About the Cover:
Houston model Josh Mellen sports a Tiara Magic crown, one of our holiday gift ideas. Mellen appears courtesy of Page.713. Photographed for OutSmart by John Conroy /Varsity Productions.

December 2002

FEATURES

• COVER STORY: A Few of Our Favorite Things This holiday, we want you to know what we like. Photographs by David Lewis
  
• Share the Wealth Nonprofit organizations need holiday gifts, too. By Tim Brookover
  
• Enron Revisited A year after the fall, we visit with the energy giant's web master, in the first of a series. By D.L. Groover
  
• Heavenly Haynes Openly gay director Todd Haynes talks about his new film, Far From Heaven. By Blase DiStefano. (Also: a Far from Heaven review by Tim Brookov
  
• Pottery Yarn Bayou Bend curator Michael Brown organizes a historic exhibition of pots made in Texas by former slaves.
  

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

• LookOut SpongeBob SquarePants and Leonardo kick off the holidays. By Tim Brookover
  
• Movies on DVD/VHS Margaret Cho, Boxer Shorts, Treading Water.
  
• GrooveOut 'Tis the season to buy CDs. By Gregg Shapiro
  
• GrooveOut Shorts Reviews of releases from Megan Mullally, Happy Charles, and more. By Andrea Rodricks, Lance Walker, and Troy Carrington.
  
• Out in the Arts What in the heck happened with Baby Jane? By D. L. Groover
  
• ReadOut Dorothy Allison talks about the expanded version of Trash. By Gregg Shapiro
  
• ReadOut Shorts How to Be a Happy Lesbian, Stocking Stuffers, more.r
  

NEWS & COMMENT

• LETTERS
  
• News Briefs A new AIDS activist group heads to Austin, the quotable Ray Hill appears in Mother Jones, writers gather at the Community Center, and OutSmart goes tabloid.
  
• LeftOut A package from Dr. Laura isn't really a gift. By Paula Martinac
  
• OutRight Ten years ago, Colorado's Amendment 2 threatened gay progress. By Dale Carpenter.
  
• InsideOut at City Hall Lobbying isn't always a bad word. By Annise D. Parker
  
• Health Viewpoint The election aftermath reveals bleak prospects for AIDS funding. By Rich Arenschieldt
  
• BUSINESS NEWS
  

OUT & ABOUT

• Humor Maybe the lesbian manual should come with instructions. By Sally Sheklow
  
• Calendar Goings-on in December.
  
• Holiday Calendar Holiday treats.
  
• Out of Town Across Texas, festive events make the season merry. By Eric A. T. Dieckman
  
• DineOut Barnaby's turns 10. By Eric A. T. Dieckman
  
• Bar & Club Guide OutSmart's listing of Houston-area nightspots.
  
• SignOut By Lilly Roddy