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First off, I want to apologize to the fine folks at SMA and to Steve Cohen… I wasn’t feeling well at the meeting last night and left at 7:10, long before the meeting was over and before Rep. Cohen even arrived.  Here are a few notes I took during the time I was there:

– Jodie Vance talked about the 3/50 project:  Pick 3 Downtown businesses and commit to spending $50 a month total among them.  I wonder if they can be bars… if that’s the case I’m already participating in this program, many times over.

– Judy Peiser from the Center for Southern Folklore took the stage.  She needs volunteers for the Memphis Music & Heritage Festival they hold on Labor Day weekend, particularly early morning and late night shifts.  She also talked about the FolkPass they sell for $50, which gets you VIP seating for the festival, you get to drink for free, and you get VIP benefits throughout the year.  Here’s a list of FolkPass benefits… hmmm… free beer?  That alone could make it a good deal for beer drinkers who plan to spend most of their time at the festival both days.  Attn Rapscallions/BBQ team/people I hang out with, any interest in getting FolkPasses?

– A presentation was made for ARTitude, a group for young art lovers who want to support October’s RiverArtsFest.

– They announced that South of Beale is now open.  Ed and Brittany who own the place are new SMA members.

– The bylaws passed.  A lot of people seemed very relieved that there weren’t a lot of questions and discussion.

– Film Commission director Jimmy Tashie took the stage.  This was around the time I started to not feel so well, so I left in the middle of his presentation.  If anyone can fill me in on details of what happened after I left, I’ll post.

– And finally, a huge THANK YOU to the Happy Mexican who put out a great dinner buffet for members last night.  A make your own taco and nachos bar, quesadillas, enchiladas, two kinds of fajitas, wings, rice and beans, and more.  The Nuh-Uh Girl had 4 helpings.

On to other news… A Downtown couple has to move to Tucson and is trying to look for someone to take over their South Main condo that they are renting for $1700/mo.  3 stories, 3 BR (option for office on first floor), 3 full BA, 2 car garage.  Loaded with amenities… for full details see this PDF.

I had a blog reader ask me when the Memphis Flyer will post their Best Of winners.  I believe the issue comes out October 1.  They don’t post the results online before the issue comes out because they want the winners to be a surprise.

Reminds me, now that it’s over, I’ll type up a post of who I voted for.  I didn’t want to post that stuff while the voting was still open, for fear I’d skew the results.  Look for a post on that topic soon.

The audit of Beale Street that was being done by a private accounting firm is done.  According to their report, $6.4 million in Beale Street profits went unreported to the city, who should have received a big piece of the profits.  Looks like Elkington’s in big trouble.

Here’s a link to a Motley Fool article on how to play blackjack.  Being a poker player, why would I post a blackjack link?  Well, because he talks about the interesting people you meet at the low-dollar tables.  He played at a table with a lady one time who played a hand with her tube top pulled down for $100.  Now that’s how to make a profit at blackjack.  I highly recommend this strategy to my female readers – just make sure to tell me which casino you’re going to, and what time.

Don’t forget about the Majestic Grille reception tonight for their employees who are artists and musicians, from 5:30 to 7:30 PM.  $10 for tastings of 3 wines of your choice from Casa Silva Winery, and complimentary hors d’oeuvres.  Free food?  Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.  It’s also pint night at South of Beale tonight, with $3 pints.

… And that’s your Wednesday lunchtime post, a couple of hours late today.  Outta here for now.

An SMA member e-mailed to inform me that I left something out of this morning’s post… in addition to a free dinner buffet for members, bylaw voting, and Steve Cohen, there will also be a presentation from Jimmy Tashie, Chair of the Film Commission and General Manager of Malco. 6:00 social/6:30 meeting at the Happy Mexican.

The Church Health Center is a wonderful organization that provides health care to the poor and uninsured in Memphis – people who would likely go without otherwise. On Friday-Saturday, August 21 and 22, you can attend their fundraiser, supporting both the Center and diversity in Memphis music. The fundraiser is called Rock for Love and here’s the lineup.

Friday night, August 21, Hi-Tone: John Paul Keith & The One Four Fives, The Warble, Pezz, The New Mary Jane, Blair Combest (emcee: Gary Parrish)

Saturday, August 22, free show 2-7 PM at Shangri-La: The Simpletones, Snowglobe, J.D. Reager & The Cold Blooded Three, The Bulletproof Vests, Organ Thief (emcee: Chris Vernon with 730 Fox Sports live remote broadcast)

Saturday night, August 22, Hi-Tone: River City Tanlines, Two Way Radio, The Magic Kids, Jeffrey James & The Haul, Jason Freeman (emcee: Al Kapone)

Tickets are $10 for each night, or $18 for both. Tickets are on sale at Shangri-La and Goner Records, and are available online at HiToneMemphis.com. The Shangri-La day party is free, but donations will be accepted there, and 20% of sales that day will go to the Center.

There will also be a silent auction by the Memphis Roller Derby and CDs and other merchandise on sale at the Hi-Tone, all to benefit the Center.

John Streeter who owned Sharp Flowers from the Main Street Mall e-mailed me this week… he wants everyone to know that he is still around and interested in developing relationships with Downtown hotels to carry after-hours flowers for guests. You can reach him at 901-543-1934 or 901-579-4000. He’s also still looking for a high-traffic spot, ideally somewhere between AutoZone and the FedExForum, to sell cash-and-carry flower wraps. You can check out his website for more information.

There will be a Young Democrats cocktail event at the Westin Hotel Thursday, August 20 from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. The purpose is to inspire and encourage young people’s knowledge and interest in government and the political process. Music and cash bar, minimum donation $10. Donations will assist the Shelby County Democrats in their effort to raise funds for a new website and new HQ.

If you’re near a TV, the Beale Street Flippers will perform live on America’s Got Talent tonight.

I skipped Pint Nite last night, choosing to get on PokerStars and play in a $2.20 buy-in no-limit Hold’em tournament with 180 seats, with prizes to the top 18 finishers. As time went on I was doing fairly well, and about an hour and 15 minutes in, I watched the number of players drop… 22, 21, 20, 19… 18!!! I was in the money! When it got down to 13, I was dealt pocket Aces and went all-in. Someone called me with King-Jack suited. A King showed up on the flop… and then another King on the river! BLAST! So I finished 13th, with a whopping $4.32 as my prize. Better than nothing I suppose. If I’d won that hand, I’d have been a strong contender for the first-place prize of $108.

It’s weird that there has been no media coverage (that I’m aware of) of the suicide at the Peabody yesterday. This morning I got additional confirmation that it really happened… one of my blog readers was walking to Kooky Canuck with her kids and they witnessed the whole thing. That’s got to be an awful thing for a kid to see. Maybe the media purposely downplays suicides of that type to discourage copycats. Probably a good idea. My condolences to the family of the person who jumped, and to anyone who had the misfortune to witness it and to Peabody employees who were on duty at the time.

Skipping trivia tonight to attend the SMA meeting.  See you at the Happy Mexican.

Don’t forget that there’s a South Main Association meeting tonight at Happy Mexican.  There will be a vote on the new bylaws (you can compare the old and new bylaws here) and at 8 PM Steve Cohen will speak.  Free dinner buffet for members, cash bar.  Social at 6, meeting starts at 6:30.

I’m reading reports on Twitter that someone jumped off the rooftop of the Peabody Hotel today and committed suicide.  A good friend of mine walked through the hotel about an hour ago and happened upon the crime scene.  The official @PeabodyMemphis account has said the person was not a guest or employee, and is asking for all questions to be directed to the police rather than the hotel at this time.  As far as I know this is not a joke.

Okay… we’ve finally put the schedule together for the Elvis pub crawl this Saturday, August 15. Here are the details:

– Honor the King by dressing up as Elvis. You can buy Elvis gear at CostumeCity.com (will probably need to get rush shipping at this late date though) or other online costume sites. You can also go to Graceland’s gift shop, and Beale Street may have some stuff too. Or, you can be creative and make your own outfit.

– We will be collecting cans and cash for MIFA’s Food Bank. Come have a good time and support a worthy cause too! Details on what to bring are at the bottom of this post.

– The bars listed below have agreed to waive their cover charge for people dressed in Elvis attire who are part of the pub crawl.

– Please bring cash to pay your bar tabs. It looks like there’s considerable interest in this event. We want to avoid a situation where dozens of Elvises all try to close out credit card tabs at the same time.

– Please bring IDs too. This is especially important for getting on Beale Street.

OK, here’s the running order. Times are approximate.

7 PM: Meet at Flying Saucer
8 PM: Leave Saucer
8:10 PM: Arrive at Blue Fin
8:45 PM: Leave Blue Fin. We’ll probably walk through the Peabody next.
9:15 PM: Arrive at Silky’s
10 PM: Leave Silky’s and walk down Beale Street
10:30 PM: Arrive at Red Rooster
11:15 PM: Leave Rooster
11:30-11:45: Back to Flying Saucer

If this is starting to sound similar to the Stumbling Santa pub crawl that happens in December, it is. The person who came up with the Elvis idea and drafted Mike King and I to coordinate it based the idea on Stumbling Santa. “The first thing I want to do is make sure we’re not stepping on toes,” Mike said. “I want to contact one of the people who is in charge of Stumbling Santa and make sure it’s OK. And I don’t want to call it Stumbling Elvis.” I was 100% in agreement with that move.

So Mike talked to one of the Santa coordinators, and not only did he assure us we would not be stepping on toes, but he said he had no problem with us using the word “Stumbling.”

Mike and I then met at Calhoun’s and created a Facebook page for the Stumbling Elvis event. He invited some people, and then I signed onto my account and invited some people, and the people who run the bars we’re going to invited some people. “If we get two dozen confirmed attendees I’ll be happy,” I told Mike.

I apparently underestimated interest in this event. As of this post we have 72 people who have confirmed they will attend, and more “maybes” on top of that.

Now, as for what to bring for the Food Bank – any of the following:

– Cash: A $1 contribution buys $3.70 in food distribution

– Meat/protein: Cans of chicken & dumplings, chunky soup, canned beef stew, etc.

– Fruit: Canned fruit cocktail, pears, apple sauce, 100% fruit juice

– Vegetables: Canned green beans, corn, lima beans, etc.

– Fish and other protein: Canned salmon or tuna, chili with beans, pork and beans

– Other: Dried beans or peas (1 or 2 lb. bag), rice (1 or 2 lb. bag), mac and cheese, vienna sausage, evaporated milk

– No perishables

– No jumbo cans – no canned foods over 29 oz. or juice over 64 oz.

So there ya have it… search for an event called “Stumbling Elvis” if you’re on Facebook. Hope to see you Saturday!

Several of my friends have tried Bardog Tavern for brunch in recent weeks, and have said really good things about it.  In particular, they’ve mentioned the lobster sandwich.  That does sound good.  They said Bardog also has $1.50 PBR during brunch, and you get a free drink (a mimosa or I think a couple of other choices) with your brunch entree.  Not a bad deal.

They don’t open until noon on Sunday.  I think next Sunday, I’m going to have to sleep for an extra hour (I usually go to brunch at 11) and give Bardog a shot.  That means I’ll get to the Saucer an hour later than usual, but oh well.  They see plenty of me the rest of the week.

I got up too late for brunch yesterday, but I did get some good food… I went to South of Beale when they opened at 4 and ordered the Crock, a country pot pie of duck, Andouille sausage, and root vegetables.  I also got to try an oxtail wonton, which was really good with mango salsa.

I’ve got the info for the Elvis pub crawl almost ready… will probably post it tonight.

Today is National S’mores Day, a celebration of the campfire treat made with marshmallows, chocolate and graham crackers.  Kooky Canuck is celebrating by selling its S’mores for half price all day.  You make them right there at your table with your own miniature campfire.  They’ll also have their new Deluxe S’mores for $6.99, made with gourmet marshmallows from Plush Puffs.

Two of the best things about being a Downtowner are

1) Getting to know my Downtown neighbors and having an ever-expanding circle of friends

2) Getting to go to parties on rooftops

Last night, our friend Brent, who did such an amazing job decorating the Ques Brothers’ booth at BBQ Fest (photos here) threw a birthday party on the rooftop of his building, which also happens to be my building.  Here are a few pics:

The bar

There was an ice luge for people who wanted to do shots.

The mystery beer tub.  The only reason you can see the caps and the labels is because of my camera’s flash.  In reality the tub was almost completely dark so you had no idea what you were getting.  I pulled out my first bottle and saw that it was green.  “Dos Equis Lager Especial.”  Nice!  I did see a Bud Light in the tub – too bad John D wasn’t there.

As I’ve said before, you can’t have a Downtown photo album without Mikey hamming it up for the camera.

Another pic of everyone enjoying the rooftop, with the Mississippi River in the background.

A fantastic party, and with a pro like Brent planning it I’m not surprised.  If you want Brent to help you plan and decorate an event for you, you can reach him through the Holliday Flowers website.

It’s brunch time but I’m not hungry yet… think I’ll get in an hour on PokerStars before I go out.  Getting bored with Hold’em… think I may try 7-card Stud, which I played all the time in college.  I’ll meet up with the gang at the Saucer later on.  It’s Pint Nite at South of Beale, so I may make a visit there after they open at 4 PM.  Interested to see what a Sunday Fun Day will be like there.

Wow Twitter has been a disaster this week.  I just refreshed my blog, and apparently none of my Fire Sale tweets that I make to my blog have gone through since Wednesday.

The Fire Sale today is Blue Moon.