• Home
  • popular
  • EVENTS
  • submit-new-event
  • CHARITY GUIDE
  • Children
  • Education
  • Health
  • Veterans
  • Social Services
  • Arts + Culture
  • Animals
  • LGBTQ
  • New Charity
  • TRENDING NEWS
  • News
  • City Life
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Home + Design
  • Travel
  • Real Estate
  • Restaurants + Bars
  • Arts
  • Society
  • Innovation
  • Fashion + Beauty
  • subscribe
  • about
  • series
  • Embracing Your Inner Cowboy
  • Green Living
  • Summer Fun
  • Real Estate Confidential
  • RX In the City
  • State of the Arts
  • Fall For Fashion
  • Cai's Odyssey
  • Comforts of Home
  • Good Eats
  • Holiday Gift Guide 2010
  • Holiday Gift Guide 2
  • Good Eats 2
  • HMNS Pirates
  • The Future of Houston
  • We Heart Hou 2
  • Music Inspires
  • True Grit
  • Hoops City
  • Green Living 2011
  • Cruizin for a Cure
  • Summer Fun 2011
  • Just Beat It
  • Real Estate 2011
  • Shelby on the Seine
  • Rx in the City 2011
  • Entrepreneur Video Series
  • Going Wild Zoo
  • State of the Arts 2011
  • Fall for Fashion 2011
  • Elaine Turner 2011
  • Comforts of Home 2011
  • King Tut
  • Chevy Girls
  • Good Eats 2011
  • Ready to Jingle
  • Houston at 175
  • The Love Month
  • Clifford on The Catwalk Htx
  • Let's Go Rodeo 2012
  • King's Harbor
  • FotoFest 2012
  • City Centre
  • Hidden Houston
  • Green Living 2012
  • Summer Fun 2012
  • Bookmark
  • 1987: The year that changed Houston
  • Best of Everything 2012
  • Real Estate 2012
  • Rx in the City 2012
  • Lost Pines Road Trip Houston
  • London Dreams
  • State of the Arts 2012
  • HTX Fall For Fashion 2012
  • HTX Good Eats 2012
  • HTX Contemporary Arts 2012
  • HCC 2012
  • Dine to Donate
  • Tasting Room
  • HTX Comforts of Home 2012
  • Charming Charlie
  • Asia Society
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2012
  • HTX Mistletoe on the go
  • HTX Sun and Ski
  • HTX Cars in Lifestyle
  • HTX New Beginnings
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2013
  • Zadok Sparkle into Spring
  • HTX Let's Go Rodeo 2013
  • HCC Passion for Fashion
  • BCAF 2013
  • HTX Best of 2013
  • HTX City Centre 2013
  • HTX Real Estate 2013
  • HTX France 2013
  • Driving in Style
  • HTX Island Time
  • HTX Super Season 2013
  • HTX Music Scene 2013
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2013 2
  • HTX Baker Institute
  • HTX Comforts of Home 2013
  • Mothers Day Gift Guide 2021 Houston
  • Staying Ahead of the Game
  • Wrangler Houston
  • First-time Homebuyers Guide Houston 2021
  • Visit Frisco Houston
  • promoted
  • eventdetail
  • Greystar Novel River Oaks
  • Thirdhome Go Houston
  • Dogfish Head Houston
  • LovBe Houston
  • Claire St Amant podcast Houston
  • The Listing Firm Houston
  • South Padre Houston
  • NextGen Real Estate Houston
  • Pioneer Houston
  • Collaborative for Children
  • Decorum
  • Bold Rock Cider
  • Nasher Houston
  • Houston Tastemaker Awards 2021
  • CityNorth
  • Urban Office
  • Villa Cotton
  • Luck Springs Houston
  • EightyTwo
  • Rectanglo.com
  • Silver Eagle Karbach
  • Mirador Group
  • Nirmanz
  • Bandera Houston
  • Milan Laser
  • Lafayette Travel
  • Highland Park Village Houston
  • Proximo Spirits
  • Douglas Elliman Harris Benson
  • Original ChopShop
  • Bordeaux Houston
  • Strike Marketing
  • Rice Village Gift Guide 2021
  • Downtown District
  • Broadstone Memorial Park
  • Gift Guide
  • Music Lane
  • Blue Circle Foods
  • Houston Tastemaker Awards 2022
  • True Rest
  • Lone Star Sports
  • Silver Eagle Hard Soda
  • Modelo recipes
  • Modelo Fighting Spirit
  • Athletic Brewing
  • Rodeo Houston
  • Silver Eagle Bud Light Next
  • Waco CVB
  • EnerGenie
  • HLSR Wine Committee
  • All Hands
  • El Paso
  • Avenida Houston
  • Visit Lubbock Houston
  • JW Marriott San Antonio
  • Silver Eagle Tupps
  • Space Center Houston
  • Central Market Houston
  • Boulevard Realty
  • Travel Texas Houston
  • Alliantgroup
  • Golf Live
  • DC Partners
  • Under the Influencer
  • Blossom Hotel
  • San Marcos Houston
  • Photo Essay: Holiday Gift Guide 2009
  • We Heart Hou
  • Walker House
  • HTX Good Eats 2013
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2013
  • HTX Culture Motive
  • HTX Auto Awards
  • HTX Ski Magic
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings 2014
  • HTX Texas Traveler
  • HTX Cifford on the Catwalk 2014
  • HTX United Way 2014
  • HTX Up to Speed
  • HTX Rodeo 2014
  • HTX City Centre 2014
  • HTX Dos Equis
  • HTX Tastemakers 2014
  • HTX Reliant
  • HTX Houston Symphony
  • HTX Trailblazers
  • HTX_RealEstateConfidential_2014
  • HTX_IW_Marks_FashionSeries
  • HTX_Green_Street
  • Dating 101
  • HTX_Clifford_on_the_Catwalk_2014
  • FIVE CultureMap 5th Birthday Bash
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2014 TEST
  • HTX Texans
  • Bergner and Johnson
  • HTX Good Eats 2014
  • United Way 2014-15_Single Promoted Articles
  • Holiday Pop Up Shop Houston
  • Where to Eat Houston
  • Copious Row Single Promoted Articles
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2014
  • htx woodford reserve manhattans
  • Zadok Swiss Watches
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings 2015
  • HTX Charity Challenge 2015
  • United Way Helpline Promoted Article
  • Boulevard Realty
  • Fusion Academy Promoted Article
  • Clifford on the Catwalk Fall 2015
  • United Way Book Power Promoted Article
  • Jameson HTX
  • Primavera 2015
  • Promenade Place
  • Hotel Galvez
  • Tremont House
  • HTX Tastemakers 2015
  • HTX Digital Graffiti/Alys Beach
  • MD Anderson Breast Cancer Promoted Article
  • HTX RealEstateConfidential 2015
  • HTX Vargos on the Lake
  • Omni Hotel HTX
  • Undies for Everyone
  • Reliant Bright Ideas Houston
  • 2015 Houston Stylemaker
  • HTX Renewable You
  • Urban Flats Builder
  • Urban Flats Builder
  • HTX New York Fashion Week spring 2016
  • Kyrie Massage
  • Red Bull Flying Bach
  • Hotze Health and Wellness
  • ReadFest 2015
  • Alzheimer's Promoted Article
  • Formula 1 Giveaway
  • Professional Skin Treatments by NuMe Express

    Courting with a conscience

    On going green in the dating game

    Steven Devadanam
    May 1, 2010 | 1:21 pm
    • Trying to see the forest for the trees

    The carbon footprint of active dating is insurmountable. Between roses shipped in from Colombia and an engine left idle during goodnight smooches (I'm not going to even address petroleum-based products), looking for your match is rarely a win-win for the planet.

    Thanks to technology, however, options are arising to connect with other green-conscious creatures of love. Leigh Stringer, vice president of eco-minded international architecture firm, HOK, has published a substantial volume on greening the workplace, but when she's not designing LEED-certified buildings or signing books, she's moonlighting as a green matchmaker.

    Her website, ActForLove.com, which she operates with her husband (whom she met online), is designed to align the stars between activists with passion for the planet. Countless other websites of the same ilk are out there, waiting to be bookmarked by the lovelorn tree-hugger: GreenRomance.com, EcoDater.com and PlanetEarthSingles.com are just the tip of this iceberg that shows no signs of melting.

    The most obvious carbon culprit for the Houstonian is the greenhouse gas output due to constant car commuting. So when I first got wind of NuRide.com, I was fairly enthralled. It's a service that connects citizens based on home to work routes, facilitating carpooling, and in my mind, setups with the Smart Car set.

    After breezily filling out the profile and location details, a list of more than 100 green soulmates appeared. Since NuRide profiles do not include photos, I messaged a few right away, knowing that they'd fall for me as soon as they pulled up to the front step of the townhouse.

    Days passed — no response. The clock was ticking, so I decided to simply message everyone in my neighborhood (I even removed the gender and age filter). I only got a small trickle of negative responses:

    "Sorry, I take Metro now."

    "I bike to work, but maybe I'll call if it's rainy."

    "I actually met somebody, and we've moved to Paris."

    Rejection can be a difficult pill to swallow. Later that night, I found myself drowning my sorrows at Poison Girl, when I ran into a face from the past. Instead of the typical "Good to see you" or "You still have my boxer briefs," he introduced himself with, "Hey, why don't I ever see you on Grindr?"

    He clued me in to an apparently life-changing iPhone application, that once installed, lists matches in descending order based on proximity in feet from one's unit. Thanks to Apple and Grindr's developers, notes Details magazine, a tangible gaydar can now be downloaded for free. A recent search brought up a range of anonymous neighbors, as well as recognizable cashiers from Whole Foods, several art gallery administrators and the director of a prominent local museum.

    Grindr markets itself as a "dating app," but it's efficiency lends itself pejorative connotations. Of course, all I could think about was how much energy I could save by exclusively dating within a one mile radius — not a far-fetched idea considering that Grindr lists scores of potential matches in SoMo, all of whom I'm sure have their own slew of Mother Earth issues.

    Within a few days, I found myself walking to a coffee date, reveling in my greener dating lifestyle. I got talking to my date (let's call him G, as in "green"), sipping my coffee out of a post-consumer recycled cup, and bursting with joy thinking about my rapidly diminishing carbon footprint.

    Coffee turned into a walk through the neighborhood (he only lives a street away, across from Bell Park), which turned into a date at neighborhood pub Ernie's later that week. Without having to worry about car washes or parking, I was able to actually focus on getting to our meet-ups on time.

    Yet the odds of finding a steady relationship on an iPhone app are dubious. Last Sunday morning, I arose out of bed, overhearing G making a racket in the kitchen. I smiled, thinking of a refined breakfast waiting for me. Walking into the kitchen, I heard cacophonous jazz playing as G was chopping up ingredients for guacamole and — the drawing line — wearing nothing but a pair of UGGs.

    The sight of it all was too much (UGGs are imported all the way from Australia), and so I made a move for the door. Some may call it hasty to give up on somebody just after one awkward moment, but I knew that for the sake of my rep in the 'hood, I had to get out sooner rather than later. As he leaned in for a goodbye kiss, I noticed a chunk of avocado on his cheek.

    "That is so not what I meant by 'green dating," I mumbled to myself as I closed the door behind me, wiping off the green mush.

    So do green and the dating game not go hand in hand? Ever the romantic, I still think it's possible.

    GreenSingles, NuRide, Grindr — they may work wonders for some people — but perhaps I got ahead of myself by directly scouring the virtual realm. After all, this city has a mounting number of lush parks, community gardens and farmers markets, all bustling with potential tree-hugging romances.

    unspecified
    news/city-life
    CULTUREMAP EMAILS ARE AWESOME
    Get Houston intel delivered daily.

    telling stories

    Black-owned Houston bookstore opens new home in historic Third Ward space

    Craig D. Lindsey
    May 13, 2025 | 2:45 pm
    Kindred Stories bookshore Eldorado Ballroom
    Photo by Craig D. Lindsey
    Kindred Stories has moved to its new location.

    Even though its grand reopening will be held this Saturday, May 17, Third Ward bookstore Kindred Stories has already begun a soft opening at its new location inside the Eldorado Ballroom at 2310 Elgin Street.

    Since September 2021, the Black-owned bookstore was located on Stuart St., one of many businesses that came to life thanks to Project Row Houses’ Incubation Program. Last year, the nonprofit informed Kindred and the other business that they had to vacate their premises at the end of this month to allow new businesses to occupy the spaces.

    Thankfully, Kindred already had its eye on the Eldorado location, next to neighborhood eatery The Rado Market (which has a collection of cookbooks curated by Kindred). It’s a space previously held by Hogan Brown Gallery, which abruptly closed in December. “I had caught wind that this space might be available,” Kindred founder/owner Terri Hamm tells CultureMap.

    Hamm turned the moving process into a fun little event for her and her loyal customers. “Last Tuesday, we invited about 20 of our top community members that, you know, are always in the store and have really supported us all of the year,” she says. “We packed up all the books in the space in an hour and, then, we moved everything in an hour. So it was like the beautiful way to close out that space in the midst of the community that has really supported us throughout three-and-a-half years there. And we spent the last four days kind of unboxing and just getting all set up.”

    Hamm says the new location is certainly roomier (around 1200 square feet) than their previous spot, which was only 450 square feet.

    “There's more room to just spend time in the store,” she says. “I feel like that's the ideal bookstore experience, when you can go in and really take your time. I feel like in the other space, it was so small, people kind of felt like they were in a rush.”

    Although Kindred is open and ready to welcome anyone looking for Black-and-proud literature, Hamm insists they’re only 90 percent done. More light fixtures need to be installed. Plants and furniture have to be brought. They even have custom-made wallpaper that needs to be installed.

    “So, we have a few little things that need to happen,” says Hamm, “And, then, I feel like the space will be really, really ready – probably in another six months.”

    In the meantime, it’s business as usual. This month’s calendar of events includes various appearances from authors as well as a couple of book clubs. Hamm is looking forward to new bookworms coming in and discovering what Kindred Stories has to offer.

    “The bestsellers are selling,” she says, “But I feel like, in this space, people are going to get to discover a lot of under-the-radar titles, just because there's more space to see the books and explore.”

    kindred storieseldorado ballroomshoppingbooksbookstoresopenings
    news/city-life
    Loading...