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Las Vegas 2002 - Saturday February 23

There are a lot of pictures on this page, so it may take a few minutes to download all of them.  They are shown here in chronological order.

Frank and I woke up about 10:00 A.M.  Called Paul and Todd's room and we all met at the cafe downstairs.  At 1:31 P.M. we got back from eating at the café downstairs. Todd and Paul went to their room to use the bathroom, because I didn’t want them to use ours!  I was sick of Paul using our bidet to wash his ass.  So after Paul finished his thing we all met in the suite before heading out onto the strip.

We left the Mirage and started walking south down the street, past Ceasars Palace.  In the picture you can see the headless statue in their fountain.  Ceasars looks like it might be a very nice place to stay- it has character and a good location on the strip.  It was a bright sunny day and because it was Saturday in Las Vegas, the sidewalks were bustling with tourists.  Because we had already been in Ceasars Palace, we didn't bother stopping there again.

So we continued heading South on the strip until we got to the Bellagio.

While at the Bellagio Todd won a souvenir coin on a coin slot.  We had to wait for what seemed like an hour for them to fill the machine back up so that Todd could get his coin.  Finally!  I sat down and won a coin myself.

They brought us drinks while we waited.  I stuck to my plan on this trip of not drinking any booze until sundown, so I drank a lot of free orange juice during the day.  It was a good thing too, because I felt like a cold was trying to develop the entire vacation.  And when I got back home, I did come down with a bad cold.  Here you can see Frank at a slot machine he just lost $900 on.   He said he would have punched the machine, but his hand is already full of metal from the last time he "taught" an inanimate object a lesson.

While exploring the Bellagio, we went into the Garden where I took several pictures, all of which turned out fantastic.  These little thumbs don't really do it justice.

Another picture of the Bellagio Garden.  Lots of people were wandering about, taking pictures of each other.  I was concentrating on the plants.  

The Paris hotel on the left, and the Aladdin on the right.  It was a beautiful day and the temperature was perfect.

Todd Roberts, Paul Smith, and Frank Mastrilli.

Why the smiles?  We're losing our ass on these Elvis machines in the Aladdin.  Our luck was shaky on all slot machines, the entire vacation.

Paul wanted to pee in his quarter bucket, but Frank made him go to the restroom instead.

Meet my conservative friend Frank, who once rode a roller coaster butt naked in the middle of the night (he was the roller coaster foreman and knew how to set it up).  We left the Aladdin and headed south to explore the MGM Grand- a huge property that a person could get lost in.  They have the worlds largest casino at 185,000 square feet.  While there we played in the video arcade where Todd played several games and collected a substantial number of tickets, redeemable for trinkets at the trinket counter.  We went to Emerils, Sharon had made it clear she wanted something from his restaurant.  They were getting ready to open for lunch, and it looked as if the employees were getting a pep talk from the manager in the back.  Paul took forever picking something out, but settled on a Emerils Cookbook.  On our way back, we saw an oxygen bar that looked interesting.  The girls running it said it would cure a hangover, so I said I'd be back tomorrow to try it out.  We finally located the souvenir slot machine and took turns winning a MGM coin.

The New York New York during daylight hours.  For the heck of it I replaced the bland looking sky with a Photoshop 5.0 gradient fill and 35 mm lens flare effect, which looks like the sun.

This roulette wheel was fixed.  I can't remember exactly which casino this was.  I tried my variant of the martingale technique of doubling your bet after every loss.  I lost about 4 times in a row betting on red each time and said, "to hell with this" and moved on.  Todd had better luck making many small bets all over the board.

The NYNY just after dark.  It was good to see this property again, as it brought back memories of Susan and I exploring the resort.  I won a coin there.  Paul bought some stuff from their magic shop (sucker!).  Maybe it's my fault because I was the one that started watching the magic shop employee perform his tricks, and he was excellent.  Paul was intrigued, and he had to buy the magic set to learn the trick, which they showed him in the back.  We played with the "levitating card" kit back at the hotel the next night- it's basically done by using an impossibly small strand of fiber and a spot of wax.

Sign in front of the MGM Grand.  It was constantly changing and showing advertisements for various shows and features.  Last year I was able to take pictures of this same sign all the way from our room at the Mandalay Bay.

The Tropicana.  I don't remember if we went in there or not.

My friend Paul Smith.

My friend Frank again.  Why the squinting?  Must have been the glare from all of those Las Vegas signs.

Frank and Paul.

Night shot, looking toward the Paris.  I've been to Las Vegas twice now, stayed at the Mandalay Bay the first time, and the Mirage the second.  Both are great places- you can't go wrong staying at either one.  As nice as they were I'm determined to keep trying new hotels.  If I went back again this year with Susan, I would probably stay at the Venetian or the Paris.  If I went back again with my guy-friends, then I would probably try out the Luxor or Cesars Palace.  

Another shot of the Aladdin.  Susan stayed here in late 2001 when she went to Las Vegas with her accounting staff.  It's one of the newest properties on the strip.  One of her co-workers won $9,000 on a slot machine there.

The fountains in front of the Bellagio, one of the neatest free things to see on the strip.  They are sequenced to music and go off every 15 minutes after dusk.  They are so fun to watch- I wish they just ran constantly.

The tower in front of the Paris hotel.  I've been to the top (observation deck with Susan) but never made it up there with the guys, which is a shame because some of my favorite Las Vegas strip pictures were taken from up there.

The fountains in front of Ceasars Palace at night.  Las Vegas really comes alive at night, it feels like an entirely different city once the sun goes down.  You can almost feel the excitement in the air.

The gang, back in the hotel suite recharging before heading out for the night.

We went back out onto the strip, this time heading North along the strip.  Above you see one of the Pirate Ships used in the Pirate show at the Treasure Island.  We never did catch the pirate show, although we did see some of the fireworks and explosions from the window of our suite a couple of times.  And we tried to catch the last show on the last night we were there, but just missed it.

Todd went to lick the tits on this brass statue, and chipped a tooth.  I felt compelled to quickly point out that his tounge was probably not the first for today, and that he probably now needed shots.  He didn't care.

View of the Mirage.  I think one of the room lights at the top might be ours- we never bothered turning the lights out when we left, after all Las Vegas is all about leaving all the lights on, right?

The Venetian, which is across the street and slightly North of the Mirage.  The Venetain is very swank, and although I've been through it twice now, I still feel like there is a lot I haven't seen.  Someday I want to take the gondola ride through the canals.

The common area on our suite floor, outside the elevator bank.   From here, 3 halls lead to long wings of suites.  It was very quiet on this floor, and nicely appointed.

Walked back to the hotel room and hung out there. We made a few cocktails at the bar in the suite before heading back out for the night.  Then Paul and Frank went down to the casino.  Todd and I were supposed to immediately follow but stayed up here and talked instead.  I bumped my cell phone as I was putting it on and it called Kelley back (Todd had used it last) by accident.  In fact here is the chronological series of events, listed here with the cell phone log times (Las Vegas local time) and durations.

02/23/2002  09:42 P.M.  318-869-1585  11 min.

This is Todd's call to Kelly from the Suite, 11 min long.  He used my cell phone to make the call because I get 500 min each month for a flat rate and I never even come close to using all the time up.  It must have been almost midnight in Louisiana.  He went back into the bed room and talked to Kelly.  Frank and Paul went downstairs, and Todd and I were about to follow when Todd began to tell me about a huge argument he had with Kelly last December about a party she went to at Cowboys in Bossier City Louisiana.  He started it all with, "Don't tell anyone else I told you this, but...."

02/23/2002  11:12 P.M.  Incoming Call 1 min.

Todd and I talk for half an hour when Frank or Paul calls to ask where the heck are we.  They are down in the Mirage Casino, where Paul is trying his luck on a few slots.  I say we'll be down in a minute.  Meanwhile I'm riveted by the nuances of Todd's story, and it's obvious to me that he has given his situation a great deal of thought because he laid the entire situation out in a very logical and detailed manner.  We continue talking.

02/23/2002  11:26 P.M.  Incoming Call 1 min.

This is Frank or Paul calling again, "Are you guys coming down?"  I tell them  we're on our way.  Todd and I talk for about 2 more mins.  I gather my stuff (wallet, cell phone, digital camera) and accidentally hit the talk button twice on my cell phone- automatically dialing the last dialed number, which was Kelly in Shreveport Louisiana.  I had no idea.

02/23/2002  11:29 P.M.  318-869-1585  20 min.

Todd and I go downstairs where we hook up with Frank and Paul.  We head through the Mirage casino and lobby, then head outside.  We head North along the strip to the next property, Treasure Island, where we hope to catch the last of the last free outside Pirate Show, which was also the last Pirate Show of the night.  It's just ending as we get there, and the crowds exiting to the south are so fierce that it's useless to push forward, so I suggest hugging a fence and letting the crowd disperse.  We then headed into Treasure Island.  We have no idea that the phone is still off hook, broadcasting every word and sound across two time zones to Shreveport Louisiana.  Most of what was heard was probably crowds and slot machines and our casual observations.

In the TI casino, Todd heads to the Cashier Station (why, I have no idea) and Frank and I head to the restroom, where it was real quiet, and step up to the urinals.

Frank asks, "What took you and Todd so long to come down?"

I say, "Well don't tell Todd I told you this, but...."  and the mistake (and history) was made.  

I said, "I'm sure he will tell you in his own way...but he got in this giant fight with Kelly back in December- a real knock down drag out fight, he thinks she may have cheated on him at some party.  So he he wants her to think that he got laid on this trip so he can tell her 'nothing happened' since that is what she told him."

And Frank, being Frank, only wanted to know the exact date this happened, where it happened, what time of day it was, and the phase of the moon at that time.  He can ask the most technical questions about something and you wonder if he even got the main point.  I told him I had no idea.

But I did add, "Yeah, all this and they are expecting a baby to boot.  I told that boy he just better make up with her and move on."

We finished at the urinal and while I was just starting to wash my hands, my cell phone rang again.

02/23/2002  11:51 P.M.  Incoming Call  2 min.

Kelly calls and asks to speak to Todd, at first I tell her to just hold on to see if you were just waiting for us outside the bathroom.  When I see that you are not, I tell her that he went to the cashier station and that I will find him and have him call her back.  I was worried that something bad had happened because she sounded concerned.  It never occurred to me that her call could be related to the  conversation Frank and I had in the bathroom.  I didn't even recognize the irony of her calling just as I had been talking about her to Frank.

I found Todd within a minute or so, and gave him my cell phone to call home.

02/23/2002  11:54 P.M.  318-869-1585   1 min.

The reception is bad (we're sort of underground) and the connection is broken so Todd takes the phone to the top of the escalators and try again.

02/23/2002  11:57 P.M.  318-869-1585   12 min.

Todd calls Kelly and gets an earful, I'm sure.  He comes back looking like he just stared death in the face and says, "What did you say to Frank in the bathroom?"

I turn beet-red and stammer, "I...uh....I ...don't know...." and in my most innocent voice, "...nothing?"  My mind is reeling and I slowly begin to realize what must have happened.

Todd says, "Well whatever it was, Kelly heard every word and she is mad as hell."

My heart hits the floor and I feel like I just got hit in the head with a bowling ball.

We confirm these suspicions by looking at the cell phone log on the phone, which lists all calls, numbers, times, and durations.  The entire sequence of events became crystal clear.  Todd says he needs to know what we said in the bathroom so he knows what kind of a situation he is walking into when he gets home.  Frank and I relate our conversation.  

We must have spent 30 minutes sitting on the bench in that long and wide Treasure Island hallway, trying to get over what happened.  Once we've shaken off the shock of it all we all moved on. 

It took a while to for me to realize how I felt about it all.  At first, and for a long time, I felt very bad...I peed with a girl listening...embarrassing!  I paraphrased Todd's entire 1 hour discussion with me in a very short, and terse manner, and I felt bad about that.  I told Frank not to tell anyone after you told me not to tell anyone and I felt bad about that too.  I felt like I had managed to stay out of trouble on this trip so far, and had done such a good job, but got busted in the most stupid and unlikely of ways.  I felt like the luck was extremely bad, as there wasn't a worse person in the world that could have overheard that conversation.  I felt bad that I was the cause of straining your  relationship with Kelly, and that it was bad enough that none of the women were probably to happy about us being in Las Vegas in the first place.

But the healing started when Todd pointed out, "You had a private conversation with Frank in the bathroom.  She can't be mad at me for what you said.  I can't control that.  And she should know it's not out of the question that I would talk to you guys about something that is bothering me."  Which is true.

And yet I still feel a bit guilty because I was responsible for the entire thing, from accidentally making the call to poorly paraphrasing Todd's fight with Kelly to Frank, especially in light of the fact that Todd asked me to keep that information to myself.  Lord knows if I had any idea she was listening I would have put a smoother spin on it.  But when I was talking to Frank, there was no time to convey any of the meat of the issue and as a result it all came out very blunt and unfeeling.  I felt like I had pissed off Kelly and let down Todd all in a span of about 20 seconds.

But the irony, the timing, and the "human-element" content of this story makes it a very compelling tale.

On the bright side, I suppose it could have been worse- Frank and I could have been sitting in the can taking loud monster dumps, laughing like Beavis and Butthead the whole time.

After we had thoroughly analyzed the situation, we proceeded to drop some money at the Treasure Island casino. But our luck had turned sour and we knew it.  Todd lost at blackjack, and all the slot machines were laughing at us. We should have known right away to go straight to bed.  We did manage to get one coin from the souvenir slot machine, but it wasn’t taking bills after one point (more bad luck).  I believe we eventually ate at the TI cafe, which was pretty good.  We came back to the suite and after a little while Todd went back to his room to sleep. Paul eventually left and we found out the next morning he went out onto the strip (again!) until 5:00 A.M. in the morning.  Paul got his money's worth out of this trip more than anyone.  For someone who normally can't hold their eyes open even while driving, he surprised us all.  I got to bed about 3:30 A.M. mildly depressed and completely sober.