Scootering downtown

In another life, this writer would tool about Nashville on a sleek 1950s-era turquoise Vespa motor scooter, an attractive lass in tow.

Sadly, a gangly frame limits my scooter-riding comfort level. Add a pasty face and numerous personality quirks, and interest from the ladies is minimal.

My misfortune, given the romantic, hip and urban image of the scooter.

On the two-wheeled motorized-transportation theme, downtown Memphis is abuzz with scooters. But get this: The little vehicles are retrofitted with three wheels and buggies and provide alternatives to cabs and horse-drawn carriages.

Zipping about the Bluff City with the energy and ubiquity of Metro Councilman-at-large Adam Dread blanketing Nashville