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Republic Nightclub is the latest to get in on the “Bar Olympics” craze. Every Sunday night from 9 to 3, they will have beer pong, quarters, flip cup, beer specials, a tailgate buffet, and football on their giant screen.

Speaking of bar olympics games, if you’re participating in the Downtown Olympics, there’s a pre-party tomorrow night the 17th at Calhoun’s from 7:30 to 10. You’ll be able to pay your registration fee and get tips from last year’s participants.  Registration fee is due tomorrow, so if you’re on a team and not attending, you better contact the organizers ASAP and set up payment arrangements.

inferno is hosting a blood drive with LifeBlood as part of its 10th birthday celebration. On Friday, September 25 from 3 to 6 PM, you’ll be able to donate blood at the inferno office at 505 Tennessee Street (on the first floor of The Lofts condos). If interested in participating, e-mail give@creativeinferno.com by the 22nd to schedule a time. Be sure to eat something before you come, and be sure to bring a photo ID. After you donate, you’ll be able to relax in the office with cookies and orange juice.

In the news: ArtsMemphis will roll out a custom iPhone app next week that will help users keep track of arts events in the city. According to the article, they believe ArtsMemphis is the first arts organization in a major city to have an app of this type.

Mpact Memphis is doing a lot of stuff Downtown in the next week. On Thursday the 17th their restaurant tour will stop at the Majestic Grille. On Monday the 21st they’ll have a happy hour at Hard Rock Cafe on Beale. On Thursday the 24th they’ll have their Mpact Outlet – kind of an updated, more active version of a general membership meeting – at the Red Rooster. For more info or to RSVP to any of these, go to Mpact’s website.

They’ll also have a presence at the CCC’s Alley Jams Wednesday night parties that begin tonight and continue for the next 5 weeks. Corporate karaoke in Court Square tonight. Music, food, beer, bums, pigeons.  I plan on stopping by if it doesn’t rain.

I mentioned recently that Bardog Tavern is now open at 8 for those who want to stop by for breakfast. That means they’re now open for 19 hours a day on the weekdays… and they can legally serve beer that entire time. So if you need a beer or a breakfast slider at 8 in the morning, Bardog is there for you.

In other Bardog news – their new 8-week poker tournament in the Underdog Room starts tonight, and the air guitar contest date has changed from October XXth to October 13th.

Lazy Magnolia Southern Pecan is the glass for “Buy the Beer, Keep the Glass” tonight at the Saucer.  I’ve thought recently that they should Fire Sale LazyMagnolia products Sunday nights when Brittney is bartending.   They could call the evening “Lazy Squared.”

If it doesn’t rain I’ll probably do the Court Square thing then the Saucer.  If it does rain I’ll probably spend the evening at home on PokerStars.

The businesses in the Gayoso-Peabody Place block of the Main Street Mall are starting their block parties back up this Thursday. Here’s the flyer (click for larger size):

Live music, and specials at many of the businesses on that block. Hmmm that makes two outdoor parties in two nights… we have the Corporate Karaoke Challenge in Court Square tomorrow night, Wednesday the 16th, and then the Peabody Place block party Thursday the 17th.

Here’s a CA article about the recent auction of the Nettleton condos. Sounds like some people got some incredible deals on condos in a prime location on South Front.

Just got info on another party at the Warehouse at Front and GE Patterson – the second annual Rock and Roll, Brews and Q party to benefit the Orpheum. It will be Friday, October 9, with live music by John Paul Keith and the One Four Fives and the Earnestine & Hazel’s Band, and all-you-can-eat Corky’s BBQ and all-you-can-drink Boscos beer. Silent auction too. Tickets are $25 in advance or $30 at the door.

I got an e-mail from Lansky 126 at the Peabody that they are marking down all their sale merchandise to 75% off, beginning today. Sale lasts until it’s all gone, so come early in the week for best selection. The sale is not being advertised other than their Twitter and MySpace accounts. They’re also doing a 50% off sale on select women’s footwear by Yellow Box, Chinese Laundry, and Gwyneth Shoes.

Republic Nightclub has announced two celebrity appearances this week. Thursday night, Blake Lewis from American Idol will host a special edition of their “Birth Thursdays” night, with ladies free all night. Saturday night they will have an All-White Affair hosted by Erica Ellyson of NBC’s Momma’s Boys and Penthouse. Wear white to get in free before 11 PM and get access to the VIP patio area.

Finally got a look at Kooky Canuck’s Monday Night Football specials. Yeah, I know that doesn’t do anyone much good, given that it’s Tuesday, but Monday will roll around again in another six days. $10.99 for 24 wings, $2 34 oz. Bud Select, $4 signature bomb shooters.

I’ve had a couple of people new to Memphis ask me, “should I go to this festival in Cooper-Young this Saturday?” Yes. Absolutely. Go. One of the best festivals anywhere. Half a mile long with over 300 vendors. If you’re into art, bring money, because you’ll probably find something you want to buy.

Congratulations to the Westin Hotel on its 4-diamond rating by AAA. More details in this Daily News article.

Plans for tonight: Trivia night at the Saucer, 7 PM.

DANG IT DANG IT DANG IT!!! I just found out that Tennessee plays #1 Florida at 2:30 Central time Saturday on CBS.

You may wonder why I’m complaining about that. After all, Tennessee is one of my most hated schools, and they will surely get their butts handed to them by the Gators. Lots of people are predicting a Florida score in the 60s and a Vol score in the single digits. Definitely a game I would enjoy watching.

I won’t get to watch it, though… because Saturday is Cooper-Young Fest. Like Christmas, Cooper-Young Fest comes but once a year, and I want to be outside to soak up every minute of it. I want to catch up with people I haven’t seen in 10 years, eat festival food, and hear bands I rarely get to hear. Cooper-Young supersedes the Tennessee ass-whoopin’ that will take place at the same time. Oh well. I can still keep up with the game on my ESPN iPhone app. And I can also use my iPhone to text UT fans Frank and the Nuh-Uh Girl and remind them how bad their team is.

Hmmm #23 Georgia at Arkansas at 6:45… that could be a very interesting game. Doesn’t appear to be on any regular cable TV station though. I’ll still be in Midtown at that point as the festival winds down – are there any bars in Midtown that have the NCAA package? If not maybe I’ll hop on my bike and high-tail it back Downtown to Calhoun’s to watch the second half with fellow Arkansas fan Max.

Enough football talk – let’s get on with the news. MIFA’s Feed the Soul party returns to the Warehouse on G.E. Patterson on Thursday, October 1. It’s a night of community, music, and fun in one of the most unique venues in the city. There will be food by Gus’s Chicken and Hog Wild BBQ, and Raiford will be the DJ. Tickets are $40 each; get them here.

There’s going to be a Big Scoop Ice Cream Festival benefiting the Ronald McDonald House at Autozone Park Saturday, September 26. This should be a fun family event. Tickets are $7 in advance (click the link to purchase) or $10 at the gate, and get you all the ice cream you can eat, photo opps with Ronald McDonald and Rockey Redbird, access to the Autozone Park playground, live music, face painting, and a silent auction. All you can eat ice cream? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.

The Redbirds have home games against the Sacramento River Cats tomorrow and Wednesday nights. These are the opening games of the Pacific Coast League championship series. If the Redbirds win the best-of-5 series, they will play the winner of the other AAA league on September 22 for the overall AAA championship. Go Redbirds!

Condoleeza Rice will speak at a special event tomorrow night, September 15, at an event hosted by the Greater Memphis Chamber.  The event will be at the Memphis Cook Convention Center. Dr. Rice was National Security Advisor under George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005, and Secretary of State from 2005 to 2009. She’s currently a professor at Stanford. Call 901-543-3550 for tickets.  Whether or not you agree with her politics, it’s an honor to have a former Secretary of State here.

Oh yeah I was supposed to stop by and write down or take a pic of the specials Kooky Canuck is running during Monday Night Football starting tonight… um I kind of forgot. I know there’s a beer special, a wing special, and a third special I can’t remember. Sorry.  I’ll try to get a look at the specials tonight and post them for next week.

Coming soon… info on a series of monthly Thursday night fall parties in the Main/Peabody Place block.

Plans for tonight:  Pint Nite at the Saucer, of course!  Almost all their draft beers are $2.75.  I plan on being there shortly after 5 PM.

I just received word that Bardog is open for breakfast from 8 to 10 AM weekdays beginning today.  You can get a simple egg and cheese slider, or dress it up with ham and bacon.  They’ll also have free coffee all week long this week.

Spent a good portion of yesterday watching football at Calhoun’s.  In case anyone is not aware of my college allegiances, here they are:

Go Tigers!!! Besides that fact that Memphis has been my home for almost my entire adult life, the U of M is my alma mater for grad school, and I taught there for 5 years.  I’ll admit there isn’t much to cheer for football-wise this season.  Middle Tennessee State?  Really?  Let’s hope basketball season gets here quickly.

Go Hogs!!! I grew up in Little Rock, and went to Arkansas games at War Memorial Stadium.  Many of my high school friends went to Fayetteville when it was time for college.

Boo Vols!!! I can’t understand why people expect me to cheer for a school that’s no closer to home than the Gulf Coast is, just because it bears the name of the state I live in.  Tennessee fans are some of the most obnoxious on Earth, and their men’s basketball coach is a total douche.  Nothing sucks like a big orange.

Boo Rebels!!! Ole Miss represents everything I hate in a college football program.  I hate The Grove; I hate Colonel Reb; and I especially hate the stupidest cheer in college sports, “Hotty Toddy.”  Our group’s father figure/inspirational leader says he’s going to take us on a road trip to The Grove sometime, which makes me think I better start compiling a list of excuses why I can’t go.

Boo ‘Horns!!! I grew up in Little Rock loving the Hogs, so naturally I learned from an early age to hate Texas.  The two teams were still in the Southwest Conference at the time and were bitter rivals.  UT is admittedly in a very cool city – Austin – but the school (and the entire state, really) seems to have an artificially inflated opinion of itself.

Congrats to the UCLA Bruins on a fine victory over Tennessee yesterday.  I watched the entire thing at Calhoun’s.  Lauren didn’t seem to be in a very good mood toward the end of the afternoon for some reason, and Frank changed from an orange shirt to a blue one.

Damn Calhoun’s was crowded… I wanted to cash in one of my gift certificates to get habanera hot wings, but it just wasn’t possible to get a desirable seat at the bar to have room to eat.  I ended up riding the trolley north after the game and going to Bangkok Alley.

After that I decided to call it an early night, not in a mood to deal with Downtown crowds.  As a result, I’m up and well rested at 8:20 AM.  Going to make it to brunch for a third week in a row… that hasn’t happened in a long time.

I’m playing on PokerStars as I type this.  One of my opponents at the table has a photo of his dog as his profile pic, and his PokerStars handle is “Sneuticles.”

What a great dog name… if I ever adopt a dog, I’m going to name it Sneuticles.

Last night was the check-in for the Dead Elvis III scooter rally that is happening this weekend in Memphis.  The organizers invited me to come down to Calhoun’s and take some pics.

There were 27 scooters parked in front of Calhoun’s last night, according to one of the organizers.  They expect 50 this afternoon.  They’ve moved their meetup spot to Navy Park at Third and G.E. Patterson… I’m going to head down there about 3 this afternoon and take some more pics.

Hmmm that reminds me… years ago, I went to this club Downtown named Zot, and one of the regulars was a guy named Scooter who danced on the speakers and claimed to have been born with a vagina rather than a penis (thank goodness no one asked him to prove it).  I wonder if Scooter ever rode a scooter?

In other news… I found out that the new cigar bar on Second next door to Kooky Canuck has a website… HavanaMix.com

Speaking of Kooky Canuck – their Monday Night Football specials start this week… and they are… DRAT!!! I was sure I’d taken a pic of the poster listing their specials, but I guess not.  I’ll run by there today and find out.  Who else Downtown is running specials for MNF?  Let me know at paul@paulryburn.com.

Time for a few hours on PokerStars… experimenting with changing up my starting hand requirements a little… even using flash cards to memorize which hands to play in which position.  Will be at Navy Park at 3 with the camera.  Plans after that are TBD.

I just learned that Paula & Raiford’s Disco will be filmed tonight for the October edition of Definitely Downtown! with “That Other Downtown Guy,” Lee Warren.  Doors open at 10 PM.  Get there and get on TV!

I just went to OfficeMax’s website and discovered that the best pens in the whole world, Pilot G-2 pens, are on a buy 2 get 1 free sale.  If you spend over $50 you can get free shipping too.  Sale ends tomorrow.

I recommend the Extra-Fine (0.5 mm) tip if you’ve never used the G-2 before.  It’s hard to find in any color but black here in Memphis.  They had several colors available online.  I just ordered enough blue pens to last me the next five years.

First of all… Welcome to Memphis A.I.! I read a recap of his press conference with the Grizzlies yesterday, and was really impressed with his attitude. I like it that he insisted his bonuses be tied to team achievements, rather than his own. If we become a playoff team this season, you know Iverson is not going to be satisfied with merely making it that far – he’s going to be there to win.

To the people who criticize him because he wears earrings and has tattoos… do you have a track record of being one of the best in the world at what you do for 10 years? No? Didn’t think so. So shut up. The man has earned the right to live his life however he chooses.

I want one of those blue guitars Gibson gave him, even though it’s already been established that I have absolutely zero ability to play guitar.

On to the news… On Friday, September 25, Friends of St. Jude will throw a “black, white & red ball” called River Rendezvous at the Cadre Building. Live music by Almost Famous, restaurant tastings, silent auction. Cocktail attire. To purchase tickets go here and click the link to buy tickets on the right sidebar. They’re cheaper if you pre-order them: $25 for members of FoSJ, $30 for nonmembers; $10 more if you buy tickets at the door.

Restaurant tastings? Bet the Nuh-Uh Girl gets on Twitter and starts hinting around that she’s looking for a free ticket. More on her later in this post.

News from Bardog Tavern… they’re adding a meatball eating contest at 4:30 PM to the agenda for their September 20 birthday party. First person to stuff 30 of Aldo’s grandma’s balls in their mouth wins. Attn Nick – better start training for this. They’ve also booked a band for the party – Jeffrey James and the Haul.

Congrats to Paul Sciubba on being the grand prize winner in Bardog’s summer poker tournament. A new 8-week tournament starts in the Underdog Room next Wednesday.

Very important date to mark on your calendar – October XXth. According to Bardog’s e-mail newsletter, October XXth is the day the “air guitar on the bar” contest returns. Do your best air guitar, and you could win a real electric guitar. Thank goodness I don’t have any plans for October XXth, because I wouldn’t want to miss this.

There was also a note in their weekly e-mail that Chef Demitrie is ready to start heating things up in the kitchen. He’s going to be roasting some turkeys, and preparing dishes like veal and cornish hen with stuffing – some good, hearty fall food.

Sad to hear that all the High Point Coffee locations in Memphis have closed. When I worked for the City Schools, I’d often take my laptop to the Union location to do my lunchtime blog posts. Very friendly people there. I’ll miss the place. I also read that all Pop Tunes locations closed this week.

Flight, the new restaurant at Main and Monroe that serves “flights” of food and beverages, was reviewed in the CA this morning. Here’s the link.

Also in the CA, Jennifer Biggs listed places to get good, down-home Memphis cooking. The article was written for out-of-town guests who are arriving for the Southern Heritage Classic, but locals may want to bookmark it too. Hmmm… it occurs to me that since I work near the airport, The Original Crumpy’s at 1584 Alcy is well within striking distance for lunch. Anybody been there? Recommendations? I usually take a late lunch – around 1 PM – do I stand a chance of getting a table without a wait at that hour?

Reminds me… if you plan on coming Downtown or Midtown this weekend, better factor Southern Heritage Classic traffic into your plans. Allow extra time, and expect parking lots and garages to be full near the hotspots.

The poker tournament at Calhoun’s was a weird one last night. All 10 players were still in after half an hour… I’ve never seen that happen before. A week ago, someone went out on the very first hand. Even though I’d amassed a sizable stack at one point, the later rounds hit and I quickly faced the prospect of being blinded out. I had to go all-in with a not-so-desirable hand and ended up finishing 5th. Congrats to Steve who emerged as the winner.

After the tournament ended, my buddy Chad who was sitting to my right ordered the best wings in Downtown Memphis – Calhoun’s habanera hot wings. Right as they came out, I heard “FOOD? You got food? Can I have some?”…

… and once again, the Nuh-Uh Girl was eating off people’s plates.

While I’ve got the camera out, let me post a pic of the grilled cheese sandwich I had Tuesday night, which is part of South of Beale’s new late night menu.

I never liked grilled cheese sandwiches growing up, but Downtown restaurants – particularly SOB, the Majestic, and Bardog – have made me a fan.

Not sure what’s on the agenda for tonight… I’m absolutely not doing Art on Tap at the Dixon. Fifty bucks a ticket is just too damn expensive. Not paying it. Great event but they’ve overpriced it the past two years.

They’re doing registration for this weekend’s scooter rally at Calhoun’s tonight. The organizers invited me to stop by and people-watch and take a few pics, so I’ll be there at some point… not sure where I’ll end up after that.