Paul Ryburn's Journal

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.

Last night I popped in Kooky Canuck for a quick beer, and Terry the GM came over to talk.  Earlier this week, I posted about Kooky’s upcoming Cinco de Mayo party, with one of the specials being $3 margaritas.  Terry filled in a detail I didn’t know… those will be $3 THIRTY-FOUR OUNCE margaritas.  Yep, I guess my Cinco de Mayo plans have been made.

I stopped and said hello to Shawn on the way out.  “You know how you’re always saying, ‘Let me know if you need me to reserve a table for you?'” I told him.  “Well, I’d like to reserve the floor in front of the jukebox as my spot to pass out about 8:30 Wednesday night.”

Take a look at Mississippi Mud, the coffee company Cockadoos will be using when they open on Second later this month.

If you’re looking for something different to do tonight, ELECTROCITY invades Beale Street tonight at the Hard Rock.  Here’s a flyer:

DJs Yo! Santos, b.thornburg, Hype Taylor, Matthew Ess, tag sets, and whatever else they feel like doing until 5 AM.  Show starts at 10 PM.  $2 Bud and Bud Light bottles.  $5 cover.  Check out Electrocity’s website here.

Mayor Wharton announced a 10-year plan to end homelessness in Memphis yesterday.  Way to go Mr. Mayor!  I wonder why King Willie never addressed the homeless issue when he was mayor?  Wharton’s done more in his first 6 months as mayor than Willie did in the last eight years of his reign.

I most definitely am NOT going to Music Fest today, or at any point this weekend… agenda for the day involves the Saucer, Beale Street, a quick stop by Kooky, maybe a trip to the Silly Goose to see if Brick is working.  Here’s a little inside info for you… the managers at the Saucer refer to the Silly Goose as “the duck” and the Red Rooster as “the chicken.”  Anyway, time to put on one of the Hawaiian shirts I bought yesterday and get out in the rain.

Awesome ’80s hair band cover band Aquanet is at the Red Rooster tonight, in their new location at Fourth and Beale.  Great idea for something to do instead of/after Music Fest.

If you’re going to Music Fest and haven’t bought a disposable rain poncho yet, Shelton Clothiers has them for $3, or free with any purchase. Take it from one who knows: Poncho = very good idea.

Down the street from Shelton, the new women’s store, CHRISTINE by Shelton Clothiers, opens today. Like Shelton, it will continue the tradition of personal service, reasonable prices, and full-service tailoring. Be sure to fill out a card when you go in, to receive an invitation to their grand opening party on June 5. I’m sure the Nuh-Uh Girl will be in there filling out a card today and asking what kind of food they’ll be serving at the party.

The people who run Beale Street have announced that a Beale iPhone app will hit the App Store next week. GPS will pinpoint your location on the street. Bet it’ll have a lot of other cool features too… like maybe a counter of how many times “Mustang Sally” has been played on the street that day. Or maybe a “get to know the bums” feature where you can learn all about the people who will be stopping you to ask for fitty three cent.

If you’re not going to Music Fest and are looking for alternatives tonight, it’s the last Friday of the month and that means it’s Trolley Night on South Main. Many of the galleries and shops will be open from 6 to 9, and some will have complimentary wine and hors d’oeuvres. The SMA will grill burgers and have Boscos beer, weather permitting, which it probably won’t. Free food? Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.

Looking for a place to watch the Kentucky Derby tomorrow? Allow me to suggest Calhoun’s Sports Bar on GE Patterson. You won’t have to deal with stuffed shirts, women who obsess over big hats, and a drive out east. The PBR is cold and only two bucks a pint. Regulars are friendly. Service is great. Buzztime trivia. If it isn’t raining you may even get to play a game of cornhole.

Lunchtime posts are getting shorter… now that I work in a nicer neighborhood, I want to use the majority of my lunch break to actually EAT! Off to eat Mexican food and hopefully pick up my 13th mayorship on Foursquare.

Brad Birkedahl, formerly the guitarist of the Dempseys, will play the Flying Saucer tonight.  Rockabilly, rock and roll, and ’70s Elvis are on the musical menu.  Only a $3 cover and you won’t get rained on.

It’s the beginning of a weekend of sleepless nights for me.  Even on the 13th floor, people will be walking by yelling “WOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!” at all hours of the night loud enough to wake me up.  Seriously, if you’re not Ric Flair don’t do that.

Time to head to work… of course, I’ll be stopping at the Circle K in Horn Lake for a Mountain Dew on the way there… gotta defend my newest mayorship.  People ask, “Isn’t it kind of lame to check in at Circle K?”  No.  Now, if Circle K had a gym in their basement, and I added it as a separate venue just so I could check in and become mayor, that would be lame.

Earlier I was at the Silly Goose for Brick’s first shift. Paula Raiford came up behind me and started winding up her arm like a MLB pitcher. Knowing that Paula is a “hands on” kind of person, I stuck my ass out and braced myself.

She hit me extra soft. “Because you were expecting it,” she said. Then she told me, “You guys know this is how I say hello, so you know I like it. How come I never get it back?”

If you go to Paula & Raiford’s this weekend, please help me return the favor.

The theme tonight on the Peabody rooftop will be “Cowboy Week-Texas” with Shiner Bock and Miller Lite as the featured beers.

On the menu:  BBQ brisket with small rolls and condiments; cowboy beans; Texas caviar.  In the VIP area there will be sliced BBQ brisket with hoagie buns, cole slaw and BBQ sauce; jalapeno poppers; and Texas wagonwheels (fried pickle rounds) with dipping sauce.  Free food?  Wonder if the Nuh-Uh Girl will show up.

Party Planet will provide the entertainment.  6-10:30 PM; ladies free before 7; $10 cover includes first drink.

For those of you who are Brick fans, she’ll be working tomorrow (Thursday, April 29) at the Silly Goose starting at 7.  That means she’ll be on duty after the Peabody party.  So come on out.

The MemphisWeather.net blog reports that conditions are not looking good for Music Fest. Many necessary ingredients are in place, the blog reports, for severe thunderstorms, strong winds, and possibly hail and tornadoes.

Therefore, I’ve made a decision… no Music Fest for me this year. At least a 40% chance of rain every day? No thanks, done that at Music Fest before. I’ll spend most of the weekend hanging out on Beale Street people-watching and drinking Big Ass Beers. I haven’t done that in several years… it’s just as much fun as Music Fest, and $73.10 cheaper than the three-day pass. If you’re going, today is the last day to buy the 3-day.

I read on Twitter today that it’s rained on Music Fest 12 of the past 15 years.

Breaking news: The Flaming Lips had to pull out of Music Fest due to a member being hospitalized.

In other news… AIGA Memphis is honoring the late Larry Shaw with its AIGA Fellow Award, which recognizes the contributions and achievements of leaders in the Memphis Design community. Shaw’s family will accept the award on his behalf at a cocktail reception and panel discussion at the Stax Museum of American Soul Music on Thursday, April 29 at 5:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public by calling 728-5464 to RSVP. Guests set to pay tribute to Shaw at the event include Al Bell, Kim Shaw Brisco, Deannie Parker, Howard Robertson and Michael Thompson.

The Rapscallions finally suffered a loss at trivia last night. My friend Chad told me about the cheap lunch he had yesterday. “I wandered around Costco and tried all the free samples,” he said. “Then I bought a hot dog and Coke for $1.50.”

“Minus the hot dog and Coke, you know what you had?” I replied. “The Nuh-Uh Lunch.”

Here’s an updated list of the badges on Foursquare.  You know what badge needs to be on there, but isn’t?  A “Perfect Record” badge.  Foursquare determines mayorships of venues by counting the number of days you’ve checked in there in the past 2 months.  I just looked up my stats, and I’ve checked into the Flying Saucer 56 of the past 60 days.  I haven’t been there yet today, and the three other days I missed are close to falling off the end of the timeline.  When I reach 60x, I want to be recognized dammit!

Speaking of the Saucer, that’s the next stop.  The Red Rooster grand opening party is also on my agenda, and I’ll probably make a stop by Kooky Canuck for one quick small Bud Light.  Time for a beer!