For those whose tastes and humor tends to run a bit darker than average, the Dallas holiday season can be a bit stressful with its unrelenting push toward cheer. The Texas Triffid Ranch, Dallas' pretty much only carnivorous plant gallery, hopes to rectify this with the return of its "Nightmare Weekends Before Christmas" gallery open houses.

Visitors may come by for an antidote to cheer poisoning by viewing unique enclosures for Asian pitcher plants (Nepenthes), South American pitcher plants (Heliamphora), Australian pitcher plants (Cephalotus), butterworts (Pinguicula), bladderworts (Utricularia), sundews (Drosera) and other carnivorous and protocarnivorous plants.