We’ve made it through another week, Memphis! It’s Friday, Aug. 19, and the countdown to the weekend has officially begun.

There’s plenty going on this weekend, including the opening of “Something Rotten!” (a musical about the fictional origin of musicals) at Playhouse on the Square and a free 1980s Flashback Dance Party at Black Lodge. On Saturday, you can cool off at Crosstown Concourse when the plaza is transformed into a mini-water park at Crosstown Splashdown. Want more weekend ideas? Check out The To-Do List.

THE NEED TO KNOW

Members of the Memphis Seven, including Nabretta Hardin (from left), Beto Sanchez, Florentino Escobar, Lakota McGlawn, Nikki Taylor, Emma Worrell, Reaghan Hall and Kylie Throckmorton celebrated a successful vote to unionize their local Starbucks in June. (Patrick Lantrip/Daily Memphian file)

Memphis 7 reinstated: The seven Memphis Starbucks workers who were fired shortly after forming a unionizing committee can have their old jobs back. On Thursday, a federal judge ordered Starbucks to reinstate the workers and to rescind and expunge an unlawful discipline action taken against worker Cara “Nikki” Taylor, who was the first to begin union activity at the 3388 Poplar Ave. store. Starbucks is planning to appeal.

Shelby County Clerk Wanda Halbert announced the clerk’s office will close to the public for the weeks of Aug. 22-26 and Sept. 19-23 to catch up on a workload backlog. (Bill Dries/The Daily Memphian file)

Clerk’s office closure is ‘unusual’: Shelby County auto dealers must drop off all their applications for car titles in one batch during the two weeks the Shelby County Clerk’s office closes to catch up on other work. Halbert recently announced the office would be closed next week and another week in September to deal with a backlog of “critically outstanding services.” A spokesperson for the Tennessee Comptroller’s office called the closure “unusual.” The comptroller’s office is planning to meet with other state officials, including the Department of Revenue, about oversight of the clerk’s office and its now-cleared backlog of license plates and renewal tags. The Shelby County Commission requested state oversight in a resolution approved at its Aug. 8 meeting.

A nurse administers the monkeypox vaccine at a walk-in clinic at the North Jersey Community Research Initiative in Newark, New Jersey, on Tuesday, Aug. 16. The Shelby County Health Department has started vaccinating residents here against monkeypox. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Monkeypox vaccine now available: The Shelby County Health Department is reporting a total of 18 monkeypox cases, but the JYNNEOS vaccine is now available for people who meet certain criteria. There is, however, a racial disparity between who is getting the vaccine and who has been diagnosed with monkeypox. Most of the vaccine, so far, has gone to white residents, while the majority of cases have been in Black residents. 

Cummings K-8 students are attending LaRose Elementary following a ceiling collapse in the school’s library on Monday. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)

Raising the roof: Cummings K-8 students are attending LaRose Elementary until further notice, following a ceiling collapse at Cummings that sent three employees to the hospital in non-critical condition. An engineer is reviewing the site of the collapse, as well as the rest of the school. And now Memphis-Shelby County Schools is launching a review of other older buildings.

CEO of TD Bank NA, Leo Salom, (left) and CEO of First Horizon, Bryan Jordan, were the guest speakers at the Positively Memphis luncheon on Monday, Aug. 1, 2022. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian file)

Taking it to the bank: Not everyone supports the planned merger of Memphis-based First Horizon with Toronto-based TD Bank N.A. At a meeting with the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on Thursday, a number of community organizations, such as the Memphis Union Mission, voiced support for the move. But detractors (which included U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, in the form of a letter) shared concerns about TD Bank’s lack of a community benefits agreement and its history of difficulty in lending to Black and Hispanic borrowers.

QUOTED

“There’s nothing like the smell of asphalt on a new street. It’s fun seeing boys and girls on their bicycles. They can haul tail on a new street.”

— Southaven Mayor Darren Musselwhite
In the coming fiscal year, Southaven city officials plan to spend about $4.7 million to resurface about 80 streets. Tchulahoma Road, near the DeSoto Central school complex, is at the top of the repaving list.

THE NICE TO KNOW

A still from “Young Rock” episode 212. Pictured, left to right: Michael Strassner as Jerry Lawler, Ryan Pinkston as Downtown Bruno, Uli Latukefu as Dwayne Johnson. (Photo credit: Mark Taylor/NBC)

From ‘Jailhouse Rock’ to ‘Young Rock’: The third season of “Young Rock,” the NBC television show inspired by the life of former pro wrestler Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, will begin production in Memphis this fall, with some scenes shot at Graceland. Other local locations have not been disclosed. “I think this could change the face of the future of filmmaking in Memphis,” said Linn Sitler, executive director of the Memphis & Shelby County Film and Television Commission.

YMCA officials and city leaders cut the ribbon on the upgraded Fogelman YMCA in Downtown Memphis on Thursday, Aug, 18. (Patrick Lantrip/Daily Memphian)

Maroon is out: The Fogelman Downtown YMCA has gotten with the times, thanks to a $2 million renovation that was commemorated on Thursday. The facility now boasts an expanded lobby, new flooring, reconfigured locker rooms and a fresh paint job, among other updates. “The last time we did a big renovation was back in the 1980s … Maroon isn’t ‘in’ as much as it was for a paint color, so we’ve been updating the spaces both cosmetically and functionally to welcome members back in,” said Jerry Martin, president of YMCA of Memphis and the Mid-South.

University of Memphis assistant coach Larry Brown claps during a Jan. 27, 2022, game against ECU. (Patrick Lantrip/The Daily Memphian file)

But Larry Brown is back in: Memphis Tigers former assistant coach Larry Brown will be returning this season. And in other Tigers news, the University of Memphis has hired Stephanie VanBrakle Prothro, who spent the last 12 seasons coaching at the University of Alabama (and helping the Crimson Tide win titles), as the new softball coach. 

Nathan James puts the finishing touches on a “Mayor Ken,” named in honor of Olive Branch Mayor Ken Adams at Papa Murphy’s Aug. 16, 2022. (Patrick Lantrip/Daily Memphian)

Mayor McCheese: As someone who once had three Memphis food items named after me (a vegan hot dog, a bhan mi and a brownie sundae), I can say that it feels pretty surreal (and a little awkward) placing an order for your namesake food item. Olive Branch Mayor Ken Adams can now have that awkward feeling when he orders the Mayor Ken pizza from the Olive Branch Papa Murphy’s location. The pie features toppings chosen by the mayor himself, and since they started selling the mayoral pie on Aug. 8, Adams has already ordered two. Want to try a Mayor Ken? It’s only available on Mondays.

From left to right, the Silo burger, the cauliwings with tempeh and the four tempeh sandwich at City Silo. (Jennifer Biggs/The Daily Memphian)

Your body is a tempeh: Alright, this week’s $10 Deal is right up my vegan alley. The Daily Memphian’s Jennifer Biggs may be a “full-on omnivore and a known appreciator of a good cheeseburger,” but she also loves plant-based foods, including the Buffalo tempeh at City Silo Table + Pantry. I’m a big fan of that tempeh as well, especially when it’s stuffed between two slices of freshly baked bread with lemon hummus, zoodles, pickles, and house-made vegan sriracha mayo on the four tempeh sandwich. It’s Biggs’ favorite too, and it’ll run you less than $10, as will the Silo burger (and Biggs has a special trick for eating it).

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

Like so many Memphians, I cut the cable cord years ago (like back in 2002!). And that meant it was nearly impossible to watch Memphis Grizzlies games without going to a bar or crashing a friend’s house (shoutout to my friend David who never turned us away). But my cable-free friends, there is good news for us, thanks to a new streaming service from Bally Sports.

Make a splash this weekend! You know where to find me on Monday morning.

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