  Vegas. it's the city that invented the Disco Nap. for without it, there's no way in hell you'll survive Vegas. Los Angeles sleeps. New York sleeps. Tokyo and London...they sleep. not Vegas. I'd hate to be the guy who opens the electric bill at Bellagio or the Venetian. my money says the engergy crisis in California was caused by Vegas, because that place is so disgustingly lavish when it comes to flair.
I'm trying to calculate the portion of the quarter that I've just dropped into the Addams Family slot machine that goes towards the bill. if these assholes were smart, they'd invest in fuel cells...their profit margin would skyrocket. of course, the initial expense at current prices is probably ungodly. Danny found this amazing deal on Southwest...125 bucks for a plane ticket and two nights hotel. how could I say no? made plans to take off early Saturday morning and return very early Monday morning. then Danny accidentally got us on a plane at 8pm instead of 8am. then our plane was 40 minutes late...then they had to check the engine because they hit a couple of birds when they landed at Burbank, but the mechanic never came. thirty minutes later, they tell us we're on a new plane, but it has to be fueled up. I remember we took off eventually... landed and met up with an ex named Joe (man, was that weird. I could never call out his name during sex.). I delivered an order he'd placed for some pizza topping and salad. he had moved here seven months ago and was now dating the bouncer at one of the local gay bars. kids, never go to a gay bar in Vegas, especially if you've ever been to a gay bar in a major city.
they are capital TRAGIC. I felt kind of bad for Joe, and I'm also a bit confused because his boyfriend is not exactly what most people would consider attractive. but he's happy...can't begrudge that. I guess I just think he could do better if he wanted to. crashed sometime around 4:20a and slept like the dead till noon. Danny and I got up and hit the strip in search of a good breakfast.
after packing down the griddle snacks at the Venitian, we continued down the strip from there and slipped inside a nearby casino every time we got a bit toasty. We managed to make it down to Bellagio, where there was bad juju in the air. I lost money and my sunglasses. that's downright mean! bussed it back up the strip on an SRO stinkmobile to the Riviera for a disco nap and then it was back on the strip for dinner and a bit of gaming. ate at Denny's because well, I'm playing on a budget. then it was off to Treasure Island for a spell of blackjack. lost there too, but had a good time at the table nonetheless. I'll admit it, I looked for a gay boy and found one. the flirting was a nice bonus to the game, which went back and forth for quite some time. ultimately I ended up losing but I had quite a long run and it was fun.
Danny & I made our way back up the strip and disco napped for two hours back at the hotel. we woke up at 4:30 to catch our ride to the airport. We sank through low clouds to land at Burbank around 8am and drove back to my place. I crashed out for 6 hours...then did yard work until 6pm when I had to get ready for a date.
not a very restful vacation, now that I think about it. yeah, there's more...but I ain't tellin. pictures. I want to play with the new ones...build myself a half-pint Eiffel Tower resting in the desert. can't sleep as usual, and the doctor says I need to come in for blood tests. let's hope the spikes in the last sample they got (I fell sick just before my weekend in Sin City) have disappeared.
if they're still there, that's not good news...the optimist in me says "who cares? at least you have the family reunion in the desert over July 4th weekend coming. even if, buddha forbid, you're sick, you can at least have an escape to think and dance and sing and beat a drum under the black and star-filled sky of the mojave with your friends. Now there's a vacation. " cross your fingers, kids. 
