General Discussion

why would I want to throw money away into a one-armed bandit... to see it all vanish in front of my eyes. (sigh) I still can't understand how all this gambling, be it Vegas, the different lotteries, etc., get past all these "good christians"... it doesn't seem a very christian past time to me. But I'm not christian, so what do I know? (lol)

I went to Vegas once on a Business trip with my boss. We went to the big computer show when it was a fairly new thing. This was back in the mid-80's, I think. I loved the kitsch, for the most part. At the time, they had one hotel that was made up to be a medieval castle, and that's where we stayed. We also got tickets for the show... like going to RenFair, but inside the building! And my boss didn't think he'd ever get me away from herb, candle, and incense shop. I still have one of those candles that I've never burned. It's more a memory trigger for me. It was a good trip. And my boss WAS the gambler.

He finally got tired of seeing me not playing, so he found an entire row of one-armed bandits with no one playing. He gave me a quarter for each one and had me pull the arm. It was a thrill, no matter how I felt about gambling, I'll admit. Small town girl in the big city, ya know... anyway, at the last bandit, he put the quarter in and pulled the arm. THAT was the only one that paid out anything. All the ones that I'd fed pulled up nothing for me. I turned around to him as the coins came flying out of that machine and said, "And THAT is why I don't gamble!" We then left for a walk on the Strip. The people watching was fantastic! Took in the sights of the Volcano and the Fountains. For me, it was a once in a lifetime trip. I have no desire to go back again. We still don't have enough money to feel "good" at throwing it away... and if anything, I've grown more practical and cynical the older I've gotten.

Anyway, that hotel room in the themed hotel/casino? I still remember it was $49.00 per room per night. The dinner/show cost us $10 each. I figured all those prices were long gone, as the whole vibe of the area seem to change to catering to the high rollers, from what I read.