c4

The Sci Fi Lounge at Crestwood ArtSpace is officially closed forever.

Yet another fantastic venue here in town is gone. I hosted my monthly comics meetup, C4: Comic Creators Coffee Club, here for about a year. We loved meeting here, the fantastic ambience, the way owner Coyote went out of his way to welcome us. Not to mention that he joined us as well, since he’s a comic artist himself.

I will miss you, Sci Fi Lounge. You introduced me to the weird, can’t tear your eyes away from it, Indian sci-fi epic movie, Robot. I could always wander in on a Friday or Saturday night, and be assured of something fun and interesting to do — a D&D night, themed movie night, a performance by local bands, Draw Club with sci-fi themed models, the list goes on.

Owner Coyote has said he’s not planning to reopen in a new location. I can’t blame him, he’s not going to find rent as cheap as ArtSpace was offering anywhere else. I only hope in a few years, he might change his mind.

If you are a nerd and you have not been to Shameless Grounds yet, you are missing out.

Shameless Grounds is a sex-positive coffee shop one block west of the intersection of Jefferson and Gravois. It’s located in the same building as Koken Art Factory, the venue that puts on the yearly Naughti Gras erotic art show.

Shameless Grounds hosts a variety of great events in their own right: the monthly Literary Nudes figure drawing event, Off the GRID (Genderfuck Retro-Alternative Indie Drag Show), PJs and Movie on Wednesdays, Tenacious Trivia on Mondays, Rope Bite chapter meetings, Kinky Bingo, Kinky Book Club, and more.

At the center of the shop lies Shameless Grounds’ lending library, which contains a variety of material that relates to human sexuality, both to educate and to entertain.

In addition to being a welcoming area for many of St. Louis’ alternative lifestyle groups, and a great place to hold meetings, Shameless Grounds is also a pretty damn good place to get coffee and some food. The menu is small but tasty, and includes a variety of vegetarian and vegan offerings. The shop also often has lunch specials for around $6.

I host a monthly meetup for local comic book creators — artists and writers — and our next meeting is coming up. Here’s the official type blurb:

Coffee for Comics Creators

There are lots of creative people in St. Louis working on interesting comic book projects. Let’s get together and introduce ourselves over coffee. We’ll discuss our experiences pitching companies, running Artist Alley tables, collaborating with other professionals, Project Comic Con 2, and more.

See you Tuesday, July 6 at 7 p.m. at Wired Coffee, 1/2 mile south of the intersection of Lindbergh and Watson. Check out http://www.wiredcoffee.net/visit.php for map and directions.