Doppler Radar. Beautiful People. MBS. $100.00…Not.

Accuracy & Accountability.  Collins Avenue @ 18th.  Can You Say Big and Bold?  Why Pay When You Can Watch Live?

A forecast can be a prediction based on credible information.  For example, if you forecast monthly, quarterly and annual sales you hopefully use the data given to you by the people generating the revenue.   You take their information, validate it and roll it up into a rolling forecast.  The same holds true for weather forecasting.  You take the empirical data that you retrieve from the National Weather Service, Doppler radar, and other sources that predict weather fronts.  So with all due respect (nominal) to the television talent that reports on the weather, how in the name of weather satellites do they get it wrong more often than not? For example, at 4pm on Friday, I heard a weather forecaster talking about hurricane Harvey: “No way this storm becomes a category 4…..once it reaches land the winds will dissipate”.  Later on Friday, I put on the TV only to see that Hurricane Harvey is a category 4 hurricane, with 130 mph winds and unfortunately delivering as  much as 40″ of rain over the next couple of days. Sure, it really did not matter if Harvey was a category 3 or 4 storm, but has it gotten to the point where we no longer listen/watch the weather as the forecasts spit out by so-called meteorologists are often wrong?  Maybe it is time to bring back Willard Scott…..at least he was funny and entertaining when he presented the weather on The Today Show.  Godspeed to all affected by this storm.

There are few areas in the world that match the energy, pace, aura, and money spent on cosmetic surgery than South Beach.  The area is always ‘on’ and is still, after many years, a place to see and be seen.  Walk into the Delano Hotel or take in the Clevelander’s outdoor bar scene.  It basically is a combination of Paris, Barcelona, and Hollywood on fire, with maybe the best people watching in the world.  This is off-season, so the hotels are at ‘normal’ rack rates, but the streets are busy day and night.  After December 1st, starting with the Art Basel exposition, the visiting population expands as tourists and returning homeowners bunker down to spend warm days and awesome evenings while the other parts of the country are freezing.  Miami Beach’s gentrification, similar to many cities around the world, has been a positive thing.  I still favor other areas of Florida, including Delray Beach and downtown St. Petersburg, but for two days you really can’t beat the South Beach experience.

I have ranted in last few months about the affect the new Mercedes Benz Stadium has had on Atlanta United’s schedule.  The ongoing delays have put a level of congestion into United’s September schedule that in a simple word is daunting.  No retraction in my opinion but now that I have toured the stadium the wait was worth it (maybe not in Tata Martino’s mind).  The stadium and it’s many amenities are fantastic – the ‘halo’ video board circling the top of the stadium is amazing, along with the look and feel of the stadium in general. I had a chance to visit the new Dallas Cowboys stadium soon after it opened – as amazing as that building is it does not compare to Mr. Arthur Blank’s new palace. If you have a chance, go to any event at this stadium….a great venue and for sure to be a great experience.

As many as 50 million people viewed last night’s Mayweather-McGregor fight.  Some went to bars and paid a good bit of money and some bought the fight on pay-per-view for $100.00 or so. I made the decision not to watch the fight….until midnight last night when a friend of mine reminded me that he was videoing the fight from his TV using the Instagram app.  Yes, I watched the fight live on my mobile phone which makes you wonder about the future of the pay-per-view model.

Adios and have a Funday Sunday!