Looking for love but tired of going to same Uptown clubs fighting with the bumping bass line to talk to that cutie you met at the bar? And have you had it with speed dating because there's never enough [or too much] of the opposite sex and not a good chance of making a connection?

If that's how you feel, then here's an event for you. Tonight Coretta Livingstone, also known as the QC Info Broker, and Kevan Glover are hosting a Lock and Key Affair, starting at 7 p.m. Unlike other Lock and Key Parties, this one won't be held at a club and there won't even be a DJ.

Creative Loafing: What is a Lock and Key party?

Coretta Livingstone: Well, I used to do speed dating, and I always used to get more women than men.  I did some research and found that the ratio to women and men in Charlotte is about 20 to 1. And I found the people have a harder time coming out when they know they're going to be cornered into a speed dating situation. I saw the lock and key events and I decided to make it more fun. People come out to socialize, network and the possibility of a relationship. What happens is all the ladies get a lock and the men get a key. It makes the guys and girls a little less hesitant to go up and approach someone.  Anytime someone gets a match [when the guy's key fits the woman's lock], I give out a prize. The idea is to find that one person and you talk all night. But if you want to toss your key or your lock back and find someone else to talk to, you can do that too.

Where is tonight's party?

We're doing it at Talent Link [2901 North Davidson St., Suite 131] rather than a club. That way, people who don't go to clubs can participate. People still want to meet other people whether they go to church, and not really into the clubbing type life. So this gives them an opportunity to come to a place that is a little more neutral. Talent Link is a place where that is set up real cute. There's a little area with couches, there are candles all through it. And there's a kitchen so we're able to have a place where we can keep our food nice and warm. It's almost like hosting people at your house. It's very comfortable to entertain people.

How is lock and key different from speed dating?

With the speed dating, all of the ladies are going to come in and sit down at one table and the guys are going to go from table to table and it's almost like you have to talk to every person. With the lock and key, you get to select who you want to talk to and who you don't want to talk to. Even with the lock and key, if I sit you across from John and he's not that appealing to you, you don't have to talk to him for three to seven minutes trying to have a conversation that you don't want to have. I make the announcement the beginning, ladies you have a lock, men you have a key. You walk up to them and ask if I can see if your key fits my lock. That gives you a chance to make a connection and keep that conversation going. You can be in the room with the lock and key and you're not obligated to talk to just one person.

Are tickets still available?

Yes, tickets are still available or you can just show up. We try to have an even number of men and women. So far, we have 37 people signed up.

What else is going on at the event tonight?

We have free mini spa services from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Is your lover gone, and you want him or her back? Maybe you need some spiritual assistance. That's where Papa George comes in. He practices voodoo to do many things, including reuniting lovers. He recently spoke with Creative Loafing about what he does and how, he says, voodoo can make love last.

Creative Loafing: So how exactly do you reunite lovers?

Papa George: Let me start out first by telling you what I do here. What I do here is voodoo. Basically, I influence people; love problems, money problems, court cases. Now, with a love problem, the first thing I ask them is: What do they want? Do they want it permanently or do they want to play with it? That's the first thing I ask them. There are three types of relationships: you want to play, you don't know or you want it permanently ... You know, the divorce rate in 1903 was like 1 percent and today it's like 56 percent. More people get divorced today, as far as I'm concerned, than get married. If you decide to stay with somebody, what you do is a spiritual marriage spell.

How does this spell change a relationship?

Well, you tie their soul and guardian angel to you. Now, that won't make life perfect; that's impossible. That doesn't mean you should go cheat on your mate either. But if you play it right, you will no doubt get a relationship the way that it is meant to be. Two people joined together, like the Bible says, two become one to go through life together.

How long does this spell last?

That spell is meant for permanency. It's not meant to get someone laid or to test the waters. That's mean (to be used) when you know what you want.

Can that spell be broken?

It would be very difficult to break that. Anything can be broken, I suppose, but it would be very difficult.

You said it doesn't make life perfect, so how does voodoo help?

My life is 3,000 times better with voodoo, but it is not perfect. For instance, I'm on my third wife. I've had two die on me. But I'm 60 years old and my wife is 25. And she's very good looking. Does she still get a little hard to handle sometimes? Yes. Do I get hard to handle sometimes? Yes.

How long have you been practicing voodoo?

I was fully trained by the time I was 16. It's not something you toy with. This was the thing I learned.

Want to talk to Papa George? You can call him at (800) 958-6636.

Here's a fact, some men love feet.

The owner of Pretty Feet Videos in Charlotte knows just how to capture that beautiful foot on film (or digital pixels) and video to feed the fetish of men who just love to see a pretty pair of feet. Though the videos and pictures sold by Pretty Feet Videos aren't explicit or sexual in nature, the whole foot fetish thing brings to mind sex.

Creative Loafing spoke with the owner of Pretty Feet Videos about what he does and why it isn't what people assume it is.

Creative Loafing: What do people get in a Pretty Feet Video?

Pretty Feet Video: What we do is strictly foot fetish stuff. People who have an admiration for pretty feet in high heels, foot jewelry, bare feet, pretty painted toes. Our shots are different angles, soles of the feet in heels, shoe dangling. None of my material contains any sexual content. There is no nudity or no sexual content in what I'm selling. It is basically feet and heels and things of that nature. I do provide some leg shots.

Who buys these videos?

My clientele are just people who are into that kind of thing. The want pictures, which I usually put on a CD, a minimum of 100 pictures, and the videos are between 30 and 45 minutes. It's predominately men who inquire about [the feet videos and pictures]. I'm going to say about 99 percent of the time that I'm receiving inquiries from men. Women rarely ever ask about it.

What's does the perfect foot look like?

Well, basically, not everybody may have pretty feet. So, I don't do anything that I don't consider attractive. They have to be well maintained, pedicures and things of that nature. You can tell the difference between a person who obviously takes care of their feet and the person who really kind of doesn't. So, all of my videos include very well pedicured toes and feet that are well taken care of with lotion. That aren't scaly and dry. That's not the kind of feet you will see on any of my work.

Where do you find your foot models?

I have a person that I work with who does that. I don't advertise for any models or anything like that.

Is there a big foot fetish community in Charlotte?

I think there is. I almost want to call it an underground community. Most men like pretty feet, but I don't think it's something that they will outwardly admit to. I'm speaking from experience. Most men do like to see pretty feet and it's pretty evident when I started doing this because I was getting calls for what I was selling. It was pretty much confirmation for me that there is a market for it. When I started doing this, people started coming out of the woodwork inquiring about it.

Two things happen when women and male strippers come together: screaming and excitement. So, what better time than Mother’s Day to have a "ladies lock-up"?

That’s what M.L. Benjamin is banking on this weekend. Saturday, she’s bringing “A Taste of Chocolate” to The Blvd, located at 3500 E. Independence Blvd. Benjamin spoke to Creative Loafing about the event and what women can expect from the male dance (read: strippers) troupe, The Body Snatchers.

Creative Loafing: For those who don’t know, what is a ladies lock-up?

Benjamin: Well, we’re bringing in some guys — they’re called the Body Snatchers. We’re going to open the doors at 8 p.m. so that everyone can get in. We’re going to have a DJ playing. The show starts at 9 p.m. and then we’re going to lock the doors. I’m told you can’t let people keep running in and out.

What’s different about your ladies lock-up than others that happen across the city?

We’re going to open it up to everybody and let the men come in — once the show is over.

Women get really excited about these lock-ups, but for someone who’s never been to one — what can they expect?

OK. Let me set the tone for you. We’re going to have VIP right in front of the stage, it’s going to be plush because we’re going to have chocolate covered strawberries, chocolate covered bananas. We’re going to have Stefan from Slumber Parties (adult toys) there to sell the adult novelties. When the show starts, the men will come out and they will be fully dressed and they will talk with the women, play with the women and entertain them. Then they get down to taking off their clothes and really entertaining them. They will, of course, take some ladies on the stage with them, if they want to come on stage. It’s going to be a good time. It’s going to be really nice.

So, how are the male dancers different from the female dancers?

You know, I really can’t answer that because I’ve never seen the female dancers.

What’s the response to the Body Snatchers been like?

I wish you could see all the different messages that are coming on my phone and all of the different questions. I put up a clip of the Body Snatchers and their website so that people could go and take a look at them. They are going to that website, and they are excited about them.

So, how will this night differ from the ladies lock-ups that are hosted at Club Onyx every third Sunday?

A Taste of Chocolate was planned by a woman, catered and designed for women. A man will never know what we want as much as we will.

Want to spend some time with your mom at a ladies' lock-up? Log on to: www.mlbenjamin.com

North Carolina Sex Therapist Dr. Sara Rosenquist talked to Creative Loafing about a disorder we've all been hearing a lot about. Sexual addiction.

From cheating husbands to the anonymous group of people that attend Sex Addicts Anonymous meetings, people are being affected by a disorder that is shunned by society and not even recognized by the American Psychiatric Association.

Creative Loafing: What is sexual addiction? Is it a real disorder?

Dr. Rosenquist: It's very complicated and it's so controversial within the professional community to consider it a disorder. It's not in the DSM, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The notion of it as an addiction is a metaphor because the

compulsivity of it behaves as if it were an addiction. The person, when they focus their sexuality in an objectifying way , is disassociating sexual stimulation from the emotional component and the relational component. The person is using sexual arousal and orgasms to deal with anxiety. In that way, it behaves as if  it is an addiction. But it is a conceptual frame we put around it in order to talk about it and in order to understand it and to try and be compassionate and come up with solutions. But it's not like diabetes, it's not like the physical disorders.

How does a person know that their sex habits are a problem?

Unable to resist their urges, despite the fact that the consequences are increasingly costly. [Former President Bill] Clinton was not able to resist his urges despite the fact that the consequences were enormous. It's like with an alcohol addiction, you keep needing more. Where one drink used to get you loose, you have to have three or four to even get a buzz. You need more danger and more edge to get the same jolt.

Erotic author Mary B. Morrison or Honey B to some of you is coming to town tonight to sleep with you. And she's doing it at Real Eyes Bookstore.

Morrison is the author of book like Single Husbands and Sweeter Than Honey. This is the first time that she's come to Charlotte to have a sexy sleepover with readers and Real Eyes owner Darren "Jaz" Vincent brought her here because he wanted to do something different with Charlotte nightlife.

Creative Loafing: Why did you decide to bring Mary B Morrison in for a slumber party?

Vincent: She told me how much of a success it was with the Michael Baisden (national radio show host) cruise and I really wanted to give her her own event and congratulate her as an author for doing what she does.

How has the response been to this event?

People really want to come out and support her. A lot of people from outside of Charlotte are coming to this thing tonight, people from as far as Atlanta are coming to this thing tonight.

As a male reader, what do you think of Morrison's sexy books?

I respect her boldness and I feel like a woman has a right to use what she has if she wants to and that's what Mary's all about.

Are tickets still available for tonight's event?

Yes and they are $20. That also includes food.

Want to spend the night (or at least from 8 p.m. to 12 a.m.) with Mary B. Morrison? Head over to Real Eyes Bookstore, located at 3306-B North Davidson Street. You must be 21 and up. You're invited to come in your best pajamas.

Charlotte H Club, a non profit group which supports people infected with herpes and the human papillomavirus, wants to raise awareness about these diseases during STD Awareness Month.

Sara from Charlotte H Club spoke with Creative Loafing.

Because herpes and HPV aren’t life threatening like HIV, Fraser said that often times the medical community doesn’t give people the information they need to treat or avoid the diseases.

What don’t people know about herpes and HPV?

Sara: We have a lot of people come into a meeting once they find out they have herpes or HPV and they say “I used a condom, how did this happen?” People don’t realize that herpes isn’t transferred through blood and it’s transferred through skin to skin contact. It infects the whole genital area and sometimes it’s not just the genital area. People who have had partners with cold sores perform oral sex and they get oral herpes, genitally. If you have it genitally it’s not as bad as herpes simplex 2, but you still have herpes.

Is the lack of information one of the reasons why it is so important to do outreach?

We want people to know what is going on. No one wants to have herpes or HPV. We want people to prepare and better educate themselves. We also want people to know that it’s not the end of the world [if you get herpes or HPV] and that we’re not whores that deserve to get the terrible diseases. We’re great people despite this little problem and people don’t need to be afraid or be disgusted and they don’t need to run away.

How does a person’s social life change once they are diagnosed with herpes or HPV?

Some people stop dating all together. They are afraid to have to tell someone. Some people have had what we refer to as the talk and they have had some horrible reactions. People telling them not to touch their things, like touching someone’s dishes is going to give them herpes and that just doesn’t happen. It is really terrible the way people react. A lot of people are anxiety ridden about having to tell someone they care about that they have herpes. The stigma is so great and the assumptions about the people who get herpes are so negative that people isolate themselves. They don’t want to be around anyone because they are afraid people will find out. Some members are even afraid they would lose their jobs because of misinformation and the stigma attached to having it.

Raymond, the owner of Colonial Florists of Charlotte, located on Sharon Amity Road, knows that he's going to see a lot of men come into his shop on Valentine's Day to send roses and other arrangements to their lady loves. But he's noticed another trend, women sending flowers to their men. You'd think a man wouldn't want flowers, but ladies, you know that feeling you get when a bouquet arrives at your job. Men feel the same way.

Creative Loafing: What kind of flowers are women sending to men?

Raymond: They send roses. That's basically what they send. When they come in, they usually have their mind made up as to what they want to send.

When did you first notice more women sending flowers to their men?

It's been a few years now. It sure has. Mostly during Valentine's it's more of the men sending flowers to women. But during the year, it's mostly women sending flowers.

During the spring months, what are the most popular flower choices?

The mix cuts, which are a little bit of everything in it.

So, ladies, don't be afraid to send that man a dozen roses. There's no telling how he will thank you for it when he gets home.