Continuing This Week

3rd Annual Houston Fringe Festival, FrenetiCore/Frenetic Theater, Thu-Sat (except 09-09), doors 7:30pm, show 8pm, $17 (adv.)/$20 (at door). Annual performing arts festival offering independent film, theatre, music, dance, and visual arts. Each week is a different program; the final week is “Anything Goes.” 10-HFF

Wednesday 08-25

Ballet Barre Kick-off Party, RDG + Bar Annie, 1728 Post Oak Boulevard, 6:30-9pm. Ballet Barre is a young professionals’ (20-40) club for the Houston Ballet; see website for more info. 10-W34-1

Thursday 08-26

Capital One Bank Culture Collision V. TD, Architecture Center Houston (ArCH), 315 Capitol #120, 6-8 pm. The 2010-2011 Theater District season kicks off with a happy hour alongside an exhibition entitled Ready, Set, Go showcasing the work of Houston stage designers. 10-W34-2

The Sideshow Tramps/Roky Moon & Bolt/Electric Attitude, Walter’s on Washington, 4215 Washington, 8pm, $8. This is a benefit show for Mareshah, the sister of Electric Attitude lead singer Blake Shepard, who was hit by a suspected drunk driver while trying to cross Washington Avenue near Pearl Bar on July 23. 10-W34-3

Friday 08-27

Hollywood Black CD Release Show, Walter’s on Washington, 4215 Washington, 8pm-1am, $10. Also featuring Female Demand and The Ride Home. Includes free CD for everyone, and free beer for 21+. 10-M08-4

Spin6: Spin On Summer, Houston Center for Photography, 1441 West Alabama, 8-11pm, $10 advance/$15 at door. A summer-themed party to celebrate the end of summer. 10-W34-4

Saturday 08-28

pending

Sunday 08-29

17th Annual Capital One Bank Theater District Open House, various venues (see website), noon-4pm. A free, family-friendly day of performances and chances to meet the artists. 10-W34-5

Thursday 08-19 through Saturday 08-21 and Continuing

3rd Annual Houston Fringe Festival, FrenetiCore/Frenetic Theater, doors 7:30pm, show 8pm, $17 (adv.)/$20 (at door). Annual performing arts festival offering independent film, theatre, music, dance, and visual arts. Each week is a different program; the final week is “Anything Goes.” 10-HFF

Thursday 08-19

Ragged Hearts, Continental Club, 3700 Main, 10pm. Preceded by Beetle as usual on Thursday nights. 10-W33-1

Friday 08-20

A Fistful of Soul, The Mink, 3718 Main, 9pm. All-vinyl soul, R&B, ska, and reggae dance extravaganza. 10-W33-2

Kashmeere Reunion Stage Band, Miller Outdoor Theater, 8pm. Big band, R&B, funk, soul. 10-W33-3

Saturday 08-21

Houston Warfare, Mango’s, 403 Westheimer, 9pm-1am, free (21+)/$7 (under 21). With Kyle Hubbard, Danny Watts, John Black, Skepticynic, and Dj Kruxx. 10-W33-4

Thursday 08-19 through Saturday 09-11

3rd Annual Houston Fringe Festival, FrenetiCore/Frenetic Theater, Thu-Sat (except 09-09), doors 7:30pm, show 8pm, $17 (adv.)/$20 (at door). Annual performing arts festival offering independent film, theatre, music, dance, and visual arts. Each week is a different program; the final week is “Anything Goes.” 10-HFF

Friday 08-27

Hollywood Black CD Release Show, Walter’s on Washington, 4215 Washington, 8pm-1am, $10. Also featuring Female Demand and The Ride Home. Includes free CD for everyone, and free beer for 21+. 10-M08-4

Beginning Sunday 09-04

The Doctor’s Dilemma, Main Street Theater – Rice Village, 2540 Times Boulevard, see description. Main Street Theater kicks off their season with the story of a doctor who has found a cure for tuberculosis but can only take one more patient. Unfortunately, he has a choice of two: a kind but pauperly fellow doctor, or an artist who is intelligent but has a devious streak. Making the situation even more tumultous is the artist’s wife, who the doctor falls in love with. Tickets to previews are $10 (Sept. 4 at 8pm, Sept. 5 at 3:00pm, and Sept. 8 at 7:30pm); remaining shows (Thu 7:30pm, Fri-Sat 8pm, Sun 3pm) through October 3 are $26 to $40. 10-MSTDD

Friday 09-17 and Saturday 09-18

Come As You Are: HOUSTON, DiverseWorks, 1115 East Freeway, 7:30pm, $5. A provocative exploration of queer sex through performance art. Featuring Nancy Douthey, DumpTruck, Gendermyn, Michael Harren, Daniel-kayne and Michael Clay, Jonatan Lopez, Daaimah Mubashshir, and Julia Wallace. 10-M09-1

Tuesday 09-21

Runaway Sun, McGonigel’s Mucky Duck, show 7:30pm, $10. The local blues-rock quartet descends upon a well-respected venue for what’s sure to be an unforgettable show. 10-M09-2

Saturday 09-25

14th Annual Houston Museum District Day, various locations, 10am-5pm. Seventeen Houston museums waive their usual admission fees, and free shuttle buses will run a special route through the museum district allowing one to park once for the entire day. This is a great chance to see what the Museum District has to offer, especially if you never have before. 10-M09-3

I’d like to welcome all the new readers, and welcome back any of the former readers. It’s a spectacular time to start or rejoin the following of my little blog; it’s not every day one of my posts gets mentioned on a prominent blog such as the Houston Museum of Natural Science. I hope as many of you stick around and see just what I have going here.

I’ve been less punctual with the weekly and monthly LOVIEEs (for the new people, that stands for: List Of Very Interesting & Exciting Events) than I endeavor to be. I’m going to try to get back to a schedule where I post them earlier in the week, since there are a few Tuesday and Wednesday night events I’d rather not miss mentioning.

I’m also trying to get a feel for a good target quantity; traditionally I’ve aimed for about eight events on a weekly LOVIEE, and six on a monthly LOVIEE. The last few, especially the weekly LOVIEEs since the resumption from hiatus, have been lower than that. Maybe I need to aim to include more, not fewer, events.

I’m definitely going to do as many recaps as I can from now on. We’re coming up on the first anniversary of the wide launch (that’s the week of October 5, about seven weeks away). As much as I’d like to throw a huge block party with an open bar to celebrate, I doubt that will be in the budget. Nevertheless, I do want to mark the occasion with some kind of festivities. If you have suggestions, I’m all ears; either comment on this post or email me.

最后，我想延长特别欢迎来自中国我的读者。请给我来休斯顿访问的某个时候，并检查了我们美好的城市。 (And finally, I’d like to extend a particular welcome to my readers from China. Please, do come visit Houston sometime and check out our wonderful city.)

I realize I’m posting an event happening tonight, that actually hasn’t been posted until after the start time. I did tweet this earlier; if you’re not following the Twitter account now’s a great time to do so because I’ll be doing this more often as I find out about events at the last minute.

Wednesday 08-11

Beatles Open Mic Night, Bohemeos, 708 Telephone, 9pm. 10-W32-1

Thursday 08-12

The Mighty Orq, McGonigel’s Mucky Duck, 2425 Norfolk, 7:30pm, $15. This is Orq’s homecoming after a European tour; let’s welcome a true treasure of Houston rock and roll back to their hometown! All ages. 10-W32-2

Friday 08-13

Ian Moore & The Lossy Coils/Buttercup, Continental Club, 3700 Main, doors 9pm, $20, 21+. 10-W32-3

Fired for Walking/The Unzipped, Rudyard’s, 2010 Waugh. 10-W32-4

Saturday 08-14

Video Game Armageddon, Numbers, 300 Westheimer, 7pm-2am, $10. Featuring Jonny Nero, Sievert, Jus Coz, Shoelace, MC Router, and Dr. Awkward, as well as part of a video game tournament and live art. Proceeds to benefit Extra Life and the Texas Children’s Hopsital. 18+. 10-M08-3

Before I get straight to the heart of the story, a bit of background. I had been waiting eagerly in anticipation of this event for the past several months. This was Houston’s first WordCamp, and it’s a special one because Houston is in fact the birthplace of WordPress (Matt Mullenweg, the founder of WordPress, is a native Houstonian). The paid tickets sold out within days of the on-sale announcement. Usually, run-of-the-mill technical conferences fall outside the bounds of the events I cover, but if you can’t tell by the foregoing, this was anything but run-of-the-mill.

Fortunately for me and several others, volunteer signup commenced immediately afterwards, and I was able to snag one of two breakfast setup spots. Earlier in the week, there was a volunteer meeting led by the organizers and Jess, the volunteer coordinator. After a session of stuffing the remaining swag bags, it was time for the core of the meeting. One of the organizers, Monica Danna, introduced herself and started running through the list of volunteers and explaining their duties. I was instructed to be at the museum at roughly 7:45am and would be manning the breakfast table along with another volunteer, Judy King (not present at the meeting).

Fast forward back to Saturday at around 7:40am. I have barely enough time to peck out a tweet of my impending arrival; while somewhat cryptic by itself, it’s pretty obvious in the context of the previous tweet what it means. (For those not familiar with Houston, the Museum District station is the closest light rail station to the Houston Museum of Natural Science, a mere four to five blocks away.)

After entering the museum, I’m almost immediately noticed by the organizers gathered in the museum lobby. I’m directed to first help Katie (one of the organizers) move an ice chest holding ice and bottled water down to the breakfast table. Thankfully, it was not nearly as difficult as I had feared; it was certainly easier to manage than a beer keg, and I’ve had to handle those at least twice before in recent memory.

A couple of minutes go by, and then Judy arrives and introduces herself. We get to chatting quite a bit on various topics in between our assigned duties. Judy was as nice and friendly as I could have hoped for and it was a pleasure volunteering alongside her.

A few minutes go by while the crowd starts trickling in as 8am (the official start time for breakfast) ticks closer. I see quite a few familiar faces among the crowd, some of whom said hi at the time, others whom I wouldn’t get to talk to much until later. By 8:30am I could easily tell this was a sold-out event; by 8:50am the area leading into the IMAX theater where we were set up was packed. This was emphatically not territory for easily-triggered demophobics (those with fear of crowds)!

And then it was time for the keynote. I do my best Pac-Man impression on what’s left of my last kolache and file into the IMAX theater with the crowd. This is my first real impression on the HMNS as a venue and there were three things that stood out at this point. One, no food or drink is allowed in the theater, so this meant everyone had to finish or dump everything before going in. Two, the lectern for the speakers was far stage right, meaning certain seats were not conducive to a good view despite being on the first few rows. Finally, we were on a strict timetable for when we had to be out of the theater (9:45am), as the first IMAX film showing would start seating at around that time.

These combined to make the pace feel a bit more rushed at this point than it would at some other venues; however the ambiance of the IMAX theater added significantly to (at least) my enjoyment of Matt’s keynote. Video of Matt’s keynote is available for those of you who either were unable to attend, or just want to re-live it.

We had a good 15 minutes to find our way around to the first breakout session of our choice. I actually got slightly lost upon my arrival in the breakout session area, having absent-mindedly missed the signage posted in the entrance.

And so I found my way to the first session, the case study for Andrea White (wife of former Houston mayor and current gubernatorial candidate Bill White) and passionatesupporter.com. Also present were Monica (Andrea’s consultant for the project) and Katie, serving as moderator of the panel. Katie would also ask questions of her own to keep the discussion flowing, since relatively few questions came from the audience. This was perhaps one of the more insightful presentations I saw the whole day, as I learned from Andrea herself what it’s like to be in her shoes. Andrea revealed she’s a more private person than the average blogger and so doesn’t post a lot of things that many would not think twice about typing in and hitting the “publish” button on. And I respect that; blogging of the sort that I do is not for everyone (and if I remember right, Monica made reference to this as well). Both Andrea and Monica’s sense of humor made this a very interesting and enjoyable session.

Next up was one of two development track sessions I would attend, Chris Olbekson’s presentation, Optimizing for Performance – Making Your WordPress Blog Faster. While the subject matter got rather technical at times, Chris did a truly spectacular job making it relatively easy to understand for those who were not as technically well-versed as I am. Of course, at the end, I learned most of this is probably not necessary until the traffic level rises far above anything I’ve ever been exposed to; Matt Mullenweg was in the room with us and remarked that out of the box, given decent hardware, WordPress has no issue serving 20 to 30 requests per second. I wish I was getting that kind of traffic; my peak is around 200 visitors in a day. (Not exactly a traffic level that induces meltdown unless one is using a computer that saw its best days during the Clinton administration.) Still, it’s something I hope to be able to put into practice soon and I feel a lot better knowing how to make a site Digg- or Slashdot-ready.

And then it was lunchtime. We had our choice of boxed sandwich lunches from Jason’s Deli, complete with chips, pickle, and chocolate chip cookie. Again I was joined by Judy, along with a few others whose names escape me at the moment. The lounge/lunchroom got crowded quickly; on my way out I saw several people eating in the hallway or wherever there was space. Taking that cue, after I finished my lunch well before the halfway point of the alloted time, I got up and took a stroll around the area and talked to a few people. Oh, and I got to watch someone spoof the 11 News “do the weather” setup that was in between the classrooms. A little fun never hurt anyone, but it did kind of make me appreciate who we have doing our weather forecasts on TV, as well as provide much needed comic relief. The spoofs included references to acid rain and raining Jello. I had to really try to keep my laughter restrained to keep from making a total spectacle of myself.

Then, the clock struck one, and it was time for the first post-lunch session. I chose Chris Everson’s presentation, Custom Theme Development. A little side note here: the theme (design) you see here at Quinn’s Big City is one I made from scratch, with the aid of only a less-than-adequate online tutorial that I didn’t bookmark and can’t find now. It’s the only blog of mine I’ve done a custom theme for at the time I’m writing this. I hope to change that of course, and I still feel I have things to learn in this department. I came into this session ready to learn a lot, and Chris did not disappoint. I learned a lot of useful information, some of which I can probably even extend beyond my work with WordPress. The only minor quibble I had with it, was that Chris had about 10-15 minutes’ worth of slides left over to try to fast forward through at the end after we were a few minutes over the allotted time. Thankfully we were up against the 20-minute mid-afternoon break so it was less of a big deal than it could have been if this session was, say, in the 10am or 11am slot.

During this break, I got to talk to a few more people. And I think someone else did another spoof of the weather at this point for our amusement as well as their own, I’m not sure if it was at this point or at the end of the day. My memory is already a little fuzzy. This break flew by, especially since I really only had about 11-12 minutes.

Next up was the only session I would attend from the business track, Leveraging WordPress for Advocacy Campaigns, presented by Celinda Provost, Dan Derozier, and Dan Joyce, representing a company called NetVictories. This was a captivating look at political and advocacy campaigns done by the company during which many clever and profound tricks were revealed on how to make WordPress do things that most people wouldn’t even think to try making it do.

The last session for me was the case study for the Houston Museum of Natural Science, our hosts, represented by Erin Flis, Ivan Perez, and Mark Belcher. The centerpiece of the presentation was the Museum’s blog, BEYONDbones, which has been in operation since 2007. The panel covered everything from how the museum’s website was in 2002, to past unsuccessful attempts to bring more interaction to the website, to the beginnings of the blog, to present-day happenings such as Lois the Corpse Flower. One of the highlights of this panel was learning that there are particular blog entries that get a whole bunch of hits because they are among the only such web pages/blog posts on their respective topics. I did notice this session was surprisingly sparse; however, as I was told during the volunteer meeting, the entire case studies track was added on once it became obvious there were capacity issues. I’ll get to that in a bit…

So it was 4pm and the only thing left was the afterparty at Caroline Collective. The proximity of HMNS to Caroline Collective is such that it’s impractical to ride the bus or train there; I think the stated public transit directions include just walking the 0.7 miles as an option. Which is exactly what I did, and I arrived at Caroline surprisingly non-sweaty. Of course it was not too long before the body heat overwhelmed the air conditioning there, so it’s not like anyone would have likely noticed even if I had.

I stayed after the stated end time of 6pm and the party was still going strong. I got to talk to a few more people, and check back in with a couple of others that I met during the previous sessions. I left with a few more business cards than I came in with, which is always a good thing.

I originally planned to attend a couple of sessions in the blogger track. I’m now kind of glad I decided at the last minute to change these plans up, because I heard that one blogger track session in particular I wanted to attend was up to standing room only. Judy wrote in her blog entry that this was the case for at least the 11am blogger track session, so I have no reason to doubt what I heard.

This was one notable issue with the HMNS as a venue for this event. The other was that we could hear the announcements from the museum, and at least twice, the speaker paused after hearing “may I have your attention please” only to have it followed by some information of no relevance to us.

However, these things do not subtract much from my overall impression of the event. I eagerly await the next WordCamp Houston and feel this year’s event was a successful, high-quality affair overall, and will happily refer to this event and my experience as a part of it as an example of the type of quality events that make me proud to be part of the Houston community.

On that note, my thanks and congratulations go to:

• The organizers: Monica Danna from colab, Chris Everson and Chris Valdez from Primer Grey, and Katie Laird from Schipul;
• The volunteer coordinator: Jess Hampson;
• The sponsors: the aforelinked Schipul, HostGator, Houston Zoo, WP101.com, Peter Moorman, Oak Interactive, TopSpot, BlogCatalog, HomeAway Real Estate, and SupplementSavingStop.com (currently not an active website)
• The hosting venues: the aforelinked and aforementioned HMNS and Caroline Collective
• Breakfast and lunch: Kolache Factory, Coffee Groundz, and Jason’s Deli
• Afterparty beer: Saint Arnold’s
• Matt Mullenweg for a keynote that will probably never be forgotten by most of the attendees (myself included)
• Dwight Silverman of the Houston Chronicle for the keynote introduction
• The speakers, aforementioned and aforelinked (I may be editing this post later and adding links as I find them; I did the best I could)
• The various other attendees and volunteers who made this event the success it was (seriously, there’s a limit to how much linking I can do before it’s considered link spam, please do not feel slighted)

I am eagerly awaiting the announcement of the date and venue for WordCamp Houston 2011, and you should be too.

Anyway, on with my picks for the week.

Ongoing

Perspectives 171: Jennifer West, Contemporary Arts Museum, 5216 Montrose, Tue,Wed,Fri,Sat 10am-5pm, Thu 10am-9pm, Sun noon-5pm, free admission. These five works by Jennifer West are an odd cross between filmmaking and painting. West treats the developed film as both a medium to record and a surface to be manipulated (with items that include makeup, fruit juice, skateboard wheels, and candy), with surprising, bizarre, hypnotic, and unique results that must be seen to be believed and appreciated. On display through September 26. Generously supported and commissioned by the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston. 10-CAMJWEST

ArtHouston, numerous local art galleries (see website for details), all day, free admission. Exhibitions include a wide range of work including abstract paintings, mixed media, sculptures, photography, and collage. Exhibitions continue through August 31. 10-ARTHOUSTON

Closing Saturday 08-07

The Big Show, Lawndale Art Center, 4912 Main Street. 10-LACBIG

Friday 08-06

Winter Wallace CD Release Party, Gallery M Squared, 339 W. 19th, 7pm, $? (pre-sale)/$12 (at door). The long awaited CD release is finally here and this is the party for it. 10-M08-1

Saturday 08-07

WordCamp Houston, Houston Museum of Natural Science, 5555 Hermann Park Drive, 8:30am-4pm; WordLab + mixer (afterparty) at Caroline Collective, 4820 Caroline, 4pm-8pm. Houston’s first ever conference about all things WordPress, with keynote by Matt Mullenweg, and presentations by several other WordPress experts. (Note: this is a sold out event, listed here primarily in anticipation of a future recap.) 10-M08-2

Ground Zero/The Distracted/Finding Reason/Insert Name Here, Fitzgerald’s, 2706 White Oak, doors 8pm, $8 advance/$10 at door, all ages. 10-W31-1

White Linen Night in the Heights, Heights area (see website for locations), 6-9pm. After last year’s success, it’s back again this year. An event about art, culture, and community, featuring special deals from area merchants as well as a pie eating contest and fashion show. 10-W31-2

My apologies to anyone who looked for the posting earlier in the week and didn’t find it. I endeavor for punctual postings and it is unfortunate that I feel short.

Ongoing

ArtHouston, numerous local art galleries (see website for details), all day, free admission. Exhibitions include a wide range of work including abstract paintings, mixed media, sculptures, photography, and collage. Exhibitions continue through August 31. 10-ARTHOUSTON

The Big Show, Lawndale Art Center, 4912 Main Street. Show continues through August 7. 10-LACBIG

Opening Thursday 07-29

If We Only Knew Now What They Know Then, Houston Arts Alliance space125gallery, 3201 Allen Parkway, 5:30pm. Featuring Melanie Crader‘s work Take Away Project, exploring fashion, gender, identity, and social class; and sculptures by Katy Heinlein. 10-IFWEONLY / 10-W30-1

Opening Friday 07-30

SUSY: Collaborative Supercollision of Elusive Particles, The Houston Foundry, 1712 Burnett St., 8-10pm. Inspired by the concept of supersymmetry, where sound works and performances will be shown simultaneously during the reception. Includes work from the following artists: Michael Brims, Aisen Caro Chacin, Daniel Adame, Lance Higdon, Jon Read, Amy Aderhold, Rachel Toomb, Emily Sloan, David Graeve. 10-SUSY / 10-W30-2

Saturday 07-31

Blaggards with Come See My Dead Person, Continental Club, 9pm, $10. Houston’s own legends of “Stout Irish rock” are at it again. 10-W30-3

Opening Saturday 07-24

Group show, Box 13 Art Space, 6700 Harrisburg. Sat 1-5pm, other days by appointment. Five exhibits: A. Dawn Chatoney, Objects of Nostalgia (soft objects); Jason Urban, Moving the Horizon Line (sculpture/print); Valerie Powell, Moveable Garden; Matthew Glover, untitled (knitted ninjas installed throughout the space); Emily Sloan, Something to Put Paintings On (painted objects). 10-M07-BOX13

Saturday 07-24

Strung Out, Winter Street Studios, 2101 Winter St., second floor, 6-9pm. One night only. Art sale and backyard party featuring works by the following artists: Ian Anderson, Mitch Cohen, Kelley Devine, Jessica Jacobi, Matt Messinger, Lindsay Peyton, Kevin Peterson, Alfredo Scaroina, Micah Simmons, and Anthony Suber. Also featuring a performance by singer/songwriter Sabra Laval. 10-W29-3

Michele Brangwen Dance Ensemble Video + Tim Hagans Live Jazz, Spacetaker ARC, 2101 Winter St. #B11, 8-10pm, free admission. First, a showing of Get Outside, a collaboration with the Norrbotten Big Band and featuring the choreography of Michele Brangwen as well as music composed by Tim Hagans. Intermission includes a meet-the-artists reception. 10-W29-4

Sunday 07-25

Houston Funk Factory, Continental Club, 3700 Main, 9pm-midnight, $5. Local funk band brings back the music of the golden era of funk. 10-W29-5

Saturday 07-17

Kickball presented by Extra Life, Hermann Park near Miller Outdoor Theatre, 6000 Hermann Park Drive, noon-4pm. Come join us for a fun time playing kickball! 10-M07-1

Friday 08-06

Winter Wallace CD Release Party, Gallery M Squared, 339 W. 19th, 7pm, $? (pre-sale)/$12 (at door). The long awaited CD release is finally here and this is the party for it. 10-M08-1

Saturday 08-07

WordCamp Houston, Houston Museum of Natural Science, 5555 Hermann Park Drive, 8:30am-4pm; WordLab + mixer (afterparty) at Caroline Collective, 4820 Caroline, 4pm-8pm. Houston’s first ever conference about all things WordPress, with keynote by Matt Mullenweg, and presentations by several other WordPress experts. (Note: I realize this event has been sold out for some time, however there are people who will be reselling their tickets as well as a small number of volunteer slots remaining.) 10-M08-2

Saturday 08-14

Video Game Armageddon, Numbers, 300 Westheimer, 7pm-2am, $10. Featuring Jonny Nero, Sievert, Jus Coz, Shoelace, MC Router, and Dr. Awkward, as well as part of a video game tournament and live art. Proceeds to benefit Extra Life and the Texas Children’s Hopsital. 18+. 10-M08-3

I’ll have the monthly LOVIEE up by about this time tomorrow. It’s taken longer than expected due to some unique circumstances (it will have to cover longer than a calendar month because I’m posting it so late).

Ongoing

ArtHouston, numerous local art galleries (see website for details), all day, free admission. Exhibitions include a wide range of work including abstract paintings, mixed media, sculptures, photography, and collage. Exhibitions continue through August 13. 10-ARTHOUSTON

The Big Show, Lawndale Art Center, 4912 Main Street. Show continues through August 7. 10-LACBIG

Wednesday 07-14 through Sunday 07-18

Little Shop of Horrors, Miller Outdoor Theatre, 8:15pm, free admission. Rock musical about Seymour and an alien plant which was later made into a feature-length movie. Performed by Theatre Under The Stars. 10-W28-1

Wednesday 07-14 and Thursday 07-15

La Bohéme, various local theaters, Wed 6:30pm, Thu times vary by theater, $15. This is an HD recording of the Metropolitan Grand Opera’s production of the famed opera, which is usually much more expensive and less accessible for us folks down here in Houston. (Note: the theaters I checked appear to be doing early afternoon (matinee) showings for Thursday.) 10-W28-2

Thursday 07-15

The Mother Truckers, Continental Club, 3700 Main, 10pm, $12. Country/rock band from Austin. 10-W28-3

Friday 07-16

Andrew Karnavas at McGonigel’s Mucky Duck, Norfolk, 7:30pm, $15. Andrew is probably better known as the lead singer of Runaway Sun; unlike the band’s blues/rock, his solo tunes place more of an emphasis on traditional folk/blues style. 10-W28-4

Saturday 07-17

Lost Voices: Passion & Perseverance, Dowling Music, 2615 Southwest Freeway #220, 6:30pm, $10. Pianist Adam Vincent Clay performs works from Russian composers from the era of Stalin’s Zhdanov Doctrine, under which they were previously censored. Presented by the Houston New Arts Movement. 10-W28-5

Kickball presented by Extra Life, Hermann Park near Miller Outdoor Theatre, 6000 Hermann Park Drive, noon-4pm. Come join us for a fun time playing kickball! 10-M07-1

I know I’m posting notice of at least a couple of these events with only a few hours notice, something I usually don’t do but made necessary by technical difficulties. Hopefully it will not be a problem in future weeks and months. Speaking of months, the monthly LOVIEE for July/early August is on its way as well.

Thursday 07-08

Sean Reefer & the Resin Valley Boys, Blanco’s, 3406 W. Alabama, 8pm, $8. Local honky-tonk/country band. 10-W27-1

Crochet & Cocktails, Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, 5216 Montrose, 6:30-8pm. 10-W27-2

Friday 07-09

Lightning Bolt/Indian Jewelry/The Guard, Khon’s, 2808 Milam, 8pm, $12. Lightning Bolt hails from Providence, Rhode Island, and plays sort of an experimental rock/metal/industrial style, vaguely similar to Front Line Assembly and Nine Inch Nails (and I do mean vaguely). 10-W27-3

OrqJam, Last Concert Cafe, 1403 Nance, 6pm-?. Featuring The Mighty Orq, Nick Gaitan, and Tody Castillo. Benefiting Star of Hope and Chung Tai Zen Center. 10-W27-4

Opening Friday 07-09 and Continuing

The Big Show, Lawndale Art Center, 4912 Main Street. Opening reception 6:30pm-8:30pm, show continues through August 7. 10-W27-5 / 10-LACBIG

Saturday 07-10

Willie Nelson’s 4th of July Celebration, Tony Marron Park, 808 North York, 8-10pm, $10. Aurora Picture Show presents this rare film of Willie Nelson performing an Independence Day show in College Station in 1974. Postponed due to ground condition at venue (too muddy). 10-W27-6

Opening Saturday 07-10 and Continuing

ArtHouston, numerous local art galleries (see website for details), all day, free admission. Exhibitions include a wide range of work including abstract paintings, mixed media, sculptures, photography, and collage. Exhibitions continue through August 13. 10-ARTHOUSTON