Annual Son’s B-Day Trip Report
Okay, this one’s a little late, but there’s a good reason. Is it that I’m getting old and forgetful or simply not thinking straight? I left for Las Vegas at 4:00 AM on December 27th and picked up my son in Carlsbad around 5:00. It was then I realized that not only had I left without my camera, I also neglected to take my laptop (something I NEVER do). So this means, I’m going to have to write this TR from memory and as noted above, that doesn’t seem to be one of my strong suits.
Since my son (Jon Jr.) turned 21, we have made a pilgrimage to Las Vegas somewhere around his birthday (Dec 17) and this now makes our 16th trip together. It’s a good time for just the two of us to catch up on things and talk about the past year and what awaits us in the next.
We arrived in LV around 8:00 AM. First stop was Center City as we wanted to check out the new Cosmopolitan Resort. We parked in the Center City underground parking garage, which end up being fairly easy to maneuver and the elevators empty out into Crystals (is it pronounced “tals or talls?”). How these stores manage to stay in business is beyond me (there seems to be a premium mall in every new hotel not to mention all over town). Though it’s spacious and remarkably clean, the stores had very few people in them. I find that the (reportedly millions) spent on the art pieces to be completely underwhelming and the swirling water display much ado about nothing (somewhere there are “artists” laughing all the way to the bank).
We walked into Aria and played a John Wayne penny machine where I profited a bit and then it was on to the Cosmo. This resort just opened its doors last week. My son remarked just how much we now take for granted in these new mega-resorts. Whereas we should have simply been awestruck with the beauty of the casino with all its adornments, massive chandeliers, and the strings of crystals as an umbrella to the bar, we just saw “another” new, pretty casino.
We did find that the store with the hundreds of antique sewing machines that made up the walls was unique (someone did a lot of shopping on Ebay). We also waited in line for their slot card (same point ratio comps as all the resorts) and were greeted by a lady, whose job it was to keep people in line, who was very friendly. When I got my card, I asked the clerk if she had to work on Christmas Day, and she remarked she had but that it was okay: she was just happy to have a job! (Amen). Overall, this is another very nice casino, but nothing particularly unique or worth another trip (unless, of course, they send an offer my way).
It was still much too early to check into the Main Street Station downtown, so we headed over to the new Pinball Museum. This was a much larger building with a few more machines. We played the new Avatar Pinball, which was a blast and a few other games. We walked past the old Tron Machine where my son said he used to just kill back in the day. To my surprise, he still remembered all the moves and was able to get his name in the top second spot. We had lunch at a Chipotle outlet across from UNLV where I had a margarita (strong) with my burrito. Good food.
Jon never gets the chance to see adult movies in theaters anymore (four kids), so we use these trips each year to catch a couple. We drove over to Texas Station and saw TRUE GRIT, which we both loved. We played penny games, and he made a bet on the ponies in the Sportsbook before we headed downtown.
As the years pass, we try to make an effort to stay in a different hotel each time and being as this is our 16th year and trying to stay in places where I can get a comp, this is getting more and more challenging. The only reason we’re staying at Main Street Station is because we’re here for three nights and my Harrah’s comp was for only two nights, which we selected the Flamingo as we’ve yet to stay there.
When we got to Main Street Station, I was shocked to find they didn’t have my reservation. Now, I had my post card with the comp on it, but there wasn’t my usual confirmation number that I always write on it (is it possible I actually forgot to make the reservation?). Fortunately, the clerk called Marketing and got the okay to go ahead and honor the freebie. The room was just fine for our needs. Since they’ve remodeled the rooms here, the shower heads are now at a reasonable level and the mattresses comfy.
It was dinnertime and I suggested we walk over to the Four Queens for some of their GREAT pizza in the Chicago Company. It’s small and with Monday Night Football going on, we were lucky to catch a couple of spots at the bar. While we waited for our pizza, I played some 7/5 Bonus Poker. I hit some good hands and cashed out +$50 (free dinner—yea!). The pizza (thin crust) is still one of best I’ve ever had.
We played some penny games (Jon. loves the Time Machine) at the Four Queens but lost and then played some at Main Street Station. Being that this is the week between Christmas and New Year’s, there are A LOT of people in town, most coming in for the New Year’s celebrations (I always get offers for New Year’s Eve, but I never take any of these in Vegas—just too NUTS for me). As has become our habit, I went to bed around 9:00 PM and Jon Jr. went down to play.
He didn’t get in until around 1:00 AM and had good things to report on his gaming and having gone to most the casinos downtown. Needless to say, I was up in the morning before him and showered and headed down to the bar where they still have 9/6 Jacks or Better with full points. I managed to hit four quads (all the scratch cards were for two bucks each), and I managed to make a hundred or so.
Today, we were going to leave MSS and check into the Flamingo later, but again, still too early. We hadn’t had breakfast yet, so the next stop was to Harrah’s for their buffet (I could use my points). This is one of the better buffets (for a Harrah’s property) and we enjoyed our meal. We then walked across the street to the Forum Shoppes. The stores were just opening as we walked by a UGGS store. Jon mentioned that his wife, Libby, wanted a special pair of Uggs and texted her if he should look for them. (As he was texting her, I secretly text her telling her to tell him no). We played a little at Caesars and lost. It was still too early to leave so we chose to see another movie. We decided on THE KING’S SPEECH, which was showing at the Green Valley Ranch (GVR).
We both remarked how much we used to love the TV show CASINO when it was on and what a coup GVR pulled with that show. When the show was going on, you couldn’t get a seat at GVR and turned many of the staff into stars that everyone wanted a picture with. We both wonder what happened to all of them and where they are today. We played some of the new Star Wars games (we both like them a lot, but tough to win anything on them), and then I found a bank of the Rockin’ Olives. We waited for a couple of seats to open and played. These are currently my favorite machines. You get a lot of bang for your buck plus there are many different and fun bonuses.
It was time for our movie. Neither of us was expecting too much outside of hearing that it got great reviews. Well, we both end up loving it. I highly recommend this movie. We would normally have headed over to the Flamingo to check in, but I told Jon that we needed to run over to the M Resort first as we were going to meet up with Terry (dorianmac) who was flying in and wanted to say meet up with us for a bit.
When we got to the M, John called Libby, who said she was busy doing laundry. I told Jon that while he was on the phone, Terry had text that his plane was going to be late getting into Vegas by about an hour. We wandered around playing a few machines here and there and I finally received a text that it was time to go over to the Registration Lobby. We walked over and that’s when Jon Jr. found Libby there waiting for him. There was no Terry coming in from Denver. It was all a ruse as Libby and I had conspired weeks before that she make arrangements for the kids, and she would drive to Vegas to surprise him. Jon had always wanted to stay at the M, and I had arranged for a couple nights in one of their rooms facing the Strip.
Now the funny thing about this story is that when we were coming out of the movie at GVR today, Jon mentioned that the best birthday he’d ever had was when I surprised him when Libby showed up there about eight years ago. Little did he know that he was about to get that surprise all over again.
The surprise worked like a charm as he was really happy to find that Libby wasn’t doing laundry at home, but on her way to see him. They loved their room and I said my goodbyes as I had still yet to check into the Flamingo. I left the car with the valet and the clerk in the Diamond Registration gave me a room right next to the elevator on the 9th floor with my view facing Ballys and the Strip. Though the view was great, the room was old and pretty worn. The bathroom was truly tiny (Silverton Hotel tiny), the carpet was stained, the mattress a little hard, and it had an old tube TV. However, it was okay with me, but I was really glad my son didn’t have to stay here.
It was long past dinner time for me, so I headed across the street to O’Shea’s to grab a Subway spicy Italian sandwich. I watched the beer pong drunks for a little (always a free entertaining show) and then headed back to my room to enjoy the sub and go to sleep. However, I got a call and it was David (timberwolf) who happened to be in the Planet Hollywood Hotel in the Diamond Lounge. I got dressed and walked over to meet them. I didn't even know PH had a Diamond Lounge.
The DL is located upstairs in what used to be the London Club back in the Aladdin Days. Dave and his friend Dan from the their college days were there watching the football game on a wall-size TV screen. They had the usual snacks (miserable) as most LV DLs these days. Dave introduced me to the mud slide. We watched the game and had a great time chatting it up. Four mudslides later and another shot, I was a little toasted and managed to get back to my room in one place.
The next morning, I decided to try out the Flamingo buffet for breakfast. I had never tried this one and can easily say I will never again. It seems hard to screw up a breakfast buffet, but the Flamingo manages to do it. The selections were the bare minimum, the bacon was undercooked and greasy, the eggs were cold, potatoes stale, and even the fruit looked questionable. I’m glad I didn’t have to pay for it (used points).
During breakfast, I text Jon Jr. that the day was going to be for he and Libby for some alone time, but that I would take them to dinner in the evening at Billy Bob’s in Sam’s Town. He agreed but wrote that they’d like to see a movie and would meet me at Sam’s around 4:00.
You might notice that I’m not writing about much gambling. This is because being that it’s the end of the year, and I’ve already achieved my Diamond level for next, there is really no reason to give any business to Harrahs (a flaw in their system) until next year. However, I do have a lot of points with Coast properties and I plan to use a lot of them at Billy Bob’s tonight at Sam’s, so I drove on over to Sam’s to play a little bit. Their quarter 9/6 bank of Jacks had a progressive for the Royal over $1700, so camped down for a long run. I played for a good three hours, but couldn’t catch the elusive Royal. I did manage to play a long time and breaking about even.
Jon and Libby weren’t going to be showing up for another hour, so I sat down at a four-play Cleopatra machine ($1.00 per spin) and managed to catch a few bonus rounds here and there and managed to make about $40. When Jon and Libby arrived, we decided to see THE FIGHTER. The Mark Walhberg with Christian Bale movie was very good and we all agreed it certainly is worth all the Oscar hype.
We had dinner at Billy Bob’s. The portions big and the food good. There was no problem paying the bill with my points, and Jon left the tip. I said my goodbyes to my son and his wife as tomorrow I was going to check out and head on to Laughlin where I would be spending New Year’s Eve, and they would be heading back to Carlsbad.
On my way out of Sam’s, I made the mistake of stopping at the 4-play Cleopatra game, as this time, with two bonus rounds netting 23 credits, I headed back to the Flamingo and on to bed.
The next morning (Dec 30), I was off to Laughlin with the usual stop at the Costco in Henderson to fill up the car ($2.95 per gallon). Surprisingly, as I drove through Searchlight, there was still quite a bit of snow along the road. When I got into Laughlin, I checked into Harrahs and was given a room in the Central Tower. After dropping off my things, I drove over to the shopping center so I could see BURLESQUE. The movie was okay. It was good to see Cher in a film again. Though I really enjoyed the music, the story was pretty thin.
I drove across the street to the Colorado Belle and sat down at the bar to play some 8/5 Bonus and watch some college football. I hit a couple of quads and was able to cash out with a small profit. The Belle is packed as people are all in for New Year’s. I drove back to Harrahs and walked over to the promotions area to pick up my packet. This package included three free nights, two dinners for the big night, and a seat at the New Year’s Eve show. Like the Belle, Harrahs is absolutely full and I couldn’t help but notice that every single machine had someone playing at them. I walked over to the Diamond Lounge, but it was also full and there was nowhere to sit, so I simply went back to my room. Having eaten during my drive and snacks at the movie, I wasn’t hungry for any kind of dinner.
The next day (New Year’s Eve), I went across the river to Bullhead to gas up the car ($2.63 per gallon) and then drove over to the Avi to see yet another movie (these trips for me are the only time I get the chance to see movies and, as you can tell, I take advantage of it). The plan was to see THE FOCKERS but I was an hour early, so I decided to see GULLIVER’S TRAVELS. This turned out to be a very bad choice. It was one of the few movies I considered walking out on, but I kept thinking it must get better—it never did.
I left the movie feeling a bit ripped off, but my mood soon changed as I sat down to an 8/5 Bonus Poker coin dropper (yes, the Avi still uses plenty of coin dropping machines). I was holding my own and up some when I caught four deuces and a couple other quads, so I was able to cash out an extra $60 (lugging two buckets full of quarters brought back some fun memories).
It was time to use the NYE dinners that came with the offer (just a free buffet, which was closed to the general public for the event, but included seafood and an open bar), so I put on my yellow wrist band and took my extra one down with me in case I saw anyone in line that wanted my extra one. I had mostly crab legs and a couple of Chinese dishes with some cherry pie and left full. I didn’t care to go to the “show” which is really just an orchestra with dancing. I haven’t stayed up for New Year’s now for past four or five years, and I wanted to get an early start to playing for next year’s (2012) Diamond. With the exception of hearing some early revelers in the halls, I slept through the festivities.
I was down and began grinding out the points at 6:00 AM on New Year’s Day. I decided to play the nickel 8/5 super double bonus 50-play, which can be rather risky, but having done very little gambling this trip coupled with being a little ahead, I wanted to give it a shot (at $12.50 per deal this experiment may or may not last long). The beginning of the session went okay with a few quads to keep me going. I was dealt three Aces, but was pissed when not one quad came out of it. However, holding a K/10 of spades, one of the hands popped up with the first Royal of the day ($200 at nickel play).
For the next three hours I played and when the dust was settled, I was never dealt a quad (rats!), but was dealt four-to-a-Royal three times and the net ending was seven Royal Flushes and a $250 profit, plus 2400 ($24,000 played) points towards my next Diamond. I didn’t feel like staying the extra night, so packed up my things and headed back to Pine Valley, which took me the usual five hours.
Overall, this was a very good trip. I came home with a few hundred dollars more than I left with. I had a great time with my son. I was able to pull off another big surprise with having his wife there waiting for him. With the exception of the one Jack Black movie, I was very happy with the flicks this trip. I honestly did very little (almost no) drinking, and for once, I didn’t overeat as much as I have on trips in the past.
I am very sorry that there are no pictures (I’ll try to never forget my camera again). I’m sure that I’ve forgotten some details, which is why I like to do my trip reports daily.
Until next time, have a Very Happy New Year and may there be MANY Royals in 2011.
Okay, this one’s a little late, but there’s a good reason. Is it that I’m getting old and forgetful or simply not thinking straight? I left for Las Vegas at 4:00 AM on December 27th and picked up my son in Carlsbad around 5:00. It was then I realized that not only had I left without my camera, I also neglected to take my laptop (something I NEVER do). So this means, I’m going to have to write this TR from memory and as noted above, that doesn’t seem to be one of my strong suits.
Since my son (Jon Jr.) turned 21, we have made a pilgrimage to Las Vegas somewhere around his birthday (Dec 17) and this now makes our 16th trip together. It’s a good time for just the two of us to catch up on things and talk about the past year and what awaits us in the next.
We arrived in LV around 8:00 AM. First stop was Center City as we wanted to check out the new Cosmopolitan Resort. We parked in the Center City underground parking garage, which end up being fairly easy to maneuver and the elevators empty out into Crystals (is it pronounced “tals or talls?”). How these stores manage to stay in business is beyond me (there seems to be a premium mall in every new hotel not to mention all over town). Though it’s spacious and remarkably clean, the stores had very few people in them. I find that the (reportedly millions) spent on the art pieces to be completely underwhelming and the swirling water display much ado about nothing (somewhere there are “artists” laughing all the way to the bank).
We walked into Aria and played a John Wayne penny machine where I profited a bit and then it was on to the Cosmo. This resort just opened its doors last week. My son remarked just how much we now take for granted in these new mega-resorts. Whereas we should have simply been awestruck with the beauty of the casino with all its adornments, massive chandeliers, and the strings of crystals as an umbrella to the bar, we just saw “another” new, pretty casino.
We did find that the store with the hundreds of antique sewing machines that made up the walls was unique (someone did a lot of shopping on Ebay). We also waited in line for their slot card (same point ratio comps as all the resorts) and were greeted by a lady, whose job it was to keep people in line, who was very friendly. When I got my card, I asked the clerk if she had to work on Christmas Day, and she remarked she had but that it was okay: she was just happy to have a job! (Amen). Overall, this is another very nice casino, but nothing particularly unique or worth another trip (unless, of course, they send an offer my way).
It was still much too early to check into the Main Street Station downtown, so we headed over to the new Pinball Museum. This was a much larger building with a few more machines. We played the new Avatar Pinball, which was a blast and a few other games. We walked past the old Tron Machine where my son said he used to just kill back in the day. To my surprise, he still remembered all the moves and was able to get his name in the top second spot. We had lunch at a Chipotle outlet across from UNLV where I had a margarita (strong) with my burrito. Good food.
Jon never gets the chance to see adult movies in theaters anymore (four kids), so we use these trips each year to catch a couple. We drove over to Texas Station and saw TRUE GRIT, which we both loved. We played penny games, and he made a bet on the ponies in the Sportsbook before we headed downtown.
As the years pass, we try to make an effort to stay in a different hotel each time and being as this is our 16th year and trying to stay in places where I can get a comp, this is getting more and more challenging. The only reason we’re staying at Main Street Station is because we’re here for three nights and my Harrah’s comp was for only two nights, which we selected the Flamingo as we’ve yet to stay there.
When we got to Main Street Station, I was shocked to find they didn’t have my reservation. Now, I had my post card with the comp on it, but there wasn’t my usual confirmation number that I always write on it (is it possible I actually forgot to make the reservation?). Fortunately, the clerk called Marketing and got the okay to go ahead and honor the freebie. The room was just fine for our needs. Since they’ve remodeled the rooms here, the shower heads are now at a reasonable level and the mattresses comfy.
It was dinnertime and I suggested we walk over to the Four Queens for some of their GREAT pizza in the Chicago Company. It’s small and with Monday Night Football going on, we were lucky to catch a couple of spots at the bar. While we waited for our pizza, I played some 7/5 Bonus Poker. I hit some good hands and cashed out +$50 (free dinner—yea!). The pizza (thin crust) is still one of best I’ve ever had.
We played some penny games (Jon. loves the Time Machine) at the Four Queens but lost and then played some at Main Street Station. Being that this is the week between Christmas and New Year’s, there are A LOT of people in town, most coming in for the New Year’s celebrations (I always get offers for New Year’s Eve, but I never take any of these in Vegas—just too NUTS for me). As has become our habit, I went to bed around 9:00 PM and Jon Jr. went down to play.
He didn’t get in until around 1:00 AM and had good things to report on his gaming and having gone to most the casinos downtown. Needless to say, I was up in the morning before him and showered and headed down to the bar where they still have 9/6 Jacks or Better with full points. I managed to hit four quads (all the scratch cards were for two bucks each), and I managed to make a hundred or so.
Today, we were going to leave MSS and check into the Flamingo later, but again, still too early. We hadn’t had breakfast yet, so the next stop was to Harrah’s for their buffet (I could use my points). This is one of the better buffets (for a Harrah’s property) and we enjoyed our meal. We then walked across the street to the Forum Shoppes. The stores were just opening as we walked by a UGGS store. Jon mentioned that his wife, Libby, wanted a special pair of Uggs and texted her if he should look for them. (As he was texting her, I secretly text her telling her to tell him no). We played a little at Caesars and lost. It was still too early to leave so we chose to see another movie. We decided on THE KING’S SPEECH, which was showing at the Green Valley Ranch (GVR).
We both remarked how much we used to love the TV show CASINO when it was on and what a coup GVR pulled with that show. When the show was going on, you couldn’t get a seat at GVR and turned many of the staff into stars that everyone wanted a picture with. We both wonder what happened to all of them and where they are today. We played some of the new Star Wars games (we both like them a lot, but tough to win anything on them), and then I found a bank of the Rockin’ Olives. We waited for a couple of seats to open and played. These are currently my favorite machines. You get a lot of bang for your buck plus there are many different and fun bonuses.
It was time for our movie. Neither of us was expecting too much outside of hearing that it got great reviews. Well, we both end up loving it. I highly recommend this movie. We would normally have headed over to the Flamingo to check in, but I told Jon that we needed to run over to the M Resort first as we were going to meet up with Terry (dorianmac) who was flying in and wanted to say meet up with us for a bit.
When we got to the M, John called Libby, who said she was busy doing laundry. I told Jon that while he was on the phone, Terry had text that his plane was going to be late getting into Vegas by about an hour. We wandered around playing a few machines here and there and I finally received a text that it was time to go over to the Registration Lobby. We walked over and that’s when Jon Jr. found Libby there waiting for him. There was no Terry coming in from Denver. It was all a ruse as Libby and I had conspired weeks before that she make arrangements for the kids, and she would drive to Vegas to surprise him. Jon had always wanted to stay at the M, and I had arranged for a couple nights in one of their rooms facing the Strip.
Now the funny thing about this story is that when we were coming out of the movie at GVR today, Jon mentioned that the best birthday he’d ever had was when I surprised him when Libby showed up there about eight years ago. Little did he know that he was about to get that surprise all over again.
The surprise worked like a charm as he was really happy to find that Libby wasn’t doing laundry at home, but on her way to see him. They loved their room and I said my goodbyes as I had still yet to check into the Flamingo. I left the car with the valet and the clerk in the Diamond Registration gave me a room right next to the elevator on the 9th floor with my view facing Ballys and the Strip. Though the view was great, the room was old and pretty worn. The bathroom was truly tiny (Silverton Hotel tiny), the carpet was stained, the mattress a little hard, and it had an old tube TV. However, it was okay with me, but I was really glad my son didn’t have to stay here.
It was long past dinner time for me, so I headed across the street to O’Shea’s to grab a Subway spicy Italian sandwich. I watched the beer pong drunks for a little (always a free entertaining show) and then headed back to my room to enjoy the sub and go to sleep. However, I got a call and it was David (timberwolf) who happened to be in the Planet Hollywood Hotel in the Diamond Lounge. I got dressed and walked over to meet them. I didn't even know PH had a Diamond Lounge.
The DL is located upstairs in what used to be the London Club back in the Aladdin Days. Dave and his friend Dan from the their college days were there watching the football game on a wall-size TV screen. They had the usual snacks (miserable) as most LV DLs these days. Dave introduced me to the mud slide. We watched the game and had a great time chatting it up. Four mudslides later and another shot, I was a little toasted and managed to get back to my room in one place.
The next morning, I decided to try out the Flamingo buffet for breakfast. I had never tried this one and can easily say I will never again. It seems hard to screw up a breakfast buffet, but the Flamingo manages to do it. The selections were the bare minimum, the bacon was undercooked and greasy, the eggs were cold, potatoes stale, and even the fruit looked questionable. I’m glad I didn’t have to pay for it (used points).
During breakfast, I text Jon Jr. that the day was going to be for he and Libby for some alone time, but that I would take them to dinner in the evening at Billy Bob’s in Sam’s Town. He agreed but wrote that they’d like to see a movie and would meet me at Sam’s around 4:00.
You might notice that I’m not writing about much gambling. This is because being that it’s the end of the year, and I’ve already achieved my Diamond level for next, there is really no reason to give any business to Harrahs (a flaw in their system) until next year. However, I do have a lot of points with Coast properties and I plan to use a lot of them at Billy Bob’s tonight at Sam’s, so I drove on over to Sam’s to play a little bit. Their quarter 9/6 bank of Jacks had a progressive for the Royal over $1700, so camped down for a long run. I played for a good three hours, but couldn’t catch the elusive Royal. I did manage to play a long time and breaking about even.
Jon and Libby weren’t going to be showing up for another hour, so I sat down at a four-play Cleopatra machine ($1.00 per spin) and managed to catch a few bonus rounds here and there and managed to make about $40. When Jon and Libby arrived, we decided to see THE FIGHTER. The Mark Walhberg with Christian Bale movie was very good and we all agreed it certainly is worth all the Oscar hype.
We had dinner at Billy Bob’s. The portions big and the food good. There was no problem paying the bill with my points, and Jon left the tip. I said my goodbyes to my son and his wife as tomorrow I was going to check out and head on to Laughlin where I would be spending New Year’s Eve, and they would be heading back to Carlsbad.
On my way out of Sam’s, I made the mistake of stopping at the 4-play Cleopatra game, as this time, with two bonus rounds netting 23 credits, I headed back to the Flamingo and on to bed.
The next morning (Dec 30), I was off to Laughlin with the usual stop at the Costco in Henderson to fill up the car ($2.95 per gallon). Surprisingly, as I drove through Searchlight, there was still quite a bit of snow along the road. When I got into Laughlin, I checked into Harrahs and was given a room in the Central Tower. After dropping off my things, I drove over to the shopping center so I could see BURLESQUE. The movie was okay. It was good to see Cher in a film again. Though I really enjoyed the music, the story was pretty thin.
I drove across the street to the Colorado Belle and sat down at the bar to play some 8/5 Bonus and watch some college football. I hit a couple of quads and was able to cash out with a small profit. The Belle is packed as people are all in for New Year’s. I drove back to Harrahs and walked over to the promotions area to pick up my packet. This package included three free nights, two dinners for the big night, and a seat at the New Year’s Eve show. Like the Belle, Harrahs is absolutely full and I couldn’t help but notice that every single machine had someone playing at them. I walked over to the Diamond Lounge, but it was also full and there was nowhere to sit, so I simply went back to my room. Having eaten during my drive and snacks at the movie, I wasn’t hungry for any kind of dinner.
The next day (New Year’s Eve), I went across the river to Bullhead to gas up the car ($2.63 per gallon) and then drove over to the Avi to see yet another movie (these trips for me are the only time I get the chance to see movies and, as you can tell, I take advantage of it). The plan was to see THE FOCKERS but I was an hour early, so I decided to see GULLIVER’S TRAVELS. This turned out to be a very bad choice. It was one of the few movies I considered walking out on, but I kept thinking it must get better—it never did.
I left the movie feeling a bit ripped off, but my mood soon changed as I sat down to an 8/5 Bonus Poker coin dropper (yes, the Avi still uses plenty of coin dropping machines). I was holding my own and up some when I caught four deuces and a couple other quads, so I was able to cash out an extra $60 (lugging two buckets full of quarters brought back some fun memories).
It was time to use the NYE dinners that came with the offer (just a free buffet, which was closed to the general public for the event, but included seafood and an open bar), so I put on my yellow wrist band and took my extra one down with me in case I saw anyone in line that wanted my extra one. I had mostly crab legs and a couple of Chinese dishes with some cherry pie and left full. I didn’t care to go to the “show” which is really just an orchestra with dancing. I haven’t stayed up for New Year’s now for past four or five years, and I wanted to get an early start to playing for next year’s (2012) Diamond. With the exception of hearing some early revelers in the halls, I slept through the festivities.
I was down and began grinding out the points at 6:00 AM on New Year’s Day. I decided to play the nickel 8/5 super double bonus 50-play, which can be rather risky, but having done very little gambling this trip coupled with being a little ahead, I wanted to give it a shot (at $12.50 per deal this experiment may or may not last long). The beginning of the session went okay with a few quads to keep me going. I was dealt three Aces, but was pissed when not one quad came out of it. However, holding a K/10 of spades, one of the hands popped up with the first Royal of the day ($200 at nickel play).
For the next three hours I played and when the dust was settled, I was never dealt a quad (rats!), but was dealt four-to-a-Royal three times and the net ending was seven Royal Flushes and a $250 profit, plus 2400 ($24,000 played) points towards my next Diamond. I didn’t feel like staying the extra night, so packed up my things and headed back to Pine Valley, which took me the usual five hours.
Overall, this was a very good trip. I came home with a few hundred dollars more than I left with. I had a great time with my son. I was able to pull off another big surprise with having his wife there waiting for him. With the exception of the one Jack Black movie, I was very happy with the flicks this trip. I honestly did very little (almost no) drinking, and for once, I didn’t overeat as much as I have on trips in the past.
I am very sorry that there are no pictures (I’ll try to never forget my camera again). I’m sure that I’ve forgotten some details, which is why I like to do my trip reports daily.
Until next time, have a Very Happy New Year and may there be MANY Royals in 2011.
