Garrison Keillor, right, will bring "A Prairie Home Companion: America the Beautiful Tour" to Memorial Auditorium on Sunday. Behind him is Rich Dworsky, the show's master pianist.LISA DENTON: Barry, I don't remember exactly where you fall in the Courter clan, but I know it's somewhere in the middle. So the promotion tonight at the Chattanooga Lookouts game should be one you'd turn out for. You and Jan Brady.
It's Middle Child Appreciation Night. Apparently, there's a national observance, no doubt started by these overlooked mid kids, and minor-league ballparks are helping to celebrate.
BARRY COURTER: It's about time we had our day. Sandwiched as we are between the ber-spoiled firstborn and the can-do-no-wrong baby in the family.
Bitter? Me? Nah. I had it pretty good. We all did, actually, in Casa de Courter, but that's a clever and unusual promotion the minor leaguers are doing.
LISA: Of course, if firstborns are in charge of posting pictures to the electronic scoreboard at AT&T Field, they'll all be of Marcia, Marcia, Marcia. Which seems perversely fitting.
BARRY: There are some good concerts in town this week. Track 29 will be busy, starting with Hellyeah and Eyes Set To Kill on Tuesday, The Lacs with Hard Target on Thursday and Eli Young Band on Saturday.
Lisa Denton and Barry Courter
Hank & Cupcakes, which played Riverbend this year, return to town for Riverfront Nights on Saturday.
LISA: And Garrison Keillor will bring "A Prairie Home Companion: America the Beautiful Tour" to Memorial Auditorium on Sunday. It'll have all the regular features of the radio show - Guy Noir, The Radio Rhubard Band, News from Lake Wobegon - plus a guest appearance by singer Sarah Jarosz. I think I'll raid the "PHC" jokes page for Laugh Lines this week.
Also this week, the Chattanooga Writers Guild is hosting a series of poetry and prose events with three visiting writers and a couple of local poets. My attempts at poetry are pretty much limited to limericks. I recently read one that said: "There once was a man from Peru/Whose limericks stopped at line two."
It left me frustrated but tickled, like the other night when I was trying to beat my new slow-closing toilet lid to be the first on the seat. I hadn't expected it be a race, but I hadn't raised the lid to its full upright position, so it started down at the same time I did - perhaps a wee second before. Let's just say my bladder was the, um, come-from-behind winner.
BARRY: But but only you would be frustrated and tickled by a cheeky toilet seat. You really should get out more.
Continuing on, the Chattanooga Mud Run to benefit Habitat for Humanity is Saturday at Greenway Farms. The Country Thunder Band will play at the after-party.
And it's a little early, but I just got word from Dixie Fuller that a life celebration is planned for Dr. Jack Kennedy on Tuesday, Aug. 18 at Rhythm & Brews from 5 to 7 p.m. There is no cover charge, and people are encouraged to stop by and share their favorite Rock Doc story. Plus, the countdown has begun toward the final show at R&B. It closes for good on Sept. 26.
Get event details every Thursday in ChattanoogaNow or online anytime at www.ChattanoogaNow.com.
Contact Lisa Denton at ldenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6281. Contact Barry Courter at bcourter@timesfreepress.com 0r 423-757-6354.