Paul Ryburn's Journal

Lotsa stuff today on this steamy Thursday…

LivingSocial, another of the group-coupon sites, has a Downtown deal today: half off at South of Beale.

If you’ve been meaning to try Ferraro’s Pizza, they have a special tonight from 7 to 9 – large two-topping pizza and a bucket of four beers for $25.

Trying to decide whether you’d like an Android better than your current phone? Lifehacker has an article explaining how to test-drive Android on your PC.

Ryan Peel, who opened the first Peabody rooftop party of the season, proved to be so popular that he’s back this week. The Peabody says he “brings the sound of old-school soul with a modern pop twist. Think Al Green with the drumming skills of STAX legend Al Jackson, Jr.” Alexis Grace will also appear as a special guest. Food theme is “Passion for Italy” with Mini Pizzas, Meatballs in Marinara Sauce, Penne Pasta Salad w/ Olives, and Ham & Mozzarella on the buffet. IN VIP there will be Antipasto Platter of Italian Meats, Cheeses, Olives, Roasted Vegetables, Toasted Ravioli w/ Marinara Sauce, and Assorted Bruschetta. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.

Shelton Clothiers is putting their spring and summer clothes on sale – 50-70% off sportswear, 50% off suits and sportcoats. The Main/Peabody Place block party from 5:30-7:30 tonight would be a great time to check them out.

I joined Social Media Expedition – Memphis on Meetup.com this morning. Not sure why I’m just now getting around to it – should have joined them months ago.

Randy Houser and Sunny Sweeney play KIX on Beale tonight. I’m not a big fan of country music, but I have to admit, this event draws a lot of tube top hotties. There’s an 18+ after-party at Hollywood Disco on Vance.

It’s also poker tournament night at Calhoun’s, 7 PM but you better get there before 6:30 if you want a box (it’s done on the Buzztime Trivia monitors).

That’s all for now.  Time for a run to Zaxby’s for lunch.

Bicyclists, runners, rollerbladers, skateboarders and unicyclists are being asked to come to City Hall this Friday, July 16 at 12:30 PM. Last month, 30 miles of federally funded bike lanes were excluded from the city’s repaving plans. If you want to have room to bike, come out and show your support, and encourage Mayor Wharton to send the repaving plans back to the city engineers. If Memphis wants to get itself off the “most unhealthy” lists, this is a good way to make it happen.

Google launched a new site about Google Fiber this week. No info on which cities have been selected yet, but they have clearly seen that there is a need for better, cheaper broadband. See this post on the Google blog for additional info.

Voting for the Memphis Flyer’s “Best of Memphis” annual poll is now underway. Although the poll has been copied by imitators, the Flyer’s poll remains “Memphis’ most” relevant indicator of what Memphians love. You can vote here. Unlike the poor imitation, in the Flyer’s poll you only vote once, the way it should be, rather than once per day.

Next Thursday, July 22, will be the season kickoff party for Bravo, ArtsMemphis’ arts group for 21-40somethings. The public is invited to this event at the Center for Southern Folklore, where you will be able to TOUR Center for Southern Folklore and the Belz Museum of Asian & Judaic Art… WATCH a mesmerizing fire performance by Nadia Sophia… DANCE to the soulful sounds of the Bluff City Backsliders… POSE for a rock ‘n” roll portrait in the photo booth… ENJOY fabulous food from The Majestic Grille and beers (free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up)… and PURCHASE discounted memberships for the 2010-11 Bravo season.

Bravo events start with an hour of socializing/networking with great food, beer and wine, and then a performance or tour. Stops this year include the Brooks, Stax Museum, Opera Memphis, Playhouse on the Square, and much more. A complete list of this year’s events can be found here. I was a member of Bravo for 5 years, and it’s a very good way to meet people and learn about all the opportunities Memphis offers to enjoy the arts.

Congrats to my team the Rapscallions on a win at trivia last night. Two weeks in, we’re now the point leaders toward the “big three-week prize” the Saucer is giving away. Pete the Trivia Guy told me the “big prize” is dinner for two at Texas de Brazil, with all the trimmings. How in the world is a team of 15 going to use a prize of a dinner for two?

Speaking of the Saucer, one of the managers told me that Dos Equis Lager is the Fire Sale today… if that’s the case, I will be there for a nice long time after work tonight.  BEER!

AntiDuckface.com is kinda, sorta doing the states in alphabetical order in its “50 states of duckface.”  This morning they posted pics of South Carolina duckface.  They did South Dakota and North Dakota together, so I’m betting Tennessee will be the next post.  Keep your eye on the site… I know for a fact that at least one pic of TN duckface was submitted.

Ya know, maybe the Peabody could do something with this… maybe a pro-duckface contest… although, I don’t know why anyone would want to encourage that.

(Edited to add: Dayum… nice tube top hottie, Rhode Island.)

I copied this Facebook.  I could add witty comments, but wait, I’m drunk.  Just read on.

You’re all invited (bring friends!) to the Pub Run/Crawl this Saturday, July 17!!

Start: Bardog Tavern (73 Monroe Ave) @ 7 PM
Theme: 70’s/DISCO — Dress to impress as there will be guaranteed awesome prizes for best female and male costumes!! (Note: Guys, if you’re planning to attend Raiford’s you cannot wear sleeveless shirts per dress code policy. But no one said anything about short shorts!)
Bring: Credit card/cash (highly recommend cash over cc to make transactions more speedy) and picture ID
Mileage: Approx. 2.2 miles

Route*:
1) Bardog Tavern @ 7 PM (73 Monroe Ave)
2) Flying Saucer @ 7:45 PM (130 Peabody Place)
3) Earnestine & Hazel’s @ 8:30 PM (531 S. Main) — Also a food stop
4) Paula & Raiford’s Disco @ 9:15 PM (14 S. 2nd St.) — 1 mi. from E & H’s so may want to consider taking the trolley/cab to Raiford’s pending functional status (this is where cash could also come in handy!)
*Estimated times. Disclaimer: You are responsible for your own behavior.

FYI: Raiford’s is charging a $10 cover. I asked if they would waive the cover fee, but no luck. Again, guys cannot wear sleeveless shirts so you may have to find alternative but equally creative methods to show off your amazing guns.

Robert Plant is in town tonight, to play a sold-out show at The Orpheum with his band The Band of Joy. Plant received a star on the Orpheum’s Walk of Fame in a ceremony yesterday, and it was proclaimed Robert Plant Day in Memphis. He discusses the new band, Memphis, and Led Zeppelin in the Daily News blog.

If you have an .edu e-mail address, you can get a free year of Amazon Prime, which gives you free two-day shipping on any item purchased, no minimum. Details in this LifeHacker article.

South Main Association meeting tonight at Beignet Cafe. John Moore, president of the Greater Memphis Chamber, will speak on “Memphis by the Numbers.” Free for SMA members, $5 for non-members. Social at 6, meeting at 6:30. Cash bar, complimentary hors d’oeuvres provided by Beignet Cafe. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.

There will be another block party at Main and Peabody Place this Thursday. The Josh Shoe Band and the Slidin’ Clyde Roulette Band will provide live music, and businesses in that block will offer food and drink specials and retail discounts.

Rusty Lemmon will play an acoustic set tomorrow night and every Wednesday at 9 PM at the Silly Goose… I’ll definitely have to check that out… too bad Brick is out of town this week.

Outta here for lunch… I’ll be at trivia tonight at 7 at the Saucer.

On Saturday, July 24 at 8 PM, Paula & Raiford’s Disco will host Disco Dating, an event for singles 25-37.  If you’re single but have been shy about trying a traditional speed dating event, this is one where you can put on your boogie shoes and get down.  $20 includes two complimentary beverages, and you can stay and enjoy the club after the event ends.  To make a reservation, e-mail ladonnamariebooking@gmail.com.  They’re asking people to RSVP in advance so they can keep the number of men and women approximately equal.

If you go to the TweetForHabitat.com website and make a direct donation between 12 AM and 11:59 PM this Thursday, your donation will be matched.

TweetForHabitat is a program that plans to use Twitter to raise funds for Habitat for Humanity to build a house for a family in Memphis.  The program was launched by Brian Swanson of the Purple Ant software/web dev company, and on Thursday Purple Ant will match donations made to the website.

Note that only donations made through their website will be matched.  They have an ongoing corporate sponsorship program where every tweet containing the #Tweet4Habitat hashtag raises .09 in funds.  Those won’t be matched, but what you could do is tweet the address of the website (www.TweetForHabitat.com) to direct people there, and then include the hashtag to kick in an extra 9 cents.

The Flying Saucer has announced their next beer dinner.  It will be Friday, July 23 at 7 PM, hosted by a certified cicerone.  Hell if I know what a cicerone is, but I guess it’s an expert in beer.  I’ve been to several beer dinners at the Saucer, and every one of them was EXCELLENT.  I particularly recommend it to people who enjoy pairing wine with food, but have never taken the notion of beer-food pairing seriously.  You will be surprised.  Amazed, even.  These things do sell out, so if you plan to go, run by the Saucer ASAP and ask to buy a ticket.

Our friend Stevie G hosted a World Cup watch party this afternoon, and Sarah cooked chicken curry.  When more people showed up than expected, she called her mom (who reads my blog from England) for advice, and she said to cook Bombay potatoes.  Here are some pics.

Last night I developed a new unit of measure – a beer’s “value factor.”  It is measured as (ounces per beer) * (% ABV) / cost.  It’s a way of determining which beer gives you the most bang for your buck.

To give an example of the value factor of a well known beer, let’s use John D’s favorite, the Bud Light bottle.  It would compute to 12 * 4.2% / $3.25 = 0.16.

Victory Hop Wallop at the Saucer has a high value factor.  It would be 16 * 8.25% / $5.50 = 0.24.

Foster’s Oil Can at the Saucer also scores high.  Its value factor is 25 * 5.1% / $5.50 = 0.23.

For the best value factor though, go to Calhoun’s.  PBR there: 16 * 5.0% / $2 = 0.4.

Hop Wallop’s value factor did the trick last night.  I got to the Saucer at 10:30, absolutely fuming.  I’d just busted out of a poker tournament, and it was one of the few times I actually got mad about a hand, as my Aces over Fours full house lost to a better full house of Aces over Sevens.  Hop Wallop did the trick, and three beers later I had forgotten that poker even existed.  As I walked out of the Saucer I ran into some people and went to Rehab Disco, where I had a very good time at their downstairs bar, Rockbottom.  They told me they have a beer pong tournament every Thursday night.  I’ll have to check that out.

Ah. Sunday morning.  Getting ready to pack the PBR in a cooler and head to a friend’s place to watch the World Cup final.  Of course, the Saucer is kinda sorta on the way, so I may have to make a stop there.