Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Vacation? Stay-cation? More Like Outlaws on the Lam!

This week we're flying to Las Vegas to hole up in the Rio.  We've been going there so long that we can remember when the Old Wing was brand new.  And that wasn't yesterday afternoon.

A friend, bemused, asked, "What are you going to do in a hotel all that time?"  I thought about it and realized it isn't going to be "all that time."  The flight doesn't get in until 2 p.m.  We're both taking a carry-on bag, so no standing around waiting for that.  The cab line and the ride to the Rio, should put us in there around 2:45/3 p.m.  Check-in isn't until 4 but if the room is ready, up we go. 

The next day is a full day, and the day after that we have an 11:35 a.m. departure which means leaving the hotel around 9:30 a.m.  Vegas traffic is horrific any hour of the day, but at rush hours, the natives really exert themselves for "Most cars cut off"  "Most horn honking in a limited length of road" and diverse other amusements, not limited to flipping the bird, or jamming on the brakes for no apparent reason. 

This is something of a spa visit for me --casinos require a lot of walking.  Traversing one several times has to add up to at least three miles a day.  If the misters are on full blast and some of the pool is in the shade, we can do aqua-robics.    Thus, I can fearlessly eat any damned thing I want to eat.  I'm getting exercise to compensate.

I'm far too cheap to gamble more than a quarter at a time.  My favorite thing is sitting at a bar (any bar) playing quarter video poker and hitting on the bartender for those refreshing free beers.

Richie wants to see a show.  He feels he hasn't been if he didn't see one.  We've already seen Penn & Teller (Penn desperately needs some anger management therapy) Richie wasn't interested in the Chippendales performance and that leaves some kind of Tribute to '50s Rock 'n Roll (or equivalent.)  which will certainly be a damned sight less than P &T.

It's going to be 111 during our visit, but Las Vegas and Palm Springs discovered misters a long time ago.  In fact, you can easily make one for your patio or pool area.  Buy a length of garden hose, cap one end, take an ice pick and punch holes up and down the length of it, connect it to a faucet, turn it on full blast and - viola!  A mister!  You get started on that - we're going to Vegas!

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