San antonio current december 30, 2015 by Chava Communications

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CONTENTS Issue 15_52 December 30 – January 5

14 | CALENDAR Our top picks for the week with bonus music, food and nightlife listings

32 | PEOPLE From curators to political activists to tech-honchos, 20 people doing compelling work in SA

73 | ETC. Savage Love Jonesin’ Crossword Freewill Astrology This Modern World

ON THE COVER DECEMBER 30, 2015 - JANUARY 5, 2016

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Spurs guard Patty Mills crosses over on our first People Issue cover. Photography by Josh Huskin Art direction by Sarah Flood-Baumann, Rick Fisher, Lauren Salguero

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CALENDAR

WED

The Beatles Tribute Show MUSIC

On Christmas Eve, The Beatles succumbed to the holy stream, posting their discography — from Please Please Me to Let It Be — on Spotify, Tidal, Apple Music and beyond. To help celebrate this Christmas and royalty miracle, Sam’s has prepared a tribute evening featuring some of SA’s finest Fab Four aficionados. Expect brothers Emilio and Diego Navaira of Ready Revolution to bring a poprock attitude to the Lennon/McCartney songbook, while Joe Reyes delivers his supreme guitar talent to worship at the altar of George Harrison. With the impeccably tight instrumental-surf outfit King Pelican. $10-$40, 9pm, Sam’s Burger Joint, 330 E. Grayson St., (210) 223-2830, samsburgerjoint.com. — Matt Stieb

THU

New Year’s Eve Balloon Drop MUSIC

This year Limelight, the bastion of hipsterdom next to Hardbodies, a longbeloved live music spot, opened its doors after a short but effective renovation. Now under the management team that made 502 Bar cool, Limelight has wasted no time in making good live music its specialty. To celebrate, the bar is throwing a righteous New Year’s Eve bash, replete with an honest-to-goodness balloon drop and a bonkers bill of music, from the zany, dreamcore soul of Voodoo Boogaloo (pictured) to the leftfield hip-hop of Chief and the Doomsday Device and the synth soup of trip-hop act Peach Fish. Free, 10pm, Limelight, 2718 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 735-7775, thelimelightsa.com. — James Courtney

14 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

THU

Celebrate San Antonio SPECIAL EVENT

Those who suffer from enochlophobia (fear of crowds) might want to steer clear of Celebrate San Antonio, a New Year’s Eve tradition that routinely draws upward of 250,000 revelers to Hemisfair Park. Presented by the San Antonio Parks Foundation and billed as “the biggest free New Year’s Eve celebration and fireworks extravaganza in Texas,” the fiesta keeps the masses entertained with festival fare, carnival games and live music on three stages (from Top 40 cover band The Klocks to progressive Tejano accordion queen Eva Ybarra), leading up to an impressive pyrotechnic show courtesy of Valero. Free, 6pm-12:30am, Hemisfair Park, 434 S. Alamo St., saparksfoundation.org. — Bryan Rindfuss

THU

Sound Crater Presents 2016 MUSIC

Looking to finish out 2015 and ring in its obligatory successor by dousing your ears in the liquid crackle of experimental rock? Don’t sweat; Sound Crater Recording and Rehearsal was thinking the same thing. Billed as a mixer to foster networking across genres and cliques of the San Antonio outré rock spectrum, the BYOB show will feature punk (Ghost Police, pictured, and Junkie), drone-rock (Mau), sludge (Crawl) and doom metal (Cosmic Behemoth) from SA, as well as grindcore imported from Cleveland (M.D.F.L.). Bonus: Your ringing ears will save you from hearing all those New Year’s resolutions. $5, 9pm, Sound Crater Recording and Rehearsal, 1908 Fredericksburg Road, (210) 837-1850, facebook.com/soundcraterrecording. — JC

CALENDAR

GETTY IMAGES

SAT

Valero Alamo Bowl SPORTS

The No. 15 Oregon Ducks return to the Alamo Bowl for a showdown with the No. 11 TCU Horned Frogs that should pack in plenty of fireworks. Both teams had championship aspirations going into the season before injuries caught up with each. The Frogs count four players from San Antonio on their roster, including running back Aaron Green — a Madison grad with 1,171 rushing yards this season. TCU has an all-time record of 10-1-1 in the Alamo City, all versus Trinity, but Oregon is no Trinity. Expect a high-scoring contest from two teams that averaged almost 85 combined points per game this season. $65-$300, 5:45pm, Alamodome, 100 Montana St., (210) 226-2695, alamobowl.com. — M. Solis

SAT

Spurs vs. Rockets SPORTS

The dynamic duo of James Harden and Dwight Howard propelled the Houston Rockets to last season’s Western Conference Finals before plummeting back to Earth against the Warriors. Amidst trade rumors and drama associated with Howard, the Rockets are on a mild upswing and playing .500 basketball. Although the Spurs remain the model of stability in the Southwest division, Harden has been a thorn in the Silver and Black’s side going back to his days in Oklahoma City. San Antonio’s historic pace on defense, however, gives Manu Ginobili and co. a little less reason to fear the beard. $55$235, 7:30pm, AT&T Center, One AT&T Center Pkwy., (210) 444-5000, attcenter. com. — M. Solis

SAT

Viet-Ruse Reunion Show MUSIC

Out of commission for a couple years, Viet-Ruse return with a New Year’s resolution to tune up and get down. Founded in 2008, the Chicano punk quartet laced their compositions with a political awareness on the street and international levels. Like their sonic heroes, The London Calling-era Clash, Viet-Ruse’s great achievement was keeping a light tone despite the subject matter and keeping their songs rooted in the realm of dance. For a primer, visit the 2012 effort Para Bellum — an energetic punk amalgam from the mind of frontman Myke Miranda. With Grupo Frackaso, Los Callejeros de San Anto, Villains. $3, 8pm, Hi-Tones, 621 E. Dewey Pl., (210) 573-6220, hitonessa.com. — MS

SAT

Leftöver Crack MUSIC

There are few “dangerous” bands left in the U.S. Few which are on Government Watch Lists, few whose labels refuse to press their records, few with the gall to challenge the heteronormativity and fascist complexes of their own self-perpetuating scene. From the early days of ratchet rabblerousers Choking Victim, the epically 9/11/01-released Mediocre Generica, to the death of their drummer a day before their first show in San Antonio, Leftöver Crack have been hating on America for almost two decades now. Catch ‘em before they O.D. or get assassinated. With Pears, Days N Daze and Krigblast. $14-$16, 7:30pm, The Korova, 107 E. Martin St., (210) 226-5070, thekorova. com. — Travis Buffkin

sacurrent.com • December 30—January 5, 2015 • CURRENT 15

CALENDAR

THU

“Blow It Out Your Year”

MON

Before it ignited the Second Saturday scene in the South Flores/Lone Star Arts District, FL!GHT operated out of the Blue Star Art Silos, where founder Justin Parr launched “viral T-shirt and sticker campaigns” amid a developing First Friday landscape. Back at Blue Star since mid-2014, Parr and creative co-conspirator Ed Saavedra nod to the grassroots gallery’s “slightly downriver origins” with “Blow It Out Your Year,” a year-end send-off within eyeshot of the Hemisfair fireworks. Anchored by an exhibition of small-scale works by “an improbable number of artists” (Joey Fauerso, Jenelle Esparza, Mignon Harkrader and Jayne Lawrence, to name a few), the BYOB affair also includes music by DJ Rasta Mike and a Champagne toast at midnight. Free, 6pm-1am, FL!GHT, 134 Blue Star, (210) 872-2586, facebook.com/flightsa. — Bryan Rindfuss

Art

Art opening: “San Antonio Rewired”

Nathan Talamantez unveils a photographic series that brings subjects both historic and mundane into the digital age. Free, 6pm Wednesday; Brick, 108 Blue Star, (210) 9956800.

“28 Chinese” Launched in 1960s-era New

York on a budget of $25 per month, The Rubell Family Collection is now among the largest privately owned contemporary art collections in the world. Between 2001 and 2012, the Rubells conducted 100-plus studio visits in China, buying works by 28 artists. Encompassing everything from a two-legged table by Ai Weiwei to a 50-foot paper and bamboo “boat” by Zhu Jinshi, the resulting bounty comes to light in a SAMA exhibition that “asks us to question any preconceived ideas about what art from China looks like.” $15-$20, 10am-5pm Wednesday-Thursday, 10am-5pm SaturdaySunday, 10am-9pm Tuesday; San Antonio Museum of Art, 200 W. Jones Ave., (210) 978-8100.

International Artists-In-Residence Hand-

picked by NY-based Cecilia Alemani, whose curatorial credits include Frieze Projects and High Line Art, artists Cally Spooner (London), Marie Lorenz (New York) and Larry Bamburg (Marfa) represent the final installment of Artpace’s 2015 International Artists-in-Residence cycle. Spooner has penned “plotless novellas” and satirizes such pop-culture mainstays as Beyoncé and Justin Bieber; Lorenz works with found objects and operates a water taxi; and Bamburg builds peculiar — and at

times humorous — arrangements from such unlikely materials as animal bones, electrical wire and skateboard wheels. Free, noon-5pm Wednesday-Thursday, noon-5pm Saturday-Sunday; Artpace, 445 N. Main Ave., (210) 212-4900.

”Miró: The Experience of Seeing” Born

in Barcelona in 1893, Spanish master Joan Miró drew deep inspiration from his native Catalonia but evolved considerably among the avant-garde icons of 1920s-era Paris. Culled from the permanent collection of Madrid’s Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, and highlighting the artist’s later years, the traveling exhibition “Miró: The Experience of Seeing” brings together more than 50 paintings, drawings and sculptures said to “plumb the process of making art.” $15-$20, 10am-4pm Wednesday-Thursday, 10am-5pm Saturday, noon-5pm Sunday, 10am-4pm Tuesday; McNay Art Museum, 6000 N. New Braunfels Ave., (210) 824-5368.

Winter Shows at Blue Star Winter at Blue Star Contemporary brings three exciting new exhibitions, on view through February 7. For starters, Texas-transplants Charlie Morris and Liz Rodda’s “Turn Your Face Toward the Sun” is a multidisciplinary affair that employs assemblage as a medium to juxtapose and re-contextualize found items, seemingly random images and crafted elements. In Gallery 4, take in Norwegian filmmaker Bodil Furu’s Landscapes by the Book. From multiple points of view, the video looks at how the landscapes and people in Fron, Norway are altered by development and notions of progress.

16 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

WWE Monday Night Raw

The glitz and mayhem that only the world’s premier sports entertainment company can deliver will be on full display when WWE returns with another serving of Monday Night Raw. Expect the simmering feud between current WWE World Heavyweight Champion Roman Reigns and recently deposed champion, the Celtic Warrior Sheamus, to heat up. Also on hand will be the hottest act going right now — WWE tag team champs the New Day, comprised of Big E, Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston. These magical unicorns (as they like to be called) are amped to continue rivalries with both the high-flying Lucha Dragons and the high-energy Uso Brothers. Expect for the surreal feud between the enigmatic Wyatt Family, hardcore extremists the Dudley Boys and their partners in pain Tommy Dreamer and the man-beast Rhyno to only intensify. $20-$115, 6:30pm, AT&T Center, One AT&T Center Pkwy., (800) 745-3000, attcenter.com. — Eric Moreno

Meanwhile, in the Project Space, the interactive and deeply imaginative “The Gift: An Exquisite Exhibition” is designed to grow and change over time — based on artist/viewer response and curated groupings that reflect on creativity scholar Lewis Hyde’s book The Gift: Creativity and the Artist in the Modern World. $3-$5, noon-8pm Thursday, noon-6pm SaturdaySunday, Blue Star Contemporary Art Museum, 116 Blue Star, (210) 227-6960.

Theater

A Charlie Brown Christmas The Magik

brings Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the rest of the Peanuts gang to life onstage in Eric Schaeffer’s adaptation of the 1965 TV special surrounding “the true meaning of Christmas.” $12-$15, 11:30am Wednesday, 2pm Saturday-Sunday; Magik Theatre, 420 S. Alamo St., (210) 227-2751.

A Tuna Christmas Nicki Roberson and Gary

Sartor team up to embody the denizens of Tuna, Texas in Joe Sears and Jaston Williams’ Yuletide staple that plays out during a holiday yard display contest. $12-$20, 8pm Thursday-Saturday; Josephine Theatre, 339 W. Josephine St., (210) 734-4646.

Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story & Dino’s Rockin’ New Year’s Eve Bash Lubbock-

born Buddy Holly’s destiny became clear the night he saw Elvis Presley in 1955. From there, he developed a signature rockabilly style as both a solo artist and frontman for The Crickets. By 1957, Holly and the Crickets were among the acts bridging the racial divide through music. Penned by Alan Janes, the jukebox musical Buddy follows the

early rock ‘n’ roll influencer in the less than two-year period between his quick rise and untimely death by plane crash in 1959. Ryan Guerra leads the Cameo’s production. For a special price of $45, attendees to Thursday night’s performance can stick around for the retro variety show Dino’s Rockin’ New Year’s Eve Bash (10:30pm) followed by a fireworks viewing party on the Cameo’s rooftop. $15-$45, 8pm Thursday-Saturday, 4:30pm Sunday; Cameo Theatre, 1123 E. Commerce St., (210) 212-5454.

Elf: The Musical Jr. Young actors take the Cameo stage in this musicalized version of Jon Favreau’s 2003 holiday classic following an orphan who’s raised in the North Pole as an elf and later sets off to find his father and “help New York remember the true meaning of Christmas.” $15-$20, 2pm Saturday; Cameo Theatre, 1123 E. Commerce St., (210) 212-5454.

Santa Claus Conquers the Martians Counted among the worst films of all time, Santa Claus Conquers the Martians could have slipped into obscurity following its 1964 release had it not been for Mystery Science Theater 3000. After spoofing the film in an episode, the ’90s-era favorite successfully resuscitated the cautionary tale of what happens when Martians decide to kidnap Santa, thus inspiring countless decades of Martian mongers to come. The Overtime Theater explores this cult oddity in a new collection of shorts filled with green men, cardboard robots, half-Martian reindeer and a Santa dance-off. $10-$14, 8pm FridaySaturday; The Overtime Theater, 1203 Camden St., (210) 557-7562.

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sacurrent.com • December 30—January 5, 2015 • CURRENT 17

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CALENDAR

Santa The Conqueror Mary Griffith and

Scott McDowell co-direct this original production following Santa from the North Pole to the Red Planet, where he’s enslaved by power-hungry Martians. $10$14, 8pm Friday-Saturday; The Overtime Theater, 1203 Camden St., (210) 557-7562.

Words

Lili Mahoney Native Texan Lili Mahoney

visits The Twig to sign copies of Barefoot Pastures, the first book in a YA series following a strong-willed cowgirl “struggling to remain true to herself in a world ... testing every fiber of her being.” Free, 11am-1pm Sunday; The Twig Book Shop, 306 Pearl Pkwy., Suite 106, (210) 826-6411.

Comedy

Matt Holt Having survived two failed

marriages and 15 years of corporate America, stand-up Matt Holt crafts razorsharp comedy from his own “grounded but chaotic life history.” $16, 8pm Wednesday; Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club, 618 NW Loop 410, (210) 541-8805.

Tom Rhodes Globe-trotting comic, actor,

TV personality and travel writer Tom Rhodes (Politically Incorrect, The Daily Show, Insomniac with Dave Attell) is a Comedy Central veteran The New York Times once described as “a mostly natural intellect with a knack for reporting the harsh realities of life with a dark and absurdly optimistic cynicism.” $20, 8pm Thursday, 8pm & 10:15pm Friday-Saturday, 7pm Sunday; Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club, 618 NW Loop 410, (210) 541-8805.

Willie Barcena A former security guard, plumber, roofer and limo driver who spins comedy out of everyday situations, Wille Barcena has performed for the troops in Afghanistan and reportedly made more appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno than any other Latino comic. $20, 8pm Thursday, 7:30pm & 9:45pm Friday-Saturday, 7:30pm Sunday; Rivercenter Comedy Club, 849 E. Commerce St., (210) 229-1420.

Special Events

Alamo Bowl Tailgate/Watch Party

Alamo Ice House gets the party started with brews, barbecue and live music by the Chris Saucedo Band, followed by an outdoor viewing party on a projection screen and transportation (for ticket holders) to the Alamo Bowl. Free ($25 for food, beer and bus package), 2pm-1am Saturday; Alamo Ice House, 802 N. Alamo St., (210) 758-5151.

Kids’ Countdown The DoSeum invites

youngsters to ring in 2016 at the kidfriendly hour of noon while enjoying DJ beats, themed arts and crafts activities, and a festive toast with sparkling juice. $10-$15, 9am-12:30pm Thursday; The DoSeum, 2800 Broadway, (210) 212-4453.

New Year’s Day Auction Vogt Auction

Gallery’s first event of 2016 boasts more than 400 lots up for grabs — including furniture, estate rugs, bronzes, home decor and artwork from the likes of Harding Black, Vives Atsara and Franco Mondini-Ruiz. Free, 1-4:30pm Friday; Vogt Auction Gallery, 7233 Blanco Road, (210) 822-6155.

The Burning Bowl Ceremony All

are welcome to participate in Unity Church’s ceremony designed to “gently release 2015” and create an opening for fulfillment of desires in the new year. Free (donations accepted), 7-8pm Thursday; Unity Church of San Antonio, 1723 Lawndale Drive, (210) 824-7351.

Fireworks View • Vendors DJ Plata • All Night Specials

Talks Plus

New Year/New Views on Western Art

Open New Years Eve!

Come watch the Fireworks and help us ring in the new year!

Lindsey Smith, educator and school programs manager at San Antonio Museum of Art, sheds light on how placement of artwork can create opportunities for extraordinary — and unexpected — museum experiences. Free, 6:30-7:30pm Tuesday; Briscoe Western Art Museum, 210 W. Market St., (210) 299-4499.

Sensual Touch: A Small Group Session

Melissa Jones leads attendees in a workshop focusing on sensual touch exercises that allow couples to give and receive the most intimate of pleasures while learning to give and receive feedback. Participants will not be engaging in sexual contact during this class. Wear comfortable clothing, and bring a yoga mat and pillows. $40 per couple, 7-8:30pm Wednesday; Sexology Institute and Boutique, 727 S. Alamo St., (210) 487-0371.

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sacurrent.com • December 30—January 5, 2015 • CURRENT 19

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MUSIC

FRI

Big Freedia

Big Freedia has brought bounce — a hyper-speed, dirty dancin’ New Orleans style of hip-hop created in the 1980s — to the mainstream. The Guinness World Record setter for “Most People Twerking Simultaneously” has rightfully earned her title as the Queen of Bounce. After dropping her well-received LP Just Be Free in ’14, Freedia even had notoriously hard-ass Pitchfork media swooning. Preferring to be addressed as “she,” Freedia is more than happy to be labeled as an openly gay rapper, especially in the changing climate where raps’ homophobic ice caps have begun to melt away. Between collaborating with original Supermodel of the World RuPaul (“Peanut Butter”) and reluctant pop star Sia (“Eye of the Needle”), Freedia can also check off reality star as one of her lifetime achievements. Her award-winning Fuse TV show, Big Freedia: Queen of Bounce, documents her enviable-but-real life on the road, in the process giving the zero-talent Kardashian Klan a bad name (like Karcrashian). Although twerking was brought into the mainstram — not invented — by Miley Cyrus, Big Freedia’s OG booty is in all the right places as she twerks her way into your heart (and your pants). $20, 8pm, Paper Tiger, 2410 N. St. Mary’s St., papertigersa.com –Shannon Sweet

Wednesday, December 30

Bring Your Own Vinyl Revel with friendly vinyl-heads over the best wax in each others’ collection, or slam pickle shots in the corner and lust after that one gal with the face tattoos and an original copy of Safe as Milk. Hi-Tones, 9pm Hump Wednesdays One of the best DJs in the States, with the awards to prove it, hosts this weekly event at one of the best new restaurants in town, with the grub to prove it. Featuring DJ Donnie Dee and Special Guests. Alchemy Kombucha and Culture, 8pm Mid-Week All-Vinyl Social The weekly residency of DJ Techneek and DJ EPSR, playing all types of dope shit and actually DJ’ing, chicka-chicka-chickas included. La Botánica, 8pm Noah Peterson On his live album At Biddy McGraw’s, SA saxophonist Noah Peterson charts his way through funk-laced bop standards like “Song for My Father” and “Watermelon Man.” J&O’s Cantina, 8pm Open Mic Night with Cosmic Box Do you suck at music? Are you completely unaware of your terrible attempts at carrying a tune? Come down to open mic night at The Amp Room and prove it. The Amp Room, 7pm Warthog and The Impalers Fans of Motörhead rejoice, there is a band to carry the torch and with it the legacy of speedfueled, moto-madness (that isn’t Midnight). Austin’s The Impalers wrote the score to dancing with the devil in the pale moonlight. The devil only circle pits, by the way. With Sin Motivo, Stacker, Ill Informed and Creep Stare. Paper Tiger, 9pm

Thursday, December 31

Back to the Future New Year’s Party feat. Guild Climb into Tony Parker’s DeLorean (this is not a guarantee that TP9 will be there) and race back in time to the beginning of the night to celebrate New Year’s Eve 2015 again, and again and again. With Bitforce and Ohm-1. 502 Bar, 9pm Celebrate San Antonio The city’s official New Year’s Eve party — a shindig so nice we listed it twice. Join the crowds for this free Downtown festival, which features three stages of live music performances, carnival games and rides, tasty festival bites and THE fireworks show you want to welcome 2016 with. Hemisfair Park, 6pm Lonely Horse Farewell Residency Playing each other as much as they play their own instruments, Lonely Horse has been poised to drag San Antonio popular music into the 21st century for several years now. The loogey-fuzz of Long’s guitar and the Keith Moon-meets-Cherokeedrum-circle powder keg of Hild’s foot and right hand could grind maize into flour, or mota into keef. Join them at their final farewell show before they fracture, regroup and do something else that gets hip humanities majors all hot and bothered. Hi-Tones, 9pm Monte Montgomery with Ruben V Acoustic philosophizers Monte Montgomery and Ruben V team up for a hollowbody shred-a-thon. Sam’s Burger Joint, 9pm New Year’s Eve Bash 2015 with Boys Don’t Cry Don’t worry about how clean your eyeliner looks at the start of the night, by the end The Cure tribute band, or popped Champagne, will have it running down your cheeks. Fitzgerald’s Bar, 6pm

3rd Annual New Year’s Gatsby Gala Complete with a jazz, R&B and neo-soul band in the front room and a DJ in the back, The Davenport hosts a party based on that movie based on that book based on Leonardo DiCaprio, or something. Black tie formal or they gonna kick yo’ ass out. The Davenport Lounge, 8pm

New Year’s Eve Party au Go-go So many DJs, I just can’t even … The turntables will be stacked with oldies, garage rock, mod, psych, surf and soul with DJs Ewss, Sandman, Sucia Q, Phil-O-Graph, Tim Beard, Casbah, Jive Bomber, El Gato and Tropicana Joe. Party on the roof, goof. Sancho’s Cantina, 8pm

Aaron Watson On “The Prayer” Aaron Watson utilizes the same biting lyrical imagery that propelled Chris Gaines’ alter-ego to fame over the chord changes to Bob Seger’s “Turn the Page.” The cover for his album, The Underdog, is genius – a crying rodeo clown. Cowboys Dancehall, 7pm

Puttin’ on the Glitz: NYE 1976 with DJ Jester the Filipino Fist 1976? Cocaine. I feel like this is just gonna be about cocaine. Either way, the Filipino Fist knows how to throw down a groove, whether it’s old-school soul or some “Funky Cold Medina,” he knows what gets the bros (not

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Club Sirius

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Beto’s Alt-Mex HH Happy hour from 4pm-7pm Every Day! 8142 Broadway St

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On The Rocks Pub

270 Losoya, SATX 78205 facebook.com/ontherockspubTX HH: Mon-Fri, 2pm-7pm: $3 Wells, $3 Domestics, $3.75 Flavored Vodkas

Kimura

Happy hour monday - friday 4-7 Saturday 12-4 $6 Kimura Cocktails, $5 House Wines $4 Bottled Beer, $6 Draft Beer $3-$4 Appetizers, $6 Miso Ramen

Flair

6462 N. New Braunfels Ave. 78209 Flairmexicanstreetfood.com HH:Monday-Friday,4- 7pm, Sunday, 8-10 pm 1/2 price apps and Guac! $4 craft draughts $3 off cocktails and win $6 Michelada all day everyday

Tucker’s Kozy Korner

1338 E Houston St • (210) 320-2192 Sunday Brunch: Bloody Mary Bar and Bottomless Mimosas

Happy Hour MONDAY-FRIDAY 4PM - 8PM: $2 DOMESTICS, $2 CALLS, $1 TAPAS ENJOY $3 YOU CALL IT’S EVERY SUNDAY AND MONDAY EVERYDAY $5 BEER + SHOT SPECIAL

Toro Taco Bar

Cullum’s Atta Girl

628 Jackson St, • (210) 320-1840 4- 7pm Every Day Frozen Margs: $2.25, Well Drinks: $3.25 Select Cans: $2.50 Monday - Wednesday: Reverse Happy Hour 9-11pm

726 E Mistletoe • (210) 437-4263 Get your Happy Hour Started Early Friday Lunch Pop 11a-2p and Micro Beers

Moses Roses

516 E Houston All Day Food and Drink Specials Everyday Kitchen Open Until 1am Everyday

114 Brooklyn Ave • torotacobar.com Reverse Happy Hour 9pm

Sancho’s

Nectar

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NORTHWEST Smitty’s Pub

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HH: 4- 8pm Home of the $2.50 Well Drink! $2 Domestic Draft $3 Import Draft, Daily specials 8 till close

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1039 NE Loop 410 210.826.7118 HH 11a-6p Tuesday-Friday & 9p-11p Tues.Thurs. Daily Lunch Specials 11a-3p Closed Mondays

Embers Woodfire Bar & Grill

Happy Hour at the Bar and on the Patio Daily from 4pm - 7pm and 9pm - Close Drafts 12 oz. $2.00 16 oz. $3.00 | 25 oz. $4.00 Michelob Ultra, Miller Lite, Bud Light & Shiner $1 Off All Cocktails Wine by the Glass Premium Draft Beerst

NORTH CENTRAL Michin Mexican Kitchen

7pm - 9pm $5 House Margaritas, $2.50 Domestic Bottles, Tecate & Dos XX, $3 Indio and Bohemia, and Mexican Draft $4. 427 N Loop 1604, Ste 202, SATX 78258 Behind Trader Joe’s

Slackers

Sports-Drinks-Arcade SlackerSA.com • $2.50 Domestics, $3 Wells Daily, $3 You Call It

Highlander Bar & Grill

Mon-Sat: 7am - 4pm $3.25 Import Drafts & Mini Margaritas $2.75 Domestic Drafts Tue- $3.25 Mini Hurricanes Thu- $3.25 Premium Vodka Specials Sun- $.75 Wings & $3 Sunday Specials 4-8pm: $1 off mixed drinks & appetizers!

NORTH EAST Charlie-Browns.com 210-496-7092 Mon.-Fri. until 7pm $2.75 well drinks, $8.50 domestic pitchers, $2.75 domestic longnecks Mon.-Fri. 2-6pm 60¢ Wings Wednesday special from $6.50 domestic draft pitchers

Pecan Grove

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1126 S. St. Mary’s | 210-354-0690 | Open to the Public

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Come view the game on the BIG SCREEN! VJ NECIO in the mix following the game

516 E HOUSTON, 78205 210 775 1808 26 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

1st Friday 2016 Pub Run | 7pm COLLEGE THEME!

CALENDAR

necessarily the douchey kind) and the hos (own it) on the dance … flo’s? With DJs Boyfriends, Rad Envelope, Terpsi and Bitter Teen. Paper Tiger, 7pm Ring in the New Year with The Infidels Named after Bob Dylan’s 1983 album, Michael Martin and the Infidels play in the wordy spirit of the great American songwriter. Liberty Bar, 6pm Shinyribs Gritty, grimy grease-trap folk-soul, for the line cooks, dishwashers, 50-hourweek cubicle-enslaved working folks. That’s pretty much everybody nowadays, right? Shinyribs has that NOLA mojo, so if you need your prescription filled by Dr. John, the man born Kevin Russell may have to do until the good doctor comes through. Consider him your funky pharmacist. Gruene Hall, 8pm South Austin Moonlighters South Austin Moonlighters play an eclectic mix of songs, from heartfelt soul to “shitkickin’ country,” and from funky New Orleans funk to raucous rock ‘n’ roll. Gruene Hall, 1pm

Friday, January 1

Friday Nights with Ghostpizza Local hiphop tastemaker Ghostpizza gets you all TGIF’ed on the first Friday of 2016. Phantom Room, 9pm Midtown Jazz Trio Accomplished jazzers swing you into the New Year. Perfect for when you’re about to hit the strip of LGBT bars on Main but want to prove to your date that you’re into culture, before you spend all night grinding to Madonna at Heat or Lady Gaga at Sparky’s (like Madge or Mother Monster aren’t culture). Luther’s, 7pm

Saturday, January 2

on their learn-to-flamenco New Year’s resolution. Carmens de la Calle Café, 8pm Joe “King” Carrasco y Los Side FX The “King” of Tex-Mex rock ‘n’ roll brings his bandana-adorned, Armadillo-riding, bootscootin’ new wave pep to the Americana venue on Grayson. If your uncool, don’teven-know-what-dabbing-is parents are dragging you to this, consider it a nightmare on Grayson. Otherwise, enjoy the King! Sam’s Burger Joint, 9pm

SHERLOCK’S PUB NEW YEAR’S EVE BASH DECEMBER 31

Sunday, January 3

Bossa Nova Brunch Brazil’s The Gabriel Santiago Trio will bossa you around as you eat/drink off that perpetual Thursday through Saturday NYE-weekend hangover. Carmens de la Calle Café, 11:30am Orgy Led by 9-foot-tall Hot Topic model Jay Gordon, Orgy rose to prominence on their Family Values Tour-approved cover of New Order’s “Blue Monday.” Considering Gordon is the single original member, the outfit could consider going Mach 2 and renaming the band New Orgy. With Bobaflex and Death Valley High. Korova, 7pm

Monday, January 4

Hip Hop 101 Curated by resident DJs Notion and Pakman the evening promises fresh beats, flammable flows and visuals all night long. Southtown 101, 10pm

PARTY FAVORS MIDNIGHT CHAMPAGNE TOAST LIVE MUSIC BY

CHECK WEBSITE FOR MORE DETAILS

Trapped Out Mondays with DJ Burlo Whether you’re a honest-to-goodness trap queen or just a San Antonio College student who smokes weed between Texas Politics and Women and Gender Studies, Monday nights at Bottom Bracket are your opportunity to bool with your slime. Bottom Bracket Social Club, 10pm

Cory Morrow Red Dirt rocker Cory Morrow seems to have a permanent residency on the Billboard country chart, with seven albums appearing on the list since 2001. Gruene Hall, 9pm

Tuesday, January 5

Happy New Year Flamenco Austin’s Flamencura featuring Olivia & Isai Chacon with Celia Sellers and Jose Manuel Tejeda. For those who want to get a jumpstart

Villela Soul Tuesday Nights at The Mix The Villela Band continues their Tuesday night residency at The Mix with their blend of soul and R&B. The Mix, 11pm

Glenn’s Gems Enjoy an all-vinyl evening of psych-rock and dream-pop as the husband/wife duo behind K23 Gallery curates the tunes. La Botánica, 8pm

502 Bar 502 Embassy Oaks Drive, (210) 257-8125, 502bar.com Alchemy Kombucha and Culture 1123 N. Flores St., (210) 320-1168, alchemysanantonio.com Bottom Bracket Social Club 1609 N. Colorado St., (210) 267- 9160, facebook.com/ bottombracketsocialclub Carmens De La Calle Café 320 N. Flores St., (210) 281-4349, carmensdelacalle.com Cowboys Dancehall 3030 NE Interstate 410 Loop, (210) 646-9378, cowboysdancehall.com The Davenport Lounge 203 N. Presa St., (210) 224-5635, thedavenportlounge.com Fitzgerald’s 437 McCarty Road, #101, (210) 629-5141, facebook.com/fitzgeraldsbarsa Gruene Hall 1281 Gruene Road, (830) 606-1281, gruenehall.com org Hemisfair Park 434 S. Alamo St., hemisfair.org Hi-Tones 621 E. Dewey Pl., (210) 573-6220, hitonessa.com J&O’s Cantina 1014 S. Presa St., (210) 485-7611 La Botánica 2911 N. St. Mary’s St., vivalabotanica.com Liberty Bar 1111 S. Alamo St., (210) 227-1187, liberty-bar.com Luther’s 1425 N. Main Ave., (210) 223-7727, lutherscafe.com Paper Tiger 2410 N. St Mary’s St., papertigersa.com Phantom Room 2106 N. St. Mary’s St. Sam’s Burger Joint 330 E. Grayson St., (210) 223-2830, samsburgerjoint.com Sancho’s Cantina 628 Jackson St., (210) 320-1840, sanchoscantinaandgrill.com Southtown 101 101 Pereida St., (210) 263-9880 The Amp Room 2407 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 320-2122, theamproom.com The Korova 107 E. Martin St., (210) 226-5070, thekorova.com The Mix 2423 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 725-1313

SHERLOCK’S BAKER ST. PUB & GRILL

16620 US 281 N. • 210.572.9307 sherlockspub.com

sacurrent.com • December 30—January 5, 2015 • CURRENT 27

$5 off Purchase of $15 ormore

$10

For any wood fired pizza

25% off Entire Check

All offers exclude alcohol and cannot be combined with any other offer or discount. Expires 01/20/16

9818 W. Interstate 10 • San Antonio, TX 78230 • (Corner of Wurzbach & IH-10) • 210-562-3075

www.TheStripSA.com corner of Main and Evergreen, just North of Downtown

NIGHTCLUB San Antonio’s #1 Dance Club

SUNDAY FUNDAY

Sunday Night

$2.00 Domestic Bottled Beer and $2.00 Well all day and all Night

with NO COVER

$2.00 Frozen Margaritas till 9 pm $3.00 Fireball all day and Night

CLUB SIN $1.75 Domestics and Well Drinks

28 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

1416 N Main Ave, San Antonio, TX78212 (210) 320-5111

CALENDAR

THU

Havana New Year

Spend the last night of the year inside one of the city’s best-looking bars. Join Ocho at Hotel Havana in bidding farewell to the past and welcoming the coming year with an elegant feast, musical merriment and the company of friends. Enjoy the jazz/funk/soul stylings of Davis and Devin, as paired with a menu created by chef JC Bernal. Drink specials are also in store for the Havana margarita, Shiner beers and select wines. Reservations include food, two signature cocktails and complementary toast. $100 per person includes tax and gratuity, 8pm-1am, Hotel Havana, 1015 Navarro St., (210) 222-2008, havanasanantonio.com.

Wednesday, December 30

Game Night Check out the official launch of The Brooklynite’s renovated back room, now a parlor room filled with shuffleboard, dartboards, foosball table and game consoles. The kid in you wants to enjoy a game night while sipping on craft cocktails, right? No cover, 6pm, 516 Brooklyn Ave., (210) 444-0707, thebrooklynitesa.com.

Thursday, December 31

NAO Prix-Fixe The newly reinvigorated Nao Latin Gastro Bar will host a prix-fixe menu with and without wine pairings. The four-course menu created by chef Zach Garza includes a “Trio Latino” with a Venezuelan arepa, Colombian patacones and Peruvian anticuchos; butternut squash soup; choice of grilled beef sirloin, filet of gulf fish and roasted whole pumpkin with vegetables; and cazuelita de chocolate with caramelized plantains. $55 or $80 with wine pairings, 9pm to close, 312 Pearl Pkwy., (210) 554-6484, naorestaurant.com. Masquerade Party MAX’s Wine Dive is hosting a Masquerade Party to ring in 2016. A three-course prix-fixe dinner menu will be available throughout the night, with an optional wine pairing for an additional cost. The MAX’s Wine Dive seasonal dinner menu will be available all night as well, with the option of ordering the pr-fixe menu items a la carte. Outlier will perform live throughout the night (9:30pm-12:30am). A free Champagne toast for restaurant guests will be passed

THU

New Year’s Kiki

Downtown seems like the best place for a year-end blowout. Pride Center San Antonio, a community and resource center for people of all sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions, takes over the Hilton Palacio Del Rio with emcee and burlesque entertainer Foxxy Blue Orchid. The shindig will include hors d’oeuvres, drink tickets, sparkly party favors, a prop-filled party booth, VIP rooftop access for Hemisfair’s display of fireworks and bubble toast at midnight. This calls for your tallest heels and biggest hair. $75, 8pm-1am, 200 S. Alamo St., (210) 370-7743, pridecentersa.org. around at midnight. $49 for prix-fixe menu with $21 for additional wine pairing, 6pm-1am, Max’s Wine Dive, 340 E. Basse Road, Suite #101, (210) 444-9547, maxswinedive.com. The Granary Prix-Fixe Bid adieu to 2015 with a three-course feast at The Granary. Choose from different options in the Welcome, Savor and Stay courses, which include classic Granary dishes and new plates just for this occasion. $50 per person, 6-11pm, 602 Avenue A, (210) 228-0124, thegranarysa. com. Old Main Champagne Dinner Bubbles are on the menu as chef Lorenzo Gomez says adios to 2015 with two seatings of this four-course dinner. Stop in for black-eyed pea soup, scallop Wellington, prime rib braised collards with roasted potato and strawberry cobbler that’ll (hopefully) bring luck, prosperity, wealth and good fortune in 2016. $40 per person, 6 and 8pm, 2512 N. Main Ave., (210) 562-3440, facebook.com/ theoldmainassoc. F*#! You 2015 In all fairness, this year has had its fair share of lows. Give it the bird at The Last Word, where the party includes small bites, music by DJ Nugget and a Champagne toast at midnight. No cover, 9pm-2am, 229 E. Houston St., (210) 314-1285, thelastwordsa.com. Flying Saucer Bash Beer nerds will want to reserve a spot for this New Year’s Eve party as the Flying Saucer takes on the 1920s with a speakeasy theme. Reservations include a 22-ounce bottle of Champagne per two guests. $10 cover for

non-members; reservations start at $50 per couple with $10 increments for every two additional guests; 10pm-2am, Flying Saucer Draught Emporium, 11255 Huebner Road, Suite #212, (210) 696-5080. Boiler House Prix-Fixe Let chef Jeff White and his staff do the cooking this New Year’s Eve with a special menu of ricotta gnudi (similar to gnocchi and made with ricotta); choice of wild mushroom tart, lobster French toast or foie gras torchon (for an extra charge); and choice of trout meuniere, pork shank or Texas Akaushi prime rib (at an extra charge); and finish with a Mexican chocolate torte. $75 with optional wine pairings at $35 or $55, 6-11pm, 312 Pearl Pkwy., Building 3, (210) 354-4644, boilerhousesa.com. Recovery Room New Year’s Eve Party It’s a bit of an oxymoron to get totally wrecked in advance of 2016’s arrival at a bar called Recovery Room, but why the hell not? Stop in for spirits, sparkles, babes and jams by DJ Johnny K. The night includes fun, party favors and bites along with a bubbly toast come midnight. No cover, 8pm-2am, 1139 Harry Wurzbach Road, (210) 930-6612, facebook.com/ recoveryroomsa. New Year’s Eve Join the Night of Celebration at Topgolf, which will feature a live DJ spinning hot tracks, party favors and cool signature cocktails to ring in the new year. Reservations start at $75 per bay for up to six people; 9pm-2am, Topgolf San Antonio, 5539 N. Loop 1604 W., (210) 504-2150, topgolf.com/nye.

C E L E B R AT E AT P E A R L ! F O R A L I S T O F N Y E C E L E B R AT I O N S , V I S I T AT P E A R L . C O M / H A P P E N I N G S sacurrent.com • December 30—January 5, 2015 • CURRENT 29

Pizza by the slice! 1304 S. LAREDO ST. SAN ANTONIO, TX 78204

Authentic Thai Cuisine

Open 7 Days a Week Thank you,

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226 W Bitters Rd #124 • (210) 545-3354 • saebthainoodlesa.com

Daily Lunch Specials

af es Happy Hour 11a-6p Tue-Fri & 9p-11p RESTAURANT & BAR

dining • Dancing • Entertainment

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1039 NE Loop 410 (Between Nacogdoches & Broadway) • 210.826.7118

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SOUTH TEXAS SPICE COmpany Your Hometown

Spice Store

Since 1985.

Retail - Institutional - Specialty Blends 8oz. - 300lbs. or more

210.436.2280 • 2106 castroville rd • 78237 30 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

CALENDAR

Ladies Night Every Friday

KEEP COOL ON OUR NEW PATIO, AND SEE WHY WE ARE THE BEST IN SAN ANTONIO!

$1.50 DOMESTIC BEER FOR LADIES ALL NIGHT DJ 8pm - 12midnight. 1526 ROOSEVELT AVE • 210.532.4113 (Look for the green building.)

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521 E Woodlawn Ave. SA, TX 78212

• F U E L • R E S TAU R A N T • P R O D U C E • M E AT M A R K E T •

700 N. ALAMO

•Start your year off right with a cup of coffee at the SA Coffee Meetup Celebramos! 2016 The Semeneya Dance Teams will offer a different kind of NYE celebration this Thursday with a barbecue dinner menu and Latin dance beats all culminating in a Champagne toast. This event is BYOB. $30 for standing room only sans dinner, table packages start at $40; 9pm-3am, Semeneya 12066 Starcrest Drive, Suite #210, (210) 792-5115. Pop, Fizz, Clink The Esquire Tavern will bid farewell to 2015 with bubbles, a full menu as prepared by chef Brooke Smith until 1 a.m. and music by the Tomcat Miller Quartet. No cover, 10pm, 155 E. Commerce St., (210) 222-2521, esquiretavern-sa.com.

210.444.0711

HOOKAH & BUBBLE TEA 6565 BABCOCK RD STE. #23 (AT DE ZAVALA) 210.384.2974

boba-ology

Friday, January 1

Pub Run San Antonio Held in beautiful Downtown San Antonio every First Friday of the month. Run through the city to several selected bars and clubs in the city. Each month has a specific theme and list of bars to follow. If you like bar-hopping and you enjoy jogging, then there is no reason why you wouldn’t enjoy doing both at the same time. This month’s theme is “College Football” so don’t forget to wear your favorite team’s gear. Free, 7pm, Pat O’Brien’s, 121 Alamo Plaza, (210) 771-2493, pubrunsanantonio.com. SA Coffee MeetUp Start the new year off right with a great new vice or just keep up the old one. Chat about coffee over a pour-over or expertly made latte. Free admission, 3-4pm, Local Coffee at Pearl, 302 Pearl Pkwy., (210) 248-9133. facebook.com/sapurocafe.

boba tea • asian fusion foods • fresh juice 7220 Louis Pasteur Dr. # 125 210.854.4771 sacurrent.com • December 30—January 5, 2015 • CURRENT 31

THE PEOPLE ISSUE N A CITY OF OVER 1.4 MILLION PEOPLE, CHOOSING 20 individuals for pretty much anything is a tall task. But that’s what we’ve done for the San Antonio Current’s first-ever People Issue — selected 20 folks doing captivating work in the Alamo City. Getting down to 20 made for some tough choices. But we think our final list — which includes artists and activists, a chef and a Spur — represents the diverse makeup of the city itself. Some of them inspire us, some entertain, some make the city go. All of them help make San Antonio great.

32 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Spot Barnett Saxophonist and bandleader TRAVIS BUFFKIN

e don’t have Etta or Aretha. Nor do we have Jimi or Jackie. No Brother Ray, Otis or James. We can’t claim Elvis, Chuck or Richard. We can’t brag about B.B., Muddy or Wolf. We do, however, have Spot. “There’s no spots on Spot,” said early Spot Barnett disciple and collaborator Augie Meyers, who, along with a young R&B-loving gringo named Doug Sahm, used to sneak into various “black and tans” to see Spot pull the pain and passion, articulations of the human spirit, from his saxophone. If San Antonio had been home to more popular, wealthier record labels we may be listed alongside Memphis, New Orleans, Detroit and Chicago as one of the hotbeds of American musical activity in the 20th century. However, our little-big city modesty has kept us from being cited with these historic metropolises, and it’s to the detriment of many of our incredible musicians that this is so. Barnett, as a son of San Antonio and one of its most revered musicians, is not only competent in many of the styles that drift from saloons and cantinas, night clubs and taquerias out into the corpus of the city, but he’s a master, and he has the credentials to prove it. Barnett was SA’s premier bandleader throughout the ’50s and ’60s. He was also the bandleader for a couple of artists by the names of Ike and Tina Turner, a member of Ray Charles’ band, backed up James Brown and worked extensively with the depressingly undermentioned Bobby “Blue” Bland. We may not be home to the Mount Rushmore of rock figures who, through exhaustive praise, press and promotion rule the reams of American musical history, but claiming a musician the caliber of a Vernon “Spot” Barnett is just fine by me. SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

106 PERSHING AVE (BEHIND THE SMOKE SHACK) 34 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Melanie Cawthon Outreach & Development VP, Reaching Maximum Independence MARK REAGAN

hile recovering from a back injury and finding work through a temp agency, Melanie Cawthon discovered the world of nonprofit work. “I’d been in catering prior to that … and they placed me at nonprofit and ministry of the church I grew in,” Cawthon said. That was the late ‘90s. Fast-forward to 2015, and she is vice president of outreach and development at Reaching Maximum Independence (RMI) — an organization that helps people with intellectual and developmental disabilities work and live as independently as possible. “I do fundraising and development and event planning,” Cawthon said. She is also co-founder of AccessAbility Fest — a free, open festival created for people with all disabilities — and disABILITYsa.org, an online one-stop website for sharing info, resources ideas and support. Cawthon’s been with RMI for four years, but has learned the finer points of helping people from an array of populations, including child services, homelessness and child sex abuse, but her greatest passion is working with people who have disabilities. “One of the things I love about working with individuals with disabilities is the infectious joy that they have and everything that happens is wonderful and amazing,” she said. “And it just kind of teaches you a significant level of gratitude for everything you have for yourself.” Cawthon also tries to break down barriers by bringing different organizations together to serve people of all types of disabilities, rather than focusing in on one area, like a physical disability. “Because, you know, most organizations operate in silos. So to take on a project that benefits the entire community is sometime outside the scope of some organizations’ traditions,” she said of AccessAbility Fest and RMI’s Fiesta Especial. “It’s a great pleasure and honor to be able to serve my community by making sure they have resources they need to achieve those goals and successes,” Cawthon said. SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

36 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Chuck Cureau In-Arena Host, San Antonio Spurs M. SOLIS

If you’ve been to a Spurs game anytime over the last eight seasons, you’re probably familiar with Chuck Cureau. At a svelte 6-foot-2-inches with a self-described “light bulb-shaped bald head,” the in-arena host for the Spurs leaves a lasting impression. A bundle of energy that embraces challenges, Cureau even filled in as the PA announcer for the team in his rookie season, despite knowing little about basketball. “I remember sitting down there, courtside, dead center, sweat just pouring off of me,” said Cureau with a chuckle. “I was just scared to death.” Cureau eventually transitioned to the position he was originally hired for and has entertained fans ever since. His basketball acumen has grown over the years, and along with the Coyote and DJ Quake, he puts forth his best effort to energize the home crowd. “Probably an hour before the game, I will walk around the AT&T Center,” said Cureau. “Walk the plaza level, sometimes walk the balcony level and just kind of look at the crowd … Those are the people that I’m there to hype up and ensure that they have a good time.” A modern day Renaissance man, Cureau has acted alongside Academy Award winner Kevin Spacey, and holds down a full-time job as a curator for SeaWorld in addition to his duties with the Spurs. Despite a packed schedule, it’s obvious the Silver and Black hold a special place in his heart. “What I hear from people who come to their first NBA game or who have come from other cities and experience our NBA game, people seem to be blown away with the game presentation and the show around the game,” said Cureau. “Of course, first and foremost it’s about the game of basketball and it’s about those players out their playing for our team, but I think it’s the whole experience. It’s a party in there.” SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

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#GOSP UR SG O 38 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Alvaro Del Norte Accordionist and bandleader, Piñata Protest JAMES COURTNEY

f singer, songwriter, accordionist and norteño-punk wizard Alvaro Del Norte were going to be made into a fictional lotería card, he’d be El Chingón (colloquial Spanish for “all around badass with an angsty streak”). As ringleader of the nationally acclaimed norteño, mojado punk band Piñata Protest, Del Norte has proven a gifted songwriter, a cyclonic and riveting performer, and one hell of an intuitive accordionist. Piñata Protest, a local favorite since its inception in 2006, boasts its own Freetail-brewed beer and has increasingly garnered national attention with its 2012 and 2013 releases, Plethora “Reloaded” and El Valiente. Del Norte’s newish side project, Los Callejeros de San Anto, finds the punk rocker with the Tex-Mex swagger trying out more traditional, accordion-fronted borderland ballads and jams. Born in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, Del Norte and his family came to San Antonio as undocumented immigrants when he was four years old. One of his earliest memories is all too typical of the undocumented experience. “One night, la migra showed up at our door calling out my mother’s name, asking us to come outside — someone ratted us out. My mom, brother and I hid in a closet, terrified, for what seemed like eternity. The loud knocking and shouting eventually stopped. This is my earliest memory of life,” Del Norte said. Del Norte believes that growing up in San Antonio led him to dream up Piñata Protest’s signature fusion style. “I feel that both [punk and norteño] are musical styles that are expressions of the working class, of the downtrodden, of protest, of love, of celebration and of everyday life,” he remarked. Luckily for Del Norte and the boys, San Anto agrees.

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Elsa Fernandez Owner, Eye Candy Boutique LAUREN MADRID

lsa Fernandez takes nothing for granted. After running her own pop-up shop for three months as part of the Center City Development & Operations Department’s effort known as OPEN Downtown Pop-Up Shops, she signed a lease to make her store, Eye Candy Boutique at 531 Navarro St., a permanent part of San Antonio. Eye Candy stocks clothes for plus-size women — a surprising anomaly since more than a third of the women in the country are considered plus-size. Now that Eye Candy is getting some good buzz and love from locals, she’s staying Downtown for the time being. “It doesn’t feel real,” said Fernandez about her dream coming true. She has a bachelor’s and master’s in merchandising and has worked as a store manager and visual merchandising manager. When she was in school, perma-chic Fernandez, 32, created a business plan for a plus-size store. Last year, she went all in — she quit her job, created a business plan and sought financing. After a few events, she heard about the city’s pop-up program and applied. Eye Candy Boutique was born. “I’ve learned a lot along the way,” she explained. “I’ve been listening to advice from other business owners and taking note of what I want to do and what I definitely don’t want to do. I did a lot of research before I ever opened the shop, and that’s really paid off.” As a boutique owner, Fernandez wants to make her customers happy. “I have customers who come in asking for a dress for a quinceañera or a wedding, and I want to make them look their best.” After Fernandez signed a year lease for the shop, she renovated and held a re-launch. The store now holds more of everything — from statement pieces for all sizes, to apparel for plus-size sets from street style to party wear. “I never really stop working,” Fernandez said. “I want to keep the shop going and get more customers. My work isn’t done yet.”

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42 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Lorenzo Gomez CEO, Geekdom MICHAEL MARKS

orenzo Gomez makes his gig sound more like a cruise director than a tech executive. Gomez is the CEO of Geekdom, the co-working tech startup space that celebrated its fourth anniversary in early December. He describes the business as a place where members of SA’s feisty tech community lend each other a hand and let their ideas coalesce. Giving people a place to work is important, but Gomez said the real mission is bringing people together — an especially important task given the grinding, solitary nature of work in the entrepreneurial trenches.

“What Geekdom is is part co-working space and part community. Without the community it’s just a cold, boring, soulless space,” Gomez said. And that community has produced results: Gomez said the group’s member companies are worth about $40 million combined. As they grow, so too does their impact on San Antonio. That’s what Gomez truly hopes the company does: lift all the boats for a place that’s historically lagged economically behind similarly-sized cities like Phoenix and San Diego. “Every time we help a company get to a point where they can hire their first employee, we are realizing our mission. That is really what inspires me everyday to keep doing what we’re doing,” Gomez said. Gomez’s long-term vision is for Houston Street to evolve into a mini-corridor for tech Downtown. The dream is to “run into more tech people than tourists” by the Alamo. The best way he knows to do that, he said, is by nurturing a spirit of cooperation, shared success and reciprocity at Geekdom. “If you’re not helpful you’re really not going to last in our ecosystem, and that’s how we want it,” Gomez said. “I actually think it’s a reflection of San Antonio.” SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

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Anya Grokhovski Artistic Director, Musical Bridges Around the World JAMES COURTNEY

nya Grokhovski is an esteemed concert pianist, a musical educator and an important community advocate for the arts. Hailing from a family of professional musicians in Moscow, where she received her bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in piano performance and pedagogy from the Russian Academy of Music, Grokhovski taught music before coming to the U.S. in 1989. In a recent phone interview, speaking of her first impressions of America, Grokhovski said “[her] first trip to Walmart felt like [she] had arrived in Versailles.” In 1991, Grokhovski moved to San Antonio to take a position as staff accompanist at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She recalled being warmly welcomed. Now, she thinks of her arrival to the Alamo City as something destined, noting that it “feels like home to [her] now.” So naturally, wanting to test her San Anto mettle, I asked her where she likes to eat Mexican food. “You’ll probably laugh at me,” she joked, “but I always eat at Las Palapas.” I did laugh, but assured her that it’s better than Taco Cabana. Plus, Grokhovski gets points for detailing the perfection of Palapas’ roasted salsa. For Grokhovski, speaking generally, it is music that has consistently helped her connect with new communities and individuals. And it’s this sense of cultural and personal connection through music that is at the heart of Musical Bridges Around the World (MBAW), Grokhovski’s greatest contribution to SA. MBAW, a nonprofit founded in 1998 on a small scale, puts on designedly diverse musical performances and educational programming. With an eye toward bridging cultural gaps and uplifting at-risk communities, MBAW has produced radically innovative collaborations and reached thousands of SA youth. The organization will present its third International Music Festival next February. SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

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Ken Little Artist and professor MURPHI COOK

round 1959, a 12-year-old Ken Little penned an essay called My Utopia, writing, “I want to be the most famous artist of the 20th century. Now that may sound like some stagestruck kid, but I am serious. The idea of becoming a run-of-the-mill commercial artist haunts me. I would rather not be an artist than be lost in the crowd.” Little may have lightened up since then, but his artistic ambitions certainly never waned, and through the decades he’s crafted a career deeply rooted in the arts, often juggling multiple roles at once, from sculptor (his new series of signature bronze masks will be shown in Houston next year), to public artist (he just installed a commission for Frost Bank), to musician (he’s hoping to record a new album in the next year). But regardless of what’s stacked on his plate, the one place you will always find him is the classroom. Since 1974, Little has taught at universities in Florida, Montana and Oklahoma before moving to San Antonio in 1988. Today, he teaches sculpture at both graduate and undergraduate levels at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Here, his lessons extend beyond ceramic technique and into an intuitive realm, where students learn to “listen” to the materials. And his standards are high. “Walking into the classroom and talking to my students is almost on a parallel level with walking into my studio and making things. I’m asking them to submit themselves to certain standards about what they need to do, and to make an effort in what they need to do — a similar effort to the one that I make,” Little said. And just what would he say to that ambitious 12-year-old student he once was? “Chill out, it’s all going to work,” he chuckled. SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

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Joey Lopez Professor, University of the Incarnate Word MARK REAGAN

oey Lopez lived in Austin for a decade where he got firsthand experience in the tech world. “Even 80 miles away is a whole other world,” he said. “Young adults were treated as having just as much radical potential as anyone else.” Lopez is an associate professor with a convergent media concentration in the Department of Communication Arts at the University of the Incarnate Word. He is also a founding member of the Convergent Media Collective, which aims to help nonprofits effectively use social media. “We consulted on BiblioTech when it first came out,” he said. “And we began working the hacker space 10BitWorks. They call it a maker space now, that’s the trend.” 10BitWorks is an educational, volunteer nonprofit where people can learn everything from software

programming to robotics. “I started working with them a lot heavier and one issue is they wanted a laser cutter,” Lopez said. So, instead of just raising money for a laser cutter, Lopez said he pitched a two-tier system, where people could donate money to learn to use the machine or because they wanted others to be empowered to learn to use the laser. They raised $12,000 in 45 days and bought it, and it’s been used by the community — young and old — ever since. One of his missions, now, through meet-ups, is to bring “facilitators” together for good, so that people don’t duplicate social work outside of what he calls the “Pizza Slice,” an area of San Antonio from Interstate 10 to Downtown to Highway 281 where he said the majority of San Antonio’s wealth can be found that is predominantly Anglo. “We’re being efficient. We’re collaborative,” Lopez said. So far they’ve had two of the meet-ups. “We want to bring together artists and technologists interested in advocacy in the community, in that other 70 percent on the west, south and east sides of San Antonio [that aren’t in that ‘Pizza Slice’],” he said. For Lopez, lessons learned in life have showed him his mission is to help empower people through technology and advocacy where it’s needed most. SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

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50 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

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Rey Lopez Nightlife promoter MARCO AQUINO

fter the success of his first drag show at a straight nightclub (Old San Juan Restaurant and Discotek) in 2011, starring RuPaul’s Drag Race alumna Manila Luzon, promoter Rey Lopez believed he could do it again. “I went knocking on the doors of the gay clubs to see if anybody would be interested in taking me in,” Lopez said. “Nobody wanted to work with me because, at that time, the clubs didn’t think it was an investment to bring in those girls [RuPaul’s Drag Race contestants].” Eventually, the Silver Dollar Saloon gave Lopez an opportunity to shine and generate a loyal following during their Thursday night drag shows. He created Rey Lopez Entertainment (RLE) and started booking both local and national talent. Today, Lopez has become known for his annual birthday celebrations, where he brings in several of the country’s premier drag performers to celebrate his big day and for his weekly “Drag Me To Fame” shows, where local queens get a chance to compete. The first RLE Birthday Bash, held at the Bonham Exchange in 2012, was the first event in the country to unite a dozen Drag Race contestants and was attended by over 1,200 fans. This year’s RLE Birthday Bash at the Aztec Theatre marked Lopez’s 40th, and brought together 12 Drag Race alumnae. “I’m surprised by how many people I’ve been able to reach, and by how many people know of the shows, but I’m not gonna give myself all the credit because I know those girls are very popular,” Lopez said. In September, Lopez presented one of his biggest events yet, bringing together 30 entertainers for Out in the Park at Six Flags Fiesta Texas. “It’s been four years and it’s been nothing but surprises and good things,” he said. SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

52 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Angela & Rick Martinez Owners/operators, Slab Cinema TRAVIS BUFFKIN

he camera pans up a pair of tight-as-Saran-Wrap denim Wranglers careening over pearl snaps stretched to a taut tension across John Travolta’s brawny torso. Women crumble into a communal squeezebox of coos, oohs and ahs. This was my introduction to Slab Cinema: the ombré descension of dusk punctuated by a pockmarked limestone wall, that evening’s canvas for Urban Cowboy. Urban Cowboy is my wife’s all-time favorite movie and its screening in Hemisfair Park in 2010 served as one of our first dates. This is the kind of earnest sentimentality that has kept Angela and Rick Martinez carting around the wires and wares of a bygone pastime for 12 years. Originally the proprietors of San Antonio’s only VHS rental establishment, Planet of the Tapes, the Martinezes moonlight in the portable-drive-in “business,” doing it, simply, for the love of the medium. “Some of our best childhood memories involve going to the drive-in with our families. Slab Cinema provides us with a chance to make memories with our own children, while giving us an outlet to help build community and give others the opportunity to make memories with their families.” That quote is not their corporate mission statement. It’s not posted all over a pristinely produced website as the feel-good cliff note to a profitdriven endeavor. It’s directly from the duo and sums up their interpretation of the outdoor movie experience, their passion and their purpose. The pair has screened hundreds of films all over the city, from the cobblestoned banks of the San Antonio River to the historic Mission Drive-In. They have faced hit-andruns, violent weather and stolen equipment to provide us a glimpse into the magic they felt growing up and offer us to experience it with our children, and to maybe feel a little like kids ourselves. SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

54 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Steven McHugh Chef/owner, Cured JESSICA ELIZARRARAS

t 40, chef Steven McHugh is no whippersnapper, and he’s totally at peace with that. After working for Dickie Brennan and Ralph Brennan and chef Chris Brown at Metro Bistro, and after more than a decade under John Besh (the Wisconsin native opened Lüke San Antonio), McHugh opened his dream eatery at the Pearl in 2013. At two, Cured still shines as one of the city’s best restaurants, and it’s by design as McHugh and wife/partner-in-crime Sylvia handle all aspects of the restaurant. From employing team members they would enjoy working with to calling the “salt guy” that supplies the building’s water softener, McHugh does it all in stride while visiting with tables and

expediting dishes from the line. Though he always had an entrepreneurial spirit, McHugh gleaned a lot of his chef persona from his time with Besh. “When I started working with John, it was the first time I worked with a chef that gave as much attention to the front [of the house] as to the back,” McHugh explained over breakfast tacos at Pete’s Tako House. “He used to force me to get out and talk to the guests ‘Go see how they liked your food, go explain your special.’” His Midwestern charm helps, but the traveling for food and wine festivals (despite bouts of motion sickness), media training and process skillset (“I got really good at packing boxes” he says of Besh’s frequent cooking trips), is what’s helping Cured and San Antonio — a city he chose to call home after beating non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and being told to keep his stress level down — stand out. He and Sylvia lean on their staff, including Robert Rodriguez, Forrest Hyde, Wacey Jamison, Mark Gunnoe and William Rivera, to make service great. His advice for young cooks — build your resume, work for somebody. “They hate when I’m on that line because I’m scrutinizing everything, I’m tough,” McHugh said. SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

56 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

William McManus Chief, San Antonio Police Department MICHAEL MARKS

ince officially coming back as chief of the San Antonio Police Department in October, William McManus has been busy. He’s dealing with how the department will handle putting more body cameras on the street, an inquiry from the FBI and the small matter of managing over 2,000 sworn officers. But his top priority so far has been revamping the way his department — and perhaps San Antonio itself — approaches homelessness. For years, homeless people have received ticket after ticket for offenses such as camping and panhandling. And while McManus said his officers will enforce the laws on the books, he realized after some time away from the force that the homeless couldn’t simply be arrested away. “They’re going to go somewhere. They just spring up somewhere else. And watching it from outside the department, it gives you a different perspective on it,” McManus said. A key component of McManus’ plan is to develop multidisciplinary teams with other agencies such as Haven for Hope and the city’s Department of Human Services to bring resources directly to people on the street. The idea is that hopefully at least one of the options — whether it’s mental health treatment, job placement or just a hot meal — will be what a certain person needs. “There are homeless people who are not chemically dependent, who are not mentally ill, and just for whatever reason they’re on the street. It’s where they want to to be,” he said. “As long as they’re not breaking the law, they have a right to be there. Part of it is managing the expectations of those that expect to see the homeless people just shoved aside, and understanding that if they’re not breaking the law, and they want to be on the street, they can be on the street.”

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58 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

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Patty Mills Point guard, San Antonio Spurs M. SOLIS

ow in his fifth season with the Spurs, backup point guard Patty Mills has fully settled into his comfort zone in South Texas. He drinks local java from Indy Coffee Co., enjoys dining at the Pearl and has rocked out at SXSW. He also dreads allergy season, just like the rest of us. “I think coming not just from Portland, but from the other side of the world, I got to really experience and open up to the culture of Texas, and that’s something that I’ve really enjoyed,” said Mills after a recent practice. “San Antonio is now the place that I’ve spent the most time in America away from Australia, away from home, and I think it’s a credit to the community, to the people of San Antonio, that have welcomed me with open arms, just as well as they have with everyone else on this team.” Mills describes the environment in San Anto as humbling and admits that when recruiting his former Portland teammate LaMarcus Aldridge, it really wasn’t a tough sell. “Coming from Dallas and going to school in Austin, he was very familiar with the place already, so it wasn’t like there was much new to tell him other than it is a family environment,” Mills said. After working through a shoulder injury last season, Mills has regained the form that catapulted him to international fame. Along with maestro Manu Ginobili, he has paced the Spurs’ pass-happy second unit, overwhelming opponents with superior depth, particularly at home. “There’s always a certain level of comfort playing at home,” Mills said. “It’s a number of things. Home crowd. Home support. To the simple things as being able to be in your own home, in your own environment, where you get to sleep in your own bed. There’s something about that that makes coming back home really special. We try to protect our home and protect our arena. It’s a special place.” SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

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60 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Naomi Shihab Nye Poet and author JAMES COURTNEY

long-beloved member of the San Antonio arts and culture landscape, celebrated author Naomi Shihab Nye writes just about everything. From essays to poems, from novels to short stories, from kid’s books to songs, the self-described “wandering poet” possesses a boundless gift for the written word. Nye said she’s been “writing constantly, even submitting work to magazines, since [she] was seven years old.” Perhaps that’s why she’s been so active in arts education around the city, particularly creative writing.

Nye, who finds championing the arts as a way of “seeing each other as humans and defeating the belief in enemies and others,” wasn’t born in San Antonio but moved here by chance when she was 17. After a childhood spent in Missouri, Nye moved to Jerusalem with her American mother and Palestinian-immigrant father. After much turmoil, the family relocated to San Antonio. Nye mused “[her] family just had a good feeling about [San Antonio], and that good feeling has stuck with [her].” “I’ve loved this city ever since, and I feel lucky that my parents picked a place that’s been so nourishing and engaging and delightful,” Nye remarked. On her teenage experience in Jerusalem, Nye said it was “there [she] started to see that you could use writing as activism, rather than just description or lyricism.” When we spoke, the cause of visiting artists and writers in schools was fresh on Nye’s mind. She believes strongly that it is in the city’s best interest if all our public school districts, San Antonio Independent School District in particular, move to rekindle school visits by working artists and writers. Her own past experience with such programs, she noted, was transformative for visitors, students and the community.

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62 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

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Jenny Rabb Faz Event Director, San Antonio Cocktail Conference JESSICA ELIZARRARAS

he can plan a party in her sleep. And they’re not Red Solo Cup ragers either. As event director for the San Antonio Cocktail Conference, Jenny Rabb Faz really does have a knack for powerful presentation. Rabb Faz is one of the masterminds behind the 5-year-old conference that turns a sleepy post-holiday rush Downtown into a dazzling weeklong celebration of all spirited libations. Though January is normally considered a slow month for the bar industry, the conference, with its seminars, dinners, tastings and elaborate parties, now sets the tone for what’s to come throughout the year.

Next time you’re sipping on that boutique mezcal, or admiring an elaborate bar takeover during the SACC, you can thank Rabb Faz for her planning prowess. She, along with founder Mark Bohanan, executive director Cathy Siegel, event coordinator Elise Russ, prep crew captain Karah Carmack and logistics coordinator Carlos Faz, plan the festivities — plotting placement for brands and spirits, scheduling presenter seminars, collecting recipes from bartenders and making sure each event has enough booze. Though San Antonio would still have a semblance of cocktail culture without the event, its grasp on the city wouldn’t be as strong without the educational bacchanal that is the conference. To unwind, she’d much rather cozy up for Netflix binging with some wine. “I’m on a pinot noir kick, but I always love a glass of bubbles,” she laughed. Still, the cocktail movement and the groups that Houston Street Charities are able to help — The Children’s Shelter, ChildSafe, Clarity Child Guidance Center, TEAMability and Transplants for Children will all benefit in 2016 — make the late nights worth it. “All of us sacrifice something, whether it’s time away for our families, or friends,” Rabb Faz said.“But when it’s over, it’s such a feel-good that we made a difference and put on an amazing event.”

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64 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Alex Rubio Muralist and mentor MURPHI COOK

n December 12, 1989, with his mentor Juan Hernandez on one side and a young Vincent Valdez on the other, Alex Rubio put his distinctive curvilinear marks on a mural commissioned by the San Fernando Cathedral and made an important realization: He was finally a real artist. That spirit stuck, and he has never forgotten the feeling of creating for his community. Today, his large scale paintings and prints have been widely collected and shown in Texas and throughout the U.S. in exhibits such as Cheech Marin’s groundbreaking 12-city tour, “Chicano Visions: Painters on the Verge,” and the summer 2016 exhibit at the Smithsonian

affiliate Ellen Noel Art Museum in Odessa, Texas. But his energies remain deeply rooted in San Antonio, as he seamlessly shifts between his roles as creator, teacher and curator. As artist-in-residence at Blue Star Contemporary Art Museum’s MOSAIC program, Rubio mentors high school students in art-making and business techniques year-round, five days a week after school and during the summer. He also serves as an adjunct for the community classes at the Southwest School of Art. Rubio said he seeks to inspire his students “to continue the investigation and exploration of media, to be prolific in studio work, focus and concentration, to be inspired by fellow contemporary artists and to seek out opportunities working with curators, museums and galleries.” Rubio opened R Space (110 E. Lachapelle) in March 2011 so those same undiscovered and emerging artists could experience the professional practice of the exhibition process. “I had those opportunities as a young artist, and that personal mission of sharing that experience and offering these opportunities to the next generation of art-workers inspires me as an artist and as a curator,” he explained. You can expect to see a whole lot more of Rubio’s curatorial efforts in the coming months — he’s opening a second venue, Rubio Gallery-South, this spring. “It will double the opportunity for artists to present, promote and introduce their work to the arts community,” he said.

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Robert Salcido Regional Field Organizer, Equality Texas MICHAEL MARKS

obert Salcido is coming for the hearts and minds of San Antonians. It’s no easy task. So how does he do it? By talking to people — lots and lots and lots of people. And then getting them to talk to even more people, all in the name of LGBT education and justice. “I would describe it as definitely a high-contact position,” Salcido said of being an organizer for Equality Texas. For Salcido, 2015 was full of “ups, downs and everything in between.” The big win is obvious: The Supreme Court’s June 26 ruling that same-sex marriage bans were unconstitutional was perhaps the biggest step forward for LGBT rights in U.S. history. But there’s much more work left to do, Salcido says. Chief among his priorities is ensuring the city’s non-discrimination ordinance is being properly enforced as it pertains to sexual orientation. “Being a queer man myself ... I want those protections just like anybody else, but I also see those other individuals not leading as privileged of a life as I do,” Salcido said. “There are some people out there who go to work each day not being able to be their true authentic self … simply because someone doesn’t agree with that.” Which comes back to changing hearts and minds. Salcido emphasizes public education and outreach, getting folks to share their stories and lived experiences with others. “Injustices that the LGBT community has to face every day — it’s one of those things that you just know is wrong,” Salcido said. “I see myself in a position that I have a voice for those who don’t have it. Until I have that taken away from me, I’m going to speak at the top of my lungs that these are injustices we need to face.” SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

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68 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

Pat Smothers Political activist CALLIE ENLOW

n July 4, 2015, in response to Texas’ updated abortion clinic regulations currently being considered by the Supreme Court, a massive new Planned Parenthood clinic opened in the Medical Center. Behind the 22,000-square-foot facility stood Pat Smothers, chair of the committee charged with finding funds for the $7.5 million bill. Smothers, a former member of the Women’s Political Caucus board of directors in the ’80s and one-time chair for Ann Richards’ campaign for governor in Bexar County, has spent considerable time speaking up for some of the most frightened and marginalized members of society: victims of domestic abuse and family violence. After seeing Richards inaugurated,

Smothers joined the board of Family Violence Prevention Services in San Antonio and spearheaded a committe that went on to build La Paloma de la Paz in 2012, accommodating up to 222 women and children and featuring medical clinics, a school and transitional housing. Smothers’ political interests and the personal experiences of women at La Paloma converge in her unabashed support of Planned Parenthood. “Working with so many women at the shelter … reinforced my conviction that it is essential that women decide when they are able, capable and desiring to becoming mothers,” said Smothers. The new center complies with requirements the Texas Legislature passed into law in 2013. Still, Smothers, a critic of those regulations, hopes the Supreme Court strikes them down. “It is difficult living in a state where the governor and lieutenant governor are constantly trying to deny women their right to medically safe abortions,” Smothers groaned. “That is why I agreed to head the committee to raise the money to build the beautiful new clinic that conforms to the new and unnecessary requirements.” That contrarian streak informs much of her activism. “I choose to work on women’s and children’s issues that are woefully unrepresented … controversial but essential. There are numerous other people that can support less controversial issues,” she said.

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Anna Stothart Curator, San Antonio Museum of Art KIKO MARTÍNEZ

nna Stothart thinks back to the summers she spent as a child during the ’80s at the Ghost Ranch in Abiquiú, New Mexico. Years prior, her parents befriended potter Juan Hamilton, a confidant of painter Georgia O’Keeffe. That was when Stothart, hired to be The Brown Foundation Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the San Antonio Museum of Art (SAMA) last February, found her calling. She just didn’t know it yet. “It wasn’t something I was conscious of at the time, but having that history was an amazing thing,” Stothart, 37, said. “It led me to think about the role art plays in society and culture. I saw how much it helped enrich, educate and bring people and communities together.”

Originally from Bellingham, Washington, Stothart earned her undergraduate degree from Western Washington University in art history in 2005, and a master’s degree from Tufts University in art history and museum studies in 2007. She moved to Boston to work as a curatorial associate and then as assistant curator at the Institute of Contemporary Art. Since her move to SAMA 10 months ago, Stothart has connected with what she considers a “vibrant and close-knit artistic community.” “I’ve developed some great relationships,” she said. “I’m interested in figuring out what people in San Antonio — artists, educators, curators, collectors, patrons of the arts — get excited about.” Next October, Stothart will curate an international exhibition tentatively titled “In the Dust of This Planet,” which will explore the parallels between zombie pop culture and society’s “underlying anxiety about the environmental crisis and human extinction.” It’s the type of show she hopes will engage a new audience. “The benefit of working for an encyclopedic institution is to make those connections either visually or conceptually for the public,” she said. “Hopefully, that will draw a broader interest in the institution.” SAN ANTONIO CURRENT

72 CURRENT • December 30—January 5, 2015 • sacurrent.com

ETC.

COCK LOCKED I am a 30-year-old straight man and I’ve been with a 28-year-old bisexual woman for a year. Early in our relationship, after much discussion, we established that it would be open. I would have the liberty to see other women and so would she. We just had to be safe and always keep each other informed. The key was that she agreed to see only other women. I was uncomfortable with the idea of her being with another man, and she went along with it. Fast-forward a few months, and she told me that she had drunkenly kissed a male coworker. Hearing her say that hurt me. However, since then she has explained to me that the rule that she can be only with women is unfair because she’s bisexual and she’s attracted to both men and women. I can see whomever I might find attractive, but she has to limit herself. After much soul-searching, I came around to her point of view and she now has the option to see men too. My question: How do I deal with the jealousy and emotions that will come up when she does kiss another man? Or does even more with another man? We love each other, and I think it’s important to note that while we have both been on dates with other people, neither of us has had sex with someone else yet. Having Emotional Reaction Means Asking Nervously “Hard Truth #1: Renegotiating is crucial to the survival of all longterm relationships — even more so in unconventional, custom-designed relationships where there’s no established template,” said Christopher Ryan, author of Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray, and What It Means for Modern Relationships. “And while I don’t see any unfairness in HERMAN’s girlfriend wanting to have the same freedom he has (to see whomever she wants), if he agreed to the open relationship on the condition that she ‘see only other women,’ then

SAVAGE LOVE by Dan Savage

renegotiating is going to be difficult.” Your description of that particular limitation — only other women — as “key” to opening up your relationship, HERMAN, left Ryan feeling less than optimistic. “Hard Truth #2: It’s a time-wasting mistake to negotiate nonnegotiables,” said Ryan. “I’m not saying we shouldn’t be willing to learn and grow by trying new things. But our first task is to ‘know thyself’ and take it from there. For example, if you’re certain you want or don’t want kids, then that shouldn’t be open to negotiation just because you met someone you like (or love) whose dreams go the other way.” Assuming you’re willing to renegotiate, HERMAN, where do you start? “Perhaps the question of why he’s more bothered by her being with men than women,” said Ryan. “Maybe he could ask her to set up a three-way with a man they both like so he can face the dragon, so to speak. See if the flip side of his fear isn’t that he’s actually turned on by the thought of her with other men. Lots to explore, once he’s certain he wants to explore it. But, again, if this is a nonnegotiable — if this really isn’t something HERMAN wants, despite his desire to be fair — it might be better to end the relationship than to attempt to be someone he’s not or agree to something he’ll never be at peace with.” Follow Christopher Ryan on Twitter @ChrisRyanPhD, and check out his podcast (Tangentially Speaking), videos, and swag at ChrisRyanPhD.com. Since you had the ability to make Santorum what he is today (a substance, not a senator), would you promote the new meme that Trump = dump? As in “I have to take a trump” or “I just took a major trump — like a transatlantic-cable trump.” Gross Old Politicians I’m Dan Savage and I approve this meme Start the New Year right and subscribe to the Savage Lovecast: savagelovecast.com. mail@savagelove.net

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1 Letterhead illustrations 6 Key holder 9 “Your Movie Sucks” author Roger 14 “I’m on ___!” 15 Anonymous Richard in court cases 16 Where it’s happening 17 Like some French sauces 18 Observation from one person to another, part 1 20 Observation, part 2 22 Street of bad dreams? 23 “Ice Age” sloth 24 Allow 25 Stick (out) 28 Singer who dropped “McEntire” from her performing name 30 Last name in cartoon skunks 32 Appease fully 33 Possible pigeon perch 35 Baseball Hall-of-Famer Tony 36 Observation, part 3 40 “Oh ___! — it’s full of stars!” (line from the novel “2001”) 41 “And there you have it!” 42 Rake in 43 British artist Lucian 45 BBQ specialty 49 180 degrees from SSW

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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY by Rob Brezsny ARIES (MARCH 21-APRIL 19):

LEO (JULY 23-AUG. 22):

SAGITTARIUS (NOV. 22-DEC. 21) :

John Koenig is an artist who invents new words. Here’s one that’s applicable to your journey in 2016: “keyframe.” Koenig defines it as being a seemingly mundane phase of your life that is in fact a turning point. Major plot twists in your big story arrive halfhidden amidst a stream of innocuous events. They don’t come about through “a series of jolting epiphanies,” Koenig says, but rather “by tiny imperceptible differences between one ordinary day and the next.” In revealing this secret, I hope I’ve alerted you to the importance of acting with maximum integrity and excellence in your everyday routine.

The silkworm grows fast. Once it hatches, it eats constantly for three weeks. By the time it spins its cocoon, it’s 10,000 times heavier than it was in the beginning. On the other hand, a mature, 60-foot-tall saguaro cactus may take 30 years to fully grow a new side arm. It’s in no hurry. From what I can tell, Leo, 2015 was more like a silkworm year for you, whereas 2016 will more closely resemble a saguaro. Keep in mind that while the saguaro phase is different from your silkworm time, it’s just as important.

In many cases, steel isn’t fully useful if it’s too hard. Manufacturers often have to soften it a bit. This process, which is called tempering, makes the steel springier and more malleable. Car parts, for example, can’t be too rigid. If they were, they’d break too easily. I invite you to use “tempering” as one of your main metaphors in 2016, Sagittarius. You’re going to be strong and vigorous, and those qualities will serve you best if you keep them flexible. Do you know the word “ductile”? If not, look it up. It’ll be a word of power for you.

VIRGO (AUG. 23-SEPT. 22) :

CAPRICORN (DEC. 22-JAN. 19) :

“The sky calls me,” wrote Virgo teacher and poet Sri Chinmoy. “The wind calls me. The moon and stars call me. The dense groves call me. The dance of the fountain calls me. Smiles call me, tears call me. A faint melody calls me. The morn, noon and eve call me. Everyone is searching for a playmate. Everyone is calling me, ‘Come, come!’” In 2016, Virgo, I suspect you will have a lot of firsthand experience with feelings like these. Sometimes life’s seductiveness may overwhelm you, activating confused desires to go everywhere and do everything. On other occasions, you will be enchanted by the lush invitations, and will know exactly how to respond and reciprocate.

In his essay “The Etiquette of Freedom,” poet Gary Snyder says that wildness “is perennially within us, dormant as a hard-shelled seed, awaiting the fire or flood that awakes it again.” The fact that it’s a “hard-shelled” seed is a crucial detail. The vital stuff inside the stiff outer coating may not be able to break out and start growing without the help of a ruckus. A fire or flood? They might do the job. But I propose, Capricorn, that in 2016 you find an equally vigorous but less disruptive prod to liberate your dormant wildness. Like what? You could embark on a brave pilgrimage or quest. You could dare yourself to escape your comfort zone. Are there any undomesticated fantasies you’ve been suppressing? Unsuppress them!

TAURUS (APRIL 20-MAY 20): The coming months look like one of the best times ever for your love life. Old romantic wounds are finally ready to be healed. You’ll know what you have to do to shed tired traditions and bad habits that have limited your ability to get the spicy sweetness you deserve. Are you up for the fun challenge? Be horny for deep feelings. Be exuberantly aggressive in honoring your primal yearnings. Use your imagination to dream up new approaches to getting what you want. The innovations in intimacy that you initiate in the coming months will keep bringing you gifts and teachings for years to come.

GEMINI (MAY 21-JUNE 20): In ancient times, observers of the sky knew the difference between stars and planets. The stars remained fixed in their places. The planets wandered around, always shifting positions in relationship to the stars. But now and then, at irregular intervals, a very bright star would suddenly materialize out of nowhere, stay in the same place for a while, and then disappear. Chinese astronomers called these “guest stars.” We refer to them as supernovae. They are previously dim or invisible stars that explode, releasing tremendous energy for a short time. I suspect that in 2016, you may experience the metaphorical equivalent of a guest star. Learn all you can from it. It’ll provide teachings and blessings that could feed you for years.

CANCER (JUNE 21-JULY 22): Be alert for an abundance of interesting lessons in 2016. You will be offered teachings about a variety of practical subjects, including how to take care of yourself really well, how to live the life you want to live and how to build the connections that serve your dreams. If you are even moderately responsive to the prompts and nudges that come your way, you will become smarter than you thought possible. So just imagine how savvy you’ll be if you ardently embrace your educational opportunities. (Please note that some of these opportunities may be partially in disguise.)

AQUARIUS (JAN. 20-FEB. 18) : Frederick the Great was King of Prussia between 1740 and 1786. He was also an Aquarius who sometimes experimented with eccentric ideas. When he brewed his coffee, for example, he used champagne instead of water. Once the hot elixir was ready to drink, he mixed in a dash of powdered mustard. In light of the astrological omens, I suspect that Frederick’s exotic blend might be an apt symbol for your life in 2016: a vigorous, rich, complex synthesis of Champagne, coffee and mustard. (P.S. Frederick testified that “champagne carries happiness to the brain.”) PISCES (FEB. 19-MARCH 20): My Piscean acquaintance Arturo plays the piano as well as anyone I’ve heard. He tells me that he can produce 150 different sounds from any single key. Using the foot pedals accounts for some of the variation. How he touches a key is an even more important factor. It can be percussive, fluidic, staccato, relaxed, lively, and many other moods. I invite you to cultivate a similar approach to your unique skills in 2016. Expand and deepen your ability to draw out the best in them. Learn how to be even more expressive with the powers you already possess.

LIBRA (SEPT. 23-OCT. 22): In the 19th century, horses were a primary mode of personal transportation. Some people rode them, and others sat in carriages and wagons that horses pulled. But as cities grew larger, a problem emerged: the mounting manure left behind on the roads. It became an ever-increasing challenge to clear away the equine “pollution.” In 1894, a British newspaper predicted that the streets of London would be covered with nine feet of the stuff by 1950. But then something unexpected happened: cars. Gradually, the threat of an excremental apocalypse waned. I present this story as an example of what I expect for you in 2016: a pressing dilemma that will gradually dissolve because of the arrival of a factor you can’t imagine yet.

THIS MODERN WORLD by Tom Tomorrow

SCORPIO (OCT. 23-NOV. 21): The longest river in the world flows through eastern Africa: the Nile. It originates below the equator and empties into the Mediterranean Sea. Although its current flows north, its prevailing winds blow south. That’s why sailors have found it easily navigable for thousands of years. They can either go with the flow of the water or use sails to harness the power of the breeze. I propose that we make the Nile your official metaphor in 2016, Scorpio. You need versatile resources that enable you to come and go as you please — that are flexible in supporting your efforts to go where you want and when you want.

sacurrent.com • December 30—January 5, 2015 • CURRENT 77

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FACILITIES 2 Location - Blanco Rd. & Crossroads Blvd. Large training rooms - 2,220 4,500 sq. ft. ProShop - with training gear and retail Men’s and Women’s locker rooms with showers Unique Blend of over 100 classes per week

“come and see why we are different than your average gym”

CLASSES

FITNESS

“get in shape and go home safe” Krav Maga

SELF DEFENSE Cardio bag

2 LOCATIONS 100 Crossroads Blvd. Ste. #103 San Antonio, TX 78201 (210)3486127

KM CombativeS

Fit to Fight

STW911.COM 18450 Blanco Road Ste. #2 San Antonio, TX 78258 (210)5453900

*Must be used in 2 consecutive days