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Early voting on the issue of surrendering the City Schools charter starts today. This is an important issue, so please be sure to vote. Check out this web site to read 7 reasons why Memphis should vote YES, surrender the charter.

Want to party like a duck star? The Peabody offers parties with the Peabody duckmaster. There are two options for kids, and one for adults. Check them out here.

There will be a Gundlach Bundschu progressive tasting and wine pairing at the Majestic Grille Tuesday night, February 22 from 6 to 9 PM. The event will introduce the art of Betsy Bird, and original paintings and prints will be on display. Free to attend the reception; $15 for the tasting. Call 522-8555 to RSVP.

Foursquare has a new badge, the Century Club, awarded for 100 checkins at the same place, provided it’s not a home or office. I’ll get that badge when I check in at the Saucer tonight, then.

Speaking of which… I’m one beer away from completing my 5th plate at the Saucer. Date and time has been worked out for the plate party, which should be convenient for invited guests and inconvenient for uninvited pests. I’ll go ahead and drink the last beer tonight (they have a yummy Fruli Strawberry on draft) and then tomorrow I’ll fill out the paperwork. I’ll get a $125 party tab and a shiny new black M.O.U. (Master of the Universe) card for my achievement.

However, before I hit the Saucer I’ll be attending the Folk Alliance Conference at the Marriott. I should get there in time for the tail end of the Lifetime Achievement Awards ceremony, and then there will be a reception and performances in several ballrooms. Covering this type of event as “media” is new to me. Not quite sure what to do. I guess I’ll just walk around, talk to people, and try to hear as much good music as I can. By the time the weekend rolls around, I should be able to have a good report what it’s like to attend a folk conference. Again, thanks to the Alliance for inviting me.

Found a Red Lobster gift card as I was cleaning my desk, so it’s time to hit Publish and grab lunch.

If you’re wondering where the world is heading with all the recent international developments, you may be interested in an upcoming talk at Rhodes. Downtowner and Rhodes professor Jennifer Dabbs Sciubba will discuss her new book The Future Faces of War: Population and National Security. She will talk about how recent events in the Middle East, developments in China’s population, and population aging in Europe will affect national security. After the talk, there will be a reception, and she’ll be available to sign copies of the book. It will be at the Blount Auditorium in Buckman Hall at Rhodes, at 7 PM Monday, February 21.

Okay, I promised an after-work treat, and I’m ready to deliver.

Last night, several of the lovely ladies who are regulars at Max’s Sports Bar decided to celebrate Valentine’s Day by putting on tube tops and tube top dresses. Here’s a pic.

Yeah, I know, I should hold this pic until Tube Top Month begins. But you know what? I make the rules around here, and I can break the rules around here. Enjoy Tube Top Tuesday.

This morning, after I posted that Dynaflow is playing Earnestine & Hazel’s Thursday, I got an e-mail from a friend who lives nearby. He told me Karen, the regular downstairs bartender who has been an E&H fixture for years, recently had a heart stint put in and will be off work for several weeks. She’s still being paid her salary, but, of course, most of her income comes from tips. If you make it to E&H this weekend, either for Dynaflow or just to hang out, please consider showing some love for Karen and leaving a donation. She’s good people.

Great post from Kerry this morning about the Grizzlies Super Fans. These fans receive free club-level season passes in exchange for attending every game, wearing the bear, and cheering their lungs out. They’re auditioning for 10 more Super Fans at the February 26 game. If you love the Grizz, come out and show ’em what you’ve got!

One of Romania’s two claims to fame is that it’s Hackerville Central, according to WIRED magazine. The other claim to fame, of course, is that the women there are really hot.

Two of my friends in the Downtown real estate biz are giving away iPads. You do business with them, you get an iPad at closing (restrictions apply). Details here. I know Jason and Mike personally and they’re good guys.

So, I have a media pass to the Folk Alliance Conference this week. Trying to figure out what to wear. I’m not sure how to dress like a folk musician… then again, since I’m media, I suppose I should try to dress in a way that best represents my company. That company would be paulryburn.com. Guess I’ll wear the “I Love Romanian Girls” T-shirt then.

Trivia tonight at the Saucer, 7 PM. I’ve spent considerable time this week taking mind-reading courses, and I’ve successfully downloaded 17 of tonight’s 21 questions from Pete the Trivia Guy’s mind. I hope to get the other four by tonight. Drink New Belgium Fat Tire ($3 Fire Sale today) and earn chances to win the Fat Tire bike hanging in the corner.

Check back in the PM hours… got a treat for you.

Looking for something to do Thursday? Come check out Dynaflow at Earnestine & Hazel’s. Here’s a link to a review I wrote of a show they played at E&H last year.

Last year at Hot Wing Fest, there were a couple of pics taken that someone didn’t want posted:

I usually try to honor requests for photos to be left off the blog, but sometimes I’m so overwhelmed that I forget what I promised.

Home a little after midnight eating a delicious shrimp po’boy, made buffalo style, from Huey’s. With ranch, rather than ketchup, for french fry dipping. Ketchup sucks.

So, it’s Valentine’s Day. I’m guessing many of my readers have not made advance plans, and have come to my blog looking for a suggestion where to take their sweetheart tonight. No problem, gotcha covered.

My top recommendation would be to take her to Pint Nite at the Flying Saucer. She can pick from about 65 of the 70 draft beers on tap, and it will only set you back 3 bucks a glass. Enjoy a romantic evening over pints of Abita Turbo Dog or Dogfish Head Chicory Stout. When she gets up to use the restroom, you’ll have a couple free minutes to check out the Beer Goddesses. They have Wi-Fi, so if you get bored talking to her, you’ll have a fast connection to check out Facebook on your phone, or download a new game or two.

“Well, that’s great, Paul, but I need to take her to dinner, too,” you may reply. No problem, the Saucer has many options. You could start by splitting an order of Rocket Tots, which are tater tots injected with jalapenos and cheese. Then you could share a Brat-on-a-Bun, eating it on each end and meeting in the middle for a romantic kiss, like those dogs did in Lady and the Tramp. I think that’s the movie I was thinking of. Except the dogs did it with spaghetti, not bratwurst. The Saucer has many other culinary delights on the menu for her to choose from, as well. Like hot wings.

Now, suppose you want to give her something more permanent than just dinner and some beers. No problem. Get her one of the Saucer’s UFO Club memberships ($18). She’ll get a snazzy new “Beerknurd 2011” T-shirt and a UFO Club member card. She’ll think of you every time she scans her card in the Beer-Tron-a-Ton computer as she purchases beers to get her plate on the wall, or every time she shows the card to beat the $3 cover they charge on the weekends. What better way to create for yourself a lasting spot in her heart?

Yeah I guess you COULD take her to Chez Phillippe or Felicia Suzanne’s, but would either of those places really offer all that I’ve outlined above? Don’t do what everyone else does for V-Day. Think outside of the box. Think Pint Nite.

The CCC has a cool new web site called Park and Play Downtown. If you’re coming Downtown, type the name of your destination into the search box, and the site will pinpoint it on a map. It will show you what parking options are nearby (denoted by the letter P in a circle). Clicking on any of the parking options will bring up additional info, such as fee, number of spaces, whether it’s covered, and daily/monthly rate. Very helpful for people coming down here from other parts of the city, or who are in town for vacation/business.

If you don’t have a particular destination in mind, or you don’t know the exact name of your destination, that’s okay too. You can request the search engine to show all hotels, stores, or attractions. Kudos to the CCC for a very nifty tool.

A Memphis startup is up for an award, and this time it’s not a tech company. Carson Rotisseries, which sells grills that let you bring the Brazilian-style grilling experience to your backyard, is in the voting for the 2011 BBQ & Grilling 2011 Readers’ Choice Award on about.com. I’ve had the pleasure of sampling fare from a Carson grill a couple of times, once at a party on my building’s rooftop, and once at Hot Wing Fest. I’ll tell you, Carson-grilled meat can hold its own with any restaurant down here. Good stuff. Good luck to Carson – in my opinion they deserve to win.

If you have an Android phone, here’s an article on how to double Android battery life.

Good article in the CA this morning about plans to turn the Crosstown Sears building into an artists’ community. The building has been vacant since the early ’90s and this sounds like a perfect use. To the organizers of this project: If there’s anything I can do with this blog to help get the word out and build support, please just ask. You can “Like” Crosstown Arts on Facebook if you support this project too.

Looks like Algeria will be next to replace a government with social-media-led revolution. This year is going to be to Africa and the Middle East what 1848 was to Europe. Anyone wonder what would’ve happened if we’d left Saddam alone? This would likely have been the year his own people brought him down.

Congratulations to my friends Air Traffic Mike and Christine on their new addition to the family.

Excellent win by the Tigers yesterday. I don’t know if Tarik Black has an NBA career ahead of him, but I can tell he’s going to be very successful in life no matter what he does. He just has the character. And he’s only a freshman. Antonio Barton impresses me a lot too.

Rather boring night last night. I kept hearing some of my friends go on and on about how “everyone” was going to karaoke at the Monkey, but I searched for it on Foursquare about midnight last night and only 5 people were checked in. (By comparison, Max’s Sports Bar can hit the teens in checkins when a Tiger game is on TV, and the Saucer sometimes hits the teens on Sunday Fun Day.) Really, I don’t care if Pavarotti himself shows up to sing (he still alive? hell if I know), karaoke is not something I’m at all interested in attending on a Saturday night.

Stuff going on today: There’s a Memphis Songwriters Storyteller show at Escape Alley Sundry, starting at 2 PM with many artists participating and only a $2 cover; the “We (Heart Uptown)” event happens at BRIDGES at 3; the Grizzlies play the Denver Nuggets at 5 at the FedExForum. Memphis Jazz Orchestra has an open practice at Alfred’s every Sunday from 6 to 9; Memphis Soul Revue plays Huey’s at 8:30; and FreeWorld has their weekly Sunday night gig at Blues City at 10:30 PM.

Up early, getting ready for brunch at the Majestic. Sunday Fun Day should be extra fun, as there won’t be a bad seat at the bar. Interesting conversation, plenty of space. Looks to be an excellent day!

I decided to walk down the Main Street Mall to City Market to grab lunch. I figured I’d bring the netbook and camera cord with me, and blog as I eat.

Weather is beautiful. I wore a hoodie and shorts down here. I’ve seen a couple of people walk by in short sleeves. What I’d really like to see is a tube top, although it’s a little early in the season to expect one.