So I got about 3 hours of sleep on Saturday night, but I was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as I headed down to the Hilton to meet up with Doc Al and spend the day in the sports book watching football.
I called him as I was on the road heading to the hotel, but he said that he and Ross were having breakfast at the Four Seasons of Fremont Street, the El Cortez, and that he'd be back in time for kickoff.
No problemo said I, I'm sure I could find something to do to keep me occupied until he showed up. I left the truck in the capable hands of the valet, but noticed a few of them rodeo cowboys casting lustful glances at it as I made my way inside. The first stop was the sports book, and honestly, even though I'm having about my worst year ever football-gambling-wise, a lot of the games looked juicy. On my Great Giveaway card, I'd already picked Miami and Jacksonville as upset specials, but when it came down to actually digging more money out of my wallet, I didn't want to touch those games with a ten-foot pole. I browsed the odds for a few minutes before decided that I'd parlay two crummy teams playing two other crummy teams, and laid twenty bucks on both the Falcons beating the Bucs by 3, and Tennessee getting 2 points against the Texans (What the... ? Houston is favored??? Was Fredo setting the lines that day?).
Once I kissed that money goodbye, I decided to hit the poker room, figuring it was never too early to start tuning up for the March Madness tournament (yeah, the rest of you chumps are competing for second place! Heh.), but there was only one game going and the waiting list was about six people short of starting a second game. So I gave up on that idea. I took a moment to stand on the steps and fiddle with my cell phone, paying tribute to the time Derek and I got tossed out of there on that Sunday morning five years earlier. I got away with it, this time, and then headed into the casino proper looking for a time-killer while waiting for Al and Ross to show up.
There was no Pai Gow table open, and I didn't feel like playing blackjack, so I wandered over to the dice table for the first time in months. I bought in for a hundy, but got crushed within five minutes. So what's the proper course of action when that happens? Walk away? Anyone? Hell no--you get out another hundred and win it back!
Unfortunately, my bankroll is a plaything of the gambling gods, and I was down to my last fifteen bucks before somebody finally caught a roll and brought me back. I got the dice after that, and once I had all the numbers covered, I was $5 short of breaking even.
Seven out!
Of course.
By that time, there was still no sign of Doc Al, but there was life at the Pai Gow tables, so I went over there. I bought in there for a hundred also, but again, I got off to a less-than-glamorous start and was down about $75 before I decided I'd go from betting $20 per hand and $3 on the bonus and went to table minimum with a dollar on the Fortune Bonus.
Next hand--Mikey gets a Royal Flush! Woo Hoo! Of course, at a 150-1 payoff, I really liked the $150 I got paid, but would've been a bit happier with the $450 I would've gotten had I not been getting my ass kicked the previous five hands. Oh well. The black and the green went directly in my pocket and luckily the cards started falling in my favor after that. Doc Al finally showed up and joined me, but Ross headed off to play some golf.
We played for about an hour, enjoying bloody marys, coffee with Bailey's, and a couple of premium cigars while having a good time there at the table. When I got to the point where I had $200 worth of red, I called it quits, up $200 for the day. Doc doubled up, also.
There were no seats available in the sports book, but they were showing all of the games in the Barry Manilow theatre, so we went there instead. There were not only plenty of seats available, but they also offered $2 beers and dollar hot dogs at the snack bar. Doc offered to spend the first six bucks and fetched us some grub, while I kept our seats warm and figured out if any of the tickets we'd bought earlier in the day were still worth anything.
Luckily Atlanta was putting a beating on Tampa Bay, so the first half of my parlay was safe, but Tennessee and Texas were tied up going into overtime. I was getting two points, so I was cool with a tie game, but when Vince Young busted out with that 40 yard touchdown run to end the game, nobody was more excited than I was.
Doc Al, however, threw a little bit of reality my way.
Dude, look what gambling has done to you--you're actually rooting for the Titans now!
Oh god. That's just wrong. I hate the Titans. Suddenly I felt very dirty. Like a porn actress the first time in front of the camera. But all scruples disappeared when I went to the window and cashed my ticket for $72. Hell yeah. Clearly I have a price. And it ain't very high, either.
Since I didn't get much sleep the night before, I was starting to get a little sleepy during the second games, and left just before halftime. But it was a great day in the sportsbook. All the teams I hate got their asses handed to 'em--Seattle, Dallas, and New England, and I won my first parlay in a month. Oh, and I won a bit of money at the tables, too.
But I came home and got a nap in for a couple of hours before heading back to work.
When I got there I found out that I'd be dealing Rapid Roulette and a bit of $10 blackjack. No more Pai Gow for Mikey, it seems--most of those tables go to the seven o'clockers. It wasn't too bad, though. Rapid Roulette is off by itself, there are two dealers, it's a mellow game, and there are no pit bosses or floor people around. I enjoyed it.
Once I got to the blackjack table, I found out that I was dealing to fellow Cardinal fan and occasional comments poster 'Big Head'. Unfortunately, I couldn't really give him any good cards, but he lasted the whole hour, which is more than can be said for Doc Al and Ross, who showed up a few minutes later and I promptly beat on them like I was Ike and they were a couple of Tinas.
It was most ugly. Only LV Terry would've been amused at the beating Doc Al took.
I was hoping to help them win lots of cash, but the shoe was just too damn hot and I couldn't bust. Luckily they wised up and left long before my usual players do, and still had some bankroll left to play the slot machines with. But Doc Al says I still owe him a reach-around. Or at least a kiss.
I'm thinking he's probably not gonna collect, though.
Anyhow, the night went downhill after that, and I was extremely bored until 4 am when I finally got to go home. But I had three days of freedom to look forward to, and at least six hours of uninterrupted sleep.
Mikey
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Monday, December 11, 2006
Morning Update
Hey Gang!
Happy Monday morning everyone. I just crawled home from a *very* exhausting day at the office, and although the bed is calling me, I need to wind down properly or I won't be able to sleep.
As much as I wanted to write about a bunch of 'Christmasy' topics this weekend, I was just way too busy and didn't have the time. But I've got the next three days off from work, and word on the street is that I'll have some free time while not buffoonerating with Doc Al. I think he and Ross are playing golf today, so after I get some sleep, I've got a little shopping to do, and then I can spend some quality time on the keyboard before we meet up for dinner later tonight.
I've got some good stories to tell. I just need time to tell them.
Sleepy time!
Mikey
Happy Monday morning everyone. I just crawled home from a *very* exhausting day at the office, and although the bed is calling me, I need to wind down properly or I won't be able to sleep.
As much as I wanted to write about a bunch of 'Christmasy' topics this weekend, I was just way too busy and didn't have the time. But I've got the next three days off from work, and word on the street is that I'll have some free time while not buffoonerating with Doc Al. I think he and Ross are playing golf today, so after I get some sleep, I've got a little shopping to do, and then I can spend some quality time on the keyboard before we meet up for dinner later tonight.
I've got some good stories to tell. I just need time to tell them.
Sleepy time!
Mikey
Because My Puzzle Wasn't Good Enough
I guess, according to one particular reader (see post immediately below), the picture in the new puzzle I ordered wasn't quite right, so she "fixed" it.
Clearly somebody had just a little too much time on their hands this weekend...
Mikey
Clearly somebody had just a little too much time on their hands this weekend...
Mikey
Saturday, December 09, 2006
Speaking of Toys...
I was doing a little online shopping for my favorite Canuck yesterday, although we don't get to have our Christmas until her January visit. But once that was done, I strayed off the reservation and found something I liked for myself and went ahead and ordered it.
Given my affinity for sailboats, tropicals settings, and jigsaw puzzles, I found this picture offered as a 1500 piece puzzle, so I *had* to have it.
I think it should give me plenty of relaxing time at the dining room table instead of wandering the streets of Las Vegas getting into trouble.
Mikey
Given my affinity for sailboats, tropicals settings, and jigsaw puzzles, I found this picture offered as a 1500 piece puzzle, so I *had* to have it.
I think it should give me plenty of relaxing time at the dining room table instead of wandering the streets of Las Vegas getting into trouble.
Mikey
Windy City West
It's a beautiful breezy and sunny day here in Las Vegas--the sun is shining and the cold spell we've been under for the past two weeks or so has finally snapped. I actually rolled down the windows in the truck while I was out running errands the past two days.
While I was so busy yesterday, today has been a bit better. I slept in until about 10:30, and after I got up I finally hit the kitchen to make those biscuits and gravy I've been talking about for the past few days. This batch turned out pretty damn well, and erased all psychological trauma relating to the tartar sauce incident. I think I've figured out the secret to perfect sausage gravy--a dollop of bacon grease in the mix, and about a half a teaspoon of white pepper in addition to seasoning with salt and ground black pepper (which I think makes it look better, along with giving it a little zip).
I just got back from the alteration shop, and the guy there didn't even charge me this time around. Either I've given him so much business in the past or this particular pair of pants was just an easy fix, but either way, I'm just glad that I didn't have to break out the wallet.
Work was fun last night--I think I had the Ultimate Night Behind the Tables, at least as far as I'm concerned. I only had to deal my two favorite games--no blackjack, no carnival games, no rapid roulette. I spent the first five hours dealing on the same Pai Gow table, with a fun crowd, and then at 1:00 am, they moved me to a very busy dice table where I had a lady at my end tipping me out at least $50 after each and every roll. I swear I dropped at least a grand in the toke box within my first twenty minutes of standing base.
We also have a new boxman that thinks he's the God's Gift to the dice table, and gets all pissy when they make him stand floor in blackjack or Chinatown, and I caught him twice calling out the wrong prop-bet payoffs, one of which he did several times. When I was on stick, I told him the correct payoffs (a $50 horn bet with a $50 Yo, and the 12 hits--it's $187 to the player, but he kept telling the gal on stick before me that it's $180. At the time I was buried at my end and couldn't pay attention to all the bets in the prop box, so I didn't catch it until later). But that really put him off his game and he was muttering about it and trying to refigure it for a good half hour after that. He finally admitted that I was right.
Heh. Arrogance will bite you in the ass every time. Especially on a heavy-action dice game. I'm far from the best dice dealer in Vegas, but at least I can admit when I make a mistake.
Anyhow, it was a fun table, but it was a workout. But it was nice to finally be back dealing dice again. Unfortunately, we only have three dice tables, but about 25 dice dealers on our shift, so table time is usually hard to come by.
I almost forgot to mention that I had a couple of interesting characters early on at my pai gow table. Two sad sacks that come in almost every night and piss away all of their money sat down to play (more of those type that refuse to go home unless they've spent their last dollar). Anyhow, after I dealt myself three bonus-type hands in a row, beating them each time, I was treated to their theories on how the Shufflemaster machine can be set to give the dealer a winning hand each time.
Um, yeah, and I think maybe your tinfoil hat is on a bit tight.
I don't know if anyone out there has ever seen the inside of a Shufflemaster, but there is no optical scanner or card reader of any type. Just a ladder mechanism that moves up and down at random, and a little arm that pushes the cards out of a stack until they're all distributed. There is no possible way to set up hands, winning or otherwise.
After I dealt myself a king-high pai gow a few minutes later, I went along with 'em an told them that obviously the machine dealt me a loser that time to make the game seem more legit.
Morons.
They eventually left, broke, of course, which was cool with me.
But when the night finally wound down, I went straight home, exhausted. Even though it was Friday night and I usually go out with my friends, I took a pass this time. I'd forgotton how much work dealing dice really is. I had no trouble at all sleeping last night.
Mikey
PS. Doc Al just called. He told me he's standing in front of the Riviera, on his way to the coffee shop. I asked him if he was wearing a sandwich board and selling fake ID's, but he said no, he had a stack of porn flyers and that if he could give them all away this afternoon, he'd get paid $20. Yep, it's gonna be a long couple of days...
While I was so busy yesterday, today has been a bit better. I slept in until about 10:30, and after I got up I finally hit the kitchen to make those biscuits and gravy I've been talking about for the past few days. This batch turned out pretty damn well, and erased all psychological trauma relating to the tartar sauce incident. I think I've figured out the secret to perfect sausage gravy--a dollop of bacon grease in the mix, and about a half a teaspoon of white pepper in addition to seasoning with salt and ground black pepper (which I think makes it look better, along with giving it a little zip).
I just got back from the alteration shop, and the guy there didn't even charge me this time around. Either I've given him so much business in the past or this particular pair of pants was just an easy fix, but either way, I'm just glad that I didn't have to break out the wallet.
Work was fun last night--I think I had the Ultimate Night Behind the Tables, at least as far as I'm concerned. I only had to deal my two favorite games--no blackjack, no carnival games, no rapid roulette. I spent the first five hours dealing on the same Pai Gow table, with a fun crowd, and then at 1:00 am, they moved me to a very busy dice table where I had a lady at my end tipping me out at least $50 after each and every roll. I swear I dropped at least a grand in the toke box within my first twenty minutes of standing base.
We also have a new boxman that thinks he's the God's Gift to the dice table, and gets all pissy when they make him stand floor in blackjack or Chinatown, and I caught him twice calling out the wrong prop-bet payoffs, one of which he did several times. When I was on stick, I told him the correct payoffs (a $50 horn bet with a $50 Yo, and the 12 hits--it's $187 to the player, but he kept telling the gal on stick before me that it's $180. At the time I was buried at my end and couldn't pay attention to all the bets in the prop box, so I didn't catch it until later). But that really put him off his game and he was muttering about it and trying to refigure it for a good half hour after that. He finally admitted that I was right.
Heh. Arrogance will bite you in the ass every time. Especially on a heavy-action dice game. I'm far from the best dice dealer in Vegas, but at least I can admit when I make a mistake.
Sidebar-- The best, and quickest, way figure out a horn bet is as follows. If the low side (3 or 11) hits, it's three times the bet, minus other action. Or for you math freaks, (3x - OA), where x = the amount bet on the horn. If the dice land on the high side (2 or 12), it's seven times the bet minus a quarter of the bet, minus other action. Or [(7x - .25x) - OA]. So if somebody has a $50 horn bet and a $50 Yo bet, and the dice land on 12, it would be 7 x 50 ($350), minus a quarter of the bet ($12.50, but we round up to $13 since there are no quarters on a $5 dice game), so that brings us to $337, minus the other action ($50 on the Yo), which is $287. I tried explaining this until I was blue in the face to the frickin' boxman, who should've known this already, but it was to no avail. The stickman didn't catch the error, either.
Anyhow, it was a fun table, but it was a workout. But it was nice to finally be back dealing dice again. Unfortunately, we only have three dice tables, but about 25 dice dealers on our shift, so table time is usually hard to come by.
I almost forgot to mention that I had a couple of interesting characters early on at my pai gow table. Two sad sacks that come in almost every night and piss away all of their money sat down to play (more of those type that refuse to go home unless they've spent their last dollar). Anyhow, after I dealt myself three bonus-type hands in a row, beating them each time, I was treated to their theories on how the Shufflemaster machine can be set to give the dealer a winning hand each time.
Um, yeah, and I think maybe your tinfoil hat is on a bit tight.
I don't know if anyone out there has ever seen the inside of a Shufflemaster, but there is no optical scanner or card reader of any type. Just a ladder mechanism that moves up and down at random, and a little arm that pushes the cards out of a stack until they're all distributed. There is no possible way to set up hands, winning or otherwise.
After I dealt myself a king-high pai gow a few minutes later, I went along with 'em an told them that obviously the machine dealt me a loser that time to make the game seem more legit.
Morons.
They eventually left, broke, of course, which was cool with me.
But when the night finally wound down, I went straight home, exhausted. Even though it was Friday night and I usually go out with my friends, I took a pass this time. I'd forgotton how much work dealing dice really is. I had no trouble at all sleeping last night.
Mikey
PS. Doc Al just called. He told me he's standing in front of the Riviera, on his way to the coffee shop. I asked him if he was wearing a sandwich board and selling fake ID's, but he said no, he had a stack of porn flyers and that if he could give them all away this afternoon, he'd get paid $20. Yep, it's gonna be a long couple of days...
Friday, December 08, 2006
Mikey Can't Sleep
Here it is, 5:30 in the morning, and although I *should* be exhausted and happy to bundle up under the comfortor and snooze away to the soothing holiday music on channel 941 Sounds of the Seasons, I'm wide awake.
The past couple of days I've been very productive, and I think it's carried over--as soon as I got home, I took out the checkbook and sat at my desk writing out all the current bills, going over the budget and the calender, shaking my head a bit, stuffing the envelopes, and basically taking care of the 'business' of living day-to-day. I can't wait for 2007--My monthly insurance tab drops by $50 in January, and I'm only about fifteen hundred bucks away from retiring yet another student loan once and for all.
Once the rest of the world wakes up and starts moving, I'm off to do my usual Friday morning errands--bank, post office, gas station, alteration shop (those casino tables are hell on my collection of fine black polyester pants), and do a bit of shopping before coming home and spending some time in the kitchen--I've decided to make some biscuits and homemade sausage gravy today. I'm hungry for it, I enjoy making it, and on a chilly morning like today I think it would be great with a pot of coffee.
I've also got to do a few (minimal) preparations for Doc Al's visit this weekend. Basically that entails de-activating my ATM card for a few days and taking all of the strip-club VIP passes out of my wallet that have been given to me over the course of the past year. Actually, it's not that bad--I enjoy the 'ballet' every bit as much as Al does, but due to budgetary constraints this visit, we'll be spending much more time in the sports book than the champagne room. At least I have the new truck, so we won't be cruising around in the Ghetto Sled, which is good since he's staying at the Wynn and the Hilton this time around, instead of Fitzgeralds and the El Cortez. Clearly we've both prospered since last December.
I think I'm also going to spend some time writing out my Christmas cards today, and if I'm feeling particularly motivated, I might also think about some New Year's Resolutions. I'm also trying to come up with another good 'Christmasy' topic to write about, but so far I'm drawing a blank. My comments section is open to suggestions...
Mikey
The past couple of days I've been very productive, and I think it's carried over--as soon as I got home, I took out the checkbook and sat at my desk writing out all the current bills, going over the budget and the calender, shaking my head a bit, stuffing the envelopes, and basically taking care of the 'business' of living day-to-day. I can't wait for 2007--My monthly insurance tab drops by $50 in January, and I'm only about fifteen hundred bucks away from retiring yet another student loan once and for all.
Once the rest of the world wakes up and starts moving, I'm off to do my usual Friday morning errands--bank, post office, gas station, alteration shop (those casino tables are hell on my collection of fine black polyester pants), and do a bit of shopping before coming home and spending some time in the kitchen--I've decided to make some biscuits and homemade sausage gravy today. I'm hungry for it, I enjoy making it, and on a chilly morning like today I think it would be great with a pot of coffee.
I've also got to do a few (minimal) preparations for Doc Al's visit this weekend. Basically that entails de-activating my ATM card for a few days and taking all of the strip-club VIP passes out of my wallet that have been given to me over the course of the past year. Actually, it's not that bad--I enjoy the 'ballet' every bit as much as Al does, but due to budgetary constraints this visit, we'll be spending much more time in the sports book than the champagne room. At least I have the new truck, so we won't be cruising around in the Ghetto Sled, which is good since he's staying at the Wynn and the Hilton this time around, instead of Fitzgeralds and the El Cortez. Clearly we've both prospered since last December.
I think I'm also going to spend some time writing out my Christmas cards today, and if I'm feeling particularly motivated, I might also think about some New Year's Resolutions. I'm also trying to come up with another good 'Christmasy' topic to write about, but so far I'm drawing a blank. My comments section is open to suggestions...
Mikey
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Toys!
I was surfing around the internet last night and came upon a website listing the 36 toys in the National Toy Hall of Fame. As I browsed the pictures, I realized that as a child, between my siblings and I, we had 34 of the 36 toys shown, only missing a rocking horse (I can't ever remember having one) and the last one didn't count only on a technicality--I had a red wagon, but I'm fairly certain it wasn't an official Radio Flyer. Everything else on the list found it's way into our bright orange wooden toybox at some point in history.
Now that the Christmas season is upon us, and one can't help feeling a little nostalgic every now and then, and it was fun thinking of all those cool toys I had when I was a kid. The funny thing is, my parents had mastered the first rule of good customer service with us kids-- Under-promising and over-delivering. Every Christmas season they'd always tell us how poor we were and that we shouldn't expect anything for Christmas--for some reason times were always hard, according to them (having six kids might've had something to do with it), but every Christmas we always seemed to have a truckload of presents under the tree, usually included was the one main thing that we each wanted.
I was never disappointed with my haul on Christmas morning except the one year I did all kinds of poking around and being sneaky, and I figured out every single one of the gifts I had under the tree before I ever opened them. Once that happened, Christmas morning was a huge letdown--I had no surprises at all when I opened all of my gifts. Even though I got plenty of good stuff (it was the year of the Rubiks Cube), I was still disappointed. Having learned that lesson the hard way, ever since then I can't even be tempted when somebody (usually one of my sisters) starts the usual December taunts of I know what you're getting for Christmas... And it drives them nuts that I won't take the bait. I'm content to wait until the 25th and be completely surprised with everything. That outlook is most satisfying, and works very well in the occasional lean years. You'll rarely, if ever, catch me poking around under the tree.
Anyhow, that link provided much entertainment as I looked at all of the pictures, and it made me wish I still had some of those toys. I would *love* to have a big Lionel train layout, or a huge crate full of Lincoln Logs to play with. And even to this day I still love the stress-reducing tedium of putting together jigsaw puzzles. There aren't many rainy days here in Vegas, but jigsaw puzzles are the perfect rainy-day activity, if you don't have a good book handy.
It makes me think that today's kids are missing out--all they have are video games. Seriously, thirty years from now, are people going to be the least bit nostalgic about Madden 2007, Call of Duty, or Final Fantasy? Doubt it.
But that list is far from complete. Between Reverend Dave and I, and even our sister Nancy, we had some great toys when we were kids that never made the list. Remember any of the following?
I could probably go on forever, but just off the top of my head, that's what I can remember. But the coolest toy I ever had, besides the Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle, was a huge plastic aircraft carrier that had a couple of rubber airplanes--F4U Corsairs (this was in the days of Black Sheep Squadron on tv) and a working catapult. You'd arm the rubber band on the catapult, set the plane on it, and then pull the handle and it would run down the deck and launch the airplanes about 20 feet. Man, what a cool toy that was. I loved it. I always favored airplanes, so that was a helluva toy. And of course, it was three feet long and the biggest present under the tree, so I was obviously my parent's favorite kid that year. Heh.
My tastes have changed a bit over the years, and although I now prefer to have rum and cigars under the Christmas tree, this would be pretty cool to have.
Mikey
Now that the Christmas season is upon us, and one can't help feeling a little nostalgic every now and then, and it was fun thinking of all those cool toys I had when I was a kid. The funny thing is, my parents had mastered the first rule of good customer service with us kids-- Under-promising and over-delivering. Every Christmas season they'd always tell us how poor we were and that we shouldn't expect anything for Christmas--for some reason times were always hard, according to them (having six kids might've had something to do with it), but every Christmas we always seemed to have a truckload of presents under the tree, usually included was the one main thing that we each wanted.
I was never disappointed with my haul on Christmas morning except the one year I did all kinds of poking around and being sneaky, and I figured out every single one of the gifts I had under the tree before I ever opened them. Once that happened, Christmas morning was a huge letdown--I had no surprises at all when I opened all of my gifts. Even though I got plenty of good stuff (it was the year of the Rubiks Cube), I was still disappointed. Having learned that lesson the hard way, ever since then I can't even be tempted when somebody (usually one of my sisters) starts the usual December taunts of I know what you're getting for Christmas... And it drives them nuts that I won't take the bait. I'm content to wait until the 25th and be completely surprised with everything. That outlook is most satisfying, and works very well in the occasional lean years. You'll rarely, if ever, catch me poking around under the tree.
Anyhow, that link provided much entertainment as I looked at all of the pictures, and it made me wish I still had some of those toys. I would *love* to have a big Lionel train layout, or a huge crate full of Lincoln Logs to play with. And even to this day I still love the stress-reducing tedium of putting together jigsaw puzzles. There aren't many rainy days here in Vegas, but jigsaw puzzles are the perfect rainy-day activity, if you don't have a good book handy.
It makes me think that today's kids are missing out--all they have are video games. Seriously, thirty years from now, are people going to be the least bit nostalgic about Madden 2007, Call of Duty, or Final Fantasy? Doubt it.
But that list is far from complete. Between Reverend Dave and I, and even our sister Nancy, we had some great toys when we were kids that never made the list. Remember any of the following?
- The Wheel-O
- Spirograph - Nobody ever mastered that long cigar shaped one
- Thundershift 500 - More fun than electric slot cars
- TCR Race Track - Slot cars without slots--you could actually change lanes!
- The Green Machine (Reverend Dave had that, while I had a more traditional Big Wheel--and we both have the same outlook on our 'toys' as adults--He prefers the modern sleekness of Glocks while I prefer the classic look of the 1911)
- Lite Bright - I was never artistic enough to make anything remotely cool
- Matchbox and Hot Wheels cars
- Green Plastic Army Men - Dad never liked stepping on them with his bare feet
- Silly Putty
- Barrel of Monkeys
- Evel Knievel Stunt Bike - The GREATEST toy in the history of mankind
- Gnip Gnop
- Socker Boppers
- Hungry Hungry Hippos
- Rockem Sockem Robots
- Nerf Football
- Toss Across
- Weeble Wobbles
- The Fisher-Price Airplane - Back in college when I was pledging for Alpha Eta Rho, I had to drag one of these around with me all day between classes. Nope, couldn't carry it, had to drag it, with that unique sound it made. Good Times!
- Shrinky Dinks
- Battleship - Always a classic
- Rubik's Cube - The must-have gift during 8th grade
- Operation -- The funny bone, the breadbasket, Adam's Apple... How many parts can you name?
- Hippety Hop
- The Verti-bird - This was cool until I broke it. The day after Christmas...
- Mousetrap
- Testors and Revelle model cars and airplanes (I was way more into airplanes, although pretty much the earliest memory I have is of me sitting on my dad's lap while we spent several evenings building a huge USS Missouri battleship. The smell of brush-on plastic cement makes me remember that)
I could probably go on forever, but just off the top of my head, that's what I can remember. But the coolest toy I ever had, besides the Evel Knievel Stunt Cycle, was a huge plastic aircraft carrier that had a couple of rubber airplanes--F4U Corsairs (this was in the days of Black Sheep Squadron on tv) and a working catapult. You'd arm the rubber band on the catapult, set the plane on it, and then pull the handle and it would run down the deck and launch the airplanes about 20 feet. Man, what a cool toy that was. I loved it. I always favored airplanes, so that was a helluva toy. And of course, it was three feet long and the biggest present under the tree, so I was obviously my parent's favorite kid that year. Heh.
My tastes have changed a bit over the years, and although I now prefer to have rum and cigars under the Christmas tree, this would be pretty cool to have.
Mikey
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Tuesday Munchies
It's so nice to finally have a day off. I really enjoy my job for the most part, but the worst thing about working swing shift is looking at the clock throughout the day and telling myself how much time I have left before I have to go to work--it's like I'm always under the gun. Working regular hours was nice--get up, go to work, the rest of the evening was mine. On swing shift, it's like I'm on a timer every day and I really don't like that at all.
But I got out of work a couple hours early, something I like to do on Mondays, since it's at the tail-end of my work week and the casino usually goes dead around 1:00 am anyways. Once I got home I checked the mail, downloaded a couple of songs, and hit the bed early (for me, at least). Once I got up, I wanted to cook a "real" breakfast. My roommate Travis was brewing a pot of coffee and offered up a cup with Bailey's, so of course I indulged. I also fried up some bacon and made blueberry pancakes.
It was quite the enjoyable breakfast, if I do say so myself. After the dishes were done and the kitchen was cleaned, I had a relaxing afternoon. We fetched some firewood and I helped my other roommate Brad hook up his new turkey fryer, so we've got a roaring fire going in the pit and we're making a deep-fried turkey for dinner (we have a freezer full of them because Von's had a special over Thanksgiving week--buy $25 worth of groceries, get a turkey for five bucks).
After the bird is consumed, I'll probably snooze for an hour or two, and then later on I'm going down to our usual watering hole because it's my friend Candace's birthday. That should be a good time, although I'm going to be doing my best to dodge all of the Jager shots that will certainly be passed around. I *really* hate that shiat.
I think tomorrow morning I'm going to 'get back on the horse' and make some biscuits and gravy, sans pickles this time.
Update:
Here are some photos from our turkey frying experiment. The first one is of the fryer set up and ready to go with the bird sitting there waiting for it's bath. Yep, it's a nice night out here in Vegas, even though it's a little chilly, we still built a fire.
Tomorrow night--deep fried prime rib!
Mikey
But I got out of work a couple hours early, something I like to do on Mondays, since it's at the tail-end of my work week and the casino usually goes dead around 1:00 am anyways. Once I got home I checked the mail, downloaded a couple of songs, and hit the bed early (for me, at least). Once I got up, I wanted to cook a "real" breakfast. My roommate Travis was brewing a pot of coffee and offered up a cup with Bailey's, so of course I indulged. I also fried up some bacon and made blueberry pancakes.
It was quite the enjoyable breakfast, if I do say so myself. After the dishes were done and the kitchen was cleaned, I had a relaxing afternoon. We fetched some firewood and I helped my other roommate Brad hook up his new turkey fryer, so we've got a roaring fire going in the pit and we're making a deep-fried turkey for dinner (we have a freezer full of them because Von's had a special over Thanksgiving week--buy $25 worth of groceries, get a turkey for five bucks).
After the bird is consumed, I'll probably snooze for an hour or two, and then later on I'm going down to our usual watering hole because it's my friend Candace's birthday. That should be a good time, although I'm going to be doing my best to dodge all of the Jager shots that will certainly be passed around. I *really* hate that shiat.
I think tomorrow morning I'm going to 'get back on the horse' and make some biscuits and gravy, sans pickles this time.
Update:
Here are some photos from our turkey frying experiment. The first one is of the fryer set up and ready to go with the bird sitting there waiting for it's bath. Yep, it's a nice night out here in Vegas, even though it's a little chilly, we still built a fire.
A close-up view of the raw bird. Notice the foil-wrapped hose leading from the propane tank to the fryer. I suggested that because I didn't want to be around if any boiling hot oil overflowed and hit the rubber hose full of pressurized gas.
The finished product! And let me tell you--it turned out excellent! It was a small bird, only nine and a half pounds, but still damn tasty. And plenty enough for the three of us.
Tomorrow night--deep fried prime rib!
Mikey
Monday, December 04, 2006
Another Long List...
Some of the other bloggers I read on a daily basis have been passing this list around, so I'm going to throw my hat in the ring.
Everything in boldface type is something that I've already done.
01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink-- A couple of times
02. Swam with wild dolphins--Not that I know of, but fed the ones at Sea World. I've sailed with a pod of dolphins accompanying me and they were jumping in and out of the bow wave. That was pretty cool.
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive--And a few Porsches and even a Rolls Royce, but that was just delivering them
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid -- Screw that. I'm not going to Haji land until they get their shit together.
06. Held a tarantula -- and ran over one with a Jeep, too!
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone -- Yep, but you don't want to think about that...
08. Said “I love you” and meant it -- Of course we always mean it if it's gonna get us laid...
09. Hugged a tree -- Yeah, I suppose when I was younger and into climbing trees.
10. Bungee jumped -- Do they make cords strong enough for me?
11. Visited Paris -- Only the one between Ballys and the Aladdin.
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea -- very cool as long as it's from a distance.
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise -- damn near every day!
14. Seen the Northern Lights -- Yep, six months in Alaska, you can't help it if you look up.
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa -- Not unless they want to reclassify it as 'ruins'
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables -- We had a garden when we were kids, but I remember being dirt poor in college and stealing the neighbors rhubarb...
18. Touched an iceberg -- Hell, I did even better. Somewhere around here I have a picture of me STANDING on an iceberg. Oooh, and I've eaten part of one, too.
19. Slept under the stars -- lots of camping trips
20. Changed a baby’s diaper -- yeah, but I'm not proud of it.
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon -- Not yet
22. Watched a meteor shower -- from the top deck of a houseboat on Lake Powell. With a chick. In a sleeping bag. Good times.
23. Gotten drunk on champagne -- Yeah, but if you want to get *really* sick, nothing works better than tequila
24. Given more than you can afford to charity -- Yes, and might I suggest the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope -- Loved the Astronomy classes in college.
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment -- Too many times to count.
27. Had a food fight -- They don't call me Senator Blutarsky for nothin'
28. Bet on a winning horse -- More than once, even, and I don't know *shiat* about the ponies.
29. Asked out a stranger -- Of course! The girls that know me would never say yes...
30. Had a snowball fight -- Nothing will ever top the time I nailed a guy right in the bald spot from 40 yards away. I was a legend that day.
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can -- Hell yeah. The Cardinals won the World Series this year!
32. Held a lamb -- Hmmm, not that I remember. Unless on the end of a fork counts.
33. Seen a total eclipse -- Not that I recall, except on the news after the fact.
34. Ridden a roller coaster -- The Matterhorn at Disneyland was the first, but the one I've ridden the most was the old Wabash Cannonball back when there was an Opryland.
35. Hit a home run -- I even got a grand slam a couple times back in the day!
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking -- I have to not care. Otherwise, I'd never be able to dance.
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day -- No, but it gives me a great idea.
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer -- I've had three for this one, so far...
40. Visited all 50 states -- Nope. Probably won't happen, either. I'm ok with missing Massachussetts.
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk -- Um, yeah. Have you met my friends???
42. Had amazing friends -- Of course. Drunkards and all!
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country -- The shot girl at Carlos and Charlies in Cozumel was a stranger...
44. Watched wild whales -- yep, freaked out a bit when a big-ass gray whale surfaced about 15 feet away from the rubber Zodiac I was sitting in.
45. Stolen a sign -- only when I'm leading off from second with a right handed pitcher and Skip wants to put on the hit-and-run. Oh, and I had my share of traffic signs in my room as a teen, too.
46. Backpacked in Europe -- Fark that. If I'm going to Europe, I'm staying first class, baby. Hippies annoy me and smell bad. Why would I want to join them?
47. Taken a road-trip -- If you only knew...
48. Gone rock climbing -- Tried it once. Feh...
49. Midnight walk on the beach -- Of course. Everyone's got to have a 'From Here to Eternity' date at least once!
50. Gone sky diving -- No. Ever see Operation Dumbo Drop?
51. Visited Ireland -- Not yet, but it's on the list.
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love -- Ashamed to admit that Stephani Layton wrecked me for a couple of years.
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them -- No, that's a little creepy.
54. Visited Japan -- Nope.
55. Milked a cow -- Never done that, but I had to untangle an angry steer from the bushes and trees on several occasions. He used to get me with those damn horns every time too. But I got even, and eventually ate him.
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero -- Who's pretending? Ever seen me and Batman in the same room at the same time? Huh?
58. Sung karaoke -- When I'm drunk, I become Thelma Houston.
59. Lounged around in bed all day -- In fact, that's on the agenda for today!
60. Played touch football -- and the real kind, too. I was #64, the greatest linebacker in 5th grade!
61. Gone scuba diving -- Sadly, not yet.
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China -- They're still Commies over there, right? No thanks.
67. Started a business -- Back in high school I created my own fictitious scout troop and ordered a bunch of cases of fundraiser M&M's and sold them every day at school to earn money.
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken -- My record is intact--it always ends badly.
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight -- Are you effin' kiddin' me? I've actually *kissed* a girl before...
72. Gotten married -- Nada. Betrothed once, but that was a long time ago.
73. Been in a movie -- Um, not the kind you'd see at like, theatres...
74. Crashed a party -- Lots of times
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days -- Screw that. The closest I've come is going without BEER for five days.
77. Made cookies from scratch -- yeah, no big deal.
78. Won first prize in a costume contest -- no, but everyone still talks about the 'Ghost of Elvis' costume from 1999.
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice. Not even at the Venetian.
80. Gotten a tattoo (two and counting)
81. Rafted the Snake River -- on several occasions.
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”. Sadly, nobody needs an expert on channel surfing, rum drinking, or cigar smoking.
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage -- Lots of times. I was a wannabe rocker in the day and had a bitchin' guitar. There is even video evidence floating around out there somewhere, precluding me from ever running for public office.
85. Been to Las Vegas -- Um yeah...a time or two.
86. Recorded music -- Yep. I still wish I had the disc of us covering Rock & Roll by Led Zeppelin. We had a great day in the studio one time.
87. Eaten shark -- Yep. It was either him or me...
88. Kissed on the first date -- Of course. Haven't you people ever heard of foreplay?
89. Gone to Thailand -- No. Most of them are here, anyways.
90. Bought a house -- Yep, it was easier than buying a car, too.
91. Been in a combat zone -- About 120 years after the fact, at Civil War battlefields...
92. Buried one/both of your parents -- Thankfully no.
93. Been on a cruise ship -- Yep! Many times. Can't wait to get back on one.
94. Spoken more than one language fluently. Hell no. I only know enough Spanish to get my ass kicked or get arrested.
95. Performed in Rocky Horror -- No, but back in the day I knew all the audience participation parts and had much fun at the Varsity Theatre in St. Louis.
96. Raised children -- No thanks. Can barely take care of myself...
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour. No. I have a job.
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country. No, since I have a job, I take taxis or rent cars when in a foreign country.
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over -- I think I've done this a couple of times.
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge -- I didn't know they allowed pedestrians. Drove across it a few times, though.
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking. Every day.
103. Had plastic surgery -- No, I'm much too pretty for that.
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived. Boating accident in Alaska. Was in the 36-degree water for almost 40 minutes. I decided that Alaska wasn't my cup of tea after that.
105. Wrote articles for a large publication -- You can find me published in the February 2004 issue of Latitudes & Attitudes.
106. Lost over 100 pounds -- No, but seemed to have found it...
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback -- Um, no. But I've held my share of chick's hair while they puked...
108. Piloted an airplane -- Hell yeah, and solo'd several times too!
109. Touched a stingray -- Yep, more photo evidence of this is somewhere on record, too--Mikey holding that thing up to the camera like a huge slimy pizza
110. Broken someone’s heart -- Not that I'm aware of.
111. Helped an animal give birth -- Please.
112. Won money on a T.V. game show -- No, but got selected to go to the Jeopardy College Championship tryouts. Didn't make the cut.
113. Broken a bone -- Twice, my wrist when I was five, and I broke my leg in two places the day President Reagan got shot. I had to wait my turn in the emergency room.
114. Gone on an African photo safari -- Not yet, but someday gonna take Sticky there!
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears -- Hell no. Did I mention that I have a job?
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol -- Yeah, a time or two.
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild -- Aren't they all?
118. Ridden a horse -- Lots and lots of times. I had an 'Honors' Biology class back in college, and that's all we'd ever do--go horseback riding and camping.
119. Had major surgery -- Not unless waking up during the removal of all four wisdom teeth counts.
120. Had a snake as a pet -- Yes, once. A very angry Garter Snake that originated the philosophy of 'They'll never take me alive!'
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon -- Nope
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours -- Every time I came back from Vegas, before moving here.
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states -- No, been to *almost* all of the States.
124. Visited all 7 continents -- Nope. And Antartica ain't on the To Do list, either.
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days -- Yep, the Buffalo River in Tennessee, and the Current River in Missouri.
126. Eaten kangaroo meat -- Why? What's wrong with cows, chickens, and pigs?
127. Eaten sushi -- Every chance I get!
128. Had your picture in the newspaper -- Most memorable was in July 0f 1987 when Reverend Dave and I were heckling Andre Dawson at The Murph. Huge pic on the front page of the sports section in the San Diego Union Tribune. One of my proudest moments as a sports fan.
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about -- Got my mom to agree that guns aren't all bad.
130. Gone back to school -- Yep, that's how I got my current job.
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach -- Only if a shoe as I was squashing the nasty bastard.
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read -- Mark Twain. More stuff than just Huckleberry Finn.
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating -- Only if fish count.
137. Skipped all your school reunions -- So Far
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language --damn near every day that I deal blackjack!
139. Been elected to public office -- See #84 above...
140. Written your own computer language -- I think this is related to that Dungeons and Dragons question.
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream -- Not yet, but others think I'm living their dream...
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care. Nope, my friends usually go out in a blaze of glory
143. Built your own PC from parts.
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you. Yep, my Rush 2112 painting I did in 9th grade. Sold it to a stoner for like twenty bucks.
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair-- I think I brushed peroxide on my hair back in high school one summer.
147. Been a DJ -- Yeah, but quit when I was told that Oingo Boingo was "too upbeat"
148. Shaved your head -- Every day!
149. Caused a car accident -- Just one, that I know of.
150. Saved someone’s life -- Twice, both times it was kids who were on the verge of drowning.
Mikey
Everything in boldface type is something that I've already done.
01. Bought everyone in the bar a drink-- A couple of times
02. Swam with wild dolphins--Not that I know of, but fed the ones at Sea World. I've sailed with a pod of dolphins accompanying me and they were jumping in and out of the bow wave. That was pretty cool.
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive--And a few Porsches and even a Rolls Royce, but that was just delivering them
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid -- Screw that. I'm not going to Haji land until they get their shit together.
06. Held a tarantula -- and ran over one with a Jeep, too!
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone -- Yep, but you don't want to think about that...
08. Said “I love you” and meant it -- Of course we always mean it if it's gonna get us laid...
09. Hugged a tree -- Yeah, I suppose when I was younger and into climbing trees.
10. Bungee jumped -- Do they make cords strong enough for me?
11. Visited Paris -- Only the one between Ballys and the Aladdin.
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea -- very cool as long as it's from a distance.
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise -- damn near every day!
14. Seen the Northern Lights -- Yep, six months in Alaska, you can't help it if you look up.
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa -- Not unless they want to reclassify it as 'ruins'
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables -- We had a garden when we were kids, but I remember being dirt poor in college and stealing the neighbors rhubarb...
18. Touched an iceberg -- Hell, I did even better. Somewhere around here I have a picture of me STANDING on an iceberg. Oooh, and I've eaten part of one, too.
19. Slept under the stars -- lots of camping trips
20. Changed a baby’s diaper -- yeah, but I'm not proud of it.
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon -- Not yet
22. Watched a meteor shower -- from the top deck of a houseboat on Lake Powell. With a chick. In a sleeping bag. Good times.
23. Gotten drunk on champagne -- Yeah, but if you want to get *really* sick, nothing works better than tequila
24. Given more than you can afford to charity -- Yes, and might I suggest the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope -- Loved the Astronomy classes in college.
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment -- Too many times to count.
27. Had a food fight -- They don't call me Senator Blutarsky for nothin'
28. Bet on a winning horse -- More than once, even, and I don't know *shiat* about the ponies.
29. Asked out a stranger -- Of course! The girls that know me would never say yes...
30. Had a snowball fight -- Nothing will ever top the time I nailed a guy right in the bald spot from 40 yards away. I was a legend that day.
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can -- Hell yeah. The Cardinals won the World Series this year!
32. Held a lamb -- Hmmm, not that I remember. Unless on the end of a fork counts.
33. Seen a total eclipse -- Not that I recall, except on the news after the fact.
34. Ridden a roller coaster -- The Matterhorn at Disneyland was the first, but the one I've ridden the most was the old Wabash Cannonball back when there was an Opryland.
35. Hit a home run -- I even got a grand slam a couple times back in the day!
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking -- I have to not care. Otherwise, I'd never be able to dance.
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day -- No, but it gives me a great idea.
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer -- I've had three for this one, so far...
40. Visited all 50 states -- Nope. Probably won't happen, either. I'm ok with missing Massachussetts.
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk -- Um, yeah. Have you met my friends???
42. Had amazing friends -- Of course. Drunkards and all!
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country -- The shot girl at Carlos and Charlies in Cozumel was a stranger...
44. Watched wild whales -- yep, freaked out a bit when a big-ass gray whale surfaced about 15 feet away from the rubber Zodiac I was sitting in.
45. Stolen a sign -- only when I'm leading off from second with a right handed pitcher and Skip wants to put on the hit-and-run. Oh, and I had my share of traffic signs in my room as a teen, too.
46. Backpacked in Europe -- Fark that. If I'm going to Europe, I'm staying first class, baby. Hippies annoy me and smell bad. Why would I want to join them?
47. Taken a road-trip -- If you only knew...
48. Gone rock climbing -- Tried it once. Feh...
49. Midnight walk on the beach -- Of course. Everyone's got to have a 'From Here to Eternity' date at least once!
50. Gone sky diving -- No. Ever see Operation Dumbo Drop?
51. Visited Ireland -- Not yet, but it's on the list.
52. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love -- Ashamed to admit that Stephani Layton wrecked me for a couple of years.
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger’s table and had a meal with them -- No, that's a little creepy.
54. Visited Japan -- Nope.
55. Milked a cow -- Never done that, but I had to untangle an angry steer from the bushes and trees on several occasions. He used to get me with those damn horns every time too. But I got even, and eventually ate him.
56. Alphabetized your CDs
57. Pretended to be a superhero -- Who's pretending? Ever seen me and Batman in the same room at the same time? Huh?
58. Sung karaoke -- When I'm drunk, I become Thelma Houston.
59. Lounged around in bed all day -- In fact, that's on the agenda for today!
60. Played touch football -- and the real kind, too. I was #64, the greatest linebacker in 5th grade!
61. Gone scuba diving -- Sadly, not yet.
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China -- They're still Commies over there, right? No thanks.
67. Started a business -- Back in high school I created my own fictitious scout troop and ordered a bunch of cases of fundraiser M&M's and sold them every day at school to earn money.
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken -- My record is intact--it always ends badly.
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight -- Are you effin' kiddin' me? I've actually *kissed* a girl before...
72. Gotten married -- Nada. Betrothed once, but that was a long time ago.
73. Been in a movie -- Um, not the kind you'd see at like, theatres...
74. Crashed a party -- Lots of times
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days -- Screw that. The closest I've come is going without BEER for five days.
77. Made cookies from scratch -- yeah, no big deal.
78. Won first prize in a costume contest -- no, but everyone still talks about the 'Ghost of Elvis' costume from 1999.
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice. Not even at the Venetian.
80. Gotten a tattoo (two and counting)
81. Rafted the Snake River -- on several occasions.
82. Been on television news programs as an “expert”. Sadly, nobody needs an expert on channel surfing, rum drinking, or cigar smoking.
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage -- Lots of times. I was a wannabe rocker in the day and had a bitchin' guitar. There is even video evidence floating around out there somewhere, precluding me from ever running for public office.
85. Been to Las Vegas -- Um yeah...a time or two.
86. Recorded music -- Yep. I still wish I had the disc of us covering Rock & Roll by Led Zeppelin. We had a great day in the studio one time.
87. Eaten shark -- Yep. It was either him or me...
88. Kissed on the first date -- Of course. Haven't you people ever heard of foreplay?
89. Gone to Thailand -- No. Most of them are here, anyways.
90. Bought a house -- Yep, it was easier than buying a car, too.
91. Been in a combat zone -- About 120 years after the fact, at Civil War battlefields...
92. Buried one/both of your parents -- Thankfully no.
93. Been on a cruise ship -- Yep! Many times. Can't wait to get back on one.
94. Spoken more than one language fluently. Hell no. I only know enough Spanish to get my ass kicked or get arrested.
95. Performed in Rocky Horror -- No, but back in the day I knew all the audience participation parts and had much fun at the Varsity Theatre in St. Louis.
96. Raised children -- No thanks. Can barely take care of myself...
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour. No. I have a job.
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country. No, since I have a job, I take taxis or rent cars when in a foreign country.
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over -- I think I've done this a couple of times.
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge -- I didn't know they allowed pedestrians. Drove across it a few times, though.
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn’t stop when you knew someone was looking. Every day.
103. Had plastic surgery -- No, I'm much too pretty for that.
104. Survived an accident that you shouldn’t have survived. Boating accident in Alaska. Was in the 36-degree water for almost 40 minutes. I decided that Alaska wasn't my cup of tea after that.
105. Wrote articles for a large publication -- You can find me published in the February 2004 issue of Latitudes & Attitudes.
106. Lost over 100 pounds -- No, but seemed to have found it...
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback -- Um, no. But I've held my share of chick's hair while they puked...
108. Piloted an airplane -- Hell yeah, and solo'd several times too!
109. Touched a stingray -- Yep, more photo evidence of this is somewhere on record, too--Mikey holding that thing up to the camera like a huge slimy pizza
110. Broken someone’s heart -- Not that I'm aware of.
111. Helped an animal give birth -- Please.
112. Won money on a T.V. game show -- No, but got selected to go to the Jeopardy College Championship tryouts. Didn't make the cut.
113. Broken a bone -- Twice, my wrist when I was five, and I broke my leg in two places the day President Reagan got shot. I had to wait my turn in the emergency room.
114. Gone on an African photo safari -- Not yet, but someday gonna take Sticky there!
115. Had a facial part pierced other than your ears -- Hell no. Did I mention that I have a job?
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol -- Yeah, a time or two.
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild -- Aren't they all?
118. Ridden a horse -- Lots and lots of times. I had an 'Honors' Biology class back in college, and that's all we'd ever do--go horseback riding and camping.
119. Had major surgery -- Not unless waking up during the removal of all four wisdom teeth counts.
120. Had a snake as a pet -- Yes, once. A very angry Garter Snake that originated the philosophy of 'They'll never take me alive!'
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon -- Nope
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours -- Every time I came back from Vegas, before moving here.
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states -- No, been to *almost* all of the States.
124. Visited all 7 continents -- Nope. And Antartica ain't on the To Do list, either.
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days -- Yep, the Buffalo River in Tennessee, and the Current River in Missouri.
126. Eaten kangaroo meat -- Why? What's wrong with cows, chickens, and pigs?
127. Eaten sushi -- Every chance I get!
128. Had your picture in the newspaper -- Most memorable was in July 0f 1987 when Reverend Dave and I were heckling Andre Dawson at The Murph. Huge pic on the front page of the sports section in the San Diego Union Tribune. One of my proudest moments as a sports fan.
129. Changed someone’s mind about something you care deeply about -- Got my mom to agree that guns aren't all bad.
130. Gone back to school -- Yep, that's how I got my current job.
131. Parasailed
132. Touched a cockroach -- Only if a shoe as I was squashing the nasty bastard.
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one “important” author who you missed in school, and read -- Mark Twain. More stuff than just Huckleberry Finn.
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating -- Only if fish count.
137. Skipped all your school reunions -- So Far
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language --damn near every day that I deal blackjack!
139. Been elected to public office -- See #84 above...
140. Written your own computer language -- I think this is related to that Dungeons and Dragons question.
141. Thought to yourself that you’re living your dream -- Not yet, but others think I'm living their dream...
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care. Nope, my friends usually go out in a blaze of glory
143. Built your own PC from parts.
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn’t know you. Yep, my Rush 2112 painting I did in 9th grade. Sold it to a stoner for like twenty bucks.
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146. Dyed your hair-- I think I brushed peroxide on my hair back in high school one summer.
147. Been a DJ -- Yeah, but quit when I was told that Oingo Boingo was "too upbeat"
148. Shaved your head -- Every day!
149. Caused a car accident -- Just one, that I know of.
150. Saved someone’s life -- Twice, both times it was kids who were on the verge of drowning.
Mikey
Saturday, December 02, 2006
Finally!
As everyone probably knows, my computer is on the trailing edge of technology. It's an old Compaq Presario that I bought in 2001, loaded with that sorry-assed Windows Millenium operating system. It's been to the repair shop so many times that I can't even count, and it's had both the processor and hard drive replaced two times each.
In other words, it's a complete piece of shiat.
Confirmation of that last statement came several months ago, when I was using I-Mesh to download music, when suddenly they upgraded their system and it was no longer compatable with my computer. No more free downloads for me. Damn. So I decided to go 'legit' and tried to load I-Tunes on my computer a couple months back. No dice--it is beyond the limited capabilities of this computer. I can't even buy music!
All of this has been a complete bummer, because my collection of mp3's, which was somewhere around 700 songs or so, back in the day, is only about 250 songs now, and I had no way of replacing all of that music I lost in the last meltdown.
Sticky told me about Limewire, and I tried to download it a few times in the past, but again--no dice--my computer just couldn't handle it. So I resigned myself to the fact that I wouldn't be one of the cool kids with an IPod until I got myself a new computer that could handle the new music downloading technology.
Last night, while sitting on a dead game around 2 am, my buddy Todd was wearing a suit as a floorman, instead of being a dealer. My game was in his pit, so we were able to talk. He was telling me that he had to download all of his music again because his computer crashed a couple weeks ago and had to replace the hard drive. I asked him what he used, and he told me that he was using Limewire, too.
I told him that it's not compatible with my stupid Windows Millenium computer, but he insisted that it was--he has almost the exact same piece of shiat that I do. He told me about the download 'workaround' that Limewire has on it's site, so when I got home this morning, I tried it.
Voila!
I am now a downloading fool once again! I stayed up until 6:00 am downloading Christmas music, mostly stuff from the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, including 'Wizards in Winter', the very cool tune that was featured in that beer commercial last Christmas where the guy had the lights at his house set to music. I also downloaded a copy of my new favorite song Somebody Told Me, by The Killers. Great song!
So I'm back baby--stickin' it to The Man once again. So that whole IPod thing is back at the top of the Christmas list again.
Mikey
In other words, it's a complete piece of shiat.
Confirmation of that last statement came several months ago, when I was using I-Mesh to download music, when suddenly they upgraded their system and it was no longer compatable with my computer. No more free downloads for me. Damn. So I decided to go 'legit' and tried to load I-Tunes on my computer a couple months back. No dice--it is beyond the limited capabilities of this computer. I can't even buy music!
All of this has been a complete bummer, because my collection of mp3's, which was somewhere around 700 songs or so, back in the day, is only about 250 songs now, and I had no way of replacing all of that music I lost in the last meltdown.
Sticky told me about Limewire, and I tried to download it a few times in the past, but again--no dice--my computer just couldn't handle it. So I resigned myself to the fact that I wouldn't be one of the cool kids with an IPod until I got myself a new computer that could handle the new music downloading technology.
Last night, while sitting on a dead game around 2 am, my buddy Todd was wearing a suit as a floorman, instead of being a dealer. My game was in his pit, so we were able to talk. He was telling me that he had to download all of his music again because his computer crashed a couple weeks ago and had to replace the hard drive. I asked him what he used, and he told me that he was using Limewire, too.
I told him that it's not compatible with my stupid Windows Millenium computer, but he insisted that it was--he has almost the exact same piece of shiat that I do. He told me about the download 'workaround' that Limewire has on it's site, so when I got home this morning, I tried it.
Voila!
I am now a downloading fool once again! I stayed up until 6:00 am downloading Christmas music, mostly stuff from the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, including 'Wizards in Winter', the very cool tune that was featured in that beer commercial last Christmas where the guy had the lights at his house set to music. I also downloaded a copy of my new favorite song Somebody Told Me, by The Killers. Great song!
So I'm back baby--stickin' it to The Man once again. So that whole IPod thing is back at the top of the Christmas list again.
Mikey
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Gettin' Lucky in Kentucky!
Well, Bally's is the Kentucky of casinos...
Wednesday was another wonderful day off. Except for getting up in the morning to make that last update here on the website, I pretty much slept all day, finally waking up around 3:00 in the afternoon.
With the head cold and all of the running around I did the day before, the rest did me good. I woke up today feeling much better, and except for a few sniffles, I hardly seemed sick at all. That Zicam stuff really works.
I got a few household chores done, and David called me yesterday afternoon asking me to see if we could get into Bally's Steakhouse for dinner. If not, he asked if I had any other suggestions. I don't kno--Bally's Steakhouse didn't seem too appetizing to me, so I suggested Mon Ami Gabi. He was cool with whatever, but just wanted something nice. When I hung up, I suddenly realized my manners, and if he was treating, I should probably go where he wanted. So I looked up their website, found it under that smelly Harrahs umbrella, and gave them a call.
Dinner for five at 7:00 pm was no problemo, so I called David back and plans were finalized. I showered, got dressed, and chit-chatted with Sticky for awhile on the Yahoo messenger thingy before it was time to go. I had to stop at the atm before I went to the Strip, but I still made it down there in record time, not hitting a single stoplight, and was about forty five minutes early for our reservation. Thinking everyone would probably be there already, I wandered around all the bars and lounges looking for familiar faces, but found none.
Hmmm... Whatever should I do? Oh wait. There might be a Pai Gow table somewhere in the casino, I thought. So I wandered a bit more. Unfortunately, there were only two Pai Gow tables open, but both were completely full--no seat for Mikey.
Instead I found a spot at the end of a $5 dice table and bought in for a hundred, hoping it would last until dinner, a half hour later.
I hate coming in during the middle of a roll, but the guy with the dice seemed to be doing well, and everyone had lots of checks on the rails in front of them. That was a good sign, so I placed the point by straddling the pass line, and put five bucks out in the Come. Brothaman kept rolling the dice, and by the time he sevened out and they wiped the table clean, I was up $25. Not too bad, although I wished I would've gotten there sooner.
The next shooter was even better, and she held the dice for two stickman changes. Once she sevened out, I colored up for a $150 profit--2 black, 2 green, and 2 white. The two white stayed with the boys, and I headed over to restaurant.
One thing about dice at Harrahs properties. They've changed their odds on all the prop bets, so they're even bigger sucker bets than usual. Most casinos offer the one-roll props at 15 TO 1 or 30 TO 1. Not so with Harrahs, they changed all of their layouts to say 15 FOR 1 and 30 FOR 1. So instead of getting $11 on a whirl bet, you only get ten bucks. If you bet the High-Low, and a 2 or 12 hits, instead of getting $29 (and the bet staying up), you only get $28. I found this out because I deal the game, and had a whirl bet up on the come out roll and the dice landed 6-5. I was expecting $11, but when they only gave me ten bucks, I told them that they had their payout wrong. The dealer pointed to the odds posted in the center of the table and just shrugged his shoulders as if to say Sorry dude, nothing I can do--we're supposed to rip off tourists here...
I swear, Harrah's is turning their casinos into clip joints, and they're not even hiding it now.
Once I got to the restaurant, I checked in with the hostess but nobody else had arrived yet. But they all showed up just a minute or two later. David and Cyndi were there, along with two of the guys that work for David--Art and Joe.
We were seated immediately and Cyndi and I realized that we actually *had* been there before--that's where the buffet is for Bally's Sterling Brunch. Our table was located where they normally keep the dessert stations.
The waiter was Johnnie-on-the-spot with cocktail orders, and David also ordered a bottle of Merlot. It took us a bit longer to get water, but once it showed up, they kept our glasses full. A few minutes later a basket of assorted breads was delivered, along with butter, of course.
The menu looked very good, and I opted for Old Reliable--my favorite steak, the bone-in ribeye (and I surf & turfed it with an order of grilled shrimp!). I went with French Onion for my soup, and a giant baked potato on the side. Cyndi had a filet and king crab legs. David had the same, and I think Art and Joe also had crab legs. Everyone else had a salad instead of soup.
Dinner was lots of fun--we always have great conversation when we get together, but the food was outstanding. Believe me, I never even considered Bally's Steakhouse before--it never even made it to the list of places to try, but I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, I will even heap on a superlative here--Out of all the bone-in ribeyes I've ever eaten in this town, this was absolutely the best. I couldn't even begin to describe how tender and flavorful it was. No sauce was needed at all. But Cyndi had a little bearnaise sauce with her filet, and I tried a bit of it, and was floored by how good it was. Normally I'm not a big fan, but I really enjoyed this particular variation. My shrimp were excellent, too, so I was quite pleased with my meal.
I have no idea what the total bill came to, it went directly to David and he picked up the check for the whole party. Business expense, I'm sure. But the entrees were priced in the mid thirties and the sides about six bucks each--your typical steakhouse pricing. Of course we were much too stuffed to even consider dessert or coffee, and Cyndi and David were both exhausted after a long day of meetings, plus they had to get up early for even more business-related activities. So we said our goodbyes--chances are I won't see them again before they leave on Friday.
I was all ready to call it a night, but Art and Joe asked me if I'd be willing to teach them how to play Pai Gow. Can't turn that down, and since I had a pocketful of house money, I was happy to do it.
By the time we got finished with our dinner, the swing shift dealers had reported for duty, and they opened more tables. So we found an empty one and bought in.
It didn't start out well, but we managed to grind out a few wins here and there. Once they changed dealers, it went downhill, so we moved to the table next to us. It was a lot of fun and after about a half hour or so, Art and Joe had completely grasped the concept and were really enjoying themselves. I, on the other hand, couldn't catch cards to save my life, and even though I was still up for the session, decided to return to our original table. I played there for about a half hour, doubled my buy-in, and called it a night.
I said goodbye to the fellas, and they said they'd try and make it out to my casino the next night and play at my table. I walked to the cage with a little spring in my step, because when I left, I had $250 more than I arrived with. Couple that with a great steak dinner, and it was a pretty damn good evening at Bally's.
There is no buffoonery scheduled for Thursday. The only thing I'm gonna do is go down to the bank and then mail off a couple of bills, paid with house money. Then it's back to being Monday morning for me and I head back to work.
But I sure had a fun weekend. Doc Al arrives next week, so I gotta get some rest.
Mikey
Wednesday was another wonderful day off. Except for getting up in the morning to make that last update here on the website, I pretty much slept all day, finally waking up around 3:00 in the afternoon.
With the head cold and all of the running around I did the day before, the rest did me good. I woke up today feeling much better, and except for a few sniffles, I hardly seemed sick at all. That Zicam stuff really works.
I got a few household chores done, and David called me yesterday afternoon asking me to see if we could get into Bally's Steakhouse for dinner. If not, he asked if I had any other suggestions. I don't kno--Bally's Steakhouse didn't seem too appetizing to me, so I suggested Mon Ami Gabi. He was cool with whatever, but just wanted something nice. When I hung up, I suddenly realized my manners, and if he was treating, I should probably go where he wanted. So I looked up their website, found it under that smelly Harrahs umbrella, and gave them a call.
Dinner for five at 7:00 pm was no problemo, so I called David back and plans were finalized. I showered, got dressed, and chit-chatted with Sticky for awhile on the Yahoo messenger thingy before it was time to go. I had to stop at the atm before I went to the Strip, but I still made it down there in record time, not hitting a single stoplight, and was about forty five minutes early for our reservation. Thinking everyone would probably be there already, I wandered around all the bars and lounges looking for familiar faces, but found none.
Hmmm... Whatever should I do? Oh wait. There might be a Pai Gow table somewhere in the casino, I thought. So I wandered a bit more. Unfortunately, there were only two Pai Gow tables open, but both were completely full--no seat for Mikey.
Instead I found a spot at the end of a $5 dice table and bought in for a hundred, hoping it would last until dinner, a half hour later.
I hate coming in during the middle of a roll, but the guy with the dice seemed to be doing well, and everyone had lots of checks on the rails in front of them. That was a good sign, so I placed the point by straddling the pass line, and put five bucks out in the Come. Brothaman kept rolling the dice, and by the time he sevened out and they wiped the table clean, I was up $25. Not too bad, although I wished I would've gotten there sooner.
The next shooter was even better, and she held the dice for two stickman changes. Once she sevened out, I colored up for a $150 profit--2 black, 2 green, and 2 white. The two white stayed with the boys, and I headed over to restaurant.
One thing about dice at Harrahs properties. They've changed their odds on all the prop bets, so they're even bigger sucker bets than usual. Most casinos offer the one-roll props at 15 TO 1 or 30 TO 1. Not so with Harrahs, they changed all of their layouts to say 15 FOR 1 and 30 FOR 1. So instead of getting $11 on a whirl bet, you only get ten bucks. If you bet the High-Low, and a 2 or 12 hits, instead of getting $29 (and the bet staying up), you only get $28. I found this out because I deal the game, and had a whirl bet up on the come out roll and the dice landed 6-5. I was expecting $11, but when they only gave me ten bucks, I told them that they had their payout wrong. The dealer pointed to the odds posted in the center of the table and just shrugged his shoulders as if to say Sorry dude, nothing I can do--we're supposed to rip off tourists here...
I swear, Harrah's is turning their casinos into clip joints, and they're not even hiding it now.
Once I got to the restaurant, I checked in with the hostess but nobody else had arrived yet. But they all showed up just a minute or two later. David and Cyndi were there, along with two of the guys that work for David--Art and Joe.
We were seated immediately and Cyndi and I realized that we actually *had* been there before--that's where the buffet is for Bally's Sterling Brunch. Our table was located where they normally keep the dessert stations.
The waiter was Johnnie-on-the-spot with cocktail orders, and David also ordered a bottle of Merlot. It took us a bit longer to get water, but once it showed up, they kept our glasses full. A few minutes later a basket of assorted breads was delivered, along with butter, of course.
The menu looked very good, and I opted for Old Reliable--my favorite steak, the bone-in ribeye (and I surf & turfed it with an order of grilled shrimp!). I went with French Onion for my soup, and a giant baked potato on the side. Cyndi had a filet and king crab legs. David had the same, and I think Art and Joe also had crab legs. Everyone else had a salad instead of soup.
Dinner was lots of fun--we always have great conversation when we get together, but the food was outstanding. Believe me, I never even considered Bally's Steakhouse before--it never even made it to the list of places to try, but I was pleasantly surprised. In fact, I will even heap on a superlative here--Out of all the bone-in ribeyes I've ever eaten in this town, this was absolutely the best. I couldn't even begin to describe how tender and flavorful it was. No sauce was needed at all. But Cyndi had a little bearnaise sauce with her filet, and I tried a bit of it, and was floored by how good it was. Normally I'm not a big fan, but I really enjoyed this particular variation. My shrimp were excellent, too, so I was quite pleased with my meal.
I have no idea what the total bill came to, it went directly to David and he picked up the check for the whole party. Business expense, I'm sure. But the entrees were priced in the mid thirties and the sides about six bucks each--your typical steakhouse pricing. Of course we were much too stuffed to even consider dessert or coffee, and Cyndi and David were both exhausted after a long day of meetings, plus they had to get up early for even more business-related activities. So we said our goodbyes--chances are I won't see them again before they leave on Friday.
I was all ready to call it a night, but Art and Joe asked me if I'd be willing to teach them how to play Pai Gow. Can't turn that down, and since I had a pocketful of house money, I was happy to do it.
By the time we got finished with our dinner, the swing shift dealers had reported for duty, and they opened more tables. So we found an empty one and bought in.
It didn't start out well, but we managed to grind out a few wins here and there. Once they changed dealers, it went downhill, so we moved to the table next to us. It was a lot of fun and after about a half hour or so, Art and Joe had completely grasped the concept and were really enjoying themselves. I, on the other hand, couldn't catch cards to save my life, and even though I was still up for the session, decided to return to our original table. I played there for about a half hour, doubled my buy-in, and called it a night.
I said goodbye to the fellas, and they said they'd try and make it out to my casino the next night and play at my table. I walked to the cage with a little spring in my step, because when I left, I had $250 more than I arrived with. Couple that with a great steak dinner, and it was a pretty damn good evening at Bally's.
There is no buffoonery scheduled for Thursday. The only thing I'm gonna do is go down to the bank and then mail off a couple of bills, paid with house money. Then it's back to being Monday morning for me and I head back to work.
But I sure had a fun weekend. Doc Al arrives next week, so I gotta get some rest.
Mikey
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Button Up, Campers...
Because it's cold outside!
A serious cold front has moved into Las Vegas, and they say it's gonna get down below freezing. No big deal to you Hearty Souls of the North, but we thin-blooded desert dwellers are downright uncomfortable. I own no parka, galoshes (what the hell are those, anyways?), ski masks (had to retire it after that bank job...), an Elmer Fudd hat with floppy ears, or long johns. And now that I no longer work in an office, you'll be lucky to find a long-sleeved shirt in my closet.
Yeah, it's a bit chilly here. I know I won't get much sympathy from people who choose to live in officially cold places, but damn, there's a reason I've lived in the desert for the better part of the last sixteen years.
So I'm bundled up in everything warm that I own, tempted to light a fire in the wastebasket under my desk, and typing away with my homeless-style fingerless gloves. Completing the picture for you, I've got an unlit cigar stub jammed in the corner of my mouth and I haven't shaved for three days. Ok, just kidding about that last part. It's lit...
Anyhow, yesterday was a great day. I got about three hours of sleep before the alarm clock jolted me awake, forcing me to get ready to face the day. It was quarter till nine, and Cyndi's plane landed at 10am. I showered, shaved, and got dressed, and made it down to the airport after she'd arrived at baggage claim, but a few minutes before her luggage got there. Perfect timing.
The first order of business was to get some food, so we headed to the Peppermill. Unfortunately, Krista wasn't working, so we completely skipped the Fireside Lounge and just got a table in the restaurant instead. After the gravy incident from the night before, my usual Chicken Fried Steak wasn't an option, and the biscuits and gravy at the Peppermill just downright suck, so I went the omelet route. Ham and cheese for me, with sourdough toast, while Cyndi got the Maserati model--some nasty thing with spaghetti sauce on it.
The food was good, the conversation was lively, and we even passed the phone back and forth talking to Angy for a bit. It was also Cyndi's 45th birthday, believe it or not, so we were celebrating that and her newfound independence, having just left her job down in the islands and taking a shot at being self-employed.
We lingered a bit, making sure we finished up at 12 noon, because that's when the half-price ticket trailer opened up out in the parking lot. We browsed the offerings, and decided to go to the 10pm show of Phantom of the Opera at the Venetian. The tickets weren't quite half-priced, and it cost us $297 for three of them. We immediately drove over to the Venetian box office and changed the vouchers over to real tickets, getting some primo seats about halfway back, right in the center of the theatre.
After that little errand had been run, it was time to start our gambling for the day. About a half hour later we were pulling into Green Valley Ranch and looking for a Pai Gow table. As soon as we walked in, we were blinded by some of the brightest lights ever seen in a casino, and a big sign warning us that they were filming a commercial and our presence indicated our willingness to be used in promotional advertising. I was ok with that, but the guys I have to answer to back in Washington that run the Witness Protection Program are probably gonna have a shit fit.
We sat down at an empty table and did our buy-in. I had several $25 bet coupons of the non-matchplay variety, but unfortunately, three of them had expired. The floorperson was kind enough to initial them and let me use them, and it was a nice feeling to win $40 on my first hand with only $15 of my own cash on the line.
Although I didn't get too many big bonuses, I was holding my own and not scratching down to the felt like I normally do at Green Valley before I finally start making hands and end up walking away dead even after four hours. I was up pretty much the whole time, although I couldn't get a big bonus for anything--five times I got 4-to-the-straight flush, but I spent the whole day knockin' on that door that never quite opened.
The Jumbo Jackpot was at $140,000 when I'd left work the night before, so I expected that someone would've already hit it by the time we got to the casino on Tuesday afternoon. But no, it was still going strong at $142K, and we kept one eye on the sign and one eye on our Pai Gow table. Once I doubled up for the second time, I said it was time to cash in. Cyndi's luck wasn't running as well as mine, so she was good and ready to hit some slots.
We bounced around for a couple of hours playing various nickels, penny, quarter, and even dollar slots. I think we had the most fun at a 5-reel penny machine, because as a typical male, the 20-line video penny slots are a total farking mystery to me, Sticky's constant tutoring notwithstanding. We didn't win much--I basically broke even on all the slots, so I had a handful of $20 tickets to cash. As we were heading for the valet at the end of the afternoon, Cyndi suggested that we hit some dollar slots before leaving.
I agreed, but believe me, I didn't want to. My budget this month is thinner than Nicole Ritchie's shadow, but I figured I might as well take a chance on having my employer give me a six-figure bonus in time for the holidays. I'm glad I did, because with that first $20, I managed to win $372. I played it down to an even $350 before cashing out and walking away. Coupled with the smaller tickets already in my pocket and the two black chips I got from the Pai Gow table, it was a very successful afternoon at Green Valley Ranch. I sent a text message to Sticky telling her that I'd won about $500, and her response was a simple Now get the hell out of there!
Good advice, so we split.
Even though it was barely 5 pm by then, darkness had settled in upon Vegas. The view of the Strip from Green Valley is always pretty cool, but even more so at night. Know that the freeway would be a mess at that time of the evening, we opted for surface streets on our trek back to Vegas proper. We were getting hungry, but not so much to want a full meal, so we made a quick stop for some Taco Bell drive thru and got a couple of burritos to go.
Cyndi and her husband David are staying at the Renaissance Hotel, which is right next door to the convention center on Paradise. So we made our way down there to drop off her luggage and relax a bit before meeting David after his day's business had concluded.
I have to admit, the Renaissance is a damn fine hotel--no casino--it's a business hotel, but I really liked the lobby, the lounge, and the Envy steakhouse is definitely worth a look. The room was extremely nice, reminding me of a smaller version of the the rooms at TheHotel at Mandalay Bay--very modern yet very comfy. They were on a 'concierge' floor, so we had access to a Club Lounge, which is a lot like a Diamond Lounge at a Harrahs property. We relaxed with some drinks and light snacks for a bit before heading back to the room and dozing in front of the TV while waiting for David to show up.
We had to be back at the Venetian by 9:30, and so we gave ourselves about 45 minutes to get there, in case of bad traffic or whatnot. My truck doesn't seat three people comfortably, so they opted to get a cab over, while I just drove myself. I went down to the valet to pick up my truck just a minute ahead of them, and while standing outside freezing my ass off, a cab drove up, dropping off a passenger. In one of the coolest coincidences of the day, it was driven by my buddy Lenny (boyfriend of my good friend Jennifer). Out of all the hundreds of cab drivers in this town, he happened to be the one to show up right at the time Cyndi and David needed a cab.
We raced over to the Venetian, but the sorry excuse for valet service delayed me a minute or two--they were already standing at the entrance to the theatre waiting for me when I came down the escalators there by the Grand Luxe.
We only had to wait a few minutes before they started seating for the show. It was far from a sellout that night, so just like a flight with empty rows, once it got close to showtime, lots of folks were changing seats and spreading out. Fortunately for us, our seats were pretty damn good and we didn't feel the need to try and improve them.
I've seen Phantom of the Opera before, about ten years ago at Gammage Auditorium in Tempe, and although I thought it was pretty damn cool at the time, it was nothing compared to the Vegas version. Talk about over-the-top amazing--just the introduction blew us away. The chandelier trick was one of the coolest things ever, and the rest of the special effects were incredible. Of course the story moves along at a better clip than the original, and the music is very powerful.
I think Cyndi and David have seen other versions of Phantom about five times each (even at the Royal Opera House in London) and both agreed that this was the best version by a long shot. We couldn't stop raving about how enjoyable it was and wouldn't hesitate in the least to go see it again. It was a great show and well worth the hundred-dollar ticket price. Yep, I said it. It was worth a hundred bucks. Go see it.
It was almost midnight by the time we got out of the theatre, and they both had early meetings to go attend, so they headed back to their hotel. On a mission from Dougie to scout out proper venues for the T2V Poker Tourney in March, I headed over to the poker room to talk to the tournament director. Well, since it was after midnight in the middle of the week, I spoke to his assistant and he gave me some of the details, along with his boss's card, who is the guy who can give the final yea or nay on what we want to do. But their cut was much more reasonable than what the Plaza is trying to gouge us for, and it goes without saying that their facilities are *much* nicer. Plus they promised us a roped-off area separate from the general population and our own exclusive cocktail service. If we can get the details ironed out, I'm thinking we'll probably go that route.
By the time I finished up in there, I was exhausted and ready to get some sleep. It was late, the casino was slowing down, and it was time to head home. As I got to the escalators leading back to the valet, I ran into Carrot Top. His schtick might be some of the most annoying ever, but the dude is ripped. Not somebody you want to mess with. Yeah, on TV he looks like a total toolbox, but in real life he looks like he could tear your head off. I chose not to make fun of him and just gave him a high five and a What's up, CT? as I walked by.
Overall, I'd have to say it was a pretty great day in Vegas.
Today, I got to sleep in, and I'm not doing much but the usual day-off stuff while Cyndi and David attend meetings and shows all day. We're planning on getting together for dinner tonight, and hopefully we'll mark another good restaurant off the list.
In the meantime, I'm gonna go make a pot of coffee and try to stay warm.
Mikey
A serious cold front has moved into Las Vegas, and they say it's gonna get down below freezing. No big deal to you Hearty Souls of the North, but we thin-blooded desert dwellers are downright uncomfortable. I own no parka, galoshes (what the hell are those, anyways?), ski masks (had to retire it after that bank job...), an Elmer Fudd hat with floppy ears, or long johns. And now that I no longer work in an office, you'll be lucky to find a long-sleeved shirt in my closet.
Yeah, it's a bit chilly here. I know I won't get much sympathy from people who choose to live in officially cold places, but damn, there's a reason I've lived in the desert for the better part of the last sixteen years.
So I'm bundled up in everything warm that I own, tempted to light a fire in the wastebasket under my desk, and typing away with my homeless-style fingerless gloves. Completing the picture for you, I've got an unlit cigar stub jammed in the corner of my mouth and I haven't shaved for three days. Ok, just kidding about that last part. It's lit...
Anyhow, yesterday was a great day. I got about three hours of sleep before the alarm clock jolted me awake, forcing me to get ready to face the day. It was quarter till nine, and Cyndi's plane landed at 10am. I showered, shaved, and got dressed, and made it down to the airport after she'd arrived at baggage claim, but a few minutes before her luggage got there. Perfect timing.
The first order of business was to get some food, so we headed to the Peppermill. Unfortunately, Krista wasn't working, so we completely skipped the Fireside Lounge and just got a table in the restaurant instead. After the gravy incident from the night before, my usual Chicken Fried Steak wasn't an option, and the biscuits and gravy at the Peppermill just downright suck, so I went the omelet route. Ham and cheese for me, with sourdough toast, while Cyndi got the Maserati model--some nasty thing with spaghetti sauce on it.
The food was good, the conversation was lively, and we even passed the phone back and forth talking to Angy for a bit. It was also Cyndi's 45th birthday, believe it or not, so we were celebrating that and her newfound independence, having just left her job down in the islands and taking a shot at being self-employed.
We lingered a bit, making sure we finished up at 12 noon, because that's when the half-price ticket trailer opened up out in the parking lot. We browsed the offerings, and decided to go to the 10pm show of Phantom of the Opera at the Venetian. The tickets weren't quite half-priced, and it cost us $297 for three of them. We immediately drove over to the Venetian box office and changed the vouchers over to real tickets, getting some primo seats about halfway back, right in the center of the theatre.
After that little errand had been run, it was time to start our gambling for the day. About a half hour later we were pulling into Green Valley Ranch and looking for a Pai Gow table. As soon as we walked in, we were blinded by some of the brightest lights ever seen in a casino, and a big sign warning us that they were filming a commercial and our presence indicated our willingness to be used in promotional advertising. I was ok with that, but the guys I have to answer to back in Washington that run the Witness Protection Program are probably gonna have a shit fit.
We sat down at an empty table and did our buy-in. I had several $25 bet coupons of the non-matchplay variety, but unfortunately, three of them had expired. The floorperson was kind enough to initial them and let me use them, and it was a nice feeling to win $40 on my first hand with only $15 of my own cash on the line.
Although I didn't get too many big bonuses, I was holding my own and not scratching down to the felt like I normally do at Green Valley before I finally start making hands and end up walking away dead even after four hours. I was up pretty much the whole time, although I couldn't get a big bonus for anything--five times I got 4-to-the-straight flush, but I spent the whole day knockin' on that door that never quite opened.
The Jumbo Jackpot was at $140,000 when I'd left work the night before, so I expected that someone would've already hit it by the time we got to the casino on Tuesday afternoon. But no, it was still going strong at $142K, and we kept one eye on the sign and one eye on our Pai Gow table. Once I doubled up for the second time, I said it was time to cash in. Cyndi's luck wasn't running as well as mine, so she was good and ready to hit some slots.
We bounced around for a couple of hours playing various nickels, penny, quarter, and even dollar slots. I think we had the most fun at a 5-reel penny machine, because as a typical male, the 20-line video penny slots are a total farking mystery to me, Sticky's constant tutoring notwithstanding. We didn't win much--I basically broke even on all the slots, so I had a handful of $20 tickets to cash. As we were heading for the valet at the end of the afternoon, Cyndi suggested that we hit some dollar slots before leaving.
I agreed, but believe me, I didn't want to. My budget this month is thinner than Nicole Ritchie's shadow, but I figured I might as well take a chance on having my employer give me a six-figure bonus in time for the holidays. I'm glad I did, because with that first $20, I managed to win $372. I played it down to an even $350 before cashing out and walking away. Coupled with the smaller tickets already in my pocket and the two black chips I got from the Pai Gow table, it was a very successful afternoon at Green Valley Ranch. I sent a text message to Sticky telling her that I'd won about $500, and her response was a simple Now get the hell out of there!
Good advice, so we split.
Even though it was barely 5 pm by then, darkness had settled in upon Vegas. The view of the Strip from Green Valley is always pretty cool, but even more so at night. Know that the freeway would be a mess at that time of the evening, we opted for surface streets on our trek back to Vegas proper. We were getting hungry, but not so much to want a full meal, so we made a quick stop for some Taco Bell drive thru and got a couple of burritos to go.
Cyndi and her husband David are staying at the Renaissance Hotel, which is right next door to the convention center on Paradise. So we made our way down there to drop off her luggage and relax a bit before meeting David after his day's business had concluded.
I have to admit, the Renaissance is a damn fine hotel--no casino--it's a business hotel, but I really liked the lobby, the lounge, and the Envy steakhouse is definitely worth a look. The room was extremely nice, reminding me of a smaller version of the the rooms at TheHotel at Mandalay Bay--very modern yet very comfy. They were on a 'concierge' floor, so we had access to a Club Lounge, which is a lot like a Diamond Lounge at a Harrahs property. We relaxed with some drinks and light snacks for a bit before heading back to the room and dozing in front of the TV while waiting for David to show up.
We had to be back at the Venetian by 9:30, and so we gave ourselves about 45 minutes to get there, in case of bad traffic or whatnot. My truck doesn't seat three people comfortably, so they opted to get a cab over, while I just drove myself. I went down to the valet to pick up my truck just a minute ahead of them, and while standing outside freezing my ass off, a cab drove up, dropping off a passenger. In one of the coolest coincidences of the day, it was driven by my buddy Lenny (boyfriend of my good friend Jennifer). Out of all the hundreds of cab drivers in this town, he happened to be the one to show up right at the time Cyndi and David needed a cab.
We raced over to the Venetian, but the sorry excuse for valet service delayed me a minute or two--they were already standing at the entrance to the theatre waiting for me when I came down the escalators there by the Grand Luxe.
We only had to wait a few minutes before they started seating for the show. It was far from a sellout that night, so just like a flight with empty rows, once it got close to showtime, lots of folks were changing seats and spreading out. Fortunately for us, our seats were pretty damn good and we didn't feel the need to try and improve them.
I've seen Phantom of the Opera before, about ten years ago at Gammage Auditorium in Tempe, and although I thought it was pretty damn cool at the time, it was nothing compared to the Vegas version. Talk about over-the-top amazing--just the introduction blew us away. The chandelier trick was one of the coolest things ever, and the rest of the special effects were incredible. Of course the story moves along at a better clip than the original, and the music is very powerful.
I think Cyndi and David have seen other versions of Phantom about five times each (even at the Royal Opera House in London) and both agreed that this was the best version by a long shot. We couldn't stop raving about how enjoyable it was and wouldn't hesitate in the least to go see it again. It was a great show and well worth the hundred-dollar ticket price. Yep, I said it. It was worth a hundred bucks. Go see it.
It was almost midnight by the time we got out of the theatre, and they both had early meetings to go attend, so they headed back to their hotel. On a mission from Dougie to scout out proper venues for the T2V Poker Tourney in March, I headed over to the poker room to talk to the tournament director. Well, since it was after midnight in the middle of the week, I spoke to his assistant and he gave me some of the details, along with his boss's card, who is the guy who can give the final yea or nay on what we want to do. But their cut was much more reasonable than what the Plaza is trying to gouge us for, and it goes without saying that their facilities are *much* nicer. Plus they promised us a roped-off area separate from the general population and our own exclusive cocktail service. If we can get the details ironed out, I'm thinking we'll probably go that route.
By the time I finished up in there, I was exhausted and ready to get some sleep. It was late, the casino was slowing down, and it was time to head home. As I got to the escalators leading back to the valet, I ran into Carrot Top. His schtick might be some of the most annoying ever, but the dude is ripped. Not somebody you want to mess with. Yeah, on TV he looks like a total toolbox, but in real life he looks like he could tear your head off. I chose not to make fun of him and just gave him a high five and a What's up, CT? as I walked by.
Overall, I'd have to say it was a pretty great day in Vegas.
Today, I got to sleep in, and I'm not doing much but the usual day-off stuff while Cyndi and David attend meetings and shows all day. We're planning on getting together for dinner tonight, and hopefully we'll mark another good restaurant off the list.
In the meantime, I'm gonna go make a pot of coffee and try to stay warm.
Mikey
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Just Gravy...
Hope everyone is having a wonderful day out in the real world. Out there it's Tuesday, but in here it's Friday night... Instead of going out after work, it was soooo slow that I took off a couple hours early and came straight home to catch a little extra sleep. There is a little buffoonery on tap for the next couple of days as my sister Cyndi, fresh off the boat from St. Croix will be arriving at 10am. Word around the campfire is that her husband, my other brother David, is already here.
The plan, after picking her up at the airport, is to head to the Fireside Lounge and have drinks with my gal Krista for an hour or two, and then maybe head out to Green Valley and burn up about five of these $25 free table-game bet coupons, and maybe add a few bucks to our bankroll. Don't know what else we'll do, except maybe go out to dinner at a nice place, probably knock something else off of the list.
Speaking of dinner, last night at work, I had an interesting experience. I hadn't eaten anything all day--the head cold kills the taste buds, so nothing sounds good except for maybe Tabasco sauce, so by the time my 11pm break rolled around, my stomach was rumbling, telling me it was time to eat something. I went back to the dining room, hoping to find something appetizing. There was a salad bar. Feh... Some sort of bean soup, (Not an option unless I'm dealing dice and can blame the gas on the old farts at the table), fish sticks, chili, mashed potatoes, meatloaf, and hot dogs.
But at the end of the buffet was a tray full of warm biscuits, and sitting next to what looked to be a fresh pan of white gravy. Oh hell yeah, I loves me some biscuits and country gravy, so I took two, split them open on a plate still hot from the dishwasher, and ladled on three generous scoops of gravy. Even though my sense of smell was somewhat crippled, I was looking forward to a decent meal. I grabbed a glass of apple juice, and joined my buddy Todd--who is also from Nashville--at the table. Once he saw that I had fresh biscuits and gravy, he was jealous--he wanted some too, and began to get up to fetch his own plate.
I took a forkful with a big dollup of gravy on top and shoved it in my mouth.
Immediately, I knew something wasn't quite right.
I looked at Todd and said Oh man...
He responded with, That's just heaven, ain't it?
I spit it back out on the plate and started hopping around and shrieking like a kid forced to eat brussel sprouts for the first time. I grabbed the apple juice and started guzzling.
What's the matter dude? Too much pepper???
That was no country gravy, it was tartar sauce for the fish sticks! Do you have any idea how effin' gross that sensation is, especially when you're expecting sausage gravy? So disgusting... Words can't even begin to describe it.
Everybody at the table took a moment to process that information, and then started laughing their asses off, including me, and it took several minutes before we could stop giggling and wipe the tears away. I went on a kitchen safari looking for something to make the taste go away, and immediately discovered that a banana is the opposite of tartar sauce, so it did the trick. Everything else on the plate went in the garbage can.
It was so gross, but everyone got a good laugh at my expense, so it wasn't a total waste.
Afterwards, Todd said it best in his Tennessee accent--Man, after that, you just ain't gonna be right for the rest of the night...
He was correct. It was all downhill from there, so I asked the boss to cut me out early.
I finally got that foul taste out of my mouth and now that I'm home, I'm no longer burping mayonaise and pickles. In a few hours I'll be eating breakfast at the Peppermill. Pretty sure I'm not gonna have the Chicken Fried Steak this time around... Or the fish and chips.
Mikey
The plan, after picking her up at the airport, is to head to the Fireside Lounge and have drinks with my gal Krista for an hour or two, and then maybe head out to Green Valley and burn up about five of these $25 free table-game bet coupons, and maybe add a few bucks to our bankroll. Don't know what else we'll do, except maybe go out to dinner at a nice place, probably knock something else off of the list.
Speaking of dinner, last night at work, I had an interesting experience. I hadn't eaten anything all day--the head cold kills the taste buds, so nothing sounds good except for maybe Tabasco sauce, so by the time my 11pm break rolled around, my stomach was rumbling, telling me it was time to eat something. I went back to the dining room, hoping to find something appetizing. There was a salad bar. Feh... Some sort of bean soup, (Not an option unless I'm dealing dice and can blame the gas on the old farts at the table), fish sticks, chili, mashed potatoes, meatloaf, and hot dogs.
But at the end of the buffet was a tray full of warm biscuits, and sitting next to what looked to be a fresh pan of white gravy. Oh hell yeah, I loves me some biscuits and country gravy, so I took two, split them open on a plate still hot from the dishwasher, and ladled on three generous scoops of gravy. Even though my sense of smell was somewhat crippled, I was looking forward to a decent meal. I grabbed a glass of apple juice, and joined my buddy Todd--who is also from Nashville--at the table. Once he saw that I had fresh biscuits and gravy, he was jealous--he wanted some too, and began to get up to fetch his own plate.
I took a forkful with a big dollup of gravy on top and shoved it in my mouth.
Immediately, I knew something wasn't quite right.
I looked at Todd and said Oh man...
He responded with, That's just heaven, ain't it?
I spit it back out on the plate and started hopping around and shrieking like a kid forced to eat brussel sprouts for the first time. I grabbed the apple juice and started guzzling.
What's the matter dude? Too much pepper???
That was no country gravy, it was tartar sauce for the fish sticks! Do you have any idea how effin' gross that sensation is, especially when you're expecting sausage gravy? So disgusting... Words can't even begin to describe it.
Everybody at the table took a moment to process that information, and then started laughing their asses off, including me, and it took several minutes before we could stop giggling and wipe the tears away. I went on a kitchen safari looking for something to make the taste go away, and immediately discovered that a banana is the opposite of tartar sauce, so it did the trick. Everything else on the plate went in the garbage can.
It was so gross, but everyone got a good laugh at my expense, so it wasn't a total waste.
Afterwards, Todd said it best in his Tennessee accent--Man, after that, you just ain't gonna be right for the rest of the night...
He was correct. It was all downhill from there, so I asked the boss to cut me out early.
I finally got that foul taste out of my mouth and now that I'm home, I'm no longer burping mayonaise and pickles. In a few hours I'll be eating breakfast at the Peppermill. Pretty sure I'm not gonna have the Chicken Fried Steak this time around... Or the fish and chips.
Mikey
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Moving Slowly
Hey Gang... I know that today is the end of a nice long holiday weekend for most of you, so I hope you make the most of it before heading back to your respective cube-farms tomorrow. I had to work all weekend, so except for the huge feast on Thursday, for me it was pretty much the same as every other weekend, except for the fact that I'm now fighting a minor head cold. There are just too many damn germs in this town.
After work on Friday night, I went out for drinks with my friend Anna, like we normally do every Saturday morning at 4am. A few other dealers joined us, but after a round or two, somebody came up with the brilliant idea that we should go play Pai Gow over at the Fiesta. I was ok with that suggestion, except for that whole 'going to the Fiesta' part of it. So, I suggested Green Valley Ranch instead--not only is it a helluva lot nicer casino, it was also about a mile or two closer to our barstools.
So the party left the bar and a few minutes later reconvened at the ATM machine at the top of the escalator at GVR. Everyone took out a hundy and we found an empty $10 Pai Gow table after that.
We were having lots of fun, but it took me for-frickin-EVER to finally catch a winning hand. After awhile, another one of the gang from the bar, Candace, joined us but said she put her name on the waiting list in the poker room for a seat at the 4-8 game they had going. That sounded like a good idea, but I refused to hit the ATM again, and didn't want to go sit at a 4-8 Holdem table without at least a hundy worth of bullets. So the girls took off--Marcie went home, Anna and Candace headed to the poker room, while I stayed put at the Pai Gow table trying to scratch my way back from 'broke' to 'broke even'.
But the dealer was hot, and my buy-in completely migrated into the rack, so I headed over to the poker room to see the girls. I found them sitting at the softest 4-8 game in the history of casino poker, and I took a seat just behind them, announcing to the rest of the crowd that my two best earners were about to shake them all down.
Talk about prophetic--from that moment on, Anna won the next eight hands in a row. And it was a half-kill game after the second win, so the pots were huge! At least four people saw every flop, and nobody would fold until the river. It was amazing--she had a run of cards that was unbelievable, although the last couple of hands were won without having to show her hand. I wasn't there fifteen minutes before I was wandering the room looking for four empty chip racks. She had a handful of red chips that had made their way to her stack, so she handed me $35 worth and told me to go back to the Pai Gow table and win our money back, and that she'd come join me again in a few minutes.
So I went back to the pit, and I left her sitting there at the poker table stacking almost $400 worth of other people's money, with a promise that she'd leave as soon as she lost a showdown.
When I got back to the Pai Gow table, it was empty, so I just played heads up against the dealer. Anna showed up about a half hour later, saying that she lost a hundred back to the table because she 'felt bad for taking their money and leaving right away'. Ugh... Gotta work on that whole 'killer instinct' thing, there, Anna...
Anyhow, she joined me and we played a bit longer. I was doing ok, and had turned that $35 into just over a hundred. In fact, I had $120 sitting in front of me, and said, "Ok, I'm going to win one more hand and leave--don't wanna get greedy".
Uttering that sentence triggered a streak of seven Pai Gows in a row for Mikey, leaving me with nothing but a handful of silver and a story with a crummy ending. By that time, it was after 10am, and I was exhausted. Not only had I been up all for over 22 hours straight, but I was fighting a head cold and had to go back to work on Saturday night and really needed to get some rest. I got home and went straight to bed, but couldn't fall asleep. I turned on the Georgia game and finally fell asleep around 11:30, waking up again at 2:30.
As much as I wanted and needed sleep, it wasn't happening, so I quit fighting it and got out of bed. Luckily there were plenty of good games to watch on Saturday afternoon, so I just watched TV until it was time to head back to work.
My cold had gotten worse, but calling in sick was out of the question. First of all, I need the money, and second of all, our tokes have gone up quite a bit this past week--every day has been over $150, and I didn't want to miss out now that we're finally making decent money again. So I drugged up and dragged my ass back down to the casino.
We were busy as hell again last night, which was nice, and I had some fun players at my tables all evening. I was really tempted to sign the Early Out list--I was sick, exhausted, and ready to go home as soon as I clocked in, but I toughed it out and lasted the full eight hours. I'm glad I did, because I think we made good money again, and I also had a long-time lurker, occasional comments-section poster show up at my table around 2 am to say hello and play a few hands.
When I finally staggered back to the parking garage after my shift, it was all I could do to keep my eyes open for the drive home. I took some more medicine, kicked off my shoes, and passed out with ESPN playing in the background.
I've got nothing planned for the rest of the afternoon except to catch up on all the emails from the past week and to watch a little football. If I could taste anything, I'd probably eat some leftovers, too, but right now nothing sounds good except for maybe an extra-spicy Bloody Mary.
And a nap.
Mikey
After work on Friday night, I went out for drinks with my friend Anna, like we normally do every Saturday morning at 4am. A few other dealers joined us, but after a round or two, somebody came up with the brilliant idea that we should go play Pai Gow over at the Fiesta. I was ok with that suggestion, except for that whole 'going to the Fiesta' part of it. So, I suggested Green Valley Ranch instead--not only is it a helluva lot nicer casino, it was also about a mile or two closer to our barstools.
So the party left the bar and a few minutes later reconvened at the ATM machine at the top of the escalator at GVR. Everyone took out a hundy and we found an empty $10 Pai Gow table after that.
We were having lots of fun, but it took me for-frickin-EVER to finally catch a winning hand. After awhile, another one of the gang from the bar, Candace, joined us but said she put her name on the waiting list in the poker room for a seat at the 4-8 game they had going. That sounded like a good idea, but I refused to hit the ATM again, and didn't want to go sit at a 4-8 Holdem table without at least a hundy worth of bullets. So the girls took off--Marcie went home, Anna and Candace headed to the poker room, while I stayed put at the Pai Gow table trying to scratch my way back from 'broke' to 'broke even'.
But the dealer was hot, and my buy-in completely migrated into the rack, so I headed over to the poker room to see the girls. I found them sitting at the softest 4-8 game in the history of casino poker, and I took a seat just behind them, announcing to the rest of the crowd that my two best earners were about to shake them all down.
Talk about prophetic--from that moment on, Anna won the next eight hands in a row. And it was a half-kill game after the second win, so the pots were huge! At least four people saw every flop, and nobody would fold until the river. It was amazing--she had a run of cards that was unbelievable, although the last couple of hands were won without having to show her hand. I wasn't there fifteen minutes before I was wandering the room looking for four empty chip racks. She had a handful of red chips that had made their way to her stack, so she handed me $35 worth and told me to go back to the Pai Gow table and win our money back, and that she'd come join me again in a few minutes.
So I went back to the pit, and I left her sitting there at the poker table stacking almost $400 worth of other people's money, with a promise that she'd leave as soon as she lost a showdown.
When I got back to the Pai Gow table, it was empty, so I just played heads up against the dealer. Anna showed up about a half hour later, saying that she lost a hundred back to the table because she 'felt bad for taking their money and leaving right away'. Ugh... Gotta work on that whole 'killer instinct' thing, there, Anna...
Anyhow, she joined me and we played a bit longer. I was doing ok, and had turned that $35 into just over a hundred. In fact, I had $120 sitting in front of me, and said, "Ok, I'm going to win one more hand and leave--don't wanna get greedy".
Uttering that sentence triggered a streak of seven Pai Gows in a row for Mikey, leaving me with nothing but a handful of silver and a story with a crummy ending. By that time, it was after 10am, and I was exhausted. Not only had I been up all for over 22 hours straight, but I was fighting a head cold and had to go back to work on Saturday night and really needed to get some rest. I got home and went straight to bed, but couldn't fall asleep. I turned on the Georgia game and finally fell asleep around 11:30, waking up again at 2:30.
As much as I wanted and needed sleep, it wasn't happening, so I quit fighting it and got out of bed. Luckily there were plenty of good games to watch on Saturday afternoon, so I just watched TV until it was time to head back to work.
My cold had gotten worse, but calling in sick was out of the question. First of all, I need the money, and second of all, our tokes have gone up quite a bit this past week--every day has been over $150, and I didn't want to miss out now that we're finally making decent money again. So I drugged up and dragged my ass back down to the casino.
We were busy as hell again last night, which was nice, and I had some fun players at my tables all evening. I was really tempted to sign the Early Out list--I was sick, exhausted, and ready to go home as soon as I clocked in, but I toughed it out and lasted the full eight hours. I'm glad I did, because I think we made good money again, and I also had a long-time lurker, occasional comments-section poster show up at my table around 2 am to say hello and play a few hands.
When I finally staggered back to the parking garage after my shift, it was all I could do to keep my eyes open for the drive home. I took some more medicine, kicked off my shoes, and passed out with ESPN playing in the background.
I've got nothing planned for the rest of the afternoon except to catch up on all the emails from the past week and to watch a little football. If I could taste anything, I'd probably eat some leftovers, too, but right now nothing sounds good except for maybe an extra-spicy Bloody Mary.
And a nap.
Mikey
Friday, November 24, 2006
Real or Fake
Here's a test everyone should enjoy--see how many sets of fake boobs you can find. I scored 80%, which ain't too bad for somebody who's never owned a pair.
Of course, there is the requisite medical information included to try and make the test seem legit before you get to the good stuff, kinda like buying dinner first or sitting through a Hugh Grant flick, but you can just scroll on down and start the quiz.
Taking this quiz reminded me of my favorite drinking toast--Here's to real boobs that look fake, and fake boobs that look real!
Mikey
Of course, there is the requisite medical information included to try and make the test seem legit before you get to the good stuff, kinda like buying dinner first or sitting through a Hugh Grant flick, but you can just scroll on down and start the quiz.
Taking this quiz reminded me of my favorite drinking toast--Here's to real boobs that look fake, and fake boobs that look real!
Mikey
Getting to Know You, Christmas 2006 Edition
This survey landed in my mailbox this week, with a few funny replies from some of my family members. Here's my response:
1) Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Egg Nog--with a generous pour of Captain Morgan Silver included.
2) Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Oh, he absolutely wraps them. And uses enough tape to seal the Mexican border. Not only that, every little thing in my stocking is giftwrapped too. I gotta tell you, there is nothing more enjoyable than spending five minutes unwrapping a new toothbrush or a pack of AA batteries!
3) Colored lights or white on the tree or house? It's a rental, so none go on the house. When I had my own house, I got in touch with my white trash roots and used the colored ones with huge bulbs, and tried to leave them up until February just to piss off the busybodies in the homeowners association. Although, now I think I'd prefer plain old white on the house, and the color assortment on the tree.
4) Do you hang mistletoe? Only from my belt buckle...
5) When do you put your decorations up? Day/weekend after Thanksgiving. The tree usually goes up the first Saturday in December.
6) What is your favorite holiday dish, excluding desserts? Our traditional breakfast of Danish Ebelskivers, bacon, and Orange Julius. Been eating it on Christmas morning for as long as I can remember.
7) Favorite Holiday memory as a child? I'd have to say it was going out in the woods with my dad and cutting down a Christmas tree, bringing it back and decorating it with the family while listening to all those old MoTab Christmas albums.
8) When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? When I was about 8 or 9 years old, I accidentally took a nap on Christmas Eve afternoon, so I couldn't sleep (even more than usual) that night. And I heard my mom and sister Sherry getting a huge box of presents down from the attic--swearing at each other, grunting and carrying on like a couple of old women.
9) Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Yep--family tradition dictates that everyone opens one present on Christmas Eve. It's usually something lame like a sweater or socks--nothing you could ever want to stay up playing with.
10) How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? Not quite sure what you mean... No "theme" like in department store displays. But usually there is eggnog, booze, and Christmas music involved.
11) Snow. Love it or dread it? Don't wanna see any snow here in Vegas, but when I visit Tennessee, I'd love to have it snow on Christmas Eve.
12) Can you ice skate? Hell no. But I can cross check, high stick, and fight!
13) Do you remember your favorite gift? As a kid, I begged and begged for a GI Joe with the Kung Fu grip. I finally got one for Christmas. More recently, my sister Amy had an old 'treasure map' of the Caribbean glassed, matted, and framed in bamboo. It was the coolest thing I've gotten lately.
14) What is the most important thing about the Holidays to you? No question--being able to be with my family. With five brothers and sisters, spouses, nieces, step-siblings, parents, and whatever strays we bring home, the holidays are always a blast. I always laugh myself silly and have a great time with the family. It's the best.
15) Favorite Holiday Dessert? Mom's Peanut Butter Balls. Soooo good, and watching Amy and Reverend Dave chase each other around the house stealing them from each other is always great fun.
16) What is you favorite holiday tradition? Gathering on Christmas Eve with the entire family, listening to the music, watching the lights on the tree, drinking eggnog, and just enjoying the holiday for a couple of hours with the people I love the most. Christmas Eve is magical in our home.
17) What tops your tree? An electric star. I was tempted to say the left-front wheel hub from Dale Earnhart's race car, but I think Reverend Dave stole it back...
18) Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? Giving! In fact just the other day I gave my first gift of the season and I couldn't stop smiling about it for hours. I love it when times are really good and I can go all-out for everyone. Nothing is more fun than seeing the look on somebody's face when they get something they mentioned in passing months before... Of course, everyone likes to get stuff too, and opening the odd present or two is always nice.
19) What is your favorite Christmas song? To sing, well, no question, Elvis' Blue Christmas. But my favorite songs to listen to are Jimmy Buffet's A Sailor's Christmas or Tender Tennessee Christmas by Alabama (always makes me sad when I hear it and I'm not around the family). I also really dig Perry Como's Home for the Holidays.
20) Candy Canes--Yuck or Yum? I got no problem with Candy Canes. But they better be peppermint. None of that fruit-flavored shiat.
21) What is on your wish list for Christmas? A Red Ryder BB Gun, of course! Actually, if you scroll down a few posts, you'll see my list. But the ultimate prize would be a week's vacation, round trip tickets to Nashville, and about a thousand bucks to spend on presents for everyone.
Mikey
1) Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Egg Nog--with a generous pour of Captain Morgan Silver included.
2) Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Oh, he absolutely wraps them. And uses enough tape to seal the Mexican border. Not only that, every little thing in my stocking is giftwrapped too. I gotta tell you, there is nothing more enjoyable than spending five minutes unwrapping a new toothbrush or a pack of AA batteries!
3) Colored lights or white on the tree or house? It's a rental, so none go on the house. When I had my own house, I got in touch with my white trash roots and used the colored ones with huge bulbs, and tried to leave them up until February just to piss off the busybodies in the homeowners association. Although, now I think I'd prefer plain old white on the house, and the color assortment on the tree.
4) Do you hang mistletoe? Only from my belt buckle...
5) When do you put your decorations up? Day/weekend after Thanksgiving. The tree usually goes up the first Saturday in December.
6) What is your favorite holiday dish, excluding desserts? Our traditional breakfast of Danish Ebelskivers, bacon, and Orange Julius. Been eating it on Christmas morning for as long as I can remember.
7) Favorite Holiday memory as a child? I'd have to say it was going out in the woods with my dad and cutting down a Christmas tree, bringing it back and decorating it with the family while listening to all those old MoTab Christmas albums.
8) When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? When I was about 8 or 9 years old, I accidentally took a nap on Christmas Eve afternoon, so I couldn't sleep (even more than usual) that night. And I heard my mom and sister Sherry getting a huge box of presents down from the attic--swearing at each other, grunting and carrying on like a couple of old women.
9) Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Yep--family tradition dictates that everyone opens one present on Christmas Eve. It's usually something lame like a sweater or socks--nothing you could ever want to stay up playing with.
10) How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? Not quite sure what you mean... No "theme" like in department store displays. But usually there is eggnog, booze, and Christmas music involved.
11) Snow. Love it or dread it? Don't wanna see any snow here in Vegas, but when I visit Tennessee, I'd love to have it snow on Christmas Eve.
12) Can you ice skate? Hell no. But I can cross check, high stick, and fight!
13) Do you remember your favorite gift? As a kid, I begged and begged for a GI Joe with the Kung Fu grip. I finally got one for Christmas. More recently, my sister Amy had an old 'treasure map' of the Caribbean glassed, matted, and framed in bamboo. It was the coolest thing I've gotten lately.
14) What is the most important thing about the Holidays to you? No question--being able to be with my family. With five brothers and sisters, spouses, nieces, step-siblings, parents, and whatever strays we bring home, the holidays are always a blast. I always laugh myself silly and have a great time with the family. It's the best.
15) Favorite Holiday Dessert? Mom's Peanut Butter Balls. Soooo good, and watching Amy and Reverend Dave chase each other around the house stealing them from each other is always great fun.
16) What is you favorite holiday tradition? Gathering on Christmas Eve with the entire family, listening to the music, watching the lights on the tree, drinking eggnog, and just enjoying the holiday for a couple of hours with the people I love the most. Christmas Eve is magical in our home.
17) What tops your tree? An electric star. I was tempted to say the left-front wheel hub from Dale Earnhart's race car, but I think Reverend Dave stole it back...
18) Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? Giving! In fact just the other day I gave my first gift of the season and I couldn't stop smiling about it for hours. I love it when times are really good and I can go all-out for everyone. Nothing is more fun than seeing the look on somebody's face when they get something they mentioned in passing months before... Of course, everyone likes to get stuff too, and opening the odd present or two is always nice.
19) What is your favorite Christmas song? To sing, well, no question, Elvis' Blue Christmas. But my favorite songs to listen to are Jimmy Buffet's A Sailor's Christmas or Tender Tennessee Christmas by Alabama (always makes me sad when I hear it and I'm not around the family). I also really dig Perry Como's Home for the Holidays.
20) Candy Canes--Yuck or Yum? I got no problem with Candy Canes. But they better be peppermint. None of that fruit-flavored shiat.
21) What is on your wish list for Christmas? A Red Ryder BB Gun, of course! Actually, if you scroll down a few posts, you'll see my list. But the ultimate prize would be a week's vacation, round trip tickets to Nashville, and about a thousand bucks to spend on presents for everyone.
Mikey
Thanksgiving at The Estate
Hey everybody! Here it is 4:00 am on the Friday after Thanksgiving, and instead of standing in line down at WalMart or Best Buy freezing my ass off and hoping to score some loss-leading electronic doo-dad, I came straight home from work and sat down at the computer to write up the after-action report from yesterday's festivities.
Before I do that, however, I want to say Thank You to everyone who took the time to call, email, send a private message, hit the tip jar, or post a comment wishing me the best. I had a wonderful day and it truly means a lot to know that so many people are thinking about me. I raised a glass of the good stuff and gave a silent toast to all of you.
I also got to talk to quite a bit of the family yesterday--Cyndi & David escaped to Gatlinburg like a couple of newlyweds, but managed to call and wake my ass up at 8:00 am. Well, actually, it was my roommate powerwashing the patio and driveway that did it, but the phone ringing was the tipping point that forced me to get out of bed. I also heard from my niece Allison, and it was great to talk to her. Later in the day I heard from the drunken contingent down in Alabama--My mom, my sister Amy, Reverend Dave, and his wife Angie were absolutely lit up by the time we chatted, so it was quite an enjoyable session of passing the phone around. I think I even heard the phrase "First one to puke has to drive!" uttered in the background. Gotta love family get-togethers. I tried to call my dad a couple of times, but I got the whole 'all circuits are busy' message both times. I didn't think that would happen with cell-phones, but apparently it does. That's ok, I just talked to him the other day, on his 67th birthday, and I can catch up with him this weekend. And although I didn't get to talk to her, I heard through the grapevine that my sister Nancy, down in Houston, and her husband Mark finally moved back into their house a few days ago after suffering that devastating fire the weekend before Christmas last year. It's been a very long year for them, so I was happy to hear that they got to spend the holiday in their home.
As far as Thanksgiving in Las Vegas is concerned, even though I couldn't be with the family, I still had a great time. My roommates and I had about ten friends over for the day, and more food than you could possibly imagine. Just off the top of my head, here's what made it to the buffet line at Casa de Mikey:
Oh hell yeah, it was a feast for the ages! By the time we sat down to eat, I was good and ready to get my grub on, having had nothing but four cups of coffee and a handful of cashews all day until that point. I almost filled up on the clam dip because it was so damn good, but I left a bit of room to try everything else.
I started the day in the kitchen making the deviled eggs--it was a lot more work than I anticipated, but damn, did they ever turn out great! I made two varieties--one plain with crumbled bacon, and the other ones were made with sun-dried tomatoes and basil. I have to say, I really outdig myself with those--they were a huge hit, and turned out much better than I expected. The bacon ones were good, but I didn't like the texture--the bacon got kinda soft by the time we ate them. Maybe next time I'll put a little bacon grease in the recipe and a little less Miracle Whip, and use the fake crunchy bacon bits instead. I also got roped into making the homemade gravy and the stuffing, in addition to making the candied carrots. The gravy tasted excellent, but I farked up the roux a little bit, and it had a few lumps in it. Ugh. Oh well, everyone liked it, nobody complained, and I guess I was my own worst critic. But I think it turned out pretty well, especially considering that I hadn't really made homemade gravy or a roux in over three years.
While I was in the kitchen slaving away over the hot stove, my roommates were setting up the party outdoors on the patio. It was such a beautiful day out here that we decided to eat outside. So they hooked up a small 17-in tv to watch the games and set up a couple of tables. We prepared the fire pit, lit up the tiki torches, and even set up a poker table. When everyone showed up, it felt like that scene in Goodfellas when they were in 'jail' making their dinner, you know, stirring the sauce, slicing the garlic, busting each others balls with the heavy New Jersey mob accent--we had a couple of wiseguys right out of Central Casting join us, so it was pretty fun to listen to the banter.
We ate until we couldn't eat anymore, took a break, watched a little football, and then hit round two. I was so full, and a little buzzed, that I decided to take a short nap before going into work last night. The other guys organized a No-Limit poker tournament to keep themselves entertained while Butch the dog nosed around all afternoon begging for scraps. I'd say it was a pretty damn successful Thanksgiving.
Here are a few photos... (remember, clicky for full-sized goodness!)
It was a great time, and it turned out much better than I expected. Unfortunately, I couldn't stick around and help with the cleanup, as I had to go to work. Yep, we were slammin' busy, but it was a fun evening. And when the graveyard shift cocktail waitresses showed up at 1:00 am, they were decked out in those outrageously hot Naughty Santa's Helper outfits. It made it tough to concentrate on my game, so who knows what I was paying out at the Pai Gow table last night. My players could've been robbing me blind... Even the lipstick lesbian on my crew was excited about the new uniforms, and she gave me a knowing wink and a high-five as I tapped her out, and sang her own version of that favorite Christmas carol... Do you see what I see???
Forget the friggin' elves! If I were Santa Claus, I'd surround myself with a handful of cocktail waitresses in their holiday outfits. Of course, if that happened, Christmas would be a few weeks late every year, and everything that got built would probably end up on the Island of Misfit Toys. Maybe that's why I'm not Santa--I'm too easily distracted by heaving bosoms engulfed in red and white holiday fur.
Anyhow.... that's my story of Thanksgiving in Vegas. I hope everyone has a wonderful day shopping, decorating, or just watching some great college football. I'm gonna get a little sleep, eat a few leftovers, and then head back to the casino tonight for some more sightseeing. I might also deal a game or two, but that's no longer the priority...
Mikey
Before I do that, however, I want to say Thank You to everyone who took the time to call, email, send a private message, hit the tip jar, or post a comment wishing me the best. I had a wonderful day and it truly means a lot to know that so many people are thinking about me. I raised a glass of the good stuff and gave a silent toast to all of you.
I also got to talk to quite a bit of the family yesterday--Cyndi & David escaped to Gatlinburg like a couple of newlyweds, but managed to call and wake my ass up at 8:00 am. Well, actually, it was my roommate powerwashing the patio and driveway that did it, but the phone ringing was the tipping point that forced me to get out of bed. I also heard from my niece Allison, and it was great to talk to her. Later in the day I heard from the drunken contingent down in Alabama--My mom, my sister Amy, Reverend Dave, and his wife Angie were absolutely lit up by the time we chatted, so it was quite an enjoyable session of passing the phone around. I think I even heard the phrase "First one to puke has to drive!" uttered in the background. Gotta love family get-togethers. I tried to call my dad a couple of times, but I got the whole 'all circuits are busy' message both times. I didn't think that would happen with cell-phones, but apparently it does. That's ok, I just talked to him the other day, on his 67th birthday, and I can catch up with him this weekend. And although I didn't get to talk to her, I heard through the grapevine that my sister Nancy, down in Houston, and her husband Mark finally moved back into their house a few days ago after suffering that devastating fire the weekend before Christmas last year. It's been a very long year for them, so I was happy to hear that they got to spend the holiday in their home.
As far as Thanksgiving in Las Vegas is concerned, even though I couldn't be with the family, I still had a great time. My roommates and I had about ten friends over for the day, and more food than you could possibly imagine. Just off the top of my head, here's what made it to the buffet line at Casa de Mikey:
- A free-range turkey (Besides the price tag, I couldn't tell the difference between it and one living out the string on Death Row, so, buyer beware...)
- A Honey-Baked Ham
- Green Bean Casserole
- Mashed Potatoes
- Scalloped Potatoes
- Corn Casserole
- Cornbread Stuffing
- Gravy
- Candied Carrots
- Asparagus
- Deviled Eggs
- Baked Ziti
- Italian Meatballs
- Clam Dip and Crackers
- Dinner Rolls & real butter
- Assorted soft drinks and mixer bottles of booze
- About 8 bottles of wine
- Three or four varieties of pie
- A big old hookah-bong with some kind herb
Oh hell yeah, it was a feast for the ages! By the time we sat down to eat, I was good and ready to get my grub on, having had nothing but four cups of coffee and a handful of cashews all day until that point. I almost filled up on the clam dip because it was so damn good, but I left a bit of room to try everything else.
I started the day in the kitchen making the deviled eggs--it was a lot more work than I anticipated, but damn, did they ever turn out great! I made two varieties--one plain with crumbled bacon, and the other ones were made with sun-dried tomatoes and basil. I have to say, I really outdig myself with those--they were a huge hit, and turned out much better than I expected. The bacon ones were good, but I didn't like the texture--the bacon got kinda soft by the time we ate them. Maybe next time I'll put a little bacon grease in the recipe and a little less Miracle Whip, and use the fake crunchy bacon bits instead. I also got roped into making the homemade gravy and the stuffing, in addition to making the candied carrots. The gravy tasted excellent, but I farked up the roux a little bit, and it had a few lumps in it. Ugh. Oh well, everyone liked it, nobody complained, and I guess I was my own worst critic. But I think it turned out pretty well, especially considering that I hadn't really made homemade gravy or a roux in over three years.
While I was in the kitchen slaving away over the hot stove, my roommates were setting up the party outdoors on the patio. It was such a beautiful day out here that we decided to eat outside. So they hooked up a small 17-in tv to watch the games and set up a couple of tables. We prepared the fire pit, lit up the tiki torches, and even set up a poker table. When everyone showed up, it felt like that scene in Goodfellas when they were in 'jail' making their dinner, you know, stirring the sauce, slicing the garlic, busting each others balls with the heavy New Jersey mob accent--we had a couple of wiseguys right out of Central Casting join us, so it was pretty fun to listen to the banter.
We ate until we couldn't eat anymore, took a break, watched a little football, and then hit round two. I was so full, and a little buzzed, that I decided to take a short nap before going into work last night. The other guys organized a No-Limit poker tournament to keep themselves entertained while Butch the dog nosed around all afternoon begging for scraps. I'd say it was a pretty damn successful Thanksgiving.
Here are a few photos... (remember, clicky for full-sized goodness!)
Let's start with a few drinks, shall we? This was the setup in the living room bar, but doesn't take into account any of the rum from my personal stash, the vodka in the freezer, or all the wine in the fridge. Nobody went thirsty.
The final table at the First Annual Rueben's House Thanksgiving No Limit Invitational
We can't have a bunch of dudes get together for a party without burning something. Luckily it was just wood this time, not any of the edibles. The over/under date for when those benches get chopped up and set ablaze because we run out of proper firewood is currently looking like sometime around mid-January.
A brief glimpse into the aftermath:
And here is the full scale of the destruction in the kitchen:
If you look closely, you'll see Rachel Ray's ugly-ass mug on that box of Triscuit crackers on the table. I defiled it later.
Nothing says "Thanksgiving" quite like a pot of gravy, a deep-dish apple pie, and a bottle of Johnny Walker Black.
It was a great time, and it turned out much better than I expected. Unfortunately, I couldn't stick around and help with the cleanup, as I had to go to work. Yep, we were slammin' busy, but it was a fun evening. And when the graveyard shift cocktail waitresses showed up at 1:00 am, they were decked out in those outrageously hot Naughty Santa's Helper outfits. It made it tough to concentrate on my game, so who knows what I was paying out at the Pai Gow table last night. My players could've been robbing me blind... Even the lipstick lesbian on my crew was excited about the new uniforms, and she gave me a knowing wink and a high-five as I tapped her out, and sang her own version of that favorite Christmas carol... Do you see what I see???
Forget the friggin' elves! If I were Santa Claus, I'd surround myself with a handful of cocktail waitresses in their holiday outfits. Of course, if that happened, Christmas would be a few weeks late every year, and everything that got built would probably end up on the Island of Misfit Toys. Maybe that's why I'm not Santa--I'm too easily distracted by heaving bosoms engulfed in red and white holiday fur.
Anyhow.... that's my story of Thanksgiving in Vegas. I hope everyone has a wonderful day shopping, decorating, or just watching some great college football. I'm gonna get a little sleep, eat a few leftovers, and then head back to the casino tonight for some more sightseeing. I might also deal a game or two, but that's no longer the priority...
Mikey
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Giving, and Giving Thanks
Now that the holidays are upon us, I think this is one of the coolest things you can read before the hustle and bustle sets in for real this weekend.
Take a moment to digest it all.
Mikey
Take a moment to digest it all.
Mikey
Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone
The Holiday Season is officially underway, and I just wanted to say that I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving today. I've got a cup of hazelnut coffee in front of me and the digital cable is providing the background ambiance with the 'Sounds of the Seasons' channel.
Normally I'm not up this early in the morning, but I was awakened to the sound of messages being left on my cellphone--the family back in Tennessee was already up and about and getting their celebration going and wanted to wish me the best.
Even thought I can't be there, it won't be a bad one this year--we've got lots of people coming over, lots of food and fellowship to share, and lots of football to watch. In fact as soon as I hit the send button on this post, I'm off to the kitchen to make about three dozen deviled eggs, and later on I'm in charge of making candied carrots. Luckily the roommates are doing the heavy lifting with the turkey and other stuff.
As a bonus, I just found out that my sister Cyndi and her husband David will be here next week on business, but we'll have some free time to stir up some Vegas-style buffoonery for a couple of days. I can't wait to see them again, it's been too long.
Have a great day, everyone, and take Tampa Bay and the points!
Mikey
Normally I'm not up this early in the morning, but I was awakened to the sound of messages being left on my cellphone--the family back in Tennessee was already up and about and getting their celebration going and wanted to wish me the best.
Even thought I can't be there, it won't be a bad one this year--we've got lots of people coming over, lots of food and fellowship to share, and lots of football to watch. In fact as soon as I hit the send button on this post, I'm off to the kitchen to make about three dozen deviled eggs, and later on I'm in charge of making candied carrots. Luckily the roommates are doing the heavy lifting with the turkey and other stuff.
As a bonus, I just found out that my sister Cyndi and her husband David will be here next week on business, but we'll have some free time to stir up some Vegas-style buffoonery for a couple of days. I can't wait to see them again, it's been too long.
Have a great day, everyone, and take Tampa Bay and the points!
Mikey
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
Camera Phone Needed
Back when I bought my latest cell-phone, the clerk at the Cingular store was doing his level best to upgrade my purchase, but I insisted that I didn't need a camera phone--and I certainly didn't want to spend the extra money on one.
But I'm slowly coming around. I've discovered that there are actual uses for text messaging, especially when the recipient is out of the country, and having a camera phone can sometimes be helpful. Like today, for instance.
Had my cell phone been equipped with a camera, I could've captured a great picture to share with everyone. I just got back from what is hopefully my last trip to the grocery store before Thanksgiving is upon us, and as I was checking out, I saw a typical holiday-in-Vegas scene.
As I was pushing my cart away from the checkout line, I saw a guy dressed head-to-toe like a pilgrim, with a black hat and buckle, the whole bit. He was holding a dozen roses in one hand, smoking a cigarette, and sitting in front of a video poker machine, chasing a Royal.
Nothing says Thanksgiving quite like that.
Mikey
But I'm slowly coming around. I've discovered that there are actual uses for text messaging, especially when the recipient is out of the country, and having a camera phone can sometimes be helpful. Like today, for instance.
Had my cell phone been equipped with a camera, I could've captured a great picture to share with everyone. I just got back from what is hopefully my last trip to the grocery store before Thanksgiving is upon us, and as I was checking out, I saw a typical holiday-in-Vegas scene.
As I was pushing my cart away from the checkout line, I saw a guy dressed head-to-toe like a pilgrim, with a black hat and buckle, the whole bit. He was holding a dozen roses in one hand, smoking a cigarette, and sitting in front of a video poker machine, chasing a Royal.
Nothing says Thanksgiving quite like that.
Mikey
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