Paul Ryburn's Journal

I was up early a year ago today, having heard the “ding” of Facebook Messenger from the other room. I made plans to meet someone for a drink at Blind Bear (“BB” as she abbreviated it) two days later on the 14th, then decided there was no point in going back to bed, having to be up in another 45 minutes anyway. I got on my MacBook and checked Twitter to see what was going on.

2016 has seen many musicians die, but in early 2015 we lost some as well. Steve Strange, frontman of the band Visage and leading figure of the New Romantic movement, passed away a year ago today. I had heard of Visage but never really listened to them much when Steve Strange was alive, but I pulled up the band’s most well-known song, “Fade to Grey.”

“This came out in nineteen EIGHTY?” I thought. “I would’ve guessed 1987, and surely no less than 1985. They were YEARS ahead of their time!” It’s too bad artists have to die before people discover their music.

Steve Strange lived a colorful life, operating a nightclub for “the weird and wonderful” for several years. Suffice to say that if you showed up wearing a polo and khakis, you probably weren’t getting past the velvet rope.

But, enough about dead musicians; let’s get on to the news. Michael Donahue of the CA has named Agave Maria’s Cubano sandwich a Best Bet. Manager Jeremy Malone said the Cubano is their most popular lunch item, and beginning March 1 it will be available for dinner as well.

Only in Memphis: A string of deadly shootings involving hair extensions

Monster truck show Monster Jam kicks off a weekend of shows at FedExForum tonight at 7.

Slavehaven Underground Railroad Museum on North Second celebrates its 160th anniversary tomorrow with “In Their Own Words,” a spoken word/poetry event with first-hand accounts of former slaves.

Yikes: 92.9 ESPN tweeted that the University of Memphis gets $0 from FedExForum if Tiger game attendance drops below 6000. Yesterday radio host Gary Parrish, in an appearance on the Chris Vernon Show, said that the Tigers are headed toward $0. And the only solution may be to spend $10+ million dollars to buy out Josh Pastner, followed by more spending on the salary of a new head coach.

In other basketball news/job news, the Grizzlies are seeking a Director of Development.

Thanks to Christ Community Health Services, thousands of people in Memphis get care they could not otherwise afford. The organization is having a fundraiser brunch Saturday, February 20 in the Peabody Skyway at 10:30 AM. This week CCHS demonstrated a recipe for veggie pasta on WREG Live at 9 recently.

Good High Ground News article on Signal Flow PR, an agency in the South Main neighborhood that does marketing for musicians and music businesses. The agency started out in the Emerge Memphis incubator before moving to its current location in 2014.

Washington Avenue will be blocked between 6 AM and 6 PM tomorrow between B.B. King Blvd. and Fourth. The reason is to repair A/C equipment on the roof of 201 Poplar.

Interesting read: Is the competition circuit turning BBQ into the WWE of meat?

More embarrassment for our state: The University of Tennessee football team sexual assault scandal/Title IX gender discrimination lawsuit has made People magazine’s website.

The CA reports that vice president Joe Biden will visit Memphis next Wednesday.

Science has proved that smart people are the most distracted at work. YES!!!!!!!! So true!

Possibly a second post about 5:30, so check back.

Havana Mix is presenting the first annual Cigar Love Affair this Saturday from 6 to 9. It will feature cigar and wine pairings featuring cigars from Cigar Aficionado’s Top 25 list (1 flight with $50 purchase, complimentary flight for additional guest). Chocolates by Phillip Ashley, sultry jazz, exciting raffles. Couples and singles are welcome.

Our Memphis Tigers are fierce. They are aggressive. They are killers. One Memphis tiger showed all of those traits after being transferred to the Sacramento Zoo. He was introduced to another tiger and promptly killed it. Perhaps the Tigers basketball team can channel the spirit of this killer tiger to win remaining games and go far in the AAC tournament.

I saw this for a brief moment on Facebook last night: Andy Griffith gives Cam Newton advice on winning and losing

Check out this Bleacher Report article on the Grizzlies’ Vince Carter. Kobe may be ready to hang it up, but Carter feels he still has some more big games left in him.

Gus’s is now serving chicken in Kansas City.

Police are cracking down on speeding on the interstates. It’s a directive by the new Interim Director of MPD. I personally have seen police cars all over I-55 on my way to and from Horn Lake. Fox 13 reporters drove the posted speed limits on the interstates, and very few cars did not pass them.

The sexual assault allegations and gender discrimination lawsuit against the University of Tennessee has made the news across the pond. The Daily Mail has a report which is worth a read because it has some additional details. Way to go, UT, you’re an international embarrassment now.

Valentine’s Day gift idea: Chocolate covered butter cookies from Makeda’s Cookies. 901-745-2667 to order.

Holly has a post about her recent visit to the Belz Museum of Asian and Judaic Art, an often-overlooked Downtown treasure.

That’s it for this post, possibly a second one later.

I’ve long said that the University of Tennessee athletics program is one of the douchiest in college sports, and yesterday afternoon there was news on that front. Six women filed suit against UT, alleging that they were sexually assaulted by UT athletes, mainly football players. The university uses an unusual adjudication system, the six “Jane Does” alleged, that is biased against the victims and is designed to protect the athletes. Among the school officials acting with indifference toward the allegations, it was said in the lawsuit, were the university’s chancellor, athletic director, and head football coach Butch Jones. The women claim that the university’s procedures violate the Title IX gender discrimination statute.

I hope the women get the justice they deserve, and I hope the university gets the NCAA sanctions it deserves. As for Butch Jones, I wonder if he’ll be trading one shade of orange for another. The University of Tennessee athletic department is just an embarrassment to the other 13 schools in the SEC. Perhaps the conference should dump UT and look to the other end of the Volunteer State for a 14th member.

(Updated: From the Washington Post: Tennessee football players are said to have beat up a teammate after he assisted a woman who accused two players of rape. Athletic coaches were said to be present during the attack. In a November 26 interview, it was said that members of the team had a “hit” out on that teammate.)

Damn, this could turn into the biggest scandal in college sports since Jerry Sandusky. I will monitor this story as it develops and post updates.

Not a good day for my other least favorite university athletics program either: Ole Miss received a Notice of Allegations from the NCAA listing 28 violations, 13 for the football program and 9 that occurred under current head coach Hugh Freeze.

Nor is there good news for my favorite NBA team. Marc Gasol is out with a broken foot indefinitely and could be out the rest of the season. This SUCKS.

There will be a sushi class at Memphis Made Brewery, 768 S. Cooper, Saturday, February 27 at 7 PM. $40 to sign up. Make your reservation here. Class cost includes sushi. Class will last 2 hours.

Former strip club king Danny Owens is out of federal prison. He is in a halfway house in Memphis and is expected to be released in a few months.

Early voting for the March 1 primaries begins today. Downtowners can easily early vote at the Election Commission at Second and Poplar.

I prefer to #FeelTheBern, but if you’re a Hillary supporter, her husband and former president Bill Clinton will be in town tomorrow night to campaign for her at Whitehaven High School.

The Memphis Black Restaurant Week (March 7-13) website is now live. Four Downtown restaurants are participating, including DeJaVu, Onix, the Office @ Uptown, and Scoops Parlor.

The annual Valentine’s Day glass goes on sale at the Flying Saucer tonight at 7.

The Hotties issue of the Memphis Flyer has hit the stands.

I will lead off at the Silly Goose after work. Some of the people who go there are UT fans, and my guess is that they will want to talk about anything other than college sports. I’ll drop by trivia at the Blind Bear later. With Charles getting done at 11:04 last Wednesday, my guess is my newly-employed trivia teammate won’t make it until the end. Neither will I; I’ll be heading out a little before 10 to catch Charvey at the Goose. Time to go brave the cold and run errands. If I learn of any more Downtown news or UT douchery I will do a second post after work.

A week ago, I posted about kale Caesar salad and lime garlic tofu.

This is an apology for that post.

No offense to LYFE Kitchen, because they prepared what I ordered to the very best of their ability.

But that was not me.

This is me.

Nacho chips, melted cheese, beef, beans, lettuce, tomatoes, jalapenos, sour cream.

Me.

Follow @downtownmemphis on Instagram to check out a great new series, the Daily Downtowner series, where you can meet people who live and work Downtown and learn all about their stories.

Copeland Coaching has a new podcast up, with David Williams, the president and CEO of Leadership Memphis. Williams discusses the benefits of something I have long suggested, volunteering while you search for a job.

I’ve posted a lot of Redbirds jobs to this blog lately. Well, in fact there are so many of them that the Redbirds are holding a Seasonal Job Fair Friday, February 19 from 3 to 7 PM and Saturday, February 20 from 9 AM to 2 PM. Positions open include Marketing Assistant, Media Relations Assistant, Sound Board Operator, Boardwalk Operators, Dakstats Operator, Emcees, Usher Supervisors, Box Office Ticket Sellers, Grounds Crew, Operations Assistant, Mascot, Video Board Operator, Boardwalk Supervisors, Public Address Announcer, Team Rockey, Ushers/Ticket Takers, Bat Boys & Bat Girls, and RBI Instructors & Umpires. Be prepared to interview with a member of the Redbirds staff. If applying for multiple positions, a separate application must be submitted for each.

Holly from the I Love Memphis blog has a list of anti-Valentine’s Day things to do. I absolutely HATE Valentine’s Day and Holly has composed a great list. In particular I have heard that the Elmwood Cemetery tour, with “tales of love gone horribly wrong,” is fantastic.

The first ever Memphis City Football Club schedule has been posted. The season runs May 21-July 2.

Mac & cheese lovers: Check out this recipe for PBR bacon mac & cheese. Yum!!! Thanks Stephen!

The Memphis Convention & Visitors Bureau announced that Jeff Homad is the new Vice President and will assume duties formerly performed by John Oros. Homad was recently Executive Director of Sales at the Ocean Reef Club in Key Largo, FL. He has 18 years experience in the hospitality industry.

The University of Memphis wants to renegotiate its FedExForum lease with the Memphis Grizzlies due to declining U of M men’s basketball attendance. As radio host Gary Parrish pointed out, it’s hard to renegotiate a contract when you have absolutely no leverage.

Heading out for PBR. Who knows, maybe there will be a fourth update before I go to bed!

Before I start with the news, I have a Moody Ques announcement. We previously announced that we were going to schedule a cookout and team mixer for this Saturday, February 13. We had hoped to be able to do it at 444 Monroe, the warehouse of our booth design sponsor, Holliday Flowers. However, somewhere in all the planning, we overlooked a couple of key facts:

1) Saturday is the day before Valentine’s Day.

2) Our booth design sponsor is a florist.

Do you see how this might be a problem? Yeah, we didn’t think that date and location all the way through. We are rescheduling the cookout/mixer for a later date. Lots of restaurants are celebrating Valentine’s Day both Saturday and Sunday, so if you wanted to take your Valentine out Saturday, go ahead, you won’t be missing any team functions.

And let’s face it, “HEY HONEY, I’M TAKIN’ YOU TO A BBQ COOKOUT FOR VALENTINE’S DAY” just isn’t all that romantic, is it?

With a forecast high of near 40 on Saturday, I don’t think anyone is going to mind postponing the team mixer too much. Waiting until March is likely to get us some better weather.

By the way, if you haven’t paid your dues yet, you can do so here. Paypal widget is on the right sidebar (web) or at the bottom of the page (mobile). Those who are not team members but are interested in joining for 2016, shoot me an email at paul@paulryburn.com. We have some spots open.

For those of you wondering, “Is he ever going to stop talking about his BBQ team and get on with the news?”, here you go. If you use Google Drive to store your documents in the cloud, you can get 2 gigabytes of free storage today.

The 2016 Memphis Tigers football schedule has been announced. It is looking good, with seven Liberty Bowl home games, seven opponents that played in bowls last year, several national television appearances, a Black Friday home game, and a trip to Annapolis to play Navy.

This yearly post by Downtown agency Red Rover is always worth a read: Winners and losers from Super Bowl 50’s advertising game

Memphis is featured in the L.A. Times. The article covers all aspects of visiting the city. I love how the author said every local rolled their eyes when she said she was going to the Rendezvous, and told her to go to Central BBQ or The Bar-B-Q Shop instead.

Next time you need to buy some electronics, keep in mind that Best Buy is the second-largest retail fundraiser for St. Jude, raising over $10 million a year for the children’s cancer research hospital.

Pro wrestling fan moment: THANK YOU Daniel Bryan/Bryan Danielson. The goat-faced WWE star was forced to retire last night (real life, not a storyline). Having suffered a number of concussions, WWE’s doctors refused to clear Bryan to compete. He leaves us with many great memories including Team Hell No, the “YES!” movement, and the fight against The Authority.

The National Peanut Buying Points Association winter conference comes to the Peabody Thursday through Monday. The association represents more than 400 points where peanuts are contracted, received, weighed, cleaned, dried, inspected, graded and prepared for re-selling later. All U.S.-produced peanuts must be inspected at one of these points.

Possibly a third news post this evening, so check back.

It’s Fat Tuesday, also known as Shrove Tuesday, as well as “Post to Facebook What I’m Giving Up For Lent” Eve. If you’re looking for some good, wholesome entertainment that the entire family can enjoy this evening, allow me to recommend a show at the New Daisy. CRADLE OF FILTH, said to be the UK’s most visionary and hellish outfit, will play at 6 tonight in anticipation of their upcoming studio album, Hammer of the Witches. Tickets are $23-30. I tried to see if there is a discount ticket price for children under 12, but couldn’t seem to find one.

Now, I know most of you are probably not even reading this post anymore because your plans for tonight were set in stone by my first paragraph. However, for those three or four of you who are still with me, I will present a couple of other options for tonight: R5 plays the Cannon Center, and it’s the beginning of a week-long run for A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder at the Orpheum.

From the MBJ: A developer who owns seven pieces of property in The Edge, including the recently-acquired Wonder Bread factory, sees “Live, Work, Play” potential in the neighborhood. As someone who hangs out in bars a lot, the most exciting piece of news in the article to me is that the developer intends to fix up the former Kudzu’s fairly quickly. They then want to find an owner/operator who is interested in running a restaurant/bar in the space. It’s just a dream, but oh, man, I would love to see Aldo get his hands on that place. Something that’s kinda halfway between Bardog and Slider Inn sounds perfect for that location and that neighborhood.

There’s an Afro-Cuban Valentine’s Day Dinner art Art Village Gallery, 410 S. Main, from 7 to 9 PM Saturday. Nigerian chef Hilda O. will prepare a 5-course dinner with African and Cuban influences. She made a Nigerian side dish at WREG Live at 9.

NOT GOOD: Climate change threatens the growth of hops, a key ingredient in beer.

The Flying Saucer is having a Saucer Gras party tonight. There will be cask tappings by Abita Brewing Company, along with king cake and beads.

From the New York Post: Matt Barnes gets revenge on recently fired Knicks coach Derek Fisher on Instagram without even saying a word.

Madison Cypress Lakes Apartments is seeking a leasing consultant. Experience pulling cars out of lakes is a plus.

I found a couple of articles from Lifehacker worth sharing. First of all, new app Notarize lets you get documents notarized straight from your phone. You’ll need your driver’s license, and it costs $25 compared to the handful of bucks it would cost in person; but if you’re busy or pressed for time, this could be really convenient.

Also from Lifehacker: Spot a liar by increasing their cognitive load with open-ended questions. Very true and I will throw in an additional piece of advice: If you believe someone is lying to you, try to use text or a chat platform for as many of your conversations as possible. Anything they say face-to-face can be denied later, and you have to have permission to record phone conversations. With text and chat, however, a history is automatically created, giving you a paper trail.

For those of you who also #FeelTheBern, there will be a grand opening for Bernie Sanders’ campaign office at 2986 Poplar on Saturday, February 13 from 11:30 AM to 5 PM. Party begins at 12, training for canvassing at 3, door-knocking at 4. This event is family-friendly and there will be a kids’ lounge with games and toys.

I have also read that the circus is coming to town between now and the Tennessee primary. Donald Trump will give Tennessee political leaders a 24-hour advance notice of when he plans to bring his unique brand of racism and demagoguery to Memphis.

Time to head to work. I get to play with some cutting-edge stuff today, so I am kind of looking forward to today. Possibly a second post at lunch or after work, so check back.

What a waste of a weekend. I have been trying to kick a sinus infection that I have had for a week and a half. As of this morning it is officially gone, but I had to sleep 12 hours Saturday night and through the last three quarters of the Super Bowl Sunday night to make it happen.

I always have weird dreams when not feeling well. Last night I dreamed I opened a joint checking account with the Oregon Ducks mascot. No idea why.

Article that is worth a read if you’re into Memphis music: Rodd Bland is bridging the gap between blues old and new. The son of Bobby “Blue” Bland and the godson of B.B. King was asked to lead the procession carrying Lucille at King’s funeral.

The Grizzlies are having an Islamic Heritage Night Sunday, March 6. There will be a post-game event on the court for an hour and a half following the game.

Our BBQ teammate from Monclova, Mexico, Mardoqueo (Kao for short), is in town for a week. We told him, “You have to try Maciel’s Tortas and Tacos on the Main Street Mall,” we told him. “It seems like authentic Mexican to us, but we want to hear it from you.”

So, Saturday, Kao went in. “I spoke to the owner in Spanish,” he told me. “All the recipes are his grandmother’s. An older chef taught him the ways of the North American customer. The food is the real deal. Their salsa is homemade, which is a big plus. I had the Cuban torta. Very generous portions of everything. I hadn’t eaten lunch and had trouble finishing it.” There you go. Authentic Mexican, certified by a Mexican.

The Grizzlies host the Portland Trailblazers tonight at 7 at FedExForum.

@SRiley_WREG3 reported that a committee is considering addressing panhandling in Memphis the way Albuquerque does, offering panhandlers a chance to work for a day rather than issuing them a citation. I don’t think that would completely solve Memphis’ panhandling problem but it is a step in the right direction.

All right. Flurries are possible this afternoon so I better get to Kroger. BREAD AND MILK, MILK AND BREAD! I will be out at the usual places after work.

Here’s a quick roundup of Super Bowl specials at Downtown bars. This is based on social media posts, what I remember seeing on chalkboards at the bars, and Holly’s Super Bowl post (which covers all of Memphis, not just Downtown).

By the way, advice to bar owners: If you’re running Super Bowl specials, why the heck wouldn’t you put them on social media? It’s not like it costs you any extra to use Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram for that purpose. Posting them the day of is fine, but why not post them several days in advance as well? There’s not an additional fee for posting the same info twice, after all. Gives people time to talk to their friends about your specials, and decide that yours is the place to go. Also, it gives bloggers like me time to find the information and round it up in one big post like this one.

5 Spot is having a party from 4 to 9. A $10 arm band guarantees you a seat and food and drink specials. Specials include $1 off beer, wings, Ferraro’s Pizza, Bumblebee Stew, chips and dip, and meat and cheese platters. They will also have Carolina Sweet Tea vs. Denver Orange Crush shooters.

Bardog has 50 cent wings and $1.50 sliders during the game.

B.B. King’s: $2.50 Bud Light and Miller Lite pints; $3 Fireball; $3.50 domestic bottles; $4 well cocktails; $15 domestic beer buckets (5 bottles); $5 baskets: mini corn dogs, jalapeno poppers, boneless wings, fried pickles, catfish bites; $6 Nacho Papi Nachos (plain, chicken, or pork); $7 sandwiches with fries: cheeseburger, pulled pork, hickory chicken, catfish poboy; $10 Big Game Sampler, a combo of mini corn dogs, jalapeno poppers and boneless wings; $20 for the Big Game Sampler plus a bucket of four bottled domestic beers.

Blind Bear has $5 chips, cheese dip, and salsa; $7 hot dog covered with cheese and Colin’s award winning chili, with pepper jack mac & cheese; 16-ounce aluminum bottles of Bud and Bud Light 1 hour before, during, and up until 1 hour after the game.

The Brass Door will have a $7.50 BBQ chicken plate, $3 Panthers and Broncos cocktails, and $3.50 Memphis Made Lucid, High Cotton ESB, and Brooklyn Lager. $10 for 6 mixed beer buckets.

Coyote Ugly will have $2 domestics and $4 Fireball.

Double J will be doing a raffle both upstairs and downstairs. Every beer bucket you buy will get you a raffle ticket. Drawings will be done at halftime and the end of the game, with prizes including a smoker, T-shirts, and cornhole boards.

Flying Saucer has $3.50 drink specials during the game, as well as a buffet.

Huey’s will have $3.50 Bud and Bud Light aluminum bottles, 2-for-1 selected drafts and 2-for-1 well drinks. Eagle Distributing will be at the Downtown location 9:00-10:30 to sample some of their new 16-ounce aluminum bottles, and they will have swag to give away.

Kooky Canuck has 50 cent wings (dine in only) and $3.99 34 oz. Labatt Blue Canadian draft beer.

Local has complimentary Cool Ranch Doritos on every table. There will be Smoked Meat sandwich specials, as well as beer bucket specials and table taps.

Max’s Sports Bar will have a ton of giveaways including shirts, a fancy cooler, and a Tin Roof Brewery neon sign. PBR is always $2.50 at Max’s.

Tin Roof will have $3 Fireball, beer bucket specials, and wing & nacho specials. Each shot you buy gets you a square on the board, with prizes awarded at the end of each quarter and the end of the game.

Tug’s will have happy hour specials 3 to close, and a $25-100 gift card drawing every hour. Give email address or Like the restaurant on Facebook and be present to win.

In other news, happy DIRTY 30 to my favorite vegetarian Katie. This is not Katie Mac or Katie (not Mac) who get mentioned on here from time to time. This is the Katie for whom we made a vegetarian version of our Anything But burger at Best Memphis Burger Fest 2015. Vegetarians love the Moody Ques!

Katie and her friend Staci (pictured below) called me about 9:30 last night. Unfortunately I had taken NyQuil and gone to bed early to try to fight off a sinus infection that has plagued me for the past week, resulting in one of the most incoherent phone conversations ever. Katie said she will be in town next month.

Today I will lead off at Blind Bear at 11 as usual. However, at this moment I am completely undecided about where to watch the Super Bowl. The easiest option would be to stay at the Bear and watch the big game. The other option, and a very appealing one, is to head south to Max’s Sports Bar, which I feel like is where I should be watching the game. It will be a game time decision (literally) and friends will have a lot of power to influence me.

Gonna go ahead and get this posted so people have plenty of time to read. If I missed anything email me at paul@paulryburn.com in the next couple of hours and I will add. Will not be near a computer from 11 AM on.

I’ll start off today’s post with some food porn: Here’s a link to an image of the Strawberry Cheesecake Crepe with a side of Chocolate Gelato from Scoops Parlor, the new crepe and gelato parlor on G.E. Patterson across the street from Cheesecake Corner and Max’s Sports Bar.

Barry Manilow plays FedExForum Wednesday at 7 PM. He will tour with guest saxophonist Michael Lington. Call 800-745-3000 to order tickets, which start at $19.75.

There will be a Mardi Gras parade on Beale Street Tuesday at 5 PM.

On Tuesday, February 16 there will be a $10 beer bust at the New Daisy featuring local beer and a battle of two bands, Dead Soldiers vs. Heels. There will also be a VIP lounge with Ranch spa and Pancho’s cheese dip isolation tank. I have no idea what that means, just copied it from Facebook.

Central BBQ is opening a catering kitchen at 239 Jefferson. Their catering volume has gotten so big that it is getting cramped to do it out of one of their three restaurants. That is a nice problem to have.

I don’t know if I have any readers out there who consider themselves feminists, but on the off-chance that I do, here’s a read for you: The Petticoat Rebellion of 1916

MPD unveiled a new station at 444 N. Main this week. The building is also the MATA North Main Terminal and a drop-off point for Megabus, and it is visible from the Pyramid, giving the police a big presence in the area. The new station replaces the South Main Station, where officers did not have enough rooms to do their jobs as best they could. The detective unit has moved from 201 Poplar into the new station, allowing tighter integration between that unit and other officers.

Time to start the weekend. Bardog is my first stop, with four more planned after that. Back tomorrow.