Paul Ryburn's Journal

I had a great brunch at Texas de Brazil yesterday with friends. Here’s another insider tip for you, if you go to TdB brunch: They have lobster bisque and breakfast food on the salad bar. Get a piece of bacon and dip it in the lobster bisque. Soooo good.

The Madison is combining their rooftop parties and their Smoking Up High events. For Thursday nights in August and September, you can purchase fine cigars from Havana Mix on the rooftop, as well as bourbons and scotches that complement the cigars. This Thursday they will kick it off with live music by Gary Johns. $7 cover, cash bar.

Author Jon Pendergrass will be at Davis-Kidd tomorrow night from 6 to 8 to sign copies of his book, Pepper Jack. The book is set in Memphis and there are scenes at the Blue Monkey, Mollie Fontaine’s, and many other well-known Memphis venues. I’m not normally a fiction guy but I really enjoyed reading this one.

Couple of sports-related items: There are rumors floating around that the Big East will announce that Memphis is its 17th member, and 9th football-playing member, at its annual media day tomorrow. Of course, more often than not these rumors prove false, but I hope tomorrow is the day we finally make it into a BCS conference.

Great article on Ole Miss football coach Houston Nutt on SI.com. It talks about how Nutt used to be a stand-up guy during his winning years at Arkansas, but now he has turned to the dark side. The article makes him sound like the Calipari of SEC football. I can’t wait for October 23, when Ryan Mallett and the Hogs put a whoopin’ on the Rebels.

Interesting article on Lifehacker this morning about poker faces. The article quotes a study that suggests, when playing poker or engaging in some form of deception, a slight smile is more effective than a completely emotionless stare.

Ah… three-day work week. I knew I’d probably need some time to unwind after our national tournament at work wrapped up (which it did last night), so I scheduled Thursday and Friday off. No idea what I’ll do. Trying to come up with something more interesting than the default value, which of course is “drinking beer at the Saucer.”

Which reminds me… tonight’s Pint Nite at the Saucer, so you know where I’ll be. If you’re looking for other stuff to do, the Salty Dogs running club meets at Bardog at 6:50, although I can’t imagine running in this heat. There’s also trivia with Will at Local at 8.

Time for some boneless wings at Zaxby’s, over and out.

Last night our friend Frank had a big birthday and we celebrated.  Here are a few pics.

Dinner was delicious – I had the char-grilled oysters and the tilapia.  After taking an eternity to get our checks and pay, we headed north to the Saucer where even more people were waiting for us.

Saucer was crowded and sweaty.  This time I’m not blaming the bar – they had the A/C running, but the fact was that at midnight the heat index was still nearly 100 and there was simply no way it could keep up with a room that full of people.

“Anything would be better than sitting here and sweating to death,” I thought.  Then the group proved me wrong by deciding on karaoke at the Blue Monkey as their next destination.  That sounded like the most lame, boring idea on earth, so I broke away from the group at that point and hit Bardog, the Silly Goose, and Rehab Disco over the next three hours.  I ended up at Rockbottom, the downstairs bar of Rehab Disco, a spot I’m starting to like more and more every time I go in there.

Tweet from Frank’s girlfriend Stephanie, who went to karaoke:  “I’d do anything for Frank.  Even this.”

Bardog, by the way, was equally as crowded as the Saucer, yet I did not get more than 5 steps in the door before Melissa was looking my direction and waving a PBR in the air.  I mentioned that I’d reveal of a few of my Best of Memphis votes after voting ended.  Last night was an example of why Bardog got my vote for “Best Service.”

Still full from last night, but it’s time to eat again:  One of the members of our group has half-off coupons to Texas de Brazil, and I got invited to brunch.  Obviously that’s not an invitation I’m going to turn down.  Time to eat some meat!

The Professional Bull Riders will be at the FedExForum August 20 and 21 for the PBR Memphis Invitational.  If you plan on going, hit LivingSocial’s site today – they have tickets on sale for half off.

If you want to learn more about this weekend’s Riverfront Regatta, the CA had an article about it this morning.  As I was driving to work, I notice that they had Riverside Drive blocked off at Union this morning, making me think that Tom Lee Park might be a good place to watch the action.

I’ll be at Trolley Night on South Main tonight.  Since the Elvis’ Leading Lady contest starts right at 6, I guess I better skip my usual pre-party beer at the Saucer and head straight down there after work.

Just checked WeatherBug… heat index at AutoZone Park is 110 right now.  Everyone be careful out there… stay comfortable and hydrated.

Midtowners who live near the 1400 block of Central:  Beware, a coyote has been positively identified in the area.  It has already killed one neighborhood cat.  Use caution with pets and small children.  More details available here.

I’ve posted before that an Elvis-themed pub crawl is being put together for Saturday, August 14, the Saturday night of Elvis week. We did this last year and it was quite successful, with over 70 Elvii and hundreds of dollars and cans raised for the Mid-South Food Bank.

Pub crawl will start at the Flying Saucer at 7, where participants will be able to check in and get identification that they are part of the crawl (important because there will be drink specials at many of the stops). Bring your canned goods or monetary donations to the Food Bank to the Saucer.

The pub crawl will then continue to Blue Fin, through the Peabody lobby, then on to Alfred’s, Silky’s, and back to the Saucer. Plus, you never know what else will happen – last year we were filmed for BBC TV as well strolled down Beale Street!

It’s just over two weeks away, so start thinking about your costume now. You still have time to order from online sites, although you might want to expedite the shipping. Blues City General Store sells Elvis glasses, sideburns and I believe wigs as well, and the Graceland gift shop has Elvis merchandise, of course. Local costume shops should also have Elvis costumes you can buy or rent.

Make your plans to crawl with us, honor the King, and support one of Memphis’ best charities! Search for the crawl under “Stumbling Elvis” on Facebook Events if you want to reply that you’re coming and keep up with the latest news on the event.

Tomorrow night, Friday July 30, is the monthly Trolley Night on South Main beginning at 6 PM. This one will be an Elvis Presley Trolley Night. They sent me a press release and these are some of the high points:

– Hot rods and barbershop quartets will line the streets

– Dress up your favorite Elvis’ Leading Lady for a chance to win prizes at 6 PM

– Elvis tribute concert by Cody Slaughter after the contest

– The film “Elvis, That’s the Way It Is,” sponsored by Woodard Properties to be shown at 9. I’ve been told that if you want to bring blankets to sit on, Harry’s Detour will hold them while you walk around the shops and galleries. Film will be shown in the open field next to Harry’s.

– Trolley Night will be sponsoring the Alzheimer’s Foundation of Memphis this month.

Trolley Night is always a good time, so come on down!

Yesterday was a sad day, as we learned of the loss of former Tiger/Grizzly player Lorenzen Wright. His body was found in a field in Collierville, the victim of multiple gunshot wounds. He was the Grizzlies’ center during the years we made the playoffs. Sincere condolonces to Wright’s family and friends.

Boat racing returns to the Mississippi River this weekend for the Memphis International Riverfront Regatta. This is the professional league of powerboat racers. Should be fun to watch from the riverwalk or a nearby rooftop.

I am thrilled to see another beer festival popping up in Memphis, even if it’s not Downtown. The Cooper-Young Regional Beer Fest will be Saturday, October 9 from 1 to 5 PM at 1015 S. Cooper, corner of Cooper and Walker. Tickets will be on sale August 20 at www.cooperyoung.org. Mmmm beer… this may be worth a cab ride.

Here’s a CA article about the Green Beetle closing. It sounds like the owner is open to ideas for the place, so it might not be gone for good; he just doesn’t want to run it himself, and closing gives him an opportunity to do much needed repairs.

Bluff City Coffee on South Main has announced that they’re now selling sausage biscuits and chicken biscuits for $1.50 each.

A great Memphis band, Garry Goin and G3, plays the Peabody rooftop tonight. They were the house band for EP Delta Kitchen and they are very good. “Soul Food” is this week’s theme, with fried chicken, macaroni & cheese, cornbread, and summer tomato salad on the buffet. In VIP there will be fried green tomatoes with choice of toppings, chicken fried steak fingers with white gravy, and deviled eggs. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up. $10 to get in, price of admission includes first drink, ladies free until 7.

A few blocks away, the Madison rooftop hosts the Daddy Mack Blues Band tonight. $7 admission.

Of course, I know a lot of people are staying home from the rooftop parties tonight to watch the season 2 premier of Jersey Shore. Here’s an article about what to expect for the second season.

Twitter quote of the day, from @SustainableTips: “America could get rid of its need for oil in months if all women agreed to only hookup with guys who drive electric cars.”

In the news: YouTube increases its video time limit to 15 minutes.

Not going out for lunch today… using my lunch hour to type this longer-than usual post, and to vote in the Memphis Flyer Best of Memphis poll. Voting ends tomorrow, so if you haven’t gotten it done yet, you need to. After voting has ended, I’ll do a post about some of my votes… I don’t like doing it before voting has ended, could be seen as an attempt to skew the results.

I got nominated for best Twitterer? WTF? Foursquare check-ins and drunk tweets about tube tops are worth a nomination? Well, glad to know at least some people find my tweets entertaining. I didn’t even vote for myself for the Twitterer category. It’ll be damn funny if I win, though.

Happy birthday to KALMDF, who may be reading this post with her aunt sometime today. KALMDF’s name is too long so I’ll just use her initials as an acronym. 

50/50 on whether I’ll hit the rooftop tonight… if not I’ll probably be at the Saucer working on my 4th plate.

Some people are fans of green beer on St. Pat’s and some are not, but I think everyone can be a fan of a different type of “green” beer. In his blog today, Air Traffic Mike writes about his visit to Outer Banks Brewing Station, America’s first wind-powered brewpub and restaurant. Environmentally friendly beer… I like it.

Trolley Stop Market is having “Burgers & Beats” tonight. In addition to their Neola Farms Burgers, you can enjoy the music as their DJ lays down a few tracks.

The Orpheum is having an open house this Friday, July 30, from 10 AM to 5 PM. If you sign up to be a season subscriber at the open house, they’ll give you free passes to any of their summer movies.

This next one isn’t Downtown, but I promised I’d mention it… The second annual PLUG IN networking event hosted by AIGA, PRSA and AAF Memphis will be held on Thursday, July 29 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. The event will feature drink specials, free appetizers and door prizes. Entertainment will be provided by Delta Nomads, The Revisions and WatchPaper. Event will be at Minglewood Hall.

Congrats to the trivia team on a first-place win last night, as well as a three-week prize win which netted us a $20 gift card from Blue Fin.  Another prize I have no idea how we’ll split up among a large team.

Time to get some shopping done on my lunch break…

Check out their blog here.  Only one post so far, but they have pics of their menus and their pizza.