Paul Ryburn's Journal

I happened upon a very good site this morning… Schedule Memphis, a new community calendar which will list all the best events, conferences, meetings, and workshops in town. It’s just getting started, but hopefully Memphis organizations will get on board this week and make this calendar a valuable community resource.

Good lunch with friends yesterday at Texas de Brazil. My friend Lee is a member of their VIP club and purchased a half-off discount card… for about the price of one dinner, he purchased a card good for 10 half-price dinners. We went for brunch yesterday, so we got the usual meats, the salad bar, bacon, sausage, and other breakfast items. We also had the option of adding an “unlimited mimosa” for a few dollars more, and let me tell you, the server was not shy about refilling those things. With the half-price deal, my tab for all that food was only $30.89. Not bad at all.

I’ve come up with a new idea… there are a lot of Eastern Europeans who work at TdB. Don’t they make like 70 grand a year there? I need to marry one of them, and then I can quit my job and sit on my ass all day while she supports me. She has to be hot and look good in a tube top. If any TdB employees are interested in taking me up on this, let me know at paul@paulryburn.com. (Send photos)

After stops at the Saucer and Kooky Canuck, I ended up at Bardog Tavern yesterday, where I spent hours sitting at the bar talking. Very comfortable. I think I’m going to start paying more attention to Bardog. I met the creator of their Salty Dog Monday night (7 PM) and Wednesday morning runs (7 AM). People go on a run, at their own pace, then return to Bardog for beer, drinks and specials.

Of course, other Monday events include trivia at Local with Will (8 PM), poker at the Silly Goose (7:30 PM and 11:30 PM), and Pint Nite at the Saucer (all day).

Thinking about buying an extended battery for my iPhone… between Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, my Heads-up Hold’em app, and Words with Friends (to which I recently returned after a 6-month hiatus), I ran the iPhone all the way down yesterday.

Lunch time. I’ll be at Pint Nite after work.

Just a quick reminder that there’s a Tony Awards watch party tonight at the Westin, with free hors d’oeuvres and drink specials.  Party starts at 5, Tonys start at 7.  The people at the Westin really want to meet more of their Downtown neighbors, so stop on by.

I’m sure the Nuh-Uh Girl will probably stop by and hit the free food, but I won’t need it… going to Texas de Brazil for lunch.  I may snap a few pics, if I’m not too busy eating.

All right, it’s Tube Top Month so I have to dig up a pic before I can post… let’s see what I’ve got.

There ya go… tube top pic from Memphis Brewfest.  Happy Sunday Fun Day everyone.

Here are some pics from this weekend, taken with my new camera.

First pic ever taken with the new camera. Taken by Mikey the Camera Nazi.

Speaking of whom… here’s Mikey now.

Uncle Ray

Brick turning her best side toward the camera for this photo

Here’s a pic of the Nuh-Uh Girl eating.

Three of the few England fans downtown for the soccer match today.  The rest of Downtown (me included) was for the USA.  I was told we’d be lucky if it went zero-zero, but 1-1 is perfectly acceptable.

Hotness

Dinner tonight: Char-grilled oysters from Pearl’s

I need to have a talk with my subconscious mind.  This morning right before I woke up, I had a dream that the federal government was moving a few employees into office space at Target because of the bad economy.

Really?  That’s the best I can do?

I could have dreamed about removing the tube top pictured at left.

I could have dreamed that arch-enemy Meghan came up to me and said, “I just wanted to say goodbye, Paul, I’m moving to Tashkent, Uzbekistan and will probably never return to Memphis.”

I could have dreamed of taking a trip to Romania for some fun with the beautiful women of Eastern Europe.

I could have dreamed of winning the lottery and putting an end to this “having a job” thing.

But no.  I dreamed that the federal government was moving a few employees into Target.

Anyway.  On with the news.

If you’re proud that you made the choice to be a Memphian, you might want to bookmark this website.

So Nebraska is off to the Big Ten… and it looks like the Big 12 will be out of business by the end of next week.  I’m going to make a suggestion here.  They say football drives the revenue engine, and there’s no money to be made in basketball.  Let’s prove them wrong.  How about a basketball power conference of Memphis, Kansas, Kansas State, Baylor, Missouri, Iowa State, Butler, Louisville, Cincinnati, UAB, UTEP, and Gonzaga?  Tell me there would not be some money to be made in that conference.  Maybe add the University of Houston since it’s a big TV market.

Just a few hours until the USA vs. England World Cup match.  I’ve already decided I’m going to drive the sport’s purists crazy by saying “soccer” rather than “football” as often as possible, and “zero” rather than “nil.”

I want to try out different places for World Cup watching, so I think I’ll watch one period of the soccer match at Bardog, and the other period at Local.  Subject to change.  Those of you with my cell number, text me if anything particularly interesting is going on at other places Downtown.  (By “particularly interesting” I mean “tube tops,” as I really don’t care that much about soccer.)

Time to jump in the shower and get the day started.  GO USA!!!

Congratulations to Bill (pictured below), who with a little bit of coaching won the contest I ran in my blog yesterday.

I posed a hypothetical situation where the Nuh-Uh Girl walked into a restaurant owned by Jedi Master Yoda from the Star Wars movies.  She’d likely look at the menu and go, “Oooh, the Force Salad, I’d love to try a sample of that.  And I’d love to try a little of the Dagobah sea bass… and I sure would like to try a Jedi Slider… and I’d like to try a Lightsaber Dog too…”

What would Yoda say to her?  Bill guessed what I was thinking.

“Buy, or buy not; there is no try.”

Bill wins a beer from me next time I see him at Pint Nite.

I have more details on the Tony Award viewing party happening Sunday from 5-7 PM in the Westin lobby. There will be live music from the lobby bar piano, multiple TVs available for viewing, 2-for-1 wine and beer specials throughout the event, complimentary valet parking, and complimentary hors d’oeuvres. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up. Event is sponsored by the SMA. Everyone come root for Memphis the Musical and Million Dollar Quartet! They’re trying to get a headcount, so if you plan on attending, they’d really appreciate it if you’d RSVP to joan.robinson@westinmemphis.com. Joan tells me that the Westin wants to get more locals in their wonderful bar, and is really going above and beyond to make that happen.

The Nuh-Uh Girl is now tweeting pics of the food she panhandles. Here’s a pic she tweeted of the free samples she had at Schnucks yesterday – fish tacos and corn with tomatoes.

Two classic movies at the Orpheum this week: Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is tonight. At 6:15 there will be a costume contest – dress like a character in the movie to win prizes. Movie starts at 7:15.

Tomorrow they will show Gone with the Wind. If you’re a Southern belle, come at 6:15 in a hoop skirt for a chance to win dinner at Texas de Brazil, because “as God is our witness, you’ll never be hungry again!” Movie at 7:15. If you don’t feel like wearing a hoop skirt, wear a tube top. Or wear a tube top and a hoop skirt, even better.

There will be an ’80s dance party in the upstairs of the Red Rooster, in the old Double Deuce space at Fourth and Beale, tonight starting at 9 PM. DJ Michael J. Foxx will spin ’80s, ’90s. and whatever else to make you shake a tail feather.

I have a big problem with this editorial. It says, “no one wants to discuss a mortgage with a banker in a tube top.” You know what? If I ever decide to buy a condo, and a mortgage banker in a tube top wants to talk to me, she’s likely got my business.

New camera has arrived.  Off to buy an SDHC card for it, so it can hold lots of tube top pics.

The FIFA World Cup matches kick off today.  If you’re up early and don’t have to go to work, you might want to check out Bardog Tavern.  They’ll have the matches on their TVs, and they open at 8 AM on the weekdays.  You can get a Bardog breakfast or a Bloody Mary while you watch.

Time to give away a prize.  First person to get this exactly right wins a Pint Nite beer at the Saucer on my tab.

Here’s the question:  If Yoda owned a restaurant, what would he tell the Nuh-Uh Girl?  Winner must come up with the exact wording I’m thinking of.

Everyone, including the Nuh-Uh Girl herself, is eligible to enter.  E-mail entries to paul@paulryburn.com.

One of my favorite food blogs is Dining with Monkeys, where writer Stacey Greenberg takes the monkeys (her kids) out to restaurants all over the city, and blogs about her experiences. She recently blogged about a gem I discovered when I worked near #memphisairport – Maharaja Cafe, in a strip mall on American Way. Delicious Indian food, and be sure to buy some snacks at the grocery next door on your way out.

However, the next post down saddened me – she wrote that South Philly had closed. I guess the competition from the new Lenny’s two blocks down the street was too much for them. I only ate there a handful of times, but South Philly had delicious cheese steaks. Kelly at the Saucer is not going to be happy when she hears about this closing.

In other food news: John Bragg from Circa posted two his Foursquare account that an expanded Cravings menu is coming soon, and that house-ground sliders are another coming attraction. Those sliders made an appearance at the May Main Street block party, and received rave reviews. I can already hear the Nuh-Uh Girl saying, “If you need to try out any new items on the Cravings menu, I’m a great taste tester! And I’d love to try one of your new sliders!” The Nuh-Uh Girl is a big fan of the word “try.”

Friday night the Redbirds will have a celebration honoring something commonly done at baseball games – clapping. Giveaways will include albums from Eric Clapton and Clap Your Hands, Say Yeah, as well as infomercial product The Clapper, and a chance for fans to practice their golf clap with tickets to the St. Jude Classic. A lucky row of fans will win bobbleheads given away by Redbirds legend Stubby Clapp, and between innings there will be movie and music clips related to clapping and its history. Game is at 7:05 PM vs. the Iowa Cubs. I’ll give ladies who wear tube tops to the game a thunderous round of applause.

Gabby Johnson plays the Peabody rooftop tonight. Theme is “Caribbean Nights,” with Red Stripe and Bohemia as the featured beers, and a menu of shredded jerk chicken with BBQ sauce, beans and rice, and tropical fruit. In VIP there will be spicy jerk pork kabobs, tostones, sweet potato croquettes, and jalapeno mango salsa. Better get there early, before the Nuh-Uh Girl “tries” all the food and leaves the buffets bare. If you’re looking for an alternative to the rooftop, it’s trivia night at the Silly Goose (7 PM) and poker night at Calhoun’s (7 PM, but you better get there by 6:30 to get a box).

Still trying to figure out where I’ll be watching the USA vs. England game on Saturday.

Outta here for a quick lunch… will be out somewhere tonight, possibly the rooftop.

GREAT NEWS!!!! The Plush Club has been closed as a nuisance. It will stay closed at least until a hearing is held on the matter. Details here.

The Westin has announced a Tony Awards Watch Party in their lobby bar Sunday night. It’s a big year for the city, with Memphis the musical receiving 8 nominations and Million Dollar Quartet receiving three. Happy hour prices, and hors d’oeuvres from Sole. Bar opens at 5, awards begin at 7.

A few months ago, I talked with noted therapist Doctor Harold Toboggans at the “I Love Memphis” party at South of Beale. Doctor Toboggans counsels people and cures them of urges to volunteer, to make their community a better place.

At one time, Dr. Toboggans told me, I was badly in need of his help. I was a real do-gooder, serving on the board of MPACT Memphis, and leading a movement to fight panhandling Downtown. However, lately I’ve mainly lived a life of selfishness and hedonism, and Dr. Toboggans thought I seemed to have overcome my do-gooder ways. Still, he gave me a card in case I ever find myself backsliding.

Recently, I’ve been wondering if I need to call him. Yeah, I started Tube Top Month because of my perverted appreciation of tube tops, but lately I’ve been using phrases like “make Memphis a more beautiful place” when speaking of the month. Uh oh. That sounds like I’m trying to better the community. This could be the beginning of a slippery slope. What if this helping-others thing leads to next month being “Volunteer at the Church Health Center Month?” Or “Deliver Meals for MIFA Month?” Help, Doctor Toboggans!

So, I was thinking this morning… if the big conference realignments do indeed take place, what if we ended up in a conference that looked something like this: Kansas, Kansas State, Baylor, Iowa State, Memphis, UAB, Cincinnati, Marquette, Houston, and SMU? Yeah it’d be a sucky conference for football, but it’d be a basketball powerhouse. Could add UTEP and Rice if it needs to be a 12-school conference. Or UTEP and Southern Miss. Not real sure Rice adds any real value, other than what little prestige it has from being a former member of the Southwest Conference.

Then again, money drives realignment, and the big money is in football, not basketball, so this is all just wild speculation.

Time for a quick lunch then a 2 PM meeting.  I love meetings almost as much as I love cubicles.  After work:  Beer, somewhere.