Hmmm… Morris must be doing well in the early voting

Just caught the circus, er, I mean, press conference orchestrated by King Willie. There were actually two separate conferences, one with Herenton the mayor and one with Herenton the candidate. One of his comments was that Morris cannot mathematically win the race, and that the race is between Herenton and Carol Chumney.

To me, that indicates that his staff has been doing some exit polling, and Morris must be doing better than expected. So Willie is trying to play him off as a non-factor as an attempt to split the anti-Herenton vote.

Herenton also questioned the integrity of the Election Commission and its workers, played the race card, asked for federal monitoring, blah blah blah blah blah.

I’m going to walk down to the Election Commission office and early vote this afternoon – for Herman Morris.

A sense of community in Uptown

My friend Kaleigh, an Uptown resident and fellow Rhodes grad, writes a blog called The Musings of Yet Another Working Mom. She and her husband and two kids bought a house in Uptown two years ago, and today she wrote a great post about the changes that are happening in the neighborhood. Her blog is one to keep an eye on… we hear about what’s going on in Uptown in Henry Turley’s press releases, but this is an opportunity to find out about the neighborhood from someone who’s there, living it.

She’s also starting an Uptown book club. Check her blog for more details about that. The first book is about the collapse and rebuilding of American community, and will be discussed the last week of October, right before the second annual Uptown Chili Smackdown.

If you decide you like Kaleigh’s writing and you like to cook, check out her other blog, Another Working Mom Cooks, too. She’s in a rather unique position of cooking for two family members who are vegetarians and two who are not, and lucky enough to have children who like to eat healthy.

Plans for this evening

One of my readers e-mailed and reminded me that I still need to try the Daily Grill’s happy hour, inside the Westin Hotel. During happy hour they have miniature versions of their appetizers for $2.99 each, and the reader who e-mailed recommended the seared ahi tuna, hummus with pitas, and mini-crab cake sandwiches. So I think I’ll give that a try tonight.

My plan is to hit the Daily Grill about 5:30, then walk to Court Square for “Bands, Beer and Bums.” This week’s entertainment: Sal Crocker and the Strictly Jazz Quartet. Wonder if the crackhead who has VCRs to sell will be back this week. If anyone wants to join me, feel free.

King Willie to hold press conference at 11; wants early voting halted

Mayor Herenton will hold a press conference at 11 AM this morning. He claims that the voting machines being used to early-vote for the mayoral and city council races are defective. He says he has received “numerous complaints” about the machines, and will ask the Election Commission to stop early voting.

I bet the mayor’s campaign staff have been doing a little exit-polling at the early voting locations, and have discovered that things aren’t going their way. Why am I not surprised that the people who are too dumb to understand how to use a voting machine are the ones who are voting for Willie?

This man is unbelievable. PLEASE go to the polls and vote for Morris, Chumney or whomever you feel is most qualified to lead the city.

I was going to go to a coffee shop and work this morning, but I guess I’ll have to do it from home so I can be in front of the TV and watch our mayor make an ass of himself. Again.

The bums and the homeless

Those of you who live or work Downtown: You know the bum with the tumor below his ear lobe? Can’t remember which ear. Well, he was begging at Second and Peabody Place tonight. He engaged a sweet girl in conversation about midnight. She waved money around, then came into the Saucer. I thought she was looking to get change for a 20 to give to him, and I stopped her. “This guy has been panhandling Downtown for years,” I told her. “He knows what he’s doing. This is all part of his plan.”

“I know he’s addicted to crack cocaine,” she told me. “I’m not stupid. But I’m getting him something to eat.” Of course, there are a dozen locations Downtown – the mission, churches, other organizations – where he can get food to eat during the week. He should never have to go hungry. And as I’ve said, I’ve seen him in the area for at least 5 years. It’s not like he doesn’t know how to get food if he really wants it – without begging. And he’s a drug addict.

I admired this woman’s desire to help those in need – but this was not a person in need. If you’re reading this – he was *** USING *** you. You are not helping him by feeding him. You are not “helping the homeless” – you’re enabling. You are not “doing as Jesus would do” – not that I go to church that often, but as I understood it Jesus gave people the help they needed, not the help they wanted. Of course the bum didn’t turn down the free meal, but with his belly full that was one less thing he had to worry about – it freed him up to beg for money for crack.

If you really want to give out handouts on the street, you’d be far better giving socks, hygiene items, candy bars, etc., rather than restaurant meals. I came across a charity at Cooper-Young Fest that does an awesome job taking first steps to integrate the homeless – true homeless, not bums – back into society. I want to talk to the Executive Director to see how we can best help but I’ll be mentioning them soon.

I’ll step off my drunken soapbox now. The Rapscallions won first place in trivia, bringing our total to $145.

Bravo Memphis season kickoff party Thursday night

The Bravo Memphis group, the young arts branch of Arts Memphis, has its season kickoff at the Power House Gallery on G.E. Patterson (next to the train station) Thursday evening, September 20, from 6 to 8 PM. The event is free and open to the public and there will be free food and booze.

At the party, you’ll have the chance to join Bravo for the 2007-08 season, which will entitle you to attend at least 6 arts events – theater, opera, ballet, gallery shows, etc. throughout the year, usually one per month. Before each event there’s a social hour with appetizers and beverages.

I was a Bravo member from 2002-06 and highly recommend it as a way to expose yourself to the arts on a budget, and to meet some young professionals in the 21 to mid-40s range with similar interests. If you have a friend to go with, you can join with them as a couple and save some money. If you don’t have a friend to go with, join as a single and go by yourself to the event. You’ll meet plenty of people at the events’ social hours.

I’ve been looking forward to this event for a couple of weeks… then today, I got on the elevator and discovered that my apartment building has invited residents to a wine tasting at exactly the same time. Hmmm… free booze a mile away, or free booze a few floors up… and besides, I don’t know too many of my neighbors right now, and am looking forward to hanging out and getting to know some of them. So I’m probably going to miss the Thursday night Bravo event… but still, I recommend it for people who want to expand their social circle and understanding of the arts.

Pics: Sunday brunch

This past Sunday we returned to Dan McGuinness Pub for brunch, and discovered that in addition to their breakfast menu (until noon), they now have a special football menu, available during NFL games.

I got the nachos grande from the football menu. The menu also had chicken nachos, a couple of Philly sandwiches, hot wings, and potato skins.

They also have $10 buckets of beer during football games.

John D was excited about buckets of Bud Light. Bartender Amy got some gold foil and added some bling-bling to his beer.

Afterward we moved to the Saucer to celebrate our friend Chad’s birthday. Mmmm… cheesecake and beer.

Our Beer Goddess made sure our glasses stayed full.

Chad celebrates with the other Sunday brunchers at the Saucer’s window.

The Saucer’s cash register features motivational messages for the staff.

Irish car bombs for Air Traffic Control Mike and Yoko.

Patrick from the Majestic: “Where the hell were you guys today?”

A pic of Chad from 1987, when he was in a hair band that opened for Warrant at the Mid-South Coliseum.

We’ll be back at McGuinness for brunch next Sunday, then we’ll switch back to the Majestic for the two weeks after that.

My choice for mayor: Herman Morris

I give the Commercial Appeal a hard time in my blog now and then, but I have to hand it to them: Their excellent editorial Friday endorsing Herman Morris for Memphis mayor played a big part in my decision to vote for him. No longer is my strategy to pick the most promising of the “Anybody But Willie” candidates – I now believe Morris really is the best person for the job.

For one thing, the article reminded me that Morris led MLGW during the “Hurricane Elvis” windstorm of July 2003. I thought MLGW responded very well in what was a crisis situation, and it gives me confidence that Morris would be able to effectively manage the city should another crisis – “The Big One” earthquake, a race riot, or whatever – occur.

More than that, though, I see in Morris effective, quiet leadership. He doesn’t feel the need to draw attention to himself as Herenton and Chumney do – he just gets things done. As the CA editorial pointed out, when others disagree with Morris, he listens, looks for commonalities, and tries to build consensus – whereas Herenton and Chumney tend to argue with those who disagree.

Up until last week I was undecided but leaning Chumney… and yet, there was a lot of doubt in my mind about Chumney the entire time. I look at her record on the City Council the past year and I see a lot more grandstanding than accomplishments. That’s not to say I think she’d be a bad mayor – I think she is indeed qualified and would make a far better choice than King Willie. However, I believe that Herman Morris’ manner and his leadership experience make him the best candidate.

I encourage everyone to read the CA’s editorial and then decide for yourself. I plan to walk down to the Election Commission sometime this week and cast my early vote for Herman Morris for mayor.

Here’s a link to the Morris for Mayor website.

Cooper-Young wrapup

As expected, spent the entire day wandering the Cooper-Young Festival yesterday. That festival is like crack to me – for me it’s not so much the booths or the food, but the people. Mainly, getting to see people I haven’t seen in 5 or 10 years, as well as people who have seen me around town but who I’ve never actually met. Got a lot of “Hey, you used to be my math teacher!” and “Hey, aren’t you the blog guy?” and “Hey, you’re the guy who’s always at the Saucer” and “Hey, didn’t I used to see you at Six-1-Six back in the day?”

If you saw me at C-Y, you already know who I’m supporting for mayor. I’m make an official announcement on my blog tomorrow. Discussed political races with my friends Rich and Kaleigh for a few minutes, and it helped me realize that what I’ve done this past week in the mayoral race (turned away from one candidate and toward another) is also what I’m doing in the presidential race.

Dr. Bob had a booth there and I hung out there for quite a bit during the day with him and Pete from the Saucer and Laura (nice meeting you, Laura).

Brace yourselves: I’m about to say something positive that contains the word “Germantown.” This probably will never happen again. Germantown Commissary had a booth at the festival, and I’ve never tried their food but have heard good things about them for years. So I tried their BBQ nachos. Outstanding! Possibly even better than the nachos at the ballpark.

The beer prices at the official vendor booths SUCKED – $4 for a draft Bud or Bud Light. That’s beyond the upper limit of acceptable price – four bucks is gouging, plain and simple. So I didn’t buy beer from the official vendors. I discovered that Soul Fish Cafe had a beer stand and was selling 24 oz. tall boys of PBR for $4, so I did a couple of those. Later in the day I discovered that the convenience store at Main and Evelyn was open and had even better prices – got my third 24 oz. can of PBR for $1.30, tax included.

Good grief there were a lot of strollers there. I wouldn’t ever want to see strollers banned, because C-Y needs to remain a family event, but they sure did slow down foot traffic. Too bad festivals can’t designate a “stroller lane” kind of like some streets have bike lanes, to get them out of everyone’s way.

Got some good info at some of the booths, and I’ll probably mention a couple of the organizations here in weeks to come. Talked to a group that helps the homeless, and I plan to follow up with them to brainstorm ways to funnel some of the misdirected generosity Downtown (giving money to panhandlers) to their organization and others like them. Also talked to a group that had a good message about fighting crime. Once I put on the sticker showing support for my mayoral candidate, candidates for other races came out of the woodwork wanting to talk. I took their literature and will look it over.

In addition to the BBQ nachos, I had an Athenian gyro sandwich (gotta have at least one every year). Crepe Maker also had a booth at the festival, and I recommended it to a lot of people, but didn’t eat there myself, since I can walk four blocks from my front door Downtown and get a “creep” (to use a Mikeyism) anytime I want.

Pie in the Sky Pizza is back, now calling themselves “Lou’s Pizza Pie.” They’re the ones who have specialty pizzas like the Moon Pie, Sun Pie, and Bluto’s Revenge. They had a Downtown location at Front and Gayoso for a while but it closed. They’re now at 2158 Young and you can view their website here.

Total money spent this year at the festival: $8 for the first two PBRs, $1.30 for the third, $6 for the gyro, $7 for the nachos, $1.50 for a Mountain Dew from the convenience store, $1.50 for an orangeade from the convenience store. $25.30 – not too bad. Usually I drop at least 40 bucks there. Didn’t buy anything from the vendors this year.

And now it’s Sunday. Brunch at McGuinness, then on to the Saucer. Back tomorrow with mayoral pick.

Today’s the big day, and a preview of the WWE PPV in Downtown Memphis tomorrow

COOPER-YOUNG FESTIVAL! Wooooooooo!

Apologies for not posting my mayoral pick yesterday as promised. I meant to have one beer at the Saucer and then come home and post, but you know how that “one beer” thing usually turns out. I’ll save my mayoral endorsement until Monday since I tend to have a couple hundred more readers on weekdays.

Almost forgot to mention a Downtown event happening tomorrow: The WWE Unforgiven pay-per-view. Allow me to type up a quick summary of what’s going on in the WWE these days:

  • About a dozen wrestlers were suspended last week when they were found to have purchased drugs from an Internet pharmacy, in violation of the WWE’s Wellness policy. This messed up pretty much every storyline they had running, but they had no choice but to put the suspensions in place due to media scrutiny.
  • One of the main guys on the Smackdown brand is Finlay (formerly Fit Finley in WCW), a tough Irish guy who likes to brawl. WWE wanted to emphasize his Irish heritage, so they gave him a leprechaun who hides under the ring and runs out to cheat and help him win matches. Last month the leprechaun won the WWE cruiserweight (220 lbs. and under) championship.
  • WWE chairman Vince McMahon plays the evil “Mr. McMahon” character in storylines, and last month it was revealed he had a bastard son who was on the WWE roster. This was supposed to be the beginning of a big push for rising star Ken (“Mr. Kennedy”) Kennedy, who was going to be revealed as the illegitimate McMahon. But Kennedy was one of the dozen who got suspended for buying drugs online. So instead, the illegitimate son was revealed to be the leprechaun.
  • The ECW champion was John Morrison (formerly Johnny Nitro, doing a Jim Morrison gimmick). They were building toward a long run of fan favorite C.M. Punk chasing him for the title for months and months before winning it. Then Morrison got caught in the Internet drug purchase scandal and had to drop the title to Punk only a month into their program, in order to serve out his suspension. Tomorrow, Punk defends against Elijah Burke, who no one gives a snowball’s chance in hell of winning the title.
  • The Smackdown brand’s World title match was supposed to be champion The Great Khali (7’3″, 412 lbs.) vs. Rey Misterio (5’6″, 150 pounds, not much bigger than the leprechaun). Someone in the back had the good sense to realize what an ass-whoopin’ Misterio would take, and added Batista to the match, making it a three-way.
  • The Raw brand’s World title match is John Cena defending against Randy Orton. Orton is a third-generation wrestler and potentially the most talented guy on the Raw roster, but he keeps doing stupid stuff backstage – recently he almost got fired for taking a dump in the purse of one of the female wrestlers. There’s no way WWE will take a chance on putting the title on him.

My verdict: This PPV is going to suck. Why anyone would waste time going to it is beyond me. Well, Undertaker’s entrance is kinda cool (he wrestles “World’s Strongest Man” Mark Henry) and possibly worth seeing live at least once, but the rest of the card is just awful. Don’t waste your time. Join us for brunch instead. We’ll be at McGuinness first and then the Saucer.

Heading to Cooper-Young in a little while and will be there ALL DAY.