Paul Ryburn's Journal

Hopefully this will make up for the lack of posts today.  Below are pics of a new bar on Beale, Absinthe Room Billiards.  It has 3 private pool rooms, 2 overlooking Beale, and a cozy, intimate feel.  $2 PBR cans.  It’s above King’s Palace at 162 Beale.  They told me that for now, they plan on opening 6 PM weekdays and 4 PM Sat-Sun (or was it Fri-Sat? Stupid beer, can’t remember)  Anyway, here are some pics.

(Edited to add:  I guess I should mention they also have a full bar, and I saw absinthe in one of the cabinets, so they are true to their name.  They also have a fairly good sized selection of domestic and import beers, considering the size of the place.  Apologies for leaving these details out of the original post – I tend to have a one-track mind when I see PBR on the menu.)

No lunchtime post today.  I spent the entire hour eating and running errands.

I did see a good site on Twitter today and wanted to share it – AntiDuckface.com.  I fully support the mission of this site.

Dr. Zarr plays the Peabody rooftop tonight from 6-10.  Get there early, before the Nuh-Uh Girl eats all the food!  I’ll probably have a warm-up beer at the Saucer then head down there.

The Red Rooster is having a crawfish boil this Friday, May 7, starting at 5 PM at their new location at Fourth and Beale.

If you have a dog and would like a dog park Downtown, get on Facebook and join the “I Support Downtown Doggies Dog Park!” group.

There will be parade next Tuesday on Beale at 10 AM, as the Memphis CVB kicks off National Tourism Week.  Hey, I’ll be on vacation!  I’ll have to go.  I imagine the parade will end around 11… hope I can find someplace nearby that serves beer.

Al Lyon, member of the Board of Directors of Memphis in May, will speak at the South Main Association next Tuesday, May 11, at Rum Boogie Cafe on Beale.  Cash bar, and hors d’oeuvres provided by River City Management’s restaurants.  Free food?  Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.

The Peabody/Chez Philippe will host a Taste of Tunisia dinner to celebrate Memphis in May’s honored country on May 7-8 from 6-10 PM.  The evening will feature a menu created by Chez Philippe’s Chef Reinaldo Alfonso and guest Chef Rafik Tlatli of Tunisia.  Cost is $65 and this is an official MiM-sanctioned event.  Reservations: 901-529-4188.

Coming up on the end of my hour lunch break, and I am outta here… will start work on the longer BBQ Fest orientation post tonight.

I plan to do a longer post explaining what Memphis in May BBQ Fest is all about, how I came to be on a team, what I do on the team, etc., as soon as I find time to type it. Right now, though, I want to take a minute to say “cheers” to the sponsors of our team The Ques Brothers. We have a really, really, super cool new sponsor this year and I’m excited beyond belief. I’ll tell you who it is in a minute. I’ll give you a hint – in a sense, you’re looking at it right now. And no, it isn’t me or one of my websites.

First, though, I want to say “thanks” to our returning sponsor, Circa by John Bragg. Circa is back with us for our third year. They’ve been a great help, having provided beer, tables, cups, napkins, a distribution point for membership packets, and lots more in the years they’ve been a sponsor. Plus, their food is pretty darn good. Check out the menu on their website if you’ve never eaten there. Insider’s tip: That new halibut dish that they just added is amazing.

Another returning sponsor is Holliday Flowers.  When we got to our booth space the Sunday before BBQ Fest last year, it was a muddy, smelly pit.  In three days, Brent from Holliday built a structure that looked like a posh nightclub.  We had wood bars, bench seating, a facade that looked like a cliff on Easter Island… we had it all.  He’s back this year and I can’t wait to see what he has in mind.  If you need an event planned or decorated, you really need to give them a call.

All right… now for the announcement of the new sponsor… as I said, in a sense, you’re looking at it right now… because it’s the engine I use to publish my blog. That’s right, WordPress is our newest sponsor. If you want to get technical, WordPress is an open-source project found at wordpress.org. WordPress.com is the commercial arm, and that’s who is sponsoring us.

I wish I could take credit for the sponsorship, but I can’t… team member Otto wrote a significant amount of code for the current version, and for the upcoming beta versions. The head guy, Matt Mullenweg, was in Memphis recently, and Otto had lunch with him. Matt’s a huge BBQ fan, so Otto contacted him and asked if he’d like to sponsor a team.  I hope I get to meet Matt in person this weekend.

Looking forward to a great BBQ Fest with our sponsors… and even more than that, I’m looking forward to Friday at 5 PM, when my week vacation starts.

I still have 10 minutes left in my lunch break – they expanded us to an hour.  Guess I’ll see how much news I can type up before my break is over.

I don’t have a lot of time to post before work this morning, so instead I’ll link you to a blog that I’ve been meaning to mention lately:  The Swell Belle.  The Swell Belle does interior design, and she writes about that, as well as jewelry and vintage clothing she finds around town.  She’s been mentioned on this blog before but I’m not allowed to reveal her identity.

Congrats to the trivia team on a first-place win last night – we actually ended up with more points than were possible, due to an extra credit beer.  Afterward I went to the Silly Goose and caught the Stepbrothers, Cameron and Tyler, in their second-to-last performance.  I got a few pics of them which I will download and post later.  I also got a few pics of Brick in her new work uniform.

Fun night coming up tonight – Cinco de Mayo parties at Kooky Canuck and the Silly Goose.

I need to do a BBQ post soon, kind of an orientation for people who’ve been reading this blog for less than a year about what it’s like to be on a Memphis in May BBQ Fest team.  Maybe I’ll work on that at lunch.

The Majestic Grille is having a special lunch with Buddy Guy this Thursday, May 6. Tickets are $75 and include an autographed Blues Music Awards poster, a meet & greet with Buddy, a buffet lunch, and a viewing of a “Buddy & the Blues” art show. Call 522-8555 if you want to make a reservation – they’ve said that space is limited, so this will likely sell out.

I’ve learned of another Cinco de Mayo party – the Silly Goose will have $3 margaritas and $2 tacos Wednesday night from 5 PM until they sell out. I went to their party last year and it was a blast… people loved the tacos, in fact they loved them so much that they ran out before I got to try one. Wow between this and the Kooky de Mayo party around the corner, I wonder if I’ll even make it to the Saucer for my daily stop. I wonder how you say “Brick” in Spanish?

The Goose will also have an event tonight – they’re celebrating the launch of Inocente Tequila, beginning at 7 PM.

This Saturday there’s a Super Saturday tour with historian Jimmy Ogle. Join him at 1:30 PM at Front and Union, and he’ll take you of a walk-around tour of Downtown, where you’ll tour the cobblestones, river, railroads, promenade, Cotton Row, Main Street, the Peabody and more. Tour lasts until 4 PM and is free of charge. It’s presented by the CCC. Check their website for a full calendar of lunchtime events happening this week.

Twitter quote of the day, from @watchdogon3: “Diane Hampton of MIM says she’s angry how newspaper predicted weather before it occured. THAT’S WHAT WEATHERMEN DO. It’s called a forecast.”

More to come later. Right now I’m going to make a run to Zaxby’s for some chicken. I’ve never eaten at Zaxby’s before.

This Thursday’s Peabody rooftop party is one of the most anticipated of the year: Get ready to boogie down with Dr. Zarr’s Amazing Funk Monster! Time for me to break out the disco moves.

The theme this week will be “Celebrate Europe.” Food buffet items will include Boeuf Bourguignon, Cheese Fondue with French Bread Squares, and French Fries with Assorted Toppings. If you’re in VIP, there will be a French Cheese Platter with Grapes, Strawberries, Assorted Crackers and French Bread, Artichoke Breaded with Boursin, and Assorted Open Faced European Sandwiches. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up. Featured beer this week in VIP is Blue Moon. Not sure what Blue Moon has to do with Europe, but I’ll drink it nonetheless.

I’m home from work and it’s time for Pint Nite.  The 11:30 poker game at the Silly Goose is starting to seem like a good idea, especially if Brick’s working.

Last night I had a great dinner at Bangkok Alley – a bomb roll and a Massaman curry which I told them to make extra spicy. I finished about 7:30, paid my tab, and walked out unto Union Avenue. There I found a truck with a dented fender, pulled over by 7 police cars. The truck had careened northbound up Front Street, smashing into a tree, then demolishing a light post, then swideswiping two cars. He turned eastbound on Union where the police finally pulled him over.

That incident pretty much summarizes why I hate Music Fest weekend… besides the weather issues, there’s the fact that it draws the biggest idiots from the entire region. This morning I walked to my parking garage to drive to work, and I saw how many people had left empty glass beer bottles in the parking space next to them when they pulled out. No regard for the fact that the car parked in the next space might get a flat when the driver pulls out without seeing the bottles.  Seriously, is it that hard to find a trash can?

People walking down Main Street going “WOOOOOOOO” at 4:30 in the morning, waking up residents and hotel guests.

I really, really, really hate Music Fest weekend. I’m glad I’m independent and don’t get paid to blog by some civic organization like some of my friends are, because I just can’t put a positive spin on this mess. The weekend completely sucked and I’m glad it’s over.

I guess it could be worse. I could have bought a ticket, not seen the bands I paid to see, and then been chased out of the park early, soaking wet. Not that I’m blaming Memphis in May or the performers… I think MiM made the decisions they needed to make. Had I gone, I’d have been given access to the Memphis Flyer tent with free food and beer. You know it’s a bad situation when I turn down free beer.

Or I guess I could have had a worse time if I worked in the service industry and had 12-hour days dealing with idiots.

All right, lunch break is over… hopefully I’ll post something more positive when I get home from work.

Okay, nothing much interesting to blog about this morning.  Well, several interesting things did come up yesterday, but “Paul, you’re not allowed to blog this” was involved in every one of them, so I’m not allowed to share.

I’m trying to use Twitter more effectively, to let people know about drink and food specials I see as I wander the streets of Downtown.  Follow me at @paulryburn to receive those tweets.  Of course, you have to put up with a lot of crap tweets too, stuff like my zillion Foursquare checkins at the Saucer, trash-talking #douchebags, commentary on what the Nuh-Uh Girl is eating, etc.  @DowntownMemphis is also a good Twitter account to follow.  They retweet a lot of restaurant and bar tweets about their specials.

One note about the @firesale account:  That’s not the Flying Saucer.  That’s my account.  I find out what the Fire Sale is and tweet it, either by getting the info from the Saucer’s official account (on days they remember to tweet) or from people who work Downtown who text me the Fire Sale.  I don’t get paid to do it or anything – it’s just something several Downtowners discussed doing for a while, to keep us all informed, and I figured out how to make it work via Twitter.  So if you don’t like the chosen beer of the day, it doesn’t do any good to bitch to @firesale about it.  The Saucer’s account is @FlyingSaucerMem.

Time to go out… not hungry, so not doing brunch this week.  Saucer doesn’t open until 12… what to do?  Hmmm maybe I’ll go by Kooky Canuck and see Magan and have a beer.

The International Mind Sports Association has declared that poker is a mind game.  That means poker will be played, along with other mind games including chess and bridge, in the World Mind Sports Games in London in 2012.  I think that’s very cool and maybe it will help change the perception that poker is nothing but a form of gambling comparable to craps and roulette.  Good poker players have to know expected value, pot odds, and implied odds.  They have to be able to count cards that are “outs” toward winning a hand and convert the outs into percentages.  They have to understand the importance of position at the table.  They have to know how to project a table image that misleads the other players.  Many of them master multiple games, including Hold’em, Omaha, Razz, Stud, Draw, and others.   Poker is most definitely a mind sport and I’m glad to see it getting recognition.