Today I have on my Tony Allen “All Heart, Grit, Grind” T-shirt to pay respect to the man who will have to guard the NBA’s leading scorer tonight. James Harden and the Houston Rockets play the Grizzlies tonight at 7 at the FedExForum. We will see if TA, one of the league’s premier defenders, can shut down Harden’s scoring game. Get tickets here. Free magnet schedules to the first 10,000 fans.
Shop Girl New York opens in its new location on the Main Street Mall today. The women’s clothing boutique moved from South Main into the space in between Center for Southern Folklore and Blind Bear. I peeked in there last night when they were having a pre-opening party, and the store looks really nice. Hours are 11-6 today. I’ve already had a couple of people ask if they have tube tops. Probably not this time of year, but they have plenty of other outfits and accessories.
Discover the Dinosaurs will be on tour at the Cook Convention Center this weekend. Come experience up to 60 moving and museum-quality dinosaurs, in scenes that will take you back millions of years to the age of the giant reptiles. Great thing to do with the kids.
The Yazoo “Barely a 4K” is tomorrow. The run starts and ends at Huey’s at Second and Union. Check-in begins at 9 AM. All participants get a cape – that’s right, I said a cape. More details here.
Four days from now, I will be at the Orpheum watching Blue Man Group. This is the most excited I have ever been about an Orpheum show. Their performances combine color, music, rhythm, and storytelling in a manner you probably have not seen unless you have spent extensive time traveling to planets in other solar systems. If you like the musical STOMP!, Blue Man Group’s performance is STOMP! times at least 100.
Last month, I saw Blue Man Group approaching on the calendar. I thought to myself, I’ve got to get some people together to go see it, and I’ve got to convince them that this is totally worth paying for the best seats. Then an email from the Orpheum arrived. I had almost forgotten that I’m on their media list because of this blog. They usually offer me tickets to Tuesday night of their bigger performances. I’ve turned down almost all of their offers, because 1) I’m not into musicals that much; and 2) up until last year Tuesday was my regular trivia night. When they offered Blue Man Group tickets, however, I fumbled all over the keyboard hurrying to type up an RSVP response. I’ll be there Tuesday night and will have a review up sometime Wednesday. I plan to put my extra ticket to very good use too.
When I say Blue Man’s performances include color, I’m not kidding. They call the front seats “poncho seats” and provide ponchos to protect the audience members from getting paint on their clothes.
Thinking about wearing my new royal blue fleece jacket to the performance. Or is that too much like wearing a Van Halen T-shirt to a Van Halen concert?
Plans for tonight: Normally I start at the Saucer, but it will be packed with people pre-gaming on their way to the FedExForum. Hmmm. Blind Bear? Bardog? No, those places will be packed with Downtown Dining Week diners. That leaves the Silly Goose, which is not on the DDW list. So I’ll hit the Goose about 6, then migrate over to the Saucer after the Grizzlies crowd leaves for the game at 7. Got a pumpkin ale I want to try, and I’m going to overlook the fact that it’s expensive. Plans after that TBD.