Page 2: Maybe it’s just me
Maybe it’s just me.
Maybe I’m just a dinosaur who hasn’t recognized his impending fossilhood.
The reason I had Geisel do the Social Media story (beginning on page 8) is because I don’t have time to deal with Facebook, and even on those rare occasions I check in, the vast majority of messages are from “friends” trying to sell me things or tell me about things they want me to like or from businesses wishing to be my friend.
I prefer friendships with animate objects. Unlike this guy I went to college with whose nickname was Dirty Bob. Bob had a plastic blow-up doll named Bianca (same as the character in Lars and the Real Girl, but Dirty Bob was first!).
Apparently, virtual girlfriends have become all the rage in Japan. Which would suggest that there are limits to the effectiveness of eHarmony. But I digress …
I’ve been finding social media rather tiresome lately, even as Kirkner tells me we have a Sheet facebook page (I didn’t know). Should I feel offended that The Sheet hasn’t tried to “friend” me?
Whoops. Kirkner says I can only “Like” The Sheet. I can’t friend it.
I spoke with Mammoth Lakes Tourism Exec. Director John Urdi about social networking yesterday. “Is it dead?” I asked.
The short answer: No. “It’s still on the rise,” said Urdi. “I just want the community to be more dialed in to cross-promoting itself.”
As for his opinions about individual sites, Urdi thinks Twitter is hit-and-miss. The problem with it is that it’s a constantly moving target. The sucker just keeps scrolling, so there’s a good chance your tweet can get lost in the shuffle.
The latest site that’s attracted some buzz is called foursquare. You log in based upon geographic location. But it’s more declarative than interactive. I am here! Big deal! Just like someone tweeting their latest bowel movement.
And it was just featured in the Wall Street Journal this week. A surefire sign it’s peaked.
Look, I wasn’t birthed and bathed and potty-trained in this stuff. Maybe once you train your younger generations to be utterly beholden to noise, that the old school notion of, I don’t know, turning off your phone and taking a walk will disappear.
I remember speaking with longtime Sheet contributor Mike McKenna about Facebook. Right after he signed up, he was immediately besieged with friend requests by every ex-girlfriend he ever had. Which, Mac acknowledged, was flattering, but … he was over it pretty quickly. If you hardly have time to reconnect with your wife at the end of the day, how will you have time to reconnect with all those lesser lights you passed over – FOR A REASON.
I can’t recall who made this point, but it rang true with me. If everyone is concerned about staying in contact with everyone they’ve ever known, does it stunt one’s capacity to meet new people and find new places? That was the greatest part about relocating to Mammoth – the freedom to begin anew, relatively untethered, not being forever reminded of what you were, or what you left behind.
Here’s what MMSA CEO Rusty Gregory had to say on the eve of another season.
The Mountain has invested about $10 million in its infrastructure. That includes about $5 million toward the purchase of new Sno-Cats and buses. The Mountain has also spent about $1 million in grading the ski-back trail this summer in order to turn it into something one might actually be able to ski.
Last year, MMSA reopened its MVP club and sold 40,000 season passes. And then closed it again. This year, attrition reduced the number of MVP passes sold to 36,000.
One program the Mountain is instituting this year which is bound to draw some controversy is a special club it’s creating for wealthier patrons.
$15,000 buys you two ski passes, parking, a personal concierge, a private dining facility within Parallax @ McCoy Station, a private locker room (to be built by next year) and full-time privileges to cut lift lines.
MMSA will open this new, exclusive club to just 300 people. It sold about 25 memberships within the first few days of its announcement.
Gregory said the club represents yet another push by the company to organize itself around “market segments.”
Not being able to resist a dig, The Sheet asked if soaking the rich would allow the Mountain to lower overall ticket prices.
No, smiled Rusty, “but we will ultimately offer you more lifts for the same price.”
We’ll have details about this new offering next week.
As for little news items to report … Superintendent Rich Boccia announced at Lions Club Wednesday that Mammoth High School is eligible to apply for Distinguished School status this spring … Measure R was audited for its spring, 2009 awards and Kirkner (paraphrasing Stu Brown) says the awards were not given out in compliance with the ordinance. Oops … the Town renewed its lease on its police facility for the next five years, ensuring four-star accommodations for its police force for the foreseeable future … the Lake Mary Road bike path from Juniper to Town Lakes will close for the season as of Wednesday.
Speaking of the MLPD, take note of the following press release issued Thursday by Sgt. Karen Smart:
“It was recently brought to our attention that a telephone scam is currently going on in Mono County and in the Town of Mammoth Lakes. A company claiming to be “State Investigative Agency” with a caller ID of 760.935.3927 is making calls to local residents attempting to gain personal information. At times, they claim to be an officer and that they have a warrant for your arrest. So far, based on the information we have received, they have phished/hacked information from Payday Loan companies which you may have applied for. They claim that you owe them money and you need to pay them via credit card.
We have been able to confirm that this is not a legitimate company doing legitimate business. If you receive a call from this company, do not give them any personal information. If you have any questions, please contact Officer Daniel Hansen or Detective Doug Hornbeck at 760.934.2011.”
Web exclusive this week: the Town’s Recreation Commission finished its recommedations for Fall 2010 Measure R Awards, which go to Council on Dec. 1. Read more at thesheetnews.com!
