After a Fashion

Christopher Trout, aka Editor Bunny LeRoi of the webzine Box-Mag.com and Skinny Boy Burlesque, is making quite a name for himself... but you can choose one for yourself. (Photo By Mary Sledd)

SAY WHAT? "It came straight from the Bible that he (Jesus) had a glass of wine. Actually, I don't know if it says he actually drank it, but whatever." – Kelly Clarkson defending her drinking in the January/February issue of Blender magazine

NOT TO BE MISSED The interdisciplinary art collective Gat5, committed to promoting the Austin art community through the fusion of visual art, design, film, music, and theatre, is producing the Gat5 Showcase, a group art exhibit featuring a variety of 2-D and 3-D works exhibited in small spaces throughout the venue, several video installations and film projections. Gulp, that's a mouthful, n'est-ce pas? Well, it may sound dry, but it will be anything but dry. Benefiting Gat5 and AIDS Services of Austin, the show will be held Thu., Feb. 23 at Antone's, with a VIP Cocktail Hour from 7-8pm with Mike Vernon and 3 Balls of Fire playing. 54 Seconds and Johnny Goudie will also perform, followed by Alpha Rev (www.alpharev.com), featuring Casey McPherson, former lead singer for Endochine. Tickets ($10 general, $25 VIP) are available at www.frontgatetickets.com, www.gat5art.com, and www.myspace.com/gat5. Oh yeah, I almost forgot to mention that I'll be debuting my first clothing collection in many years at the event, replete with glamorous celebrity models. But you'll just have to wait until next week to find out exactly what I have up my sharply pressed and beautifully cut sleeve.

WHITHER SONIC? It's gone. For years it was there … and then overnight it was gone. The Sonic drive-in near my home, which I often considered my weekend getaway, is now just an empty parking lot. It was the first place I drove to when I got my own car. I considered having my wedding reception there – if I were to get married, of course. But now it's just a distant memory … and I'll have to drive to the Sonic on South Lamar to use up all the free hamburger cards I've collected.

UP A TREE Loyal readers have noticed that there was no annual update about my Christmas tree. It's because I didn't have one this year. I know: It's shocking, given the depth of my devotion to Christmas decor, but I just couldn't summon up the courage to drag out all the accoutrements. Perhaps it's because the tree I put up in October 2004 was so lavish that I didn't take it down until October of 2005 … which is when I usually would have put up a new tree. But by October, I had embarked upon my new mission of making luxury Christmas stockings. With a cutting table where my tree should have gone, and sewing machines where I usually display the Waterford crystal ornaments my Sister Margaret gives me every year, I just didn't have the room to put up a tree. Not to mention that with Christmas stockings flying off my sewing machine and my apartment dripping with beads and rhinestones and velvet and fur, putting up a Christmas tree would have been redundant. I did manage to throw some lights in my windows and deck, and put a dazzling wreath on my door (with peacocks and crystals and white lights) to fool my neighbors, though. Maybe this year I'll get on track and put the tree up and take it down within a reasonable amount of time. Imagine that.

LE SALE This weekend, Sat., Feb. 4 (12-6pm), and Sun., Feb. 5 (11am-5pm), is the bigger-and-better-than-ever Le Garage Sale at the Austin Music Hall (208 Nueces). Admission is $10 Saturday and $5 Sunday, cash only. Participants include By George, Fetish, Shiki, Garden Room, Scarbrough's, Adelante, Tootsies, Service Menswear, Estilo, Wildflower, Fabby Darling, Crofts Originals, Zanzibar, Big Red Sun, Moxie & the Compound, Daisy Hill, Monsoon Imports, and Pure West. Beware – there are no dressing rooms!

START YOUR ENGINES The Designer Clearance House's semiannual warehouse shoe and accessory sale is on Sat., Feb 4, 10am-5pm, and Sun., Feb. 5, 10am-3pm at the Centre, 7801 N. Lamar Ste. A130, at 183. Stuart Weitzman, Cordani, Anne Klein, Michael Kors, Marc Jacobs, and plenty more.

SITINGS For a complete overview of building cows out of concrete, check out the charming Web site of the wonderful Cheryl Latimer (www.latimerdesign.com), noted for her cows for Amy's Ice Creams. And enter a world unto itself at www.box-mag.com, brainchild of Editor Christopher Trout, aka Bunny Le Roi. Trout's Skinny Boy Burlesque shows have reportedly set the Peacock Lounge on its ear twice now.