PERMANENT LIPSTICK by Ginger Knoxx
Let's be real. For anyone who isn't of Mexican descent Cinco de Mayo is just another excuse to party.  Our own Independence Day, in fact, has been reduced to that and a mass media marketing push for barbecuing tools and patio furniture (can't have your neighbors or family coming over with the same deck furniture you had last year). An excuse to take shot after shot of tequila congregating in a friend's kitchen, an excuse to make homemade salsa and pig out on fresh guacamole, an excuse to wear a sombrero in the house and shout olé at nothing in particular. No one blames you. It's not surprising that more Corona beer is sold on this one day than any other. I participated in the madness myself just with a twist: a long awaited Girls' Night on a Friday.

Friday, May 5, aka Drink-o de Mayo
In order for the Model Squad (sans GiGi) and me to get time without our male counterparts, we had to pass on attending James Hume's Cinco de BBQ bash and the Severus Party Bus trip. I arrived first at Fort Bender after traveling through the six rings of hell: cashing a check on a Friday afternoon right at 5 p.m., waiting in line to pay too much for gasoline and then waiting again to put air in a slowly leaking right tire, spending 40 minutes in Metropolitan Market to buy four items from the slowest cashier on the planet after waiting for 10 minutes for a sublime tuna steak at the seafood counter, burning holes into the backs of the eight people in line in front of me buying beer at 7-11, and last but not least - hitting every malevolent traffic light along the way. Needless to say, I almost wept with relief when I finally dropped The Italian off at Franklin Park for the bus trip. These are the days I wish I had a personal assistant to handle all of that. Renee and Ebony arrived as Miss Kate and I were admiring her retro living room. The ladies looked like an ad for Prell shampoo, lustrous black and blonde locks flowing halfway down their backs. They came bearing vino, eats and much good humor. We got started on the booze immediately. The Italian called to give me the hilarious update from the bus: The driver had taken a wrong turn, ended on the Capitol Hill side of Interstate 5 instead of going to El Corazon and got stuck on a hill without enough room to turn around. The bus wouldn't go in reverse, so the partiers did what seemed appropriate at the time - got out and pushed the humongous bus up the hill so they could get to the show, which, by the way, was awesome. Severus sounded amazing with Taproot's bassist sitting in. For those of you who were on the bus, please e-mail me the pictures 'cause this I must see! Back to Ladies' Night: Kate had bottles of Absolut Citron and tequila set out with shot glasses and limes at the ready. Chesty Meow arrived, and then the giggling started. A couple of bottles of wine down and we were on to shot, shot, shot and then silver capped Aria champagne, which is no Veuve Clique, but is good with strawberry slices in it. We skipped the flutes and drank the bubbly out of martini glasses, like the silly freaks we are. That got us talking about different varieties of bubbly, and I had to chime in about Sofia Coppola Minis at Doyle's. The minis are perfect adult juice boxes and are ride-ready.  Bluecifer picked that moment to call - trying to lure us from our residential retreat and out to Doyle's where many fab folks seemed to be congregating. Adrianne and Johanna are the new bartenders; go say hi. Many laughs and dances in the kitchen later, we unwound a bit around midnight, the tall three heading for Magoo's, which was packed and just a riot on Cinco de Mayo. Kate and I chilled on the patio and sipped more vino, savoring a fine evening without testosterone.

IT LIST
Filthy
The band Filthy has changed a lot in the last year, becoming more aggressive in the delivery of their alternative punk and rock sound. Making it a regular thing to play at Maggie O'Tooles has earned the band a decent following. The four-piece delivers in-your-face riffs and ground out lyrics ensuring fans keep coming back. Maggie's has changed a lot in the last year, too. With the help of DJ Danno behind solid bookings, the venue has gone from a traditional Top 40 dance club to an all-around nightclub that appeals to all kinds of music and dance tastes. See Filthy with experimental punk outfit Feed The Robots and The Turks Tuesday. May 16, 9 p.m., 21+, $5, Maggie O'Tooles, 6006 100th St. S.W., Lakewood, (253) 584-3278.

Give me a wink and a kiss here. Knoxx knows.