Remember to batten down the hatches, put on yer best gear and prepare to take some booty! Oh yeah, real pirates don’t wear makeup!
Hiding in the bushes like I can’t see her.
One awesome encounter at Tahiti Village was with the maintenance manager who helps oversee the feral cat population around the parking garage. It was good news mostly. Through her efforts with the city/county, many have been rounded up over the last year. They were spayed/neutered and adopted. Most used to be someone’s pet based upon their behaviors. Those cats which couldn’t be re-integrated have been returned to the area, approximately five. However, nature abhors a vacuum so others seem to move in because there’s food, water and shelter. AT least it’s more manageable and they’re not breeding, exacerbating a horrible problem.
The tuxedo cat I photographed is a polydactl and I spotted a young rag-doll alongside a couple black cats.
I gave the nice manager lady my e-mail and a couple cans of cat food to help out. Should these animals need a little help, I will gladly chip in. They are one of the minor attractions I enjoy seeing. It’s also fascinating how animals adapt rapidly to urban environments.
I remember the first time I saw someone get a royal flush at video poker. It was during my four weeks of living in Las Vegas for PowerComputing. We ate dinner at Caesar’s Palace and afterwards we played the game near the sports book. I spent $10 figuring, how hard could this be? Pretty hard when you make the mistake of using the same strategy one uses against other opponents. Meaning? Any pair lower than Jacks are often a wasted effort because you’re better off discarding them due to the odds of either a second pair or a three-of-a-kind being slimmer than getting a pair of Jacks, Queens, Kings or Aces when receiving five new cards.
Anyway, I lost my money relatively easily and chalked the experience up to saying it was the most expensive beer I ever drank, comp my ass. Kris had better luck, she got the elusive victory that night and walked away with $100 in quarters. It was 1997, Vegas still dispensed coins into plastic cups. I saw it happen again several weeks later at Orleans watching some stranger playing at the bar.
Every trip since, whether it was me, Somara, a friend or watching a stranger play, I never saw another royal flush. I did finally learn some new strategies. I can’t recall if I read it, heard it or what. I’m even willing to admit it may have come from the horrible podcast Five Hundy by Midnight (holy crap! Dressen continues his drivel every week!). I tested the new approach on our 2006 vacation and it worked. It was touch-and-go as I was down to a mere couple bucks but the four-of-a-kind put me in the black. The plan?
Yesterday was the crowning achievement and it’s burned permanently into my memory. The opening deal was the Jack of Diamonds, Ace of Hearts and all the Hearts Royalty. The conservative/pessimist/buzzkill move would’ve been to keep the pair of Jacks. I really doubt any human being wouldn’t have taken the chance though…it is gambling. I agreed as I thought, what the hell, the odds were 46:1 against. Gotta’ love the sound of being right! According to what I could find, the odds for the entire hand even happening are 40,000:1 against or once every 133 hours of continuous play.
What’s the plan for the winnings? Put it toward paying off the timeshare we stay in whenever we visit Las Vegas.
He wasn’t present but he wants to give his approval.
What more can I say? This would make a great comparison on exercise Sesame Street. Big Elvis was a fantastic sport, I’m definitely joining his newsletter.
Strengthening my case for why Las Vegas’ nickname should be East East Los Angeles, you can find these people in costumes along the Strip just as I’ve heard LA has in front of Mann’s Chinese Theater. I couldn’t resist this request. They loved it, one even said, “Look! It’s our lost little brother!”
Vacation does put you in a news or media vacuum…except when it comes to sports; you’d think all the thuggery in the NFL was the only thing going on in Las Vegas.
Well, I wanted to dedicate a few dozen electrons to the first Bond villain I grew up with. Oddly he’s the only one to survive, both times, an odd departure in the franchise. There was more to Richard than just being Drax’s muscle for hire. He was in the original version of The Longest Yard, Force 10 from Navarone and So Fine. If you ever get the chance to the see the last film I mentioned, give it a try.
More details are here. I’m happy Richard did live a good long life because people his size have poor health when they get to my age. The human body isn’t well designed to be taller than five feet and a few inches.
A beloved shop cat passed away this week at age 18. Aswan was one of two feline residents at Dragon’s Lair who graced the store by sleeping on the gaming tables, lounging in the glass cases and wandering about, making sure everyone had a good time.
I know I would go out of my way to pet Aswan whenever I spotted her. I learned quickly, not to pick her up. Like all cats, she decided if she wanted to sit in your lap.
Spotted in the parking lot at Barton Creek Mall.
Now your marriage can legally buy a beer! If it were here in Las Vegas, according to the billboards selling “cards,” it could purchase weed too!
My late friend Ben’s little boy celebrates his birthday, I want to say it’s his third yet I might be wrong. I see updates from time to time courtesy of his mother, thanks Ami! I plan to be in Dallas next month for the Flyers v. Stars game so I need to contact them, make arrangements.
Meanwhile, should you know the sparky dude, you can contribute to his CD at UFCU. I started it up last Fall and deposited all the money I was given for my recent birthday. The best windfall was a twenty I found on the ground while refueling my Prius at an HEB.
Look above and you’ll see Lego Admiral Ackbar approves!
Besides Diana Ross coming here, yet another concert only my mother would want to attend. Over 20 years ago, I recall my her complaining to me about the experience of seeing him live. As soon as he hit the stage, everybody stood up! Well, duh! This has been going on since Frank Sinatra was a teen idol, probably earlier if I could find the historical proof.
Anyway, I couldn’t help but keep quoting the South Park bit.
The view from our new timeshare’s larger deck!
Thanks to the server taking a dump yesterday afternoon despite my ongoing hypothesis it was the Web processes (hence, why I would remotely log in and just restart that part), something else is at work. Note to self, move this to a hosting service when I get back, give up the ghost after nine years.
Anyway, the flight was pretty smooth until the approach thanks to Vegas being nested in a valley. It was also the first time in years the Austin-to-Vegas non-stop flight wasn’t packed to the assholes. We paid our one-percenter tax to Southwest (up 25% over last year) which gave us seats on the wing.
The only hiccup we encountered was both sets of Visa cards getting hit with stops. The main one through my credit union happened during the initial grocery store stocking. Then the backup via Somara’s credit union did the same. Quel dommage! A 15-minute phone call to CEFCU got it cleared up. However, I was a tad irked over their excuse…you need to tell us you were going to Las Vegas. What? Are you my credit union or my frickin’ parents?
Nevermind…I’m on vacation.
He’s the son of a relatively new co-worker named Dorian. Here the young man is sporting the humorous line from WryBaby.
A very nice gift (one of two) from some equally nice friends. I always thought Rocket had his debut in the mid Eighties through a miniseries Marvel did. Turns out he made his first actual appearance in the mid Seventies in The Incredible Hulk.
