6/19/2004 3:00AM
Las Vegas - 2004
| Vegas, Baby. I’m in a room at T.I. (too-hip to be called Treasure Island anymore) right now, jotting down my thoughts before I drift into sleep. Yeah, Matt’s in the other bed, I hope he doesn’t snore. A few minutes ago, we were discussing how nice it is to have a girl in bed with you… no, not in that sort of way (well, actually a good lay is due around now), but how nice it’d be to recruit mutually-interested females for the purposes of having a sleeping partner. We both happen to be fans of being cuddled up with a girl for the night. Any volunteers? Matt’s currently booked, but I’m free. |  |
The trip down here was a nice drive.
Sure, I was completely drained… only been sleeping 4-5 hours a
night all week long. Damned mental demons. Anyway,
besides the usual construction-related congestion and the required car
crash in the canyon (on the Arizona-Nevada border), the drive down was
nice. Took some pictures
along the way, and stopped for pseudo-chicken nuggets at CJ’s (Carl’s
Jr. to you people… since everyone has to abbreviate everything
nowadays). We also picked up
some cloves at the Indian reservation 30 miles outside of Las Vegas.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| We get into town, get our hotel room, and my parents treat us to a gourmet Italian dinner at the Venetian. We’re talking a $100 bottle of wine and a $300+ total bill. Mom and dad, you rule. After dinner, we got gelatos and headed up to my parents’ room to hang out for a while and catch the end of Zoolander. My dad made a few cracks about the adult shows that Matt & I should see, and a good time was had by all. When Sex and the City came on, we decided we had to go. |  |
 |
 |
 |
Things to note: I have an affinity for girls in high heels… mmm. There were plenty of hot women in really short skirts and tight, revealing dresses. (Yeah, yeah, I get to be a perv too from time to time) Besides the searing heat, Vegas is money, baby. More to come after the set of adventures for Saturday… |
6/20/2004 4:30AM
Vegas continued… The
parents treated us to the buffet at the Bellagio.
It was quite excellent, and it came with free champagne.
The Bellagio is pretty awesome, aesthetically.
We stayed out in the heat to watch the fountains.
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
6/20/2004 4:20PM
Later yesterday, we were driving to the
Harley Davidson shop, trying to find a gift for Matt’s sister, and my
dad called:
Dad: “Hey, would you and Matt like to come see Splash with us tonight at the Riveria?”
Me: “What’s that? I’m not familiar with that show.”
Dad: “Oh, check your entertainment guide.”
Me: “we’re driving around… I’m nowhere near one.”
Dad: “It’s a variety show.”
At this point, I interrupt Matt’s conversation with his girl to see if he wanted to go. He said yes, so I told my dad to go ahead and get the tickets.
Dad: “Okay… it might be a topless show, by the way. Bye” <click>
Me: “Uh… Matt, I think my dad just told me this show was topless.”
Matt: “Dude, I don’t know how I feel about going to a topless show with your parents.”
So, we went… it was actually a pretty good variety show: kick-ass ice skating from some champion Russian skaters, juggling by a trio from Mexico City, give guys on motorcycles in a small metal sphere, singing, tap dancing, and the occasional topless showgirl. Not bad, and thank goodness the parents didn’t drag us to an erotic topless show. That would have just been wrong.
After the show, we went to a
Korean BBQ (at Mom’s request, naturally).
We had excellent food, good conversation, and amusement when Matt
ordered a dish with some sea creatures that looked like snail-sized
brains. Since my mom
couldn’t explain what they were, we asked the waiter.
He kept on saying they were good, but he had no English equivalent
for what they were. Matt was
warned not to bite them while they were hot, as the juice would burn his
mouth. At the end of the
meal, we finally coaxed Matt into trying one… which resulted in one of
the funniest facial expressions ever, and my dad laughing and coughing
until his face turned red. Ah…
good times.
6/21/2004 2:00 AM
Continuing the story… after having dinner with the parents, Matt and I ventured to a strip club. You can’t have a successful Vegas trip without strippers, right?
We ventured to some seedy place that Matt discovered on his last Vegas trip called the Can Can Room. The people working at the club seemed nice enough… but geez, they really try to lay a guilt trip on you over not getting a private performance. They advertised that you’d get a thirty-minute session with a girl, no cameras, totally off-the-record, in which you could do anything you want. Whatever happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas, right?
There was this stripper, Katarina, that I had quite the affinity for. She was pretty nerdy-hot, and yeah, she had glasses and the plaid mini-skirt thing going on. I got the vibe that she was really intelligent, but she really didn’t want to be there. It’s something Matt and I both saw in her eyes.
It’s weird, she definitely turned me on, but I wanted to take her out for coffee, chat her up about life, get to know her and find out how things slid in that direction for her. It’s hard not to have that desire when you see a human being trapped behind the walls. Katarina ended up getting a pretty big pile of ones from me.
After a while, we leave the club and head towards my car. Some guy walks up to me and starts telling us about this massage parlor just a few businesses down. Apparently, it’s a “sensual” massage parlor that gives you a “happy ending”. That’s right folks, someone actually used the term “happy ending” that way. It was hilarious. We declined and headed back to the hotel room.
Today, we got lunch from a good Asian restaurant in the canals of the Venetian, then explored off the strip in town. We really didn’t find anything interesting during the short trip, so we returned.
Abbey was in town, so she, her sister and husband (Cinnamon and
Chris) met us for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory in Caesar’s Palace.
While waiting for dinner, we decided alcohol was a necessity.
Matt and Chris got yard-long margaritas.
I accidentally received one. I
was simply trying to order a top-shelf margarita, and the bartender
assumed I wanted a yard-long one like the other guys.
$21.50 later… oh well, it was damned good!
 |
 Matt |
 Abbey |
I’m really glad we decided to stay that extra day.
After dinner, the group went back to Treasure Island. 375 mL of Jack Daniels was purchased, as well as some coke, and there was a small get-together in our room. Drinks and conversation were had, but the night ended far too soon. I really enjoyed the company of Matt, Abbey, Chris, and Cinnamon. After the group split, Matt & I walked through the casino one more time and smoked in front of the area where the pirate show is held.
|
|
|
|
I really love this town sometimes. I’ve had some really interesting experiences here. We had to endure searing desert heat, but the miniskirts nearly balance that one out. Matt’s asleep, and I’m jotting down these moments before my head hits the pillow and I have to return to my life in Utah.
Right now, I’m a little sad… I’m going to miss it here. Oh well, it’s only an 8-hour drive, right?
Tally:
Cars we saw on fire in Las Vegas: 2
Clove cigarettes I smoked: 5
Birds that committed suicide on my car windshield at 90+ mph: 1
Mini skirts spotted: too many to count
Various Other Pictures:
 View from Treasure Island Hotel Room |
 Paris |
 The Wynn Resort |
 Bally's |
 Mall on the strip |
 Aquarium in Caesar's Palace |
 Dinner |
 Drive home |