Diversity Memphis celebrated its annual Humanitarian Awards at a dinner this past Thursday evening. For this writer it was an eye-opening experience and a lesson in Memphis politics and race relations — or lack of them. The racial make-up of the population of Memphis is made up of: Black — 61.1% White — [...]Continue Reading »

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Have there always been numbers in book titles? Recently, every 10th book that arrives from a publisher seems to be a list. There are the “1,000 Places to See Before You Die” books, the latest, confined to spots in the USA and Canada (Workman, $20), a threat that this series is just beginning. Even the author, Patricia Schultz, acknowledges how irritating her project is in the introduction to the new one. “My previous book,” she writes, “was already keeping folks awake at night.” This seems to be just a scheme to round up the usual suspects. Where does Schultz send people who come to Memphis on their don’t-die-before mission? Graceland, the Beale Street Music Festival, the National Civil Rights Museum and two “places” called “The Memphis Music Scene” and “Memphis Barbecue.”
I much prefer the aesthetic of National Geographic’s “The 100 Best Worldwide Vacations to Enrich Your Life” ($20). I opened it up to “Earn your elephant driver’s license,” which explains an elephant wrangling course at a camp in Thailand’s Golden Triangle. There are chapters on trekking the Sahara Desert with a camel caravan, ballooning over the Swiss Alps, walking in the footsteps of Alexander the Great in Turkey. And each section provides information about getting in touch with the people who run the services and how much they cost.
There is a volume called “1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die,” edited by Peter Boxall (Universe, $35). The title sounds like a provocation, and a story by William Grimes in The New York Times included a quote by Boxall saying he did in fact want to make people “furious” to encourage debate. I’m all for debates that galvanize readers, but should titles be there solely for that purpose? As Grimes said: “Not only is it not necessary to read “Interview With the Vampire” by Anne Rice before you die, it is also probably not necessary to read it even if, like Lestat, you are never going to die.” Good one.
And why add the 1 to 1,000? It’s already arbitrary to limit the world’s great novels to 1,000; adding 1 is capricious.
There are some topics that might as well be reduced to a list: Houghton Mifflin just published “135 Tips on Email and Instant Messages” ($8). It might have a couple of interesting moments. I didn’t open it. I’m overwhelmed by e-mails every day; I’m not going to read about improving my e-mailing skills.
And watch out for (as in, stay away from) these books by the numbers published by Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin. “The Art of Being: 101 Ways to Practice Purpose in Your Life” ($23) starts at No. 1 a couple of pages on What Gift Do I Bring? No. 5 is Things Don’t Change, We Do. No. 6: What Is Your Message to the World? No. 7: Elvis Has Left the Building. That, it turns out, is an admonishment not to follow the path of Elvis impersonators — “The one thing they had in common was that they were each trying to be someone they were not.”
This other Tarcher book actually made me mad: “The Only 127 Things You Need (A Guide to Life’s Essentials) by Donna Wilkinson, ($15). I picked it up because it reminded me of an Esquire magazine story I read years ago by a guy who tried to limit what he owned to a certain number, it may have been 1001. He counted each fork and spoon, each plate, a pair of shoes counted as one thing, I think. The story illustrated how uncontrollable our material lives are. But “127 Things” has no rigor and underpinning. In fact, I never could really find its numbering system. The large divisions are Body, Mind and Spirit. The Body sections are about things like exercise, sleep, nutrition. Under “A Healthy Mind” there are such topics as “The Ability to Be Real.” And under Spirit, there are entries on reflection, purpose, meaningful ritual.
So this “guide to life’s essentials” tells us in the same chirpy, didactic voice that every (woman) needs: “Tops…. camisoles, shells, tanks, tube tops, or T-shirts, whatever you prefer. You can’t have enough of them in your wardrobe.” And: “The ability to be real” by using “Honest self-relection…. The capacity to express and feel uncomfortable emotions…. Acceptance of self and others….”
It’s included among the 127 things on my desk that I don’t need.

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Do wrestlers really care when they're given an award?  Hmm... That could be a tough question in many different ways. Its hard to say, really. But I want to take a step back and look at this from a few different viewpoints for you.

It's very hard to take anything too seriously in a business where the results are pre-drtermined. Especially, on the independent level. In WWE or TNA, the entire world views awards and championships differently than the indies because they're on a worldwide stage. Not just the local level.  Locally though, it's a bit of a different story.

On a local level, awards could mean something special on one hand and mean nothing special on the other.  What I mean by that is this - people actually voting you a winner in a category is something that is meaningful.  For the fans and other wrestlers to actually vote you a winner in a special category should mean something to you.  Look at it this way, the wrestlers look up to you and the fans admire you.  That's a good thing.  But on the other hand, the actual award doesn't matter.  

RasslinRiotOnline has been doing an award ballot for the last two years.  It's fun to see who's nominated each year and who is voted what... but the actual awards or being handed a certificate - who cares?  Most guys look at it as it's fun and some guys look at it for what it is - a popularity contest.  Taking it too seriously would be a mistake on anyone's part. 

I've actually heard of guys trying to cheat their votes to win categories.  You have to love that.  To me, if I'm voted good enough in a poll I'd like to know that I won it because people look up to me.  Not because I signed on with many different names and made myself win.  You know what I mean? 

With that said, the photo you're looking at is me accepting the RRO Horizon Star of the Year Award just last week in Ripley, TN.  This was the first year RRO has done an award ceremony at one of the wrestling shows.  What's a little strange about it is I have won the same award two years in a row.  So, for two years now I was voted as the number one wrestler in the area that should be moving on to bigger and better things - WWE or TNA.  It hasn't happened yet, but I'm honored to be viewed in that type of light.  On the other hand that I talk about - I don't even know where that award I'm holding is right now.  I didn't bring it home.  I sat it down and jumped in the band with White Noise and sang "Paranoid".  

I don't want anyone to get upset about me leaving the award at the show but it is what it is.  I didn't do it on purpose.  But a wooden frame isn't that big of a deal to me.  The voting was nice and I smile a little brighter knowing the fans and other wrestlers think that I'm good enough and entertaining enough to be on a grander stage... but I guess I don't need proof.  I have a few banners on my homepage that will commemorate the occasion. 

Awards and winning Championship belts are two different things.  We'll get into titles in the next blog.  But awards are fun and have a little truth and meaning behind them, but they probably don't mean as much to the wrestlers as the fans actually think. 

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Family Cancer Center has launched a hotline for Mid-South physicians with questions about cancer or blood disorders. The toll-free number is designed to provide doctors with access to expert advice day or night. To request the number, physicians should call Rola Obaji, marketing director for the eight-member Memphis medical group. Call Obaji at 850-0272.

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Because it’s Memorial Day weekend, Brooke Gladstone and Bob Garfield decided to both knock off for the weekend (Brooke probably got Bob all addicted to “Grand Theft Auto IV”).

Instead of the usual commentary on the current state of the media, they offered up a rebroadcast of “The Book Episode” from last October.

The basic concept here is that the book industry is dying, or will die if it doesn’t change with the times.

If they can’t be bothered to give us any new content, I can’t be bothered to do a full recap. So instead, here’s this: the second Radio Sweethearts video.

Let Me Tell You About My Books from Radio Sweethearts on Vimeo.

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The following may be of some comfort to those who think Memphis politicians have cornered the market on erratic behavior:

According to an article posted on The Tennessean’s Web site today, Metro Nashville Councilwoman Vivian Wilhoite was cited by police this month for driving on a suspended license.

Wilhoite apparently had her license suspended after failing to pay a speeding ticket issued in January.

Wilhoite reportedly "forgot" about the ticket until she was pulled over for speeding, again, a couple of weeks ago.

Hmmm. Sound like anyone we know from around here?

Which leads me to this question: If Wilhoite and Memphis City Councilwoman Janis Fullilove were involved in a street race, I wonder who would win?

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