Summer 2012 – Day 28
This morning was spent alternating between writing my trip report and watching the Olympics. I’m surprised how much I’m enjoying them this year. It rained off and on all night and as I walked down the long, hall to the elevator to send in this report, I see five or six rooms with fans at the door. Also, the casino has about six tables covered in plastic. It seems the Orleans needs some roof work.
As I mentioned before, the only Internet access is available at the coffee stand, the Java House, located at the entrance of the hotel, so I take my laptop, put the mouse in my pocket and make the trek all the way down there to send in the report. I’ll admit the speed of the Internet here is fast, so I might want to remember this as another good access point for down the road.
It’s Aug 1, so I checked my bank accounts to see that all the deposits are where they’re supposed to be and it’s all good. Isn’t it amazing how everything is now done online? I only write a check for a payment of any kind about once every three months. There was only one seat available at the counter—it’s no secret there’s free Internet here. I bought an orange juice for my vitamin regimen and got everything posted and caught up on emails and such. The girls are on their way back home, so I texted them to let me know when they are home safe and sound—can’t take the father out of me.
When I was walking back to my room with my laptop under my arm, I saw a familiar figure walking in front of me. It was LVA member Paul (tennis bum). I stopped him and was surprised he was staying here at the Orleans as well. He mentioned that ECLVA members Catherine and Bob were still in town and that they were going to meet for dinner at the Chicago Pizza Co. in the Four Queens at 5:00. He invited me along, so it will be good to see them one last time before they fly back to the East Coast.
Today, I’m going to meet another LVA couple I haven’t met before, George and Gerri. They had sent me a PM that they’d be in town for a week or so at their time-share and would like to meet up for lunch. I gave George a call and we agreed to meet here at the Orleans at noon. I took care of the rest of my morning routines and went down to gamble a little. I only had about an hour before the lunch date, so I put in a hundred in the full pay Bonus Aces machines that are in front of the player’s booth. I’m hoping that my long, losing streak at single line VP will come to an end. Things didn’t look very good. Though I did manage to hang on for about 30 minutes, I was down into the teens when I hit quad 3s, and then went on a small run. I got my total back up to $90 and figured a $10 loss would be much better than a $100 loss and cashed out. I absolutely HATE playing scared, but this trip has been a bad one, so I need to tread lightly until things turn around. It’s the only smart thing to do.
I agreed to meet George and Gerri at the Java House at noon and when I arrived there, having told me he’d be wearing a bright, yellow t-shirt I noticed him immediately. What was funny was he was standing next to a guy who he thought was me. The guy had a goatee, was wearing a Hawaiian shirt, and was working on his laptop. We laughed as it was an easy mistake. I told him I wished it was me…this guy was about twenty-five years younger and had a full head of hair—definitely not me.
Boston's Pride: George and Gerri
We had a good lunch in the café. One of the great things about this blog I’ve been writing over the last eleven years (OMG, has it really been that long?) is the amazing people
I’ve met over the years because of it. Some have become very good, life-long friends and my other acquaintances have borne out the fact that LVA people are some of the nicest, most giving, friendliest people you’d ever want to meet and be associated with. George and Gerri are no exceptions. They’ve been married 40+ years, live in Boston, and are now both retired; however, each were working for competitor newspapers THE BOSTON GLOBE and THE BOSTON HERALD. They maintain a timeshare here in Las Vegas next to the South Point and have been following my reports for years. We had a great time meeting one another, sharing stories of families and Las Vegas, and I warned them that now that I know them, it’s not beyond my character to get in touch with them and hit them up for a room to stay the next time I’m over that way—and I will.
After lunch I got my things and drove over to the Costco on Martin Luther King Dr. as I wanted to fill up the tank ($3.22 per gallon) and get some more new underclothes. I was a little surprised when I walked in. There was hardly anyone here. I have never been to Costco anytime of the day and found the place so empty. I had to take a picture.
It must be odd for me to take a pic at a Costco...strangely empty at 2 in the afternoon
As I walked through the place, and it was the same size as all of them, I found some big differences: there were no sample food peddlers, there was no furniture, and there were no clothes of any kind. There were no books, magazines, no reading glasses and no hot dog/pizza hot food court. All that was for sell here was food and beverages. Well, they didn’t have what I wanted so I left—it was just odd.
I drove downtown and parked once again at Main Street Station and walked over to Fremont. This is what, the fourth or fifth time this trip I’ve made my way here? I made my way to the Fremont casino as I wanted to check out the newer full pay Pick ‘em machines located in front of the Keno lounge. As reported by someone on the LVA, they were there but under the name Pick a Pair and not only were they full pay, all the other games under the poker tab were at or very close to full pay: NSUD, 9/6/5 DB; 9/6/4 DDB; 8/5 BP; 9/6 Bonus Deluxe; and 8/5 Bonus Aces. It appears to me that when they installed the machines, no one bothered to change the factory settings. I’m not sure how long they’ll stay like this, and I’m sure my reporting it here isn’t going to help, but grab it while you can. The Fremont is a B-Connected slot club member.
My escort during this summer's trip--ah--now it all makes sense
I played Pick ‘em, and it was pretty much the same old song. I put in some significant time catching decent hands but never in a nice, long streak to allow a cash out, and I could never get that all-needed quad for a winning session. However, I got plenty of chances at a fair game, so there are no complaints here.
It was time to walk across the way to the Four Queens and the Chicago Pizza Co. I believe this is the fourth time I’ve eaten here this trip. There in the non-smoking section were Catherine (Bigfuss) and Paul (Tennis Bum). Bob (Rowanb) would be coming soon. We ordered pizza and Catherine told us about the nice suite she was given at the El Cortez and that she had just hit a royal here at the Four Queens. She also had a great run at a Dream Card machine at Red Rock, so her trip is going great. She doesn’t have to fly back to the East Coast until Saturday. Bob is flying back tonight, and Paul is driving back to California tomorrow. I, of course, am here for another ten days—still, I noted, one of the shortest summer trips is years for me.
We had a great dinner. Bob brought the leftover snacks and drinks to give to Paul as he was flying out and didn’t need them and we said our goodbyes to him. The three of us then walked back over to the Fremont as Paul and never played Pick ‘em and we wanted to give a short strategy lesson to him.
Paul, getting his lesson from Catherine on Pick 'em
Catherine put in a $20 and as she played we explained why you’d pick one card over the other and in many of the cases, it simply didn’t matter which card you played so it was, in fact, a Pick ‘em hoping for luck to be on your side. For Catherine, she had a real knack for picking the right card as she played on the $20 for a long time. Paul put in a $20 in his machine and gave it a shot. After about three or four hands, he hit a full house, which pays 90. He immediately cashed out having doubled hit money—he likes Pick ‘em. Catherine was still playing when she was dealt a real oddity; four jacks. Now is regular video poker, getting dealt a quad is great news; however, in Pick ‘em it’s terrible. You HAVE to throw one of them away which means there is no chance for a quad and the best hand you could hope for is a full house, but that didn’t happen. It’s so rare to get this dealt; I had to take a pic.
A dealt hand that's a disappointment in Pick 'em
We played a little longer until Catherine finally lost the $20, but what I nice run she had. We all said our goodbyes and hustled back to my car. It was 7:40 and I wanted to get back to my room in time to see the opening number of SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE. I drove a little faster than perhaps I should have, but I found a parking spot and made it to my room with four minutes to spare. I turned on the TV and there it was—a RERUN! It seems the other stations have simply given up to NBC and the Olympics and are showing reruns until they’re over. So, I did tune in and watched the men synchronized diving (who does this?) and women’s beach volleyball. I got the text that the girls were safe and sound back at home, so I turned the lights out and went to sleep.
More tomorrow.
This morning was spent alternating between writing my trip report and watching the Olympics. I’m surprised how much I’m enjoying them this year. It rained off and on all night and as I walked down the long, hall to the elevator to send in this report, I see five or six rooms with fans at the door. Also, the casino has about six tables covered in plastic. It seems the Orleans needs some roof work.
As I mentioned before, the only Internet access is available at the coffee stand, the Java House, located at the entrance of the hotel, so I take my laptop, put the mouse in my pocket and make the trek all the way down there to send in the report. I’ll admit the speed of the Internet here is fast, so I might want to remember this as another good access point for down the road.
It’s Aug 1, so I checked my bank accounts to see that all the deposits are where they’re supposed to be and it’s all good. Isn’t it amazing how everything is now done online? I only write a check for a payment of any kind about once every three months. There was only one seat available at the counter—it’s no secret there’s free Internet here. I bought an orange juice for my vitamin regimen and got everything posted and caught up on emails and such. The girls are on their way back home, so I texted them to let me know when they are home safe and sound—can’t take the father out of me.
When I was walking back to my room with my laptop under my arm, I saw a familiar figure walking in front of me. It was LVA member Paul (tennis bum). I stopped him and was surprised he was staying here at the Orleans as well. He mentioned that ECLVA members Catherine and Bob were still in town and that they were going to meet for dinner at the Chicago Pizza Co. in the Four Queens at 5:00. He invited me along, so it will be good to see them one last time before they fly back to the East Coast.
Today, I’m going to meet another LVA couple I haven’t met before, George and Gerri. They had sent me a PM that they’d be in town for a week or so at their time-share and would like to meet up for lunch. I gave George a call and we agreed to meet here at the Orleans at noon. I took care of the rest of my morning routines and went down to gamble a little. I only had about an hour before the lunch date, so I put in a hundred in the full pay Bonus Aces machines that are in front of the player’s booth. I’m hoping that my long, losing streak at single line VP will come to an end. Things didn’t look very good. Though I did manage to hang on for about 30 minutes, I was down into the teens when I hit quad 3s, and then went on a small run. I got my total back up to $90 and figured a $10 loss would be much better than a $100 loss and cashed out. I absolutely HATE playing scared, but this trip has been a bad one, so I need to tread lightly until things turn around. It’s the only smart thing to do.
I agreed to meet George and Gerri at the Java House at noon and when I arrived there, having told me he’d be wearing a bright, yellow t-shirt I noticed him immediately. What was funny was he was standing next to a guy who he thought was me. The guy had a goatee, was wearing a Hawaiian shirt, and was working on his laptop. We laughed as it was an easy mistake. I told him I wished it was me…this guy was about twenty-five years younger and had a full head of hair—definitely not me.
Boston's Pride: George and Gerri
We had a good lunch in the café. One of the great things about this blog I’ve been writing over the last eleven years (OMG, has it really been that long?) is the amazing people
I’ve met over the years because of it. Some have become very good, life-long friends and my other acquaintances have borne out the fact that LVA people are some of the nicest, most giving, friendliest people you’d ever want to meet and be associated with. George and Gerri are no exceptions. They’ve been married 40+ years, live in Boston, and are now both retired; however, each were working for competitor newspapers THE BOSTON GLOBE and THE BOSTON HERALD. They maintain a timeshare here in Las Vegas next to the South Point and have been following my reports for years. We had a great time meeting one another, sharing stories of families and Las Vegas, and I warned them that now that I know them, it’s not beyond my character to get in touch with them and hit them up for a room to stay the next time I’m over that way—and I will.
After lunch I got my things and drove over to the Costco on Martin Luther King Dr. as I wanted to fill up the tank ($3.22 per gallon) and get some more new underclothes. I was a little surprised when I walked in. There was hardly anyone here. I have never been to Costco anytime of the day and found the place so empty. I had to take a picture.
It must be odd for me to take a pic at a Costco...strangely empty at 2 in the afternoon
As I walked through the place, and it was the same size as all of them, I found some big differences: there were no sample food peddlers, there was no furniture, and there were no clothes of any kind. There were no books, magazines, no reading glasses and no hot dog/pizza hot food court. All that was for sell here was food and beverages. Well, they didn’t have what I wanted so I left—it was just odd.
I drove downtown and parked once again at Main Street Station and walked over to Fremont. This is what, the fourth or fifth time this trip I’ve made my way here? I made my way to the Fremont casino as I wanted to check out the newer full pay Pick ‘em machines located in front of the Keno lounge. As reported by someone on the LVA, they were there but under the name Pick a Pair and not only were they full pay, all the other games under the poker tab were at or very close to full pay: NSUD, 9/6/5 DB; 9/6/4 DDB; 8/5 BP; 9/6 Bonus Deluxe; and 8/5 Bonus Aces. It appears to me that when they installed the machines, no one bothered to change the factory settings. I’m not sure how long they’ll stay like this, and I’m sure my reporting it here isn’t going to help, but grab it while you can. The Fremont is a B-Connected slot club member.
My escort during this summer's trip--ah--now it all makes sense
I played Pick ‘em, and it was pretty much the same old song. I put in some significant time catching decent hands but never in a nice, long streak to allow a cash out, and I could never get that all-needed quad for a winning session. However, I got plenty of chances at a fair game, so there are no complaints here.
It was time to walk across the way to the Four Queens and the Chicago Pizza Co. I believe this is the fourth time I’ve eaten here this trip. There in the non-smoking section were Catherine (Bigfuss) and Paul (Tennis Bum). Bob (Rowanb) would be coming soon. We ordered pizza and Catherine told us about the nice suite she was given at the El Cortez and that she had just hit a royal here at the Four Queens. She also had a great run at a Dream Card machine at Red Rock, so her trip is going great. She doesn’t have to fly back to the East Coast until Saturday. Bob is flying back tonight, and Paul is driving back to California tomorrow. I, of course, am here for another ten days—still, I noted, one of the shortest summer trips is years for me.
We had a great dinner. Bob brought the leftover snacks and drinks to give to Paul as he was flying out and didn’t need them and we said our goodbyes to him. The three of us then walked back over to the Fremont as Paul and never played Pick ‘em and we wanted to give a short strategy lesson to him.
Paul, getting his lesson from Catherine on Pick 'em
Catherine put in a $20 and as she played we explained why you’d pick one card over the other and in many of the cases, it simply didn’t matter which card you played so it was, in fact, a Pick ‘em hoping for luck to be on your side. For Catherine, she had a real knack for picking the right card as she played on the $20 for a long time. Paul put in a $20 in his machine and gave it a shot. After about three or four hands, he hit a full house, which pays 90. He immediately cashed out having doubled hit money—he likes Pick ‘em. Catherine was still playing when she was dealt a real oddity; four jacks. Now is regular video poker, getting dealt a quad is great news; however, in Pick ‘em it’s terrible. You HAVE to throw one of them away which means there is no chance for a quad and the best hand you could hope for is a full house, but that didn’t happen. It’s so rare to get this dealt; I had to take a pic.
A dealt hand that's a disappointment in Pick 'em
We played a little longer until Catherine finally lost the $20, but what I nice run she had. We all said our goodbyes and hustled back to my car. It was 7:40 and I wanted to get back to my room in time to see the opening number of SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE. I drove a little faster than perhaps I should have, but I found a parking spot and made it to my room with four minutes to spare. I turned on the TV and there it was—a RERUN! It seems the other stations have simply given up to NBC and the Olympics and are showing reruns until they’re over. So, I did tune in and watched the men synchronized diving (who does this?) and women’s beach volleyball. I got the text that the girls were safe and sound back at home, so I turned the lights out and went to sleep.
More tomorrow.
