SpongeBob takes AutoZone Park, a bluegrass jam on the Collierville square, and FoodieLand's Saturday afternoon is gone

Hey Memphis 👋 It's Friday. Sunny and 95, heat index around 102, and no advisory hanging over it — which in August counts as a good day. The weekend we mapped out yesterday actually starts tonight.

Two things moved overnight. FoodieLand's Saturday is going fast — every timed entry from 1 through 5 PM is sold out now, and only the 7 and 8 o'clock slots are left. Friday is still enter-anytime, so tonight is the easy one. And at Memphis Wrestling on Sunday, ringside is gone, along with ring entrance and the boxes — general admission and bleachers are still there at $14.90. Missed yesterday's guide? It's right here.

☀️ Today in Memphis

FoodieLand — Tiger Lane at Liberty Park, 940 Early Maxwell Blvd., 3–10 PM, $20, kids five and under free. Worth repeating from yesterday's guide, because Friday is the one day you can turn up whenever you like. Tickets online only, no re-entry, parking $11.50. Details

Happy Friday—Free Admission! — The Grove at GPAC, 1801 Exeter Road, Germantown, 5–8 PM, free. Josh Threlkeld's weekly lawn set, except this week GPAC wants you to bring your own ukulele and play along. Details

Bluegrass Jam on the Collierville Square — Town Square Park, Collierville, 7–10 PM, free. Not a concert, a jam: acoustic instruments only, and any level of player can pull up a chair. Details

Contra Dancing — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on Walnut Grove, Cordova, 7–9:30 PM, free. No partner and no experience needed, which is more or less the entire point of contra. Details

SpongeBob SquarePants Night — AutoZone Park, gates at 6, first pitch 7:05, from $9.01. The first 1,500 in get a Bikini Bottom button-up, the Redbirds play in SpongeBob jerseys that get auctioned off the same night, and the pregame band is called the Patio Pirates. Details

Milkshake — Hi Tone, small room downstairs, doors 8 and show at 9, free. A no-cover Friday in the little room; downstairs is 21-and-up every night of the week. Details

👶 With the kids

Memphis Parks splash pads — seven city locations, 10 AM–7:45 PM, free. It's 95 out, they run daily through Labor Day weekend, and nobody needs a reservation or a ticket. Details

Game Night & Art Session (Teens & Tweens) — Raleigh Library, 4 PM, free. Games and an art table in the Teen Innovation Center, which is a landing spot for the age group that has aged out of story time. Details

Want the whole verified list, updated daily? It lives at heymemphis.co/events.

📰 The Rundown

Arlington is getting a storefront it has only ever had online. The Speckled Ginger, Leslie Ford's boutique, takes its first brick-and-mortar space this fall at 11125 Highway 70 — about 1,300 square feet of clothing, shoes and jewelry. (via WhatNow Memphis)

Kevin Sharp is retiring from the Dixon after 19 years, the longest run any director has had there. He'll stay through summer 2027 or until a successor is named. (via Memphis Flyer)

The Mid-South Coliseum's backers told City Council they're closer than people think. Private investors have pledged 30 to 40 percent of the $200,000 needed just to fund a development study on reopening the building. (via Action News 5)

🍽️ Food & Drink

42 years in the Pinch, and then the lights went off. Westy's poured its last one on Saturday, Aug. 15. Owner Jake Schorr pointed at inflation, the construction around him and the trolley that never came back. The building at 346 N. Main is for sale. If you had a late plate of nachos there at some point between 1983 and last week, you were part of a very long run. (via Action News 5)

🎟️ Looking Ahead

Those two Minglewood on-sales are today — Emo Nite (October 24) and Lucas Zelnick (February 19) both open this morning. Details

Alabama at Live at the Garden has a new date — Thursday, September 3 at Radians Amphitheater, flagged as a new date on the venue's own page, so check the one on your ticket. BYOB is allowed. Details

Memphis Roller Derby turns 20 — a double header on Saturday, August 29, 3–9 PM at the Pipkin Building. Details

🏡 Community Corner

Yesterday we asked about the things in your neighborhood that exist because somebody just decided they should — the garden on the vacant lot, the little library, the goal everybody uses. That question's still open, and we'd rather go look than guess. Hit reply and tell us where.

The tip line never closes — a pop-up, a band, a Friday night we missed — no gatekeeping — send it to hey@heymemphis.co.

That's it from us — the planning's done, the fun part's yours. See you Monday at 6.

— Josh