BREAKING NEWS: Tornado watch issued for Shelby County until 8 PM. The Storm Prediction Center classifies this as a “Particularly Dangerous Situation.”
You ever see those mall store Santas and think, “Yeah that guy is probably making minimum wage to hold kids on his lap”? Think again. Atlas Obscura has an article on the business of Santa. An enterprising Santa can make $5000 to $10,000 during the holiday season, and if teamed up with a professional Mrs. Claus the couple can make 20. Some Santas even pull a full-time yearly income by adding commercials, modeling, and other Santa-related jobs.
St. Jude is launching a graduate school of biomedical sciences on its campus in the fall of 2017. That’s pretty cool… who wouldn’t want to be able to say they graduated from St. Jude? In other St. Jude news, the MBJ has a map of all the property St. Jude/ALSAC owns.
Visit the St. Jude gift shop to support a great cause while completing your Christmas gift shopping. There’s also an in-store gift shop that is open today.
Developers have purchased land on Union and Gayoso, south of AutoZone Park, for a 4-story Cambria Hotel.
From Distractify: This swear words coloring book is a fucking brilliant way to start 2016. Shit, yeah, it is.
Value drinking tips for Flying Saucer patrons: Straight to Ale Monkeynaut has a Value Drinking Index of 21. New Belgium Blackberry Barleywine has a Value Drinking Index of 24. For those not familiar, VDI = (percent alcohol by volume * number of ounces) / price. A VDI of 15 or above indicates an excellent value for the dollar in beer.
Bet you didn’t know: There’s a community of 2100 “detanglers” out there who help get knots out of balls of yarn. There’s a forum where knitters and crocheters ask for their help. Detanglers enjoy their work and will often work for the cost of shipping and handling.
Does osteporosis run in your family? It’s been shown that 12 minutes of yoga every day can strengthen your bones and prevent the disease. YOGA!
In related news, an injectable foam has been developed to repair degenerating bones.
Here’s a pic of the Z-bow wrapping kit that was handed out to the first 5000 fans at the Grizzlies game Saturday.
There was a legal dispute between Fireball and Jack Daniel’s over Google AdWords and trademark violation, but it has been called off.
I played poker last night and have a bad beat story to share. After about 30 garbage hands in a row, I looked down and found Ace-Ten offsuit. It was folded to me in late position. The blinds were 400/800 and I had a stack of 7700. With less than ten big blinds and a hand that is vulnerable post-flop, I decided to go all-in and see if anyone else wanted to come along. My BBQ teammate/Silly Goose bartender Dusty called for his stack of 3600. We flipped over:
My hand: A-10 offsuit
Dusty’s hand: K-10 offsuit
This is an excellent situation for me, known as domination. If a 10 hits the board, it will help Dusty, but it will help me more because I have a superior kicker. Only a King or the unlikely Queen-Jack-Nine or four flush cards can save Dusty from elimination.
The flop: Q-J-9
ARGH!!!! Dusty flopped a straight. Now I’m the one hoping for a King, which would give me a higher straight. The turn and river were no help and I lost nearly half my chips. Sucks, but that’s poker. I enjoyed the game and the camaraderie with my table-mates.
The office closes at 3, but with the storms moving in I plan on being outta here earlier than that. Will work from home til 3 then Blind Bear and Silly Goose for happy hour. Everyone be safe and SLOW DOWN on the interstate. Water tends to pool on I-240 at mile 26/6 north of Norris, and about a quarter-mile before the exit onto I-240 to go Downtown. On I-55, water pools under the Third Street and Horn Lake Road bridges. Watch out for those especially. Remember, lights on when it’s raining and don’t tailgate. All right, driving sermon over, back to work.