Getting close with a death odor

This stink is on: Corpse flower Lois lets her odor loose as Zac Stayton saysfull bloom within 24 hours

Lois this a.m. (Thursday)
Photo by Rachel Hanley
Lois on Wednesday
Zac Stayton watering Lois
Photo by Rachel Hanley
As the news spread that Lois was close Wednesday afternoon, the line ballooned.
Photo by Rachel Hanley
It's every corpse flower watcher for themselves.
Photo by Rachel Hanley

The wait for corpse flower Lois' stinky stank is over and Houston Museum of Natural Science horticulturist Zac Stayton says that the infamously waffling rare flower will fully bloom within "24 hours."

CultureMap's reporter on the scene, Rachel Hanley, describes the odor as more rotting fish than rotting flesh at the moment, but either way it's quickly becoming a powerful smell. KTRK Channel 13 has handed out masks to its on-site crew and museum staffers are equally prepared. Many visitors are embracing the smell though, trying to get into the best position possible to get the most odor for their buck (or $8 admission fee in this case).

The tiny hallway room that Lois is crammed into is packed, but the line to get into HMNS itself isn't very long. The museum abruptly switched back to being open 24 hours a day last night (which was first reported by CultureMap), scrapping a planned midnight closing, in the wake of the corpse flower's progress and it will stay open all the time now past the complete bloom.

The corpse flower still hasn't come close to completely opening though and now the pressure isn't just on Lois. In some ways, Stayton has put it on himself by declaring the flower will fully bloom within the next 24 hours.

Update, 3:51 p.m.: News on this corpse flower travels fast ... The line is stretching the entire length of the HMNS' long lobby and then some.

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Editor's note:It's time to recap the top stories on CultureMap from this past week. The top Houston news includes a family-friendly Memorial City development, a Montrose pizzeria closure, and a stylish new lounge for Upper Kirby. Get the details below, and find fun stuff do in town this weekend here.

1. New development with 1-acre green space coming to Memorial City area. The rapidly growing area will soon be home to Greenside, boasting a mix of restaurant, retail, and other family-friendly businesses, designed by the Michael Hsu Office of Architecture.

2. Creative Montrose pizzeria will shutter after only a year-and-a-half. ElRo Pizza & Crudo will close at the end of the year, due to a steady decline in business.

3. Stylish new lounge shakes up Houston with art-inspired drinks and caviar. Cheers to this new nightlife spot, which is now open in Upper Kirby.

Sante cocktail lounge Sante's Garden Room is decorated with two olive trees. Photo by Chris Furia

4. These are the 6 most affordable ZIP codes for Houston renters. One of these ZIPs is also among the 10 most affordable in the U.S.

5. 15 Houston restaurants crafting nostalgic and decadent ice cream sundaes. The classic ice cream sundae is having a moment, and these restaurants are serving up decadent versions.