1. From someone who may be more “crazy frugal” than I am: “This is decidedly non frugal but well worth it. At the South Point barbershop, for $45 they will do an old fashioned shave. Straight razor, hot towels, cold towels, skin stuff, after-shave, the whole deal.  All that is missing is the theme music from “The Godfather.” I took my Type A++ personality brother-in law and he actually relaxed for the half hour and thoroughly enjoyed it. I am not sure if South Point will comp there, but that is one of the few things in Las Vegas that I will pay real money for.”

 [Oh my, I am impressed!]

2. Here's another update on the Wynn buffet:  “My nephew was there recently and he said the booth told him that you get 1 buffet at 25 pts and another at 50, 75 and 100 points. So, for $900 coin in on video poker, you can have 4 buffets at Wynn.  That is way too good of a deal to last.  That's about a 15% comp rate.”

[Always check promotions in advance. This one especially changes often.]

3. Online from AtlanticCityRose: “When I was there last week, it was so dead I played in the smoking section and it didn't bother me.”

[Now that’s dead! And they are still saying we aren’t in a “real” depression?]

4. Thanks to a reader who sent me this, one I’m surprised I hadn’t seen before. It summarizes Brad’s and my philosophy very nicely. "He who is frugal is the richest of men, and the miser is the poorest."

- Chamfort (1741-94), French satirist

There are more reader comments at my blog site and many give new casino information that might be useful to you.  Just go to the left side of any blog entry where there is a list of the most recent comments.  You can also find older comments at the end of any past blog entry. 

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My blog entries of April 22 and 25 must have hit a nerve because I got a lot of comments, not just here but in personal posts.  Here is one that spoke to some of the issues:

“I have been an advertising and marketing executive all of my life.  So when you mentioned a correction about your emailed offer from The Palms for $49 in April, I went back and looked at it.  You were right the first time.  Sometimes the Palms and other hotels say that a promotion is specifically for (name of cardholder + account number).  The email you referenced only required that you mention "OPER 226." In fact, I emailed that offer to many friends outside of Vegas because I specifically checked to see if it was for me only or for anyone with knowledge of the code.

“I have been coming to Las Vegas continuously since 1964 and now I live here.  The cutbacks that I am seeing just in the past year are astounding.  I live next door to a guy who is a manager at U. S. Foods, which delivers virtually everything casinos use in their food and beverage departments.  They are the primary vendor to 70% of the hotels here in Las Vegas.  He says their business is down 20%.  First, the cuts came from the small bars and taverns that closed their kitchens due to the smoking ordinance.  Then, the vast majority of taverns who still serve food have seen their business shrink to a fraction of what they had been doing.  Now the hotels have cut back on quality and variety.  I was surprised to learn about the wide range of pre-prepared frozen foods that are available in case lots, virtually anything and everything you can name and in various quality grades.

“So with tighter machines, increased prices of buffets, less selection and lower quality food, and poor service, the casinos are only going to increase the downward spiral in their business.”

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Blackjack Insider is an online gaming newsletter that comes as a monthly e-mail. Although the primary subject material is about blackjack, many articles cover other casino gambling topics as well.   A regular issue has both free content for subscribers and some for members-only who pay a small yearly fee. I find it full of gambling information that is not only interesting but also valuable in helping me get more out of the casino than they get out of me! 

Just out is the 100th issue of Blackjack Insider and it can be read by anyone who has access to a computer. No subscription or fee is required. It is filled with articles by gambling experts in many fields: card counting, blackjack, tournament play, craps, video poker, and live poker. Some of the authors give interesting details of how they got started in casino gambling. In fact, I include in my article some “secret” details of my early gambling experiences (pre-casino) that I have never put down in writing ever before.  

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I am writing this near midnight on April 29, a date that always brings nostalgic thoughts to Brad – and I hear lots of stories of his youth. 59 years ago on this date he left his parents’ home in the little town of Connersville, Indiana, and boarded a train to begin his new life in the Air Force. He had wanted to join the military since he was a little boy and played for hours with metal toy soldiers in his sandbox. So now at 17, he was able to start living his dream, and even the rough basic training in the Texas heat of Lackland Air Force Base didn’t dim it.

After basic training, he was on to Vance AF Base in Enid, Oklahoma, not an exciting place by any stretch. So after a few months, when he heard that there was free beer in Korea, he volunteered to go there. When he wrote to his mother about his new exciting assignment, she wrote back and asked, “Do you know there is a war going on in Korea?” This small fact had not yet penetrated his 17-year-old mind – it was just too full of thoughts of adventure.

He boarded a troop ship in L.A for the 12-day trip to Korea – or that was where he figured it was going. But to his surprise, it stopped first in Japan, where the few Air Force guys were told to get off and the Army infantry soldiers and Navy sailors would continue to Korea. Talk about luck.    Brad would spend the rest of his 30-month enlistment time, not in a war zone, but in a plum job as a warehouse supervisor who had a whole crew of Japanese workers to do all the work. This left him plenty of time to pursue the pleasures of youth – and there’s a whole book there, some of it X-rated!

April 29 also has great significance for Brad for another reason – and for me too because I shared that momentous day with him 19 years ago, when he retired from federal civilian employment at Naval Avionics in Indianapolis, Indiana. Now our stays in Vegas could be more than just short vacation visits.

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There seems to be a “bug” going around in Vegas recently, causing a short-term illness rather than the extended one which plagued us in the winter. They are calling it a 24-hour flu virus, but it usually floors you for three days. The first day you just feel bad and don’t know why. The second day you are flat in bed in-between the bathroom trips on which you don’t know which end has a more pressing need. On the 3rd day, the frequent bathroom trips are over, but you are so sore and exhausted you think you were run over by a semi.

I just finished with my three-day ordeal and feel okay, but Brad’s hit him when we were at Ellis Island this evening. He had been dragging all day and had felt a little nauseated but ate some chicken noodle soup and said he was feeling a little better. So we decided to do our monthly play because Sunday is a 6X point day. After about 20 minutes, Brad suddenly jumped up from his machine, took two steps, and then crumpled to the floor in silence. I was sure he had suffered another heart attack. I yelled for security. 

Then the most amazing thing happened – nothing. The customers kept playing their machines. The dealer at the empty craps table just looked at him …  like … people lying on the floor of the casino was just routine … like ...  “Oh, just another Ellis Island drunk.” 

After a minute Brad did get up on his own and recovered enough equilibrium to stagger to the restroom. I went to the pit where I finally was able to find a couple of security guards -- with no help from the crap dealer who was still just standing guard at his empty table. The guards were efficient. One went to the restroom to see if Brad was doing okay while the other helped me gather up my belongings –- and the couple of thousand dollars I almost forgot to punch out of our machines.

By now I was pretty sure Brad wasn’t having a heart attack but had probably caught the same “bug” from which I had just recovered. The guards said he was finished vomiting but too dizzy to walk so they brought him a wheelchair. They gave me his keys, one guard escorted me to the car, and then I drove around to pick him up at the door. 

I had driven a car my whole adult life, but when Brad retired 19 years ago I rarely took the wheel; he was a willing chauffeur wherever I needed or wanted to go. It’s our joke that Brad has to be dying to let me drive. I hadn’t been behind the wheel for years when in 2003 I drove him to the doctor’s office where he was found to be in the middle of a heart attack and was sent by ambulance right to the hospital.  

Anyway, I got us home all right – so I guess I haven’t forgotten that skill. Now I will get a chance to polish up my nursing skills to help Brad through the next couple days.

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Someone e-mailed me this comment on the Palms room offer I mentioned in my last entry: “I'm sorry, but THAT offer is NOT for any yokel & therefore should not have been mentioned.”

I appreciate the input. This is the sort of thing that happens to me when I have so many ideas in my head but don’t get them all out in print. I did mention this Palms offer being for just a few dates but I forgot to emphasize that this came as an e-mail directly to me -- and I have been a fairly heavy player at the Palms since it opened. That, of course, was an offer that the man off the street probably would not be able find.  

The point I was trying to make with this example was that it was a really bargain price compared to offers I had received in the past. (Actually I don’t take any room offer from a Vegas casino that is going to cost me real money since I can get all the comped rooms I need for our out-of-town visitors so this was just a theoretical exercise.)

The point of that whole blog entry was to show how players who search diligently can find all sorts of bargains, especially in this period of a declining economy.  And I want to mention now that more and more casinos are using the Internet for marketing to their customers and I recommend that you sign up for these messages at any casino where you would like to stay. Now the quality of the e-mails you will get will vary greatly. Some will give you prices that you can beat at other Internet sources. Some will give you a room offer for the next few days – and you live half way across the country and can’t possibly get a reasonable airline ticket in time. 

However, you will find some gold in some of these e-mails. We have received free play offers, cut-rate show ticket prices, and (like the above example) reasonable, even bargain room packages. If you sign up at casinos that are within driving distance, you may snag some last-minute valuable deals as casinos try to fill their property with warm bodies that might drop some gambling dollars.

You can  usually sign up for these e-mail messages at the casino's Web site.

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Yesterday my fellow blogger David McKee wrote about cuts the casinos were making to try to adjust to a worsening economy. Not surprising I had been compiling notes about this myself.

For example, I noticed Green Valley Ranch buffet has started charging extra for crab legs - 1/2 lb $3, 1 lb $5. I heard via Internet forums of other cuts there, like downsizing the wine glasses for slot players and switching from Red Bull to SoBe. We aren’t big seafood eaters and mostly drink water so these are changes that don’t bother us, but could be fairly important to others.

However, this next cut has caused a roar of protests on the Internet forums. Harrah’s has closed the Seven Star Lounge at Caesars and has cut the food selection at all their Diamond Lounges in Vegas. Many have commented that this is the last straw since Harrah’s was taken private and so many downgrades have taken place. They will vote with their feet and take their play elsewhere.

Some casino cuts have affected their employees more than their customers, with numerous layoffs. However, sometimes this cutting of employees will impact the quality of customer service. And Wynn cutting down their dealers income by making them share their tip pool with pit bosses is bound to affect the morale of the employees which in turn can also lead to an unpleasant atmosphere for players.

But the general opinion of whether the faltering economy is all bad for Vegas is mixed. If you have lost your job or your house, of course it is bad news. But for players like us, retirees who don’t need a job and their home is paid for, the few cuts we feel in the casinos are overwhelmingly forgotten because of the good things they are doing to get more warm bodies in their casino.

There is talk about decreased comps and some of that is happening. However, hotel prices are coming down all over the place, even at the top resorts. We recently received an e-mail room offer from the Palms for $49, including free admission to the Ghost Bar or Rain, 20% off spa services, and $25 in free slot play. True it was for a few specific dates, but it is an example of how players who search diligently can find all sorts of bargains, not just on rooms but on food and shows.

Promotions is another area where a scrambling player can find real gold these days. Brad and I are finding more good plays than our tired old bodies can do.

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Q: I don't mean to be personal, but do you and your husband actually make money playing the video poker games in the casinos, or is your income from the sales of your products?

A: Yes, we make money playing VP; lots of money some years, just a little other years. Since we started playing VP in 1991, we have had only one losing year and that was a very small monetary loss. Some would say it was not a losing year at all since we don’t count comps, but have $20-40k worth of them each year. Much of our cash profit, especially in the last few years, comes more from slot club benefits and promotions rather from the games themselves. We find that our choice of good plays is much broader when we consider the total EV (expected value) of slightly negative games with high cash benefits and/or strong promotions than if we limit ourselves to positive games.

The money we make from the sales of my products is overall much less than what we make playing video poker. Writing is more an act of love!

Q: A comment from a poster on the Atlantic City VP Internet forum, mentioning Brad’s propensity to hit big jackpots, the latest being dealt a royal on a quarter Hundred Play machine, $100,000. “My wife and I have a deal. The one who hits a high jackpot shares 25% of the win with the other. Now if you guys aren't pooling funds, this is a good time to start that policy!”

A: We play out of one bankroll - our finances have been co-mingled from the git-go.

Q: I really appreciate the sacrifices of soldiers like your Army son-in-law. Can we send him a box?

A: The family appreciates your offer, but he is “out in the field” right now where mail delivery is very uncertain - and he is scheduled to come home in a few weeks. But click on this video for a great idea on how we all could show our appreciation when we see a soldier anywhere.

A: Yes, I dye my hair. And I vary the shades – Brad likes a variety of women.

A: Yes, I watch my weight. But remember - - - 'STRESSED' spelled backwards is 'DESSERTS'

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I was excited when I heard on the news that airlines were doubling the compensation for bumped passengers. You'll who have been following my travels down through the years know that getting bumped is one of my favorite frugal tricks. But once I read an article giving details about this new airline rule announced by the Transportation Department my excitement quickly changed to “Never mind.” This new mandated increase would only apply to involuntary bumping, not the kind when I volunteer. 

However, with the airlines looking for ways to cope with rising gas costs, by cutting routes and working to fly more full planes, there may be a rise in overbooking. And volunteers may need to be enticed with bigger payment packages so the airline can avoid the higher penalty for involuntary bumping.

Let’s hear it for airline overbooking! 

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 Although we have been urged by some to see a lawyer if we had procedures at the medical clinics under fire for unsafe medical practices, even if our blood tests came out negative, I have decided not to do so. I am not a litigious type and have never sued anyone or been sued – knock on wood. I was not in a state of anxiety while waiting for my test results, as so many said they were – I guess I’m too busy to be anxious! Besides, I think the money available for these lawsuits will be limited, and it should go to the unlucky people who were actually infected. 

It is coincidental but three weeks ago Brad had his every-5-year colonoscopy. (He has had polyps in the past plus a family history of colon cancer so this is routine.) His appointment had been scheduled before the Endoscopy Clinic scandal broke and was done in an outpatient clinic that was not owned by any of the doctors embroiled in the scandal and one that had passed its inspection. 

But all medical clinics are on their best behavior these days – in fact now might be the best time to get an out-patient (or hospital for that matter) procedure. Brad says the doctor who did his colonoscopy made a point of showing him the new vial as he removed it from the package and explaining in detail the sterile condition of the needles and syringes.

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