Crazy Elvis People and BBQ

So, as I've been preparing to leave the city I've called home for the past 10 years, I've started make a mental list of all of the things I will (and won't) miss about Memphis.  As the list has gotten longer, I've decided to put a some of it on paper.


Things I'll Miss About Memphis

1. Crazy Elvis People - They come from Japan and Germany, New Jersey and Nevada. I love to watch the Elvis fans pile into Memphis en mass twice a year.  You have to admire the dedication anyone who will sit in 108 degree heat in August to get a spot in line for the annual vigil.
2. BBQ As A Food Group - Go to any meeting or special event in Memphis, and there's BBQ.  Have guests in from out of town, and serve them BBQ.  Take a week off from work in May and sit by the River and do what, eat BBQ with 80,000 of your closest friends.
3. Walking In the Footsteps of Legends - Elvis, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, BB King, WC Handy, Al Green, Alex Chilton, Jim Dickinson and Isaac Hayes all got their start in Memphis. I love walking the streets of Memphis knowing they are the same streets they walked.
4. Baseball, Beer, the BFF and the Bread Factory - My favorite place on Earth... AutoZone Park on a summer night watching he Redbirds with my BFF Carrie, beer in hand, with the smell of fresh bread from the Wonder Bread Bakery wafting over the infield.  Heaven.

Things I Won't Miss About Memphis

1. Playing Frogger with Pedestrians on Poplar and Union - Anyone who's lived in Memphis knows you drive down Poplar and Union at your own risk.  There are few crosswalks, and even those go mostly unused. At any given moment, you're likely to have to slam on brakes to avoid the pedestrians darting across traffic... usually at night wearing all black.
2. "Can I Ask You One Question?" - This is usually followed by "I need a dollar for (a) gas, (b) diapers and/or baby formula (c) a bus ticket or (d) something to eat."
3. Fighting Over who ISN'T Responsible for Education - In one of the most under-educated cities in America, no one wants to take responsibility for the schools.  The City doesn't want to pay for them, the School Board wants to hand them over to the County, and people in the County are freaked out over the prospect of taking over hundreds of failing schools.  
4. Dirty Politics and King Willie - Everyone knows Memphis politics have a history of being dirty.  Palms are greased right and left.  Politicians go to jail and get out only to be re-elected.  Then there's King Willie, who manages to make everything about himself and speaks in third person when he does.  

I'm sure I'll come up with others.... In fact, I know I will.  So stay tuned...