What makes Memphis...Memphis?

I'm the daughter of a small business owner. A literal Mom & Pop (and grandparent and uncle and great-uncles and cousins and countless family friends) operation that employed just over 100 people in the busy summer paving season, Bonds Company built just about every road in northeast Mississippi. I learned at a very early age to appreciate the contributions of a small business to it's community. And it's not just about not trusting The Man or wanting to stick it to big corporations. Data from the U.S. Small Business Administration and the Census Bureau suggests small firms (those that employ less than 500 people) provide jobs to just over half of all employed in the private sector. These operations fuel our local economies.

But it's not the statistical data that makes me all warm and fuzzy for the little guy. It's what they do to make their surroundings unique. And I know you feel the same way, too. Here's a scenario: an out-of-towner asks you for a restaurant or retail recommendation for their trip to Memphis. I'm willing to bet you won't say any of the following:

• Oh, definitely check out the Chili's Grill & Bar at Poplar & Perkins. Their southwestern eggrolls are outta sight!
• Be sure and swing by the Wal-Mart Super Center on Germantown Parkway. Their kitchen do-dad selection is exhaustive!
• Stop in at the Walgreens at (insert darn near any intersection here). What a great candy selection and their customer service is dreamy.
• There's a Pizza Hut on Union that serves THE. BEST. PIZZA. Trust me on this one.

Instead, you'll wax poetic about your favorite barbeque joint and recommend they try the sandwich or the BBQ nachos or the ribs; you'll say they should check out Lit on Summer or Union for their cooking needs; you'll say the Peanut Shoppe is where they'll need to go to satisfy their sweet tooth and be greeted by some of the nicest proprietors in town; you'll send them to Trolley Stop Market, a restaurant/locavore market led by local farmers Jill & Keith Forrester for what might be the best pizza on the planet. You'll recommend all your favorite hole-in-the-wall-only-in-Memphis places because you want your traveling friends to have the most authentic experience.

And you'll be disappointed when your favorite local institution isn't here anymore. The Memphis Heritage Foundation and it's supporters got a lot of flack for being late to show concern for the hulking Methodist Church at the intersection of Union and Cooper, only rallying around the decaying building when a national chain threatened to tear it down and replace it with an Any Suburb, USA-designed drugstore. The drug store got it's way and the church is coming down even as I type. Nashvillians rallied around their own Davis-Kidd Booksellers location only after it was announced the store would be closed at the end of 2010. The "Keep Davis-Kidd Nashville Open" facebook page had more than 3500 fans only four days after it was created, more than twice the amount of fans the store's actual facebook fan page had. The rallying cry was too late; the store WOULD be closing. Where were all those vocal supporters before?

Think about all the places you really treasure where you live. Would there be a void if it went away? Can you do something about it? Absolutely. The 3/50 Project is an organization dedicated to promoting "stronger local economies through support of independent retailers and the consumers who shop with them." The premise is this: pick 3 of your favorite places and pledge to spend $50 at each of them on a monthly basis. Stick with three for a year, if you'd like. Change it up monthly. Whatever it is, make a commitment to vote with your dollars - vote for the success of the business by SHOPPING/EATING/DRINKING/BEING there! And think about it: it's the local businesses that are raising the bar on best practices, customer service and sustainability. The behemoths seem to be in reaction mode (I'm looking at you, Wal-Mart), constantly revamping their "green" standards, their food sourcing, their safety records, their employer-provided health insurance.

Frankly, it's the locals who make our communities better. And while this is pretty funny, it doesn't have to be true. Commit to supporting those places that really do matter to you so you won't be scrambling to join the riotous mob that's too late to make a difference.

Nom Nom

I made a fitness goal for my New Year's resolution. "By the time I turn 33," I said, "I'll be down to ___" (did you really think I'd share that with you?). Well, tomorrow I turn 33 and I haven't hit the goal. Really, there's a lot of self-sabotaging going on here - there's SO much good food to eat here in Memphis and I own a bevy of cookbooks all devoted to Southern cookin' and my mom didn't exactly pass down a repertoire of low-calorie recipes. So today I started the River Workout Fitness Program led by the amazing Stacy Chick. My neighbor Whitney and I (both facing college/high school reunions later in the spring) got to the river at 5:40 this morning and proceeded to get our asses handed to us. Seriously, I thought I was going to puke. And we're gonna do it again on Thursday and for the next seven weeks (and maybe a few Saturdays) after that!

And inevitably my thoughts turn to food when I start thinking about shaping up. I'm already food obsessed; thinking about cutting back and eating healthier only makes me want the bad stuff even more. So while I've packed a slim-fast (or a slim-slow as my dad calls 'em), a few cutie clementines, some low-fat string cheese, a container of yogurt, and a 100-calorie pack of Mr. Salty chocolate-covered pretzels (I know my bag is protein-deficient - I need to do some grocery shopping), all I can think about is massive portions of cheesy lasagna from Papa Pia's, all the decadent goodies from Muddy's Bake Shop, and a cup o'gelato from the good folks over at YoLo. And then I found this:

   

From Angie McGowan, Babble.com

 
It's cake. In a mug. And it only takes 5 minutes in the microwave. And according to the reader comments, it's got 1100 calories.

Le sigh.

So that's my motivation! I want to be so skinny that when I collapse from hunger, my bones clatter on the floor. And when I come to, I want you to have a cup of this Nutella Mug Cake ready to bring me back from the brink.

UPDATE: And today is the day I discover Local Gastropub makes a bacon brownie?!? That's just cruel.
 

From Kerry Crawford Trisler, ILoveMemphisBlog.com



Bloggity Blog Blog

I've sort of stepped away from the blogging for a bit, but it's never been far from my mind. It's always on the to-do list and I've got a laundry list of topics stashed away (there are interviews from OCTOBER that I haven't posted yet!) but on a daily basis I find myself cruisin' the blogosphere and enjoying everyone else's writing so much that I just haven't wanted to take the time to put my own thoughts down. I've decided to re-commit to my little corner of the interwebs and this weekend I'll turn some of those floating ideas and interviews into posts. In the mean time, I wanted to share with you some of my latest inspirations:

1.) norococo - I adore this blog. All-around creative genius Sophorn McRae writes this gem and I especially like her graphic design/architecture/photography savvy. This post makes me smile because it's so much smarter than I am but makes all kinds of wonderful sense.

2.) The Pioneer Woman - I got the chance to meet Ree Drummond last week at Davis-Kidd Booksellers and she's fantastic! Leading up to the event, I stalked her blog with more gusto than usual and found a little ditty about Rules for Blogging.

The Marlboro Man, The Pioneer Woman, and me. We're all totally best friends now.

3.) Freedom - I had no idea this even existed, but it's pure genius. Web-crastination be damned!

4.) 750 Words - Not a blog, but an on-line journal. For your little eyes only. Know what makes better writers? More writing!

5.) Lovely and interesting homes to tour. And the weather. And the blooming trees. And spring clothes. And self-serve frozen yogurt popping up alllllll over town (like here and here and here). And music festival line-up announcements.

Can you guess what Central Gardens behemoth this ceiling belongs to?

Have a marvelous weekend, y'all! See you next week!