“Paul, we’ve never met, but I just wanted to come talk to you for a minute. Eight years ago, I met a woman I really liked. I wanted to ask her out on a first date but didn’t know where. Thanks to a recommendation on your blog I found the perfect place to take her.”
“Three years later, I married her.”
THAT. That kind of thing is what I live for. This blog has really been through three phases in the 11 years it has been operating. There was the “Oh my God, people really read this thing?” phase in the early years. There was the “Oh my God, I’m winning the Memphis Flyer poll” phase in the middle years. For the past 5 years or so I’ve been in the “Oh my God, this blog really affects people’s lives for the better” phase. I would be happy to remain in the current phase for the rest of my life. Stories like the one above make my heart sing. I have to admit, I have been dancing around the apartment for most of the past hour thinking about it.
If something I have written on here has had a major effect on your life in some way, and you see me out and about, please come talk to me. I live for that stuff. I promise you, I am one of the least scary people in Memphis to approach and meet.
I didn’t get the name of the restaurant that guy took his future wife to, but I will give you my 2015 Downtown Memphis recommendation. You want to take a girl on a first date and really impress her? Rizzo’s Diner, corner of Main and Butler. It’s elegant and shows you think a lot of her, but it’s not going too far considering you just recently met her. If you get a chance, discreetly tell the host that you would like Chef Michael Patrick to come out and say hello if he’s in the building. I promise you, she will not be disappointed with the food. Also, the menu has a fun, playful side to it (e.g. lobster Pronto Pups) that is the kind of vibe you want to establish. Here’s Rizzo’s website where you can see the menu and learn about the restaurant.
Now that I think through this a little more, here’s my idea of an ideal first date (keep in mind I almost never go out on dates, so take this with a grain of salt): Dinner at Rizzo’s, then walk down the street to Earnestine & Hazel’s to hang out and play the jukebox. If she has a problem with either place, you should consider kicking her to the curb. If she dances with you at E&H she may be a long-term keeper.
Yesterday was a day of accomplishment.
Bardog has a couple of new toys, two water-filled globes with a golf ball and a tee in the middle. The challenge is to get the ball on the tee. Sounds simple, but it is incredibly hard to get that ball to balance on the tee, and Bardog is creating a Wall of Fame for people who do it. As of yesterday it had 25 members. Moody Ques head cook Frank (who will be cooking at Memphis Farmers Market’s Crop Hop 5K Friday night) became the 26th. A few minutes later, team vice-president Clay became number 27.
“This is making me look bad,” I thought after they left. “Everyone knows I am the hardest-working member of the Moody Ques. My teammates have figured out this golf ball thing and I haven’t. This is going to hurt my reputation.” I picked up the globe and wrestled with it, and a couple of minutes later team workhorse “Mr. Load-in” became number 28 on the wall of fame. Panda snapped my picture for the wall.
The Redbirds close their homestand vs. Round Rock tonight. First 2500 kids in the gate receive a free ice cream treat, and they can run the bases after the game.
The movie Letters from Iwo Jima will be played at the Belz Museum in Pembroke Square at noon.
Max’s Sports Bar will be opening at 4:30 on the weekends until football season starts. I found that out the hard way when I walked down there around 4 to watch the College World Series. “Oh well, I’ll go to Central BBQ and have nachos,” I decided. I think I’m pretty good at devising alternate plans on the spot. Afterward I went to now-open Max’s and stayed past 10 PM. Michele was having problems with a female panhandler who rolled a suitcase up and down the street and yelled at her through the window. I so wanted to see Shell get the baseball bat out, but it didn’t happen.
That reminds me of a story I’ve been meaning to tell on here: The new green benches on the Main Street Mall are perfect for avoiding panhandlers. You get a bench between you and them and it forces them to guess which direction you’re going to go. Will he go left? Will he go right? You watch their body language, and as soon as they commit to a direction, you take the opposite direction. It’s like the pick-and-roll, but bums instead of basketball.
B-RAD, we are going to teach Mary how to make duck farts today. I will be at your bar at 11 AM. Folks, if you get out to Sunday brunch, support the return of the duck fart. Order them, post pics to social media, use the #duckfart hashtag. DUCK FARTS!