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This post is about a friend of mine, Sarah, who is trying to raise some money through the sale of rings and artwork. Earlier this year, she went through a divorce, which left her with $7,000 in credit card debt and a Toyota 4Runner whose lease expires this month. After getting divorced, she went back to the only way she knew to earn money – being a bartender. However, due to her debt load, the job isn’t quite paying all the bills, so she needs to sell some stuff to raise money.

She’s selling her engagement ring, pictured below, and her wedding band on eBay. The engagement ring has been appraised at over $11,000, and the ring and band together at $13,500. She’s starting the bidding at $5,000, so this is a good deal for someone. Click here to view the eBay auction for the rings.

I empathize with Sarah because she’s someone who has a lot to offer the world, once she’s no longer weighed down by debt. She graduated from the U of M with a degree in Fine Arts, then studied Art Therapy in graduate school. She’s spent a lot of time working with kids (see pics below), and once she’s financially stable she hopes to join the Peace Corps or a similar organization to help others in need. She’s previously volunteered with refugee children from Afghanistan, Sudan, and other countries.

Sarah is an accomplished artist. You can view her gallery on Facebook here, and you can see an example of artwork she did for a local bar in the pic below. She also has two works on exhibit at Blue Fin, although they’re signed under her married name which she no longer uses.

If you want to purchase any of Sarah’s work, or if you want to commission her to do a custom piece of artwork, shoot me an e-mail at paul@paulryburn.com and I’ll get the two of you in touch.

Sarah also has a blog. She has a very interesting and deep perspective on life, having seen and lived through a lot in her 25 years.

Thanks for reading this post… I know what it’s like to have big dreams, only to have financial concerns stand in the way. I figure one of the best things a person can do in this world is help others get closer to their dreams.

Yesterday morning about 10:30, I went on my Mountain Dew run to Walgreens.  It was raining cats and dogs, and even though Walgreens is only a quarter block from my front door, I was soaked.

After that I fired up PokerStars and started feeding my addiction.  I tried single tables, multiple tables at the same time, Sit’n’Go tournaments, and Double-or-Nothing tournaments (the most boring things ever – 10 players, first 5 to lose get nothing, the other 5 are declared the winners and double their money).  I kept thinking about going out, but every time I said to myself, “One more game.”

Finally, at 1 AM, I decided it was time to go have a beer.  I put clothes on, loaded up my camera, my iPhone, pens and keys in my pockets… but where was my wallet?  It wasn’t on my kitchen counter where I usually leave it.  I ran to my bedroom and checked all my jeans and shorts pockets.  No wallet.  “I must have left it at Walgreens,” I thought, “or worse, it fell out of my pocket as I ran home in the rain this morning.”  I started frantically thinking about the things I would have to do.

Made me think… maybe this would be a good public service announcement for my readers… if you lost your wallet, would you know what to do?

• Would you know how to get a replacement driver’s license, and what forms of ID you’d need to bring?  If you’re in Tennessee, details here.
• Do you have the phone numbers of your bank and any credit card companies stored in a safe place, so you know who to call to cancel credit and debit cards?
• Do you have enough cash stashed away to live on for about a week, until your new debit card arrives?

Just something to think about… better to be prepared.

After about 20 minutes, I remembered that I hadn’t folded the shorts I wore to Walgreens yesterday morning and put them away… they were soaking wet, so I hung them over a chair to dry.  I pulled the now-dry shorts off the chair and checked the back pocket… and there was my wallet.  Crisis averted.

Heading to brunch shortly.  I’ve been a hermit too much this past week.  No poker today.

Coming later today – a post about a local artist who is blogging, selling her artwork, and taking orders for custom jobs.  She’s also selling an engagement ring and wedding band, and it could be a good deal for someone.

One of my blog’s readers found the dog pictured below running loose on Mud Island yesterday.  Male Pomeranian, clean and well-trained, definitely someone’s pet but no collar.  If you know whose dog this is, e-mail me at paul@paulryburn.com and I’ll get you in touch with the person who has him.

Possibly the coolest vehicle ever – the VW Bus.

The interior of the Bus.

Here’s a pic of the Nuh-Uh Girl eating.

The BBQ team now has its own cornhole boards.

People hanging out on the Main Street sidewalk

The Nuh-Uh Sister, Eric and Misty relaxing.  Note that in the background, the Nuh-Uh Girl is going back for another helping of food.

It was Frank’s birthday last night.

By 7:30 quite a crowd had gathered.

Around 8 a lot of the gang left for Kooky Canuck for Frank’s birthday dinner.  I walked down the street and checked out Mpact Memphis’ new office at 506 S. Main.  The place was packed and was by far the biggest party on the street.  Mpact has really made a comeback the past year and they have some really good people taking the initiative these days.  Very happy to see it.

Then I walked over to the SMA cookout.  The grill had already shut down but there was still Boscos beer.  People told me the Nuh-Uh Girl had been by.  “Now we understand why there are so many photos of her eating in your blog,” one of the members told me.  “She eats all the time!”  Yep.

About 9:45 I headed north.  The plan was to meet up with the birthday group at the Flying Saucer.  However, the Saucer was packed – dudes, dudes, dudes everywhere.  It gets that way on Friday nights but it was far worse than usual.  I got about 10 feet in the front door before I realized I most definitely did not want to be there.  Later I learned that Downtown is unusually crowded with guys this weekend because Pi Kappa Alpha is having their national convention here.

So I walked up Second and ran into Air Traffic Mike.  We decided to go to the Goose, but it was way crowded.  Then we hit Bardog, but it was way crowded.  So we walked back down Main.  “Circa?” Mike suggested.

“Perfect,” I said.

And it was perfect.  We got there right as their reverse happy hour started.  There were a fair number of people at the bar, but it wasn’t overcrowded, and you could carry on a conversation without shouting.  The dinner rush had passed, and John Bragg came out and talked to us for a while.  We ate some delicious soft shell crab and proscuitto asparagus rolls, and did shots of Jameson in these skull glasses:

Later in the evening I ended up at Bardog again, then Paula & Raiford’s.  “Just once I’d like to be sober enough by the time I get here [Paula & Raiford’s] to remember what happens,” I commented to my friend Nick.  Last night wasn’t the night for it though.

No idea what I’ll get into tonight.  Who knows, there may be more pics.

“Can I help you?”

“Yeah, I’m trying to get Off, can you help me?”

WOOOOOHOOOOO! After 17 years, King Willie has finally stepped down. Myron Lowery is the new mayor as of 12:01 AM. The best commentary I’ve seen on the matter was a comment left in response to this CA article. Scroll down and read what cherryblossdotorg wrote on July 30, 6:13 PM. It’s time for Memphians to think about who we want to be.

Don’t forget that Sole Restaurant has a fish monger onsite every Saturday from 8 AM to 3 PM selling fresh fish. This week’s special is Hawaiian barracuda. You could hit Sole and then the Memphis Farmers Market and have all you need for a great dinner. If you’re not on Sole’s e-mail list, you’re missing coupons at the bottom of their weekly e-mails.

Circa is having their 2nd birthday celebration on August 27. They’ll have live music, a cocktail buffet, and drinks from 6 to 7:30 PM, and then there will be happy hour prices at the bar until 10 after that. Half price wine in the dining room all night. Cocktail buffet? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.

More details on the Bravo Memphis kick-off party, also on the 27th of August, at Main and Huling. Performances by Ryan Peel and the Blazing Tangerines. Huling Row businesses will be featured, including ArtFunction by Ed Vining, Memphis Downtower Magazine, Hannah Davis Gallery, Marketing Strategies LLC, Joysmith Gallery, Shannon Lazek Personal Training, and the Jack Robinson Gallery. Drinks by D. Canale, and hors d’oeuvres by Whole Foods. Wow Bravo is getting healthy this year. Free food in two locations on Main Street on the same night… guess the Nuh-Uh Girl will be riding the trolley. More info about Bravo here. If you’re between 21 and 45 and you enjoy the arts and want to meet people, this is worth checking out. Kick-off party is free to the public.

The South Main Association now has a group on LinkedIn. Look them up if you’re on LinkedIn and are an SMA member.

The SMA will be serving free Boscos beer and grilling hot dogs and burgers for its members tonight for the South Main Trolley Tour. Not a member? You can join at the entrance, just bring $25. Free burgers and hot dogs? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up. I believe she’s a member of SMA.

Down the street, MPACT Memphis will show off their new digs at 506 S. Main with a grand opening party tonight. Live music, the MPACTini, and food. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up. Actually, she’s already responded “attending” to their event listing on Facebook.

It should be a fantastic night for Trolley Tour – according to the Weather Channel, the forecast is high 84, low 69, with only a 10% chance of rain. It’s rare to get such a nice trolley tour in the month of July, when it’s usually 99 and humid. The galleries will be open and lots of people will be out, so come on down.

Happy birthday to my buddy Frank… we’re having a Trolley Tour porch party in his honor tonight. Air Traffic Mike said he’s making gazpacho and some other people are bringing food as well. Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.

Earlier this week I mentioned an Elvis pub crawl in the works… somehow Mike King and I got drafted to coordinate it. Details to come. The date has been changed to Saturday, August 15, and it will involve barhopping among 4 of the best bars in the Downtown core in Elvis gear. Tentatively the lineup will be the Saucer, Bluefin, Hard Rock Cafe, and the Red Rooster, although Mike and I still have to get with some of the bars and finalize plans. Stay tuned for more info.

I went to Calhoun’s for the poker tournament last night. After getting short-stacked early on, I clawed my way back to a respectable third place. I have no regrets about the way I lost either… with three of us left, I got dealt suited Ace-King, and went all-in. Bartender Michele called me and had a queen… I was winning until the river, when a queen showed up and killed me. How can you not go all in with Big Slick when only 3 people are left, though?

I’ll be at Trolley Tour not long after 6, probably splitting my time between my friends’ porch party and the MPACT party, with an occasional swing by SMA for Boscos beer.

Not a whole lot of news to report, but let’s see what we can do.

Visible School, a music and worship arts college, has leased the space at 200 Madison that has long been vacant. This Tuesday from 4 to 6 PM, they’re having an open house from 4 to 6 PM to let people get a look at the place. There will be live music and refreshments will be served. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up. More info in this CA article.

On October 27 the city will have a special election (I hope, I hope) to determine who will be our new mayor. Uh-Oh. RiverArtsFest is the weekend before, October 24 and 25. I hope that doesn’t turn RiverArtsFest into a highly politicized event where mayoral candidates are running around all over the place, detracting from the reason the festival takes place. I have a feeling that’s what will happen though.

What to do tonight, now that rooftop party season has ended… it’s the poker tournament at Calhoun’s, and you never know who you might bump into there, or who might bump into you. I may just stay home and take another crack at PokerStars though. Last night’s bad beat aside, I think I can make more online than the $15 first prize certificate at Calhoun’s. Besides, Otto is the god of poker and will win anyway. If you do go to Calhoun’s, be sure to try the wings.

In other Thursday night activity, there will be country music on Beale, some band will be playing the Saucer, some other band will be playing the Rooster, lots of people will be out at local bars getting drunk, it will rain a lot, and there will be plenty of bums out asking for change.  The trolley will run until around 11, unless it breaks down, which it often does.  And that’s all for now.  Trying to find info on whether the Jim Rome Circus/Jake “The Snake” Roberts show at the New Daisy for tomorrow got canceled – someone told me on Twitter that it did…

I stayed home and played PokerStars again last night, and suffered my first “bad beat” – I lost a hand I was pretty sure I had won.

I sat down at one of their virtual poker tables not long after I came home from work, and during the first round I observed the other players. One guy was raising almost every hand before the flop. At the level I play, it’s typical for players to see the flop (i.e. not fold their first two cards) about 20% of the time. This guy was not only seeing the flop but raising more than 50% of the time. This is what’s known as a “maniac,” someone who will raise aggressively even with mediocre hands.

Maniacs scare novice poker players, because they force you to shove a lot of money into the pot if you want any chance of winning hands. They can be very frustrating. Once you get a little experience, however, you realize they’re great people to have at the table – just wait until you get a good hand and then call them and clean them out.

So I got dealt a suited AJ and the maniac raised pre-flop. “Now it’s time to roll up my sleeves and go to work,” I thought, and happily called.

The flop was garbage – let’s say 295, three different suits so no threat of a flush on the board. Maniac bet. I only had Ace high at this point. Against a conservative player, I’d get out, but I was reasonably sure the maniac was trying to scare me out of the pot. I called.

The turn came, and I was delighted to see a Jack. So the board was 295J, and I had a pair of Jacks. Maniac bet again. I snickered as I called. “Now I’ve got him!” I thought.

The river was a 10. So I still had top pair. He bet again. I thought to myself, “If he were a more conservative player, I’d worry he paired up two of the low cards on the flop, and he’s staying in with two pair. However, he’s demonstrated that he’s willing to stay in with almost nothing. I think that, at best, he also has a pair of Jacks. But in that case he still loses, because I’ve got the Ace kicker.” So I raised, and he re-raised. “Wow, he’s really trying to get me out of this pot,” I thought. I called him.

To my horror he turned over JJ. He had what’s known as a “set,” three of a kind where two of them are hidden. Sets are almost impossible to defend against because you never see them coming. And you especially don’t expect to see them from a player who routinely calls and raises all the way with bad cards. But even maniacs hit a lucky hand now and then.

It’s all part of learning the game… sometimes you lose hands you expect to win. A few hands later, the maniac went all the way holding a 78 with face cards on the board, and someone cleaned him out, just as I expected would happen. Shame that it wasn’t me. Needless to say, I never made it out for celebratory 25 cent Wednesday beer at the Rooster.

Going to experiment more with my poker style tonight. The good thing about online poker is, the other players can’t see what else I’m doing. So I think I’ll keep the random number generator at random.org open, and consult it to determine how many times the big blind to bet/raise when I get a premium hand, when I get a low pocket pair, when I get suited connectors like the 8 and 9 of diamonds. If I don’t make the same bet every time under the same circumstances, I’ll be much harder for my opponents to figure out.

Not much news today, but what I’ve got will go up in the next post in a few minutes.

Here’s a link to an article some of my female readers may be interested in… the San Diego Examiner reports about a designer who can take an old T-shirt – one you love but don’t wear anymore, but you don’t want to throw it away – and turn it into a one-of-a-kind tube top.  You can visit her website here.

For those of you who know Sharp Dressed Bum, good news… he’s been picked up on outstanding warrants and is currently a guest of the city as he awaits trial. He’s been identified as a repeat offender, which is going to make it harder for him to operate on the streets of Downtown in the future.

SDB is a very aggressive panhandler who has been down here for as long as I’ve lived Downtown. He’s called “Sharp Dressed Bum” because he tends to dress in neat, clean business casual type attire when he panhandles. He often looks like he’s on his way to work, or to a nice club. It’s his way of getting passersby to drop their guard so he can ask for money. When told no, he’ll often follow people down the street, cussing them and threatening them, sometimes even with physical gestures. He has an apartment south of the FedExForum, so he’s not homeless, although he’ll claim to be if he thinks it will help generate panhandling revenue.

Kudos to the Center City Commission’s safety patrol, and to MPD, on a fine job. MPD has really been stepping it up in recent weeks. Lately I’ve seen a police car parked near the Elvis statue on Beale more often than not. That block has been prime ground for parking scams for as long as I can remember. Glad the cops are paying more attention to it.

Stay tuned for details on an Elvis-themed pub crawl Saturday, August 8, where people dress up as Elvis and move from bar to bar in a group. It will be kind of similar to the “Stumbling Santa” event that happens in December. More details to come. The list of participating bars is being worked out this week.

The Memphis Flyer’s Best of Memphis ballot is now online. You can vote for the best of everything in the city through August 10. Access the ballot through the Flyer’s home page.

There’s a powerboat regatta called the Memphis International Riverfront Regatta this weekend on the Mississippi River.  Tens of thousands of people are expected to come Downtown and watch.  Note that Riverside will be closed from Union to Carolina starting tomorrow.

Last night I played on PokerStars for about an hour before I headed to trivia… sat down with a stack of $100 and got up with a stack of $116.25. Sixteen bucks an hour is not bad. Every day I analyze the previous night’s poker game for things I could have done better. I see lots of ways to improve. Tonight I have no plans, so I think I’ll stay home and play a long session. If I do really well, I’ll celebrate by going out to the Rooster for their 25 cent beer night.

Congrats to the Rapscallions on a first-place trivia victory last night… we won a tiebreaker to earn a $50 gift certificate, bringing our stash for the next party to $160. Gotta e-mail the team about that today. More news to come – some things I can’t look up and link until I get home. I’ll try to take a break from poker at some point tonight to do a post.