The new THC vape ban has created more than just confusion among buyers and sellers. There’s fear.
BY MARK HENRICKS
The ballers will play their first-ever Fort Worth game, at Dickies Arena, on Mon, Oct 6.
BY ELAINE WILDER
EATS & DRINKS Why are coffeeshops — even some indies — so bland lately?
BY KENA SOSA
MUSIC
After a decade, punks Joe Gorgeous deliver the of-the-moment debut LP Life in the Faust Lane. BY STEVE
Country stylists Two Guys Walk Into a Bar are celebrating the release of their new, moody record. By Juan R. Govea
If it seems like the whole state has gone to pot, that’s because it has.
By E.R. Bills
Losing late to a good team has knocked TCU out of the rankings.
By Buck D. Elliott
Editor: Anthony Mariani
Publisher: Lee Newquist
General Manager: Bob Neihoff
Art Director: Ryan Burger
Marketing Director: Jennifer Bovee
Regional Director: Michael Newquist
Sr. Account Executive: Stacey Hammons
Account Manager: Julie Strehl
Account Executives: Tony Diaz, Wendy Maier, Sarah Neihoff, Wyatt Newquist
Proofreader: Emmy Smith
Brand Ambassador: Clint “Ironman” Newquist
E.R. Bills, Jennifer Bovee, Jason Brimmer, Jess Delarosa, Buck D. Elliott, Danny Gallagher, Juan R. Govea, Mark Henricks, Patrick Higgins, Kristian Lin, Cody Neatherly, Rush Olson, Wyatt Newquist, Emmy Smith, Steve Steward, Teri Webster, Ken Wheatcroft-Pardue, Elaine Wilder, Cole Williams
Laurie James, Anthony Mariani, Emmy Smith,
9
The Mavs come to town while Riot Girl Fest thrills Arlington and Monk is remembered at the Scat. By Elaine Wilder
are trimming their offerings while consumers are wondering what they can and can’t buy.
BY MARK HENRICKS
For years, Texans have been able to get vaping devices preloaded with THC and other hemp-derived cannabis products from their neighborhood smoke shop. No more. That ended Sep. 1 when a new state law banning THC vapes took effect. The same law banned sales of any vape devices made in China or marketed to minors, as well as other smoke shop items. Days later, Gov. Greg Abbott
signed an executive order halting THC product sales to minors.
The legal and regulatory tumult has hemp and vape sellers trimming their product offerings and consumers wondering what they can buy.
“Every day it feels like the game changes,” said Austin Zamhariri, store manager of Thrive Apothecary on South Main Street and executive director of the Texas Cannabis Collective, a nonprofit advocating for the state’s retailers and consumers.
Cannabis businesses welcome the ban on selling to minors. The vape device sale restrictions are a bigger deal. Vapes make up a substantial 24% of the typical cannabis retailer’s sales, according to a Whitney Economics analysis. Now they can’t sell China-made vape devices or any disposables containing THC. Kava, kratom, and mushroom vapes were also outlawed.
The bans apply only to sellers. Consumers can still legally possess THC-loaded vapes, but Texas sellers risk fines up to $4,000 and a year in jail for violations.
Texas cannabis users can likely order from other jurisdictions, but they may not be buying from a high-quality seller, said Cynthia Cabrera, continued on page 5 Thrive Apothecary: “Every day it feels like the game changes.”
chief strategy officer of Hometown Hero, an Austin maker of hemp products.
She added, “While consumers may attempt to order out of state, sellers and shippers can face legal risk if the product violates Texas statutes or the buyer is a minor.”
Texas escaped a total THC ban when the governor vetoed legislation that would have outlawed any THC product sales. THC consumers can still find and legally purchase edibles, flower, pouches, and tinctures.
“Their legality depends on the product’s cannabinoid content and how Texas defines and limits hemp-derived THC,” Cabrera said. “Some non-vape formats remain legal if they meet hemp and THC thresholds and labeling and testing rules.”
For example, non-heated THC inhalers appear to be exempt from the new legal ban. These deliver THC in aerosol form without burning or vaporizing and are legal for sale as long as they fit the other regulatory limits.
Heather Fazio, director of advocacy at Austin-based lobbyist Texas Cannabis Policy Center, said there could be another loophole. “I’m not an attorney, but my read of the bill is that you can’t sell preloaded vape devices. However, you can sell the vape device and the drops that go into it, and the person can load it themselves like they do with nicotine vapes.”
That doesn’t mean your local shop will recognize these possible workarounds. Thrive’s Zamhariri, for one, advises retailers that trying to skirt the letter of the law could bring down regulators’ wrath. “I would define any kind of vaporization product that involves distillate as a gray area. Be very careful with it.”
An illegal market for banned products seems one likely development. It could emerge online or through retailers operating in the black market. Industry spokespeople unanimously warn against buying from shady shops, warning about risks from impurities and labeling, among other concerns.
And although the recent state law changes penalize only resellers for violations, Zamhariri said consumers can’t be sure how local law enforcement will react if they get caught holding.
“Each jurisdiction — and there are 254 counties in Texas — has their own way of handling and assessing penalties and prosecuting marijuana cases,” Zamhariri said.
In Tarrant County, Zamhariri said, District Attorney Phil Sorrells takes a more relaxed approach than the previous D.A., Sharon Wilson. However, he’s heard of people in other jurisdictions facing Class B misdemeanor charges for possession.
Cannabis businesses generally welcome the ban on THC sales to minors. However, like most of the new restrictions, exactly how it will be enforced remains unclear. The Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) is expected to release guidance on matters including how resellers must verify a customer’s age as 21 or older as soon as Sep. 24. The rest could take months.
Among other things, the Texas A&M University AgriLife Extension program is supposed to conduct a study to inform rulemaking by TABC and the state Department of Health and Human Services on the minor sale ban. Zamhariri is optimistic the study will be more good news, but it may not be out until next year.
And there are plausible scenarios that could go badly for the industry and for THC consumers. Fazio said one concern is a change in the way THC content is assessed. It’s conceivable that THC-A, a compound that when burned becomes the psychoactive THC-9, may be included when measuring whether a hemp-derived product has the permissible 0.3% THC-9 by dry weight. If that happens, Fazio said, “that’s going to mean most of the flower on the market won’t be legal anymore.”
Other future worries include a possible
increase in the retail shop license fee from $150 to $30,000. That came up in the last legislative session and, if enacted, would likely greatly reduce the number of retailers.
“We think there’s room to move up” on fees, Fazio said, “but not that much.”
If all this change seems confusing and exhausting, it might have been worse. The governor could have signed rather than vetoed the total THC ban that passed the Legislature earlier in the year.
And it may get worse, although cannabis businesses and users remain hopeful the news for the next few months will be acceptable, if not ideal.
“If all goes well,” Zamhariri said, “we’ll get 21 and up, we’ll get some focus on licensees and who’s the good and bad characters in the space, and they’ll compile a study in the interim that will help the Legislature decide how they want to proceed.” l
Texas was once great but is now certainly no place to celebrate.
BY E.R. BILLS
As I walked into a Fort Worth post office the other day, I passed a young redneck wearing a patently ignorant T-shirt. Not just ordinarily cretinous, typically stupid, or incredibly ignorant.
The wearer was the usual type. Hair high and tight underneath a straw cowboy hat, a forearm tattoo or three, with at least one rendering of our favorite phallic canon, daring a nonexistent mob to “Come and Take It.” He was flaunting his pseudo-badassery for all who were susceptible (or as ill-informed as he).
I rolled my eyes as we passed, but I didn’t look back. It was pointless for me to respond, even nonverbally. But it was too much, really. Too much of too much on a tortuous loop.
The teen ranger’s shirt read, “UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: YOU MEAN TEXAS AND ITS 49 BITCHES”
Wow, I thought. Sexist, asinine, and perversely grandiose.
I mean, I’m a native Texan and all, and proud to be so. Except when young a-holes brandish apparel that flagrantly illustrates Lone Star idiocy. He might as well have been wearing an “I’m With Stupid” tee except, instead of the arrow pointing left or right, it pointed straight up, at the dip’s dip-stained chin.
To be fair, though, the teen ranger was probably educated in Texas, where — in the teen ranger’s vernacular — literacy rates are inferior to the citizens of 47 other bitches in America. But he did get the current number of states right, and that’s reassuring, because the numeracy levels of the wayward denizens in 45 other bitches are superior to those of Texas.
Forty-five? Forty-seven? Why do those numbers ring a bell? Hmmm.
For the uninformed, numeracy is the capacity to understand, reason with, and apply
Beginning Sunday September 28, we’re adjusting the schedules of some Trinity Metro Bus routes to make our system more e cient. Plan ahead and check your route now to see if your schedule is changing at RIDETRINITYMETRO.org/SERVICECHANGES.
numerical counterpart of literacy. As in, if you’re ranked 46th out of 50, you’re darn near illiterate in terms of math, which is why you may still consider the state of your birth swell. And why your clueless opinion of said birthplace is so groundlessly swollen.
A colloquial corollary to someone being one’s bitch is making someone one’s bitch. Are Texas conservatives watching too many prison dramas? Or is it an unconscious itch they’ve found a way to scratch?
It’s becoming increasingly difficult to explain things to Jethro Q. Pudwhack because he is fiercely unworldly, proudly ill-informed, and comfortably illiterate in terms of culture, politics, and ethics. Not to mention insensate in terms of his own sexism, chauvinism, and — yes, again — perverse braggadocio.
Now, I, myself, grew up a redneck. We had a small pasture, a garden, and a few dogs and spent a little time around cattle. But even I know that if you’re trotting near the rear of 50 head of cattle, you’re getting the last lick of feed, grain, or hay, and you’re settling for backwash at the trough.
The real head-scratcher for me is, Why are teen ranger and his ilk OK with backwash? Where were his ma and pa when conservative knuckle-draggers rode into their town, and why didn’t they run them off before they intellectually handicapped our little Jethro Q. Pudwhacks?
Stupid may be as stupid does, but Joannie and Jethro Q. Pudwhacks elected the current batch of scamps, who, in turn, made stupid the state bird. But what’s the point in Bocephus going around giving every state that’s not full of doofuses the bird?
Now, I know what you’re thinking. Well, maybe not thinking but vaguely wondering. You’re wondering if I’m really from Texas, because, in the dim space between your ears, real Texans don’t run their heads about education or opine polysyllabic about the lack or sad state thereof. But you and yers are simps and simply mistaken.
Not everyone here drinks piss from a boot and breathes through their mouth. And a bunch of us are unhappy about settling for backwash at a shrinking trough and teen rangers who don’t have a lick of sense.
You may not have been paying attention or paying any mind to the fact that our state is no longer great, and you may not be able to get your hat around the reality of our current morass: Our Legislature is full of dumbasses, and the only thing really big in Texas these days is our clear and present acceleration backwards. Or, in the words of teen rangers, moving backwards bigly. l
Fort Worth native E.R. Bills is the author of seven nonfiction titles, including Tell-Tale Texas: Investigations in Infamous History
This column reflects the opinions and fact-gathering of the author(s) and only the author(s) and not the Fort Worth Weekly . To submit a column, please email Editor Anthony Mariani at Anthony@FWWeekly.com. He will gently edit it for clarity and concision.
Unifirst Corporation, has applied to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for renewal of Air Quality Permit No. 135580, which would authorize continued operation of a Commercial Laundry Facility located at 2900 North Beach Street , Haltom City, Tarrant County, Texas 76111. Additional information concerning this application is contained in the public notice section of this newspaper.
BY BUCK D. ELLIOTT
For all my gamblers, please accept my sincerest apologies for my confidence in TCU’s ability to win Friday night’s game. I invite you to send receipt of all gambling losses: care of Kendal Briles, at 3-1 Can’t Make Adjustments Lane, Fort Worth, TX. Friday was weird. Aside side from playing college football on a high-school night, Tempe received nearly 2 inches of rain from monsoon storms, which closed tailgates and nearly postponed the game entirely. The playing surface was exactly as you’d expect from real grass forced to grow in the desert: clinging to life. TCU athletes especially struggled for footing all night as grass broke off in chunks underneath their cleats. That said, the early sledding was smooth. The Frogs did nothing with their first drive — which, sadly, we’ve come to expect — but scored on their second. This was the result of what has been a solid connection between Josh Hoover (#10) and Jordan Dwyer (#7), plus rushes from Trent Battle (#6), who trotted to the end zone on a 13-yard scamper.
The Sun Devils followed up with a missed field goal (one of two misfires in the evening), and the Frogs scored again. ASU was optimistically aggressive during their next drive and tried a fourthdown conversion on their own 38, which Andy Avalos’ defense stonewalled, awarding Hoover and company a short field, which they weren’t able to convert for more than 3.
That’s when everything changed. It took the Devils only three plays to break a 57-yard reception for a touchdown, and from that point on, things just felt ominous, though the score looked fine at the time. I’m not sure if I was the only one, but the existential dread usually reserved for Sunday night before the work week washed over me full force: “We are about to blow this, and I know it.”
Eric McAlister (#1), who absolutely terrorized SMU the week before, attempted to play on Friday but quickly left the game due to an existing lower-body injury. Kevorian Barnes (#2) still has not returned after what appeared to be a hamstring strain against Abilene Christian. Those two players are the tip of the spear as it pertains to weapons for Hoover and Briles, and without them, it didn’t take the Arizonans long to adjust their defensive scheme to shut down TCU.
Football at its core is a game of allocating resources, and ASU didn’t have to overly commit to stymie the Frogs’ rushing attack after the first few series. In the end, the Frogs accumulated only 50 rushing yards through 15 attempts, with Battle and Jeremy Payne (#26) sharing the load. Once the
box score is adjusted for negative plays and sacks, the total was 12 yards from 24 attempts, but to be fair, there were six sacks to account for, so we’ll just call it “terrible” instead of “miserable.”
Through the air was better, I guess. Hoover tossed for 242 yards on 32 attempts but didn’t have a passing touchdown and was picked off twice, the final one to seal the game when a comeback was still technically possible. I won’t outright blame Hoover for having an awful game. It wasn’t his best. He coughed up the most un-clutch of fumbles on a sack late and threw a bad interception to finish, though his first INT was a ball wrestled from the hands of Dwyer, who was close to scoring.
The blame falls primarily on Briles, who still can’t design a run scheme to account for the personnel he actually has. If Hoover had the wheels of ASU quarterback Sam Leavitt (#10), things might work, but he doesn’t. Five linemen, who didn’t play well at all on Friday, trying to run-block four or five Sun Devils on stretch plays and inside zone just doesn’t work against a penetrating defense that doesn’t respect you. And there was no adjustment available because, schematically, the O is just bland and deficient.
With the run game out to lunch, that left Hoover to contend with seven in coverage while a solid pass rush collapsed his pocket repeatedly, without his most physically imposing receiver. With Barnes out, the Frogs’ backfield is average, and the offensive line is the same or worse, so it
is gritty despite deficiencies, and fans should have hope for the rest of the season, especially with how feisty purple defenders were in the red zone. Safety Bud Clark (#21) dropped an early interception that could have reasonably netted a touchdown or given the offense an additional opportunity before ASU had successfully adjusted their defensive scheme.
There were some ticky-tacky penalties that gave the Devils second chances when the game could have been swayed (though I mostly thought the officiating was decent). Frog defenders did recover a fumble and turned the Devils over on downs twice. Arizona State wide receiver Jordyn Tyson (#0 — a native of Allen) was too big during clutch moments and scored the tying touchdown on fourth down. Tyson, who might be the first receiver taken in the next draft and is a projected Top-5 pick, hauled in eight passes for 126 yards and two touchdowns, a McAlister-esque performance against the Frogs.
In many ways, the Sun Devils remind me of TCU from 2022: an extremely mobile quarterback and an NFL-bound wide receiver enjoy giving up early leads and battling from behind while leaving their fan base grasping for whiskey and baby aspirin but with a much better defense.
The Frogs understandably dropped out of the rankings this week with ASU essentially replacing them, and Fort Worth looks forward to hosting Coach Deion Sanders and the Colorado Buffaloes, who are coming off an almost identical loss to BYU. The Buffs built a 14-0 lead on the Cougars which was lost in less dramatic fashion but still a close 24-21 loss in which their offense turned stone cold and couldn’t convert during big moments. Both teams will be aching for a bounce-back win, but health will be paramount for the Frogs, both on the offensive line and with their two notably absent offensive weapons. To add insult to those injuries, while Hoover struggled with his worst game in a year, former Frog Chandler Morris was leading the Virginia Cavaliers to a monster upset of eighth-ranked Florida State just hours earlier.
might be time to include a sniffer-back, tight end, or additional blocking back if anything is going to happen in the ground game against a decent defense. And State has an objectively good one based on the evidence through four games.
Hoover did cobble together one more scoring drive thanks in part to spitfire Joseph Manjack IV (#14), who was the leading receiver with eight grabs and 83 yards. He also threw a 17-yard pass off a trick play and finished with double the quarterback rating of Hoover. Big tight end DJ Rogers (#0) was the second-best performer with four catches for 60 yards and the longest single reception of the evening.
The most telling statistic might be the number 3, which is how many yards the Frog offense netted in the fourth quarter while accounting for sacks and negative plays, as well as the quantity of turnovers lost. The 17-0 lead that the Frogs built late in the second quarter lasted until past the 2-minute timeout in the fourth, and the Devils didn’t take the lead until there were only 74 clicks left on the clock.
Defensively, this one is a quagmire. TCU gave up 500 yards exactly but were also cursed yet again by an unproductive offense possessing the ball 10 fewer minutes than their opponents. Leavitt could be rushed but rarely sacked, and he punished rushers who abandoned lanes on passing downs.
Despite unbridled productivity from the Sun Devils, allowing only 27 points off 500 yards
Hopefully, over the next eight days, Briles will focus on duct-taping a reliable running game together that Hoover can relinquish some pressure to, but he’s had two years, so I’m not holding my breath.
TCU opens as a 14.5-point favorite at home for Saturday night’s game, and I wouldn’t even consider taking the Frogs with a line that large. The most pressing question for these purple warriors is how they respond to adversity. Despite losing on Friday, the Frogs have trailed only by a combined 9 minutes and 13 seconds of game time this season. ASU was the first one-possession affair this squad has encountered, and they didn’t handle it well. But the momentum had swung away from them for almost two consecutive quarters. Overwhelmingly, we as fans should be most critical of how the coaching staff prepares to make better adjustments against the remainder of the schedule, which still sets up well for TCU as these types of losses tend to be less damaging earlier in the season.
Saturday night’s “blackout” is an evaluation of coaching and mindset. Oddsmakers really nailed the spread against Arizona State, and if they’re right about Colorado, TCU should be able to win comfortably, especially if Fort Worth fanatics want to feel good about anything remaining on the Frogs’ Big 12 slate. Hoover needs some confidence back, but that will come from improved offensive line play and a productive rushing attack. At Amon G. Carter at this point in the season, it’s time to find those things, or we could suffer a repeat of 2023’s five-win season. l
This time last week, we were losing our minds, what with Best Of 2025 having just hit the stands. Our annual special edition was a hit, and our team of critics had much to say. You can read their choices in the Good Grub section of Best Of 2025 at FWWeekly.com. While you, our readers, made your voices heard by nominating your local favorites, our Readers’ Choices never come with blurbs — how would we know what to write about until all the ballots have been counted? How would we know what to say when our critics might not agree with what our readers have chosen? Just fluff? No thanks. Anyway, we’ll remedy that today and throughout October, because a lot of your choices were aces.
Eduardo’s for Best Bakery
Eduardo’s Pastry Kitchen (5950 River Oaks Blvd, Fort Worth, 214-531-4830) specializes in cheesecakes, cookies, and cupcakes and is open Tue-Sat. Items tend to sell out quickly, so be sure to follow him on Facebook.com/EduardoPastryKitchen for the latest updates.
Kincaid’s for Best Burgers
Kincaid’s (five area locations) uses all-natural, never-frozen USDA Choice beef, ground fresh daily. The burgers are hand-formed and cooked to order. As we once described it, “What an indisputably great burger.” Find the one nearest you at KincaidsHamburgers.com.
Our Taphouse for Best Empanadas
You guys really went wild for the Jalapeno Popper Empanadas at Our Taphouse (1001 Bryan Av, Fort Worth, 682-224-0431), where there’s a wide selection of craft beers and pub food, plus various specials, such as these popular empanadas served with their award-winning salsa.
Panther City for Best Barbecue
Panther City BBQ (201 E Hattie St, Fort Worth, 682-250-4464) not only does Taco Tuesday
Salsa Limón’s El Campeón is a barbacoa burrito served in a large flour tortilla with rice, refried beans, onion, cilantro, a fried egg, cheese, crema, avocado, and lime.
specials but also has football watch parties. For special menu offerings, follow them at Facebook. com/817PantherCityBBQ.
Press Café (4801 Edwards Ranch Rd, Ste 105, Fort Worth, 817-570-6002) offers a menu that matches the casual and healthy lifestyle of the Trinity Trails where it is located. The Day Break omelet ($18), with natural turkey, cheddar, spinach, and avocado salsa and served with fresh fruit, is on point with that aim. Brunch is served every 7am-2pm Sat-Sun.
Salsa Limón for Best Burrito
Salsa Limón (five area locations) serves an authentic, fresh burrito for $11.35, filled with rice, refried beans, onion, cilantro, and lime, plus your choice of meats, all wrapped in a large tortilla. For a burrito that really shines, the El Campeón ($13.95) is a barbacoa burrito in a large flour tortilla with rice, refried beans, onions, cilantro, a fried egg, cheese, crema, avocado, and lime.
Terrebonne’s Restaurant & Bar (7914 Camp Bowie West, Fort Worth, 682-978-8361) is an authentic Louisiana Cajun restaurant, bar, and market serving a variety of seafood dishes, including boiled and fried seafood, oysters, and crab. They recently welcomed Joe Rosario as the new head chef. A proud Fort Worth native with 22 years in the hospitality industry, he has honed his craft at some of the area’s most respected establishments, including Reata, River Ranch Stockyards, and, most recently, James Provisions.
Yogi’s
Yogi’s Bagel Cafe (2710 S Hulen St, Fort Worth, 817921-4500) has been a neighborhood tradition since 1997 and boasts a storefront filled with a variety of bagels and a chalkboard full of creative ways to enjoy them. This popular and often crowded deli aims to satisfy even the most finicky palates with an extensive breakfast and lunch menu, whether your tastes run to lox or chilaquiles. Or maybe try the crispy fried chicken served over creamy cheese grits, topped with two poached eggs and chipotle hollandaise.
Glad you asked. As the cliche goes, a picture is worth, well, a lot. Take a moment to check out all the winners on Instagram, home to many tasty pictures. For the complete list of this year’s Readers’ Choice winners from Good Grub, look for this Ate Days column on FWWeekly.com in the Calendar drop-down
Coffee has officially been gentrified and robbed of its flavor.
STORY AND PHOTOS BY KENA SOSA
One bright, shiny Fort Worth afternoon, needing my coffee fix — because, to be honest with myself, it is a drug, and I’m not ashamed of my addiction — I missed my exit to the shop of my choice but was happy to see another independent coffeeshop nearby. I won’t name it because I don’t need to. And you won’t recognize it by description. Aside from a couple of details, it looks like a lot of other coffeeshops you will find now.
Tucked into the corner of a framed poster, an image that looked like a caricature of me snagged my attention. I asked what it was and was told it is the logo for an oatmilk company. Sure enough, her name is Penny, and, yes, she looks like me. There is Penny merch galore. It is weird to see yourself on merch that you had no idea existed. This has caused quite the rift in my psyche. I ordered anyway, a cinnamon latte, or that was the description. But it was a lie.
The coffee was bland and flavorless. Like it, the place was pure pablum, an innocuous name in a harmless font on a vinyl sticker on the window, with neutral wood, beige, and white tones,
creating basic shapes drawn into furniture with sterile ambiance. Like a hospital cafeteria or a 1920s schoolhouse. Yes, this describes almost every coffeeshop I have run into with the exception of a few. I know those by name because the names are worth knowing. They have flavor and personality and an actual concept that is not simple vanilla.
If it sounds like I’m calling out some coffeeshops, that’s because I am. I drink coffee because it is bold, bitter, powerful, and muthafuckin’ strong and delicious. Now it’s just cream. White, plain, flavorless, and full of filler trying to trick you into thinking you are drinking something real. It’s fluff.
It would be easy to assume I am pointing the finger at Starbucks, but I am not. They may have started the coffee-contamination trend on a widespread track, but they are a chain and cannot control their decor or their menus outside of what corporate allows. Basically, this is to be expected from all big chains.
What floors me is the independently owned coffeeshops. With free range and the wild and wonderful capacity to maintain and even add excitement to this intense and vibrant drink, they use their freedom to choose to do anything but. They sacrifice the soul of coffee to appeal to the masses, who lack an adventurous palate. Coffee is a natural stimulant, and where in this environment is any stimulation? Coffee grows in the Bean Belt between the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn in countries that are very hot, experience quenching regular rainfall, and have rich and fertile soil and high altitudes. There is nothing bland about those conditions. No wonder coffee is potent, bitter, and favors the brave! It is birthed from the conditions that divinely say so! What’s happening now is literally removing the culture from a cultural drink.
Coffee was a world traveler. First discovered as an energy-fueled delight in Ethiopia, it eventually made its way on trade routes to the Middle East, where it brought people together. The first coffeehouses were created in the continued on page 13
1600s. As coffee does, it opened people up to socializing with those of any social ranking and background, something Sultan Murad IV did not like. He made this a crime punishable by very violent means. It was fear that brought this about. The government did not want people to gather, discuss events openly, and combine forces. Some still find people gathering to be dangerous.
By the time the bans in the Ottoman Empire had expired, coffee was now raging through Europe, where its powerful taste somehow began the same phenomenon, bringing together open-minded people with revolutionary ideas, as if the aroma itself sparks rebellion. King Charles II was suspicious of those who smelled of roasted coffee, concerned they were plotting. He instituted a ban on coffeehouses, but the people spoke up and the doors opened once more, not only to the coffeehouses but to free thought.
Coffeehouses were free of social rankings and expectations, allowing for discourse of philosophy, art, literature, and new concepts throughout the culture. They even became known as “penny universities,” where it cost very little to be included in conversation usually reserved only for higher institutions of learning. This was for the men, of course. It is not clear whether women were allowed in on the smart fun, too. By the time WWII ignited, the cultural
icons of the day still gathered in coffeehouses to inspire one another in Paris.
In the United States, the effects of coffee and its refusal to conform had spilled into the American Revolution. When Americans grew weary of the British tea taxes, many opted for coffee instead. Green Dragon Tavern, which served both coffee and liquor, was nicknamed
Headquarters of the Revolution for hosting meetings for a new government.
Not just one revolution but a few have been tied to coffeehouses. They were targeted by the French authorities during the revolution for giving space to writers and activists and for fostering “mad agitation.” Later, the aroma from Parisian cafes like La Rotunde drew in writers from abroad, too, like Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and T.S. Eliot.
As the world shifted in the 1960s, people gathered at coffeehouses to discuss civil rights and the arts. Political movements continued even into this century as the free-thinking got together and discussed politics like during the Arab Spring in the early 2000s. Even in Seattle, as coffee became a phenomenon, discussions of modern ideas like sustainability and free trade blossomed.
So, what happened? To appeal to more people, we sugar-coated coffee and made it cutesy. Its power was trimmed back by trends. It was full of life, and so we stripped it of it. Coffee basically became gentrified and overpriced, and it started charging you to park. But it’s not too late — or too latte. We can get it back.
To water down and suffocate this flavorful excitement is to waste it completely. But that is what we do. We try to hammer square pegs, those who refuse to go along with the crowds, into boring holes, where there is no beginning or end. We refuse to let rebels enjoy and accept and love being rough around the edges.
If you own a coffeeshop, make it truly your own: add color to a wall, encourage chatter, host events, and make coffee that qualifies as a drink and not an Instagrammable dessert. You could restart that mad agitation that breeds loyalty,
respect, and a-ha moments. Or not. You could continue this path and miss out on being part of something meaningful.
And to those who just want a cute photo to show their friends, whose cups runneth over and get poured out, go drink your sugar-milk, psychopaths. Leave the coffee for us trailblazers, temptresses, and true trendsetters. l
Come break the rules and say “yes!” to new art experiences at the Carter’s Second Thursdays!
Every Second Thursday is different than the last. You’ll never think of museums in the same way again.
SECOND THURSDAYS ARE
THURSDAY OCT 9 | 5–8 P.M.
Bring your best friend (pup or person) for an evening of PAWsome activities on our Plaza crafted with your canine in mind.
Joe Gorgeous’ Life in the Faust Lane has been a decade in the making — and is worth every minute.
BY STEVE STEWARD
One thing that is hard to understand if you’ve never been in a band is why, despite a litany of baked-in hassles — mental, physical, emotional, and financial are but a few — people keep at it. By “it,” I mean: writing songs, rehearsing songs, recording songs, booking and playing gigs, waiting until 2am to get paid, pocketing $25 for a five-hour expenditure of time, arguing about drum parts, compromising on solo lengths, dumbing it down, loosening it up, getting too drunk to drive, getting a $50 Uber and leaving your car full of stealable equipment parked behind a bar, walking to a Taco Bell at 4am, second-guessing thousands of
opportunity costs, getting a slightly cheaper Uber the next day to get your car, flipping the calendar, tinnitus, watching the gray come in, and every other piece of that ridiculous sum of a lifestyle choice, one that is somehow greater than its parts. The personal investment you make to express yourself through rock ’n’ roll gets stupider the deeper you get. The ROI is bad. The benefits are meager, and the hours are terrible.
I think about this often, sometimes in awe, other times in chagrin. About halfway through Life in the Faust Lane, the debut album by local punks Joe Gorgeous, I just said out loud, not unkindly, “What is the point of this?”
At first, my answer was “screaming into the void.” But that’s not really correct. Joe Gorgeous is out here dropping their debut full-length at the ripe old band-age of 10. A decade-old band dropping their first album is kind of funny, but this first album has been in the works for about eight years, which is also kind of funny, except that for the members of Joe Gorgeous, those eight years were marred with deaths in their families, divorce, and stints in jail, and all of that before COVID. By the end of Faust Lane, I decided its point was this: You don’t need to scream into the void because merely existing is in direct defiance of it. And. Screaming into the void still feels pretty good.
Produced, mixed, and mastered by Jordan Richardson (Son of Stan, Quaker City Night Hawks) at Electric Barryland studios in Justin, Life in the Faust Lane’s nine tracks feel like you’re in a haunted house ride in the carnival that comes to the parking lot of a mall. They feel rickety and sarcastic, a black-lit devil leering at you before your cart twists and drives through his face into another room of UV light and yellow teeth. In general, the songs blast you with the twin axe attack of singer-guitarist Joey Gorman and lead guitarist Ricky Williford, with the psychedelic squiggle of Williford’s synth pulling your brain into soggy, can-I-get-out-now? territory. Drummer Noah Hall and bassist Matthew “Baggins” Gibbons
build a lattice of frenetic beats and melodic attack, an electric net over which Gorman’s pop-punk sensibilities balance like a tightrope walker.
The songs are knotty with hooks, surprise movements, and odd-vocal phrasings that stretch over your brain like an unsettling dream, and if there’s another point to this album, it’s that life kind of feels like a bad dream. Some lines that struck me, even more so when taken out of context: “I don’t want to run forever / No, I think I’d rather fight” (“Born on Broadway”); “Waking up on the edge / Inside the nightmare between every single breath / Like a Faces of Death VHS that won’t eject” (“Vietnamese Coffee”); and “Paranoia is a poison / Love is the only antidote / Bad habits are still choices / And sanity is a joke” (“Born to Suffer”). The fatalism in these lyrics, the trapped-in-unreality imagery, the fist-pumping riffage born out of both classic-rock homage and the outrage and uncertainty that’s part of living in the here and now — I guess this record was supposed to come out in 2025, like that was its destiny. It made me feel anxious and sad, and I laughed out loud at some cool guitar licks and deadpan lines. Despite its lengthy gestation, Life in the Faust Lane feels like a piece of this era, when existing (because what else are you supposed to do?) seems like an increasingly radical act.
Still, one thing you can do while existing is make art, and when that’s your drive above all else — and I’d argue that that’s pretty much the point for Gorman, Williford, Hall, and Baggins — it doesn’t really matter that no one may ever hear it. Joe Gorgeous have taken a long time to make a really great record, but wherever you are, there you are, and put on some headphones the second time you listen to it. Listening to it in 2025 gives sufficient, ominous chills, but it’s also weirdly inspiring. However you remember this moment in your personal history — say, for example, while on either side of a mountain of existential dread — Life in the Faust Lane is a pretty good soundtrack. I guess that’s also the point. l
It all goes back to Terlingua Two Guys Walk Into a Bar’s 2024 debut album was recorded at Blackstone Recording Studio with co-owner Mark Randall (Christian Carlos Carvajal, Jeremy Hull, The Matthew Show), and it was such a success that said guys — Peter Gargiulo and Mike Terry — returned to the Fort Worth retreat for their follow-up. Devil’s Game will hit streaming platforms Fri, Oct 24, when it also will be celebrated with a performance at Our Taphouse
“We wanted a rockier edge to the songs,” Gargiulo said, “and a lot of the arrangements came from Mark. It’s a little bit of a dark album with a Rolling Stones-like sound. Mike is a product of the ’70s, and I’m a product of the late ’70s. You have a lot of musical taste to it as a mix of Texas Indigenous roots mixed with Americana and rock.”
The new tracks are still in keeping with the guys’ style but indeed represent new, darker territory, diving into issues like death, heartache, and coming to terms with reality to complement the grittier sonics.
Songs like “Desperate Man,” “Devil’s Game,” “Dystopian Blues,” and “Heaven” also explore characters introduced in Terlingua
Two Guys Walk Into a Bar 8pm Fri at Flying Saucer Draught Emporium, 111 E 3rd St, Fort Worth. 817-336-7470. • Fri, Oct 24, at Our Taphouse, 1001 Bryan St, Fort Worth. 682-224-0431.
“Do You Feel Me” is a salute to veterans coming home from serving overseas and wanting to feel related to.
“We are now taking a dark turn into these different aspects of these characters’ lives,” Randall said.
Devil’s Game incorporates a lot of wellknown local backing talent. Latin Express’ Lionicio Saenz played horns, Bethany Doolin and Morris Holdahl contributed vocals, Dave Cook covered saxophone, and Randall played bass, with Gargiulo and Terry on guitars.
“We did more collaboration this time and learned from the first album, and everything we do is in Fort Worth,” Terry said. “When we look for merchandise production or music, we take our business to Fort Worth. Each song has its own sonic landscape the way we wanted it to be, and working with Mark, this album was very much what we were trying to do.”
Two Guys Walk Into a Bar are thrilled to release Devil’s Game.
“Getting music out there … is an accomplishment,” Terry said. “A big piece of this album is what Mark Randall brings, and he’s like friends and family now.” — Juan R. Govea and Anthony Mariani
NOTICE OF RECEIPT OF APPLICATION AND INTENT TO OBTAIN AIR PERMIT (NORI) RENEWAL
PERMIT NUMBER 135580
APPLICATION. Unifirst Corporation, has applied to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) for renewal of Air Quality Permit Number 135580, which would authorize continued operation of a Commercial Laundry Facility located at 2900 North Beach Street, Haltom City, Tarrant County, Texas 76111. AVISO DE IDIOMA ALTERNATIVO. El aviso de idioma alternativo en espanol está disponible en https://www.tceq.texas.gov/permitting/air/newsourcereview/airpermits-pendingpermitapps. This link to an electronic map of the site or facility’s general location is provided as a public courtesy and not part of the application or notice. For exact location, refer to application. https://gisweb.tceq.texas.gov/LocationMapper/?marker=97.289853,32.801856&level=13. The existing facility is authorized to emit the following air contaminants: hazardous air pollutants and organic compounds.
This application was submitted to the TCEQ on September 11, 2025. The application will be available for viewing and copying at the TCEQ central office, TCEQ Dallas/Fort Worth regional office, and the Haltom City Library, 4809 Haltom Road, Haltom City, Tarrant County, Texas beginning the first day of publication of this notice. The facility’s compliance file, if any exists, is available for public review in the Dallas/Fort Worth regional office of the TCEQ. The application, including any updates, is available electronically at the following webpage: https://www.tceq.texas.gov/permitting/air/airpermit-applications-notices
The executive director has determined the application is administratively complete and will conduct a technical review of the application. Information in the application indicates that this permit renewal would not result in an increase in allowable emissions and would not result in the emission of an air contaminant not previously emitted. The TCEQ may act on this application without seeking further public comment or providing an opportunity for a contested case hearing if certain criteria are met.
PUBLIC COMMENT. You may submit public comments to the Office of the Chief Clerk at the address below. The TCEQ will consider all public comments in developing a final decision on the application and the executive director will prepare a response to those comments. Issues such as property values, noise, traffic safety, and zoning are outside of the TCEQ’s jurisdiction to address in the permit process.
OPPORTUNITY FOR A CONTESTED CASE HEARING. You may request a contested case hearing if you are a person who may be affected by emissions of air contaminants from the facility. If requesting a contested case hearing, you must submit the following: (1) your name (or for a group or association, an official representative), mailing address, daytime phone number; (2) applicant’s name and permit number; (3) the statement “[I/we] request a contested case hearing;” (4) a specific description of how you would be adversely affected by the application and air emissions from the facility in a way not common to the general public; (5) the location and distance of your property relative to the facility; (6) a description of how you use the property which may be impacted by the facility; and (7) a list of all disputed issues of fact that you submit during the comment period. If the request is made by a group or association, one or more members who have standing to request a hearing must be identified by name and physical address. The interests the group or association seeks to protect must also be identified. You may also submit your proposed adjustments to the application/permit which would satisfy your concerns.
The deadline to submit a request for a contested case hearing is 15 days after newspaper notice is published. If a request is timely filed, the deadline for requesting a contested case hearing will be extended to 30 days after mailing of the response to comments.
If any requests for a contested case hearing are timely filed, the Executive Director will forward the application and any requests for a contested case hearing to the Commissioners for their consideration at a scheduled Commission meeting. Unless the application is directly referred to a contested case hearing, the executive director will mail the response to comments along with notification of Commission meeting to everyone who submitted comments or is on the mailing list for this application. The Commission may only grant a request for a contested case hearing on issues the requestor submitted in their timely comments that were not subsequently withdrawn. If a hearing is granted, the subject of a hearing will be limited to disputed issues of fact or mixed questions of fact and law relating to relevant and material air quality concerns submitted during the comment period. Issues such as property values, noise, traffic safety, and zoning are outside of the Commission’s jurisdiction to address in this proceeding.
MAILING LIST. In addition to submitting public comments, you may ask to be placed on a mailing list for this application by sending a request to the Office of the Chief Clerk at the address below. Those on the mailing list will receive copies of future public notices (if any) mailed by the Office of the Chief Clerk for this application.
AGENCY CONTACTS AND INFORMATION. All public comments and requests must be submitted either electronically at www14.tceq.texas.gov/epic/eComment/, or in writing to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Office of the Chief Clerk, MC-105, P.O. Box 13087, Austin, Texas 78711-3087. Please be aware that any contact information you provide, including your name, phone number, email address and physical address will become part of the agency’s public record. For more information about the permitting process, please call the TCEQ Public Education Program, Toll Free, at 1-800-687-4040 or visit their website at www.tceq.texas.gov/goto/pep. Si desea información en Español, puede llamar al 1-800-687-4040. You can also view our website for public participation opportunities at www.tceq.texas.gov/goto/participation.
Further information may also be obtained from Unifirst Corporation, 2900 North Beach Street, Haltom City, Texas 76111-6203 or by calling Ms. Darcy Melzer, Environmental Compliance Specialist at (330) 858-8569.
Notice Issuance Date: September 18, 2025
ADVERTISE HERE!
Email Stacey@fwweekly.com today.
Are You Road-Trip Ready? CALL COWTOWN ROVER! With our handy pick-up and drop-off services, having your car checked out could not be easier. www.CowtownRover.com 3958 Vickery | 817.731.3223
BEST PLACE TO GET AWARD FRAMES? US!
If you won a Best Of 2025 Award last week, please know that we will be bringing you a FREE framed award at no cost to you. An actual FWW employee will be in touch with you. We do NOT contract third-party companies to sell award plaques or framed articles on our behalf. Should you have extra money to spend, use it to promote your business with an ad. If you are contacted by an outside company about frames, please send the details to us at Marketing@FWWeekly.com. Congratulations!
CELEBRATION
Located at 908 Pennsylvania Av (817-335-3222), Celebration Community Church has services on Sundays at 10am. Want to check out a nonjudgmental, inclusive church at home before attending in person? All services can also be viewed on YouTube! (@CelebrationCommunityChurch130)
DENTAL INSURANCE
from Physicians Mutual Insurance Company. Coverage for 400 plus procedures. Real dental insurance - NOT just a discount plan. Do not wait! Call now! Get your FREE Dental Information Kit with all the details! 1-888361-7095 www.dental50plus.com/fortworth #6258
Seraph Motorcars Inc is seeking Business Operations Manager to oversee pricing, fleet, operations, and financial reporting to maximize ROI and drive fleet growth etc. Position requires a bachelor’s degree in Management or related; 6-month experience as manager or related, have experience with business operations management and etc. Any interested applicants can mail their resume with code SM25 to: Seraph Motorcars Inc., 7362 E Kennedale Pkwy, Kennedale, TX 76060.
THE RIDGLEA is three great venues within one historic Fort Worth landmark. RIDGLEA THEATER has been restored to its authentic allure, recovering unique SpanishMediterranean elements. It is ideal for large audiences and special events. RIDGLEA ROOM and RIDGLEA LOUNGE have been making some of their own history, as connected adjuncts to RIDGLEA THEATER, or hosting their own smaller shows and gatherings. More at theRidglea.com
Up to $15,000.00 of GUARANTEED Life Insurance! No medical exam or health questions. Cash to help pay funeral and other final expenses.Call Physicians Life Insurance Company- 844-782-2870 or visit www.Life55plus.info/ftworth
We Buy Houses for Cash AS IS! No repairs. No fuss. Any condition. Easy three step process: Call, get cash offer and get paid. Get your fair cash offer today by calling Liz Buys Houses: 1-877-509-9772. (MB)
OLSHAN Foundation Solutions
Your trusted foundation repair experts since 1933. Foundation repair. Crawl space recovery. Basement waterproofing. Water management and more. Free evaluation. Limited time up to $250 off foundation repair. Call Olshan today at 1-855-824-7345. (MB)
POTTER’S HOUSE
Join the Potter’s House of Fort Worth (1270 Woodhaven Blvd, 817-446-1999) for Sunday Service at 8am and Wednesday Bible Study at 7pm. For more info, visit us online at www.TPHFW.org.
PUBLIC NOTICE
The following vehicle has been impounded with fees due to date by Sega Tow (VSF0576658) at 2711 S Riverside Dr, Fort Worth TX, 76104, 817-572-7775: 1972, Chevy PK Truck, VIN CKL147104963, $374.50.
PUBLIC NOTICE
The following vehicles have been impounded with fees due to date by Texas Towing Wrecker, 205 S Commercial St, Fort Worth TX 76107, 817-877-0206 (VSF0000964): Bumper, 2020, Pull Trailer, No VIN, $823.47; Great Dane, 2007, Trailer, VIN 1GRAA06257J623134, $2641.62; Jeep, 1961, Willys, VIN 5526863754, $470.41; Kawasaki, 2019, Ninja 600, No VIN, $645.76; Lamar, 2012, Pipe Handling Trailer, No VIN, $823.47; and X-L Specialized, 2005, Trailer, VIN 4U3B048365L005147, $959.08.
SAFE STEP:
North America’s #1 Walk-In Tub Comprehensive lifetime warranty. Top-of-the-line
installation and service. Now featuring our FREE shower package and $1600 Off for a limited time! Call today! Financing available. Call Safe Step 1-855-868-0192
TWO SPOOKY SHOWS ARE HERE JUST IN TIME FOR HALLOWEEN
The ArtCentre Theatre at 1400 Summit Ave. suite E Plano, TX 7507 is producing 2 spooky shows this Halloween season. Misery is showing October 3 through the 19th and Rocky Horror Picture Show will be in the house on October 24 through November 15. Tickets available at www.artcentretheatre.com or call the box office at 972-881-3228.
