Category: Uncategorized

Downtown Memphis is a place where anything can happen. About 9 I was sitting at the Blind Bear, thinking, “Gonna call it an early night. Soon as I finish this beer I’m out.” Next thing I knew, I was showing tourists around. I took them to Silky’s patio because they wanted to see the goats. Then they were hungry and I described the Double-Double from Dyer’s and they thought that sounded perfect. We walked down there to find that Dyer’s closes earlier than I thought on weekdays. So I took them to Kooky Canuck for Yonge St. Burgers. Fun night.

Prior to that, they had wrestling on at the Blind Bear for a while. If you grew up in the ’90s watching The Rock, or the ’80s watching Dusty Rhodes and Ric Flair, the next big talker in the business has arrived. Introducing Enzo Amore and Big Cass:

My name… is Enzo Amore. And I’m a certified G, and a bonafide stud. And You Can’t. Teach. That. And this right here, this is Big Cass. And he is seven foot tall… And You Can’t. Teach. That. Ba da boom, realest guys in the room. HOWYOUDOIN’!

A big red ball that has been all over the world is coming to Memphis. It will be Downtown for Music Fest weekend at the New Daisy, Beale Street Landing, and 409 S. Main. On May 3 it will be at the MyHQ block party in Barboro Alley.

Memphis Magazine has a great article about the DJ at the best nightclub in the world. Raiford has been going strong for over 40 years.

Another well-known Downtowner, Shawn Danko of Kooky Canuck, talks about food from Canada as we head into Memphis in May.

South Main Sounds is doing a special early songwriter night Friday so people can catch their event then head to Memphis in May. It happens 5:30-7:00 in the evening at 550 S. Main. Ashlee K. Thomas, Chris Hill, Lydia Waldrop, Todd Poole and Amy Jamison-Poole will perform.

The Redbirds have a $40 ticket to their exclusive club level tonight. I think this may be the one I blogged about a couple of days ago that includes food, beer, and wine. They play the Round Rock Express at 6:35 with the gates at 5:30. There are $1 King Cotton hot dogs every Tuesday.

Heading out to work. Possibly another post later today.

As I have said many times, there is a lot more to love about the Memphis Farmers Market than simply fresh produce. Yesterday I visited my favorite food truck at the market, the tandoori truck, and tried an item I had never had before.

Spinach and onion pakoras with a side of veggies and yogurt for dipping. This was a monstrous amount of food for $7. Cooked from scratch and it only took about 5 minutes. They have sauces you can put on your food at the tandoori truck, including an Indian plum sauce and several of the hot sauces sold at the market. The pakoras are hot when you get them, so it’s a good idea to wait a couple of minutes before digging in. By the way, I don’t know if I have any vegetarians who read this blog, but on the off-chance that I do, more than half the items the tandoori truck sells are meatless.

I found a seat at a table in the main corridor of the market, where I had plenty of room to eat my pakoras as I watched people shop.

What is the Memphis Farmers Market, Alex?

My seat in the front part of the main corridor gave me an excellent vantage point to people-watch. And many of the people were women in yoga pants! “Why have I not been coming here every week for the entire 11-year run of the market?” I wondered as I watched people walk around.

After finishing my food, I was a man on a mission. My Saturday brunch bartender Bloom had mentioned that she wanted some mint so she could make mojitos. “They sell it at the grocery store, but in such huge bags that I throw most of it away,” Bloom told me. After visiting several vendors selling green, leafy stuff including lots of kale, I found what I was looking for.

I found a perfect-sized bundle of mint for Bloom for only $2. “Which one is the mint?” I had to ask the vendor, because it was indistinguishable to me from all the other green produce.

The Farmers Market runs every Saturday from 7 AM to 1 PM at the pavilion at Front and G.E. Patterson. It runs well into the fall months. The weather was beautiful yesterday but at one point I found myself wishing it was late September as I walked around the market.

I forgot that Bardog gets super busy super early the day of Hot Wing Fest. I am known for getting there right at 11 and being the first person in the door (or second if my “DAWG” John D goes in first). Yesterday I got there precisely at 11, yet I was the 12th person in the door! I barely got a seat at the bar! Luckily it was near the window so I could watch people go by as they walked to Wing Fest… and watch MLGW dig up Monroe Avenue, as they have been doing every day for the past four months.

About 2 I walked over to Wing Fest. I was happy to pay my $15 to support the Ronald McDonald House but I didn’t stay long. I made one loop through the park and I was out. Only about 20% of teams had wings out as I walked around and there were long lines for those that did have them. Too many strollers, too many people who didn’t know how to put one foot in front of the other. If I go next year, my friends the Pirtles have a VIP option for an additional donation to the Ronald McDonald House and I may do that. At any rate, by 2:45 I was headed south to see my favorite pair of librarian glasses at the Blind Bear.

I considered a trip south to Max’s Sports Bar at 4:30, but decided I was comfortable where I was and remained at the Bear. Before long texts from Southaven started coming in. The Moody Ques were down there competing at Springfest and the results were good. For the first time since we started competing under our current name, we won a trophy for food! We took third in the Seafood competition. I know Erik is our point man on seafood, so congratulations to him as well as Frank, Clay, John D and everyone else who was part of the Southaven event.

There was more good news: We finished 12th out of approximately 50 teams in Shoulder. This was said to have been a better finish than our 9th in Atoka because of the number of teams.

Hey gang, someone want to take a photo of the trophy and text it or email it to me? That absolutely needs to be on the team website.

I would also like to congratulate my friend Heath and his team Victory Lane BBQ on their Grand Champion win at a MBN/KCBS event yesterday at Springfest. Great job!

Keelon Lawson has made it publicly known that if Tigers basketball coach Tubby Smith does not retain him as an assistant, his sons K.J. and Dedric are done with the University of Memphis, and they can say goodbye to 2019 prospect Chandler and 2021 prospect Johnathan. I know this is an unpopular opinion but I think Tubby needs to show Mr. Lawson the door. How can Tubby make the program his own if one of his employees bullies him and has the ammo to continue to bully him until possibly 2025?

As I walked down Main Street on my way to the Farmers Market yesterday, I noticed that a new cigar lounge is soon to open on the block between Pontotoc and Vance, on the east side of the street.

Tuesday night the Orpheum will have a free public showing of 1989 movie Purple Rain, a special tribute to Prince. If you’re thinking about bringing the kids, might want to keep in mind that this movie is rated R due to sexuality, nudity, and violence.

Cafe Pontotoc is hosting a reservations-only Cinco de Mayo supper on Sunday, May 1. $45 charge. The restaurant will open at 6 and serve dinner at 7. There will be chips and dip, build-your-own tacos, baked chicken enchiladas or spinach enchiladas with rice and beans, and tres leche. To drink there will be margaritas, Mezcal with salsa chasers, and Mexi-beers. Call 901-249-7655 for reservations.

It’s Debauchery Day! Beale Street Wine Race kicks off with an opening parade into Handy Park at 1 PM, followed by Queen of the Vine, the grape stomp, and the wine relay. If you’re not driving, get you a Call-a-Cab across the street at Wet Willie’s. Know how I joke about being “the bad, bad man with a smoothie in his hand” at the Farmers Market? I really am a bad, bad man when there’s a Call-a-Cab in my hand on Beale Street. Of course I will be supporting Team Blind Bear. About to head down there now to see if my favorite pair of librarian glasses needs any help slipping into her Queen of the Vine outfit. Back tomorrow with more news!

 

Niko, the missing dog I posted about yesterday, was found in the afternoon a few blocks away and is safely home with his family.

The Orpheum has announced its summer movie series for 2016. Of note: Two venues will be used for the series, with about half at the Orpheum itself and half at the Halloran Center next door. Also notable: Rocky Horror Picture Show will be shown on June 10. In the past it has usually been late August or September.

In other Orpheum news, Puscifer plays tonight. Puscifer is the project of Maynard James Keenan, formerly of Tool and A Perfect Circle. Tickets $38-58 or $250-350 VIP.

From the Memphis Flyer: Remembering Rufus Thomas and Prince at the New Daisy, 1997.

Historian Jimmy Ogle leads a free Riverfront Walking Tour today at 2. Meet at the foot of Monroe Avenue and Riverside Drive. Ogle will discuss the Cobblestone Wharf and the sinking of the Sultana.

River Series at the Harbor Town Amphitheater is tonight. $5 cover, DJ at 6, bands start at 7. Nots, Chickasaw Mound, and DJ Painted Bird will perform. The series benefits Maria Montessori School.

Ugh… renovations of the Benchmark Hotel, already ongoing for 6 years, are over budget and another investor may have to step in and finish the project.

You guys remember former Memphis Tiger Preston Laird? He was the white kid who played during the Joey Dorsey era, best known for coming in with 0:16 remaining in the game with the Tigers up 105-63. He’s had a successful post-basketball career. This week he was named the UNLV men’s basketball director of operations, having previously held the same position at New Mexico State. I would say he’s following a similar path to Pastner but I don’t want to jinx the guy.

There’s a Prince Purple Party in the Twelve Bar, the upstairs of Jerry Lee Lewis’s club on Beale from 5 to 9 tonight. DJ Swagg will spin the Prince hits. It’s a fundraiser for the Christopher Hope Foundation Food Drive, so bring a non-perishable food item. Free to attend.

Check out this incredible video of Prince playing guitar on While My Guitar Gently Weeps at the 2004 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction.

Thanks to WordPress guru Otto for fixing some of my plugins last night at Max’s Sports Bar. In particular, take a look at my Loflin Yard post from two weeks ago and notice that if you click on a photo, it opens up a carousel. Before, when you clicked on a photo, it would open up the photo in 500×500 with an ugly Title: P1073106 page with no way to click forward and back to get to the other images. With that fixed, I can use this blog to host my Wine Race and BBQ Fest photos and not have to resort to Facebook. Charging up the camera batteries so I will be ready for Wine Race tomorrow.

After leaving Max’s around sunset, I ran into friends a little ways up Main. My artist friend Bad Shane painted a tribute to Prince on The Smurfy Door:

After that it was wing grilling time.

If you weren’t there, you missed out on a good time!

Plans for today: Farmers Market, brunch with Bloom at Bardog (with Panda managing so I will get to hear about Niko’s return), then more wings at the Southern Hot Wing Festival. My BBQ team is competing at Southaven Springfest today, but since I am not one of the cooks my presence is not required. They will send me photos of the shoulders and the trophy so I can do my PR job from Memphis.

I’ll have to do Bardog without my “DAWG” John D who is cooking at Springfest, but I will find a way to muddle through somehow. Beautiful weekend for people-watching and tube top watching. Time to get outside!

If you live in the Poplar-Perkins area, be on the lookout for a missing dog with no collar:

He answers to Niko and belongs to Panda, my Saturday brunch bartender/manager at Bardog. Email me at paul@paulryburn.com if you find him and I will get you in touch with Panda.

Anyone else finding that the light at Front and Peabody Place is a traffic hazard? Every morning I take Peabody Place to Front and turn left. The light remains green for Front, and the walk signal remains “walk,” for over 2 minutes sometimes before the signal turns to “don’t walk” and starts counting down from 19 to 0 and then finally Peabody Place gets the green. The light stays red for so long in the Peabody Place direction that drivers assume it’s malfunctioning, and turn left on red.

I won’t be turning left at that intersection for the next month though… tomorrow Riverside closes for Memphis in May and bluff repair. It will reopen May 30. Alternate route is south on Second to G.E. Patterson, take a left, right on Third, right on Crump, and then exit turning right south on to I-55.

It’s Growl Towel time! The Grizzlies host the San Antonio Spurs at FedExForum tonight at 8:30. If you’re going to Game 3, arrive early for heightened security at the door. If you’re not going, you can watch the game on ESPN.

The DMC is opposing a proposed parking lot at the northwest corner of Front and Pontotoc in what is sometimes known as the Front Street Chicken District. The DMC says the block between Front and Wagner is too valuable to waste on a surface lot.

iPhone users: Beware of a phishing scam informing you that your Apple ID is about to expire.

Last day to purchase 3-day passes for Music Fest. The offer goes away at midnight tonight.

Over the Edge happens tomorrow. People will rappel off the Raymond James Tower overlooking the Mississippi River to raise money for orphans.

A few days ago, I said that Max was polling his customers on whether to go nonsmoking with his sports bar, and that I had mixed feelings about it. Now that the poll has closed, I will share my feelings.

1) On a personal level: I am a nonsmoker. Therefore I would prefer to hang out at a bar that is nonsmoking, although it is not such a strong preference that I would let it keep me from seeing my friends.

2) My friends: Several of my friends who hang out at Max’s more than any other place are hardcore smokers. If Max went nonsmoking, their favorite place as they have known it since 2007 would no longer be the same. I don’t want them to lose their favorite spot. I think about how I would feel if the Blind Bear changed so drastically that it became a place I would no longer care to frequent. There would be a sense of loss, for sure. I hate the thought of my friends who call Max’s their home experiencing that.

3) Smoking is keeping people away: I can go back as far as 2009 and find blog posts I wrote saying that Max’s is the friendliest bar Downtown, the easiest to meet locals and make friends. I know FOR A FACT that there are regulars who would not have found Max’s if not for my blog. I wonder how many more people tried Max’s, and understood what I wrote but decided not to go back because of the smoke. I wonder if there are people who I would have become good friends with at Max’s, but never met them because of the cigarettes. I wonder if my friends on Squeal Street BBQ or Porkosaurus or my own team would have had a few additional members this year, but because of the smoke they/we never met those people. That’s a shame.

4) The fact that smoking in public places is legal at all, anywhere in Tennessee in 2016 is just fucking stupid: Most states have enacted smoking bans. Check Wikipedia for a list.

The official BBQ Fest app has dropped. Search for “Memphis in May Barbecue” on Apple or Android to get it. It is a free app. Maps, team lists, merchandise, FAQ, and more.

That’s it for now. Back tomorrow probably.

When the kale is in the seventh booth…
And pottery aligns with meats
Then peace will guide the radishes
And love will steer the beets!

This is the dawning of the Age of Asparagus…

This is the Dawning of the Age of Asparagus is the theme at Memphis Farmers Market this Saturday. Check out this Pinterest board for ideas for what to do with your asparagus. Tip from MFM: The thinner, slender stalks are the more tender ones. There will be live music from Bud Summers (8:30-10) and Steve Schad (11-12:30). The market is at the corner of Front and G.E. Patterson from 7 AM to 1 PM Saturdays.

Check out this week’s vendor chitchat with Teresa Harris of Jessie Harris Produce. Jessie Harris is her husband’s name and the name of their farm in Dyersburg. They use only organic products on their farm, and are best known for their tomatoes, being one of the first vendors of the Farmers Market season to carry them.

The Redbirds return to town tomorrow night with a 6:35 game time, and there will be a huge number of things going on. There’s a Papa John’s “Score 6” promotion where you can order a pizza online for half off the following day if the Redbirds score 6 runs. There will also be a baby race, a block party at 5 in the plaza, a Floor & Decor giveaway, a performance by Drums Unlimited, and fireworks following the game. Opponent is the Round Rock Express.

We now know quarterbacks are going 1-2 in the NFL draft. That could propel Memphis Tigers QB Paxton Lynch into the top 10.

Frank Chin has a photo gallery of Rajun Cajun crawfish fest.

Off to work. Possibly another post later today. Good luck to my Moody Ques teammates as they load in to Southaven Springfest.

BREAKING: Prince has passed away at the age of 57

Before we get started, a quick announcement to my Moody Ques teammates: Friday (tomorrow) is the deadline to let us know your T-shirt size. If you are a member, or if you have not paid yet but plan on being a member, fill out this form and let us know your size. We are ordering extras but cannot guarantee the size you want if you do not let us know by tomorrow.

The MyHQ alley party in Barboro Alley got rescheduled due to incoming storms last night. New date is Tuesday, May 3, when they will partner with Red Ball Project, and there will be music, drinks, games, art and more.

Pro tip: If you’re going to Southern Hot Wing Fest Saturday on Riverside, start stocking up on dollar bills. No, not to go to the strip club afterward, but to leave donations for the teams who feed you wings. Money in the donation buckets will go to the Ronald McDonald House.

Fox13 has photos of a car smashing into the South Bluffs guard shack.

Ready for your daily dose of stupid? Donald Trump thinks putting Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill is “a total P.C. move” and that we should put her on the highly-esteemed $2 bill instead. How does he get away with saying this stuff?

Good stuff from one of my favorite authors, Neale Donald Walsch:

Every action taken is based on love or fear. When you choose the action love sponsors, you experience the glory of Who You Really Are.

— Neale Donald Walsch (@_NealeDWalsch) April 21, 2016

Too often the past 12 months, I have chosen actions based out of fear. I think I will make it a personal goal to choose better actions in the short term, say, between now and the end of BBQ Fest.

Best Bet from Michael Donahue: Caldo Tlalpeno from Maciel’s. I have not tried that one yet, but based on my experience, anything from Maciel’s is a Best Bet!

The Majestic Grille is opening at 10 Sunday so you have time to brunch before Grizzlies playoff game 4. 901-522-8555 for reservations.

Susan Ellis from the Flyer has news on what is happening at Bluefin since the new owner took over.

There will be a Latin Food & Tequila Fest Sunday at the Cadre Building from noon to 7.

Learn to make Felicia Suzanne’s classic BGFLT salad at home in this video.

If you didn’t see the Downtown Olympics recap I posted early this morning, keep scrolling down and you will see it. Check back, because a third post is a serious possibility. Farmers Market news came in too late for this post but I will try to get it online this evening.

If you’re a customer of Max’s Sports Bar, you might want to pull up their Facebook or Twitter page today and vote. Max is polling his customers on whether he should continue to allow smoking at his bar. The sports bar has been a smoking establishment since it opened as Calhoun’s on the last day of 2007.

I have mixed feelings about this but am going to hold off sharing them until the vote concludes, to avoid having undue influence on the results. I will say that I voted my personal preference, which is nonsmoking.

The Brass Door is closing at 3 today for a private event. Diamond Dave’s British Bingo will move to Thursday this week only, at 7:30 PM.

Looks like the South Bluffs guard shack took a direct hit from a vehicle sometime in the past day. I hope everyone is all right.

The MBJ has info on Grizzlies uniforms, which will change in the 2017-18 season to incorporate sponsor logo patches. The sponsor will be team-wide; individual player sponsorships will not be allowed.

Pranom Pop-Up, the nationally famous Thai street food vendor, is coming back to Memphis tomorrow evening. They will be at Earnestine & Hazel’s from 7 until they run out.

Alexander Hamilton is staying on the $10 bill, but Andrew Jackson will be replaced by Harriet Tubman on the $20. Replacing a man who owned slaves with a woman who led slaves to freedom… I applaud this. Excellent decision.

I’m going to lead off at the Silly Goose for happy hour, then I’ll go over and check out the My HQ alley party next to Bardog. Possibly an after-work post, so check back.

This is last minute and not Downtown, but worth reporting anyway: There is a beer dinner at Aldo’s Pizza Pies’ Midtown location featuring the beers of next-door neighbor Memphis Made. In honor of 4/20 they’re calling it “Memphis’ highest beer dinner.” Four courses plus Memphis Made beer for $40. View the menu and get tickets here.

More not-Downtown news: If you live in 38111, 38117, 38119, or 38120, Chef Shuttle will deliver food from the Memphis Greek Festival on May 6 and 7.

Congratulations to Nick Scott, formerly of Bluefin and Flight, and his business partner Tony Westmoreland. They are about to become the new owners of Alchemy out in Cooper-Young.

Hollywood headlines the weekly Peabody rooftop party tomorrow evening. $10 cover with the first 200 ladies free. There will be a buffet of pizza rolls and mini-corn dogs from 7 to 8 PM. If you’re in VIP ($150 pass for the year), you have a second buffet of gourmet pizzas, sliders, and onion dip with crostini 7-9:30 PM. Mango is the featured margarita tomorrow.

If you didn’t make it to Downtown Olympics and are curious what synchronized drinking looks like, here’s a video I took of Liver Let Die (the Blind Bear team) competing in the event.

Not very synchronized, is it?

Off to work. Possibly back with another post at lunchtime or 5:30ish.

Post-Rajun Cajun Crawfish Fest, we were channel-surfing at the Blind Bear. Bad Stepdaddy Pounded Her 4 was on. Random fact about me: I am not a big movie person and have not seen Bad Stepdaddy Pounded Her 1, 2, or 3. If Cerrito Trivia ever does a Bad Stepdaddy Pounded Her movie trivia night, don’t bother asking me to join your team. I will be useless.

It’s time to look ahead to this weekend’s festivals! Although the calendar is not as crowded as this past weekend, there are some good ones. The 36th annual Southaven Springfest happens at Snowden Grove Park this weekend. 38 Special will headline Friday night, and Loverboy plays Saturday night.

“Wait a minute,” you’re probably thinking. “Why is the Downtown blogger writing about a festival in Mississippi?” Valid question. The reason is that part of Springfest is a regional BBQ event, and guess who will be cooking? The Moody Ques! We are one of 39 shoulder teams entered, and we are aiming at a second Top 10 finish in the month of April. If you go to Springfest, be sure to stop by and see us!

Closer to home, the Southern Hot Wing Festival will happen on Riverside Drive Saturday. Cooking teams compete for the chance to become Grand Champion and win $5000. You can sample teams’ wings for a couple bucks’ donation to the Ronald McDonald House. Be sure to stop by and see my friends at Jack Pirtle’s who are sponsoring the event. There will be live entertainment on three stages, headlined by Black Oak Arkansas. The Moody Ques are not competing in this event but my friends on Squeal Street BBQ are, so I will try to stop by.

Sunday is one of the most debaucherous days of the year, Beale Street Wine Race. Teams from local restaurants and bars will compete in an opening parade, Queen of the Vine, a grape stomping competition, and four-person wine relays. The absolute can’t-miss event is Queen of the Vine which will happen around 1 in Handy Park. Many Call-a-Cabs are consumed over the course of the afternoon. I will be cheering for the Blind Bear of course, with my favorite pair of librarian glasses competing for Queen and B-RAD getting off work at 1:30 to come join the fun.

Check out One901’s recap of Memphis Brewfest. I was busy down on the south side and didn’t make it to Brewfest this year, but it sounds like a really good time was had by all.

Loflin Yard is hosting Silent Disco in the Coach House Saturday night from 10 PM to 1 AM.

The annual Bark in the Park, the day when you can purchase a special ticket and bring your dog to see the Redbirds, is this Sunday. I usually don’t go to this event because it’s always the same day as Wine Race, and watching near-naked women shake their stuff at Handy Park sounds better than watching baseball. Also, I don’t have a dog.

Memphis’ original beer, Goldcrest 51, is now available in cans.

That’s it for now. Possibly a second post later.

I could not function without Evernote. I keep everything in there. I have an “Important Facts” note with things like my mother’s address and phone number for when I need to fill out insurance forms. I have a “things to explore at work” note when I get ideas for work when off the clock. And I have a “things I need to blog” note that I copy and paste into WordPress and build a post around

So yesterday morning I attempted to cut and paste into WordPress. Except I got the paste part wrong and couldn’t undo it. Apologies if I talk about stuff I have previously mentioned. Just trying to remember six paragraphs worth of information that didn’t go on the blog yesterday.

Before we get to that, though, one of the best festivals of the year happens Downtown today! Rajun Cajun crawfish fest, between Union and Beale on the river, noon to 6. Buckets of crawfish, food trucks, carnival vendors, live music, free to enter but it’s a fundraiser for Porter-Leath so when you spend money, it goes to a good place. I will lead off at D-RANKS with B-RAD today then head down to the river about 12:30 if anyone wants to join.

Speaking of Porter-Leath: They are hiring for several jobs in the education field.

Today’s Redbirds road game in Colorado Springs is being postponed due to bad weather. It will be made up in June.

Memphis Made Brewing Co. is bringing back its popular sushi class on Sunday, May 22. For $40 you get everything you need to learn to make sushi, taught by the experts at Birmingham Sushi. This class was a huge hit last time, so you better register soon if you want to go.

Speaking of Memphis Made, I went up there Friday night to visit my friend Mike who lives down the street as well as my favorite pair of librarian glasses.

Their new Dockside beer is really tasty. I would link to a description but they don’t have it on the website yet.

Sign outside Cafe Keough yesterday:

Well, you know…

Improvements are being made to the Denny’s at Union and BB King Blvd:

Having spent most of yesterday in South Main, I stopped at Rizzo’s Diner on the way back north.

Cheeseburger soup is one of Chef Michael Patrick’s signature dishes. It is the perfect way to start a meal at Rizzo’s.

(I think my iPhone may have rotated this 90 degrees, but whatever, it’s food, you get the point.) For my main course I got the Cajun seasoned chicken pot pie, with Andouille sausage, bell peppers, and seasonal veggies. Man, was this ever good! Thanks Chef for another awesome meal.

Finally made that trip to Nate’s bar at Earnestine & Hazel’s last night. Nate, it was good to see you again.

Happy birthday to my friend Mary, one of the most beautiful souls I have ever met. It has been wonderful to watch her find happiness this past year.

Tomorrow is Tax Day, or “file an extension so I can get to Bardog an hour earlier” day as I like to think of it.

Grizzlies vs. Spurs Game 1 on TNT tonight at 7. I have a feeling this ain’t going to be pretty.

Ballet Memphis performs Cinderella at the Orpheum at 2 today.

The University of Memphis’ student-run record label is presenting Hear 901 Fest tonight at the New Daisy.

That’s it for now. Time for a couple of D-RANKS then crawfish.