VOL. 133 | NO. 179 | Monday, September 10, 2018
Last Word
Bill Dries
Last Word: Rain and Lightning, Recycling Blues and Polls and Campaigns
By Bill Dries
Signs of festival season in the air Sunday after what was left of Tropical Storm Gordon dumped most of its remaining rain and wind on the city Saturday. The Central Gardens home tour was doing a brisk business Sunday afternoon with lots of foot traffic in light jackets and lines outside a few of the homes on Belvedere as Birds and golf carts buzzed around. Further south Cooper-Young practicing moderation a week ahead of its milestone event for festival season – a new mural on Young west of Cooper toward the Fairgrounds awaiting your judgment next weekend.
Navy 22 – Tigers 21 in Annapolis over the weekend and much discussion about the end of the game decisions by the Tigers in particular.
As that was happening the Southern Heritage Classic was about to get underway at the Liberty Bowl back here at the soggy end of a Classic day that began with a dry Orange Mound Parade. The soggy end of the day included lightning which caused first a delay and then a cancellation of the Tennessee State – Jackson State game that is the heart of the week of activities. It is the first cancellation of the game in the 29-year history of the classic. Southern Heritage Classic founder Fred Jones termed it a “huge disappointment.” The game will not be rescheduled he said in a statement Sunday because of the schedules of both teams. Refunds are available at the point of purchase.
The Saturday rain and lightning also claimed the decisive Pacific Coast League playoff game at AutoZone Park between the Redbirds and Oklahoma City. The game was played Sunday with the Redbirds winning in 10 innings 4-3 to advance to the PCL championship series for a second consecutive season.
Here is The Week Ahead and our “Around Memphis” reading list includes a Niles Wallace retrospective at the University of Memphis contemporary art gallery and jazz in Whitehaven.
Speaking of Whitehaven, the Whitehaven Farmers Market is Monday from noon to 5 p.m. at Methodist South doctors’ office complex.
And Southbrook Mall secures county funding through EDGE.
Shelby County Commissioners meet Monday to kick off their four year term of office – that’s the commission elected in August with eight of the 13 members new to the body. The first order of business is the election of a new chairman with returning commissioner Willie Brooks favored by virtue of being vice chairman for the last year. Follow the action live starting at 3 p.m. @tdnpols.
SCS leaders have some important decisions to make about Kirby High School this week
As the city of Memphis moves toward a new trash collection framework, corporate Memphis is dealing with a recycling crisis that is the result of market forces far beyond Memphis. Some are now paying a fee to have their recyclables taken into the chain of recycling after once being paid for the recyclables. And the companies taking the recyclable material to make goods are being more selective, turning down recyclables they deem “contaminated.”
The latest polling shows a close contest in the Phil Bredesen-Marsha Blackburn U.S. Senate race on the statewide Nov. 6 ballot and a substantial lead for Republican Bill Lee over Democrat Karl Dean in the statewide race for Tennessee Governor on the same ballot. Bredesen and Blackburn could run into each other Monday at an FFA forum in Nashville or they may make separate apperances. This the same week that Bredesen and Blackburn were to debate at Rhodes College here in Memphis. Blackburn won’t be there, but Bredesen will be in town.
President Donald Trump campaigns Friday in Jackson, Mississippi for interim Republican Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith.
Midtown Kroger about to undertake a $460,000 renovation of its deli.
Flying the Memphis flag on Sirius/XM during their Labor Day week free period, Greg Roberson on Deep Tracks, actually playing true deep tracks. Death to playlists and rotations.