disney spin

Today I finished Spinning Disney's World, by Charles Ridgway. I had really wanted to like this book for many reasons on many levels, but it was so hard. First, it's written by a person who on the pages just seems like a nice old man. A grandfatherly type of person. Second, it's Disney, there's so much opportunity for magic. Third, it's about PR, what I do.

It pretty much failed across the board. I often found Ridgway's turn of phrase a bit offensive toward woman, those less attractive, different cultures, technology. Perhaps that was part of the grandfatherliness of his personality, but I didn't find it endearing. The stories, while chronological, jumped all over the place and didn't create a yarn, as much as spilling facts and celebrity names into paragraphs.

The Disney magic was there. The ideas behind the parks and their realization reminded me of my childhood visits to Disney World. Ridgway started his work at Disney the year I was born. But in a way, his everything is magical at Disney, and there was never a dysfunctional team moment, makes it all a bit of fantasyland.

When it came to PR, I didn't find it all that informative. If anything there was too much waxing nostalgic for the good old days when journalists were given front row seats, people used manual typewriters and women were secretaries.

My sense is that if Ridgway hadn't been at a global brand like Disney for 40+ years, the book would never have gotten published.

dysfunctional 5

Earlier this week I read The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni. A typical business book that structures a story around some very basic common sense themes. That said, it was short, easy to read and as rarely happens with these things, it didn't bloviate much.

This made it easy to digest and left me feeling energized and reminded of what the best parts of the best teams can be. It made me a bit nostalgic too, for a PR agency job I'd had for several years in the late 90s/early 2000s where I had the privilege to work with the most functional team of my almost three decades of professional life.

The thing I liked best about the book is that it's easy to see not only how this applies to the professional world, but to the personal one as well. The five dysfunctions are the same dysfunctions that cause relationships to fail and families to pull apart.

diamonds

Before heading back across the pond, we had Sunday champagne brunch with Joe's nephew Ed and his new fiancé Lindsay. We ate the Grenville in Bay Head. The setting was beautiful, but the food was a real disapointment.

No matter, it was really about having some time with Ed and Lindsay and toasting their engagement. Originally we had planned to go to Great Adventure on Saturday, but Hurricane Gustav and a pulled muscle in my back squelched that. I was really looking forward to riding the world's fastest roller coaster, the Kingda Ka, maybe next time.

The Inn at Cochecton

What can you say about the Inn at Cochecton, the name we use to refer to the place where our friends Jeff and Fernando live in New York State. A 19th century farm house, organic gardens, apple and pear trees, acres of woods and walking and a recently aquired adjoining meadow and barn, all make for an amazing back drop to one of the best amateur chefs I know.

After saying hi to Alban, the not so new puppy, we gorged ourselves on fresh tomatoes and cucumbers (what the Brits refer to as "raw pickles). We then toured the barn and checked out the progress in the food gardens.

The next day the big event was a bonfire in the new meadow. We filled the tractor wagon with chairs and tables and food and went to the meadow. Great food and great fun. Fernando made amazing empanadas.

nj.ny

After DC, I headed to New Jersey for a few days of telecommuting from my parent's deck, before putting down the BlackBerry and taking some real time off. It was great to see the folks and friends. After Joe arrived we had a great trip to New York state to visit friends who have an amazing 30 acres with a 19th century farmhouse, barn, fields and woods.

It was very grounding all the way around. When I arrived at my parents, my Mom was having "the ladies" for a couple of days. These are all women I've known since before I was born. It was great to see them all together, looking so happy. Cotton, who is a yoga instructor held a great yoga session one afternoon on the deck, it was very special for me.
Dark Knight
One night "the ladies" went to the movies so Dad and I went to see the Dark Knight. It was great, if a bit long at almost 2.5 hours. I enjoyed seeing the parts that had been filmed at the Battersea Power Station that I see out my bedroom windows in London. It's definitely not a kids movie, very dark indeed and well done. But I suspect if I wasn't a Batman fan, I wouldn't have enjoyed it as much.

Dad and I also grabbed dinner one night with my cousins Gavin and Lara and their amazing Mom, Dona, at the Squan Tavern, a Jersey Shore institution of pizza, pasta and all things "Jersey-Italian".

Joe arrived at the end of the week and we kicked things off with dinner at our friend's Mike and Cor's. We hadn't seen them since we met in Rome earlier in the year so it was really great to catch up.