Kill Your Darlings

Gene — Sun, 27 Jul 2008 21:03:37 +0000

In the last couple months, since my last post on this blog, I have signed up for Twitter. @genemccubbin is my Twitter username. Twitter is a micro-blog and quite addictive. A combination of voyeurism and exhibitionism in one. Perfect for my slightly, occasionally, not-so-normal mind. Also, even more perfect for the occasional blogger like me who hates formatting, spell checking, adding pictures and all the other mundane blogging requirements (sorry WordPress, alas you still fail me). So…my desired blogging rundown of a vacation I took six months ago has gotten stale and old and I have lost interest. My intention then is to “Kill My Darlings,” as the oft misquoted writer’s statement attributed to William Faulkner would dictate, and give a super fast synopsis so I can move on to more interesting posts (or at least more relevant to this month). Final summary of trip follows…then this baby is dead:

Monterey / San Luis Obispo, CA - Ahhh…the beach. We stayed at a gorgeous inn by the ocean, watched dolphins in the morning, enjoyed one of the bottles of champagne at night and a fantastic meal. The next morning we toured the Hearst Castle. Wow…this place rocks! Five miles up in the mountains, the guy had to build his own electric and water resources to feed the home. His own animal farm (not the Orwellian version). Unbeknownst to many, the Hearst family bought 200,000 + acres of California coastline for about $212,000 in the 1850s. So, while William Randolph was definitely a genius and visionary businessman…he started with zillions of dollars of family wealth. He also had a penchant for other women, chronicled in his famous lover’s book The Times We Had. Nonetheless, ole Hearst built himself another empire as he tenaciously drove towards further success and self validation. No Paris Hilton here!! His story is told on the silver screen in the movie Citizen Kane.

El Capitan Canyon - We spent two nights at the awesome El Capitan Canyon Spa & Resort, enjoying smores, hot dogs, bbq, camp fires, and walks along the coastline mountains. They charge a couple hundred bucks a night to sleep in a tent….now THAT’s experiential!

Los Angeles, Disney, Universal, and crack-heads (i.e. Hollywood & Vine) - The next five or so days we spent in L.A. Couple nights at Disneyland & California Adventure, which of course was awesome. Watched a cool little movie about California called Golden Dreams, hosted by Whoopi Goldberg. It’s a tribute to California and the people who built the state, spanning from Native Americans, to Japanese immigrants, to tech titans. Its actually quite good, despite Ms. Goldberg. Comparatively, Universal in Hollywood is downright horrid. It really highlights what makes Disney the BEST at what they do… rich experiences, tapping the emotional core of Americana, history, family, wholesomeness. Side note - Universal Orlando, particularly Islands of Adventure is Awesome…but Universal Hollywood isn’t much different than the pimps, crack hoes, Ripley’s Believe It or Not, and Hooters at Hollywood & Vine. One more aside…why do I keep paying to see the Ripley museum?? I walk out feeling like I have a big “Ignorant Tourist” bumper sticker on my forehead.

Legoland, CA - This family owned company is a testament to exacting standards (like Disney), experiential value, exploring new products, and creating lifelong, generational memories. Yes…I love Legos. Unlike Mega Blocks, which can’t seem to get the basic concept of having the damn block fit together…Legos work. Plus, they have a COOL theme park and these awesome Styrofoam swords kids can chase each other around the hotel with and hit each other without actually hurting (mostly) The Lego theme park was “young”, but awesome nonetheless. Filled with cool Lego sculptures, a tiny train ride through a Lego safari, even a walking trip through America’s coolest cities (built entirely of Legos). As a company, this family owned billion dollar conglomerate has expanded and kept their product lines fresh while not sacrificing quality or the core vision and product. Laser focus with growth in mind…a truly great example of American success. Wait… they aren’t American, they are Danish. Ah well. Eight billion in 2007 revenues.

Quick comment on the penny press - Am I the only father in the country that has like a million pennies from every place I’ve ever been?? It’s for my kids all right. Back off. This is a GREAT invention and a superb business model. The inventor of the penny press is making a killing selling these souvenir press machines to ANY-body who thinks their place has nostalgic value. I need one at the local margarita cantina! These guys even do revenue sharing… who-da-thunk? I know, I’m going to flatten a penny and destroy currency…in order to make more currency.

Sea World, San Diego - Originally founded by four graduates from UCLA, Sea World combines family fun and entertainment with a serious study and support of marine wildlife. Owned by Anheuser Busch (for now), these parks allow family fun and beer swilling simultaneously…two great American past-times. The story of the park owner, his entrepreneurial adventures and dedication to marine life is quite fascinating. Sea World was originally envisioned as an underwater restaurant, but they decided it was easier to get goofy people (usually wearing some sort of Believe It or Not t-shirt) to pay $35 to get splashed by a big stinky fish. Sea World catches flack for keeping marine animals ‘caged‘, but as long as it’s for our amusement and pleasure (and YES education)…hey, who’s complaining.

One last comment and then we close the casket on this baby… Abraham Maslow once said, “The key question isn’t, What fosters creativity? But it is, Why isn’t everyone creative?” I love that quote…why is it that some people can see past an underwater restaurant into a chain of marine wildlife parks, a flat penny into a large revenue generating business, the inheritance of their family’s wealth into a challenge to do more, or even a melted brick of plastic into an $8 billion empire??? Some people have vision, some people have tenacity, some people fight through their obstacles, and some people…well…some people don’t.

That’s the secret to entrepreneurial success. Now…on to slay more windmills!!!

The Contrarian Objectivist

Kill Your Darlings