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Have you ever taken a ludicrous Vegas trip that completely defies reason?

Discussion in 'Misc. Vegas Chat' started by bdautch, Jul 8, 2016.

?

Have you ever stupidly gone to Vegas and known that it was an idiotic idea?

  1. Yes

    68.9%
  2. No

    31.1%
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  1. bdautch

    bdautch VIP Whale

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    I'm about to lose my job. Granted, I'm getting a four month severance with six months of COBRA paid by my employer, but it's a job loss nonetheless. I won't have any other "new money" coming in until...whenever it is that I get a new job. When the cash runs low, expected to be in January if I can't find appropriate employment in my field by then, I have to move back to my hometown and help oversee our family business. So a completely asinine thing to do would be...go to Vegas?!!?

    And yet, here I am, thinking about a Monday-Friday trip with a comped room and a comped flight in early August. Just take right off. F*ck it. Hell, I might even take CET up on one of those suite upgrade offers, and I'm even contemplating an mLife offer of $299 per night for an Aria Sky Suite.

    This makes no sense. My last day of work is July 29, but they're keeping me on payroll for an extra pay period because they have me 45 days notice instead of the 60 they were supposed to provide in my contract. So I'm on payroll through August 15, then I get severance (plus unused vacation) through roughly December 15. But I have this Fantasy of turning in the severance documents, going home, pulling my stuff together, and just flying off to Nevada. If I get interviews, I'll schedule them before or after. I can do phone interviews from my hotel room. I'm only gonna be gone for like 5 days, so it's not like I'll vanish completely for weeks on end.

    Have you ever done this? Taken a trip to Vegas that's just totally asinine and in direct defiance of any logical reasoning of any sort?
     
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  2. chantellevegas

    chantellevegas Low-Roller

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    Yep. I've done it before and im going to do it again this fall, but i've also been smart and cancelled my fair share of vacations because of life crap.

    I work full time but hate my job so much that the only reason i get out of bed is to pay for my next trip to vegas. I cant afford it, i have bills and im also a part time student so i have zero disposable income but i go anyway. Why? Because life is short and getting the hell out of here makes me happy.

    The only time i've cancelled vacations is when my pets have fallen ill. I dont even consider cancelling when a family member falls ill. Lol.
     
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  3. Mrs. K.

    Mrs. K. Low-Roller

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    Yes. Several times. The most dramatic was after I had been fired from a temp job and was on unemployment. I was 25 and had $2500 in a 401k from a job I'd had a few years before and I cashed that fucker out and went to Vegas. In retrospect it was no big deal and now I have 200k in my 401k but at the time I thought I was screwing myself over for my golden years.
     
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  4. Sonya

    Sonya Queen of VMB

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    I'm owning my "No" vote. However, I kind of wish I did now and then.

    I've made a few decisions to cancel a trip for being-an-adult reasons, but it sucks. Especially when I'm supposed to meet up with others and see all their facebook posts or TRs here. It's so painful to not be there because of something silly like an unexpected bill, iffy health stuff, or other grown-up responsibilities.

    I guess that one time we sort of did. We were pretty broke at the time, but got comped mid-week rooms at MSS and Sam's Town. We thought we could scrape together a tiny bankroll and do a lot of non-gaming things for most of the time. We both had jobs, but just not a lot of spare cash at the time. We ended up having a winning trip and bringing all of the bankroll home, plus about $50, which covered the gas to get to Vegas. We had done the trip on the cheap with no fancy meals out, no shows, didn't buy any fancy drinks, etc. We still like to think of that as our "break even" trip.

    Maybe you can swing it, but just watch the expenses outside of those comps and be careful with the bankroll. When Dan got laid off a few years ago, it was a lot longer than we expected before he found a new job. Jobs are easier to find in Seattle now, but you never know. See? There I go being all logical and adult-like when we're talking about VEGAS!! :wink2:

    You gotta do what you gotta do. What feels right to you?
     
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  5. C0usineddie

    C0usineddie VIP Whale

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    I got fired from my job years ago, decided to go to vegas right after that. had nothing lined up for work and no income coming in, just savings.

    had so much fun that i took a second trip the following month.

    Dont regret it for a second. Have a great time.
     
    • Like Like x 2
  6. bdautch

    bdautch VIP Whale

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    Now THAT'S what I'm talkin' about! :beer:
     
  7. KimiCoconuts

    KimiCoconuts Low-Roller

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    You know, this is one of those times in life when you CAN be spontaneous and it can be awesome. There is no reason not to go on this trip, you have things covered for months, you should go and it will help you destress for your job search! I took my husband after a layoff many years ago, while we were in Vegas he got a job offer on the phone and we celebrated, before that trip he was completely depressed. Don't be depressed ;)
     
  8. Geogran

    Geogran VIP Whale

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    Yes - every single time. It's ludicrous because I could take all that money I spend on every trip and put it towards my estate so my adult kids could inherit and live high off the hog for a long time. But, I'm an idiot in love with Vegas so there goes their inheritance :evillaugh::evillaugh::evillaugh::evillaugh:

    On a serious note, hoping you find a job quickly! I say sleep on it a couple of days, and if you still feel the same then get yourself to Vegas and have a blast.
     
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  9. Aces and Eights

    Aces and Eights VIP Whale

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    I'm in exactly the same boat. The company I worked for was dissolved two weeks ago. Instead of cancelling my August weekend trip, I moved it up to this coming Monday and extended it to four nights. I'm not so worried. I know people who want me to apply and interview at their company. Last time I took 9 months off after I got laid off. Then I started looking realizing I still had a mortgage, and my fun car had to get replaced with a newer model. I got three offers within a week-and-a-half of looking for a job. Of course I had to choose the company that failed within a year-and-a-half of me joining them. Hmm, I wonder if I had anything to do with it. But after Vegas, I will start my job search. Actually, I will talk to all the people I know who have positions available where they work.

    I've been preparing myself for the trip by watching Hangover and Hangover III on TV. And I've also been watching some Vegas Vlogs on YouTube, not to mention being on VMB several times a day. I plan to bring my nice camera with me. Although I hate looking like one, I guess I'll succumb to being a tourist this trip. I'm basically a table-gamer, but if I see someone hit a Royal Flush on VP, I'll take a photo, post it on VMB, and claim that it was me who got it - JK. I'll also take photos of my food. I won't be posting until after my trip is done since I don't have a way of downloading my camera pics to my iPhone, and I don't have a laptop since I've always had one from where I worked.
     
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  10. bdautch

    bdautch VIP Whale

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    Welp, I did it. I cashed in points on SWA for a Sunday July 31-Wednesday August 3 trip. I skipped Early Bird so I only paid $11.20 in TSA fees. I took a comped Bally's Jubilee room and I only have to pay taxes and fees upon check in. This way, if I have second thoughts or cancel the trip for professional reasons, I'm only out 11 bucks. I can handle that.
     
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  11. Royal Flusher

    Royal Flusher Savvy Gambler

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    I think this is the smart move, take the comps, skip the $299 upgrades. Put that into your bankroll.

    The best time to take a Vegas break in this scenario is right when the job ends. Three months from now you'll either be employed and won't be able to go, or you won't be employed and won't be able to go. Hopefully you can find something right away after you get back.

    For what it's worth, I did the exact same thing after getting laid off once but I had no severance or anything. I went cheap. Had some comp nights at Caesar's, IP, and Lawd have Mercy, Westward Ho!
     
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  12. mjames1229

    mjames1229 # of visits includes only trips w/ hotel stays

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    About two weeks before the 2015 Super Bowl, a poster pointed out insanely cheap fares from ORD to LAS for that weekend. Without much of a bankroll, I jumped on those cheap fares (about $138 RT) and booked the following...

    Leave ORD at 9:15 PM, arrive at LAS 11:15 PM on Saturday night.
    Watched the game at the Downtown Events Center
    Left LAS at about midnight on Sun/Mon.

    We flew 1500 miles each way to spend 25 hours in Las Vegas to watch the Super Bowl.
     
    USBC Nationals are back in Vegas
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  13. carolineno

    carolineno VIP Whale

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    Sometimes, when you are between jobs, it's the only time you will have the flexibility to book those cheap flights and reserve those unwanted rooms. Vegas can be a pretty low cost vacation if you have your gaming under control.

    I view my Vegas trips as the shot in the arm I need to go on working full time, caring for kids, vacuuming up pet hair, taking everyone to appointments, etc etc, and living in an almost uninhabitable climate (New England). If Mom doesn't get her Vegas time, things could get very dark and ugly on the home front. :nono:
     
    Ladies getaway, somewhere on the strip with a pool :)
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  14. letsgotovegas

    letsgotovegas VIP Whale

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    I've cashed unemployment checks for my bankroll in the past! It's kind of fun, and feels a bit naughty. I love feeling a bit naughty!

    Enjoy your trip and try to keep your expenses reasonable while still having fun!

    Cheers,
    Kelly
     
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  15. Patti_H

    Patti_H Low-Roller

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    God, I love VMB. Almost everyone I know (who doesn't love Vegas) would tell you to save your money and that taking a last minute trip anywhere, especially Vegas, is so irresponsible. But everyone at VMB gets Vegas like I do!! I say give yourself something to look forward to, have fun planning your trip and then have a blast forgetting about reality for a few days in Vegas. I know all too well that life is short. Enjoy while you can :beer:
     
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  16. chantellevegas

    chantellevegas Low-Roller

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    bahaha! You're exactly right. I get told all the time I'm silly for going to vegas so much, and why wouldn't I save that money or pay some bills blah blah.People who have never been, or don't know how to enjoy themselves out there will never understand the appeal. Just as I don't understand the appeal other vacation spots have for those people (ie: Mexico). What better place to be when you're feeling down in the dumps!!
     
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  17. sconnie

    sconnie Downtown Kinda Guy

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    Its like Jimmy Buffett concerts. Until you've been you don't know if you'll "get it" or not. And if you haven't been, you'll never understand.

    JW
     
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  18. Gino

    Gino "The King of Inappropriate."

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    Yes. yes, yes. That's all part of what makes a good Vegas story great. I bought a World War 2 book collection from a super crooked local flea market vendor that had ripped me off a few months prior, he didn't bother to look through them and I found close to 1k in one of the volumes. For found money, that is a major windfall, particularly if you're a 20 year old kid saving up for his first trip to Las Vegas. I could have done the honorable thing, and returned it, but fuck that, dude was an asshole that robbed me first. Finders keepers, right? Then there was the time I sold blood (I'm a type o neg) and semen, to be able to cover airfare - my friends father covered everything if we covered our airfare. Do it, do it right, and don't live your life looking in the rearview mirror. Cheers.
     
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  19. bdautch

    bdautch VIP Whale

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    You hit the plasma-pigsauce parlay? That's great. Love it!
     
    Last edited: Jul 12, 2016
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  20. chef

    chef Resident Buffetologist

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    Great story.
     
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