44, Sunday…
On the Menu: The Dumpling King
I’m not one of those people who’s likely to wander into a restaurant without having heard about it first. Call me picky, but if I’m going somewhere new, I like to know ahead of time what’s good and what to order. “Where do you like to eat,” I’ll ask someone…
Upcoming: Blue October, Guitar Shorty, Weird Al Yankovic, Etc.
Asleep At The Wheel: Sat., Aug. 20. The Firehouse Saloon. Blue October, Iamdynamite: Sun., Aug. 21, 8 p.m.; Mon., Aug. 22, 8 p.m. House of Blues. Bela Fleck & The Flecktones: Wed., Oct. 12. House of Blues. “Dharmageddon” With B L A C K I E, Roky Moon & BOLT,…
Alex Kava: How I Learned to Love Maggie O’Dell
What do you do when your publisher asks for a series of books based on a character you don’t really like? If you’re Alex Kava, you poke and push at the character until you actually do like her. Kava had written a stand-alone thriller, A Perfect Evil (2000), which included…
Brew Blog: St. Sebastiaan Golden Ale/Yeast Hoist #15
On Sunday, I took my kids to the movies. I’m a cheapskate, so we drove all the way out Westheimer to the Wind Chimes discount cinema. It helped that the buck-fifty-apiece theater also happened to be the only theater still running the film my kids wanted to see. They never…
Publicists Reject New Claim That Best PR Is None At All
A recent headline in The Atlantic – “For Indie Bands, the New Publicity Is No Publicity” – seemed to scream “music blog.” Since we Rocks Offers spend a goodly portion of our day weeding through emails and phone calls from publicists and aspiring artists, as well as the environmental catastrophe…
Comment of the Day: Almost a Ton of Pot Seized? No Biggie
We have some great commenters here on Hair Balls, and it’s time we paid some damn attention to them. So we’ll be highlighting a Comment of the Day each morning, from the previous day’s work. Maybe two comments, even. This will all be determined by a highly rigorous scientific formula…
What Do You Mean You Haven’t Seen Deathly Hallows Part 2 Yet?
Well, that was quick: “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2” set another debut mark Monday by racking up $481.5 million in worldwide receipts, a media report said Monday. The film — the last of eight “Potter” installments — took in $312.3 million internationally, $5 million more than expected,…
Am I The Only Person Who Hasn’t Seen Deathly Hallows Part 2?
Well, that was quick: “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2” set another debut mark Monday by racking up $481.5 million in worldwide receipts, a media report said Monday. The film — the last of eight “Potter” installments — took in $312.3 million internationally, $5 million more than expected,…
Cheap Trick Escape Collapsing Stage, But Not Armageddon
Mason Lankford said, “There will come a day when we forget the Rapture ever even happened,” but Rocks Off is keeping an eye out for signs of our impending Armageddon. We were wrong last time, but we’re totally right this time! Monday morning, Rocks Off got up and prepared lunches,…
Humberto Flores: Comes Home to Questions from Cops about His Abandoned Kids, and from His Wife about Those Hickeys on His Neck
You leave the house to go see a lady friend. Your four-year-old kid is obviously mature enough to look after your one-year-old kid, especially when you’re horny. Here’s what you don’t want to run into when you come back a few hours later: The cops waiting to charge you with…
Where Are We Drinking?
Only one place in town garnishes its shakes with a tiny piece of cheesecake. And that should really be the only hint you need to figure out where we enjoyed this gloriously pink concoction. Think you know where we’re drinking this week? Leave your best guess in the comments section…
100 Creatives: Tracy Manford Carlson
What She Does: Like many artists trying to find their way, Tracy Manford Carlson has attacked various creative endeavors over the years. Photography was the only one that really stuck. She recalls working full time in an unfulfilling desk job and one day she just snapped. “I was in a…
The Moon Landing 42 Years On: Five Odd Facts (Includes Urine, Wine and a Petty Refusal to Take Photos)
Wednesday marks the 42nd anniversary of man landing on the moon. One small step, and all that. It’s an odd anniversary, the 42nd, so here are five odd facts about the mission. 5. Buzz Aldrin, First Man to Piss on the Moon One giant leak for mankind — Neil Armstrong…
Robust Night Of Roots-Rock Shows Scene’s True Grit
Rocks Off feels like we live in a Western. This is nothing unusual for us, except right now is the part of the movie (every movie) where one cowboy turns to the other one and says, “It’s quiet out here.” The other answers, of course, “Yeah… too quiet.” Since about…
Silas Albert, 22, Bayou Body Count No. 106
A man was found dead on the street near Texas Southern University Sunday night, and police have no idea why he was shot. The body of Silas Albert, 22, was found in the 5000 block of Ennis about 11 p.m. Sunday by a TSU police officer driving home after work,…
Comment of the Day: Not For Palinistas Only
We posted our interview with Stephen Bannon, director of the new Sarah Palin documentary The Undefeated, on Friday, but that hasn’t stopped folks from leaving comments about this controversial film and its equally controversial subject. One guest responded to our observation that the film showcased the extreme hate language that…
Casey Anthony: Five Reasons She Should Move to Houston
Casey Anthony, who according to a jury most definitely DID NOT murder her daughter Caylee, is a free woman. No one seems to be sure where she’s headed, but at one point rumors were saying she’d come to Texas. We think she should, especially Houston. We are well-suited for her,…
Comment of the Day
Asparagus was a food we really didn’t care for as children. It tasted bitter and made our pee smell funny. But, as we got older, it grew on us and the urine smell was just another of life’s little bumps in the road. So, when Christine Ha made asparagus the…
Flawless Hairspray at Country Playhouse
The set up: Country Playhouse opens its 55th season (!) in blockbuster mode. This 2003 Tony Award-winning musical about the integration of a TV dance show similar to American Bandstand is a ’60s dreamland. A bright cartoon full of tolerance, easy laughs, and kickin’ dance routines, Hairspray’s main characters –…
Two Unidentified Females, 56 & 84, Bayou Body Count Nos. 104 & 105
A cab driver has been charged with criminally negligent homicide in the deaths of two passengers Friday afternoon, Houston police say. David Wayne Houston, 56, was driving a Yellow Cab about 5 p.m. Friday on the Eastex Freeway north of Crosstimbers when he veered out of his lane and struck…
100 Favorite Dishes: No. 67, Baleadas at Honduras Mayan
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
Texas, You Got Your Drink On: 1,400 DWI Arrests Over the Fourth of July Week
Texas, you know how to drink. You apparently just don’t know when not to drive. The Department of Public Safety has released the stats for its DWI crackdown for the week surrounding the Fourth of July, and they’re impressive: 1,406 arrests were made across the state…
Wine of the Week: The Other Burgundy
Sunday night at our house means sexy vampires and crochety Jews on television (read “True Blood” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm”) — an odd pair, no doubt! And T.V. night at our house means home cooking (even though we’ve been eating in most nights since we got pregnant, if not to…
Art Review: “Lynda Benglis: Glass Masks”
Lynda Benglis is perhaps best known for her confrontational advertisement in the November 1974 issue of Artforum that depicted her naked, wearing sunglasses and holding a giant, realistic dildo at her crotch. Some critics felt it was a powerful, provocative image attacking a male-dominated art establishment; others called it over-the-top…
Underground Live Latest Venue To Try Old Engine Room Digs
For weeks now, Rocks Off has been trying to get in touch with the ever-name-changing venue next door to ECHO/Jet Lounge. Seeing that two shows were scheduled over the weekend, we decided to swing by with our camera and see what sort of information we could acquire. (Unfortunately, our PC…
Water Main Breaks: Use Them to Water Your Lawn!
The city of Houston has been hit with a large number of water main breaks this summer, as the never-ending drought causes the ground to shift in ways that old pipes don’t handle well. So if you see a bunch of water flowing past your house on its way to…
Ingredient of the Week: Green Asparagus
What is it? A spring vegetable that dates back to 3000 BC with the Egyptians, it was ingested as a vegetable and a diuretic medicine. Because they turn woody as they mature, only the young shoots are eaten. They are a good source of vitamin B6, vitamin C, calcium, magnesium,…
Bobby Fuller: Still No Answers 45 Years After His Death
Forty-five years ago today, on July 18, 1966, rocker Bobby Fuller was found dead in the front seat of his car in Hollywood, covered in gasoline, with the liquid also found in his system. The cops said he died of gas inhalation, with the fumes doing him in, but couldn’t…
Spring Awakening: The Ultimate Ensemble Musical
The set-up: Spring Awakening, winner of eight Tony awards, is based on an 1891 German play by Frank Wedekind that depicts the torturous stirrings of sexuality among the young. The glorious rock music is by Duncan Sheik and book and lyrics are by Steven Sater, who captures the anguish of…
Unidentifed Male, 16, Playing with a Gun, Bayou Body Count No. 103
A parent’s nightmare: Teens playing with guns, thinking they are unloaded. An unidentified male, 16, died in a shooting about 4 p.m. Saturday while he and a friend, another minor, were playing with a shotgun they believed was not loaded, Houston police say. It was, and the victim was shot…
Five Questionable Musical Tributes To Nelson Mandela
As recognized by the United Nations, today is Mandela Day, honoring the birthday of the beloved South African president, humanitarian, and all-around badass Nelson Mandela, who turns 93. Mandela is a living legend, leader, hero and inspiration on par with Gandhi, FDR, and Ted “Theodore” Logan. His quest for equality…
Relish Fine Foods: Central Market’s Long-Lost Little Sister
Let me be clear up front: Relish Fine Foods is in no way related to Central Market, aside from being located a few blocks away from the grocery giant on San Felipe and Weslayan. However, the similarities between the two are striking. Relish reminds me of nothing so much as…
The Week in TV: Clear Eyes, Full Hearts
Emmy nominations, Netflix negotiations and the end of the East Dillon Lions. This was the week in TV Land: • After five seasons, three of which were spent premiering off-network to save production costs, Friday Night Lights came to a close last week. The series almost ended a couple of…
Women’s World Cup: Five Other Seeming “Game-Winning” Scores That Weren’t
The USA’s run in the Women’s World Cup seemed to be finishing in grand style when Abby Wambach put in an extra-time header to give the team a 2-1 lead. It didn’t last, and Japan won in overtime. Wambach’s late goal joins a storied list of scores that seemingly iced…
Fast Times: My Smoothie Obsession Continues at Smoothie King
Last week I fell hard for the Mango Pineapple Real Fruit* Shake from McDonald’s. The real smoothie/shake lover in my house is my husband, and I was surprised when my mind kept wandering back to that shake. Recently, after a truly bitchin’ three hours at the DMV, my husband and…
Friday Night: The Energy At The Mink
The Energy The Backroom at The Mink July 15, 2011 Houston punk ambassadors The Energy’s set on Friday night was an inside joke that the crowd wasn’t in on, which made it even more appealing for Aftermath. Singer Arthur Bates was all smiles as he announced between stifled chuckles, “This…
Renaissance Woman: The United States of Tamarie
The set up: The talented Tamarie Cooper opens the latest in a series of musical extravaganzas – this one rife with patriotism – to enchant a horde of loyal followers and to introduce newcomers to a remarkable talent: a Renaissance woman who conceives, directs, choreographs and acts, and does all…
Nolan Ryan Hospitalized in Houston
Nolan Ryan, the pride of Alvin, has been hospitalized in Houston for chest pains, the Texas Rangers have announced. “Ryan was resting comfortably and reported he was feeling better,” said the Rangers, where Ryan is the CEO. The Hall of Fame pitcher started experiencing discomfort Sunday morning at his home…
Tequila Experts at the Izkali Tequila Launch
Have you ever been in a meeting so mind-numbing, you wish you had a shot of tequila to wake up your brain? Then imagine the pleasure of a fascinating talk at Hilton Post Oak, which actually featured tequila. The occasion was the launch of Izkali, a new line of tequilas…
Kansas City’s Aurelien Collin on Dynamo Fan Hit List
There’s a new No. 1 public enemy for Houston Dynamo fans. He goes by the name of Aurelien Collin — defender for Sporting Kansas City. Aurelien — isn’t that a girl’s name? Every time Collin touched the ball, the 12,047 orange-clad fans at Robertson Stadium went ape-shit on him. And…
True Blood: Burn, Baby, Burn
Alan Ball was known for his masterful use of music in Six Feet Under. He’s lost none of his touch when it comes to his current HBO series, True Blood – which happens to be set in the Louisiana swamps, not terribly far from Houston. Gothtopia first read Dracula at…
Top 5 Musician Twitter Quitters
Most of us would be happy to have 1,000 Twitter followers. A million is pretty much unattainable, even for some big enchiladas. Yet we see celebs erasing their Twitter pages as if it isn’t the best thing since some 5’3″ guy in Iowa took a knife to a loaf of…
Falling Skies: “Sanctuary (Part 1)”
Thanks to Caroline Evans for overcoming her anti-alien bias to cover last week’s episode. Jimmy Cliff? I’d have figured Weaver for a Parrothead, what with that unfortunate old man ponytail, but whatever. Reggae or inoffensive beach-themed pop music aside, he still starts of this week’s episode as kind of a…
“Social Hour” at Perry’s Steakhouse in Sugar Land
It’s Friday evening around 6:00 p.m., and I’m at the dimly lit Bar 79 at Perry’s Grille & Steakhouse Lounge in Sugar Land. They recently started doing a “Social Hour” from 4 p.m. – 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday — half price appetizers, mixology drinks and wines on their bar…
Comment of the Day: Penis Envy
We have some great commenters here on Hair Balls, and it’s time we paid some damn attention to them. So we’ll be highlighting a Comment of the Day each morning, from the previous day’s work. Maybe two comments, even. This will all be determined by a highly rigorous scientific formula…
True Blood: Drunken Vampires & Danko Jones
Alan Ball was known for his masterful use of music in Six Feet Under. He’s lost none of his touch when it comes to his current HBO series, True Blood – which happens to be set in the Louisiana swamps, not terribly far from Houston. Gothtopia first read Dracula at…
The Mikado a Bloody Good Time
The set up: If you think there’s nothing better in musical theater than a work by William S. Gilbert (book and lyrics) and Arthur S. Sullivan (music), you probably already know their exceptionally entertaining 1885 operetta. However, if you’re in any way unfamiliar with these two giants of the stage…
Wearing Next to Nothing for the Coming Apocalypse
Check out the pictures from Sweaty. Sultry. Sandy. in our slideshow. Art Attack took in quite a bit of bare skin over the weekend. We spent Friday evening navigating through a seemingly endless maze of perky, tanned, European breasts and unkempt 1970s-era grooming at Hot Night: Helmut Newton at the…
Grocery Guide: Shelf of Broken Dreams
I love factory food as much as the next guy in Target, so I’m always surprised when million-dollar marketing efforts by executives in gleaming Chicago towers end up on the clearance shelf at 15 percent off. I actually bought Quisp. This cereal was discontinued in the late 1970s, but some…
Saturday Night: Final Fantasy: Distant Worlds At Jones Hall
The Houston Symphony feat. Susan Calloway Distant Worlds: Music From Final Fantasy Jones Hall July 16, 2011 Rocks Off scrambled like a mad bastard last year in order to catch Final Fantasy Distant Worlds at the Houston Symphony. This year, we were only marginally better prepared, but no less excited…
James Blackstock: Former Judge Hit with $3.2 Million Verdict for Sexual Harassment
We’ve written before about James Blackstock, the former big-deal Brazoria County court-at-law judge who liked to fondle his employees’ breasts when he wasn’t sending porno via e-mail and text. He’s been off the bench since 2008, when he pleaded guilty to several misdemeanor charges, but the hits keep coming: A…
Friday Night: iceage & Balaclavas At The Mink
iceage, Balaclavas The Backroom at the Mink July 15, 2011 A lot of folks have a dirty habit of going full-throttle on a new band with only one album and a few singles, lumping praise on them before they can really live up to it. Aftermath has done it in…
Double Jeopardy and Roger Clemens: More Than Just a Bad Ashley Judd Movie
Double Jeopardy: Not just a bad Ashley Judd movie.The Roger Clemens perjury trial finally started last week. Then just as soon as it got started, it was over as an angry judge called a mistrial because of prosecutorial stupidity. There’s been a lot of discussion on whether these hearings should…
Where to Meet a Houston Millionaire
Of all the cities in all the countries in all the world, Houston is attracting the most millionaires. Houston’s millionaire population swelled 9.6% in just one year, according to Forbes. There are now 96,700 millionaires living in our city. Of course, the majority are dudes. So ladies and gay men,…
Where Are We Eating?
Nothing calls to me in the hot Houston weather quite like ceviche. Fresh, light pieces of fish cured ever so simply with citrus juices and tossed with summery vegetables like these slices of avocado and bright watermelon radish. Does the dish below look familiar to you? Leave your best guess…
Five Ways to Accommodate Houston’s Population Growth
A recent Rice University study found that Houston is getting bigger and not just around the waistline. According to the study, H-Town was the fastest growing city in America over the last decade. Apparently, everything truly is bigger in Texas (Dallas/Fort Worth was number two on the list). We have all the…
100 Favorite Dishes: No. 68, Sashimi Sampler at Sushi Miyagi
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
Top 10 Texas Movie Soundtracks
This weekend, as the rest of the world catches Harry Potter mania for (perhaps) the final time, Houston gets a serious dose of Urban Cowboy nostalgia. Theater Under the Stars’ production of the Tony-nominated 2003 musical – which The New York Times called “a conclusive demonstration that it’s possible to…
Women’s Soccer World Cup — Getting My Japan Hate On, 1980’s WWE Style (w/ Video)
I’m not going to lie, I’m looking forward to the finals of the Women’s World Cup for soccer this Sunday. Three reasons: 1. I’m American, and Sunday we have a chance to be the best at something. If it were tiddlywinks, I’d watch. 2. I have a 13 year old…
That’s a Whole Lotta Weed, Son: 1,700 Pounds of Marijuana Seized in Fort Bend County
So, there you are, rolling down the highway in your tractor trailer filled with weed one minute, just minding your own business, and the next minute, you are busted by a drug-sniffing dog. Mama said there’d be days like this. Apparently, Amado Bazan III, 39, of Mission, Texas, was the…
Comment of the Day
This week, Mandy Oaklander had a lively three-part chat with the chef at Theo’s, the restaurant formerly known as One’s a Meal. In addition to a mention of John, the ever-present Greek waiter, we learned about food we didn’t even know they served. We weren’t alone. octavior wrote: John, loveable…
Musicians Remember Chadd Thomas As Funny, Dedicated Musician And Father
After learning of the death of Austin rockabilly frontman and bandleader Chadd Thomas of the Crazy Kings earlier this week, Rocks Off decided to reach out to a few of his friends and former bandmates to get a better idea of who, exactly, Thomas was. “I know it sounds kind…
Aurora Picture Show Accepting Shorts for Señorita Cinema
Aurora Picture Show is accepting through August 1 submissions for the third annual Señorita Cinema, Texas’s first all-Latina film festival. With the intention of breaking down Hollywood stereotypes and showcasing the “rich tapestry of different voices, styles, ideas, unique to the Latina experience,” the festival, which is co-produced with La…
This Week in Deliciousness
Welcome back to the weekly roundup here at Eating Our Words, where we can’t even remember the taste of non-booze-infused watermelon. We started the week off right with an in-depth review of some authentic po’boys, always a fine option wherever sandwiched breads are called for. As astute and disarmingly informal…
Roger Clemens Goes All Tony Soprano and Dodges the Feds
“Can you really not be aware we’ve been building a RICO case against Tony Soprano for five f**king years? And then you blow this popcorn fart?” — Federal agent to local prosecutor in Sopranos episode “Soprano Home Movies” In the eight or so years that we got acquainted with Tony…
Zelko Bistro Puts Female Winemakers and Craft Beer Front and Center
Zelko Bistro, although it’s only been open for less than two years, has already garnered a reputation for its wine list: Aggressively priced, the list offers an excellent selection of wines between $28 and $46 a bottle. Chef and owner Jamie Zelko wanted it that way when she first opened,…
Women’s World Cup Means a Lot to Local Soccer Playing Teens
Good friends, Julianne Kovacik and Carly Naylor, both 15, are at Naylor’s family reunion in Ohio until Saturday. They were originally scheduled to return home to Houston (Kingwood, to be precise) Sunday night after a couple days of driving. But, when the U.S. women’s soccer team made the final, which…
Who is Stephen Bannon? An Interview with the Director of The Undefeated
The Undefeated, which opens today, has already been panned, and panned hard. We agree with our reviewer that the movie is basically a Palin Rally in film form, but when Amy Siskind of The Huffington Post gives her review the headline “The Movie I Wish Hillary Had Made,” there’s a…
Land Of Confusion: A Google+ Playlist
About a week ago, we finally took up a friend’s Google+ invite offer, and immediately starting tooling around the search engine’s new social-media outlet. In Google’s words, the new site “makes sharing on the Web feel like sharing in real life.” That sounds cool, but we already have Twitter, Facebook,…
Two Local Helmetless Teen Skaters Suffer Life-Threatening Brain Injuries
Tara Csatlos is 16 years old, but her vision is equivalent to a 40-year-old’s. In the past year, she has almost died several times, traveled back and forth to Illinois to see medical specialists and dropped out of spring semester at Cypress Woods High School. All of this due to…
100 Favorite Dishes: No. 69, Hong Kong-Style French Toast at House of Bowls
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
From the Runway: Favorites from the Fall 2011 Couture Collections
Couture is like fine art–beautiful, often esoteric and frequently conceptual. When I was a wee fashion fan I was unable to relate to couture fashion because I spent too much time trying to figure out how and where I would wear such creations. But just as I don’t have a…
“New Houston” Rappers Release Bumper Crop Of New Videos
There’s this manmade pond near the entrance of the Houston Zoo. It’s a great big rectangle that connects to nothing else. There are some statues in it, and some of that nasty vegetation that grows on top of pond water. And there are fish in it too. A shitload of…
William Radovan Tyler: River Oaks Teen Accused of Destructive West U, Bellaire Raids
He came howling out of the north, under cover of darkness, like a Viking raider of yore. And soon the legends passed among the villagers in the peaceful homesteads of Bellaire and West University Place would tell of a young man who knew not terror for his own. Nay, he…
Happy Hour Scene: Rushing Lizzard’s
The Place: Lizzard’s Pub 2715 Sackett 713-529-4610 The Deals: $2.75 wells and domestics The Hours: 2 to 8 p.m. The Scene: According to its sign, Lizzard’s Pub has been around since 1976. In Houston bar years, that’s enough to earn it a spot on the National Register of Historic Places…
Caption This: Rusty Hardin Steals the Spotlight on NYT Front Page
No one would ever call Rusty Hardin a shrinking violet, but when you are standing next to, arguably, the best pitcher ever to play the game of baseball, you’d think perhaps slightly greater discretion. Looking at the cover of Friday’s New York Times, however, tells a different story. The giant…
Lemmy & HeadCat Mates Walk The Rockabilly Walk
You could say that the members of roots-rock trio HeadCat got together to pay tribute to the King. But instead of the baby Jesus of Bethlehem, these three wise men -bassist/singer Lemmy Kilmister (Motörhead), drummer Slim Jim Phantom (ex-Stray Cats), and guitarist/pianist Danny B. Harvey (ex-Lonesome Spurs, Rockats) – were…
Upcoming Events
It’s been a long time coming, but Americas on Post Oak Boulevard is finally closing after 20 years. And while it will indeed be sad to lose its iconic dining room — which I’ve always fondly thought of as “Dr. Seuss on acid” — the restaurant is treating this like…
July 9 to 15: The Week in Art Photos
It’s time again to check out the Houston Press Flickr Pool and see what kinds of art shots our talented photographers have added. We love street art, unique perspectives and beautiful photos of Houston’s creative community. If you think you’ve got a good eye, drop your pictures in the pool…
Wilfred: “Acceptance”
This week, only two of the questions regular reviewer Pete Vonder Haar posed at the end of last week’s recap (Why is Wilfred over at Ryan’s house all the time now? Did Jenna die? Isn’t California expensive? How the hell are all these people able to live their without jobs?…
David Allen Smith: Busted for Kiddy Porn after Wife Turns Geek Squad Loose on Computer
Marriage and a weakness for child porn. It’s a combo that doesn’t mix. The latest area man to find that out the hard way is 67-year-old David Allen Smith of Lufkin. Police there say Smith’s vile stash came to light after his wife took their computer to Best Buy last…
Odd Pair: Burgers and Burgundy
Burgers and Burgundy. The alliteration and rhyme are hard to resist, aren’t they? Bacon cheeseburgers and Burgundy, to be more precise, was the pairing that I chose last night to celebrate my birthday, which seems to happen every year. Usually I treat myself to a porterhouse steak, cooked Florentine style,…
So You Think You Can Dance: Top 12 Results
Nigel Lythgoe shouldn’t wear t-shirts. Maybe we’re just used to his dapper Englishness and three-piece neatness, but seeing him wear a t-shirt last night just reminded me of when I was in college and would see professors out of the lecture hall; whether it was buying a newspaper or drinking…
Trae Is Regal, Menacing On New Album Street King
Unless you have some prior issue or grievance with Trae Tha Truth – like he punched you in the nose or headed a grassroots campaign attacking your company’s character or whatevs – he’s pretty much made it impossible to root against him. He works like a horse, is apparently loyal…
Comment of the Day: Rick Perry Lawsuit Stirs Debate
We have some great commenters here on Hair Balls, and it’s time we paid some damn attention to them. So we’ll be highlighting a Comment of the Day each morning, from the previous day’s work. Maybe two comments, even. This will all be determined by a highly rigorous scientific formula…
Bartender Chat: Louisa Hamlin of Canyon Creek
If you’ve been to Canyon Creek, you’ve likely seen Louisa Hamlin behind the bar. She’s been popping bottle tops and mixing up tasty concoctions since they opened a year ago. But this isn’t the first time she’s worked with The Creek Group. Louisa has worked at both Dry Creek and…
Art Review: Arline Fisch’s Wire-and-Fabric Jellyfish Come To Life
For many, jellyfish are nasty, menacing creatures that creep silently through the water, furtively honing in on our exposed flesh as we tread water in coastal waves. As a kid, I was terrified of the cabbageheads and Portuguese Man O’ Wars washed up on Galveston beaches, thinking they could instantly…
Administrator Not Surprised to See North Forest ISD Shuttered by State
George McShan, who spent two years guiding the North Forest Independent School District toward stability, is not shocked to see the state seek its closure. Last week, Commissioner Robert Scott ordered the beleaguered school district be shuttered by July 2012 after years of academic failure, financial mismanagement and the ratcheting…
Your Shameful Musical Secrets Collected: #gotcha!
For the past few days on Twitter, Rocks Off has been imploring our followers, our precious 3,250 friends (and counting), to tell us their shameful musical secrets by using the hashtag #shamefulafternoonsecrets or #shamefulmorningsecrets, the latter which could sound like a sordid booty call highlight reel. We added our own…
Chef Chat, Part 3: Octavio Madrigal of Theo’s Restaurant
John, the lovable and sometimes cantankerous waiter who’s worked at Theo’s/One’s-A-Meal for 28 years, remembers everyone who’s ever walked through the doors. Either that, or he’s great at faking it with warm handshakes. Today, he serves up some of Chef Octavio Madrigal’s favorite dishes of both the American and Greek…
Planet of the Apps: The Best and Worst Movie Apps
Art Attack is very excited about the upcoming Rise of the Planet of the Apes movie hitting theaters next month. To gear up for it, we downloaded the brand new app, Apes Will Rise. It’s a clever publicity piece that lets you take memory tests designed by scientists for the…
July 9-15: The Week in Photos
Each week, we take a dip into the Houston Press Flickr pool and see what our talented photographers have been up to. The doldrums of summer are here. We want to see photos of how you’re spending your hot days and nights. Just drop them in our photo group right…
Five Real Wizards Who Make Harry Potter Look Like David Blaine
By the time you read this, your humble narrator will be on the edge of our seat at the West Oaks Alamo Drafthouse watching the triumphant finale of the Harry Potter films. The books and movies have given us of our best times over the past decade, and it’s hard…
App of the Week: Avoid Speed Traps, Red-Light Cameras with Trapster
App: Trapster Platforms: iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Windows Web site: Trapster Cost: Free The red-light cameras are back on again. After much voting, debating and suing, running a red light with a camera will cost you…again. But, one way to help you protect yourself from the cameras and from speed traps in general is knowing…
100 Creatives: Lauren Rottet
What she does: Lauren Rottet is a certified architect and designer who possesses a rare energy. She remembers only one time in her childhood complaining of boredom to her mother. Her mother’s response: “How can you be bored when there’s everything in the world to do, go out in the…
Openings & Closings
Relish Fine Foods had its grand opening this past Monday and Tuesday, and was already off to a fast start when I dropped by at 2 p.m. on Monday afternoon. The store was already sold out of all of their salads, and other prepared items were going just as fast…
Hurricane Update: The Calm Before the Storm?
This year has brought record droughts, killer tornados and devastating flooding, yet our hurricane season has yet to rev up. This may cause some to believe we could be spared substantial tropical activity this year. Don’t believe it. What may seem like a quiet tropical Atlantic region right now, historically…
Terry Grier Says Please, Please Mr. Postman
Houston ISD Superintendent Terry Grier has been busy writing letters, in one responding to state Senator Mario Gallegos, who has questioned whether some people are making money through Apollo 20 who shouldn’t be, and a second and more immediate one to counter today’s Houston Chronicle banner story on “teacher-assisted” cheating…
Comment of the Day
Today, Katharine Shilcutt wrote about a singing bartender at Crazy Frogs (not a sining frog at Crazy Bartenders, unfortunately), and the videos were certainly impressive. But, one commenter was concerned about the bar for different reasons. csoakley wrote: But…but this means I would have to go outside the loop! I’m…
Furniture Store Trades “Likes” For Cancer Care Donations
Slacktivism on Facebook is usually the bane of any legitimately good cause, but for once clicking “like” on a link may actually help save a person’s life. If there is a more beloved figure in all of Houston music than Hates front man Christian Arnheiter, then there can’t be many…
State Board of Education Chair Questions Faith of Fellow Board Members (Video)
Expect some awkward moments at the State Board of Education next week as new chair Barbara Cargill defends herself against videotaped remarks she made that are now being circulated by the Texas Freedom Network. The Texas Freedom Network, which advocates for separation of church and state and opposes SBOE’s conservative…
Comment of the Day: Cartoon Nostalgia
Abby Koenig’s list about cartoon reboots we’d like to see made us a little teary as we recalled the many happy hours we wasted as kids watching Gummi Bears and The Snorks. We were glad to see we weren’t the only ones getting nostalgic for ’80s animation outside the current…
Police: Thomas Involved In 3 “Altercations” Day Before Death
Updated to clarify where Thomas’ body was found. Since his body was identified Tuesday morning, Austin police have been investigating the final hours of rockabilly singer and bandleader Chadd Thomas, trying to fill in the blanks between Thomas’ show with his band the Crazy Kings last Saturday night and the…
Rock & Roll’s Top 10 Brawlin’ Brothers
Brothers share a link that is unique and special. Same DNA, same familial backgrounds, quirks, talents, and sometimes musical taste. They can also argue, get physical, try to overpower one another, and hold grudges over years that are hard to explain, even to people in their immediate families. Bands come…
Rick Perry’s Prayer Day Countered with Day of Debauchery and Gluttony
A Facebook invite has been making the rounds with the aim of countering Rick Perry’s “The Response” prayer event to be held at Reliant Stadium on August 6. The invite is a counter event titled “Day of Debauchery and Gluttony — A Great Day of Sinning!” The invite’s sponsors appear…
100 Favorite Dishes: No. 70, Moules-Frites at the Broken Spoke
This year leading up to our annual Best of Houston issue, we’re counting down our 100 favorite dishes in Houston. This list comprises our favorite dishes from the last year, dishes that are essential to Houston’s cultural landscape and/or dishes that any visitor (or resident) should try at least once…
Deep Cuts: Cá Kho Tộ at Van Loc
Just like albums, restaurants often have “Deep Cuts,” unexpected gems buried in their menus, overlooked for the more readily accessible and better known dishes. Often, it’s the mere lack of familiarity, itself, that keeps these dishes unfamiliar. We are largely creatures of habit, after all, and many are far more…
The Lufkin Daily News Police Blotter: Ten Highlights from the Last Year
We get a lot of stories here at Hair Balls from the Lufkin Daily News. Unlike so many of its fellow small-town East Texas newspapers, the editors and reporters have both a keen eye for mayhem and a dark, mordant sense of humor about it. That last quality comes most…
Happy Bastille Day: 10 Great French Works of Art
Today marks the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille, the Paris prison that was the symbol of Louis XVI’s absolutist monarchy. The jail held fewer than 10 prisoners, but the symbolic 1789 victory in has gone down in history as the day the first French Republic was born. There…
Vive La France: 14 French Lessons From English Pop Songs
Happy Bastille Day, everybody. Today France celebrates the day in 1789 when an angry mob stormed the eponymous (our new favorite word) prison in central Paris, freed all seven prisoners – they were really after the guns and ammunition, Clash-style – and touched off the French Revolution. As Karen O…
UH Football Announces Two More Start Times for 2011 Season
Today, the University of Houston announced two more start times for the football team’s highly anticipated run at a Conference USA championship. The September 24 match-up against the Bill Curry-led Georgia State Panthers, which is entering just its second season of competitive football, will get started at 7 p.m. at…
Dana Xenos Sings and Slings Drinks at Crazy Frogs Without Missing a Beat (or a Beer)
In the background of the video that a reader sent to us last week, you can hear the man filming speaking softly from behind the camera: “I’ve never seen anything like this. This is amazing.” That was my thought, too, as I slipped into Crazy Frogs on a recent Tuesday…
Bugs Bunny at the Symphony
Conductor/creator George Daugherty brings the music from vintage Bugs Bunny cartoons to Jones Hall today during Bugs Bunny at the Symphony. Many of the Looney Tunes cartoons featured original scores by Carl Stalling and Milt Franklyn, inspired by classical music masterpieces. During today’s concert, the animated versions are screened overhead…
“Chicken Lips” Sex Offender Arrested in Lubbock
It only took a day for good old “Chicken Lips” to be picked up by the authorities. The one-time (or should we say one-day?) Texas top 10 most wanted sex offender managed just a few hours on the infamous list before Texas DPS officers arrested the 41-year-old thanks to a…
Happy Birthday, Jane Lynch: 4 Great Bit Parts
Before Jane Lynch became the queen of prime time as Sue Sylvester (come to think of it, before she was Christy Cummings or Laurie Bohner or Cindi Lightballoon), she was just another actress in Hollywood, flitting from bit part to bit part, appearing on everything from Cybil to Party of…
Unidentified Woman Shot, Bayou Body Count No. 102
Police are trying to determine the circumstances surrounding the shooting of a woman and her boyfriend at a house located at 1537 Clarke Springs Wednesday night around 10 p.m. Police said an argument between a man and a woman at the residence resulted in gunfire. The woman was shot and…
Drinking Like Hemingway
It’s not Ernest Hemingway’s writing that influenced me. The style is still amazing, and even Hunter S. Thompson, who copied Hemingway manuscripts just to hear the rhythm of the words on his typewriter, wasn’t fool enough to imitate it. I won’t emulate his legendary blood-sport bravado, either. After running with…
Only In Houston…
While finishing this week’s cafe review off Thanh Phuong, the phrase “only in Houston…” kept wandering through my head. “Only in Houston,” I thought, “would a chef like Chris Shepherd offer to stage at a tiny, family-run Vietnamese place in Houston.” And the “onlys” kept coming: Only in Houston would…
Fun Fun Fun Fest Leaks Lineup Via Navy Signal Flags
How up to date on your nautical signaling are you? Austin’s Fun Fun Fun Fest leaked a few names for its Nov. 4-6 fall brawl at Auditorium Shores this morning. If you know your flags, you can figure it out all by yourself via the above video. Rocks Off will…
What is the WAT: Seven Nights of Poetry, H-Town Style
Poetry ain’t dead, y’all (despite what you just read, a.k.a. the most eloquent English-language construction you’ll ever see). At least not next week. For the sixth consecutive year, Word Around Town (WAT) will showcase its annual poetry blowout beginning on Sunday. Spread across seven nights at seven different spots, WAT…
Bad Company Steps Out Of Led Zeppelin’s Shadow
Bad Company Live at Wembley Eagle Vision, 110 mins., $14.98. Though they were originally thought of as Led Zeppelin’s “little brother band,” sharing both a label and manager, Bad Company forged their own mark with a string of powerful records in the ’70s and a bunch of hits that have…
Group Sues to Prevent Rick Perry’s Prayer Day
Governor Rick Perry’s controversial August 6 gathering in Houston for a “day of prayer” has come under attack from plenty of people since it was announced in June. But, for the first time, one group has decided to take its complaints to court. The Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation has…
Help, I’m Addicted to the Bournvita Chocolate Malted Shake at Pondicheri
Sometimes, you taste something so extraordinary that the flavors haunt you for days. That’s what happened to me after I tried the Bournvita chocolate malted shake at Pondicheri last Tuesday night. Similar to an Ovaltine but more subtle, tasting the icy cold, frothy ice-blended shake not only evoked childhood memories…
So You Think You Can Dance: Top 12 Perform
Over the past few weeks, we’ve gone from 10 to six couples. I hadn’t realized until last night that six really, when you think about it is not that many, and I figured we might get finished an hour early. Of course, the network was one step ahead of me,…
Sturm Und Twang: Germany’s The BossHoss Storms Volcano
Near the end of The BossHoss’ show Wednesday night, Aftermath asked an Irish woman standing next to him in the crowd what she thought of seven-piece German alt-country ensemble. “That man in dungarees is handsome and mannerly,” was her quick reply. We had no idea what to expect, not sure…
Comment of the Day: The Year Lights in the Heights Fell Apart
We have some great commenters here on Hair Balls, and it’s time we paid some damn attention to them. So we’ll be highlighting a Comment of the Day each morning, from the previous day’s work. Maybe two comments, even. This will all be determined by a highly rigorous scientific formula…
Chef Chat, Part 2: Octavio Madrigal of Theo’s Restaurant
Yesterday, we caught up with Theo’s owner Ted Mousoudakis and chef Octavio Madrigal about Theo’s many iterations. One thing has remained the same: the food. Eating Our Words: What’s your favorite dish to cook here? Octavio Madrigal: I would say the gyro. EOW: Is that your most popular thing here?…
Thundercats Ho! Cartoon Reboots We’d Like To See
In case you aren’t keeping up with your animation, beginning Friday, July 29, Cartoon Network will premiere its reboot of the classic ’80s cartoon Thundercats. Next week, lucky Comic-Con attendees will get to check out an exclusive screening and chat with the producers. From what we’ve seen of the “leaked”…
Was I Happy at Happy Fatz?
Or was I just really feeling fat(z)? For those who don’t skulk around the Heights looking for new places to prowl like me, perhaps you haven’t stumbled upon this little dessert/coffee/hot dog shop. When I first heard about Happy Fatz, I thought it was an interesting concept. Who would’ve thought…
The Five Biggest Google Fails and Wins
Google+ launched with much fanfare recently and, quickly, the reviews poured in. We even wrote about the things we thought Google+ would need to do to beat Facebook, and we have since had a chance to look around inside the social networking platform. It does appear to be easier to…
Last Night: Britney Spears & Nicki Minaj At Toyota Center
Britney Spears, Nicki Minaj Toyota Center July 13, 2011 Check out pictures of bad girls Britney Spears and Nicki Minaj in our slideshow. So far in 2011, Aftermath has seen Ke$ha, Kylie Minogue, Nicki Minaj, Selena Gomez, Lady Gaga, and in two weeks we should be standing in Katy Perry’s…
The Five Best Talk-Show Guests Working Today
The television talk show is far too often a boring, archaic, stilted ritual that entertains no one, including the host. At times, though, it can shine, depending on the guests. The new Tom Hanks movie Larry Crowne was a bland bomb, but that’s okay: He did publicity for it, and…
The Five Best Talk-Show Guests, Ranked
The new Tom Hanks movie Larry Crowne was a bland bomb, but that’s okay: He did publicity for it, and that means showing up on (just about any and all) talk shows as a guest. What makes a good talk-show guest? Someone who understands the dynamic — you’re not having…
Ryan Seacrest Begets a Music Festival… And The Apocalypse
Mason Lankford said, “There will come a day when we forget the Rapture ever even happened,” but Rocks Off is keeping an eye out for signs of our impending Armageddon. We were wrong last time, but we’re totally right this time! Ryan Seacrest is a towering figure in the entertainment…
Three-Dozen Cameras Swiped From FotoFest Teacher
Consider this case of thievery another hard-learned lesson of what happens when you leave expensive stuff in your car. On June 22, 36 cameras were swiped from Ben Tecumseh DeSoto, who had left the digital point-and-shoot devices in his vehicle overnight. Those cameras weren’t DeSoto’s, per se, but rather reserved…
FotoFest International Now 36 Cameras Poorer Following Break-In
Thieves suck, version 2.0. On June 22, 36 cameras were swiped from Ben Tecumseh DeSoto, who had left the digital point-and-shoot devices in his vehicle overnight. Those cameras weren’t DeSoto’s, per se, but rather reserved for 40 second- through eighth-grade students enrolled in the Literacy Through Photography program. About the…
Health Department Roundup: Heights Edition
Last week there weren’t too many reports to work with; this week, for some reason, there are enough health inspections online to focus on individual parts of town and not run out of material. So this week’s roundup will spotlight the Heights and nearby areas. No reason, really. Maybe we…
100 Creatives: John Robertson
What he does: By day, John Robertson is a pediatric pulmonologist. “I take care of children with lung and breathing disorders,” he says. But Robertson really flexes his creative muscles by night. In his spare time, he crafts complex works of art. For the past nine years, Robertson has been…
Harris County Sheriff’s Diversity Training: Our PowerPoint Presentation
Remember back in 2008, when the Harris County Sheriff’s Office circulated those internal e-mails making fun of everyone (but white men?) And later that year, when deputies handcuffed a Sikh woman and her entire family — and called them Muslims — because she was carrying a religious object? After a…
Game On
There are few places as depressing as an illegal game room on a sunny Tuesday afternoon. Inside the Capri Game Room on Telephone Road, the dozen or so patrons spread among the 122 video-slot machines aren’t exhibiting any signs of happiness. The only people who look like they’re actually enjoying…
Final Destination
After ten years, seven movies, six Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers, four directors, two dead parents, one grating house elf and incalculable amounts of CG wizardry, pubescent growing pains, budding romances, and apocalyptic fire and brimstone, we’ve finally arrived: Bespectacled Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) squares off against amphibian-faced Lord…
The Shuttle’s Souvenir Load
NASA The Shuttle’s Souvenir Load 20,000 flags and 10,000 patches aboard By Richard Connelly If you’re making the last-ever trip on the space shuttle, you want to make it count. And if the list put together by collectSPACE.com is any indication, this last flight is taking along enough souvenirs to…
Will Mexicans Ever Return to Mexico to Make It Better?
Dear Mexican, Say the immigrant makes a few bucks and goes back to his/her hometown. Think they’ll put up with the shit that prompted them to move in the first place? (How ya’ gonna keep them down on the farm…). Putting the Red into Redneck Dear Gabacho, Absolutely not. I…
Half a Paycheck
Dave Alvin is talking via cell from Maryland, and he actually sounds glad to be doing the interview, genuinely wondering what we are going to talk about and where this might end up. The discussion has turned to the instability, both physical and psychological, of the troubadour life. From seminal…
Easy Credit
Plenty of sentences are scribbled on the men’s room wall at Dean’s Credit Clothing (316 Main), but one stands out from the rest. It is firm and direct and declarative and written in all caps. It’s hardly the bathroom’s cutest graffiti, which would be a wonderful cartoon turtle, but it’s certainly the…
Horseshoe
In the olden times, before the days of the Web, a posse of tall-walkin’ Texas trash known as Horseshoe rode roughshod over the concrete plains of Montrose. Fearsome front man Greg Wood and his band of brigands terrorized saloons such as the Blue Iguana and Fabulous Satellite Lounge with a…
BT
Next to Deadmau5’s head and the twin robots in Daft Punk, American house legend BT is easily one of the most recognizable figures in modern electronic music. Brian Transeau has a way of laying a heavy layer of groove and aural scenery down on a crowd, which means he is…
Ryan Scroggins & the Trenchtown Texans
Wear comfortable shoes Saturday, because Ryan Scroggins & the Trenchtown Texans are going to play all night. The Los Skarnales offshoots will have plenty of material to choose from, too — besides 2007 debut Trenchtown Texas, Saturday the Texans are christening two brand-new companion discs. Both Move to the Country…
Comedy of Manners
In Emma, A.D. Players’ stylishly elegant production of Jane Austen’s sublime comedy of manners, actress Sarah Cooksey portrays Austen’s heroine with astonishing fidelity — and an abundance of felicity. As an onstage panel is pushed aside, the very embodiment of Austen’s description of Emma steps out from behind it: “handsome,…
Montrose Muffled
Montrose Muffled Online readers comment on “Noise Complaint Muffles Mango’s July 4 Blast,” Rocks Off blog, by Allison Wagoner, July 5: Stay away: Why, oh why, do people move into Montrose and become nuisances to the neighborhood? If you want peace and quiet all year long, Sugar Land is about…
Capsule Art Reviews: “The Clearing — Joey Fauerso” “Exurb: Input/Output” “George Gittoes: Witness to War” “Jenny Schlief Stock Photography: From the Woman Series” “Liz Hickok: Jiggling Geography” “Mitch Dobrowner: New Work” “Musicians Who Make Ar
“The Clearing — Joey Fauerso” For “The Clearing,” Joey Fauerso takes found, generic landscape scenes and inhabits them with photos of naked men. In one, a bearded, generally hairy man is leaping off a river rock while a majestic waterfall cascades in the background. In another, the same man (I…
Capsule Stage Reviews: And Then There Were None, Buddy – The Buddy Holly Story, The Miss Firecracker Contest, Smokey Joe’s Cafe
And Then There Were None A remote island. One lonely house. Ten guests who’ve never met their host. And a creepy nursery rhyme called “Ten Little Soldiers,” which tells how each little soldier gets bumped off. When the guests start dying, one by one, the plot thickens like clotted cream,…
Olga Tanon
With five Grammys already to her credit, Puerto Rican powerhouse Olga Tañon has been a major player on the tropical music scene for two decades. Her first studio album in three years, Ni Una Lagrima Mas, shows the singer-songwriter in fine form. Within weeks of its release, the critically well-received…
Vietnamese Venison
See more photos of Thanh Phuong’s vibrant food in our slideshow. Chris Shepherd’s imposing frame darkened the door at Thanh Phuong, the chef apologizing for running late as he walked over to my table. It was understandable, as the restaurant is nearly hidden in a strip mall behind a Long…
iceage
What? You mean there is a new band in 2011 that isn’t some third-rate indie-dance troupe who should be doing Vampire Weekend covers at a wing place near an airport? And their name is the appropriately forbidding and expansive iceage? We’re sold on these Danish punks like woah, and supporting…
No Diggity
This Saturday, Diggy Simmons, son of Run-D.M.C.’s Rev. Run and all-around teenage rapper heartthrob thanks to MTV reality show Run’s House, will be onstage at House of Blues. He will be there as part of the BET program 106 & Park’s “Closer to My Dreams” tour, continuing his recent run…
