LISA DENTON: Barry, as I was typing in the slug for this story (its name in the computer, for non-newspaper types), I misspelled it, so it read "Off the Conch." I decided it was my subconscious telling me I need a day at the beach.
Does that make me sound shellfish?
Lisa Denton and Barry Courter
BARRY COURTER: I hope you didn't pull a mussel on that pun. I was actually thinking that is sort of a Freudian slip, or maybe a Jimmy Buffet slip. Or maybe a Parrothead Slip. Margarita Slip. Work with me, here.
LISA: Yeah, buoy. I catch your drift. I guess I'll just sit here and daydream. I call it resting beach face.
BARRY: I think I just blew out my flip-flop running away from this whole discussion.
LISA: OK, so I don't have vacation lined up, but the next best thing might be an escape to the Motor City when "Motown the Musical" plays the Tivoli Theatre this week.
BARRY: Seriously, just when I think you can't reach much deeper, you always do. It's a talent.
LISA: Thanks ... I think.
Anyway, I know of at least 58 reasons why the Motown show should be great. That's the number of classic songs they do. And another good reason is that Matthew Keaton, a Memphis resident who graduated from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, is one of the performers. He says he'll for sure be in The Temptations numbers, maybe others since he's a swing performer who fills in as needed. But that means the odds are good he'll be performing one of my all-time favorite songs, "My Girl."
BARRY: Love, love, love The Temptations. Everything about their music is great, and I have it from a good source that this show will be videotaped especially for Berry Gordy, Mr. Motown himself. That is so cool.
The 4 Bridges Arts Festival is this weekend at First Tennessee Pavilion. I have to imagine that your summer home up there on Soddy Lake could do with a nice piece of art. Or maybe the manor proper could do with a nice painting of a conch in the sand. Which is way better than a conk on the head for those scoring at home, by the way.
The annual festival kicks off Friday with a preview party and then continues Saturday and Sunday. It's free to attend, but since Republic Parking now controls the parking lot, folks will have to pay to park. I mention this because apparently some of us have an allergic reaction to paying for parking, no matter the amount.
LISA: We could probably find free spaces, but we wouldn't want to walk that far.
BARRY: I know, right? I hate walking more than like twwwooo whole blocks. And who wants to pay? Yes, I would like some cheese and crackers with my whine, thank you very much.
LISA: Hey, do you know what happens when a frog parks in a no-parking zone? It gets toad away.
I know, enough with the animal puns. I otter be ashamed.
Get event details every Thursday in Chattanooga Now 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 or 423-757-6354.