Author: paulryburn

MATA was mismanaged for years before current CEO Ron Garrison was hired, and guess who may get to pay for it? You. Fox 13 reports that MLGW fees may be raised to make up the $7 million shortfall MATA needs to cover to continue operating without stark cuts.

Do you make films? Follow @memfilmprize on Twitter for information on how you could win $10,000 to make your short film. The contest starts today.

Another planned Downtown hotel is a step closer to becoming a reality. After sitting on the matter for six months, the City Council approved a plan for a hotel for the northeast corner of Front and Jackson.

GoBankingRates.com named Memphis the #5 spring break destination in the country. They based the rankings on the costs of a weeklong trip: six nights in a hotel (assuming the cost is split between two adults), round-trip airfare, the cost of three meals, a taxi ride and 14 beers a day.

Good post on Memphis Cyclist about being able to ride your bike to West Memphis across the Harahan Bridge soon.

A Memphis family will be on Family Feud Friday at 2 on Fox 13.

Not much time to post today, apologies if typos. Possibly back after work with more.

Just announced: A new event called 901 Fest will wrap up Memphis in May on Saturday, May 28. It will be a celebration of all things local, with local artists on multiple stages, local vendors, and local food and drink. The airshow and fireworks show will be retained from the old Sunset Symphony event. More details will be released later. Good job, Memphis in May; this event sounds like a winner.

If you need to prepare for rain at Memphis in May’s outdoor festivals, Life Is Good has fashionable ladies’ rain boots back in stock.

If you have never been to Flight at the corner of Main and Monroe, this blog post, Fine Dining Takes Flight with Fire and Ice, will give you an excellent idea of what to expect. Beer flights and wine flights allow you to try several samples of those beverages, but Flight takes it a step farther and offers food flights, where you can try three smaller plates that complement each other.

I’ve posted about the Tigers-UCF game at FedExForum tonight at 6 (Josh Pastner really wants you to be there), but don’t forget that Memphis’ other team will be there tomorrow night. The Grizzlies will host the Minnesota Timberwolves tomorrow night at 7, and they will have their Memphis Sounds throwbacks on. Be one of the first 5000 through the door and you will get a Memphis Sounds car freshener from First Tennessee. It could also be your first opportunity to see Birdman and Hairston in action for Memphis.

From Teen Vogue: Taylor Swift is making the tube top happen again. THANK YOU TAYLOR!!! I don’t have too long before I have to decide whether to bring back Tube Top Month for 2016. Keep in mind that if I bring it back, 901 Fest will happen during Tube Top Month.

Michelle Lewis from the Memphis Flyer and her sweetie recently checked out Valentine’s Day at Itta Bena. For those of you who would not expect to find an elegant, fine-dining restaurant on Beale, take a walk up the staircase on Second Street outside B.B. King’s and you will be in for a surprise.

In the aftermath of three small boutique hotels being approved for Union and Vance Avenues, Land Control Use Board member Rob Norcross warns that what Downtown really needs is a 500-room, full-service hotel with meeting space that is located in the center of the action. Norcross and the folks at the MCVB feel that Downtown needs to be aiming for hotel construction that will increase tourist business or convention business.

From Memphis Magazine: New soccer team Memphis City FC puts down roots in Memphis

WREG reports that several times in 2015, MATA almost didn’t make payroll. To quote the great Ron Simmons, “Damn.”

Programming note: Blog posts may be a bit sparse between today and Sunday. We’re doing a number of important server upgrades at work. I may have to work extra hours to make sure none of our applications break in the process, so I may not have a lot of time to round up the news and post it here. If I miss one of my usual weekend bar appearances (Panda Time, D-RANKS with my Facebook friend B-RAD), that’s where I am, not in the hospital or a funeral home.

A very happy birthday to my Wednesday-Thursday night bartender Jessica! She is working the Silly Goose tonight from 4 to 7:30, so stop by if you get a chance and celebrate her birthday with her. Unless work gets busy, I will be there tonight at my usual time. Charvey Mac plays the Goose at 10, but it looks like I have a 7 AM start time tomorrow so I may have to take a week off for Charvey. Back as soon as I have more news and the time to post it.

The afternoon at work went better than expected and I didn’t have to stay late, so here’s a quick news post before I go out.

If you haven’t been keeping up with sports news today, the Grizzlies have traded away Courtney Lee in a three-team deal with Charlotte and Miami. Memphis gets P.J. Hairston from Charlotte and Chris “Birdman” Andersen from Miami. The team also gets some second-round picks, which could be the most important component of this trade because they can be used in a future trade package.

MATA’s CEO says the transportation agency needs $7 million in additional funding or “stark cuts” will have to be made. @RyanPoe reported that for the first time, MATA is making decisions based on performance indicators and return on investment. WTF were they doing to make decisions before, putting the options on a dart board and then throwing a dart blindfolded?

I’ve mentioned this before, but just a reminder: If you want to be a volunteer for Memphis in May, the annual Volunteer Expo is Thursday from 6 to 8 at Central Station.

According to a Deadspin report, a culture of condoning sexual harassment and sexual assault existed in UT football as far back as 20 years. A female trainer lists numerous 1994-1996 allegations including the one about Peyton.

Central BBQ Downtown will close at 5 PM Saturday for a private event.

I heard free tickets to tomorrow’s Tigers game were being handed out at Poplar and Highland and at Madison and Cooper this afternoon.

Off to the Blind Bear. Back tomorrow with more news.

This coming Sunday is Youth Villages’ annual fundraiser Soup Sunday at FedExForum from 11 to 2. Tickets are $30 adults (over 11), $10 children, and $75 VIP. Restaurants all over the city serve sampler cups of soup on the FedExForum concourse. Lines get long, so you get a holder for four cups of soup so you can eat while standing in the next line. Enterprising attendees have found ways to adapt the holder to hold more than four cups of soup; the Nuh-Uh Girl got it to hold nine one year. You can vote for the best you had, including best soup, gumbo, dessert, bread, and specialty item.

I will say it once again: THIS IS NOT AN EVENT WHERE YOU WANT TO SHOW UP FASHIONABLY LATE. As I said, lines get long and the best soups will run out an hour into the event. Best bet is to buy your ticket in advance so you don’t have to deal with it the day of, and be outside at 10:55.

Also, if you’re one of the first in, don’t go to the first soup line you see. Walk a little bit and go to vendors who haven’t had the chance for a line to form yet.

Be sure to look for defending champion Bardog Tavern and try their soup.

Here’s a pic from Sunday that I forgot to post, of Chicken Fried Steak Rodger giving B-RAD a kiss on the cheek. See, I told you love was in the air on Valentine’s Day.

The Mid-South Farm and Gin Show comes to the Cook Convention Center Friday and Saturday, February 26 and 27. The Farm Bureau presidents and Secretaries/Commissioners of Agriculture from Arkansas, Tennessee, and Mississippi will be in attendance. More information here.

The Memphis Daily News has a good article on Black Restaurant Week that will happen in March and the economic development that organizers hope to achieve.

Coach Pastner is urging fans to be there at FedExForum for tomorrow’s 6 PM game with UCF and the remaining two home games after that. Attendance needs to average 6666 for those three games to prevent the university from getting a payout of $0 from the Grizzlies this year. Geoff Calkins remarks that Pastner is starting to show his frustration.

Former Memphis mayor A.C. Wharton will be working part-time for ALSAC, the fundraising arm of St. Jude.

Very important fashion news: Taylor Swift had a tube top on at the Grammy Awards last night.

One of the Grammy Award winners, the Alabama Shakes, will play the Mud Island Amphitheatre on July 15.

I agree, you just can’t make this stuff up:

Team Jeb forgot to renew JebBush.com so Trump bought the site which now forwards to Trump’s site…cannot make this stuff up

— Gray Connolly (@GrayConnolly) February 16, 2016

Downtown Memphis’ Daily Downtowner Instagram post features Brad from Court House Deli today. Great guy, great place to grab lunch. I have had many a beer with Brad at Bardog Tavern over the years.

Assuming I get out of work on time, I will be out at Blind Bear after work. There may be a second post later today but I doubt it. Check back if you want.

Vendor applications are being taken for the Memphis Farmers Market. The market, held at Front and G.E. Patterson Saturdays 7 AM to 1 PM, is considered one of the best farmers markets in the country. As everyone knows, I am a huge fan of fresh produce, and that is what the majority of MFM vendors sell. However, lots of other stuff gets sold too, including meats, seafood, eggs, pottery, dog treats, breads and tarts, cheeses, hot sauce, coffee, pre-prepared meals, popsicles, and a lot more. If you produce any of this stuff locally, there may be a spot for you at the farmers market; why not fill out an application?

The city has opened a new Office for Minority and Women-owned Business Development and Joann Massey has been appointed director. Nice move to make sure all in this city have a shot at opportunity, Mayor Strickland!

Future president Harry Truman wrote a letter to Mrs. Truman during his stay at the Peabody Hotel in 1941. He complained about being charged an outrageous 55 cents for breakfast.

The monthly Downtown Neighborhood Association meeting has been announced for Tuesday, February 23, and the speaker is a good one: Memphis Grizzlies president Jason Wexler. The meeting will be in the Horseshoe Lounge at FedExForum, 6 PM social, 6:30 program. Snacks and beverages will be available. Free to DNA members, $10 non-members.

If you want a livable Memphis, consider signing this petition against Tennessee bill SB1716-HB1650. If passed, the bill would prevent TDOT from using any gas tax money on non-vehicular projects. That would mean no funding for bike/pedestrian lanes. It is important for this bill to be defeated in the Legislature.

Not Downtown news but interesting: Printer’s Alley, the late-late-night bar on Cleveland, is now a VIP-only club. You must hold a VIP card, or accompany a cardholder and approved by management, to get in.

The MBJ has an article on the beer and Girl Scout cookie pairing coming to High Cotton’s taproom on March 24 to raise money for Troop901’s scholarship fund.

Heading out to happy hour. Since it’s Presidents Day, I’m under the assumption that Bardog is probably already packed. So I am going to take a week off from Melissa Monday there and lead off at Blind Bear tonight. Back tomorrow with more.

Love was in the air yesterday at the Blind Bear for a special Valentine’s Day Sunday Fun Day. It was a mixture of couples on dates and nearly every regular usually seen on Sundays. We had both Katie Mac and Katie (not Mac) in the house, We didn’t have the third Katie (my favorite vegetarian) but her name came up in conversation several times. Rahul and Tony, on their way back from Nashville, called the bar and Rahul asked to speak to me so he could wish me a happy Valentine’s Day.

B-RAD needed cheering up so one of the regulars went to Walgreens and bought him flowers. One of his Facebook friends unfriended him recently and he was very sad about it. I think he snuck into the back room and cried a few times.

The CA has a really good article about the flurry of activity in Uptown. Jimmy Carter will lead 3000 volunteers in the building of Habitat for Humanity homes there in August. St. Jude is expanding. A national grocery store chain may return to the neighborhood. There is an informal gathering spot for people who live in the area, The Office @ Uptown.

From PR Newswire: Krystal offers new SEA-sonal fresh tastes and a great escape. What does that mean, you ask? Krystal is putting a shrimp po-boy on the menu. Anyone else think this is a really bad idea? In other news, food poisoning cases seen at local hospitals are expected to rise by 33% in the months ahead.

A week from today, Monday, February 22, the Mid-South Fly Fishers will host a fly tying event at High Cotton Brewery at 6 PM. Of course there will be beer, along with an auction, games, and prizes. The event will benefit the Project Healing Waters program at the Memphis VA Hospital. Tickets are $20 in advance or $25 at the door.

Time to head in to work. If you’re south of I-40, there is heavy rain until mid-morning, so take it slow and watch out for pooling water. Possibly back at lunchtime or after work with more news.

Yesterday Antonin Scalia, one of the worst Supreme Court justices in American history, did the country a huge favor and died, creating a vacancy on the court. Within minutes Republicans were saying they would refuse to confirm any Obama appointment to the empty seat, saying that the American people should have a say in who becomes the next Supreme Court justice. They want to leave the seat vacant for a year, leaving the appointment to the next president.

Okay. Two things.

1. The American people have already HAD a say in who should be the next Supreme Court justice. They elected Obama in 2012, knowing that whoever became president would fill Supreme Court seats from January 20, 2013 through January 19, 2017.
2. So they’re going to leave the seat vacant for a year, giving us a year of 4-4 votes and earning the ill will of the American people, and then we get a justice most likely appointed by Hillary, Bern, or Trump? Yeah I see the logic there.

Amazing how, given the choice between doing the stupid thing and the right thing, Republicans choose the stupid thing every time.

Wonder if Dubya will give the eulogy at Scalia’s funeral. “Without Justice Antonin Scalia, there would have been no President George W. Bush.”

I started off at Bardog for brunch with Bloom yesterday. Bloom is 39 weeks pregnant and today is her last shift before going on maternity leave. I learned who will take over for Bloom while she is out: Panda on Saturday, and Suzy on Sunday. Suzy behind the bar? That could be entertaining. I may have to cheat on B-RAD a few Sundays and go see her.

While at Bardog, the Kansas game was on “Kansas is going down like my GPA,” read a sign in the student section. “Or going down like an Ole Miss coed in a sundress,” I thought.

There’s a joke going around that if you set your iPhone date to 1/1/1970, you’ll see a retro Apple ad. Don’t do it. 1/1/1970 is a special date to computers, the “beginning of time” as they know it. If you set your iPhone to this date, you will brick it, and even the people at Apple’s Genius Bar don’t have a fix. You will have to get a new phone.

Yesterday I had the tater tots at Oshi Burger for the first time:

They’re bacon and cheddar stuffed and topped with cheese, sour cream, and scallions. Delicious. I had an Oshi burger too but I’ve already posted a photo of that on the blog. A fantastic Saturday lunch.

After Oshi I went down the street to the Blind Bear, where a friend of mine ordered a shot of Jager with a pickle juice back. That made me want to invent a new word that meant, “Disgusting, but more than disgusting.”

Quote from yesterday (can’t remember who said it): “Getting drunk and handing out food is pretty much volunteering.”

I have no plans with anyone today, so I won’t be getting stood up the way I did on Valentine’s Day last year. It will be business as usual, D-RANKS with B-RAD at the Blind Bear. I wonder if people will bring their dates to the Bear for Valentine’s? Dark, intimate setting perfect for conversation… great brunch menu… one of the best bartenders in Memphis… excellent drinks… oh yeah, and then there are the regulars, who seem to set new standards for human behavior every week. Note that I didn’t say high standards.

The Memphis Tigers men’s basketball team lost in overtime to Tulane yesterday. As much as I like Josh Pastner personally and admire him as a man of principle and character (unlike Butch Jones), it may be time for the U of M to write a check. Losing to Tulane is not a good way to get the Tigers to that magic 6000 attendance number.

All right, time to get a few things done around the apartment and then it will be time for D-RANKS. Come join if you’re lucky enough to be single this Valentine’s Day.

The Flyer’s Hungry Memphis blog had some exciting news for Midtowners and Downtowners yesterday. Chef Shuttle is expanding to those neighborhoods effective next Thursday. The way it works is, you view menus from participating restaurants and then make your order with Chef Shuttle. They go and pick up your food and deliver it to you in about an hour. It will give Downtowners a lot more restaurant delivery options.

Miss Cordelia’s is holding a special sweetheart edition of their Saturday market today from 12 to 4. They have a dozen roses for $16.99, arrangements $14.99-$39.99, and elegant bouquet wrapping for $1. They also have gift baskets, sweets, treats, and some Valentine’s dinner for two choices.

The 2016 Memphis in May Fine Arts poster honoring Canada is out. Here’s a look.

Crazy story I read on Bleacher Report yesterday during my lunch break: The state of Louisiana is in the middle of a budget crisis, and if an agreement is not reached, state schools could be forced to shut down on April 30, before the end of the spring semester. Students would receive grades of Incomplete, many would not graduate on time, and LSU’s football team would be ineligible to compete for the 2016 season. Daaaamn. The SEC may be a 13-school conference for football in the fall.

In other SEC news, the sexual assault and gender discrimination allegations against the University of Tennessee football team continue to be in the news. The Nashville Scene demands an investigation into how our tax dollars have supported the rape-a-palooza culture of UT athletics:

UT owes us, the taxpayers who are apparently paying for rape-apalooza, a sincere and thorough investigation into just what the fuck is going on there. And then every employee who knew something but did nothing should be fired. If it turns out to be true that Drae Bowles was attacked twice by his own teammates, anyone still on the team who was on the team when that happened should no longer be with UT. If it turns out that the coaches knew or watched it happen, they all should be gone.

Remember how the Penn State board of trustees removed Joe Paterno when he wouldn’t step down as head football coach? The corresponding body at the University of Tennessee may need to look at taking the same action against Butch Jones.

Representatives of the Memphis Farmers Market attended the @PickTNProducts conference this week. They tweeted that they learned a lot there.

Barry Manilow was rushed to the hospital following Wednesday’s FedExForum show. He was suffering from complications from oral surgery he had earlier in the week.

The Land Use Control Board has approved three new Downtown hotels. Two will be across Union from AutoZone Park, and the third will be at Second and Vance. Total number of rooms added to Downtown will be around 375.

More on the Tigers attendance situation from CA columnist Geoff Calkins. Current average attendance at Tigers men’s basketball home games is 5889. If it does not get up to 6000 by the end of the year (3 home games left), the Grizzlies will not have to pay the U of M any of the expected $800,000. If attendance remains below 6000 average for two years, the Grizzlies can terminate the lease.

One of my favorite local writers, Skippy “Christopher” Blank, posted an 1866 map of the South Main area. There was a cemetery called Morris Cemetery bounded by Main, Butler, Calhoun (G.E. Patterson), and Causey (Second). Mulberry and St. Martin dead-ended north of Butler at the time. Next time you’re in Double J, or Scoops, or South Main Sushi, or Rizzo’s, you may be dining with ghosts. Hey, you remember when the owners of that courtyard across from Max’s Sports Bar dug it up a couple of years ago and then abruptly stopped? Perhaps we now know why.

Hmmm that cemetery would make a good Ask Vance question. I’m friends with him on Facebook, maybe I’ll hit him up.

From Distractify: A custom mold of your anus is the perfect gift to give your significant other on Valentine’s Day

Great night with friends last night. We started at the Silly Goose, our combined Moody Ques/Squeal Street group taking up the entire bar at one point. From there some of us migrated south to Max’s Sports Bar. I have been hanging out at Max’s a lot these past couple of months and have really been enjoying the place. I have always called it my “home away from home on the south side” but since about December it has felt more like a home than ever.

Today I will start of at the closest of my homes away from home, Bardog Tavern, for beers with my “DAWG” John D. For my second stop, I’m undecided between heading south for catfish Benedict at Rizzo’s, or going to see my favorite pair of librarian glasses at the Blind Bear. Plans after that TBD. Next week is a big week at work, so I better make the most of my time off while I can. Back tomorrow with more news and perhaps a Saturday recap post.

I was up early a year ago today, having heard the “ding” of Facebook Messenger from the other room. I made plans to meet someone for a drink at Blind Bear (“BB” as she abbreviated it) two days later on the 14th, then decided there was no point in going back to bed, having to be up in another 45 minutes anyway. I got on my MacBook and checked Twitter to see what was going on.

2016 has seen many musicians die, but in early 2015 we lost some as well. Steve Strange, frontman of the band Visage and leading figure of the New Romantic movement, passed away a year ago today. I had heard of Visage but never really listened to them much when Steve Strange was alive, but I pulled up the band’s most well-known song, “Fade to Grey.”

“This came out in nineteen EIGHTY?” I thought. “I would’ve guessed 1987, and surely no less than 1985. They were YEARS ahead of their time!” It’s too bad artists have to die before people discover their music.

Steve Strange lived a colorful life, operating a nightclub for “the weird and wonderful” for several years. Suffice to say that if you showed up wearing a polo and khakis, you probably weren’t getting past the velvet rope.

But, enough about dead musicians; let’s get on to the news. Michael Donahue of the CA has named Agave Maria’s Cubano sandwich a Best Bet. Manager Jeremy Malone said the Cubano is their most popular lunch item, and beginning March 1 it will be available for dinner as well.

Only in Memphis: A string of deadly shootings involving hair extensions

Monster truck show Monster Jam kicks off a weekend of shows at FedExForum tonight at 7.

Slavehaven Underground Railroad Museum on North Second celebrates its 160th anniversary tomorrow with “In Their Own Words,” a spoken word/poetry event with first-hand accounts of former slaves.

Yikes: 92.9 ESPN tweeted that the University of Memphis gets $0 from FedExForum if Tiger game attendance drops below 6000. Yesterday radio host Gary Parrish, in an appearance on the Chris Vernon Show, said that the Tigers are headed toward $0. And the only solution may be to spend $10+ million dollars to buy out Josh Pastner, followed by more spending on the salary of a new head coach.

In other basketball news/job news, the Grizzlies are seeking a Director of Development.

Thanks to Christ Community Health Services, thousands of people in Memphis get care they could not otherwise afford. The organization is having a fundraiser brunch Saturday, February 20 in the Peabody Skyway at 10:30 AM. This week CCHS demonstrated a recipe for veggie pasta on WREG Live at 9 recently.

Good High Ground News article on Signal Flow PR, an agency in the South Main neighborhood that does marketing for musicians and music businesses. The agency started out in the Emerge Memphis incubator before moving to its current location in 2014.

Washington Avenue will be blocked between 6 AM and 6 PM tomorrow between B.B. King Blvd. and Fourth. The reason is to repair A/C equipment on the roof of 201 Poplar.

Interesting read: Is the competition circuit turning BBQ into the WWE of meat?

More embarrassment for our state: The University of Tennessee football team sexual assault scandal/Title IX gender discrimination lawsuit has made People magazine’s website.

The CA reports that vice president Joe Biden will visit Memphis next Wednesday.

Science has proved that smart people are the most distracted at work. YES!!!!!!!! So true!

Possibly a second post about 5:30, so check back.

Havana Mix is presenting the first annual Cigar Love Affair this Saturday from 6 to 9. It will feature cigar and wine pairings featuring cigars from Cigar Aficionado’s Top 25 list (1 flight with $50 purchase, complimentary flight for additional guest). Chocolates by Phillip Ashley, sultry jazz, exciting raffles. Couples and singles are welcome.

Our Memphis Tigers are fierce. They are aggressive. They are killers. One Memphis tiger showed all of those traits after being transferred to the Sacramento Zoo. He was introduced to another tiger and promptly killed it. Perhaps the Tigers basketball team can channel the spirit of this killer tiger to win remaining games and go far in the AAC tournament.

I saw this for a brief moment on Facebook last night: Andy Griffith gives Cam Newton advice on winning and losing

Check out this Bleacher Report article on the Grizzlies’ Vince Carter. Kobe may be ready to hang it up, but Carter feels he still has some more big games left in him.

Gus’s is now serving chicken in Kansas City.

Police are cracking down on speeding on the interstates. It’s a directive by the new Interim Director of MPD. I personally have seen police cars all over I-55 on my way to and from Horn Lake. Fox 13 reporters drove the posted speed limits on the interstates, and very few cars did not pass them.

The sexual assault allegations and gender discrimination lawsuit against the University of Tennessee has made the news across the pond. The Daily Mail has a report which is worth a read because it has some additional details. Way to go, UT, you’re an international embarrassment now.

Valentine’s Day gift idea: Chocolate covered butter cookies from Makeda’s Cookies. 901-745-2667 to order.

Holly has a post about her recent visit to the Belz Museum of Asian and Judaic Art, an often-overlooked Downtown treasure.

That’s it for this post, possibly a second one later.