Every Sunday at the Blind Bear is Hung Over Like a Bear Brunch/D-RANKS with B-RAD from 11 AM to 6 PM. This week, to celebrate the holiday season, we’re doing something extra – we’re throwing a pajama party.
Wear your PJs, wear your onesies, wear your cute bunny slippers… whatever it is you sleep in. Ladies, I realize thick wool onesies might be uncomfortable to wear on a day when the high temperature is pushing the 80 degree mark. Be assured that it is most definitely acceptable to wear lingerie to this party.
NO DRAMA QUEENS ALLOWED (except Rahul) so an enjoyable time will be had by all.
Pajamas are not required, so if you want to pre-game for the Grizzlies-Lakers game at the Bear, bring it on! Although, if you got one of those Tony Allen Jedi robes earlier this month, you should wear it for sure.
Come hang out with the Sunday brunch crew for a fun afternoon!
The Blind Bear is celebrating its fourth birthday today (actual birthday is the 23rd, but this is a better day to have a party. Roman Trio plays at 10. Here’s the list of food and drink specials, as posted by Jeannette on Facebook.
John Daly, Bootlegger’s Mule, MoonBerry Mule, Dark & Stormy, Moscow Mule, The Flapper, Manhattan
Import Beer, House Wine, Well Drinks, Moonshine, Fireball
Jäger BBQ Bologna Sandwich
Bear Balls (think mozzarella sticks, but in ball shape)
Bowl of Pepper Jack Mac & Cheese
I’m sure you have noticed that this blog looks different, especially if you are viewing it on your phone. I have updated the blog to use the TwentySixteen theme that is new in WordPress 4.4. It will allow me to use all the bells and whistles that have been built into WordPress the past two years. It’s also mobile-friendly so I no longer need to use a plugin to make my blog look good on phones. Mobile users, let me know what you think at paul@paulryburn.com. I think it looks better but if a lot of you prefer the old mobile theme, I have the option of bringing it back.
Hard to believe: Lemmy, the frontman of Motörhead, turned 70 yesterday. That makes him older than Gene Simmons, Ozzy Osbourne, Robert Plant, David Bowie, Steven Tyler, and Ron Wood. If John Bonham and Keith Moon were still alive, Lemmy would be older than them too. Wow. I had no idea. I don’t pay a whole lot of attention to Motörhead but I would have guessed Lemmy to be in his mid to late fifties.
My friends Rahul and Tony, the guys who organized the Thanksgiving dinner for the homeless last month, are now collecting winter coats for the homeless. If you have one you would like to donate, hit me up at paul@paulryburn.com and I will put you in touch with them.
AccuWeather has a high of 79 forecast for Memphis tomorrow. MemphisWeather.net has 77. The Weather Channel also has us at 77 for Saturday. Normal high for Memphis on December 26 is 50.
Man, people who dress up for the ugly sweater party tomorrow night at Earnestine & Hazel’s (6-8 PM, $25, benefits the Hospitality HUB) are going to be mighty uncomfortable in their sweaters in 79 degrees.
By the way, the storm that is approaching this weekend has been named “Winter Storm Goliath” by The Weather Channel. Stupid stupid stupid.
Every Friday Felicia Suzanne’s opens for lunch and offers 25 cent martinis with your meal. Obviously since it is Christmas that isn’t happening today, but next Friday Felicia’s will serve lunch on New Year’s Day. If you don’t work Downtown, or if you don’t want to go back to the office smelling like booze, this is your chance to give the martini lunch a try.
Shout-out to Jake Schorr, the owner of Westy’s. It’s a tradition for Westy’s to feed anyone who is hungry, for free, on Christmas.
AP Sports offers a look at the best college football bowl swag. A trip to Bass Pro at the Pyramid is recommended for Liberty Bowl attendees.
If you’re looking to get out and about later today, I Love Memphis has a list of what’s open. Of my main hangouts, Bardog, the Blind Bear, and the Flying Saucer open at 5. Silly Goose opens at 7. I forgot to ask what time Max’s opens (or if it is open at all today) when I was in there last weekend, so not sure about that one. Most likely I will lead off at the Bear at 5. Merry Christmas everyone and I hope you like the new theme.
Merry Christmas everyone. I plan on changing my blog’s theme to WordPress’s new Twenty Sixteen theme today, so the blog may look weird for a little while until I get everything sorted out. When done, the blog will be prettier, I will be able to do more with it, and the experience will be improved for mobile users.
AccuWeather forecasts a high of 76 and a low of 60 for today. Did I move to Miami? Both the high and low are 26 degrees above normal for this date in Memphis. 76 is a normal high for April 28. 15 of the 23 days so far in December have seen high temperatures of 60 or higher.
Going to the Grizzlies vs. LA Lakers game on Sunday? You can take the CA Paperboy Challenge for the chance to win an iPad Mini 2 and a 2-year subscription to the Commercial Appeal.
I’m not by any means saying I think Beale Street is the best option for New Year’s Eve, but if you must do it, there is a $100 Fast Pass that lets you bypass the long line to get on the street and gets you in about a dozen Beale bars and nightclubs without paying cover. There is also a free concert by country act Gloriana in Handy Park.
I’m not a New Year’s Eve fan in general, but here is an option I can strongly recommend: New Year’s Eve dinner at Rizzo’s Diner. The chef, Michael Patrick, has been a friend of mine for over a decade. His food is amazing and his restaurant attracts a crowd that knows how to behave in public, even on NYE. Here’s the menu:
First course:
Smoked Shrimp Picadillo (fried potato cake) or
2 Sweet Potato Edamame Pot Stickers
Second Course:
Quinoa Roasted Vegetable Salad or
Crisp Lamb Belly & Wild Mushroom Bisque
Third Course:
Hemp & Pumpkin Seed Encrusted Andouille-Stuffed Rack of Lamb with garlic mashed potatoes and asparagus or
Pan-Seared Ahi #1 Tuna with pickled butternut squash cucumber slaw and Southern style fried rice or
Crisp Roasted Duck with garlic mashed potatoes and asparagus or
Vegetarian Plate of a spinach zucchini enchilada, Cotija cheese herbed Napoleon, and Asian chili glazed brussels sprouts
Fourth course:
Peanut Butter Mousse Chocolate Cup or
Raspberry Chocolate Bread Pudding
$75 for the dinner, plus $15 more for an optional wine pairing. Call 901-304-6985 for reservations.
Paging my friend group: Anyone have interest in doing this dinner? I plan on going out on New Year’s Eve for the first time in several years. For midnight I’m leaning toward being at the Silly Goose, where my friends have tables reserved; although, I haven’t totally ruled out Max’s Sports Bar, the least likely of my “Big Five” bars to turn into Amateur Night.
Memphis in May is seeking a Director of Programming. This person would coordinate international cultural performances, educational outreach programs, dignitary events, artistic displays, and a variety of festival events. You won’t have much of a life outside of work during April and May holding this job, but it’s such exciting work that you might not care.
I learned something from the GM of the Flying Fish that I was not aware of: The Fish has quite the beer selection, with 85 different beers in their cooler. One of those 85 is the Cadillac of beers, PBR.
Last night I learned why the mac & cheese served as a side with Silly Goose sliders is so good: It’s made with brie as well as cheddar.
Even if you can’t have a dog in your home, even for a short period of time, you can help the Streetdog Foundation: They are looking for volunteers to walk dogs that haven’t found a permanent or foster home yet.
For those of you who think Donald Trump is unelectable, you might want to read this FiveThirtyEight article. Another flamboyant non-politician, former pro wrestler, Navy SEAL and Rolling Stones bodyguard Jesse “The Body” Ventura was once elected Governor of Minnesota.
Time to check the weather and make a decision whether to travel today. Getting over to Little Rock today would not be a problem, but getting back tomorrow looks like it could be. Rain and thunderstorms, some heavy are predicted for Christmas Day, and the hourly forecast indicates it could rain all day. Driving in torrential rain terrifies me – I’ve hit pooling water with an 18-wheeler tailgating me a few times, and it is no fun. All the road construction between Forrest City and here makes it even worse. Gonna give it another hour then make a decision. In any case, I do expect to be back tomorrow with a post.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Very important news in the world of computers today: A database containing account information for 3.3 million Hello Kitty fans has been leaked. If you’re a Hello Kitty fan, your sensitive data may have been compromised.
Amber Rae Dunn Hosts Earnestine & Hazel’s Open Mic Night tomorrow from 8 to 11 PM. For many people (me included) tomorrow is an effective weekend night, and a chance to come hear some live music or perform some of your own.
Take a moment away from your holiday planning to save a date: January 12. That will be the date of the first South Main Association meeting for 2016. It will be at the Halloran Centre for the Performing Arts, with Terence Patterson who runs DMC being the featured guest. There will also be an introduction to the centre by Ron Jewell, VP of Operations. 6 PM is the start time.
MLGW issued a statement regarding last Friday night’s power outage south of Monroe Avenue Downtown: An underground cable fault and an equipment issue at a substation were to blame. Power was out for 53 minutes.
Beer lovers, Miss Cordelia’s has a deal for you on Christmas Eve. Bring your growler in and get a fill for only $9. You can bring as many growlers as you want.
The Tigers men’s basketball team hosts IUPUI tonight at FedExForum at 7.
The timetable for the opening of Trader Joe’s in Germantown has been updated. They’re now looking at a third-quarter 2016 opening. For those who have never been in one, Trader Joes is to grocery stores what In-n-Out is to burgers. In particular: Get the giant chocolate bars. Also, the vegetable lasagna in their grab & go case is so good that you won’t care that there’s no meat in it. I’m not a wine person but their Two-Buck Chuck (I think it may be Three-Buck Chuck now) is said to be as good as much more expensive wines.
That’s it for now. Second update after work is not out of the question. I will lead off happy hour at Blind Bear about 5:40 if anyone is in the mood to join.
The doorman from the Flying Saucer came over to the Blind Bear last night after he got off work, and he gave me some information. “We like it when you come in the Saucer and dance,” he told me. “It’s good for business.”
The World Series of Fighting will debut an all-new “Future Champs” series in the lobby of FedExForum on Saturday, January 23 at 9 PM, live on NBCSN. Light heavyweight Teddy Holder and lightweight Mike Ricci will be featured in bouts. More info here. (Really, FedExForum? Almost 2016 and you don’t have a mobile-friendly site?)
Cafe Keough will have a New Year’s Eve party on December 31 from 9:30 to 1 featuring WALRUS and The Dirty Whorns. New Year’s Eve menu, party favors, and a champagne toast at midnight. $25 at the door. More info here.
There will be an ugly sweater party which is a fundraiser for the Hospitality HUB Saturday, December 26 at Earnestine & Hazel’s from 6-8 PM. The Grizzlies game will be on and it will be a good time. A suggested $25 donation is requested. The Hospitality HUB is a nonprofit that provides the homeless with resources they need to get back into the game we call life.
My vegan friend told me yesterday that she uses an app called Vegandrinks to determine which beers are safe for her to drink. Some beers are filtered using animal bladders and are therefore not vegan-friendly. “Thank goodness PBR is safe,” she told me.
South of Beale will be closed today through Friday for kitchen floor repairs and for the holidays.
Sepp Blatter, godfather of the FIFA crime family, and his underboss Michael Platini have been banned from soccer for 8 years.
YAWN. Very, very tired. Did not get enough sleep. Time to zombie through the afternoon then hit Melissa Monday at Bardog after work. Back this evening or tomorrow with more news.
Thanks to Captain Shane (far right) for the Photoshopped Millenium Falcon image. I created the logo image myself using a meme generator.
The stupid stuff you see on Facebook… one of my friends posted a selfie at Dallas Cowboys’ stadium yesterday, captioning it “In Mecca.” Yeah, since you’re in such a holy place, how about praying for a 5th win this season?
I ate lunch at Maciel’s Tortas and Tacos yesterday. It was good as always – this time I got the Tinga (spicy chicken) quesadilla with rice and beans. They had some news to pass along – next week they will have shrimp tacos and fish tacos. That is great news. I have no doubt their fish tacos will hold up to the ones I had in San Diego.
While I was waiting on my quesadilla, they gave me Mexican lagniappe in the form of an ear of corn with Mexican butter and salsa:
SO good. If you like Mexican food and have not been to Maciel’s yet, you MUST go. This is not a “when I get around to it” place. This is a “go immediately, because if you don’t you’re missing out” place.
Scribol has the 20 craziest things found on Google Earth. Number 11 is a Memphis thang. Atop Peabody Place there is a sign that reads, “come Downtown and play.” It is evidently there for the benefit of airplane passengers flying over on their way in to Memphis. Just don’t expect to play at Peabody Place mall itself; the mall has been closed for years.
Happy birthday to my “DAWG” John D. I will see him at brunch briefly this morning before he meets his parents for a birthday lunch.
Anyone who thinks military people don’t have senses of humor needs to watch this performance of “The Twelve Days of Christmas” by the United States Navy Band:
“Ghost Signs” are signs that are left behind long after the business the sign is advertising has closed. Ask Vance has information about the Wm. R. Moore ghost sign on the Nettleton Avenue underpass. The business was once one of the most successful in Memphis, a dry goods emporium.
Question for my readers to ponder: Which in general are stupider: Names of college football bowls held in the December 19-23 date range, or Weather Channel named winter storms?
The City of Memphis has made it easy to tell who’s a tourist and who’s not:
They’ve painted crosswalks on all the streets intersecting the Main Street Mall. If you see someone making a conscious effort to use these, they’re a tourist. Locals are going to continue to cross the street wherever they damn well please. You may occasionally see a local in a crosswalk, but it’s not because they meant to; it’s just where they happened to be walking.
Bet the crosswalks will make it easier for the bums to determine who to hit up for money. They will be a lot more likely to get a dolla from people who use the crosswalks.
There are several cigar stores in the Downtown core. South Main, you’re getting one in February. The Tinder Box will be coming to 346 S. Main, which is south of Pontotoc across from the Rumba Room. The store will feature hand-made premium cigars, a walk-in humidor, and a cigar lounge.
The Blind Bear has its 4th anniversary party Saturday, December 26 starting at 8 PM. There will be food and drink specials and Roman Trio takes the stage at 10.
Time to shower, get dressed, and head to the Bear for D-RANKS with B-RAD. I would bid you adieu but I will let Patty Smyth do it for me:
If anyone is missing a large drawer, it’s on the Main Street Mall near City Market.
I have news about yet another tribute band: The Mersey Beatles are coming to the Halloran Center on Friday, March 4. This is not just any Beatles tribute band: They are from Liverpool and had a 10-year residency at the Cavern Club, the basement club where the Beatles themselves played from 1960 to 1963. They have played sellout shows in 20 countries, and their work spans the entire Beatles catalog, with four costume changes throughout the show. (Wow, they change costumes almost as much as Raiford does!)
The music, however, is not the only reason to attend this show. Julia Baird, John Lennon’s sister will be there. She will be selling and signing copies of her book, Imagine This: Growing Up with My Brother John Lennon at the merchandise table. Julia is the Director of the Cavern Club. Tickets are $35/$40, plus there is a $52 ticket that includes a meet & greet with the band and Julia Baird.
Cafe Keough is now taking orders for Bouche de Noel, which I think is fancy talk for Christmas cake. They have chocolate mousse, hazelnut, and caramel flavors. Each has 10-12 slices per cake. Get your orders in by Monday, to be picked up December 23 or 24.
Random fact I learned from @HistoryInPics on Twitter: In the 1930s people used the acronym CHINA over the phone. It stood for Come Home I’m Naked Already.
The Grizzlies play the Indiana Pacers tonight at 7. The first 5000 fans in FedExForum receive a special Z-Bow gift package.
Up early this morning doing an extra load of laundry! A week from tomorrow, there’s a pajama party at the Blind Bear for Sunday Hung Over Like a Bear Brunch/D-RANKS with B-RAD. I don’t really have any pajamas but it’s a reason to bring out the Arkansas Razorbacks Snuggie. It’s in the dryer now. I miss the Snuggie Pub Crawls we used to do in November.
I just realized something – assuming I make it tomorrow and to the pajama party, I will have made it to all 52 Sunday brunches at Blind Bear this year. Do I get some kind of certificate for perfect attendance?
There’s an ugly sweater party tonight at Club 152 starting at 10 PM. Music by DJ Tubbz and DJ Crumbz.
Yesterday after work, I decided I wanted to be away from Ole Miss fans, and since the Tigers and Grizzlies would be playing at the same time, I wanted to be in a place where I could comfortably watch both. A trip to the south side to Max’s Sports Bar seemed like the perfect plan.
I explained my reasoning for coming down to Michele, the bartender. “You’re just here because it’s Fireball Friday,” Michele said.
Michele understands me.
About 6:30 the power went out. All of South Main was dark. Michele locked the door, since the conditions were prime for a robbery, and reverted to her old system of keeping tabs on note cards. The owner of Cheesecake Corner next door brought over some candles, and those of us with flashlight apps on our phones fired them up. I checked Twitter and discovered that Maciel’s Tortas and Tacos (halfway between Union and Monroe) and points north had power, and south of that did not. It was the same situation that occurred in July 2014 when the power went out on a Friday evening for many hours. I was lucky enough to be at Bardog that night, which had power. This time I had to face walking a mile home in the dark if the power didn’t come back. Scary.
Most of the people at Max’s were pre-gaming for the Tigers game, but the FedExForum lost power too. They fired back up with a generator, but they couldn’t start the game. It was to be broadcast on ESPNEWS. “They’re saying it will take 45 minutes to reboot the ESPN truck once power comes back on,” someone said.
After an hour of darkness, the power came back. The TVs at Max’s took about 5 minutes to reboot, and then we were notified that the Tigers had an 8:07 PM tip time. Those with tickets left for the game. I stayed behind and watched the game with Otto and his dad Larry and my dance partner Linda (oooh, Katie (not Mac) is going to be jealous). Given what happened with both the Tigers and the Grizzlies, I wish the power had just stayed out for a few more hours. Watching that was painful.
After the game, my friend Shane said, “Me and Leigh are about to jet, if you want to catch a ride with us.” That sounded great. Given the number of Fireballs Michele had pushed on me, walking home was out of the question, and I was about to call a Lyft anyway.
This morning I was snoozing leisurely in bed, when all of the sudden I jumped up. I thought to myself, I don’t remember paying my tab last night! It would have been one of my bigger tabs at Max’s too – I even ate dinner there. I have only walked out on a few bar tabs (accidentally, of course) in my 13 years Downtown, and I hate it when I do. The thing is, the bartenders down here are not just people who serve me alcohol, but my friends as well. I don’t like shortchanging my friends.
Then I remembered when Shane tabbed out, he said, “Let me get Paul’s too. Merry Christmas.”
Merry Christmas to you too, Shane and Leigh. Thanks not only for the tab and the ride, but the reminder that Downtown is full of wonderful people.
Plans for today: I had such a good time at Max’s last night that I’m gonna do it again! It will be either my third or fourth stop following brunch with Bloom at Bardog and dranks with librarian glasses at Blind Bear, and a possible stop for Mexican food at Maciel’s. I plan on getting to Max’s between 4 and 5 and may very well stay to watch the Grizzlies game. Time to check and see if the Snuggie is dry yet, then I will get this day started!
