(Note: I made a slight correction to the info about the Goodwyn party, see below.)
– First and foremost: Residents for a Safer Downtown Memphis now has their core objectives posted online. Mike King and I worked for hours on these objectives yesterday. Check them out – go to the Residents for a Safer Downtown Memphis website and click on the link that says “news section.” If you have any questions or comments about the objectives, shoot us an e-mail at saferdowntownmemphis@gmail.com.
– Next up: Got a one-question quiz for you. Someone forwarded this to me in an e-mail this morning.
There’s a well-known company that has slightly over 500 employees. It has the following statistics:
- 29 have been accused of spousal abuse
- 7 have been arrested for fraud
- 19 have been accused of writing bad checks
- 117 have directly or indirectly bankrupted at least 2 businesses
- 3 have done time for assault
- 71 cannot get a credit card due to bad credit
- 14 have been arrested on drug-related charges
- 8 have been arrested for shoplifting
- 21 are current defendants in lawsuits
- 84 have been arrested for drunk driving in the past year
Can you guess the identity of this company? Answer at the end of this post.
– I wouldn’t be a good downtown blogger if I didn’t post a pigeon pic every now and then. Today I was walking to Jack’s Food Store and I saw this unusually-marked pigeon in Court Square:
Definitely different-looking from the usual gray-and-black (-and-purple-and-green) pigeons that we see every day. There must be some white doves or other white birds in his ancestry. Despite the different look, he was still as annoying as all the other pigeons in the park.
Attn The Most Annoying Woman On The Planet: The pigeons request that you come stand in the middle of Court Square, so that they’ll look good by comparison.
Saturday night I went to Raiford’s. I didn’t want to deal with the crowd downtown that had come to see the boxing match, so I got to Raiford’s at 10:30 and parked myself there for the night. What I discovered: Raiford’s isn’t so much fun when you go by yourself. About 2 in the morning my buddies showed up and from then on I had a great time. I danced with a girl in a white tube top. I had my usual outfit (maroon sequined shirt with matching pimp hat, sunglasses, and platform shoes) on. I need to get a pic of that to post on the blog. Maybe I’ll make that my new profile pic.
When I got home, I checked the archives of the OttoCam to see what the cruisers had been up to. It wasn’t as busy as I expected, but the streets did get congested for a while. Here are some pics:
12:23 AM Saturday morning. Intersection of Front and Peabody Place is in the foreground, with Front and Beale farther back. Note the white Monte Carlo turning left from Front onto Peabody Place.
12:24 AM: The white Monte Carlo has made about one car length of progress.
12:25 AM: Again, the Monte Carlo has moved forward by less than a car length. This is how bad the streets get clogged up on Saturday nights. If it were all people trying to get somewhere it would be one thing, but that’s not the case – at least half these people are cruisers, just driving around for the fun of it.
1:05 AM: The streets are still jammed.
1:07 AM: The cops finally shut down the intersection and…
1:09 AM: …things are back to normal.
One thing I’d like to do is go over there some Saturday night with my digital camera, which is also a voice recorder. I’d like to record how loud the stereos are, from inside an apartment, and post the recording on the Residents for a Safer Downtown Memphis website. I’d also like to start a campaign within the Gayoso where all of the residents of that building who are disturbed by car stereos on Saturday night call the downtown precinct (525-9800) and report violations of the noise ordinance. Inundate the police with calls so they understand how fed up that building’s residents are with the cruising. And if the police can’t clean it up, then have all of the residents call their City Council representative (I won’t post his phone number here, but I have it and will give it to people individually) and complain until something is done.
A few events coming up this week:
Wednesday: I’ve been forgetting to remind people that LoLo’s Table on Monroe does Wine Wednesday every week. They select a different red and white wine each week, and sell them for $12 a bottle or $4 a glass. They also select appetizers that complement the wines and put those on special too. This is a good choice for a mid-week date. Don’t know if I’ll be there, but nonetheless I recommend it.
Thursday: Reception where you can get info about the condos in the Goodwyn Building, at the corner of Madison and Second. The condos are currently under development, but they’ll have plenty of information and presentations so you can get a feel for what the interior will look like. Reception will be held in my building (10 S. Main) from 5 to 8 PM. (Correction: I had initially said this would be on the rooftop, but it looks like a different party – a private party – will be on the roof, so I’m guessing this will be in the lobby. Just want to make sure no one shows up at the wrong party) The developers restoring these condos are the same ones who restored No. 10 Main, so I have no doubt they’ll do an excellent job. They’ll have free appetizers and booze, so it goes without saying that I’ll be there for this one.
Thursday: The Dempseys, at the downtown Flying Saucer. Show starts at 9:30.
Between the Goodwyn party and the Dempseys, I probably won’t make it to the Peabody rooftop at all this week. What’s the point in going up there for an hour and then leaving? Although, people do it. Every week, I see people lined up to pay cover at 9:15, when the event ends at 10. What’s the point? By the time you stand in the line for an entry ticket, stand in line for a drink ticket, and stand in line to get the drink, it’ll be over.
All right, let’s wrap this up. The well-known company I described at the beginning of this post, with 535 employees, is the United States Congress. 100 Senators and 435 Representatives. That’s their track record. Is it any wonder that Congressional job approval (according to RealClearPolitics) is at 25.8%?