House arrest day 40 (Tuesday)

Now that I’ve had a little time to study it, I have to say that I am a big fan of the Back-to-Business Plan city and county mayors and health care officials drew up. Loosening (or tightening) the restrictions is based on the data, not a hunch someone has. A person, you can disagree with, but you can’t disagree with data.

A little over a week ago I was surfing Twitter, and a prominent Memphian was speculating that we should just bite the bullet and resign ourselves to being under house arrest until August 1. “UGH.” I thought at the time. I couldn’t imagine not being out with my friends for months. Yet if August 1 is indeed the amount of time that passes before we get to Phase 1 of the plan, I can take comfort in the fact that it was dictated by data, not an opinion.

On the other hand… let’s say that the data says we can enter Phase 1 earlier… just to pick a random date, let’s say May 22. If that’s the case, I will know that I can, at that point, go out and support my friends’ small businesses, while feeling reasonably comfortable about the safety of my own health and others’.

I really like it. It’s a system that takes away people’s ability to complain. It takes away the anger, and I have seen plenty of that on social media, especially Twitter. Some of the preachy, lecture-y, on-their-high-horse tweets I have seen the past month about COVID-19 have made me long for the days when Facebook got its panties in a wad because someone mentioned a Baconator on a group meant to promote locally-owned restaurants.

WMC-TV Action News 5 will hold a Road to Reopening Town Hall tonight at 7 PM. Click the link if you want to submit a question to mayors and medical leaders.

Interesting thought that just crossed my mind… what would this quarantine have been like had we elected Mongo rather than Strickland?

Memphis Made Brewing Co. is teaming up with 98.1 The Max and the Ajax Distributing Company to support hospitality industry workers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in Memphis. They are packaging some of their Fireside beer in special 98.1 The Max cans, with a portion of every sale going to a Memphis hospitality workers GoFundMe set up by Edible Memphis.

Be sure to listen in at noon and 5 PM, when the radio station will highlight the beer in a “Let’s Toast a Maximum Rocker” segment.

Yowie wowie! During a public health crisis, the last business I would expect to see making cutbacks is a hospital, but that’s what’s happening at Methodist-LeBonheur. They are furloughing employees and executives are taking pay cuts.

Max’s Sports Bar is extending its hours offering to-go food and beverages. Effective immediately they’ll be open 11 AM-9 PM Sunday-Wednesday and 11 AM-midnight Thursday-Saturday. Glaze posted that they will do a shrimp and crawfish boil again Saturday and as soon as I see the pre-ordering Facebook thread I’ll post a link.

Broadway trivia comes to Facebook Live this Friday, courtesy of the Orpheum and Cerrito Trivia.

The West Memphis entrance to Big River Crossing has been re-opened and is accessible 6 AM to 10 PM. The Big River Trail in Arkansas is still closed due to river levels.

The coronavirus could spell the end of buffets. The linked article is from The Daily Mail, a  UK publication, but it’s relevant on this side of the pond too. I sure would hate it but it’s the right thing to do. When I worked in Horn Lake, I would go to the Chinese buffet next to Target all the time. Where else you gonna get egg foo yung, a cup of blackeyed peas, pigs in blankets, and sushi for one low price?

Tweet from one of my favorite authors that I found worthy of copying into the notebook I keep by my computer:

Free e-book I saw on Twitter this morning that may be of interest to those of you in journalism: Verification Handbook for Disinformation and Media Manipulation. Topics include social media, recognizing bots, false information campaigns, deepfakes, messaging apps, and tracking actors across platforms.

This weekend would have been Memphis in May. The weather tends to get weird that weekend; I decided to pull up climate data for Memphis in October and see what we could be in for, for the rescheduled dates of October 16-18.

  • Normal high 74 all three days; normal low 54 (16th) or 53 (17th-18th)
  • Hottest ever: 87 (16th), 88 (17th), 90 (18th; latest 90 ever recorded)
  • Warmest lows ever: 69 (16th), 70 (17th), 71 (18th)
  • Coldest highs ever: 50 (16th and 18th), 55 (17th)
  • Coldest ever: 31 (16th), 30 (17th), 29 (18th)
  • Most rain ever (inches): 2.2 (16th), 3.4 (17th), 2.45 (18th)
  • Snow: none ever recorded on those days, although October in Memphis has seen a trace on the 19th, 28th, 30th, and 31st

Taco Tuesday at Sunrise Memphis:

A face mask resolution is on the agenda for City Council today. Originally set to require face masks when Memphians go out in public, it will now strongly encourage business to require all employees to wear masks while working. The resolution would not be binding and therefore would not result in a fine for violators. Thanks to my neighbors who had an extra mask and left it outside my door Friday!

Auto B Grillin, a team that competes in BBQ Fest, spent all last night cooking to feed 350 families in need today.

The trolls are ready to get back out in the world.

That’s it for now. Back later today or tomorrow with more news.

House arrest day 39 (Monday)

All the mayors of Shelby County are scheduled to be at the joint task force briefing at noon today. If you’re on Facebook and follow any of the local TV stations, you’ll probably get a notification.

I found these at the Downtown Walgreens yesterday and decided to give them a try.

Brown sugar cinnamon is my favorite Pop-Tart flavor, and I’ve loved the Good Humor strawberry shortcake bars on a stick since I was little, so I was excited to see the two concepts combined into one.

The verdict, though, was “meh.” I don’t regret buying and trying, but these things are vanilla ice cream bars with a very slight hint of cinnamon and some crunchies on the outside. I’ll certainly eat the remaining five bars, but I don’t see myself rushing back for more of these.

On Thursday, April 30 at 2 PM, Memphis magazine will do an In the Kitchen webinar with Felicia of Felicia Suzanne Restaurant. Felicia will cook live while discussing the local restaurant scene and sharing some of her favorite recipes. Questions from the audience will be encouraged in a Q&A session. Advanced registration is recommended. Sign up here

Restaurant dining rooms in Tipton County to our north are allowed to re-open today. Restaurant dining rooms in Shelby County remain closed.

Memphis transfer Landers Nolley II has changed his mind about testing the NBA draft without an agent this year, so Penny can count on him in Tiger blue for 2020-21 – if the NCAA waives the year he would otherwise have to sit out. He had planned to test the NBA draft process with Penny’s blessing.

The Mississippi Emergency Management agency published a 1-877 number people could call to report violations of that state’s stay-home order – but it turned out to be a phone sex hotline.

For those of you who attend church regularly but who were unable to yesterday due to the house arrest, I invite you to tune into the USA Network between 7 and 10 PM Central time and hear the words of the Monday Night Messiah.

That’s the news for now. Back later today or tomorrow.

House arrest day 38 (Sun) / update 2

LUNCHBOXeats is doing lunches to go today:

Those Taste Bud Guys, two friends who love beer, whiskey, food, and music, tried a Wiseacre Adjective Animal Double IPA on their show this week.

JSTOR has an article on how the quarantine’s forced closure of hair salons is affecting butch lesbians.

NBA top prospects film sessions:

Another Orpheum volunteer recipe:

The Tigers’ newest commitment could be gone on NBA draft day:

Since the LUNCHBOXeats tweet is time sensitive, I’ll go ahead and publish this one. Back later today or tomorrow with more news.

House arrest day 38 (should have been Wine Race day)

Today was scheduled to be one of the most debaucherous days of the spring, for the Beale Street Wine Race. Featuring a beauty pageant, a grape stomp, a parade, and of course the signature wine relay as well as plenty of Big Ass Beers and Wet Willie’s Call-a-Cab daiquiris, Wine Race is always eagerly anticipated… but not this year.

First person who says, “We can still be debaucherous while staying home and observing proper social distancing” gets a punch in the throat and a Lysol martini.

Yo, Handsome Jimbo from Mempho (Strickland, not Valiant, that is), you think you might be able to make an exception for FedExForum in your order requiring gyms to be closed?

As your number-one source of news and information about The Edge District, it is my duty to link you to this article from the Daily Memphian about the former Commercial Appeal building on Union. It is being converted to a COVID-19 hospital and should be ready to go by May 16. At this point we’re likely to not need it, but isn’t it good to have there in case of an emergency?

From MakeUseOf: 4 ways to play board games online with friends during the quarantine

This is a good one:

People posting to Nextdoor indicate that dumping on the north end of Mud Island continues to be a problem. Items ranging from furniture to satellite dishes have been found there. If you need to dispose of large items, please take them to the landfill.

Don’t forget to check the Memphis Flyer music blog for a list of live music events streaming online. A new list is published every Thursday.

I found a useful site last week that I thought I’d share: Online OCR. You upload images of text, and it converts them into Word format. Other output formats are possible as well.

I found this site after re-reading several hardcover and paperback books I bought between 15 and 20 years ago. It was a pleasure to get back to them, but I realized they lacked two features I rely on in modern books (every book I’ve purchased the last 11 years has been done as a Kindle book): the ability to search the text of the book, and the ability to read them on my phone. So I’ve been using Online OCR to scan a few of my books page by page and re-create them as Word documents. I already paid for the books, and it’s not like I’m sharing them on a torrent site or anything; I’m just making them more useful to me as the owner.

The Rusty Pieces are back with a live stream this Thursday. I will be listening.

The Big Red Machine!

Tea Pain wins the Internet with this comment on Disinfectant Donnie:

It’s now being reported that Captain Clorox is considering canceling the daily White House coronavirus briefings. “What is the purpose?”

That’s it for this post. Back later today, or tomorrow, with more news.

 

House arrest day 37 (Sat)

Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris has extended the Safer at Home order that applies to unincorporated areas of Shelby County, but only until April 30. Harris says that the data indicated we are entering Phase 2 of the fight against the coronavirus, and while Phase 1 was about saving lives, Phase 2 is about saving livelihoods as well. Restrictions won’t be lifted completely, but will be eased in some areas.

Chris Herrington of the DM hopes that the governors of Arkansas and Mississippi will keep in mind that their states border the Memphis metro when loosening their restrictions on restaurants next week. News flash: They won’t.

I don’t envy Jim Strickland. No matter how tight or loose his plan is to ease Safer at Home regulations, he’s going to have one subset of citizens or another saying he’s irresponsible. I also don’t envy the medical experts advising Strickland, who will face the same criticism – especially in the case of Dr. Manoj Jain, who will probably have racial epithets thrown at him.

Flying Saucer is offering a $5 burger when you purchase a six-pack or growler fill today.

Other Saucer news:

Attention Beerknurds!
You asked and we listened! We’ve tapped a new limited beer for you and also brought back some sought after favorites! We’ve got Founders Devil Dancer, their 12% triple IPA, on draft for $15 per 32ounces! We also re-tapped @newhollandbrew Dragons Milk, @foundersbrewing Frangelic Mountain Brown, and @4handsbrewingco Absence of Light Peanut Butter Chocolate Milk Stout. Come stock up for the freakin weekend!

From the Green Beetle:

Starting Monday April 27th we are reopening for curbside and to go orders!! We are serving a limited menu of our fan favs and will be serving from 11am-8pm 7 days a week. We will also be offering delivery through Ubereats so starting Monday give us a shout at (901) 527-7337, hop on Ubereats, or come on by to get your grub on!!

The Orpheum presents a virtual edition of its Memphis Songwriters Series featuring Savannah Brister Saturday, April 25 at 7:30 PM. She was on The Voice last year, where she was offered a spot with John Legend’s team.

Here’s a pic of those Hog & Hominy pizzas for which you can get bake-at-home kits at Catherine & Mary’s:

Idea for college football 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic: State championships. Arkansas vs. Arkansas State for the first time ever. Memphis vs. the Vols and Vanderbilt. Florida vs. UCF. I could get behind that.

My friends at the Blind Bear got their photos in the Daily Memphian, but I’m sure they wish it was for a different reason: They are one of many restaurants having trouble getting employees to come back to work because the federal government is subsidizing unemployment payments so well. The Bear is now open for take-out every day from 11 AM to 9 PM, so if you miss the Bear Balls, the Hibernation Fries, the crawfish mac or another favorite, come and get them.

Devan Yanik plays a live stream today 3 to 5.

The DM has a list of bands unable to appear at Music Fest, rescheduled for October 16-18: The Lumineers, The 1975, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Liam Gallagher, Louis the Child and Toad the Wet Sprocket. Not that it matters much, because I would put the probability that Music Fest actually happens at about 15%.

Catch a webcast of quarantunes with Charvey Mac, broadcast from Saddle Creek tonight 7:30-8:30.

Wild Bill’s will be back with another live stream tonight at 8:30.

From the Peabody:

It is with heavy hearts that we’re announcing the 2020 Peabody Rooftop Party season has been cancelled. We will miss seeing everyone this year, but we look forward to partying on the roof with you in the Spring of 2021!

This is sad news but the right move… throngs of people, dancing, and buffets probably aren’t the best thing right now. Thanks to the Peabody for their sacrifice to keep Memphis safe.

The DMC awarded 13 more forgivable loans to Downtown businesses yesterday. More than half the loans went to businesses run by women and minorities.

I had a dream last night that I went grocery shopping with my mom at Target. She had a shopping list as long as her arm. She had to stop every time there was a baby and tell the parents how cute it was. We practically circumnavigated the globe looking for the toilet paper aisle. There was a shelf of generic-looking trophies, and my mom asked if Memphis in May bought my BBQ team’s trophy at Target. She refused to use the wide-open shelf-checkout lanes in favor of standing in line for an hour waiting for a cashier. In other words, the dream was exactly like shopping with her in real life when she was alive.

Big thanks to my neighbors who texted me and asked if I wanted an extra face mask yesterday. Now I’m rockin’ the PPE when I go out.

With the Safer at Home order likely to be lifted in waves, I will have to figure out at what point to discontinue the “House arrest day __” post titles. The criterion will be this: When I am able to sit inside one of my three favorite bars (doesn’t have to be at the bar area) and drink a PBR without also having to order food, at that point I will consider my house arrest to be over.

By the way: Drinking at home is boring AF. I got some PBR to drink as I watched WWE Smackdown last night, and I thought, what does this accomplish other than waste money and move my bedtime forward by hours? I pulled up the Lightclub and Wild Bill’s virtual events for a little while and they were good, but it just isn’t the same as being out. I understand the need for staying at home and social distancing, but I refuse to be all rah-rah about it the way many in the media are. It sucks, I can’t wait for it to be over, and I refuse to pretend otherwise to set an example for the public.

On that note, I’ll sign off for now. Back when there’s more news to share.

House arrest day 36 (Fri)

The Downtown Neighborhood Association is hosting an Uptown Cleanup Day Saturday, May 2. Meet at the Greenlaw Community Center at 10 AM if you want to participate. They will provide trash bags and gloves.

And now, on to the rest of the news. This mor…

Huh? Magic words?

Please? Thank you? You’re welcome???

Oh. I get it.

On Saturday, May 2, you can help DNA clean up the Uptown neighborhood WHILE PROPERLY SOCIALLY DISTANCED. That’s right, folks, you can pick up trash while remaining six or more feet apart from your fellow humans. If you really want to be a party animal, you can wear some PPE to the cleanup!

Have y’all heard cats are now testing positive for COVID-19? No I am not kidding. Both house cats and big cats in zoos have tested positive. How are we going to get cats to socially distance? They won’t listen.

Did the Flying Saucer get robbed? I walked past there yesterday and there were “NO CASH ON SITE | VIDEO RECORDING IN PROGRESS” signs on the windows and the front door.

The Daily Memphian has a thorough article on the four doctors (Jain, Haushalter, McCullers, Warren) who are help shaping plans to re-open the economy. A plan for Memphis is expected early next week. You can catch Dr. Jain’s on the DM’s Behind the Headlines Podcast this week.

The DM also has an article on the new art in Fourth Bluff Park. The sculptures are here through a partnership with Nashville organization Tri-Star Arts.

Tonight is the second edition of the DJ Series, a virtual dance party broadcast from Central Station, presented by the Memphis Music Hub and I Love Memphis. This week’s party is all about women in soul and features DJ Alpha Whiskey. It will happen online 8:30-10:00 PM tonight. If you missed last Friday’s show, themed on old-school Memphis rap with DJ Spanish Fly, you can view it here (fast-forward to about 9:55 for the start of the show).

Yao’s China Bistro at Main and Gayoso has napkins, paper towels, and toilet paper for sale.

Should be obvious but I guess not: Don’t share screenshots of your stimulus check online

Let’s hear it for the good guys one more time.

Rev. Omma of The Broom Closet will teach a free Tarot Reading 101 class on Zoom Tuesday, April 28 at 7 PM. She’ll provide tips and tricks for drawing meaning from the cards, as well as best practice to prepare for a tarot reading and to receive one.

Local biz City Tasting Tours in the New York Times! It has an article about how entrepreneurs are adapting to live during COVID-19.

Happy weekend, YOGA! Downtown yoga studio Your Inner Yogi will host a free class tonight on Instagram at 6:30. The instructor will supply the playlist in advance for those who wish to flow to music. When the house arrest is lifted, these classes will move outdoors to Court Square.

Play Cerrito Bingo tonight at 8 on Zoom.

Lightclub Memphis will be on Twitch tonight with DJs Alora, Shinobi Senses, and Scotty B. 8-11 PM.

There will be a live stream from Wild Bill’s tonight 8:30-11:30. The Juke Joint AllStars and The Sensation Band will perform. Tips accepted via CashApp.

About that Scribd subscription…

More than 30 days have passed since I signed up for a free 30-day trial for Scribd, the service that lets you read unlimited books and magazines, and listen to unlimited audiobooks. Once the trial is up, it’s $9.95 a month to keep going. Having tried it out, I thought I’d give it a review.

First of all, the interface is easy to use. Reading a book is quite intuitive, very similar to the Kindle app on desktop or smartphone. I would read books all day on desktop, then take my iPhone to bed to continue reading, and one app would pick up where the other left off, never losing my place in my current book.

Scribd by no means carries every book ever published. I would say it carried about 20% of all the titles I searched for, so don’t jump in thinking a Scribd subscription is going to give you access to everything you’re interested in reading. However, it does have a really good “you might also enjoy” feature, so even if you don’t find the book you wanted, you might find something similar.

Scribd particularly excels in two areas:

  • Bestsellers: Scribd seems to have a contract to keep the latest and greatest on its virtual shelves for a period of months.
  • Audiobooks: Scribd has a lot of titles that it doesn’t have in print digital format but does have in audio format. Their audio player is easy to use. In my opinion Scribd is a better deal for audiobooks than Amazon’s Audible trial.

Overall verdict: It’s worth giving them a credit card number and trying it out for free. Just remember when you subscribed and make sure you cancel before your 30 days run out if you choose not to keep it. Canceling your subscription is easy and you don’t have to talk to anyone on the phone. There’s no risk and the reading might help pass time time, since Mayor Strickland has announced we will continue under house arrest until May 5 and possibly longer.

I read about 10 books on Scribd in the 29 days I had my free trial, and Face the Music, by Paul Stanley, co-founder of KISS, was the best I read. A quick synopsis of the book:

  • Gene was generally a good business partner but had a habit of making everything all about himself. The stories you hear about Gene being an astute businessman are as much self-marketing as they are truth.
  • Ace was an incredible talent when motivated – however, he was often not motivated.
  • Peter, in Stanley’s opinion, lacked the raw talent that the others had – however, he thought he was the be-all and end-all because he wrote “Beth.”
  • Though Paul Stanley was a wildly successful musician, he didn’t find true fulfillment until his late forties – and it was not through the band.

Ace and Peter have autobiographies on Scribd as well, but I ran out of free days before I could get to those.

You know what? I think I may take some of my blog’s own recommendations today. I should have a project I’ve been working on for a while wrapped up this afternoon. After that, I think I’ll walk around the corner at Main & Madison and see my friend Carl Winfield’s new store Downtown Wines & Spirits. Then tonight I will check out the Lightclub, Memphis Music Hub DJ Series, and Wild Bill’s live streams. Back tomorrow with more news, or later today if there are news items that can’t wait.

House arrest day 35 (Thur) / update 2

So, I’ve been asked my opinion on the “when should Memphis restaurants reopen” debate.

Quick recap: The president of the Memphis Restaurant Association has pushed for a May 1 date to re-open dine-in at Memphis-area restaurants. He claims that the majority of restaurants in the city are on board with that plan. However, he does not offer data to prove such a majority exists. Many times over the past 18 years I have heard someone start off an idea with “we all plan to…” when “this is what I want to do, please agree with me” was closer to the actual truth.

A prominent Memphis restaurant owner posted a Memphis Business Journal article quoting the MRA president to Facebook. Although he posted the article without comment, the owner is known for having said in the recent past he believes May 1 is too soon to re-open. The vast majority of people who commented the owner’s Facebook post agreed with him. However, like attracts like. We are likely to have more Facebook friends who agree with our point of view than oppose it, and it rocks the boat less to agree with someone else than to disagree.

So here’s my take on it:

  • I don’t own a restaurant;
  • I don’t derive any of my income from a restaurant; and
  • I don’t have the letters M.D. after my name.

Therefore, my opinion on whether restaurants should re-open on May 1 should not matter. On a personal level, yes, I miss them, and I dislike being told I can’t go to them (hence, my “House Arrest” post titles). However, I understand this is what has to be done.

Nashville released its reopening guidelines today. This gives you an idea of what things might look like in Memphis, although no two cities are the same.

The CA’s Jennifer Chandler has a roundup of local brunch eats, including some yummy looking pictures from Sunrise Memphis and Bedrock Eats & Sweets.

Round 1 of the NFL draft is tonight, beginning at 7 PM. Here’s the info.

Whatchu talkin’ ’bout, Willis? Repairs on a water main will result in detours on A.W. Willis Avenue between Fifth and Fourth through at least Friday, longer if rain delays repairs.

Felicia Suzanne’s is doing Fried Chicken Friday tomorrow. Feed your family, and there’s an option to add local beer. Pre-order by 8 tonight.

A local company is selling jugs of hand sanitizer to the public.

Is there a place within the boundaries of the river, A.W. Willis, Danny Thomas, and Crump that I can go right now and either buy a face mask at a reasonable cost, or get one for free?

  • “If you don’t have a face mask, you can use a bandanna” doesn’t count. I said face mask.
  • “You can order one from us and have it delivered to your home in 2 to 3 days” doesn’t count. I said right now.

I agree with the sentiment of the City Council members who want to require the wearing of face masks in public, but I don’t see how that can be implemented when masks are not readily available in Memphis’ most densely populated region.

Think I’ll go for a walk. Back later today or tomorrow with more.

House arrest day 35 (Thur)

The Gourmade food truck will be out at 525 N. Main from 3 to 7 Saturday, and they will give away a free dessert with the first 100 entrees.

This week’s digital issue of the Memphis Flyer is now online. They’ll be back with a print issue, next week.

Speaking of the Flyer: As your number-one source of news and information about The Edge District, I am excited to tell you that the Memphis Flyer’s annual margarita festival has been rescheduled for Saturday, June 6 deep in the heart of the district at the Boxlot shopping center. Your ticket gets you 15 margarita samples and benefits Volunteer Memphis. This is a 21 and up event, of course. It’s possible this date will have to be moved again, but assuming it happens on the 6th, I may just have to put on my sombrero and saunter on out to The Edge for seis de junio!

When the house arrest is lifted, we gonna be like

Grizzlies assistant Niele Ivey has been hired as the head coach of Notre Dame’s women’s basketball program following the retirement of coaching legend Muffet McGraw. Ivey is an ’01 alum of the Fighting Irish.

The latest Downtown venue to offer bake-at-home pizza: The Peabody.

The local coronavirus rate is slowing down, reports the Daily Memphian.

There’s virtual Cerrito trivia tonight at 7 on Facebook Live.

The ShotGunBillys bring their Shut Up and Sing event to Facebook Live tonight 7-9.

Kind of a slow news day so far. Back later today or tomorrow with more.

House arrest day 34 (Wed)

Chicky nuggies! Wendy’s is offering free chicken nuggets at its drive-thrus on Friday. You can drive up and get a four-piece of their crispy or spicy chicken nuggets, no charge, no additional purchase necessary. The Downtown Wendy’s is at the corner of Danny Thomas Blvd. and Washington.

The house arrest continues. Mayor Strickland has extended the Safer at Home order to May 5 for the City of Memphis. Looks like we’ll be celebrating Cinco de Mayo on Zoom.

That’s not the biggest news from the mayor yesterday though… he went before the City Council to present the new fiscal year budget. Lost tax revenue for upcoming fiscal year due to COVID-19 is projected to lead to at least an 8-figure shortfall… and lost revenue for this fiscal year ups it to 9 figures. The city has cash reserves to cover most of it, but operating with no cash reserves is a perilous idea; cities can’t operate on defecits the way the federal government can. Layoffs and deep cuts in city services seem unavoidable. If you’re a city employee, you probably should get your resume together and update your LinkedIn page.

Bilingual guitarist and singer Alex Walls will perform a live concert from Health Sciences Park, to be broadcast on Facebook and Instagram by the Memphis Medical Center District Collaborative, Friday at noon.

Education opportunity this Friday:

The Peabody has a plan for Mother’s Day, or as former City Councilman Berlin Boyd calls it, “Yo Mama Day.”

Wait a minute.. most adults (especially ones who can afford a Peabody holiday meal) don’t live in the same household as their mothers. You’re not supposed to be visiting people who live outside your household during quarantine! So be aware that you risk getting lectured by all the “Stay at Home and Wash Your Hands” people on Twitter for being irresponsible if you go this route.

However, some HUGS are safe by social distancing standards.

RIP Scott Bowden, 1990s Memphis wrestling manager and more recently the host of the Kentucky Fried Rasslin’ podcast.

News for my East Memphis readers:

Three words for ya: DUCK FRIED RICE.

From Max’s Sports Bar:

Thanks everyone that came out last Saturday! We had a blast and cant wait to do it again this weekend! @glazescrawfish will be in the pit cooking up mudbugs for $10/lb and shrimp for $15 (prices include sides). And dont forget to add a 6-pack, a slush, or one of our new housemade POPTAILS!

As always, we are looking to be more efficient and get you guys on your way quickly. So please take note of the following –

1. Please comment on our Facebook post to preorder. Cutoff for preorders is 4:00 on Friday. Walk up orders cannot be guaranteed.

2. Preorders will be served from 11:30-1:30. If you are not here by 1:30 your order will not be guaranteed. (no walkup orders before 1:30).

3. Normal menu will not be available until 2:00.

4. We will offer curbside pickup in the alley. But please be patient as we try to take care of any customers in line on the sidewalk as well.

That’s the news for now. Back later today or tomorrow.