by Roberta Murphy We are seeing luxury scaled down on many fronts, and luxury hotels and timeshare resorts are taking it on the chin as well. For the first five months of this year, according the the Wall Street Journal, U.S. hotel occupancy has declined 53 percent. This is the lowest drop in occupancy since 1987, when Smith Travel Research began tracking these numbers. While both luxury and budget hotels…
by Roberta Murphy (It is with sadness that we learned of Michael Jackson’s death due to a heart attack this afternoon, apparently at his Holmby Hills mansion. In the days ahead, many will be wondering about the fate of Neverland. Our prayers and kind wishes are extended to the Jackson family.) Over two years ago, we were speculating about the fate of Michael Jackson’s Neverland and wondered if it would…
In the blogging world, an absence of six weeks is almost unforgivable. But had I draped a black cloth over it on April 24, 2009 you might have understood. That’s the day my Dad and best friend, Bob Michelson, died in Encinitas, CA after a lengthy illness. It’s really tough to become an orphan when the last parent exits–especially if the relationship has been a close one. I shared this…
