duffelbag don
Low-Roller
After my seemingly now mandatory 2 week recovery from the annual Vegas excursion, I am finally getting to the keyboard for some reports and ramblings on my trip. It was a doozy, or should I say, boozy, and now after spending 5 full days in Vegas, I've realized that it's still hard to take in everything that you want to see.
And yes, I can't wait to do it again!
Well, I flew out a day earlier than the rest of the fellas, just to add a little fun the trip. Like the cellphone calls I made while cruising the Strip in the girlie man PT Cruiser convertible I got saddled with after all the other little cars were taken. At least it wasn't pink. So it wasn't until I passed the Bellagio fountain show that Jerry finally believed I was actually here. His response was, well since I am already there to lay $100 on the Chi-Sox for game 3 of the series. So I ducked into the Paris parking garage and meander over to the book and see they're laced with +170 for tonights game. Feeling as if the Sox were on a roll I decided throw down an extra $50 just as well.
I hung around a little bit, but decided not to play until I was well fed and well settled. So I grabbed the PT, threw the top down and shredded asphalt to the nearest In-n-Out. Well maybe not the nearest, because I felt the one on Maryland Pkwy might be easier to get to than the one across I-15 at the moment. Boy was I wrong. The entrance and exit suck at this one. But I finally got some animal style food. I liked it on the fries, but I could pass having it on the burger.
Being fed, I decided to work it off by cruising the Strip. Surprisingly, traffic didn't seem to heavy. But the pedestrian traffic was, a bitch. I could not believe the amount of people out here on a Tuesday. Passing by Imperial Palace I thought there was a parade going on with all the people. Nonetheless, I made my way South, threw a U-E at the Klondike and made the full trek to my next destination Downtown and the LVC. And on the way of course, called a few more people to tell them they're late and I hope they're enjoying their day at work!
This would be my first experience staying DT and I gotta say it will not be my last. I loved it! I winged the PT into the valet, grabbed my bag and walked into the lobby and within minutes I had room 811 in the older non-renovated tower. (Can't remember North or South at the time.) It had a nice view of Binions roof and the shower had a nice...window...that opened. The room was clean and functional, just what I wanted. The pampering would come later in the week when we would be seated at the North Tower in Bally's. Where the Tequila flows and the hookers are plenty.
I settled in and then made my way to the casino, which, not surprisingly was fairly empty. I stepped up to the craps table with the cute looking stick"girl" and bought in for a hundo. I couldn't resist. She was standing there, looking bored and all, nobody at the table, I had to do it. Well after about a 1/2 hour and a couple of Coronas, we started having a little fun. I scored a few pass line bets with odds for the dealers and things were gently rolling along. The funny thing was people walking by would stop, look and then keep walking. No one would buy in at the table. It was the first time I would roll by myself for almost an hour before I decided to walk after setting the point and seven'd out about 4 times in a row. Of course when this happened it was when I decided to go $10 on the line with full odds and about a $12 6 and 8. So I walked with a little less my buy-in and out into Fremont St which was empty. I mean it was like 4PM and nobody was around. Except for the girls in front of Mermaids who roped me in for one of thier gimmicks, but I let 'em know I just wanted a banana slurpee with liquor so they pointed me in the right direction. Personal record for me...on the grain train after 5 hours. Nice job, Don. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Who knew that Game 3 would go into extra innings?
So I walked around DT for a while with this yellow slurpee and feeding a really good buzz while searching out a place to watch the game tonight. So I kept it simple and decided on taking in the game at Casey's Bar in the LVC. Actually, I was on my way to the room to grab a Cohiba I imported from Chicago, when I noticed this little bar and decided that it would do. Using the VP technique I managed to score a boatload of Cap'n and Cokes before calling it a night at this bar about the 9th inning. Reflecting on the banana slurpee, who knew it would go into extra innings? I walked outside and realized I was heavenly smashed.
Feeling refreshed, I ducked into Binions, grabbed a Corona and waltzed over to the book. Which BTW was a melting pot of gamblers and bums. Yes. Bums. I had to stay put for the entertainment alone. No less than 3 guys passed out in chairs of the book and at least 2 offered me deals on drink tickets. And then they had the balls to tell me to keep it down when I accidentally let an F-bomb fly.
So after the Sox win and I'm celebrating a nice payoff courtesy of the book at Paris, I decide to grab a Steak and Lobster special from the coffee shop downstairs. However, the 2 security guards at the stairs were turning people away for some reason or another so that was out. So in the midst of my blurry state I realized that I have never had a meal at the Gate. So I stumble into the Bay City Diner and order up a nice cheeseburger for my meal. Not bad for late night fare. For dessert I went with some $5 shoe dealt BJ to cap the evening. Which was mostly a game of tug-o-war. This place definitely has that old-school feeling to it.
I get up the next morning and enjoy an eye-opening shower with a view. Get my stuff together and head down to the valet and grab the PT for my trip down to Ballys to meet up with the gang. While on the way I noticed I was victim of the fill-the-tank-up-until-the-line-moves-to-the-full-mark on the rental car. I drove about 20 miles and it says I'm down to 7/8 of a tank. Not risking the penalty I duck into a gas station and throw a couple bucks in and grab a Gatorade/RedBull concotion for some wake-up juice and a cigar cutter.
The dollar dop-off at Ballys/Paris is nothing easier as long as you enter from the Paris entrance. While going up the ramp you see a sign for Dollar drop-off. I parked the car, made a note of mileage and spot number and grabbed the luggage and trekked it to the Ballys rental counter just right of the casino. Thanks to the connector, it's not a long walk at all. After handing over my paperwork, my phone rings and it's Jerry and Nick telling me they just checked in and are heading to the rooms.
"Where are the rooms?" I ask.
"North tower rooms 1948 and 1950. Where are you at?"
"By the the North tower elevators waiting for you fools!"
As I'm asking this these 2 look up to see me waving at them by the elevators with the winning Game 3 ticket in my hand.
"Where do you boys wanna eat?!"
So we check the rooms, drop the bags and head down to Johnny's Deli for a sandwich and of course to collect $405 from Bally's book. Plentiful sandwiches with killer potato pancakes. After munching, we walk over to catch up with John and first timer Kevin, who are to no surprise on a craps table at the Flamingo. So we join in and begin to celebrate our grand arrival by nailing a few points as well as making a union wage on the 6 and 8. After about an hour Kevin says he's starving, so what's this, it's our first day together and we haven't been to Margaritaville yet? We bail off the table when things started going cold and found ourselves at the same table again for like third year in a row at Margaritaville. I swear they must have our pictures on file with a warning to seat us in the dark corner around the entrance by the ramp to the kitchen. We get conch fritters and a nacho platter and a bowl of corn and crab chowder for me and Kevin absolutely annihilates a cheeseburger. When the waitress asked him how he wanted it he just said, "Now!" He was that hungry. A couple of foo-foo drinks and some more food and we're ready to tackle the Strip.
We go out the door and head North taking in the scenery and walking off the food we've devoured and somehow end up at Casino Royale. I've had some fun in here in the past, but now this place does nothing for me anymore. It's always crowded. You can almost never get on to the craps table and when a few of us did no one had the balls to throw down 100x odds. Then I noticed what seemed to be the beginning of multiple types of BJ rules. Single deck paid 6/5 and BJ switch paid even. Even the $1 margaritas got smaller. So I grabbed a Michelob and tried my hand at a terrible game that I've never played before, but wanted to try once. Caribbean Stud. After about 20 mins I hit for a flush which gave me a $50 bonus , but of course the dealer did not qualify so I only got the bonus and the not money from the regular table as well. You think I hit the progressive because it took like 10 mins to get the pit boss over and for the dealer to sign the paperwork to pay me $50. After which, I walked.
The consensus was to get the hell out of the Royale and find a book to watch Game 4. When someone mentioned the cavernous Hilton with a pre-game party of smoking drinks from the Quark bar with a scenic monorail ride. Well, we were sold. We also called our friends John and Barb who me and Jerry work with who were in town earlier as well and they met us there. But the best was the look on our faces when we got these goblet sized smoking drinks from the Quark bar...And we got the small ones! Nick was the first to start showing signs of having a little too much fun and started messing with the Borg walking around, and well next thing you know this guy is tearing up Nick left and right. "Who's the little guy with the big mouth and the small drink?" still has to be my favorite."
We find the book and grab a couple of comfy seats and manage to get a waitress to hustle us some drink service after placing a few bets and I begin to pick up where I left off the night before. It wasn't until the third inning of the game I realized I had no money on the line. That's alright. I was in a sportsbook in Vegas watching the World Series and getting hammered along the way.
Well after the Sox win and we celebrate Jerry and Kevin's payoff victory courtesy of the Hilton sportsbook we go find John, who is absolutely wasted while leaning on the craps table. He's sh*tfaced. He can barely see. He can barely walk. He can barely organize, check that, he can't organize himself to even throw the dice. We decide that it's time for him to go to bed. He surprisingly agrees and says he was wondering when we would come and get him. He goes and cashes in, with some assistance.
As we are walking out, Jerry spots an empty roulette table and buys in for $20 for a "quick spin" and then we'll go. Well as the ball is spinning I decide to go big and throw down a Benjamin on red and yell out money plays. Wouldn't you know it a red number comes up. SWEET!!! The look on Kevins face was priceless and said it best, when he says, "I just spent 3and1/2 hours to win $100 bucks and you did it in 15 seconds." I reassured him that I've done that probably 4 times and this was the first time I hit it.
We ride back to the Flamingo and drop John off and then we head over to Barbary Coast to catch up with a couple friends of mine who were in town just for Wednesday night. Dean and Scott were heading to California the next day so they had a "layover" in Vegas when they heard we were all going to be in town. We all get together and then invite everyone over to the Tequila bar at Ballys to celebrate my red hit on the roulette table. I tried a shot of Cabo Wabo and washed it down with a DosEquis. Wow it was harsh, but the next one I had was really smooth and tasted great, I just can't remember the name of it. figures. I find a tequila i like and can't remember the name.
By now, I'm on autopilot as well as the rest of our crew. For the life of me I can't figure out why some of us decided to go to Caesars and some of us went to Paris. I think it was to see how many hookers we could spot. Yeah, that had to be it, and yes, they were there in spades. It was like Cheech Marin in from Dusk Till Dawn, hawking the girls outside the bar. If you know what I'm talking about then you get the idea. After about another hour or so of drinking with a little bit of slot play. Me and Kevin call it a night. As I'm walking in thru the door of Ballys I had no idea what I was about to see. It was like a hooker buffet on the circular sofa at the entrance to the lobby of all places. Unfreakingbelieveable! Right in the lobby! God Bless America!
I wake up the next morning about 8, because yours truly set the clock. The clock consists of leaving the curtains open all the time. Me and Nick get up, I call Jerry next door and then call John and Kevin at the Flamingo and throw out the orders of breakfast at the Peppermill in an hour. I call Dean and Scott, but there was no answer. Last I saw Dean he was hammer down at a $25 BJ table and was not being courteous about it. "I'm here for you're money!" He was telling the dealer. Upon which I noticed a very nice mixing of black and green in front of him.
So we meet at the 'Mill. Bloody Mary's all around. Let's see, there was the standard breakfast orders, Jerry gave the Mexican omelette a go and I gave the country fried steak and eggs with gravy a whirl. Damn, was that a lot of food. I ate a lot of it, but when I was done, there was plenty left. Always had a great meal here. For 5 of us, nobody finished their meal. But we did finish the bloody mary's.
Leaving the 'Mill we started walking towards the Riviera, probably because no of us have ever been in it and took a stroll thru a Vegas landmark. Naturally, someone has to goose the brass broads at the entrance. None of us really feel like gambling just yet, so we just decide to walk over to, get this, CircusCircus. Apparently, in the adventuredome, they have a couple of Bowlingo games. Picture mini-bowling with bocce type balls with pins on strings. So we kill a little time there. While walking thru, I checked out the steakhouse. It is not like the rest of the place. the menu is small and to the point. Steaks, Chops, Lobster. Two pages, that's it. Affordable too. As for the rest of the place. I doubt I'll ever return. The place looked like a ghost town and I couldn't find a decent BJ game here either.
Walking out of there we strolled by Slots-o-Fun, I had to try and win the Saleen Mustang out front, guess those results. Said our goodbyes to the W-Ho which BTW is looking like a Ho afterall. Face down and in the gutter. Tales of the Ho dog lunch we endured 2 years ago, surface when Spewey ate one with all the fixin's, cheese, chili and sour kraut when lo and behold Jerry's phone rings and it's Spewey who's just landed and will meet us at Ballys in about 1/2 hour. Define irony. He bumped his flight from Thursday night to the morning without telling us. Nice move.
We meet up with Spewey and spent the majority of the afternoon bouncing between Ballys and BarbaryCoast and the Flamingo. None of which were being generous with their money. All of us were getting beaten down with the ugly stick. As dinner rolled around, John and Kevin had previously made reservations to eat with some of his relatives at some place in the Mirage. So myself, Jerry, Nick and Spewey decided to go over to the Stardust and eat at Sushi King. No reservations, we were seated immediately. However, when dining after about 7PM they might be a good idea. It was getting busy as we were leaving. It was a very good meal indeed. Definitely would do it again.
We head over to the craps table at the Dust and jump onto a game. The rolls were going good and once again i up my bet an go full odds and press my numbers just in time to have the shooter 7 out. It was a pattern that I would be victim of the entire trip. Craps was not the game for me this trip. However BJ was. After bailing off the craps table I found a $5 shoe game that would benefit my wallet. After about an hour I was able to slowly grind out twice my buy-in. They also had enough tables running so you weren't shoulder to shoulder with your neighbor. I walked away with a little extra spending money after that go round.
After bailing the Dust we go back to Ballys to regroup and plan our attack. Which would then become my plan to get everyone and I mean everyone completely trashed. I found out there's a Fat Tuesday next door in the Aladdin. We walk over there pasing the pron slappers along the way. Now I see they have extra shirts with them to sell to nutty people like us. We walk thru the Aladdin and this place is jumpin'. We squeeze onto a crap table just long enough to rip thru a few hundred like that.
"Wow! Anyone get the plates?"
"What?"
"License plates, off the truck, that just ran us all over!"
So we go over to Fat Tuesdays to, well get hammered. It's usually just a walk-up bar. You walk up, you get your drink, you walk away. Simple as that. Unlike us who think it's a tavern and just sit there for 3 hours getting wasted! Even the guy working there, Biff, couldn't believe it. He told us that we were the only ones he has ever seen just sit there and drink up and just hang out for all this time. Plus it's amazing what some people will do when 151 rum is introduced into your system. Me and Spewey both relished the fact that we were drinking football sized slurpees with 3 extra shots of 151 rum. It started out like,
"I'll have a football hurricane."
"Do you want an extra shot of 151 for a buck?"
"How about 2 shots for 2 bucks?" Spewey says.
"Or 3 or 3 bucks?"
"Oh hell yeah! Set me up!"
So he fills the football up with the slush, then he pours 3 test tubes of 151 and shoves them upside down in the football. Now if that's not enough he pours yet another shot right down the straw of the football.
"Oh yeah, someone's blacking out tonight!"
It looked so good, I had to get one. Damn I'm a sucker. Well more drinks and about 6 RedBull and cranberry with vodka later and we're getting loud. The whole place is like an amplifier so it sounds really loud. Next thing you know employees for other stores who are just getting off are coming by to see what the fuss is about. Then they start hanging out with us. It was just to damn funny. We met a lot of fun people that night, some of which were going to some off strip bar and invited us along but we were starting to feel like a complete eve of destruction. After Biff closed up shop, we called it a night and headed back to Ballys.
On the way back while crossing the street in front of Paris, Nick completely went Midnight Cowboy on some cabbie. Complete with the screeching tires and Nick slamming his hand on the hood of the cab and proclaiming to the driver, "HEY! I'M WALKING HERE!" In his most southside Chicago accent you could possibly describe. Funny as it was the police on the street didn't look too enthused about us walking against a red and let us be after we chased down Nick and hustled him off with an arm under each shoulder trying to look as sober as possible while doing it. Then after laughing like a bunch of school children the creme de la creme was the toothless hooker that said she'd do all four of us outside the elevators to the North Tower of Ballys. F***ing priceless....and it was only Thursday.
More to follow...
And yes, I can't wait to do it again!
Well, I flew out a day earlier than the rest of the fellas, just to add a little fun the trip. Like the cellphone calls I made while cruising the Strip in the girlie man PT Cruiser convertible I got saddled with after all the other little cars were taken. At least it wasn't pink. So it wasn't until I passed the Bellagio fountain show that Jerry finally believed I was actually here. His response was, well since I am already there to lay $100 on the Chi-Sox for game 3 of the series. So I ducked into the Paris parking garage and meander over to the book and see they're laced with +170 for tonights game. Feeling as if the Sox were on a roll I decided throw down an extra $50 just as well.
I hung around a little bit, but decided not to play until I was well fed and well settled. So I grabbed the PT, threw the top down and shredded asphalt to the nearest In-n-Out. Well maybe not the nearest, because I felt the one on Maryland Pkwy might be easier to get to than the one across I-15 at the moment. Boy was I wrong. The entrance and exit suck at this one. But I finally got some animal style food. I liked it on the fries, but I could pass having it on the burger.
Being fed, I decided to work it off by cruising the Strip. Surprisingly, traffic didn't seem to heavy. But the pedestrian traffic was, a bitch. I could not believe the amount of people out here on a Tuesday. Passing by Imperial Palace I thought there was a parade going on with all the people. Nonetheless, I made my way South, threw a U-E at the Klondike and made the full trek to my next destination Downtown and the LVC. And on the way of course, called a few more people to tell them they're late and I hope they're enjoying their day at work!
This would be my first experience staying DT and I gotta say it will not be my last. I loved it! I winged the PT into the valet, grabbed my bag and walked into the lobby and within minutes I had room 811 in the older non-renovated tower. (Can't remember North or South at the time.) It had a nice view of Binions roof and the shower had a nice...window...that opened. The room was clean and functional, just what I wanted. The pampering would come later in the week when we would be seated at the North Tower in Bally's. Where the Tequila flows and the hookers are plenty.
I settled in and then made my way to the casino, which, not surprisingly was fairly empty. I stepped up to the craps table with the cute looking stick"girl" and bought in for a hundo. I couldn't resist. She was standing there, looking bored and all, nobody at the table, I had to do it. Well after about a 1/2 hour and a couple of Coronas, we started having a little fun. I scored a few pass line bets with odds for the dealers and things were gently rolling along. The funny thing was people walking by would stop, look and then keep walking. No one would buy in at the table. It was the first time I would roll by myself for almost an hour before I decided to walk after setting the point and seven'd out about 4 times in a row. Of course when this happened it was when I decided to go $10 on the line with full odds and about a $12 6 and 8. So I walked with a little less my buy-in and out into Fremont St which was empty. I mean it was like 4PM and nobody was around. Except for the girls in front of Mermaids who roped me in for one of thier gimmicks, but I let 'em know I just wanted a banana slurpee with liquor so they pointed me in the right direction. Personal record for me...on the grain train after 5 hours. Nice job, Don. It seemed like a good idea at the time. Who knew that Game 3 would go into extra innings?
So I walked around DT for a while with this yellow slurpee and feeding a really good buzz while searching out a place to watch the game tonight. So I kept it simple and decided on taking in the game at Casey's Bar in the LVC. Actually, I was on my way to the room to grab a Cohiba I imported from Chicago, when I noticed this little bar and decided that it would do. Using the VP technique I managed to score a boatload of Cap'n and Cokes before calling it a night at this bar about the 9th inning. Reflecting on the banana slurpee, who knew it would go into extra innings? I walked outside and realized I was heavenly smashed.
Feeling refreshed, I ducked into Binions, grabbed a Corona and waltzed over to the book. Which BTW was a melting pot of gamblers and bums. Yes. Bums. I had to stay put for the entertainment alone. No less than 3 guys passed out in chairs of the book and at least 2 offered me deals on drink tickets. And then they had the balls to tell me to keep it down when I accidentally let an F-bomb fly.
So after the Sox win and I'm celebrating a nice payoff courtesy of the book at Paris, I decide to grab a Steak and Lobster special from the coffee shop downstairs. However, the 2 security guards at the stairs were turning people away for some reason or another so that was out. So in the midst of my blurry state I realized that I have never had a meal at the Gate. So I stumble into the Bay City Diner and order up a nice cheeseburger for my meal. Not bad for late night fare. For dessert I went with some $5 shoe dealt BJ to cap the evening. Which was mostly a game of tug-o-war. This place definitely has that old-school feeling to it.
I get up the next morning and enjoy an eye-opening shower with a view. Get my stuff together and head down to the valet and grab the PT for my trip down to Ballys to meet up with the gang. While on the way I noticed I was victim of the fill-the-tank-up-until-the-line-moves-to-the-full-mark on the rental car. I drove about 20 miles and it says I'm down to 7/8 of a tank. Not risking the penalty I duck into a gas station and throw a couple bucks in and grab a Gatorade/RedBull concotion for some wake-up juice and a cigar cutter.
The dollar dop-off at Ballys/Paris is nothing easier as long as you enter from the Paris entrance. While going up the ramp you see a sign for Dollar drop-off. I parked the car, made a note of mileage and spot number and grabbed the luggage and trekked it to the Ballys rental counter just right of the casino. Thanks to the connector, it's not a long walk at all. After handing over my paperwork, my phone rings and it's Jerry and Nick telling me they just checked in and are heading to the rooms.
"Where are the rooms?" I ask.
"North tower rooms 1948 and 1950. Where are you at?"
"By the the North tower elevators waiting for you fools!"
As I'm asking this these 2 look up to see me waving at them by the elevators with the winning Game 3 ticket in my hand.
"Where do you boys wanna eat?!"
So we check the rooms, drop the bags and head down to Johnny's Deli for a sandwich and of course to collect $405 from Bally's book. Plentiful sandwiches with killer potato pancakes. After munching, we walk over to catch up with John and first timer Kevin, who are to no surprise on a craps table at the Flamingo. So we join in and begin to celebrate our grand arrival by nailing a few points as well as making a union wage on the 6 and 8. After about an hour Kevin says he's starving, so what's this, it's our first day together and we haven't been to Margaritaville yet? We bail off the table when things started going cold and found ourselves at the same table again for like third year in a row at Margaritaville. I swear they must have our pictures on file with a warning to seat us in the dark corner around the entrance by the ramp to the kitchen. We get conch fritters and a nacho platter and a bowl of corn and crab chowder for me and Kevin absolutely annihilates a cheeseburger. When the waitress asked him how he wanted it he just said, "Now!" He was that hungry. A couple of foo-foo drinks and some more food and we're ready to tackle the Strip.
We go out the door and head North taking in the scenery and walking off the food we've devoured and somehow end up at Casino Royale. I've had some fun in here in the past, but now this place does nothing for me anymore. It's always crowded. You can almost never get on to the craps table and when a few of us did no one had the balls to throw down 100x odds. Then I noticed what seemed to be the beginning of multiple types of BJ rules. Single deck paid 6/5 and BJ switch paid even. Even the $1 margaritas got smaller. So I grabbed a Michelob and tried my hand at a terrible game that I've never played before, but wanted to try once. Caribbean Stud. After about 20 mins I hit for a flush which gave me a $50 bonus , but of course the dealer did not qualify so I only got the bonus and the not money from the regular table as well. You think I hit the progressive because it took like 10 mins to get the pit boss over and for the dealer to sign the paperwork to pay me $50. After which, I walked.
The consensus was to get the hell out of the Royale and find a book to watch Game 4. When someone mentioned the cavernous Hilton with a pre-game party of smoking drinks from the Quark bar with a scenic monorail ride. Well, we were sold. We also called our friends John and Barb who me and Jerry work with who were in town earlier as well and they met us there. But the best was the look on our faces when we got these goblet sized smoking drinks from the Quark bar...And we got the small ones! Nick was the first to start showing signs of having a little too much fun and started messing with the Borg walking around, and well next thing you know this guy is tearing up Nick left and right. "Who's the little guy with the big mouth and the small drink?" still has to be my favorite."
We find the book and grab a couple of comfy seats and manage to get a waitress to hustle us some drink service after placing a few bets and I begin to pick up where I left off the night before. It wasn't until the third inning of the game I realized I had no money on the line. That's alright. I was in a sportsbook in Vegas watching the World Series and getting hammered along the way.
Well after the Sox win and we celebrate Jerry and Kevin's payoff victory courtesy of the Hilton sportsbook we go find John, who is absolutely wasted while leaning on the craps table. He's sh*tfaced. He can barely see. He can barely walk. He can barely organize, check that, he can't organize himself to even throw the dice. We decide that it's time for him to go to bed. He surprisingly agrees and says he was wondering when we would come and get him. He goes and cashes in, with some assistance.
As we are walking out, Jerry spots an empty roulette table and buys in for $20 for a "quick spin" and then we'll go. Well as the ball is spinning I decide to go big and throw down a Benjamin on red and yell out money plays. Wouldn't you know it a red number comes up. SWEET!!! The look on Kevins face was priceless and said it best, when he says, "I just spent 3and1/2 hours to win $100 bucks and you did it in 15 seconds." I reassured him that I've done that probably 4 times and this was the first time I hit it.
We ride back to the Flamingo and drop John off and then we head over to Barbary Coast to catch up with a couple friends of mine who were in town just for Wednesday night. Dean and Scott were heading to California the next day so they had a "layover" in Vegas when they heard we were all going to be in town. We all get together and then invite everyone over to the Tequila bar at Ballys to celebrate my red hit on the roulette table. I tried a shot of Cabo Wabo and washed it down with a DosEquis. Wow it was harsh, but the next one I had was really smooth and tasted great, I just can't remember the name of it. figures. I find a tequila i like and can't remember the name.
By now, I'm on autopilot as well as the rest of our crew. For the life of me I can't figure out why some of us decided to go to Caesars and some of us went to Paris. I think it was to see how many hookers we could spot. Yeah, that had to be it, and yes, they were there in spades. It was like Cheech Marin in from Dusk Till Dawn, hawking the girls outside the bar. If you know what I'm talking about then you get the idea. After about another hour or so of drinking with a little bit of slot play. Me and Kevin call it a night. As I'm walking in thru the door of Ballys I had no idea what I was about to see. It was like a hooker buffet on the circular sofa at the entrance to the lobby of all places. Unfreakingbelieveable! Right in the lobby! God Bless America!
I wake up the next morning about 8, because yours truly set the clock. The clock consists of leaving the curtains open all the time. Me and Nick get up, I call Jerry next door and then call John and Kevin at the Flamingo and throw out the orders of breakfast at the Peppermill in an hour. I call Dean and Scott, but there was no answer. Last I saw Dean he was hammer down at a $25 BJ table and was not being courteous about it. "I'm here for you're money!" He was telling the dealer. Upon which I noticed a very nice mixing of black and green in front of him.
So we meet at the 'Mill. Bloody Mary's all around. Let's see, there was the standard breakfast orders, Jerry gave the Mexican omelette a go and I gave the country fried steak and eggs with gravy a whirl. Damn, was that a lot of food. I ate a lot of it, but when I was done, there was plenty left. Always had a great meal here. For 5 of us, nobody finished their meal. But we did finish the bloody mary's.
Leaving the 'Mill we started walking towards the Riviera, probably because no of us have ever been in it and took a stroll thru a Vegas landmark. Naturally, someone has to goose the brass broads at the entrance. None of us really feel like gambling just yet, so we just decide to walk over to, get this, CircusCircus. Apparently, in the adventuredome, they have a couple of Bowlingo games. Picture mini-bowling with bocce type balls with pins on strings. So we kill a little time there. While walking thru, I checked out the steakhouse. It is not like the rest of the place. the menu is small and to the point. Steaks, Chops, Lobster. Two pages, that's it. Affordable too. As for the rest of the place. I doubt I'll ever return. The place looked like a ghost town and I couldn't find a decent BJ game here either.
Walking out of there we strolled by Slots-o-Fun, I had to try and win the Saleen Mustang out front, guess those results. Said our goodbyes to the W-Ho which BTW is looking like a Ho afterall. Face down and in the gutter. Tales of the Ho dog lunch we endured 2 years ago, surface when Spewey ate one with all the fixin's, cheese, chili and sour kraut when lo and behold Jerry's phone rings and it's Spewey who's just landed and will meet us at Ballys in about 1/2 hour. Define irony. He bumped his flight from Thursday night to the morning without telling us. Nice move.
We meet up with Spewey and spent the majority of the afternoon bouncing between Ballys and BarbaryCoast and the Flamingo. None of which were being generous with their money. All of us were getting beaten down with the ugly stick. As dinner rolled around, John and Kevin had previously made reservations to eat with some of his relatives at some place in the Mirage. So myself, Jerry, Nick and Spewey decided to go over to the Stardust and eat at Sushi King. No reservations, we were seated immediately. However, when dining after about 7PM they might be a good idea. It was getting busy as we were leaving. It was a very good meal indeed. Definitely would do it again.
We head over to the craps table at the Dust and jump onto a game. The rolls were going good and once again i up my bet an go full odds and press my numbers just in time to have the shooter 7 out. It was a pattern that I would be victim of the entire trip. Craps was not the game for me this trip. However BJ was. After bailing off the craps table I found a $5 shoe game that would benefit my wallet. After about an hour I was able to slowly grind out twice my buy-in. They also had enough tables running so you weren't shoulder to shoulder with your neighbor. I walked away with a little extra spending money after that go round.
After bailing the Dust we go back to Ballys to regroup and plan our attack. Which would then become my plan to get everyone and I mean everyone completely trashed. I found out there's a Fat Tuesday next door in the Aladdin. We walk over there pasing the pron slappers along the way. Now I see they have extra shirts with them to sell to nutty people like us. We walk thru the Aladdin and this place is jumpin'. We squeeze onto a crap table just long enough to rip thru a few hundred like that.
"Wow! Anyone get the plates?"
"What?"
"License plates, off the truck, that just ran us all over!"
So we go over to Fat Tuesdays to, well get hammered. It's usually just a walk-up bar. You walk up, you get your drink, you walk away. Simple as that. Unlike us who think it's a tavern and just sit there for 3 hours getting wasted! Even the guy working there, Biff, couldn't believe it. He told us that we were the only ones he has ever seen just sit there and drink up and just hang out for all this time. Plus it's amazing what some people will do when 151 rum is introduced into your system. Me and Spewey both relished the fact that we were drinking football sized slurpees with 3 extra shots of 151 rum. It started out like,
"I'll have a football hurricane."
"Do you want an extra shot of 151 for a buck?"
"How about 2 shots for 2 bucks?" Spewey says.
"Or 3 or 3 bucks?"
"Oh hell yeah! Set me up!"
So he fills the football up with the slush, then he pours 3 test tubes of 151 and shoves them upside down in the football. Now if that's not enough he pours yet another shot right down the straw of the football.
"Oh yeah, someone's blacking out tonight!"
It looked so good, I had to get one. Damn I'm a sucker. Well more drinks and about 6 RedBull and cranberry with vodka later and we're getting loud. The whole place is like an amplifier so it sounds really loud. Next thing you know employees for other stores who are just getting off are coming by to see what the fuss is about. Then they start hanging out with us. It was just to damn funny. We met a lot of fun people that night, some of which were going to some off strip bar and invited us along but we were starting to feel like a complete eve of destruction. After Biff closed up shop, we called it a night and headed back to Ballys.
On the way back while crossing the street in front of Paris, Nick completely went Midnight Cowboy on some cabbie. Complete with the screeching tires and Nick slamming his hand on the hood of the cab and proclaiming to the driver, "HEY! I'M WALKING HERE!" In his most southside Chicago accent you could possibly describe. Funny as it was the police on the street didn't look too enthused about us walking against a red and let us be after we chased down Nick and hustled him off with an arm under each shoulder trying to look as sober as possible while doing it. Then after laughing like a bunch of school children the creme de la creme was the toothless hooker that said she'd do all four of us outside the elevators to the North Tower of Ballys. F***ing priceless....and it was only Thursday.
More to follow...