Tuesday update

Bleu has announced its Valentine’s Day Dinner February 14 from 6 to 10 PM. It’s a four course dinner by Chef Ana and her culinary team and includes a complimentary champagne toast with dessert and a rose for your Valentine.

The Tigers men’s basketball team hosts #22 Wichita State tonight at FedExForum.

Brunch starts at the Brass Door this Sunday from 10 AM to 3 PM. Two-for-one brunch drinks, your choice of Bloody Mary, mimosa, Irish coffee, or Irish breakfast shot.

The Flyer has the scoop on recently-opened Carolina Watershed (been there, great place) and the soon-to-open Grecian Gourmet at 412 S. Main. You may have seen Grecian Gourmet’s products at the Memphis Farmers Market in previous years.

Advance Memphis is kicking off a supply drive for the month of February. They need various kitchen supplies and school supplies.

Y & T plays the New Daisy tonight.

New addition to the menu at Lisa’s Lunchbox:

Grizzlies fans can enter to win dinner at Rock & Dough Pizza with a Grizzlies player on February 22.

Mickey and Minnie costumes looked different in the 1930s. If I was a kid I would run, run away from those mice.

World Series of Poker champion Annie Duke, now a business consultant, has a  new book out called Thinking in Bets. It’s about life, not just poker, and its purpose is to help you get comfortable making decisions when incomplete information is available. Sounds like an interesting read.

That was a really good Super Bowl. I watched it at the Blind Bear. Incredibly, Rahul and Tony turned the sound off because they thought it was too loud. This is what happens when you give the remote control to the wrong people. Common sense soon prevailed and the sound was restored.

Wired has a good article about the five different arms of Special Counsel Mueller’s investigation.

That’s it for now, back tomorrow.

Sponsor a BBQ team for as little as $750 + Sunday news

The Moody Ques board had a planning meeting yesterday. I will get a team email out and a summary on the team website. However, some big news came out of the meeting, and it may be useful to some of my readers so I wanted to go ahead and share it with you here.

A common perception is that if you want to sponsor a team at BBQ Fest, it’s going to cost you $7500-$10,000 or more, which is why you only see big corporations as sponsors. That’s not exactly true – we’ve always had sponsorships as low as the $2000 level. However, we recognize that still is unaffordable to a lot of great Memphis businesses – startups, mom & pop operations who’d like to expand their customer base, mid-sized business who just have never had much of a budget for BBQ Fest. We hate it that businesses like those have been left out.

Therefore, the Moody Ques are offering a new $750 sponsorship level this year. If your main goal is to impress clients, that can get you a table for 8 for dinner one night in our booth at BBQ Fest. On the other hand, if your main interest is raising awareness of your business and attracting new customers, that sponsorship level will let you hang advertising inside our booth and leave business cards on our bar. If your goal is something else, let us know and we can work with you.

Why the Moody Ques? We are a team consisting mainly of young professionals who have considerable discretionary income which we spend at area shopping, restaurants, and bars. Many of us are active on social media and would be willing to mention your sponsorship. Unlike some of the other local teams, we are a young-ish team with average age of mid to late 30s. We have placed top 3 in Best Booth every year except one since we started the team in 2012. The Best Booth awards draw a lot of attention to the booth, a lot of people asking if they can come in and look around – and just think, they’d be looking at your advertising. And besides, how cool would it be to be able to mention “my company’s BBQ team” in conversation?

If interested, email moodyques@gmail.com and someone will get right back to you. If you want a bigger sponsorship than the $750 level, check out our sponsor packet.

We plan on having a full team meeting sometime in March, tentatively March 24. This kind of meeting is important because

  • Gives team members a chance to socialize and know one another prior to BBQ Fest, when everyone tends to be running around getting chores done
  • Gives team members a chance to meet the cooks and ask any questions they have about what goes on in the kitchen, their background/previous awards, etc.
  • Opportunity for team members to learn how they can help – pre-construction tasks, load-in, booth construction, front-of-house duties during the festival, load-out
  • Also an opportunity for people who have never joined a BBQ team before to come and hear what it is like to be on a team
  • Any sponsors who sign on by the date of the full team meeting will be welcome to come out and talk about their business

We plan on competing in a regional between now and BBQ Fest to get a little practice in. This is not set in stone but we are looking at Southaven Springfest the 4th weekend in April as a possibility. We have a history of taking home awards at that event and would be happy to add to our trophy case.

One more announcement for team members: Pay yo’ dues if you haven’t already. It’s on the right sidebar of the team website, or the bottom of the home page if you’re viewing with a smartphone. If you would prefer to pay by check or cash, email moodyques@gmail.com and we can make arrangements.

If you click on the photo above to zoom in, you’ll notice the Deputy Director of Public Relations standing on the counter next to my notebook. She may be retired but she’s still on the BBQ team so she comes out for meetings.

On to the news… this is still in the rumor stage but I am hearing that a well-known local pizza place may be coming to the food hall at 409 S. Main in the coming months.

A new vintage store called Market on Madison opened in The Edge last Thursday. They have dry goods, antiques, home decor, gifts and more.

You’ve probably heard by now about the New York bar that bans customers who use the word “literally,” calling it the most overused, incorrectly word in the English language. I’ll tell you why I never fell into the habit of using that word: It’s because I watched pro wrestling and read wrestling magazines in the 1980s. The Sunday morning WWF show would open with Gorilla Monsoon and Jesse Ventura at the commentary desk. “We’ve got a jam-packed arena here, Jess! They’re literally hanging from the rafters!” Monsoon would say. Because of that, he made a magazine’s list of worst wrestling commentators, the writers pointing out that what he said meant that people were actually hanging from rafters in the arena.

By the way, Dallas announcer Bill Mercer made the top of the list. He mispronounced Nord the Barbarian’s name as Nord the Norwegian and talked about how Nord got so big and strong back in his home country of Norwegia.

Mardi Gras bar crawl in South End!

I remember what I was little, I was given a school assignment to interview my mom and write about the slang words she used when she was my age. In 2045, a paper will be turned in at some school, somewhere in America, reading: “In 2018 some bitches was basic and other bitches was bein’ extra.”

I’ve been asked how I’m doing with my quest to give up Fireball. Doing great. I don’t miss the stuff at all. Everyone at the bar can be doing shots and I don’t feel even the slightest need to join in. I am sleeping so much better. Last night I brought kung pao shrimp home about 6 PM, planning to eat and then get in bed for a halftime nap, waking up about 11 to go out again. Well, I did wake up at 11, but I decided more sleep sounded better than going back out in the cold. I slept until 7 this morning. I had a dream that I was at the Saucer with two of my BBQ teammates and I began to levitate above the bar. It’s my belief that nothing is as healing for the body as dreaming, and levitation dreams are the best. I never had them on any night when I had taken a Fireball.

Heading out to Blind Bear where B-RAD is doing a special Sunday shift. Not sure where I will watch the Super Bowl yet. The troll is un-retired for another day because she bought a square in one of the local “squares” games. That’s it for now, back tomorrow with more.

Saturday update

If you’re looking for something different to do tonight, check out JustLarry’s Mayhem 2018 at Evergreen Theater at 8 PM. This epic variety show features magic, burlesque, acrobatics, drag queens, singers, comedians… it’s really more than I can describe, so if it sounds interesting follow this link to learn more. It’s 18 and up and doors open an hour before showtime.

The Memphis metro is about to see its 6th craft brewery open its doors. Crosstown Brewing Co. will have a party to those who got it going financially via Kickstarter next Saturday, then will open to the public on the 16th.

Rizzo’s is taking applications for hostess. Must have 1 year experience. Great place to work.

Trying to decide what to make for the Super Bowl party tomorrow? Local BBQ team Porkosaurus has some recipes.

Job news: The Memphis Medical District Collaborative is seeking a program associate. The ideal candidate will have experience developing and operating community programs, projects and activities in urban areas.

Children’s author Cynthia Amis Dickerson will be at South Main Book Juggler today from noon to 2 signing copies of her first bilingual children’s book, The Sun, Cat and Dog.

More South Main book news: Ghost River is partnering with Novel Memphis for its new Get Lit Book Club. The first book discussion will be Thursday, February 15 at 7 PM and the book will be A Man Called Ove by Frederik Bakman. Buy the book at Novel, mention it’s for the book club and get 10% off.

Grizzlies forward Jarell Martin talks about his first car in an episode of Valvoline: Under the Hood. I’ve become a fan of Jarell this year. He seems so happy to be living his dream when he’s out on the court, and he clearly has worked hard to improve his game this season. The fruits of that labor have been showing on the court the past several games.

The Grizzlies are having Girl Scouts Night on Friday, March 9.

Spent the past couple of days frustrated with job sites. You have to put in the name of your desired job, and you have to let it auto-complete to one of their pre-made choices. So I had to select “web developer” when my ideal job is “digital marketing and web development.” Argh. The digital marketing side of things is really where my passion lies.

Got a BBQ team planning meeting at 2, so most likely I will have Moody Ques news later this weekend or early next week. The troll is un-retired for the day because she’s the team’s Deputy Director of Public Relations. Back tomorrow with more news.

Friday update

Yesterday just after noon, I was in my apartment getting ready to meet a friend for lunch at The Little Tea Shop. I heard music blaring outside. As I walked down Main this thing passed, with Elvis blasting from speakers:

WTF? Congratulations to them on exercising their First Amendment rights, I suppose.

The annual Mix-Odyssey event is coming up Saturday, February 24. It’s a fundraiser for Volunteer Odyssey, a fantastic organization that promotes volunteering in Memphis. Seven of the city’s best mixologists will have samples of their signature cocktails. Your ticket gets you all 7 samples, a token to vote for your favorite mixologist, food pairings, and Wiseacre beer. There’s also a VIP ticket which includes extra samples, two tokens to vote, wine, a private VIP area, and servers so you can skip the lines.

That Memphis in May Beale Street Music Fest lineup that was going around Twitter yesterday was a fake. The real lineup will be announced February 21.

The Memphis Flyer has details of a lawsuit being brought by the Downtown Memphis Commission against the owners of the shell of a former hotel at B.B. King and Union.

Happy February, YOGA! Your first class is free this month if you give Downtown Yoga a try.

The Memphis Business Journal reports that Orion has completed the purchase of the former Wonder Bread building in The Edge District, with the intent of moving its headquarters there.

Cool blog I found that may interest my restaurant friends: Art of the Menu

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is at the Orpheum tonight.

There will be crappie seminars at Bass Pro 7-8 tonight and tomorrow at 11 and again at 2. It’s part of their ongoing Crappie Madness promotion.

That’s it for now. Back tomorrow.

Opportunity and Thursday news

Incredible opportunity for ages 16-30 with a high school diploma or GED: Code Crew is offering a no-fees-charged Code School Mondays-Fridays July-December. They will teach you application development, relational databases, front-end development and advanced skills including the model-view-controller (MVC) approach. Let me tell you, as someone who has 15+ years experience in this field, these are EXACTLY the skills you need to succeed in the world of web development. They will even supply a laptop or you can bring your own. The only catch is, if you wind up making $35,000 or more (you absolutely will, if you commit yourself) they require you to donate a small percentage of your income back to the program for three years.

This is a life-changer. You have to be nominated by a non-relative to apply for the program. I would love to nominate a candidate or two for this. If I know you, let’s talk. If I don’t know you but you want this, let’s talk. paul@paulryburn.com is my email. Not to brag but with my experience in coding and with my well-known name from this blog I suspect my nomination could carry a little extra weight.

In related news, High Ground News has a piece on how Tech901 is building an IT workforce in Memphis bit by byte with a series of IT certification classes.

50 years ago today, two Memphis sanitation workers were crushed to death in a garbage truck. This was the beginning of the sanitation workers’ movement that would bring Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to town.

Stone Temple Pilots have announced a May 23 date at the New Daisy.

Want to give something unique for Valentine’s Day while supporting a great local business? Check out the cookie bouquets from Makeda’s Cookies.

Help is needed unpacking 600 bikes February 6-8 for Explore Memphis Bike Share. Sign up for a two-hour shift and receive drinks, snacks and a complimentary one-month membership to the bike share.

B.B. King’s has some great specials on Sunday for the game: Free entry, $3 domestic pints, $3.50 domestic bottles, 50 cent wings, and a $10 super combo including wings, fried pickles, and catfish bites.

Victorian romance will be explored tomorrow 5-8 at First Friday at the Woodruff-Fontaine Museum. The subject will be one of the most elaborate rituals of all: courtship. $15 to get in. Refreshments will be served.

Due to expected cold weather, Max’s Sports Bar is canceling this Saturday’s crawfish boil. They hope to be back as soon as it warms up.

Interesting random fact I learned last night playing trivia: An early version of the American penny, minted by Benjamin Franklin, had “Mind Your Business” inscribed on it.

Bardog news:

The Memphis Farmers Market 2018 vendor application is now live.

The Downtown Memphis Commission is feelin’ the love: They’re giving away a $150 dinner for two at a Downtown restaurant and a $100 spa or shopping spree. Details here on how to enter.

Advice for when talking to a friend who is job hunting: Don’t lead off the conversation with “Found a job yet?” If your friend has found a job, believe me, they will volunteer that information. If they haven’t, it’s a reminder that they haven’t found a job, which is not good for their morale. “How’s the job hunting going?” is a much better opening question.

I had mentioned I was typing a long post about what kind of job I am looking for and my skills and qualifications. It’s done but I’m going to hold it until Monday because that is typically my highest traffic day of the week.

All right, that’s it for now. Got a call with one of my favorite recruiters at 11. Back tomorrow with more news.