Friday update #1

Thanks to technology provided by Ghost River Brewing Co., the Flying Saucer can now can any of its draft beers. 25 oz. cans are $7.50 take-out, and they still have their full food menu take-out or on Door Dash or Uber Eats delivery.

The Peabody has some low rates going on for Downtowners right now.

Join Rumba Room Memphis for a salsa lesson live on Facebook Monday at 6.

Mark Cuban: How companies treat their employees during the pandemic could define their brand for decades

From The Peanut Shoppe:

We will remain open for as long as possible. We are here to serve you all. For curbside pickup, call us at 901.525.1115 or e-mail sales@memphispeanutshoppe.com

www.memphispeanutshoppe.com Thank you all. Please stay safe.
(Hours are still the same, but we will keep you all informed if ANYTHING changes) ❤️❤️❤️ #shoplocal #downtownmemphis #ilovememphis #choose901 #midtownmemphis #bealestreet #memphistn

The REAL ID enforcement date has been moved back a year to October 21, 2012.

Regardless of your politics, this Politico article embedding the National Security Council pandemic playbook given to Trump in 2016 is quite interesting.

Cool mural I saw in an alley next to the Hu. Hotel on Main Street:

You don’t actually need the 12-letter Census ID that was mailed to you to fill out the 2020 Census. You can manually enter your home address. This is important since postal workers put mail in the wrong boxes all the time.

I’ll pass along a tip I saw on Twitter, and not everything on social media is true, but I think this is worth a try at the very least: If you have to negotiate with a mortgage lender, creditor, etc. over the phone, the key word is “coronavirus.” As in, “I lost income due to the coronavirus,” and that lets them open up all kinds of programs that can help you that wouldn’t be available if you just said “I lost my job” or “I lost my income.” But they can’t coach you. You have to say the magic word.

Kooky Canuck take-out and curbside delivery starts today at both locations.(The tweet below says tomorrow, but was tweeted yesterday)

Nextdoor has a new Help Map feature where you can pinpoint your location on a map and let neighbors know you’re available to help the elderly, those with special needs, etc. You just need to update the app to use it.

MATA is cutting back its routes in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. Here are a list of bus routes that will still run. Routes not on this list will be postponed indefinitely. As for the trolleys:

  • Main Street Line: 6:45 AM-8:30 PM Mon-Sat and 10:00 AM-6:10 PM Sundays with 20-minute headways
  • Riverfront Line: 10:30 AM-6:00 PM daily with 40-minute headways
  • Madison Line: 6:45 AM-6:00 PM Mon-Sat with 30-minute headways

Yesterday somone asked a question on Twitter, “If I am employed in an industry that is considered essential, do I need a note from my employer to be carried at all times verifying that I am allowed to be out?” No. This is not a police state.

Italian Fest is the latest Memphis festival to fall victim to the coronavirus outbreak. It had been scheduled for May 28-30.

Y’know one of the biggest pains in the ass about this quarantine for me personally? The trash chute is closed and we have to take our garbage down to the alley and throw it in one of the dumpsters. It’s not the ride down the elevator or the walk outside that bothers me; it’s knowing that Downtown’s street people could be going through my trash. I think for the time being, I’ll divide what I throw away into “later trash,” which is trash that contains personally identifying information, and “now trash.”

I worry about the week of April 12-18. I don’t think coronavirus cases will have slowed enough (or even come close to leveling off) where it’s time to lift restrictions on people going where they please and doing what they please. However, that is the week I fear the majority of the public will turn against the restrictions. I suspect this will be especially true in the South, where Trump (who wants big crowds in churches on Easter) is popular, and whether the weather tends to be gorgeous with temperatures in the 70s around that time. Not saying I agree with it; saying that’s what I think could happen.

Time for the daily Walgreens run to see if they have toilet paper. Back tomorrow with more news.