The Queen Mary - Ingenuity and Elbow Grease

26^th July 2021

Dear Mayor Garcia,

I was chewing the problems facing The Queen Mary over in my mind when an idea came up. Have we considered using the open parking lots of the ship’s complex for a swap meet? It would bring in some money in the short term and get people used to going to the ship.

The first problem with The Queen Mary is that she is expensive to maintain, but the second problem she has is that there is nothing to do around her. A swap meet with oddities and inexpensive food would give more of the citizens a reason to frequent the attraction. With more people there would be more popularity and more interest.

Once you have a good attendance going more expensive attractions can be added that upgrade the draw. This would give you the flexibility to add one attraction at a time, and attendance at amusement parks tend to rise with the addition of attractions. 

There are already a group of buildings associated with the ship that I believe were some kind of shopping district. Those shops and attractions would be the least expensive to reopen and they could focus on oddities like Japanese products hard to find in America. The Queen Mary could be the only place in Long Beach where you can get a Mango Kit Kat or a Salted Caramel Pepsi. Both of these are real products and people pay out the nose for them in the United States.

The truth is that you need a long term plan to save The Queen Mary and a short term project to get her moving in the right direction. In one year, we want the ship back open and seeing to guests, in ten years we want to see her fully restored and making money, if fifty we want to see her as the heart of a group of attractions that brings pride to the city and tourists from all over the world.  

The Queen Mary has become a mark of greatness for the state of California, and we need to hold her up high. This is as much a matter of ingenuity as it is elbow grease and a measure not just of our economy but of our spirit.

Stay strong,

 

Richard Leland Neal

The Queen Mary - Meant to Be

 

22^nd July 2021

Dear Mayor Garcia,

 I was truly disturbed to hear in recent news that the scrapping of The Queen Mary was still an option. Whereas it pains me even to think of this there are still two courses of action that should be placed before the city. One would be to fill the ship’s enclosure with something like sand or concrete which would prevent it from sinking. The second would be to open the enclosure, and tow the ship out to see where it could be made into a reef. 

The first option is one that would need to be taken up with an engineer. I would have to think that sand would be your cheapest solution, but once it’s in there is no turning back. Getting it out would be more costly than water. The most expensive and best option would be to turn the enclosure into a dry dock. This would come with its own technical issues. However, the ship would be preserved as a hotel. It would simply no longer be a floating hotel.

Towing the ship out to see and dedicating it as a reef would be a risky proposition, but it would better the environment and keep it as some kind of tourist attraction. Divers could still visit the wreck, and it would still bring some money into Long Beach. Moreover, it would be a small push against global warming and you would save face over scrapping her.

Keeping the ship above water is going to be a battle involving creative ideas, setbacks, innovation, and lots of money. Losing her would be crippling to the legacy of whoever signs the papers that let her go. The vast changes to tourism needed to make The Queen Mary hold water as an investment in Long Beach would be a good thing for the city, but, well, maybe it’s just not meant to be.

Best,

 

Richard Leland Neal

Mordor - Escape from Orcs

 

In order to avoid an inspection, Sam and Frodo stage a fight and, in the midst of the confusion, manage to separate themselves from the Orcs.

Disheartened and exhausted, they start the arduous climb up the slopes of Mount Doom.

PS. Experience our virtual challenges in real life - The Conqueror Adventures

The team at The Conqueror Challenges
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The Queen Mary - Solar Cells

23^rd June 2021

Dear Mayor Garcia,

Another in my ideas for saving The Queen Mary would be to make the overall property “greener” with solar cells. Partnering with a major company would mean a joint commercial for the ship which would reduce promotional costs. Something along the lines of a commercial saying “The Queen Mary trusts so and so to power dreams. Shouldn’t you?’

Certainly we couldn’t put solar cells on the ship herself but on the parking structure and the gangways. Hit up companies like Tesla and see if we could get the cells donated and the billionaire on the other end of that conversation may just write a check to repair the whole ship.

One of the two big problems with keeping The Queen Mary hotel afloat is that you’re paying not just to keep up a building, but also an ocean liner that is well past its life expectancy. The added maintenance means that in order to make the ship turn a profit some amount of reducing her upkeep will be needed.

The goal would be to get so many solar cells in there that the ship can make some money off selling the power. It would also mean turning up the air in the summer to attract more patrons wouldn’t be out of the question. Making Mary a cool place to beat the heat would attract more people.

This won’t save The Queen Mary in and of itself. This is but one piece of a large puzzle that will take years to assemble. The only real guide we have is that every piece counts.

Best,

 

Richard Leland Neal

The Queen Mary - Ads

16th June 2021

Dear Mayor Garcia,

Again I wish to speak to you of the state of the iconic Queen Mary. Repairs to the ship will cost a good deal of money, and every little bit helps.  Have you considered placing Google ads on the website?

This would be inexpensive, add revenue to the project, and given that you need a webmaster regardless of doing so should have little impact on the overall maintenance project. In other words, not doing so would be like throwing away money.

I have a number of blogs which I have Google Ads posted on and they do bring in some income. Not enough so that I can live off of it, but a good fewer people care about me than care about The Queen Mary Hotel.

 The addition of Google ads on Mary’s website could at least make the website pay for itself, and that would not only be one less problem but open the way to adding other web related features. Virtual tours, feature commercials, and walkthroughs of attractions can all become cash cows of the hotel hosted by YouTube for free and embedded on the hotels website.

Being far from residential areas The Queen Mary was perhaps harder hit by the pandemic, and finding some way to keep money coming in even if this happens again is a priority.

Not everyone in Long Beach can go eat at one of Mary’s restaurants or take a tour and see her rich history and splendor. Few in this struggling economy across America and the world have the funds to come visit the majestic ship. However, with a Google ads account means that every person with an internet connection can do something for free that could help save The Queen Mary.

Often the best answer is to bring people together,

 

Richard Leland Neal

The Queen Mary - The Millennial Principal

15^th June 2021

Dear Mayor Garcia,

On hearing of the state of the once cruise liner and now hotel Queen Mary I felt a great pain in my heart. I have only been on the old ship ones, but she has been a background player in my life for years and I had always hoped to make more trips down to the majestic old vessel.

Now with her hull rusted, and her being in danger of sinking I may never again step foot aboard her. Well, we need to save The Queen Mary if for no other reason than the hole she will leave in the hearts and minds of Californians if she goes.

 That said, I believe the key to saving the Queen Mary is to take what I call the Millennial Principal into account. The Millennial Principal is simply to monetize as much of the process of maintaining a thing as possible.  

This comes from the modern economy and the push, often by millennials, to monetize as much of their life as possible. If you’re going to have a hobby in this economy it best make you money or at least work as a tax write off.

One thing you can do to make this happen is to get a volunteer to go in there and film work crews repairing the Queen Mary. This can be live streamed on Twitch and then edited into videos on YouTube. 

You would be surprised to see what people watch nowadays. I watch a channel on YouTube where a man trims cow hooves. I’ve no interest in the subject, but I find it very entertaining. This could bring in a small income but it would also raise awareness for the ship and make her part of the day to day lives of younger people.    

A good way to accomplish this is to recruit film makers from CSU Long Beach who need the credit for graduation. They would be working for free and lending editing and filming skills to the project and the city would be supporting education.

Best,

 

Richard Leland Neal

Mordor - Orc Encounter

 The Orc army is now on the move towards the Black Gate. Danger is drawing near as a battalion of the wicked beasts passes by Frodo and Sam.

Fortunately, their disguise works and they are not discovered, however, believed to be Orcs, they are pulled into their lines and marched towards the gates.

PS. Experience our virtual challenges in real life - The Conqueror Adventures

The team at The Conqueror Challenges
https://www.theconqueror.events