Rocky Mountain Bias

United State of American Girl

The Cadillac once stood as a symbol of American luxury.  If you had a Cadillac in your drive way, you or your family had “arrived”. In the 21^st century, it is no longer a Cadillac, but an American Girl Doll.  You may laugh, but I am sure a million girls between the ages of 5 and 10 will agree with me.

My first encounter with the American Girl Doll happened last week at the Park Meadows mall.  I wanted to see the store that the Denver Post had written about. It was a huge article all about its arrival to Colorado. It’s hard to miss with its dark red colors and huge logo on all sides of the store.  Once you go through the revolving door, your whole idea of dolls will never be the same again.  You are welcomed by huge wood shelves that line the wall with books, clothes accessories and dolls.   The store has huge display cases like you are at a museum with different feature dolls.  It had one doll with full ski gear, jacket, boots, helmet and even a pet huskie.  Another doll had a group of Native American Indian looking dolls with native dress, moccasins, headbands etc.  I was blown away by the detail and accessories they provided each doll.  Also if your doll didn’t have the hairstyle you were looking for, not a problem at American Girl, they have full doll salon inside!

You couldn’t sit in the store and not be blown away about the company‘s concept and how everything was laid out.  Equally you can’t help but feel a little uncomfortable to think the company is not marketing to collectors, but are marketing them to parents of young girls.  The little dirty secret of American Girl is that anyone can have one of their dolls, that is if you have some “Benjamins”.   If a parent, relative or benefactor is willing to spend maybe several hundred dollars, one little girl a day will have it made.  Now I am not one to tell someone what they can do with their money or prevent a company from marketing a product to them, but I do worry about the family that feels that they need an American Girl Doll for their daughter, but really can’t afford it.  While eating at the Cheesecake Factory next door to American Girl store, I noticed a bunch of small chairs lined up against the wall.  All of them were too small to be a child booster seat, so after racking my brain, I asked the waiter what they were.  She informed me that they bought them because so many little girls hosted parties at the American Girl store and make a doll, then come over later to the Cheesecake Factory for food.  The restaurant capitalized on the American Girl fame by using the seats as a way for the girls to enjoy their food while there doll accompanies them.  When I flashback to that day in the restaurant while, standing in the American Girl store, I thought what does a parent of a girl that can’t afford one do when her daughter is invited to one of these birthday parties?  Does that parent scratch together the money to send her daughter to the store so she can be with friends regardless of the fact that it may set the family budget back a few hundred?

I am true believer that everyone splurges on something, clothes, shoes, golf clubs and even cars but what financial lessons are we teaching kids about “needing” a hundred dollar doll?  So much for hard financial lessons learned during the “Great Recession”?

Generation XBOX

Last week was the huge release of Madden 12 Football all over the nation.  Thousands and possibly millions of people line up outside of stores so they can be the first to have a copy of this year’s edition.  The whole madden phenomenon made me think about video games impact on the male/female relationship.

If you are a male 35 years old or younger, video game console has dominated the entertainment landscape during your lifetime.  Mario is like a brother, “Call of Duty” was an interactive history class and “Madden” taught you to recognize 3-4 man or zone coverage when watching football on Sunday.  However, one large segment of society has not cheered the praise of Nintendo and Xbox,  that would be your girlfriend or wife.

Long gone is the stigma of being the fat guy in the parent’s basement playing video games.  Everyone from the guy working the local supermarket store, to your favorite professional athlete, plays games once in-awhile, as long as it doesn’t get in the way of family or paying the bills.  However, that will not stop your significant other from ever understanding or excepting how “grown men” can still spend money and time playing games.  You can tell her that the Playstation has been living with you longer then her, but I’m pretty sure that speech won’t go over well.  It’s my advice to you that you sneak your gaming in when you can, while she is sleeping, shopping or hanging out with friends but under no circumstance, ever hit that power button if she is with in the same distance as your WiFi connection.