Wed. night SOBER post: New pool/billiards store, reading the Flyer so you don’t have to, and more

That’s right, I’m posting at 11:46 PM and you’re not getting a drunk post.  I stayed home tonight.  Had a good reason for doing so though… the night off game me the time to finish work on my newest online store, How to Learn Pool.  This is an Amazon.com storefront which combines pool and billiards training aids, books, videos and more into an easy-to-shop online store.  It also carries a complete line of billiard equipment, from cubes of chalk all the way up to 8-foot tables.  Since orders are handled by Amazon, the store uses their state-of-the-art secure checkout system.

Learning a lot building these things… starting to master the software used to build these stores, and with each one I’m learning to SEO (search engine optimize) them better.  I already have an idea for the next store.  Where the previous ones have had somewhat of a limited appeal to my blog’s readership (tube tops, Romania, pro wrestling, pool), the next one will be centered around a theme that is near and dear to many Downtowners.  So check back… I’m projecting June 20-25 as the launch date for that one.

Let’s see what’s going on in the Memphis Flyer this week… the Memphis Daily News is launching a new free weekly paper, the Weekly News.  It will be purely editorial in content, with a cover story, restaurant review, and cultural review.  75% of the content will be lifted from Daily News editorials, and the other 25% will be fresh content.

Onix, the chicken & waffles place at Main and Huling, is starting a new happy hour called The Release on Tuesdays from 6 to 10.  Featured spoken word artist weekly, music by DJ Manus, 2 for 1 wells, house wines, and domestic beers.

The Majestic Grille now has the Sunday comics.  No, not the paper (well, they usually have that too, at the bar), but rather, movies.  They’ll be showing classic cartoons and silent movie shorts on their 18″ Majestic Screen every Sunday during brunch 11-3.  You can watch cartoons and comedies while you eat Smoked Salmon Hashbrowns, Frittatas, French Toast, and more.  Hey, wait a minute… how come the Majestic’s ad didn’t mention one of the most popular items on the menu, the JOHN D BREAKFAST???  Someone dropped the ball on that ad.  John D:  “Yeah Paul… and the ad also failed to mention they have Bud Light at the bar!”

Be sure to pick up a copy of the Flyer and check their “Food News” column on page 49… good stories on the Downtown Blue Monkey finally opening their doors, and on the upcoming name change at Calhoun’s Sports Bar & Grill.

In other news… the Nuh-Uh Girl was in Huey’s Monday night, and she picked up a pickle and dipped it in ketchup and ate it.  Everyone at the table was going, “Ew, gross!” except one guy who said, “She does that all the time, don’t you read Paul’s blog?”  Then the Nuh-Uh Girl started to eat a burger.  The guy said, “I wish I had my camera, I’d take a pic of the Nuh-Uh Girl eating and e-mail it to Paul!”  My blog has turned her into a celebrity.

Had a good lunch at Sawaddii – the curry fried rice.  I’m going to start going there for take-out more often.  Their lettuce wraps are awesome, I’ll get those next time.

I’ll do a “what’s going on Thursday night” post tomorrow, but advance warning about the Peabody:  Cowboy Mouth is playing.  I walked through the lobby when they played the rooftop last year, and there was a LONG line waiting on elevators by 7 PM (usually it hasn’t even begun to get crowded at that hour).  Also, if I remember correctly, they charged $15 cover for Cowboy Mouth rather than the usual $5 last year.

Guess I’ll hit Publish and go to bed now.  Wonder if my body even remembers how to fall asleep without the assistance of our old friend alcohol.  It’s after midnight as I type this and I’m not even tired yet.

Wed update: Father’s Day glass, Mpact events, children’s health care, and Obama’s strategy

This is kind of late notice, but tonight is the Father’s Day “buy the beer, keep the glass” night at the Flying Saucer. This year’s honored father: Darth Vader. I haven’t seen the glass but have been told it’s pretty cool. Attn UFO Club members: The “important Beer Goddess video message” sent today contained another one of those quizzes where if you get 7 out of 10, you get a $5 gift certificate, redeemable tomorrow only. So I’ll get to drink some free beer while I listen to the Dempseys tomorrow night.

Attn Saucer:  How many more years is it going to be before we see an official Tube Top Month glass in June?  If you don’t believe there’d be interest ask me about the TubeTopalooza party I’m planning on my rooftop… and most of the people excited about it are females.

Mpact Memphis has a couple of interesting events coming up. On Tuesday, June 17, they’ll hold a Which Way Up? Elevating Education in Memphis forum with MCS school board president Tomeka Hart, Teach for America director Bradley Leon, and Promise Academy Charter School principal Blakeley Wallace will be the featured guests. They will share their ideas and they’ll also be interested in hearing yours. It will be held at Hope & Healing (1115 Union) at 6 PM.

Mpact’s monthly dinner club is taking a trip to a Downtown favorite, Pearl’s Oyster House, on Thursday, June 19. Great seafood, great restaurant, great bands on the weekends. For more info on these events and others check out Mpact’s … er, oops, I was about to direct you to their website and got “website coming soon.”

Four-year-old Midtowner Anna Ives, treated at LeBonheur for a brain tumor last year, is going to Washington with her dad Zac to ask Congressional leaders to support measures for children’s health care. Zac is the co-owner of Goner Records and has a blog about the trip that you can read here.

Time Magazine had a good article today about how Barack Obama is taking the campaign fight to all 50 states this year, rather than just the 20 or so “toss-up” states that polls indicate could go either way. By doing this, he may not win the traditionally “red” states in the South and West, but he may create more of a coattail effect allowing Democratic candidates for Senate, Congress, and local races in those states to gather steam. He may also force John McCain to divert resources to defend states that are currently believed safe for the Republicans, taking McCain’s attention away from the toss-ups. Hope the strategy works… RealClearPolitics still shows Obama with a thin 272-266 electoral vote lead if no states were toss-ups. Would like to see Obama get up above the 300 mark in the projections. Not that I think that McCain would be a bad president, but I believe Obama is a once-in-a-generation leader, as TR, FDR, and JFK were. (All the great presidents of the last 100 years are nicknamed with their initials… Barack’s would be BO… hmmm that wouldn’t be too good.)

That’s it for now… not going out after work, want to build websites for a while. If I do go out it’ll probably be 10 or later.

South Main Association meeting recap: Downtown Memphis retail plan, grocery store recruitment, and much much more

Took 12 pages of notes at the South Main Association meeting. This is going to be a long one.

– Talked to Lisa Brumleve from the CCC before the meeting started. She told me she ate at Pa Pa Pia’s, the Italian restaurant on Union, last week and had a very positive experience there. She said they do a ton of business in pizza to-go orders. You know, I don’t know why I never think of the place for take-out pizza, it’s only 2 blocks from where I live.

Downtown Condo Connection provided the space, wine, food, beer and music for the meeting. They are the information center for ALL Downtown condos, are located in the 420 S. Front building, and are open 7 days a week.

420 South Front has 36 condo units – 28 sold since the conversion was completed last year, 8 still remaining.

– They had complimentary Bud Light for members. John D: “Wha… Bud Light? Paul, do you think they’ll let me join the South Main Association even though I have a house in Midtown?”

– Andy Kitsinger and Lisa Brumleve from the CCC came up to speak about the CCC’s retail plan for Downtown.

– In the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s, over 200 pedestrian malls were built on North American. Only about 30 have not been reopened to vehicular traffic. People who have studied the malls have concluded it was a “terrible mistake,” according to the speakers, to close off the streets. Even the malls that have been the most successful, such as those in Denver and Minneapolis, and being considered for conversion back to allow traffic.

– Downtown is growing 9.8% per year, or about 2,000 people annually.

– Forbes.com named Downtown Memphis a top place for singles. Hmmm, I can’t dispute that, there is certainly some god tube top viewing on the streets of Downtown in the summer months.

– One-third of people moving Downtown are from other states or countries.

– There more than 3,000 condos Downtown, with another 1,800 in the works (that’s an awful lot, in my opinion). More than 5,000 apartments with another 600 in the works. Apartment occupancy rate is 92%. I can believe it… I had a friend who moved here from Atlanta last month, and she couldn’t find a place in any of the buildings I recommended and had to get a place in Germantown.

– Office space is cheap down here. $16.58 per square foot average, compared with $21.04/SF for East Memphis and $21.49/SF for the Nonconnah corridor.

– The Downtown Hampton Inn is the highest-grossing Hampton Inn in the U.S.

– There are 40,000 parking spaces Downtown… and, I’d like to add, several hundred bums who will be happy to show you one of those spaces and charge you to park there.

– The CCC did a block by block survey, and based on the results estimates Downtown redevelopment to be 35-40% complete.

– Their retail plan calls for an eclectic mix of retail storefronts and signage. They want unique and different, displays that are engaging, with Memphis personality. They don’t want “vanilla ice cream.”

– Potential retailers should reach out to the CCC about incentive plans. “A conversation today may be a store a year from now,” they said.

– Audience members asked what had been done to recruit a grocery store Downtown. This was quite a point of contention/argument and several audience members spoke passionately about the subject. One audience member pointed out that there are dozens of little podunk towns in TN, AR, and MS that have populations of 7,000 and have two grocery stores. Downtown has a population of 28,000 and does not even have one (he kind of overlooked Miss Cordelia’s, but it’s questionable whether that can be called a true Downtown grocery when it’s not accessible from the trolley line).

Another person responded that you’re going to see neighborhood grocery stores come in here, not big-box ones. Incentives for these are being worked on. In Cordova or Collierville, your neighborhood grocery store might be 3, 4 miles away. Schnucks in Midtown is 2 1/2 miles from Downtown.

An audience member asked if the CCC has even courted big chains like Kroger and Schnucks. He pointed out that Atlanta has a Publix in its Downtown, but it’s scaled down and is a boutique grocery. Someone should go there, he said, see what they’ve done, and present a plan based on that to the big retailers.

Andy Kitsinger from the CCC said they had discussions with all the major retailers including Kroger, Schnucks and Publix. He said there’s an urban prototype and a suburban prototype, and we have to be careful what we wish for or we may get the suburban protoype with a 7 acre parking lot. Urban models cost more. Retailers look at the number of people, per capita income, how long they are going to stay in the area. Whole Foods actually has this type of info on their website, he said. They also look at what else is around – there are 6 supermarkets within an 8-minute drive of Downtown.

Andy further said the incentives are there for both the property owner and developer, if they can find the right fit. He said they have 8-10 places Downtown where land can be assembled for a 3-4 acre site. But, he cautioned, “Retailers are not risk-takers.” Boy is that the truth. I’ve been lobbying Walgreens at Main and Madison to stay open later than 8 at night for YEARS now, but they won’t do it because their “profitability studies” indicate it won’t be a success.

“Not that it’s a substitute, but that’s one of the reasons we started a Farmer’s Market, even if it’s only one day a week,” the CCC people added.

The grocery issue generated so much discussion that the SMA leaders asked if they could continue the conversation after the meeting, in order to keep things moving along. After the meeting one of the attendees approached me and said he thought lobbying for a grocery store should be the major focus of my blog from now on. It’s important, but I haven’t chased all the bums out of here yet. And not ’til the end of June anyway, because right now tube tops are the #1 focus.

– A retailer on the Main Street Mall was asked his opinion about opening the mall to vehicular traffic. “There are more trolley stops in the core than there are in South Main,” he cautioned. “That may slow up traffic.” That said, he admitted he was still undecided and wanted to hear more before he makes up his mind.

There won’t be street parking on the Main Street Mall if opened to traffic, the CCC people said.

Andy Kitsinger: “They want to drive by and see your front door, then find a parking space and come back.”

– A South Main business owner asked why there were no signs in the train station letting people know about all the wonderful shops and things to do in the area, and in the Downtown core a short trolley ride away? Many people sit in the train station for hours, and have plenty of time to venture out and explore Memphis, but they don’t know what’s there.

A SMA representative responded that it’s being worked on, but there are a lot of opinions and a lot of bureaucracy, a lot of people with ideas on how signage should be done. All those opinions have to be resolved. Also, someone has to foot the bill. It’s going to happen, but it’s not reasonable to expect it tomorrow.

Andy Kitsinger followed up that activity and foot traffic are the most important things. If people see activity and foot traffic, they will be drawn there. Those things are more important than signage.

– Another South Main business owner, who has had a store for 6 years, raised two points that she thought were “nuts and bolts” of getting retail to work in South Main.

First of all, she said, there are no parking lots on South Main. People are intimidated to come there because they don’t know where to park. We need a lot, she said, with prominent “Parking” signs. Another SMA member commented that people from East Memphis come down here, and if they can’t find an open spot on South Main, they leave because they’re afraid to park on the side streets.

Secondly, she said, the litter, the trash on South Main, is a huge problem. She spends 30 minutes picking up beer bottles and other trash outside her shop every Sunday morning.

– Another South Main resident commented about the Downtown safety patrols that have been put in place to curb panhandling. She noted that the southern boundary of the patrol’s area is around Beale/Linden and many of the bums have figured that out and have started panhandling in South Main. Andy Kitsinger said it’s a matter of funding. They have to find private businesses willing to fund the patrols if the CCC is to be able to expand them.

A business owner on Monroe commented that he’s gone an entire month without as many as 3 panhandlers coming in his store, which he said was a tremendous improvement. He complimented the CCC and the new safety patrol on their fine work.

– SMA members get free Boscos beer and grilled food every month at Trolley Tour.

– SMA needs “resident representatives” to print flyers that are e-mailed out and post them on apartment and condo bulletin boards. Hard to get the word out about meetings and events when most of the buildings down here are controlled access.

– They talked about an “adopt a block” program to fight litter. “We need to get people to take ownership,” they said.

– SMA’s website is in a state of flux. They’re re-doing it (if you look at it you may recognize the default WordPress template) and it will take about a month to get everything there. The advantage is that it will be much easier for SMA to reach members with the new site, and keep it current and informative.

Memphis Farmers Market is hosting dinners around town – next one is at Circa on Sunday, June 22.

– MIFA is holding a “Feed the Soul” preview at the September trolley tour, with a preview of art work, a live radio remote, choirs, and a MIFA information table. This is the preview to the Feed the Soul Celebration to be held at The Warehouse October 2.

…And that’s the recap. Sitting at the Saucer blogging this. It is really crowded in here for a Tuesday.

All right, back to my work building online stores until my battery dies. Next store should be rolled out by week’s end.

Sauces to offer free meals for fathers

Sauces is offering free meals for fathers who come in with their families this Sunday for Father’s Day.  This is similar to what they did for Mother’s Day and I’ve been told that day was a lot of fun.  They have one of the hippest bars Downtown, a large downstairs seating area, and a patio that is perfect for dining in a tube top.  If you want to take your dad out to Sauces, you can call 901-473-9573 to make a reservation.

South Main Association at 420 South Front tonight at 6 PM.  I’ll be there.  Trivia team:  I’ll be late for trivia.

Cheap martinis tonight, Sunday Fun Day recap, tap water

Don’t forget that Itta Bena has $3 flavored SKYY vodka martinis tonight from 5 to 7.  These are the same martinis they served at their Sex and the City party a week ago Friday, so you know there will be lots of girly drinks for ladies who want to chill out after work.  I plan on having a few cheap martinis, as much for the girl-watching as for the drink prices; then at 7 I’ll move to the Saucer for Pint Nite.

Sunday Fun Day was a blast yesterday.  My BFF Suzy joined me for brunch at the Majestic.  She told me she’s having people over for drinks sometime soon, and “you should come, there will be some cute girls there.”  BEST BFF EVER.  Whoever becomes BFF of the Month for July is going to have a high standard to live up to.

After brunch, we moved on to the Saucer.  Played a few pool games, then wandered inside to find a game of drunk darts going on:

Dude, how wasted do you have to be to miss the dart board by THAT MUCH?

Meanwhile, the girls were playing darts on the other board.  Apparently they didn’t quite understand how to play cricket, where you close out the 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15 and the bullseye, so they invented their own game:

Amanda (pictured above) told me she was going to wear a tube top, but she went to church and she was afraid the grandmothers there would frown on that type of behavior.  Which brings me to this story I found online:  15 Minutes with Sarah Keller.  In particular, there was a quote from the interviewee:  “One summer my Grandma Carolyn helped me sew a tube top from Wal-Mart Fabric; I was hooked.”  BEST GRANDMOTHER EVER!  If Grandma Carolyn is still alive, I’m going to send her a fruit basked for Grandparents’ Day in September.

About 5 we did a venue change to Itta Bena, because the girls wanted half-off bottles of wine, which is their Sunday night special.  After they polished off a couple of bottles, my friend Kacy came up with one of the best ideas ever:  A TubeTopalooza party to celebrate the end of Tube Top Month in a few weeks.  Working on the details of that today.

In the news:  The Memphis Business Journal reports that there’s a tap water movement going on, where local restaurants served only tap water last Thursday to make customers aware of the environmental impact of bottled water.  Downtown restaurants Stella and Circa participated.

And that’s the news for today… heading back to work for more fun with file imports.  Yay.

The Center City Commission invites you to “Sound Off” about the new Downtown safety patrol

Attn Downtowners:  The Center City Commission wants your feedback about the new safety patrol which has been in place since April 1.  The patrol was hired specifically to curb the act of aggressive panhandling.  They want to know if it has made a difference.  They want to know if you feel safer on the streets of Downtown, if you’ve been approached less by aggressive panhandlers and bums since April 1, if you see fewer of them as you walk around.

Please take 3 or 4 minutes of your day to go to the CCC’s Sound Off page and leave your feedback, positive or negative.  Your opinion is vital as the CCC decides whether to extend the program past the end of its trial run on June 30.

Sunday update: Shelton Clothiers party and discount, Red Rooster, Itta Bena, Majestic Grille

Yesterday afternoon I was in the Saucer with my laptop, putting the finishing touches on Pro Wrestling Book and Video and hanging out with Otto and John D, when Shelton Clothiers owner Tom Shelton walked in. He came bearing invitations to the store’s 3-year anniversary party, to be held Saturday, June 21 from 6 to 9 PM. There will be food, live music, and drinks.

It will also be a party with a purpose: Shelton Clothiers is asking for customers’ help replenishing the First Works Clothes Closet. Bring gently used clothing for the closet the night of the party, and they’ll give you a 30% off coupon on any one item. Coupon is good through July 31, 2008.

Tom came bearing gifts, too. He gave me a baseball cap from his Pink Pig line, as thanks for links I’ve given the store on my blog over the years:

You may have seen his Pink Pig line at the store… it’s a line of golf shirts, T-shirts, and now caps. The shirts resemble Izod shirts, but in place of the alligator there’s a pink pig. Very appropriate in a city that is world-famous for its barbecue.

Just checked the Red Rooster’s website and noticed that they have a new event on Mondays called Metal MF’N Mondays. Every Monday the Rooster has the best metal acts from Memphis and the surrounding areas. So if you’re into metal and you’re looking for live music on a Monday, the Rooster is the place to go. If you’re in a metal band, might want to get down there and talk to Luke and Robby Bobby about Mondays.

I’m going to try to make it to the Rooster’s Rehab Service Industry Night tonight. Luke told me “it gets good around 10:30,” which is a little late but maybe I can slam one of my 5 Hour Energy drinks and make it. Tricycle races, cornhole, and other games. I’m not a service industry employee but I’m sure they’ll let me in… heck, a lot of people probably think I work at the Saucer, I’m there more than even the managers.

Don’t forget, Itta Bena, the restaurant on the third floor of BB King’s on Beale, has half-off bottles of wine this evening.

Got an e-mail from the Majestic Grille about some new stuff they’ve got going on. First of all, they have the photography of Gary Kessel on display in their back room (the Innovators’ Room) until June 30. All of his images are available for purchase. All money goes directly to the artist, as the Majestic Grille does not take commission as part of its commitment to the arts.

Further evidence of the Majestic’s commitment to the arts can be seen in its new partnership with ArtsMemphis. Starting June 1, the restaurant began inserting “movie tickets” in presenter trays with guest checks, informing patrons of various arts groups around town and making them aware of ArtsMemphis’ new website and calendar. Each new restaurant patron who goes to the website will be signed up for a drawing to win lunch for two at the restaurant, with one lunch per week given away through the end of August.

The Majestic Grille has also re-scheduled its Farmers Market dinner, canceled earlier in the spring due to bad weather. It will be Wednesday, June 11 at 6:30 PM and reservations are required (522-8555 or follow the link above to their website). Here’s the menu:

Hors D’Oeuvres

Pizettas – Carmelized spring onions, bonnie blue goat cheese, arugula

Radish “Sandwiches” – Sea salt and chive mayo

Bon Bon Shiraz Rose, South Australia 2007

First Course

Roasted Jumbo Scallop – Baby beets, oranges, mixed greens

Marquis Phillips Holly’s Blend, Southeast Australia 2007

Second Course

Veal Tenderloin – Stuffed with chard, zucchini and fresh herbs with natural juices, sugar glazed carrots and roasted fingerling potatoes

Chris Ringland’s Green Lion Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley CA 2005

Dessert

English Strawberry Trifle – Fresh strawberries layered with sponge cake, English custard and canilla cream

Paringa Individual Vineyards Sparkling Shiraz, South Australia 2004

$55 per person plus tax & 20% gratuity. Slow Foods members $50.

Speaking of the Majestic, it’s their turn on the Sunday brunch crew’s two weeks Majestic, two weeks Blue Monkey brunch rotation. I’ll be there in a little while.

Finally done… announcing the launch of Pro Wrestling Book and Video

If you’ve been keeping up with my blog for the past couple of weeks, you know that I’ve been working feverishly in my free time on my newest online store. I completed it today and it’s ready for launch. Here it is:

Pro Wrestling Book and Video is an Amazon.com storefront that features books, DVDs, and video games, organized by promotion (for books and video), by game console (for games), and by wrestler (when there are individual products related to that wrestler). Amazon carries a lot of wrestling products, but they are strewn all over the place and are hard to find. My store pulls them together in one place, and allows you to easily find not only the most popular titles, but lesser-known and discontinued ones.

Amazon handles all the checkout and shipping details, so you’re protected by their world-class secure online payment system and return policies.  Since all merchandise is shipped by Amazon and its trusted partners, you can rest assured that you’re not buying bootleg or pirated items.  The store makes money by receiving referral commissions from Amazon.  It’s powered by the same software that I used to create the Tube Top Boutique and The Romania Store.

Whether you’re a fan of the current pro wrestling scene or the wrestling territories of the ’80s, the store has got you covered.  You might even be able to buy a book or video featuring some of the WWE Divas in tube tops.

All right… with that out of the way, I can go out.  I already have ideas for my next two online stores, which I will begin researching tomorrow.

More reasons I why I love Amazon.com: Panasonic camera accessories, 5 Hour Energy drinks, and Mountain Dew

One of the reasons I hardly ever drive the car is that Amazon.com is so totally awesome. Not only do they have every product I ever wanted, they also have a bunch of products I never knew I wanted or needed, and they’re cheap. A couple of examples:

A few weeks ago I bought a Panasonic 10x zoom digital camera from Amazon. (Which I really like, by the way… pics taken with the new camera to come later in the post.) One thing about being a blogger with a digital camera is that I occasionally take a LOT of pictures (e.g. BBQ Fest) to the point of running the battery completely down. So I like to have a spare battery. But I forgot to order one with the camera. I realized I forgot and thought to myself, “I’ll get around to it,” but I think that about a lot of things and never get to them. So this morning Amazon sent an e-mail entitled “Accessories for your Panasonic camera.” And there was a link to a a replacement battery for the camera. And it was cheeeeeap ($3.95). I figured I’d have to pay 20-30 bucks for a second battery. So I ordered two of them. With each battery rated at 300 pics/charge, that means I can take 900 pics in a single day.

A second Amazon story: One of the best ways I’ve found to pep myself up is those little two-ounce bottles of 5-Hour Energy they sell at convenience stores.

They’re actually good for you, full of vitamins. They’re like a Vitamin B shot and an espresso shot in little 2-ounce bottles. I can drink one of these and be good to go on a busy weekend night. I don’t tire out near as easily and I’m a lot more alert and talkative.

The drawback is, they’re expensive. After you pay the state of Tennessee’s outrageous sales tax, they’re almost five bucks apiece at most convenience stores. That’s almost as bad as buying cigarettes.

So, one day I was talking to my friend/co-worker Otto, and he told me that Amazon carries them. “You can buy 12-packs of them on Amazon for $20,” he said. “It’s like 5, 6 dollars for shipping, and no sales tax, so you end up paying just over $2 apiece for them.” Less than half what they cost in stores.

I got online and searched, and sure enough, there they were for $20. I ordered a 12-pack of the Lemon Lime 5 Hour Energy drinks. For those who prefer a different flavor, they also come in Orange and Berry. Shipping was $5.99. That works out to $2.17 per bottle. Nice!

This morning, though, I’m drinking the original energy drink, Mountain Dew. Just out of curiosity, I did an Amazon search on “Mountain Dew” and found this book on the history of Mountain Dew. This would fall into the “items you never knew you wanted or needed” category.

But enough about Amazon… it’s June and that means it’s time to talk about tube tops. Last night I went to the Saucer to people-watch the Hank Jr./Skynyrd crowd. My friend Stephanie who puts on the Downtown Alive series for the CCC was there. She had a tube dress on. “Are you going to take a picture of me for your blog?” So I did.

Yes, tube dresses count. So do tube top jumpsuits and rompers… as long as it doesn’t have straps, it counts for Tube Top Month.

Stephanie has had on a tube top or tube dress just about every time I’ve seen her in the past month, except for work-related events. “I think that should put me in the running for BFF of the Month for July!” she said. I’ll admit, that is a strong selling point. I cautioned her, though, that my current BFF Suzy takes the title of BFF of the Month very seriously, and intends to do interviews at the end of June to help me select the July BFF.  Suzy doesn’t want me to ever again have a “tragic BFF,” as she described the original one.

Sorry I didn’t post the “what’s going on” post on Thursday… I had it all ready to go, just needed to look up a couple of things in the Flyer, which I had left at work. So I got there, did the look-ups… and then the Internet was down at work for half the day. By the time it came back up, I was swamped with file imports and simply forgot that I never did the post. I already have my party plans for next Thursday in place though… The Dempseys play the Saucer.

Speaking of the Saucer, will probably be there laptopping this afternoon… my new online store is almost ready to be launched, and it may well happen today. After that’s up I plan to add a strapless bikini top section to the Tube Top Boutique as the Nuh-Uh Sister suggested, then I’ll start work on my next online store idea.  Not sure what I’ll do tonight… Kings of the Delta play the Saucer, and they’re pretty good so I’ll probably start there.  Maybe the Rooster and/or Raiford’s later in the evening.

Happy Saturday everyone… see you later

“Rowdy Friends” tour at the FedExForum tonight, 7 PM

Tonight is Hank Williams Jr and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Rowdy Friends” tour at the FedExForum.  No, I’m not going.  But there’s going to be some interesting people-watching going on, that’s for sure… may have to head down to the Saucer and grab myself a window seat right after work.  I kind of hope the hardcore Hank Jr./Skynyrd fans don’t know about Tube Top Month… that could be scary.

I bet the clubs that have country-rock themes are going to be hopping tonight – Double Deuce, Coyote Ugly, even the Red Rooster.