Typing this post with a gash in my left arm. I’ll explain, but let’s do the news first.<\/p>\n
CONFIRMED: The SmokeSlam BBQ festival is going on pause for 2026 in hopes of working out a unified event<\/a> with Memphis in May for 2027.<\/p>\n Penny’s Memphis Tigers battle Temple tonight at 7 at FedExForum. It’s autism awareness night. TV: ESPN+<\/p>\n Choose901 seeks an in-house social media photographer<\/a>.<\/p>\n The National Civil Rights Museum announced plans<\/a>, including free admission, for its MLK Day celebration on Monday.<\/p>\n Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin has stepped down after 19 years. Did you know he was once a graduate assistant<\/a> at the University of Memphis?<\/p>\n RIP Scott Adams<\/a>, creator of Dilbert.<\/p>\n “Sober dating”<\/a> is a trend in 2026.<\/p>\n Diana Ross comes to the Orpheum<\/a> March 14.<\/p>\n More bad news for the Grizz: There’s still no date set for Zach Edey’s return.<\/a> He’ll be re-evaluated in 6 weeks.<\/p>\n All-you-can-eat ramen!<\/a><\/p>\n So, yeah, about that gash in my arm. Yesterday I checked Room in the Inn’s calendar<\/a> of partner host churches and discovered there was one taking men only. It’s unusual for men to score a RITI bed on a weeknight because it’s families and ladies first. However, the church taking men only meant I had a chance.<\/p>\n I stood on a sidewalk on Poplar waiting for the call for men to be admitted for the bed lottery about 4:30. One of the neighborhood street thugs (not there for RITI, just hanging around) walked past.<\/p>\n And he shoved me.. On purpose.<\/p>\n I teetered and shuffled to my left about 20 feet, trying to regain my balance. But due to the weight of my backpack, I couldn’t. I fell hard on my left arm. It was weird – the fall didn’t tear my jacket at all. It sure tore the skin underneath, though.<\/p>\n Retaliation never crossed my mind. I was there in hopes of a great dinner, some friendly conversation, and a quality night’s sleep – not an argument with a crackhead and possibly a trip to 201. I simply walked away. Several of the other RITI regulars asked if I was OK.<\/p>\n Off in the distance I heard the man call me a “punk ass” and tell people “it’s his fault, I told him to get out of the way.” Again, I chose not to respond.<\/p>\n My name ended up being called for a bed at The Cottage on Germantown Road. I had a salad, two servings of chicken pot pie, a roll, and four mini-brownies. I slept on a soft mattress, covered by a plush comforter. A sausage, egg & cheese biscuit and Frosted Flakes were this morning’s breakfast, and I was given a to-go lunch in a Ziploc bag.<\/p>\n The gash on my arm will heal.<\/p>\n The RITI host calendar is not looking as favorable for men tonight. With a forecast low of 24, staying out all night is not an option. I will spend six dollars to get in the Union Mission. I’ll walk over there about 2, which will give me time to get on the sign-up list for an afternoon shower.<\/p>\n As for the man who shoved me, I forgive him & I wish him peace and freedom from whatever makes him so angry.<\/p>\n Back tomorrow with more news.<\/p>\n I gratefully accept tips:\u00a0<\/strong><\/em> Typing this post with a gash in my left arm. I’ll explain, but let’s do the news first. CONFIRMED: The SmokeSlam BBQ festival is going on pause for 2026 in hopes of working out a unified event with Memphis in May for 2027. Penny’s Memphis Tigers battle Temple tonight at 7 at FedExForum. It’s autism … Continue reading “Wednesday update”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29489"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29489"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29489\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29491,"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29489\/revisions\/29491"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29489"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29489"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.paulryburn.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29489"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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