Bill Geist's Zeitgeist

Bunny Wailer

The last member of the ground-breaking group The Wailers has departed terra firma...but what a life Bunny Wailer led. We could only have been as blessed.

Hanging out on the streets of Nine Mile, childhood friends Bunny, Bob Marley and Peter Tosh created the Wailing Wailers and achieved international success. All three ultimately went on to sensational solo careers, with Bunny winning three Grammys in the '90s.  He was still churning out music videos in 2017 and, even after a stroke laid him low, participated in a Playing for Change video of "Soul Rebel."

We say farewell with one of my faves, "Roots, Radics, Rockers and Reggae."

Thanks for all the smiles, Bunny. For, no one could ever have the blues when listening to you.

Are We Ready for the Return?

Over the weekend, I found myself reflecting on one of the better webinars I've seen this year. Part of Connect Travel's "See Tomorrow" series, last week's episode focused on resident sentiment with Colorado's Cathy Ritter, Park City's Jennifer Wesselhoff, Hawaii's Kalani Ka‘anā‘anā and Longwoods International's Amir Eylon, moderated by TripAdvisor's Steve Paganelli. If you didn't catch it live...make time to catch up with the recording in the next week or so.

Why sooner than later? If the pace of vaccinations continues on its forward trajectory and the fourth spike sputters, Destination Marketing Organizations will be returning to the marketplace with invitations for consumers to visit. The "when you're ready" message will increasingly be replaced by "we're ready for you." But, is your community really ready?

As Amir reminded viewers, 4 out of 10 residents remain wary of their community unfurling the welcome mat...and that's too close to 50-50 for me.

Despite the pressure to get back into the game, the question must be asked, will residents be happy to see visitors again? And, have they come to enjoy the relative quiet of the past year in many of our communities?

A lot of residents of Big Sur are kinda diggin' that Highway One collapsed, cutting off outside access to the community. In a recent story, one resident said she is "celebrating the tranquility."

How many of your residents feel the same way?

 

Rod Stewart

Some recording artists are WYSIWYG; they establish themselves in a lane and rarely venture far afield. Then, there's Rod Stewart...who went from blues to balladeer to rock to disco to soft rock to standards over his 58 year career since joining the R&B group The Dimensions in 1963.

The early '70s was a particularly productive period as he was churning out both solo and group albums at a furious pace. Indeed, 50 years ago this year, he released three albums, including two of his best works, "Every Picture Tells a Story" and (one of the best album titles of all time) "A Nod is as Good as a Wink...to a Blind Horse" with The Faces.

On this Music Friday, we offer a track from each to kick off your weekend. There's this version of "Every Picture" with Bryan Adams from the 1996 VH1 Honors show. And, this BBC clip of "Stay with Me" from 1972.

And while I love it live...neither holds a candle to the sonic electricity of the studio tracks, here and here.

To think that it's been 50 years...

10,000

When we relaunched DMOU (Destination Marketing Organization University) as a podcast in the Summer of 2019, I'm not sure we had a goal in mind...other than to share compelling stories from people in and around the Destination Marketing space. It's what we love to do; shining a light on people who are making a difference.

But, waking up this morning to the fact that, overnight, DMOU passed the 10,000 download mark? That's cause for humble celebration.

Thanks to the over 50 guests over the past year and a half that have taken time out of often brutal schedules to share their truths. You inspire us...and we're thrilled to give your voices wings. And, to those that have powered the downloads, thanks for valuing what we've created.

And, if you've yet to listen, the entire library of conversations is available here, as well as on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other audio platforms...including our latest episode with Visit Alexandria's Patricia Washington.

Here's to 20,000!

An Americana Tradition

Groundhog Day is upon us...but, unfortunately, the festivities on Gobblers Knob will be replaced by a virtual version tomorrow morning. As has been our world since this time last year.

I had the rare privilege to experience the 24 hours surrounding the event back in 2007...and, in an uncommonly long post (I believe my longest in 15 years), I chronicled my experience in Punxsutawney PA. Most of the links are long broken...but you'll get the essence of the moment.

This is what we miss when we failed to have a coherent national strategy to beat back a virus.

Sigh.

 

Best Analogy Ever

As we look out upon the uncertainty of 2021, we see hope and fear. Quoted today in the Northstar Meetings Group's e-newsletter, former DMO CEO and current CEO of IAEE David DuBois nails exactly where we are:

"Imagine you're driving through a snowstorm and all of a sudden it's getting brighter on the horizon. The next thing you know, you see sun — and you're thrilled — but you’re still scared to drive on the snow and ice that’s on the road. That's the deal. Sunshine is in the future. But we still have a lot of snow and ice on the highways that we need to drive on.”

Spring is Coming.

Thankfulness

It's that time of year when we count our blessings and share our love...not an easy path during the 'VID. But...probably more important than ever.

Terri and I have been blessed this year with all the Zoom connections with so may of you and the opportunities to ideate and support each other through these dark days. As horrible as these months have been for so many of our peers in hospitality, the opportunities to connect so with many of you has been a blessing. And, being able to spend the Summer at home on the porch with each other was pretty cool too.

To celebrate the 25th year of DMOproz, we reached out to those that have logged 25 years in Destination Marketing to gather their words of wisdom. The compilation of their savvy can be found here.

And, Merry Thanksgiving to you all.

Supporting Each Other

Earlier this year, we shared the story of The Spot, a Galveston beachside restaurant that, in the middle of the pandemic, boosted employee paychecks...by a lot. The owner believed that by giving big raises, his employees would, in turn, spend more with other local businesses. And, that could hopefully save several independents from closing their doors. It worked...at the same time The Spot had its biggest May in history.

Another "Pay it Forward" type story has just broken in Toronto. This Summer, Andy Dinner took over the lease of a building in his neighborhood with the intention of opening a barbershop...at a time when trips to hair stylists were banned. When he finally opened, he offered $5 off any haircut if the customer could produce a receipt from another business in the neighborhood. 

According to this story from the CBC, Andy shared that "the number of bar owners and restaurant owners reaching out to me and expressing their gratitude has been really emotional, it's been really overwhelming for me." And, several businesses have said they've been able to stay open, in part, because of Andy's love of the neighborhood in which he grew up.

He says he now understands why his small idea has had such a significant impact.

"People need good news. The world is so starved right now for positivity, everything is so dark right now. We are going to get through this and we're gonna come out stronger by little things like this. By doing our best."

Cheers to you, Andy. Next time I'm in Toronto, I'll be sure to swing by for a cut...and to discover your sensational neighborhood.

Photo Credit: Nick Purdon / CBC

Gaining a Broader Understanding

Last month, the President issued an Executive Order that would prohibit federal agencies from offering diversity, equity and inclusion training for government workers. In doing so, he called DEI initiatives "divisive" and "un-American."

I'm not sure how helping government workers better understand unintended bias and identify ways to open up opportunities for all is "un-American," but the American Society of Association Executives last week urged the Administration to rescind the directive, post haste.

Truly, the only people that believe that DEI programs are "divisive" are those that want a strict continuation of the status quo...a status quo that pretty much sucks. Which is one of the reasons we issued our position paper on Board Diversity in collaboration with Searchwide Global this summer.

It's also why you should consider the Travel Unity Summit October 21-23. The All-Access Pass is only $50 and offers sessions from some of the top names in travel accessibility and DEI, including Destination DC's Elliott Ferguson, Sports ETA's Al Kidd, HospitableMe's Billy Kolber and many more. And, there are a handful of sessions that are free, including the keynote from Travel Unity Executive Director Roni Weiss.

For more on the Travel Unity Summit, click HERE.

Eddie Van Halen

We lost two more names in the world of Music this week. Johnny Nash, often credited with bringing reggae to America, passed away at the age of 80 at his home in Houston. He had several hits over more than two decades...but his biggest was the lilting "I Can See Clearly Now."

But, the one that was the punch in the gut was the loss of rock innovator Eddie Van Halen. A self-taught guitarist who made many of his own instruments, Eddie's sound was immediately identifiable. And, with such an extensive catalogue of work, we have a lot of choices on this Music Friday.

Track 1, Side 1 of album 1 announced Eddie's arrival to the world.

It was the band's fourth album in which Eddie introduced keyboards to the VH sound. David Lee Roth once commented that Eddie played keys with his fists. "Jump" is one of their best videos, primarily because it shows Eddie as supremely confident and having a ball.

It's a horrible video...but it's proof that Eddie supplied the guitar solos (and, apparently, rearranged the bridge) in Michael Jackson's "Beat It" despite not being paid or credited.

Then there's this...the moment that Eddie and Sammy jammed at Farm Aid '85 that sealed the deal that produced the "Van Hagar" era.

And, we all slow down. When Eddie welcomed Diamond Dave back to again front the band, he looked tired...but his guitar work still sizzled on "Tattoo."

If you're pressed for time, just watch this compilation of greatness.

Rest now, Eddie...you blazed a trail that will never be forgotten.