Paul Ryburn's Journal

Last Sunday, I was hanging out at the Saucer as usual, and I got into a discussion with my friend Kacy.  I thought the discussion would make a good Sunday morning topic.  The topic is, what’s the difference between lunch and brunch?

It’s not the hours.  Brunch on Sunday usually runs from 11 to 3, or maybe 10:30 to 3 – hours that are normally considered lunch hours.

Is the food the difference?  I know that “brunch” is “breakfast + lunch,” but when I go to the Majestic for brunch, I usually order off the lunch menu.  Meanwhile, there are places that will serve breakfast food at lunchtime – Blue Plate, Denny’s, IHOP.  People usually don’t think of those places as “brunch.”

A couple of weeks ago, Kacy and her friends were out on a weekend day, looking for a place to eat lunch, meaning “let’s get a quick bite to eat.”  They couldn’t find anyplace they liked, so Kacy suggested, “Let’s do brunch instead.”  So they went to a restaurant – I forget where, think she may have said Boscos – and they sat down.  Kacy ordered lunch.

And a mimosa.

That’s the difference.  Brunch is not really lunch + breakfast.

It’s lunch + ALCOHOL.

Now, we need to refine this idea further.  Is lunch + beer brunch?  This to me seems to be a gray area.  Sometimes on a Saturday afternoon I’ll get hungry and stop by the Flying Fish to eat.  I’ll pull a can of PBR out of the refrigerator to purchase as my beverage.  That to me seems more like lunch than brunch.

On the other hand, if you’re having a mimosa or Bloody Mary, it’s almost certainly brunch.  It seems like other mixed drinks would fall into this category too.  My friend John D enjoys a screwdriver with brunch every once in a while.

Actually, that makes me think even more.  Most of the time, John D doesn’t order food, but just the screwdriver.  Even without the food, is it still brunch?

Just something to think about this fine Sunday morning.  Better get out there and enjoy it before the rain moves in!

Tonight I was asked, “Where should I watch the Canada vs. USA Olympic hockey game?”  Here’s my answer:  Kooky Canuck.  Shawn is from Canada.  It will be a wild day up there, especially with $3.99 34 oz. super cold Bud Light.  Thing is, though, it’s not like me rooting against Tennessee because of Bruce Pearl – I like Shawn and would want his team to win, if they weren’t playing us.  But they are, so, go USA.  Anyway, go to Kooky and make it a win-win for everyone.  Game time is 6:40 PM CST/4:40 PM PST.

I just got home with Paul’s Drunkass Fries from Huey’s.  Earlier today I went to A.Schwab and got some Sonny Salt.  I’m going to put it on everything now.  Never had Sonny Salt?  Okay, here’s my best attempt to describe it.  Thursday night I heard some good old rock’n’roll through vintage amps.  The salt tastes like those amps sounded.  It’s awesome.  Get some.  I think Lit sells it too.

The Stella Artois glass is the “Buy the Beer, Keep the Glass” glass Wednesday at the Saucer.  The Stella glass is one of the nicest glasses ever, and one of the few glasses featured at the Saucer that I bought an entire set of, just in case I ever entertain company.  When I was a regular at Sleep Out’s they served me PBR in Stella glasses, while telling me how mad the distributor for Stella would get if he found out.

Some of my friends went bowling in the basement of Primetime Sports Bar Friday night, and they said the garlic fries were awesome.  They had $5 pitchers of several beers.  Here’s what’s wrong with my friends.  PBR was an option, and they instead ordered Milwaukee’s Best Light.  Yeah I wasn’t there.  I would have pretended not to know these people, having made a decision like that.  The Beast?  Light?  Really?

They told me they split the fries five ways.  The Nuh-Uh Girl was involved in the split so I’m guessing the other four got about 13% of the fries combined.

Drunk, going to bed.  I’ll try to do late- nights on the weekends when it warms up.

Up early this morning.  Sure is nice not to hear an alarm clock go off.

First of all, in case you missed the evening news, some GREAT NEWS for Memphis residents. Mayor Wharton has announced extended hours for the vehicle inspection stations. The Washington station will have two lanes open until 7 PM Monday-Friday, and the Lamar and White Station locations will have all lanes open until 7. From February 22 until June 30, all locations will have all lanes open until 7 Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

What a relief… my car is up for inspection in June and I was dreading the hours-long lines… was worried how I could possibly get it done on a lunch break. Now I don’t have to worry about it. Thank you Mr. Mayor! After all these years, I’m still adjusting to having a mayor who actually cares about his constituents.

Are you a vendor or artist? Beale Street is taking applications to be a vendor in Handy Park this summer. No food or drink vendors are allowed. More details here.

The Phoenix Club has their annual Mardi Gras party next Saturday, February 27, at the Cadre Building. Al Kapone and Lord T and Eloise will perform. $40 includes beer, wine, and specialty cocktails, and there will be a faux casino with blackjack, craps, and roulette. Winners will be entered into a raffle for prizes. Last year’s party drew 1,400 people, and this year the Fire Marshal is imposing a cap of 1,000, so if you want to go and you don’t have tickets yet, you better get ’em ASAP. Proceeds benefit the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Memphis.

There’s a new musical addition to the Silly Goose lineup. On Tuesdays Cameron Lazek and Tyler Burns will play from 10 to about 11:30 PM. Some of you may know Tyler – he’s a bartender at the Majestic. “It’s just us and 2 guitars right now,” Cameron told me. They plan on playing some mellow background music that should go well on a Tuesday night – DMB, Jason Mraz, Tom Petty, Barenaked Ladies. I’ll try to stop by there after trivia next week and check them out.

In the news… Tyreke Evans had dinner with President Obama this week, at the President’s request.

The International Folk Alliance Conference is in town this weekend, and there are some free events today.  At the Cook Convention Center, there will be an “instrument petting zoo” at 10 as well as “my first music lesson.”  At 11 there will be a Children’s Music Showcase and a presentation on the basics of the music business.  At 1 there will be a songwriters’ workshop, and a presentation on the wide world of sponsorships.  3 PM should be especially good – “Meet Your Memphis Local Music Scene.”  At 3:30 there will be a community sing of all ages.

In the evening, the action moves to the Center for Southern Folklore, for two “Songwriters in the Round” performances.  At 7:30 PM we have David Olney, Will Kinbrough, Tommy Wommack, and Phil Lee.  Coming up at 9:30 are Sild Selvidge, Chuck Mead, Anais Mitchell, and Amy Speace.

Since I’m typing the Folk Alliance Conference stuff from their ad in the Flyer, I’ll go ahead and mention the ad next to it – “A Year with Frog and Toad” is coming to the Orpheum March 3 at 6 PM.  I’m sure that will be good too.

I stayed home last night for the third night this week, watching poker tutorials on Daniel Negreanu’s site that I subscribed to.  I’m entered in a 1000-person tourney on PokerStars at 9:40 today, so it will be my first opportunity to try out his “small ball poker” tactics in a tournament setting.

All right, got to jump in the shower so I’m ready to roll at 9:40.  Outta here for now.

Activist groups are starting to make noise that the CCC’s proposed panhandling and single beer ordinances are attempts to “criminalize poverty” and run the homeless out of Downtown.  This is absolutely untrue.  The CCC has said time and time again that the condition of being homeless is a separate issue from the behaviors of panhandling aggressively and being drunk and disorderly.

The CCC posted a great story today.  Gaston Davis was at one point homeless.  He went through the program at the Union Mission and became an assistant at the Mission.  He went on to receive a degree at SWTCCC, and 11 years ago he founded the Center City Commission’s Blue Suede Brigade program.  Blue Suede Brigadiers walk the streets of Downtown Memphis, welcoming tourists, giving directions, and handing out maps and other helpful info.  That wonderful 16-person program was founded by a formerly homeless man.  I did not know that prior to today.

Gaston knows what it’s like on the street, and trains his Brigadiers to provide help to those in need.  And you know what?  Gaston supports the panhandling and single beer ordinances.  If the hidden agenda behind the ordinances were to run homeless people out of Downtown, I seriously doubt a formerly homeless man would be such a strong proponent of them.

There was a great comment to this story left on Facebook:  “I fear that some other self-proclaimed ‘advocates for the homeless’ care more about advancing their political ideology than providing help to the truly needy.”  EXACTLY!!!!

This page provides details on the ordinances, and ways you can show your support.  Please sign the petition!

If you like Safari World Tapas Bar, check out the deal of the day on Memphis Groupon.  Today only, they’re selling certificates for $35 worth of food for only$15.  On Groupon, the deal only applies if enough people sign up for it, but it’s already reached the threshold, so the deal is on.

Last night I went to the Flying Saucer to hear the details of their new, improved UFO Club program. For those of you not familiar with it, for $18 you can join the UFO Club. You get a Beer Knurd T-shirt and a card with magnetic stripe. You scan the card in their computer to get credit for the beers you drink. You also get a free pint on your birthday, and you don’t have to pay cover when you show your card at the door.

You still have to drink 200 beers to get a plate on the wall. Rewards on the way to 200:
50 beers – still a free pint
100 beers – still a free biggie beer
150 beers – this has changed. Now you have your choice of a hat, T-shirt, or Frisbee.

I like the 150 change. Before, it was always a hat. Having been through 3 times, I already have 3 hats and don’t need more. On the other hand, I’m always happy to get another T-shirt.

Here are the increased rewards for getting multiple plates:

2nd: Still a $100 plate party
3rd: $100 plate party plus “3PEAT” T-shirt
4th: $125 plate party
5th: $125 plate party, “5IVER” T-shirt, and their new, black “M.O.U.” card. It stands for Master of the Universe. Not sure if the card itself has any benefits other than looking really cool.

6th: $150 plate party
7th: $150 plate party
8th: $150 plate party, plus a custom Flying Saucer German stein which they tell me is worth about $125

9th: $175 plate party
10th: Airfare and tickets for 2 to the Great American Beer Festival in Denver. You still have to pay for hotel and ground transportation.

The 3peat shirt, 5iver shirt and MOU card, and the stein are rewarded retroactively, so talk to a manager if you’ve already hit those milestones. If you’re over 10 plates, you have to finish the next one before you’re awarded the Denver trip.

Having 3 plates, I got my “3PEAT” shirt last night. I imagine the improved rewards will motivate me to get my 4th plate done a little more quickly. Barring the unthinkable(*), I’ll probably get my Denver trip somewhere around 2016.

Examples of “the unthinkable”: Turbo Dog made the permanent Fire Sale, dress code revised so that the waitresses have to wear ankle-length skirts

After several (and by several, I mean a LOT of) beers at the Saucer I headed south to Earnestine & Hazel’s to catch Dynaflow.

Lead singer Shane had decribed the band as “good old rock’n’roll, I think you’ll like it,” and I did.  On one of the first songs, they busted out “Hot Dog” by Led Zeppelin.  Anything off the In Through the Out Door album, and it gets my automatic approval.

Good old rock’n’roll indeed.  They had vintage amps, and if they had been playing at E&H in 1967 no one would have been able to tell the difference.  (And yeah I know In Through the Out Door didn’t come out until ’79.  Shut up.)

Great show.

Earlier in the evening, I attended the Saucer’s party for the new improved UFO club.  Details coming soon.

Thought about stopping for a go-home beer at the Saucer on the way back from E&H, especially because some of my favorite bartenders were working tonight.  However, trolley service to almost the front door proved to be a show-stopper.  I love living Downtown.

I’ve posted about how much I enjoy my Amazon Kindle app on my iPhone.  It’s a free download, and it lets me buy and download ebooks from Amazon, and I can read them on my phone just as though I were reading them on a real Kindle.  Very handy for reading in bed at night, without the weight of a book.

Well, there’s good news for Blackberry users:  Kindle for Blackberry has been released. Definitely worth a free download.  If you want to try it out without paying for a book, there are plenty of classics in the Kindle store that are either free or a penny.

Local Gastropub has tweeted that they will start serving lunch tomorrow, and will serve lunch at 11 AM from Monday-Friday from now on.  Follow them at @localgastropub to keep up with specials and promotions.

If you enjoyed the music at the Memphis Farmers Market last year, there’s a Musicians’ Reunion and Jam at King’s Palace Cafe on Beale this Sunday at 4.  Proceeds benefit the market.

If Bob Barker visited Downtown Memphis, I bet he’d eat at Bardog.  Through the end of March, Bardog Tavern will donate $1 for every hot dog sold to spay and neuter feral cats.

Beer time… Saucer is the first stop, then Earnestine & Hazel’s at 9 for Dynaflow’s show.

Last night I attended the meeting/rally at the Center City Commission office in support of the proposed panhandling and single serve beer ordinances. It was different from previous meetings I’d attended at the CCC, which were run by CCC officials. This time, the CCC provided the space, and handed the floor over to concerned citizens, particularly Shawn Danko of Kooky Canuck.

The ordinances will go before the safety/homeland security committee at 8:30 AM on Tuesday, February 23. This is a six-member committee that can vote to take the proposals before the full council, vote to take the proposals before the council with a recommendation to reject, or kill the proposals in committee. The committee is chaired by Myron Lowery.

Many of the council members, we were told, might take the position that they don’t care much about the proposed ordinances, because “it’s not my district.” Therefore, it’s very important that people who love Downtown but live in other parts of Memphis sign this petition and provide their address. Council members must be made to understand that Downtown is the doorway to the entire city. Eventually, you have to come Downtown to truly experience all that is Memphis – a game at the FedExForum, a show at the Orpheum, great music on Beale. Aggressive panhandling and drunk, disorderly conduct keeps ALL Memphians from enjoying their city as much as they otherwise could.

It’s very important to e-mail, call or write the Council members and express your support. E-mail addresses of all the Council members can be found here.

We were told that if anyone knows a Council member personally, one face-to-face conversation can be worth 100 e-mails. If you know one of the members and can talk to them for a few minutes, it would go a long way.

It’s also important to ask business leaders in the Downtown community to contact the council and express their support. The council needs to hear first-hand the economic impact the aggressive panhandling and disorderly behavior has on the area. Although Downtown is statistically the safest area in Memphis, there’s a perception that it’s unsafe. A survey showed that 99.3% of Memphians feel that safety is an important component of an active, booming Downtown; yet 35% of Memphians surveyed do not go Downtown because of safety concerns.

We need to show our support in numbers at the 2/23 8:30 AM committee meeting. Not everyone can make it; I personally doubt I’ll be able to get off work. So, it’s extremely important that those who do have flexibility in their schedules plan to attend.

There will be a sign-making party at Kooky Canuck on Monday 2/22 at 7 PM. Even if you can’t attend the 2/23 committee meeting, stop by and make a sign for someone who can. (Besides, Kooky is not a bad place to grab some dinner or a beer.) We’ve been told the signs will be more valuable when the ordinances go before the full Council, but that’s fine, they can be re-used.

Everyone please voice your support over the next five days, and let’s get these ordinances to the next step in the process.

I got a notification this morning that Saturday’s Tiger game will be broadcast on WKNO-TV at 7 PM.  Here’s a tip if you plan on watching the game on TV:  Watch with the sound on.  Listening to the station do its fundraising drive during the breaks is hilarious.  Last time, they actually managed to get in an “Alas, poor Yorick; I hardly knew ye” quote.  Basketball and Shakespeare.  Gotta love it.