“Well, if I lose this year, I hope it’s to Kerry.”
That was my thought as I completed my Memphis Flyer Best of Memphis ballot a couple of months ago. A lot of Memphians think it’s “cool” to bash their own city. I’ve always thought, for us to take the place we deserve as a first-class place to live, we’ve got to stop doing that, and start talking about all the wonderful things Memphis offers. Kerry Crawford’s I Love Memphis Blog does just that. Every day she offers up evidence that this is a vibrant, diverse community with tons of things to do. She’s one of the rare people who has managed to turn her passion into a job. It’s great that she won and I heartily congratulate her. Congrats to her on winning Best Twitterer too. If you’re not following her at @ilovememphis, you’re missing out!
The important thing for me is not so much winning, but making the top three so I get invited to the annual Best of Memphis party the Flyer throws, which is one of the best events of the year. The restaurant winners in the poll do the catering, and guests walk from station to station to sample the best food in town. And, of course, there’s beer, which I like. I’ll be rolling out there with Air Traffic Mike about 6:00. The party will continue once I get back Downtown, because I’m taking the rest of the week off!
Okay, let’s get on to the news.
MPACT Memphis has a very cool event coming up next Tuesday, September 28. It’s one of their “Happy Hours with a Twist,” and they’re partnering with Team-Up Grizzlies Mentoring to present opportunities to mentor in the Memphis community. Nonprofits including Youth Villages, Memphis Prep, Girls Inc., and Families of Incarcerated Individuals will speak. Oh and I guess you might be interested to know that there’s an OPEN BAR for members from 6-8 ($5 nonmembers). There will also be free snacks all night long. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up. The event will be in the beautiful lobby of the Westin Hotel.
The Downtown Neighborhood Association meeting is also on the 28th, and it sounds like a good program: The Watoto Memphis Dancers will perform, and Donald O’Conner of Watoto will speak about how the organization is getting kids excited about music, dance and their heritage. The other speaker will be Paul Morris, president of the CCC. Meeting will be in the Folklore Hall of the Center for Southern Folklore, and Circa will provide light hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar.
Look for free Budweiser when you go out in the next week. Bud is launching its largest ever free-beer campaign to attempt to freshen its image. Bud’s not my favorite beer, but if it’s free, heck yeah I’ll drink it. More info here.
It’s Oktoberfest stein night for “Buy the Beer, Keep the Glass” night at the Flying Saucer. I saw a preview yesterday and it’s one of their best offerings in a while. If you want a beer stein, stop by at 7:00 and buy one.
This is pretty much all I’m doing in my lunch break today… given the food situation at tonight’s party, I want to show up with an empty stomach. Everyone have a good afternoon, and congrats to all the Best of Memphis winners! As soon as I see an issue, I’ll comment further on this year’s BOM poll.