Author: paulryburn

Game 7 is at the FedExForum at noon. Us versus the Clippers. Winner to move on to Round 2 and face the San Antonio Spurs. Ladies, the best way to show your support is by putting on a tube top. If you have a tube top on, you’re excused from putting on the “Believe Memphis” shirt you’ll find on your seat. Nothing should cover up a tube top, ever.

You are required to jump up and down a lot, though. And wave your growl towel.

I am absolutely at a loss for where to watch the game. Blind Bear announced they’d open at 10 within minutes of Game 6 ending. At the time I made the decision to watch Game 7 there, because I didn’t think the Saucer would step up. But they did, announcing on Twitter last night that they’d open at 10 today. And Amy is bartending. On the other hand my “DAWG” John D said he’d probably be at the Bear.

I guess I’ll have one Pacifico at the Saucer at 10, then wander over to the Bear to get a good seat for the game.

Don’t forget that poker with Poker Jon happens at Brass Door at 6 tonight. Also, they open in one minute (it’s 8:59 as I post this) for the Arsenal match.

I have it confirmed that Double J, Blind Bear and Flying Saucer will open at 10 tomorrow. Silly Goose to open by 11.

The Grizzlies won at Los Angeles last night and forced a Game 7 in the playoff series. It will be at noon Sunday at the FedExForum, and tickets are on sale now. Game will be broadcast on ABC.

The noon start time presents an interesting dilemma, because many Downtown bars open at noon or later. If they keep their normal opening time tomorrow, they’ll miss out on pre-game sales. Last night I watched Game 6 at the Blind Bear, and as soon as the Grizzlies won they immediately stepped up. The Bear is ditching their usual 3 PM start time on Sunday and opening at 10 AM. In making this decision, they have managed to do the impossible – they have found a way to make me not be at the Flying Saucer at noon on Sunday. Bartender Christina won’t be happy, but that’s the way it is. So anyway, whether you’re going to the game or not, come by the Bear before Game 7. They’ll be serving brunch and lunch, with $3 mimosas, $3 Bloody Marys, and beer bucket specials to be announced. You can reserve a room or table for tomorrow on their website.

Okay. That’s the news. Now it’s time for some opinions.

1) Part of the reason I’m not going to see Christina at noon tomorrow is I’m mad at her. This morning I posted to Twitter, “All right people. If I don’t see some serious tube top action in Downtown Memphis today, I’m going to be disappointed. Make it happen.”

Christina responded, “It’s raining Paul”

When the actual correct response was, “I have a tube top on Paul (link to pic)”

Therefore, I’m mad at Christina.

2) If you run a bar in Downtown Memphis, and your normal start time is 12 or later, and you don’t open early for the pre-Grizzlies crowd tomorrow, you don’t like making money.

3) A few minutes ago, I got out of the shower with wet hair and walked to Walgreens for my Mountain Dew fix. As I was doing so, I thought how one of my readers would probably never do that, because she would worry that people would judge her for being out in public with wet hair. My goal for this summer is to free people from the jail cells that exist only in their own minds.

4) As I woke up this morning on my first full day of vacation, I came to a conclusion: Two weeks vacation a year is not enough. I’m not griping about the company I work for, because they’re just doing what everyone else does. It’s American culture that needs to change. People need more than two weeks off a year to recharge. I keep contact with several recruiters and know they read this blog. I have a message for them: I’m not actively looking right now, but if I ever am, I’m going to demand 3 weeks vacation from day one, with a raise to 4 weeks vacation after 2 years.

5) Murphy’s Law of Walgreens: After you’ve already paid, and the cashier is handing you your receipt and there are three people in line behind you, you discover that there’s a new enchilada flavor of Doritos.

6) Regarding that table reservation link near the top of this post: There will probably be people who reserve a table at the Bear, then Facebook post the “VIP Reserved” sign with their group’s nickname to show how cool they are. Hey guys, is the table actually NAMED AFTER YOU? Yeahdidntthinkso.

All right, that’s enough opinion for now. I’ve told you what’s happening at noon tomorrow already. My plans for noon today look like this:

Brunch with Panda Manda. Get your ass to Bardog and join me for a PBR.

My vacation has officially started, and as I always do with my BBQ Fest vacations, the filter is completely OFF. The professional guy who sits in a cubicle and posts professional-sounding updates during his lunch break? Yeah that guy might as well be dead for the next 9 days. The information will still be there but it will be in a raunchier format. It’s open season on anything and everything. In the blog, on Facebook, on Twitter, and in person. Watch out.

Then again, I called a girl “Tits McGee” in front of her dad Wednesday night, so I’m not sure the filter was ever on to much of an extent.

Game 6 of the Grizzlies-Clippers is tonight at 8:00, on ESPN. If you’re looking for a place to watch this road game, there’s an official watch party happening at FedExForum. Doors open at 7:30 and there’s free parking in the Toyota parking garage.

Historian Jimmy Ogle will lead a free riverfront walking tour tomorrow, starting at 10 AM. He’ll talk about the Mississippi, the Wolf River Harbor, the Pyramid, the cobblestones, the riverboats, the bridges, the trains, the trolley, and more. Meet at the intersection of Court and Riverside if you want to take the tour.

Speaking of railroads, the official grand opening of the railroad museum inside Central Station happens tomorrow 9 AM-5 PM.

Another event that happens tomorrow is the Dog Days of Summer patio party at South of Beale. $10 donation to Mid-South Spay and Neuter Services gets you and your dogs food and drink specials. Hours are 11 AM to 2 PM.

If you’re in the mood for some live music tonight, Lightnin’ Malcolm at the Center for Southern Folklore wouldn’t be a bad choice. Hill country blues blended with other influences. 8-11 PM and the show is said to be family-friendly.

As of 5 PM, I’ll be on vacation for the next nine days! I haven’t had a vacation day since November 18, and I’ve been covering for other people at work. I’m physically and mentally exhausted, and the time off is much needed. I don’t know if I’ll get much that could be classified as “rest” though. Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights, I’ll be at BBQ Fest until the park closes, then hit the bars til 2 or 3. Then I’ll wake up at 9, download 200-300 pics from the camera, pull them into Picasa, crop/resize/lighten and post to Facebook, then do a blog post summarizing the previous day, then head back to BBQ Fest at 11. Of course the Saucer is on the way to BBQ Fest so I’ll probably stop there for a beer or two.

Posting schedule will vary for the next 9 days. I plan on posting as much or more than normal, but it will happen at whatever time I’m in front of the computer. May do some posts from my iPhone’s WordPress app too, now that I have a phone with decent battery life.

Plans for tonight: I’ll watch the game, currently undecided between Saucer and Bear as my watch location. That’s it for now – next time I post I’ll be on vacation!

It’s Thursday night, and that means outdoor parties. Let’s have a look at what’s happening this evening.

Bleu’s “Go Retro” patio party theme is the Beatles this week. That should be a lot of fun. Party is from 6-9 PM.

Kevin and Bethany Page play the Peabody rooftop tonight. 6-11 PM, $10 to get in but it includes your first drink, ladies free until 7.

Over at the Madison, Marcela Pinilla takes the stage for some Latin jazz fusion. 7-11 PM, $7 to get in, cash bar, small plates.

Memphis in May presents The Philippines Live from the Islands tonight at the Orpheum. The Philippines National Dance Company will perform. Also performing will be the Worldwide Family of Modern Arnis, who will present the evolution of Filipino Martial Arts. Renowned Filipino chef Claude Tayag will present a sampling of traditional cuisine from the Philippines.

Chef Tayag will also host a 5-course Taste of the Philippines dinner tomorrow night at Chez Philippe at the Peabody tomorrow night. $65 per person, 901-529-4188 for reservations.

While we’re on the subject of this year’s Memphis in May honored country, I’ll mention that Filipinas are among the world’s most prominent wearers of tube tops.

Congratulations to our President on his bold statement that he supports same-sex marriage. I’ve been waiting three years for him to step up and lead, and he’s finally doing it. Good use of the bully pulpit, Mr. Obama. It’s high time this country got over its ass-backward prejudices and started treating everyone equally.

The Saucer pulled the trigger on the Mexican beer switch last night. I gave it a try, and discovered that I like Pacifico even BETTER than I like Dos Equis Lager. I have a new go-to beer there now.

I watched the first half of the game at the Saucer, and the second half at the Blind Bear. The Grizzlies looked dominant and had a big win. That’ll force Game 6 in Los Angeles. According to ESPN’s website, it will be on ESPN at 8 Central time tomorrow. If we win there and take it to Game 7, that game will be on ABC Sunday at noon.

All right, that’s it for now. Dead tired. Gonna go eat.

Next week will be a week when I’ll be Downtown at lunchtime all five days. Since that’s rare, I’ve been forming a strategic plan for where to eat lunch (you know I need time off when I start throwing around terms like “strategic plan” in normal conversation). Thursday and Friday, I’ll be in the BBQ team booth, of course, but Monday through Wednesday I want to go to restaurants I don’t normally get to try for lunch. These are the three I’ve decided on.

• Bleu – I want to try their Build Your Own Sandwich menu (click the link and scroll to the bottom to see it) where you pick your protein, temperature, bun, sauce, toppings, and side.
• Flight – I’ve eaten there before but never for lunch. A friend who works there and her brother were describing the lunch menu to me last night, and all the food sounds incredible. I don’t know what I’m going to order, but I guarantee you that the crawfish mac and cheese will be my side item.
• A food truck

I’m mentioning this on the blog so I’ll hold myself to my strategic plan. Otherwise, there’s too much chance I’ll fall back into my usual routine and eat at places like Court House Deli and the Majestic – both EXCELLENT choices for lunch, by the way, but next week I want to try something different and new. Not sure which day I’ll do which – depends on my friend’s work schedule (which she won’t know until Sunday) and what day(s) the food trucks park Downtown.

Speaking of food trucks, it’s too bad I’m not off work tomorrow, because there will be a food truck rodeo in Court Square. Trucks that will be there include Fuel, YoLo, Square Meal on Wheels, Memphis Munchies, Kona Ice, Revival Southern Food Co., Mark’s Grill, Healthy Delicious, Rockin’ Dough and Scooter’s. The Daily News blog has more details here.

Our BBQ team sponsor Double J SmokeHouse and Saloon is now on Twitter at @DoubleJMemphis. They have a Burger of the Day and other specials that they will be tweeting on a daily basis, as well as their excellent live music lineup.

This brings me to another point about Twitter: I’ve decided it’s time to shut down the @firesale account that I’ve been using to tweet the Flying Saucer’s $3 daily beer for the past four years. You can follow the bar itself at @FlyingSaucerMem. When I started @firesale in 2008, Twitter was still a novelty and few bars knew what it was or saw any value in it, so customers who were loyal to their favorite places took the initiative. Four years later, every bar and restaurant should be tweeting their specials every day without having to rely on customer help. It’s free advertising that takes seconds to do.

One more note to restaurants and bars: If your social media strategy is “we only tweet specials Monday-Friday when our one person who knows how to use Twitter is here,” you don’t get it.

I played poker at the Blind Bear last night, but I wish I’d played trivia at the Silly Goose instead. I heard that one of the prizes last night was a PBR rocking chair. My bad luck continued, when I went all-in with A-K and kitchen manager Michael Bean called with Q-6. Flop had two Queens. That is typical of what happens when you sit at a table with Michael Bean.

Grizzlies game at 8:30 tonight. Most likely I’m going to watch at the Bear. Other stuff going on: (Edit: I had it wrong, it’s Blackstone) is the glass night special at the Saucer, 7 PM; bingo night with Diamond Dave at the Brass Door, six games starting at 7 PM; poker with Poker Jon downstairs at Bardog, 7:30 PM. I assume trivia with Charles will still be happening at the Bear, 8 PM.

Positively beautiful weather today. One of my Facebook friends commented that it’s a great day to go riding with the top down. It’s also a great day to go riding with the tube top down! Time to go grab a quick lunch.

It’s Tuesday News Day. Next week I’ll be off work so it will be Tuesday Booze Day instead. Don’t worry, there will still be a post. Probably a much more interesting post.

Madison Line Records is giving away an iPad 3. Check out their Facebook page for details on how to enter to win.

Double J SmokeHouse and Saloon has announced two great bands for Friday on their Front Porch stage. Dynaflow and also Deering and Down will perform 9 PM to 1 AM. Free show. Pro tip: Come hungry and have a meal at the Double J.

Downtown is known for its many art galleries, but for the next month you can see art by going to church as well. Until June 15, 120 works by Russian abstract exhibitionist Ludmila Pawlowska, along with traditional icons from the Vassilevsky Monastery/Suzdal, will be on display at Calvary Episcopal Church at 102 N. Second. Docent-led tours from 10 AM-3 PM Tuesday-Friday, or you can call the church to make special arrangements. The exhibit includes many large sculptural pieces, many of which will be suspended in the church.

My plan for tonight is, of course, poker at the Blind Bear. Jamie runs the game and it starts at 8 PM. Free to play. With my recent losing streak, maybe I need to rub a rabbit’s foot for good luck. Or better yet, maybe I need to rub a tube top for good luck.

I missed poker with Poker Jon at the Silly Goose last night, but it was the last Monday I’ll have to miss. I was over at the Saucer getting beers done for my sixth plate, while I could get them at the Pint Nite price of $3. Last night’s beers got me to 198. I’m off all next week, so I’ll get there next Monday around 4 (where else would I be at 4?) and knock out the last two, with plenty of time to spare for Jon’s 7:30 game.

Time to grab some wings, then go to a meeting. I’m using my iPad instead of pen and paper for meetings now. Wow I accidentally am doing something environmentally friendly. Yay me.