Author: paulryburn

RiverArtsFest is only two weeks away. A South Main resident forwarded me the street closings that will happen due to the festival, and I thought it might be of interest to those who live or work in the area.

South Main, south from GE Patterson to Webster, will be closed from 9 AM Thursday, October 22 to 10 PM Sunday, October 25.

South Main, north from GE Patterson to Huling, will be closed from 8 AM Friday, October 23 to 10 PM Sunday, October 25.

The Main Street Trolley will turn at Linden from noon Friday, October 23 through Sunday, October 25. The Riverfront Trolley will remain on its regular route.

Those who live in the closure boundaries and park in a garage or gated area will be issued a parking pass the week of the event.

According to the e-mail I received, the festival is again expanding and artist booths will run all the way from Webster to Huling. 70,000 people attended last year’s festival, and they’re hoping to exceed that mark this year.

Needless to say, I’ll be at the festival both days, Saturday the 24th and Sunday the 25th (and I mean actually AT the festival, not sitting in Calhoun’s watching football all day as many of my friends do). Hope to see you there!

Two big parties are coming up this month at Kooky Canuck. Here’s the info.

This Sunday, October 11, there will be a St. Jude Red Carpet Bash Kickoff Party. You’ll be able to purchase tickets for the Red Carpet Bash, which will happen November 7, and you’ll be able to preview auction items. They’ll have $2 margaritas, $2 wine, and $2 longnecks. $2 margaritas on Sunday Fun Day after I’ve already been out drinking beer for 6 or 7 hours… oh dear. Sunday will be a fun day but I have a feeling Monday will hurt.

Thursday, October 29 will be Kooky Canuck’s annual Halloween party. Music by DJ Bobby Smith, a costume contest with a $300 cash prize for the winner, $2 34 oz. Super Cold Bud Light, and other drink specials. This is always one of the best Halloween parties of the year, and there are plenty of unique and creative costumes.

14 days until the first Halloween party of the season and I still don’t have any idea what to be… I may end up just buying some crappy costume off the shelf at Party City. There had been talk of doing a group costume with other people, but what if I go to parties they don’t? Which would surely happen, since I tend to go out more than the others, and since I generally prefer the core over South Main.

In the news today: Convicted felon Joe Cooper tried to get his 6-month home confinement waived so he can pursue his newest business idea. He wants to open up a consulting service for newly convicted felons, preparing them for what to expect in prison. My God. Only in Memphis. The full story is here.

Great party in the Gayoso Alley last night… due to Saucer glass night I didn’t get there until after 8, so the only band I got to see was Pezz. If you missed them, there’s a video on the Downtown Download blog.

What to do tonight? No plans but the weather is way too nice to sit at home and play on PokerStars… I’m going to have to get out and do something. Not sure what, but beer will be involved. Hmmm maybe I’ll just buy a Big Ass Beer and sit on the concrete blocks on Beale or something. It’s been a long time since I did that. I think the Dempseys play Blues City tonight, could do that too. I have a $5 coupon for the Saucer so I’ll surely be by there for at least one beer. Lots of options…

There’s a group that’s organizing a party to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the courthouse at 140 Adams. I’m awaiting more details, but have been told it will happen at 4:30 PM on Tuesday, October 13, and that there will be free food from Felicia Suzanne’s and drinks from D. Canale, and various other donations. Drinks provided by D. Canale, a beer distributor? Hey, I didn’t realize I was such a big fan of the courthouse, but suddenly I am. Also, free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.

Attn pro wrestling fans: You have a chance to own a piece of wrestling history. The original NWA title belt, worn in the 1970s and 1980s by Harley Race, Dusty Rhodes, Ric Flair and other superstars, is up for sale. The catch is that the minimum offer is $75,000. If you want to buy the belt, click here.

Shelton Clothiers is now making made-to-measure suits for women. You pick the style, the fabric, and the lining, and then your suit is custom fit for you. They are kicking it off Thursday, October 15 with a party in conjunction with the Peabody Place block party going on outside that night. The first five women to purchase anything grom the M2M (made to measure) line that night will receive a 50% discount; after that, M2M women’s items will be at a 30% discount for the remainder of the night.

Since the Sheltons read my blog, I’m going to throw an idea out there: Next June when Tube Top Month rolls around again, how about a made-to-measure tube top sale? That would be a good way to get women in your store during the casual summer months. I’ll even volunteer to help with the measurements.

That’s enough news for now… check back for info on street closings during RiverArtsFest, and two very kooky parties happening this month.

All right, let’s get to the rest of the news.  I’ve still got a lot of stuff left and it’s after work, so I’m just going to throw it all into one post, in order to get off the computer and in front of a beer as quickly as possible.

I’ve learned that monthly parkers at the garage at Third and Union, the one where the ceiling was falling, have been told the garage will re-open tomorrow. Today they’re being asked to park in other garages run by Central, while the company addresses the ceiling problem.

The “Air Guitar on the Bar” contest at Bardog is scheduled for next Tuesday, October 13. In the newsletter Aldo said the start time would be around 11 PM, which means that people attending Mpact Happy Hour, the SMA meeting, or trivia still have plenty of time to get to Bardog for the contest. $3 Cabo Wabo shots (they’re sponsoring the event) and it’s also the bar’s $3 pint night. Grand prize is an electric guitar.

Bardog’s Halloween costume contest will be at midnight on Saturday, the 31st. $100 prize for first place, $50 for second, based on audience applause. $3 Fireball shots, and also $3 Bloody Brains and Cryptonic Jello Shots. Keep in mind that November 1 at 3 AM, the clocks “fall back” to standard time, which means Halloween night partiers get an extra hour, ’cause the bars don’t have to close until the second 3 AM.

Also, congrats to Bardog on getting 99 out of 100 on both their kitchen and bar inspections.

Republic Nightclub is kicking off a new event for Friday nights called “Ratio Fridays.” They’re challenging guys to bring big groups of women in with them. The guy who brings the biggest group of women (they must all enter at once) wins $400. The point is to get a good guy/girl ratio in the club. They wrote, “In the end, ratio is all that matters… no one likes a swordfight!”

Saturday night they’re having the 25th anniversary of Vivid Video.  Okay, I just Googled “Vivid Video” and this is NOT a site you want to pull up if you’re sitting at a work computer.

Time to head to the Saucer for a happy hour Dos Equis Lager… Turbo Dog on Fire Sale?  Hmmm if I go anywhere after the alley party, the Silly Goose is looking like an unusually strong option tonight.  Or Bardog.  Time for BEER!

Looks like the first Halloween party of the season will be at Paula & Raiford’s on Thursday, October 22, from 9 PM-til. The theme is “Thriller Night,” and there will be prizes for the scariest costume, the sexiest costume, and the most creative costume. Ladies in costume get in for only $5.

Yikes… that means I’m down to fifteen days to figure out what to be for Halloween. I really don’t have a clue. The Saucer Girl costume that I did from ’05 to ’08 is RETIRED. Not doing that again. If you have any costume suggestions, shoot them to me at paul@paulryburn.com. Ideally I like my Halloween costumes to be characters I can play (as my previous Saucer Girl, vampire, and pimp costumes were), but at this point I’m open to pretty much any idea.

The Halloween schedule is starting to come together… when we get closer to the end of the month I’ll post a list of who’s having parties what night. Most parties are Saturday the 31st, of course, but I’ve also heard of parties happening the 22nd, 29th, and 30th.

I received word this morning that Mpact Memphis has changed their happy hour location for next Tuesday, October 13. It was scheduled to be at South of Beale, but the SMA is having its monthly meeting there that night.

They came up with an excellent alternate location though… one where you’ll be able to drink 34 ounce mugs of super cold beer while you mingle with fellow Mpact members. Yep, they moved it to Kooky Canuck. Start time still 6 PM… hmmm that’s on my way to trivia… maybe I’ll have to stop by for a beer Tuesday night.

Big food! Big fun! I recommend the maple flank steak, the poutine (fries with gravy and cheese), and the Nainamo Bar as unique tastes of Canada, but you really can’t go wrong with anything on the menu. Beware though… there’s a good chance the Nuh-Uh Girl will attend this… if you’re eating you’re likely to hear “Can I have a bite? Are you going to eat all your fries? You aren’t eating your tomato on your burger? Can I have it?”

Got a lot to post about today, but let’s go ahead and start with the important stuff – what to do tonight? There’s a lot to choose from.

The biggest thing going on tonight is the first Grizzlies home game of the season! The Memphis Grizzlies play the Oklahoma City Thunder tonight in a pre-season game in the FedExForum at 7 PM. Get tickets here.

Tonight is also the Makeshift Music Alley Party in Gayoso Alley, part of the Alley Jams concert series. Two Way Radio, Paul Taylor, Pezz. Food, beer and wine vendors. I had to miss last week’s Alley Jam and heard it was a lot of fun. This week I’ll be there. Gayoso Alley runs north from Peabody Place between Front and Main. Music starts around 6 I believe.

It’s also “Buy the Beer, Keep the Glass” night at the Flying Saucer. This week is the John Lennon glass, and they’re doing a take-off of the photo of him in the “New York City” shirt from the early ’70s. Glasses go on sale at 7 and will probably run out quickly. If you plan on attending both the Gayoso Alley concert and glass night, I recommend you walk over to the Saucer about 6:50.

Pint Nite at South of Beale – all their pints $3. Also, today is the unveiling of their new menu.

Poker night in the Underdog Room at Bardog Tavern. Poker tournament with real tables and chips, increasing blind structure, the real deal. Once Alley Jam season is over, I’m going to hit the tables at Bardog on Wednesday nights, so watch out.

I have a couple more posts saved in Drafts that are scheduled to post at various times this afternoon.  Check back.

The Center City Commission posted on their @downtownmemphis Twitter account that they’re looking for volunteers to decorate Downtown for the holidays. You can help them decorate Main Street and Court Square. They did a fantastic job with this last year and it really made Downtown feel special during the holiday season. If you want to help, send them a direct message on Twitter, or contact them through their website.

Bardog Tavern is the latest Downtown restaurant to get on Twitter.  You can follow them at @bardogtavern_tn.

In the latest e-mail newsletter, Aldo said he isn’t sure exactly what he’s going to tweet.  Suggestion: Tweet the specials, the great food that Demitrie cooks up that isn’t on the regular menu!  The thing is, I don’t know what the specials are unless I happen to walk by and see them on the sandwich board outside.  But, usually I don’t walk by Bardog except when I’m walking to Bardog – that block of Monroe just isn’t on my usual path.  So the specials as they’re posted now don’t get me in the door any extra times.

On the other hand, if the specials were tweeted, I might think to myself, “Hmmm they have arrabiata pasta with sausage? I hadn’t meant to stop in there today, but it looks like now I have a plan for dinner.”  As good as Demitrie’s food is, it would surely get me in Bardog a few extra times, and I imagine other people too.  And then the $2.50 PBR would keep me around…

At trivia last night, someone ordered a sandwich.  Not long after it came out, the Nuh-Uh Girl swooped in like a pigeon and asked, “Are you going to eat that pickle?”  Then she dipped it in ketchup and ate it.  Here’s a pic.

She then said, “Hey, don’t knock ketchup until you try it!”  She thinks everything’s better with ketchup.  No, everything’s better with bacon.

I have four or five more things to post about today, so check back.  I’m going to type as many posts as possible before I leave for work and save them in Drafts, then put them up throughout the day.