To E (A: B.B. King’s Blues Club)

I’ll say one thing, E., you’ve made me a tourist in my own hometown. That’s a thing of awesomeness.

I’ve only been to B.B. King’s once, and that was to see one Ms. Ruby Wilson. She’s amazing, by the way. But I wasn’t disappointed Saturday night, either. I’d heard of Preston Shannon but had never heard him play before, and I was really impressed. Good stuff.

Paul and I hit up Beale Street early Saturday (around 8 p.m.), having already driven to Harbor Town and Tom Lee to see the flood stage. It wasn’t easy gauging the river level in Tom Lee because it’s truly on the bluff, but Harbor Town was another matter altogether. My favorite spot in the greenbelt, one I go to a lot to sit and write, is completely underwater.

When USACE sent out a press release last week about the river surpassing flood stage, I told the guy I share an office with that I feared My Spot was flooded. He said, in his usual practical way, that parks in floodplains are meant to be flooded. I know he’s right, but when I saw it for myself, my heart sank.

Anyway, Paul and I drove to Arkansas to see the levee then headed back to Beale to take pictures and grab some food. The pics turned out great; the fried pickles at B.B.’s were the worst I’ve ever had. But we had a great time and I got tons of photos. The best ones of the river stage and of B.B. King’s are in my Memphis folder, and new pics of Paul and me in the Harbor Town greenbelt are in my Friends folder.