Paul Ryburn's Journal

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!

The Red Rooster’s grand opening party is tonight. Yeah it was open last week, but tonight is their big celebration. I will definitely be there.

If you have an iPhone or Android, you can download a free Memphis in May app that will keep you informed of the entire month’s worth of festivities.

Three finalists remain for the Center City Commission CEO job: Memphians Andy Kitsinger and Paul Morris, and a third candidate from Orlando. I have no doubt the CCC will come out of the interview process with a great CEO, but I have to admit, there’s one candidate in particular who I hope gets it.

Poker tournament tonight at Bardog Tavern in the Underground Room at 7:30. Have you wanted to play one of these, but aren’t sure how to play? No problem, come early at 7 for a 30-minute lesson on how to play poker. Entry is free, so at worst your losses will be limited to your bar tab.

Short lunch post today because I need to make a Target run. More to come after 5.

If you’re on Foursquare and you check in at work, be careful about comments you make along with your check-in, especially if you work for a large corporation. Big companies have Thought Police that search for anything negative said about them. If you leave a negative comment with your check-in and it goes to Twitter, the Thought Police will see it and corporate will contact your supervisor to reprimand you. This has happened to multiple people I know in recent weeks.

This won’t come as a surprise to anyone: Consumerist.com surveyed its readers, who voted Comcast as the worst company in America. You won’t hear any argument from me. Ticketmaster was the runner-up, and again, I can’t disagree.

On Friday, May 7, Bobby Rush will host a special fundraiser for the Center for Southern Folklore. Tickets are $50, or you can purchase a Golden Circle Ticket for $100 which will give you priority seating for the concert, as well as the chance to dine and talk with Mr. Rush before the show. Doors open at 6:30. Call 525-3655 or visit the Center’s website to purchase tickets.

If you’ve ever wanted to give yoga a try, master instructor Grace Harwood from Midtown Yoga will give a free class tomorrow in Court Square. It will run from 11:45 to 1:15, and it’s part of the CCC’s Downtown Alive! lunchtime series.

Interesting article on the Memphis Flyer site on tipping.

Time for trivia at the Saucer.  The Rapscallions have been absolutely unstoppable lately, having amassed winnings of $525 to be used at a future party.  Hopefully we’ll add $50 more this week.

If you’re looking for something else fun to do, don’t forget that it’s Super Tuesday at Kooky Canuck, with their massive $34 oz. signature drinks only $5.  After trivia I may not be up for one of those, but I imagine I’ll at least stop by Kooky for a Super Cold Bud Light on the way home.

Also, Stepbrothers play the Silly Goose tonight.  Usually their start time is around 9.

Outta here, on the way to trivia.  Low in the mid 40s tonight.  This may be the last time I can wear the PBR hoodie this season.

There’s a Woot-off going on today at Woot.com.  Be sure to reload it frequently (or track it with an iPhone app) to see new items, and if Random Crap appears, buy immediately.

So, yesterday I pulled out my camera.  I thought to myself, “I wonder how many Wine Race photos I took?  About 30?”

Nope.  I took 190.  The highlights are below.  You’ll note that most of the photos were not taken at Wine Race itself… the best happened after everyone had consumed multiple Call-a-Cabs at Wet Willie’s.

It’s a wonderful day!  BEER!

A PBR cup nested inside a Wet Willie’s Call-a-Cab cup.  Now that’s alcoholic genius right there.

The Queen of the Vine contestants on stage.  Some of the girls in the competition were cute, but a few wouldn’t have looked out of place walking down Brooks Road.

Grape stomp

She loves to ride that cock

Kelly’s first shift at the Rooster

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

Lauren and Brick

This is an indication of how drunk I was… I looked at the photos the next day and thought, “There was a girl in my lap?  I don’t even remember”

oops

Full album can be viewed here. If you’re looking for complete and thorough coverage of Wine Race, don’t bother with it.  If you’re looking for a bunch of pics of really drunk people, this is the album for you.

If you missed Wine Race or left before the end, you can see who won here.

I took a lot of pics but they were Paul’s Drunkass Pics since Call-a-Cabs were involved.  When I get a chance I’ll go through them and see what’s on the camera that is blogworthy.  I know I took several tube top photos.

Right now, though, it’s time for Pint Nite.  I’ll probably stop for a beer at Kooky Canuck at some point too.

Yesterday at Wine Race, I wandered over to the Red Rooster and checked in on Foursquare.  I became the mayor of the Rooster, making me a Super Mayor as I simultaneously hold 10 mayorships.  Most of them are not that interesting – places where I eat lunch on the weekdays account for about half.

Before I went out yesterday, I tweeted that I planned to add one more mayorship.  It wasn’t the Rooster that I was referring to, although I’m proud to have that one.  Nor am I going after the one a couple of people suspected – the gym in the basement of my building.  Checking in there is seriously lame.

Time to go to work.  After work:  Pint Nite at the Saucer, of course.  Will probably stop by Kooky Canuck for a quick beer too at some point.