Sock monkey? Nah. As McSweeney’s has made it clear, “it’s decorative gourd season, motherfuckers!” And this is your chance to make one for free!

Whether they know it or not, every artist is inspired by one who came before them. In the case of Salvador Dalí, he was open about his obsession with those that came before him. Specifically, Dutch painter Johannes Vermeer.

Stand-up comedy is almost always worth watching, because it’s funny when a joke lands and even sort of funny (admit it) when it doesn’t. But nothing feels better than laughing with homegrown comics because, damn it, we support local talent.

The name Elizabeth Strout should be as well-known as her best-selling title characters Amy and Isabelle or Olive Kitteridge… or Lucy Barton. And speaking of Lucy, Strout has brought her back. On the page and to Dallas.

Through October 15, Conduit Gallery (1626 C Hi Line Drive) is spotlights two artists who, while with totally different styles, are builders. Austin-based Lance Letscher creates his collages from aged, illustration-based 1950s and 1960s ephemera.

Plenty of contemporary plays have women in them. But in his biting new satire, Mathew Posey of Ochre House Theater (825 Exposition Ave.) actually wants to focus on them. Using song and dance and even some vaudevillian tricks, the Ochre season opener is all about exploring roles of oppression and oppressor.

“Here we go again…” The main challenge with watching Mamma Mia! live and on stage is to keep yourself from singing along to all the ABBA hits that form the soundtrack. But we think we can handle it just to get a peep at Lyric Stage’s production of the beloved musical hitting the Majestic Theatre (1925 Elm St.) on Wednesday, August 24, and running through Sunday.

Ah, the sweet aspirations inspired by The Great British Baking Show – don’t pretend you haven’t felt them. The Lancaster-Kiest Branch of the Dallas Public Library (2008 East Kiest Blvd.) offers a workshop from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 4, so we can all tap into our decorative talents with piping demos to get the best trims and lettering lessons for the most legible cakes in the land.

He’s your favorite character who lives in a pineapple under the sea, and his musical is coming to Farmers Branch. The Firehouse Theatre (2535 Valley View Lane) is making waves with The SpongeBob Musical, complete with original tunes by Sara Bareilles, The Flaming Lips, John Legend and others.

We know and love the Mavs ManiAACs for their full-throttle hip-hop antics, but let’s not forget they pull some serious cred too. They are the original all-male performance squad for the NBA. Join the ManiAACs and the mascots for Your Dallas Mavericks from 3 to 4 p.m. Wednesday, June 15, on the Ge-0 Deck of Reunion Tower (300 Reunion Blvd.) for just one of the tower’s Summer in the Sky activities.

The Nasher (2001 Flora St.) has been consistently giving us absolute bangers, as the kids say, with exhibition after exhibition this year. Wednesdays through Sundays, through September 11, visit with Magali Reus: A Sentence in Soil and discover new elements every time. In times where “taken out of context” is used in all too many conversations, in this visual one, the artist does just that by design, removing common objects from their typical surroundings.

Thanks to the Dallas Public Library system, we’re now aware it’s Zombie Awareness Month. Hence, from 4 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 25, the Vickery Park branch (8333 Park Lane) will host the Amazing Zombie Race to find the cure for zombie-ness. It’s a task challenge around the library for individuals and teams of up to four.