The Early Word: Tops Bar-B-Q was smoking, and voting may be touchy
Good morning, Memphis! It’s Friday, Oct. 18, and this afternoon, you can catch the Memphis premiere of “This Really Happened,” a TV pilot co-written by a Memphian about two women unknowingly dating the same guy. Tonight brings the last Memphis Grizzlies preseason game (and it sounds like we might see Ja Morant back in action).
You can leave your hoodies at home for Saturday’s Memphis Tigers home game against North Texas. The warmer weather will also be ideal for the 17 Berkshire Fall Festival in Overton Square and the Southwest Twin Harvest Celebration at the old drive-in.
Sunday brings an opening reception for new art by two photographers — Los Angeles-based Corrina Repp and Memphis-based Geoffrey Brent Shrewsbury — at Brantley Ellzey’s Summer Studio. There’s plenty more going on this weekend, and you can get ideas from this week’s To-Do List. Or, if you’re specifically looking for spooky-season activities, our Halloween event guide (The To-Boo List, natch) has you covered.
More than meat was smoking on Thursday at the Tops Bar-B-Q location on Summer Avenue. A fire broke out in the barbecue pit just before 7 a.m. One employee was inside at the time but got out safely, and the fire was under control in 15 minutes. But extensive damage means that Tops will be closed for “an undetermined amount of time.” That certainly brings new meaning to Tops’ locally famous Fireman burger, huh?
Just like your old Palm Pilot from the late 1990s, some say the county’s new-ish touch-screen voting machines aren’t selecting the option that they’re pressing on the screen. Voters at 10 to 12 polling sites have complained of problems, and the Shelby County Election Commission responded by providing styluses (again, like the Palm Pilot) at all early-voting sites. If you haven’t used the new machines yet, just know you can review your votes before you officially cast them.
Plus, two candidates are trying to turn red districts blue, better coffee is brewing at Methodist and we have a “chaat” about Indian street food.
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Bianca Phillips
Bianca Phillips is a Northeast Arkansas native and longtime Memphian who’s worked in local journalism and PR for more than 20 years. In her days as a reporter, she covered everything from local government and crime to LGBTQ issues and the arts. She’s the author of “Cookin Crunk: Eatin’ Vegan in the Dirty South,” a cookbook of vegan Southern recipes.
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