Gamble Hard With A Vengeance! Gaggles Live Feb 16-20

OMG you guys it just got better and better yesterday. Our flight was on the tarmac for an extra 45 minutes. Plane was 90% full but I did score a seat beside me that was empty. The 45 minute wait sucked but whatever. About half way through the flight the mom has enough of the kids and makes dad move to the seat on my row and dad takes care of the two kids so mom can catch a nap. Well shortly after mom starts sleeping her daughter comes over to see her and falls asleep beside her. SLOWLY....the little girl starts sliding down from mom onto the extra seat. Eventually her feet are plopped down on my legs cuz you know....a person needs to stretch out while they are sleeping right? Mom wakes up and apologizes and I tell her it's fine. It really was. Very cute kids and the parent's were super cool and polite. She moves her daughters feet off of my legs but as soon everyone closes their eyes, those little legs stretch out and once again. Once or twice this little girl opened her eyes and looked up at me as if to say "We are cool right?". Was very funny.

What wasn't funny...... I packed a carry on to avoid bag claim. Well guess what? No room in overhead bins so I had to check my bag. Can you see where this might be going? I am at the back of the plane and the bins were full but there was some room near the front of the plane. But because people kept boarding, We were stuck. Then one lady kept getting out of her seat...FIVE TIMES. Two times was top hand the flight attendant small amounts of garbage. Once was to take two kids to the bathroom. Two more times to get into her bags. PEOPLE ARE TRYING TO BOARD! Note to all, grab the first empty spot in the overhead bins when you board.

So another person and I check bags, get bag tags. I use the washroom real quick and come out and I am told that "The guy who checked your bag thinks he gave you the wrong bag tag". I just started laughing. Like.....what else? Well just a bit more.

I am just not a fan of the Calgary airport. I think it is an ugly concrete mausoleum that they spent a gazillion dollars on. In the last two years or so, I have just not had pleasant experiences there. You have to walk for miles sometimes after international flights, it's a cold, largely empty building and I am just not a fan. It's clean and spacious and all shiny and new. But it's as welcoming as that one aunt or uncle everyone has that comes to family functions who hates children. They try to be nice but they are cold to you and you know, even as a kid, that they don't like you!!! Anyways, Customs was a pleasant breeze. But baggage? Our plane landed but bags took an hour to get to us. An hour. We were literally the only plane that was at the international terminal. Adding insult to injury was the fact that I packed a carry on to avoid this very situation.

They swabbed me at the airport for my second Covid test in less than 72 hours and i will be getting another one in 6-7 days. That will make four in about two weeks.

(Sidebar) My observations on flying the last 2-3 trips are that they are using older planes or is that my imagination? One out of 8 different planes I flew had plug ins for computers and phones. Would they be using older planes in the fleets for a reason? Seems like newer planes would be better on gas!!!! This was also the observation of another friend of mine who goes back and forth for Vegas quite a bit for work/family stuff. Perhaps we are off or perhaps this is a thing??

 

THAT was funny, and cute. Sounds like a Vegas traveler in the making. LOL.

 

I have just been going through parts of this TR. I am 99% sure I was not at Harrah's this trip????

 

A true sign of a great trip @Gaggles... I love finding small denomination TITO, or random receipts while unpacking. Especially since many of them i have absolutely ZERO recollection of gathering. On our last trip we found 2 McDonald's receipts and neither my wife or I had any idea we were there. We will managed to somehow pay for them with a CC though....

 

Damn I love Gaggles' trip reports. Such energy! Such commitment to telling Macker to suck it. My low blood sugar ass can't go more than 3.5 hours without a solid meal, I don't know how you do it!

Safe travels - rushing for flights is one of life's most stress inducing activities (at least for us first worlders). While driving isn't risk free, I do enjoy the flexibility of the 4-5 hour drive from San Diego, but outside that distance I would always fly.

 

Well keep playing it there. Only bartop in the country where I've seen it. The game is 15+ years old and no longer made afaik. I've only seen it on All Star (NOT All Star II) units and the percentage of All Star units that I've seen this game on is pretty low. Same goes for "Chase The Royal".

I knew you were at Harrah's from the "Reserved For Slot Players Only" sign. Haha

And crazy trip home! Thanks for the report!

 

Loved the report and adventures. Thanks for sharing. Catching up on erveryone's TR was a nice end to a nasty week for me. I'm glad Texas sent you back with your Canadian winter. We've decided you can keep it please.

 

Enjoyed the report!

 

Chase the Royal is that game I played in Reno I think? I hit TWO Royals that night. I had never even seen that game before it this is the same one that I was playing. You get dealt some cards to the royal and you get multi draws for it. If memory serves it gives you three to the Royal or something?

 

Thanks for another fabulous report Gaggles I so look forward to your travels to Vegas, especially as we have been in lockdown hear in the UK since December and cabin fever has most certainly set in and this report has made me laugh so much ! especially the little girl with her little legs resting on you I can just imagine her cute little face looking at you for validation that all is ok ! .

 

Yeah. Anytime you get dealt a high pair it then offers you a random combination of 3 to the royal in exchange for the high pair. The game also boosts the flush and straight pays when you "Chase the Royal", so it makes it mathematically correct to always chase it. 6/5 Bonus is over 98.5%. Very swingy game. Glad you were on the positive end of it!

 

Enjoyed the report! 90's Hotmail account user checking in as well!!!

 

Put in another check for Hotmail. It was my first back in the 90s and not realizing the significance at the time, used a funny sort of name. To myself and my friends, it made sense. When filling out forms in a Drs office, it's a pain in the ass. I have a Gmail acct, but changing everyone that's tied in to my email is a pain I've avoided so far. If only they had change of address cards for email.

 

I use my hotmail account for all of the companies that need an email account where I don't want them bothering me, like my car dealership or companies at an industry show. I check it twice a year.

 

I was hoping for a @Gaggles sighting at Bally's Friday night. I'm sitting at McCarren heading home. Hubby had a nice hit at Paris last night on the $5 top dollar. He us going home with 1 dollar more than he brought!

 

Some final thoughts, starting with this picture. Vegas felt as busy as any normal non Covid weekend.

 

More final thoughts and observations:

- Starting off with a nice big fat win really is the best gift Vegas can give any gambler, even if we give it back.
- I need to eat a little more when I go to Vegas.
- I do NOT need to drink less.
- Renting a car was a great idea. A shirt drive to someplace like Laughlin or Red Rock, Vallley of Fire, etc is never a bad idea.
- Vegas without a pool is a real minus.
- The mess at the airport for me to board was pretty brutal but had I had my test back and had I known I had to have the ArriveCan stuff filled out before, this entire thing would have been very smooth.
- Laughlin was awesome and a nice little break. Riverside was WAY better than Harrah's and while they are both old casinos. Harrah's seems to be more rundown than Riverside. It is hard to explain but I think if you were there to see and feel it you would get it. Riverside was pretty busy, Harrah's not so much. But Harrah's location and beach cannot be beat in the Summer.
- It was one of those trips that despite the pics of the wins, I did have some roller coaster losses. But every time I started to give it back and I started to question my gambling judgement, I hit. Sometimes a lot.
- Biggest comeback ever from 32 quarters to almost $3000 in the Caesars Sportsbook.
- Grilled shrimp tacos at Carlos and Charlies are becoming a staple for me.
- Circa is great.
- While I was not overwhelmed by Palace Station, I do think a person should get to an off strip property once in awhile. Our stop at The Orleans over New Years left me wanting some more Orleans time!
- Cosmo suites are frikking awesome and among the best views in Vegas.
- Thanks for the STK dinner Bart.
- Beejay's kids ordering our food at the steakhouse because we were having difficulty pulling away from the machines was awesome.
- Thanks to JR for allowing me to take this last minute trip.
- If you play high variance video poker games (DDBP, SDDBP,TDDBP) you cannot have a winning trip without kickers. But when you do get them..oh baby!!
- Always good to meet some VMB friends again. I have met some pretty cool people in here over the years. Some have turned into long terms friends and acquaintances.
- I hope you all enjoyed. When you are on a solo trip it is nice to share the adventures with all of you. Chatting and bringing VMBer's along adds to the fun for me and makes me feel like this is a team sport.
- Drink tix at Cosmo came fast and furious at same play level as last time, making me believe not all machines spit them out equally. As fast as Beejay and I were drinking, I still gave away three drink tickets (after losing Beejay) to three different people who appeared surprised and appreciative. Pay if forward!
- Primary gambling this trip: Caesars, Flamingo, Bellagio. But I also hit PHO, Cosmo. Cromwell, Linq, and apparently Harrah's?? I have no memory of this. Dowtown I hit $Q, Circa, Golden Gate. The bartender at Golden Gate has recognized me the last 4-5 times I have been in there. Maybe I gamble too much or maybe it is because I love those bar tops. Maybe both.
- One day I am going to get in The Plaza again.
- For some reason, stopping in Searchlight at the gas station casino is one of the best moments of my trip.

A couple photos and another one in the books!!!

 

Oh...I almost forgot one of the most important things. It was a winning trip!!!!

 

Congrats on the winning trip. Glad you made the journey and appreciate the awesome rip report