memphis TN

This city is known for it's amazing music. This theatre is famous for blues. We saw the Handy Awards (like the Grammy's for Blues) here back a couple of trips ago. But this weekend was a little more mellow. The house band at BB's was a rocking funk band they played some classics including two songs that are guaranteed to get me on the dance floor--Brickhouse and Play that Funky Music. I tried out some of my new bellydance skills-just slipping them in where they fit. Couple of guys bought me drinks--that was fun. Gretch, Smokey and I had a lot of fun snarking on white folks who can't dance-- no matter how drunk they are. Really it is kind of embarrassing--you know the white guy shuffle? Girls in heels shouldn't do that--not so much.
Found a new CD--you know me wherever I go funky little indie bands appear--This month's special selection is one of three volumes called Fried Glass Onions. Check out insidesounds.com if you are really interested--it is a bunch of blues artists doing the Beatles--right up my alley. I picked up mine at the Center for Southern Folklore where we did NOT get to see Daddy Mack play.

Schwabs

Well, our sorry bedraggled butts are home from Beale St.. We found a little trio of new shops down by the Arcade Diner, yes the one where Jim Jarmusch filmed Mystery Train. The new shops are called Muse, home of the blue and brown paisley suitcase, Delphinium, home of the $450 tweed & patchwork coat that only came in a small (DAMN) and uh...the one that they were still putting out the stock. They were all little indy boutiques-- kinda like my beloved Henrietta Fahrenheit (RIP).

We drank and danced. We ate. I made fast friends with the Ambassador of Bling, Mr. Charlie-and he let me help him at the
door. We also hooked up with Smokey (happy b-day baby) and Tad. Tad drives the pink caddy. He is also responsible for the Memphis Mary, which is a uber yummy drink mix.

One of the highlights for me was shopping at Tater Reds and at Schwab's. Schwab's Dry Goods Store, in the family since 1876, (you can tell from the dust. It is the only remaining original business on Beale St. They literally fill three floors with voodoo powders, handcuffs, clerical collars, saucepans and the largest collection of kitsche anyone could ever need. Some prime examples follow:

Now constant reader I ask you--if these are "open leg panties" what exactly is a "closed leg" panty? perhaps for amputees??

All the way to MEMPHIS

Today Gretchen and I are escaping to Memphis. We are flying out of Flint and will be home Sunday afternoon. We are going to eat BBQ, get our nails done, listen to blues music, bitch about life, drink, giggle, shop, drink, eat at Issac Hayes (doing my best Chef impersoation--"well Hello children") and hang out on Beale Street. We are staying at The Talbot Heirs Guest House which is better than Toronto's Drake Hotel, but does not have it's own lounge--which now that I think about it would be redundant as it is about three blocks from Beale Street! Oh, did I mention that the weather is 60F and sunny? See ya'll Monday--I gotta git me some sweet tea.

My Scene

I played "Barbie" with my daughter yesterday. (I didn't break out is a rash) Because she was blessed with a half day at school (or the staff just didn't want to deal with the little darlings over excited for Halloween (did I mention my kids were awake and in their costumes at 6:12 a.m?) I figured we could do something she wanted. So we went to lunch at Tim Horton's and played Barbie. I have philosophical issues with Blonde malibu Barbie from my childhood. I have drawn a very clear line at her freaky disproportionate dye job-- But peer pressure has Isabel owning six 12" fashion dolls. One is Mulan from Disney. One is a scuba diving red haired scientist from Shedd Aquarium, the rest are all brunettes from the Barbie Collection called "Myscene" which describes the temper tantrums at Toys R Us more than it does the dolls. These six girls have a large wardrobe that they share--but they seem to only have one pair of panties and I am pretty sure they stole them from Madeline.
Some things I observed yesterday.
Their chins are either "coy" or "curious dog" mode. There is no grad student reading homework pose.
Sadly, they cannot hold the bowl of chips they came packaged with.

Which is just as well really, much like a Tyrannosaurus Rex; they can't quite get their hands to their mouth. My doll eventually became so desperate to eat the chips she went in face first.
They seem to have no ankle bones.
or toes. If you hold just their feet--the gravity of their boobs pulls them over like Charlie Chaplin in a windstorm.
They do however have impossibly long eye lashes.
Their clothes won't stay on if they move.
They own a hummer that only holds them if they lay down.
Their skulls are soft and hollow.
They come w/sunglasses sewn to their heads. Now admittedly that does seem handy.

It was a pleasant enough hour. I perversely enjoyed putting my doll into situations where her fashions (ie. winter coats that a.) have no buttons or zip and b.) do not even close?? Yeah my doll got hypothermia on the ski trip) or physique (those feet PLEASE!) were so absurd we about peed our pants laughing. Tho Isabel did mention that her friends Lily and Chloe were "more fun". Eh--I think she got my point.

Je suis mort

What a hoot not being Kirsten Dunst! I love Halloween. And I got to practice my French. Several neighbors of course asked if I had cake. When the little princess trick or treaters would show up I would tell them to be kind to their people or they would get (making the slit throat gesture) executed. I gave them all sorts of new vocab words like decapitated and executed. It was better than asking the Hunch Back of Notre Dame moms if they had read the book? I personally wouldn't let my daughter dress as Esmeralda. This year there was a new fad costume where the clothes are torn to reveal innards and skin bones, etc...I kept saying things like, "Oh you're an eviscerated werewolf." It is fun to mess with kid's heads.