Last weekend, Maureen and i had wonderful time in Las Vegas. We didn’t stay at one of those over the top fancy casino hotels. As a matter of fact, we did not go to any casinos. i didn’t place one bet. We did go to the strip, but that was to go to The Mob Museum, which was entertaining while smashing any idea of this place beginning with a good history.
As we flew from San Diego to this city created from a desert, i, in a rare window seat for me, looked down on the terrain. Las Vegas water comes mostly from Lake Mead (which is drying up) fed by the Colorado River. Other water comes from several large aquifers under the city. But for miles and miles around from horizon to horizon, even on an aircraft at 35,000 feet, i could only see desert. This is a strange place to have an adult playground, i thought, but it is a getaway, far away from other civilization.
Our trip was not to party or gamble in Vegas. Maureen does not like Vegas. i used to go occasionally to see a show or watch the people. No, i’m not innocent. i did gamble a bit, i’ve concluded i’m possibly the worst gambler in the world. i did win about two bucks in a late night game in the 60’s. Henry Harding, Charles “Fox”Dedman, and i played “Mexican Sweat” late into a Saturday night. i also won in the game room of the Navy Officer’s “Town Club” in Sasebo, Japan, enough to pay for my flight to and from Osaka and Expo ’70. But slots were still one-armed bandits. They have gone far beyond that now.
We were there to spend time with daughter Sarah and her husband Aaron and meet his family. It could not have been much better. Aaron’s mother Deborah, his sister Alicia and her husband Kobe were just flat great. They are great people. It was such a great feeing to see them all loving life and Sarah being an integral part.
Driving around or going for a walk beyond the strip, i marveled how this place just rose from the sand. How the streets run straight without any rocky hills to require curving them. The buildings are almost identical to those in strip malls every where and those chain stores seemed to have popped up by just adding concrete. It seems very strange to me, but of course, the Southwest corner would be strange for those of you in the east.
Bottom line: it’s a wonderful place. After all, our daughter is happy there, and she has a wonderful husband and another great family.
i’ll bet on that.