OK, so I lied. Not even two hours after hearing Fran Jabara’s inspiring speech and declaring I was going to try to be a better American, I bought a bottle of water.
But I was hot. And stressed. And frantic for quick relief.
Sorry, Fran. Sorry, America. I’ll try and do better.
Airbus has outpaced Boeing in orders announced this week at the Farnborough Air Show outside London. Airbus announced a $7.2 billion order Wednesday from South Korea’s Asiana Airlines.
Together Airbus and Boeing have amassed more than $50 billion in orders at the show, which opened Monday. Middle Eastern and Asian carriers and leasing companies make up for slackening demand from U.S. and European airlines, who’ve been hurt by rising fuel prices.
FTN Midwest Research Securities Corp. analyst Michael Derchin told Bloomberg, that getting any orders is good in this environment.
“Thank God for the Asians and the Middle Easterners,” Derchin told Bloomberg.
I’m getting ready to go on vacation for a couple of weeks, and I’ll be staying at hotels the whole time. As much as I’m going to try to leave work at work, chances are I’ll be thinking of Fran Jabara on my trip.
Dan Loving and I went to hear Fran speak at a packed east-side Rotary meeting at the Wichita Country Club today. I’ve spoken with Fran a number of times over the phone through the years, but this is the first time I heard him address a group.
I was struck by his understated style and down-to-earth wisdom. Fran explained how, as the child of immigrants, he might view this country and our lifestyles differently.
“I really think America has to wake up and have a new set of priorities,” he said.
Though an optimist, Fran admitted he’s been feeling pessimistic about politics and America’s future as a world economic and military leader. “I really think, folks, that we have fallen asleep, and that’s not what made this country great.”
Saving — money, energy and ideas — is a big issue with Fran. He spoke about the wastefulness of daily Starbucks trips and bottled water purchases — but the entrepreneur in him admits he wouldn’t mind if he’d been involved early on in those businesses.
Fran says he’s tried to explain conservation to his grandchildren. They wonder why he always shuts off the light when he leaves a hotel room.
By the end of his speech, he had several of us convinced, I think. I will pack my own water for workouts. I will add money to my 401K. I will think big and not let negativity or anything else hold me back.
And yes, even though the hotels on my trip are sure to leave the light on for me, I’ll be sure to turn it off.
It’s admittedly early, but development interest near the Intrust Bank Arena appears off to a slow start.
Tuesday’s announcement that the Spaghetti Works building near Douglas and St. Francis is for sale makes two significant multi-level buildings near the arena that need buyers. Union Station, the old Cox Communications headquarters on Douglas, has been on the market for several months, reportedly with limited interest from retailers.
On the surface, that’s surprising as the arena quickly takes shape nearby. But with the financial markets in crisis and disposable incomes dwindling to nothing, a slowdown in hospitality investments doesn’t seem all that shocking.
Plus, arena neighborhoods, I’m told, develop closer to the opening date. Hard to get a lot done, though, when the city and the downtown development group both need new leaders.
So, there’s no cause for alarm yet – but it does seem troubling that the future of two prime arena neighborhood properties is in such doubt.