Hardly Working (thebucket live apr. 25-29) Sam's, Fremont, Mirage

Eel eggs = Glamorous and intriguing

I think I just amused myself. Since I came up with the eel egg salesman bit out of the blue, I just had to do a moment of research and determine just how realistic the job actually would be. Wikipedia had a few things to say on the topic, including:

"Traditional eel aquaculture operations rely on wild-caught elvers, but experimental hormone treatments in Japan have led to artificially spawned eels. Eggs from these treated eels have a diameter of about 1 mm, and each female can produce 2 to 10 million eggs."

Wow. So eel eggs could potentially be some sort of ill-gotten product of some sort of industrial/international espionage! Smuggling them in and walking around Vegas with them might constitute the commission of a number of felonies... Wow. I somehow managed to pick a totally-off-the-wall wierdo occupation that might actually be somewhat glamorous/interesting/dangerous if true.

Now, I ask myself, if I needed to hint at precisely WHY I was in Fremont with a case of these eggs (which would surely be worth unspeakable amounts of money), I would need (being a salesman) a reasonably likely customer. WHO in downtown might be in the illicit eel egg market? Hmm. Oh, wait a minute... The place with the exotic menu. And the gigantic aquarium. And the unusual ability to pay in massive sums of cash. Hehehee! That's the ticket! I would be headed out the front door of Fremont for some off-the-record deal back behind the Golden Nugget's loading dock. Seems to me like if anyone downtown was going to be paying large cash for eel eggs, Chart House would be the only likely suspect.

I would probably need to get a larger safe deposit box at Fremont upon my return.

International intrigue. Glamour. Danger. Eel eggs. Heeheh. I'll have to use that one again sometime.

 

I started reading this hours ago and can't believe I haven't come to the end yet. I'm leaving for Vegas in about 11 hours and won't be able to finish until I get back. I haven't ever seen a more detailed report. I salute you sir! I'll catch up when I get back from Orleans and whatever transpires. Thanks for this great report. It is just what I needed before my trip!

 

Good luck, sailor!

Glad to hear that you enjoyed the read, sailor53, and thanks for the kudos! I know that my ridiculously detailed meandering style of reporting isn't for everyone (not exactly my trip 'in a nutshell'), but it's always nice to hear from folks who enjoy the long form of my reports.

Have a wonderful time in Vegas (You're probably there right now) - I've never stayed at Orleans before (though they seem very eager to give me 2 nights free which I might have to take them up on when I go later this year). I do particularly like their 17" GameMaker bartops at the Alligator Bar (even thought the available games aren't quite ideal on those). The full pay Bonus Poker Deluxe near the buffet is another draw for me. Good luck on your trip, may you get a royal/jackpot/good-run (whatever the best result is for whatever you prefer to play)!

More TR soon... This weekend has been a zoo for me.

 

When the orleans took out their signature 10/7 double bonus in December of 2006, I was pretty disappointed. Until then it was my home in Vegas. Oddly, they reduced the pay table to 9/6 instead of the still playable 9/7. With double double at 9/6 right next to those downgrades, it reinforced the idea that most players don't pay much attention to pay tables
I can't bring myself to play much on the 8/5 Bonus varieties. I'd rather go to the Gold Coast and play the 9/6 JOB when the points are right or as a diversion between the old jazz sounds of the Classic Jazz band in the afternoon, as well as a way to get my free beer to sip during the music.
I have not played at the GC bar, but I did see they had the 9/6 and a much better selection of comped beer including Sam Adams on tap.

But back to the Orleans, I did not go there again to play, only to use up points, but this past trip Orleans out of the blue sent me two free nights, so I went and the rooms sure are very nice. Jack's Oyster house still made a good oyster chowder (not on the menu but ask) .
The live poker room is great, but I find the competition too local and too good for me.

One video poker good option is still available at the Orleans. I think there are two banks of these progressives, but I play one that is as I remember just past the buffet, on the left as you move toward an outside door.
It is a triple play nickle progressive and the Double Bonus is 9/7.
When the progressive royal payouts get high enough, it is advantage play. Always it is a good bit of fun. I could not hit on my trip, although I chased away $200 on a seniors day where I got 5X points and one progressive royal was over $500 and the others over $300.
Of course, it is highly volatile.
Double Bonus starts with great volatility and then because you are playing three sets of any draw that is further increased. But it is fun and at 75 cents a pull quite a bit of frugal excitement.
Given that I lost a good bit of money each day at the Orleans, I expect they will send me rooms again or I'll find them using the B Connected site with my card number. So I may go back on my next trip.
Also, while it is isolated for a guy with no car, I rolled my luggage from the Orleans to the Gold Coast this past April and found it an easy half hour bit of exercise to make up for so much sedentary poker time. I don't think I'd want to do that in August, but in December I'd do it easily.

Also, given your desire to explore places, if you go to the Orleans, don't miss walking across the street to
McMullen's Irish Pub across the street from the Orleans (not to be confused with Brendan's Irish Pub in the Orleans itself)

Interesting tavern with some Irish food, beer, and good happy hour specials on appetizers. Their homemade potato chips with assorted dips are a great snack. Some nights they have live music. Their website is being upgraded, but you can check that out once it is up again and get all the information. Mostly locals.

In December of 2006 about twelve of us ate a family Christmas dinner there using a $25 from Restaurant.com and had fine service, our own rather private area, and great food.

 

Yeah, the Gold Coast bartops are some of my favorites in town (up there with Main Street Station, I wish Boyd would make it a stock offering at all the properties...)

 

This. Trip. Report. ROCKS.

I just spent about an hour and a half reading it. About a half hour in, I got a beer and came out on the deck to read the rest. Well done my friend. I know they take a long time to do (my last trip I attempted a live report, thwarted by some wicked weirdness with my blackberry) then when I got home I typed it up and cut and pasted from Word and lost it. Never went back and did it but I know they take time to do and I REALLY appreciate you taking the time. This report it great. Right up there with the legendary Beejay reports but with more detail. Well done.

Can't wait for the next installment.

 

BConnected offers

My experience so far has been that the old Coast properties (Orleans, Gold Coast, Suncoast) mail me offers that are exactly the same as what I see on the BConnected site. The downtown properties are a different story. For whatever reason, my mailed offers from downtown are superior to what I get on the website.

 

I got the two free Orleans nights in the mail. I got nothing fromt he Gold Coast , but on the B Connected site they had cheap rates for my dates and do now as well, so it pays to look at both.

My nights at Harrahs Flamingo for last time I got all on line. I get nothing in the mail. I ended with lots of good rates and free rooms last trip all on line. If I wanted to go this coming August there are blocks of four free nights in a row at Bally's and others, but I have not gotten one snail mailing.

So checking everywhere is a good deal, and getting them to check whenever we have one booking, buy calling, is a good deal as well since the offers cannot always be accessed if there is a booking in the month you want to see. We have to call and ask what are offers are.

 

Enjoying reading along on this TR. Just letting you know that I appreciate the time and energy this takes! Thanks!

 

Thanks! That's definately the way to read this sort of thing... Out on the deck with a laptop. Unless you're here, that is, in which case the incessant rain would rapidly make that a -EV activity, since laptops are generally:

A) Expensive
B) Not particularly waterproof

Sorry to hear that your own report was swallowed up by technical difficulties (remember the days when TV shows would occasionally disappear to be replaced by a screen which just said 'Technical Difficulties'?... well, that's an age-dependent memory I suppose...). Anyway, hopefully this will not happen to you next time around. I highly encourage you to use Posterous.com for live trip reporting using a BlackBerry (as I did for this trip, blog at blog.coindropper.com). You just set one up and e-mail text and/or photos to it, and as soon as you send it, it's on your blog (no chance of it getting lost, and not dependent on the BlackBerry's rather inferior web browser.

I've now been compared in a favorable light to Beejay... I think that's an honour of some kind. I always thought that he was a bit excessive at times, particularly when it came to $250 roulette spins, etc. Until this trip, when I rather inadvisedly put $500 down on a spin. More on that in a couple of days in the TR.

Anyway, thanks for reading - I'm glad to hear that you've enjoyed the ride so far. There's much more to come... Including... The much anticipated and highly anti-climactic Baccarat Tour of Las Vegas!

Coming soon to a display near you.

 

Thanks!

Thanks for reading, phan, and you are most welcome! I hope you enjoy the installments yet to come.

 

And now.. the REST of the story!

Welllll... The subject line for this is a bit misleading, as this installment will by no means constitute the 'rest' of the story. However, it is high time that I get back to telling the story, since I have managed to fill an entire page on the forum chit-chatting with my many (don't get me wrong, I love it) commentators. Please continue to comment. I will continue to reply. But since it's a TR thread... I should really keep reporting.

Wouldn't want to get banished to Misc Vegas Chat...

So, it is now Wednesday (ok, was), the 27th of April, in the year two thousand and ten. I have just finished doing my duty as a conference attendee at Mandalay Bay's convention centre, and have strolled back downstairs toward the casino. Did I mention the fact that I have some sort of inexplicable loathing for MB's casino? Probably so.

For the moment, however, I didn't make it anywhere near the casino quite yet. Though decently dressed, I was far from entirely respectable given the sad state of my shoes, a pair of Cole Haan dress shoes with almost non-functional laces, much the worse for wear. As I walked out of the convention centre, however, I spied a shoe-shine stand with a guy who was quite the salesman looking at me (and my shoes) with a welcoming grin. Problem solved.

I approached his station, and asked if he could 'fix me up'. With an odd accent, he told me that I had 'come to the right place' (oddly similar in verbiage to the War dealer at Harrah's). I took this as a good sign, and mounted his shoe-shine stand to see what he could to to make my over-used under-maintained footwear respectable for the evening ahead of me.

The guy, except for an odd lack in the material department, did a job I cannot complain of. Take my word for it when I say that my shoes were in a sorry condition when I climbed up there. I don't know precisely what all he did, but he started the process with some sort of vigourous brushing/polishing. I thought that was it, and would not have been disappointed or surprised if it was. However, he continued with some sort of sudsing (surely cleaning) treatment of them, stripping them of the sadly broken/torn-down laces in the process. All the while, my feet felt not wet at all, though I expected this at every turn.

I should interject into the tale of the actual shoe-shine the guy's story. For some reason, it seems expected that anyone doing shoe-shine duty has some kind of colorful story to tell, and my guy was no exception. He was (and he generally looked the part, his accent lending credibility to his story) that he was Kenyan, and had come to the US with his family in search of the American dream. Upon arrival in LA, and a few months of life there, he discovered that the American dream is far from an inevitability when one is a new immigrant, has limited English skills, a family of four to feed, and no credentials that are recognized in the US. Sure, it's a tip-gathering story, but I really don't doubt him.

In a last-ditch effort to keep from having to return home to a life they felt they had to leave in Kenya, he packed up his family, their few belongings, and made the trip out to the place that has long been known to fertilize and exterminate dreams... Yes... Indeed... Las Vegas.

Now, living in a 1BR apartment in North Las Vegas, he has become a shoe-shine guy. The best in the business, he claims, and the work of art he made of my sadly worn-out Cole Haans spoke to his expertise. I listened with interest (and a grain of salt) to his story, showed him a photo of my family when that came up (sure I was being buttered up for a big tip, but what the heck), and looked on with amazement as he brought my footwear (often considered a sign of a problem gambler when in poor repair) to a proper state of presentable-ness for the high-limit rooms that they were soon to tread upon the carpet of.

I was a bit disappointed (and he rather beside himself) when black laces of an appropriate length were not in his store of laces beneath the bench, the sadly broken ones having already been removed from my shoes. He used some sort of liquid polish to turn a pair of brown ones quite black (this has since come off, but it was fine, as the next two days were all that mattered), applied them in a manner that I shall copy when I replace them (creating a parallel pattern across the tongue), and sent me on my way.

The shoe-shine was $8. I gave him a $20, told him to keep the change. Sure, it was a big tip, and whether or not his story was 100% true or not he did a great job (except for the brown laces, which were still a massive improvement over what I had before). He provided great service, and I tipped appropriately.

My shoes now quite presentable (this always makes a difference in how I feel about my self-presentation), I strode down the long promenade to the casino at Mandalay Bay. I hadn't planned on playing there that afternoon, but since I intended to play in every baccarat room in Las Vegas, I figured that I might as well knock this one out.

More soon...

 

And a bit more...

To continue:

I strode down the unreasonably long promenade (which a co-worker of mine once described as a feast for the eyes given the overlook it provides of the MB pool area with sunbathers and all... That's never been my 'thing', but for anyone with a 'thing' for bikini-clad ladies lying around in the sun, just follow the signs for the convention centre at MB on a sunny afternoon (go past THE Chapel and the Mexican restaurant), and you'll find a hallway lined with windows providing more eye-candy than one can shake a stick at).

Soon I was back down in MB's casino. It's a nice casino, don't get me wrong... But for some reason it has always rubbed me the wrong way. I've just never felt lucky there, and the few sessions I've played there (though I'm a great believer in the math of the games, I won't play when I don't 'feel it'). I went in there in search of the holy grail of any major casino, the baccarat room.

I found it easily enough (my convention badge making the floor supervisor I asked for directions look at me a bit funny... I have a strong feeling that most convention-going people don't ask where they can find baccarat. Not mini, mind you. The big table (which I made a point of when he told me where to go initially, which was a location on the main casino floor, to which I asked 'you have a big table on the floor?'... He responded 'A big table?'. I answered 'yeah... I need a big table. Not mini. Not midi. You guys have the big game, right?'... He seemed to take stock of me a bit more seriously, and politely pointed me in the right direction.)

I arrived at MB's baccarat room looking for a game, and found a big table there. An entirely empty big table. A couple of midi tables were staffed, and I asked the floor supervisor there when they were going to open the big game. On the weekends, I was told. In a manner that would soon become second-nature, I indicated that I wasn't going to be there for the weekend to play, and that I would be looking elsewhere. I figure that since they have no idea what I am worth (barely enough to even consider the $100 minimum of a big table), just walking away when I find that they aren't going to be dealing the game makes the most substantial statement I can possibly make.

On I went to the player's club booth to get a new players card (I hadn't brought my MGM card). As I got them to print me a new one, I noticed an ad on the counter for their 'win cards', where you get a set of plastic cards that guide you on how to play blackjack, roulette, and craps, a deal that comes with $30 of NCV chips for a $20 investment. This is actually a huge +EV play, so I decided to do just that.

Unfortunately, the players club desk can't just issue the NCV chips... One has to get a voucher for it from the players' club desk, then take it to the cashier cage to give them the cash and get the chips/cards. I did this, but finding the cage at MB was a chore... By the time I got there, stood in line, handed over my voucher and $20, got the chips and cards, and stepped away, I rather wished that I had not embarked on that particular adventure. Oh, well. Nearby I spied a roulette table. Time it was to claim my +EV bet at the MB.

Interestingly enough, the packet of cards and chips that I had bought came with a coupon for a 'free dealer bet' of $1. I bought in at the roulette table for $5 chips (min bet at the table), and played them on the outside for 1:1. A few minutes of this resulted in a $25 cash-out for me, and a lost dealer-bet coupon for them. I had won my $5 from MB (the best I have ever done there), and I walked out to LVB, unsure of where I was going next, but finally having gotten the best of them, and just a bit proud of it.

:Þ

 

Have just read all twelve pages so far. Great, great report. Thanks for writing such an entertaining story, hazy mind and all!
BTW, Elwood?
Will be back for the conclusion next week.

 

Damn, you report is very interesting to read, keep it going!

It's a good read at the evening with some chips and a good glass of malt

 

Hi, greensideup! Thanks for the compliments. You mentioned elwood (and your handle seems very familiar to me...) We probably saw one another on the LVA message boards where I used to post as elwood8... If you were wondering if I'm one and the same, indeed I am.

 

I'm glad to hear that it has been interesting and/or entertaining for you! I'm going to assume that chips and malt are some sort of (British) thing and also assume that this constitutes something similar in theme (though not content) to my own tendency to enjoy the boards with a burrito and a cheap beer close at hand.

 

Wednesday Evening

Having successfully arisen from the dead (or so it felt) after my all-nighter the night before, having successfully BSd some poor innocent lady as to my status as an international man of eel-egg intrigue, having actually done some work (wow) attending the convention, and even getting my shoes fixed up and leaving Mandalay Bay's casino a winner... It would take a helluva evening to follow that up. Fortunately, an evening well equipped to rival the day beforehand was readily at hand.

I got out of MB, across LVB, and found an ACE stop. Took it northbound to a stop near Mirage, jumped out (ok, not literally, I did wait for a scheduled stop), and marched up to Mirage where my co-worker awaited my arrival, all ready to head out for the evening. I should've known better.

I strode into Mirage like I owned the place. About 3,462 people looked at me funny, and I realized that I actually didn't own the place, didn't resemble Steve Wynn, wasn't an internationally renowned movie star, and didn't literally have diamonds spilling out of my pockets. Their subtle hint taken in stride, I toned it down a notch and walked in like I kind-of owned the place. This worked much better.

I phoned my co-worker to announce my presence at Mirage, and was told to come on up, with a Ketel One and tonic in hand. Hmm. Oh, well. Everything has a price of admission, I suppose. I went to my trusty bar (the only one I consistently paid cash in on that trip) to the right of the entryway, collected the requisite Ketel One in addition to a Tanqueray and tonic for myself, and waltzed on up to the room.

When I arrived, a minor tragedy had evidently occurred. The in-room safe was displaying 'err' on the LED readout, and it was entirely unresponsive to anything and everything one might enter on the keypad. I had locked it up the night before at the request of my co-worker, using a 4-digit number we both knew well. Now, however, it appeared quite broken, with both my co-worker's cash (which was a non-issue as I would be happy to forward whatever might be necessary from my bankroll) and more critically a number of pieces of jewelry within.

I called down to the front desk right away, and they promised to send someone up to remedy the situation. As I lounged in the dining area of the suite, attempting to be oblivious to my co-workers state of semi-undress in the next room, I decided that this was indeed the life. Here I sat, drink in hand, in a F***ing Penthouse Suite at Mirage, drink in hand, the town below me out of the panoramic windows, beautiful companion close at hand, and an evening for the record books just beginning. Indeed. This was the life.

Soon, the phone rang. Evidently the 'do not disturb' light was lit outside the room (there was a Decora switch by the door to control this, and I failed to check its status when I called down for help with the safe). The security desk told me that an officer was outside my door to help with the safe. I quickly opened the door for him, and he made short work of our safe error, graciously accepting the $20 I passed his way for his trouble.

Now... It was time... To plan the evening. I was told that it was up to me. This may or may not have been a good idea in general, but I knew what to do when opportunity struck. I grabbed the BlackBerry out of its holster, Googled 'Sinatra at Encore Las Vegas' for the phone number, and made reservations for two an hour in the future. Hit the Google button again, and got the number for LVT/Scooter Moves limo service. Though not the highest rated place in town, they have never let me down (quite unlike Presidential, which many of my message-board friends are quite enamored with, which did let me down). Some lady answered the phone at LVT, and I asked quite humbly if they might, even though it was terribly short notice, be able to send a car out on a six-hour charter. She initially said no, but I heard a conversation in the background... A conversation that was surely being had with our driver. Rather unexpectedly (given the short notice, I was pretty much resigned to cab usage at that point), she came back on the line and asked when and where I wanted to be picked up. Wow. At Mirage, of course. In 20 minutes. Then to Encore. Then as directed, until at least midnight. She took my CC info in case I was a random deadbeat limo-reserving jackass, and sent the car on its way. Wonderful, I thought. We've got a car. Reservations at Encore. A meetup with DinarPoker. And an evening for the record books ahead of us.

All that remained was to choose an appropriate outfit and shoes for the night. I took the challenge of playing 'What Not to Wear' guy on with gusto, and only about 30 minutes later we were headed downstairs, the evening having only just begun.

More soon..

 

Do ya want more?

Well, I thought I was done writing for the night. My daughter decided otherwise, getting up an wailing at her mom for no obvious reason. She sits now on my lap, entertained as usual by attempting to help type (making this process rather slower) this TR.


To continue...

snmjjjn jv n ncv

(her contribution)

Anyway, we went downstairs at Mirage, the awesome sales-guy outside of BB King's place giving us a big wave. He evidently remembered us from the night before, another major point in his favour. That guy should seriously be a host or something.

We made our way out to the front, and found our limo waiting for us there. Our driver was great, though rather a silent type (which was fine as we had plenty of our own conversation to attend to). Asking him to take us to Encore, we sat back and enjoyed the ride.

As we cruised the few hundred yards up LVB to Encore, I couldn't help but repeat a few bars...

"Look what you made me do, look what I made for you
Knew if I paid my dues, how will they pay you
When you first come in the game, they try to play you
Then you drop a couple of hits, look how they wave to you"

This elicited a whack from my co-worker, but I thought it rather clever given our destination.

There is another TR-award now available, to the person who can first correctly identfiy the lyric just mentioned. Pumpkinfish is disqualified from this award, since she won the last one. Just PM me if you know it, those capable of identifying it without the (on your honour) help of an Internet search get priority.

About the time I recovered from being somewhat severely whacked (our driver looked back with an expression of some concern... it wasn't the most gentle thing ever), we pulled up at Encore and waited for our driver to pull the door. He did, and we stepped out as if we were celebrities on the red carpet. It was a fabulous evening, and was just beginning.

We arrived at Sinatra

akjk;lewnmvvnmhbhbhjbjxcv

(another contribution from my daughter)

We arrived at Sinatra a few minutes early for our reservation, but it was far from full, and there was nothing resembling a line to get in. Reservations were probably entirely unnecessary, but I wouldn't have wanted to take that chance. We were shown to a table, which my co-worker rejected based on the look of the chairs, and were politely redirected to a half-booth thing that was more appropriate support-wise. The service at Sinatra was excellent. I still wonder if Switch might have been a better choice, but I was unsure as to its status given the Beach Club construction, and figured that Sinatra was a better sure-fire bet.

We ordered an appetizer to share (I forget what precisely), and the stock Ketel One and tonic. I ordered a McCelland 18 with one rock. The waiter seemed a bit confused, asked 'rocks?', to which I showed him one finger (my index finger, though I later reconsidered my choice of finger) and repeated 'One Rock'. He smiled, and went on his way. So far, so good.

Our drinks came soon enough, the Ketel One and tonic both strong and good, and for whatever reason my McCelland on not one but a great many rocks. I rather wondered if the bartender thought this to be a bit of a crime. Not wanting to throw off the very-nice tone of the evening, I made no issue of the fact that they couldn't seem to server a %#%# scotch with just one ice cube in it, even though they were a @@%% five star restaurant and I got just that less than 24 hours ago served precisely as ordered on the $#$% FLOOR at a $#%% WAR table at %#%% HARRAH'S.

I kept my explicit lyrics to myself and enjoyed my McCelland on the rocks. It was actually quite good.

More soon...

 

Lovely report again


But I noticed something


The "McCelland 18" that you like to drink, isn't it the "Mccallan 18" instead?

If so... Is there any particular reason why you ruin a very nice malt whisky with a "rock"?

You should try your Mccallan 18 the next time in a thin tulip shaped glass (ask for it and get used to the funny faces you'll get from the waiter/bartender since they think it is a crime not wanting to drink a whisky from a thik, awfull open glass with a bunch of rocks in it) without "a rock" but with "1 drop of water" instead. Let the malt slowely heat by holding the glass in your hand, roll the malt in the glass, and enjoy the lovely flavours that will set free once the malt has gained some temperature. Once you've done this you probably don't want any "rocks" anymore in your malt whisky's :evillaugh


Sorry, but couldn't let it pass