It has been a truly wonderful week — I was able to enjoy free lunches twice, thanks to good luck and kindness from a stranger. On Monday, I took my son Luke to the UPS Store in Stony Brook, with the intention of shipping a banjo to my son Nick in Italy. Well, that didn’t work out, as the UPS staffer looked at me, took a deep breath, and told me the cost was $650. Not happening. But next door we happened upon the grand opening of a new Potbelly Sandwich Store. My friend Denise, from the Jeffersontown Chamber, saw me and told me lunch was free.
You may know that I’ve been on crutches since my ankle surgery in November, so I’ve been eating lunch sometimes in my car. At the drive-thru at the Schlotzky’s in Springhurst, I pulled up to the window to pay for my sandwich and a smiling staffer told me the previous car’s driver had paid my bill — and said Merry Christmas! Cool!
Also, I learned at the Middletown post office that you can’t mail a banjo to Italy because it violates Italian customs law. Sorry, Nick.
Another highlight was the second week of the rejuvenation of Pizza Club with my sons Luke and Josh. Years ago, their older brother Nick and I started this tradition, at his suggestion, of meeting for pizza once each week, as a new and different location every week. One rule of Pizza Club — never the same pizza twice. We went to the new Coals in Middletown, where all the pizzas are named for Louisville neighborhoods. I recommend the Middletown. And if you want us to have Pizza Club at your pizza joint, just give me a call. Thursday at Noon.
Of course, this isn’t all about me….
Frazier’s Future: I definitely missed this story about big bourbon-filled plans for the future of the Frazier Museum. Andy Treinen filled me in during our Rusty Satellite interview, in which we also discussed job seeking and the TV business.
Katie’s Future: It didn’t take long for Katie George to find a job in TV. The All-American volleyball player and Miss Kentucky graduated from U of L in December. She’d done some on-air work with WLKY-TV, but this week WDRB-TV announced it has hired George to report on sports and news. She starts Jan.
11, so expect to see her standing by the side of a road reporting on snow soon.
Airbnb’s Future: In its continuing efforts to create laws for problems that don’t exist, the Metro Council approved an ordinance that will require those renting properties on sites like Airbnb to pay a $25 registration fee. The issue has been on the city’s plate for more than a year, and this version passed 20-6. It still must be signed by Mayor Fischer.
Insider Scoop: There have been loads of changes in local journalism in the
last five years, and Sarah Kelley has been at the forefront, first as editor of LEO Weekly and for the last two years in the top editorial spot at Insider Louisville. I talked to her about all that, and more, on the week’s Rusty Satellite Show.
Also on Insider: If you’re a man with early stage prostate cancer, an operation is now available to you here in town that was not legal in the U.S. until the FDA approved it in October. Read about Dr. John Jurige.
He May Not Look the Part: But the guy who wowed Usher with his talent on NBC’s The Voice has the chops, and then some. Kentucky’s Jordan Smith blew away the competition on the hit show, which ended this week. I don’t even like these singing shows, but Smith is worth watching. And he’s setting YouTube records.
Culture to Know: Go see the movie “Spotlight”, about the investigation in Boston that exposed the Catholic priest scandal in 2002. Not only does it illustrate a different era in investigative journalism, it’s a frightening look at the Church. It’s time for season finales on TV — my favorites: Madam Secretary, Fargo, The Affair, Homeland. And new series launches you should see are the second seasons of Transparent and Mozart in the Jungle on Amazon. Plus, watch the thriller Bloodline and the hilarious Master of None on Netflix. Yea, that’s a lot to watch, but I haven’t been getting out much.
I Found out On Facebook: Former WHAS Radio talk show host Lachlan McLean and his wife Carolyn, who left town for Charlotte, are coming back, and Lach’s in the market for a new job. Rusty guests Diane Williamson (who does the lovely voice- over on the show), Councilman David Tandy and WAVE weather guy Kevin Harned are celebrating birthdays today. Facebook will show you your Year now, too.
