Hello everyone! Well, it's time to resurrect the F&J blog as football season is right around the corner. In order to prep for the football season - and the world famous themed picks that will continue this year - it's time to do some house cleaning and make sure all the previous loose ends are tied up.
That includes actually writing the Vegas diary from this year! I've been doing most of my writing on Caring Bridge giving updates on my condition, and therefore ignoring this blog.
(For those that may not have it, here is the Caring Bridge link: Eric's fight)
But it's time to have fun on the blog with the diary and the picks! This year's diary will be light, and I EXPECT to have lots of comments/additions from the attendees in the comments. My notes are pretty light, and after 4 months, I can't even read some of them. But we'll make the most of it. So here we go!
Tuesday, March 12
For obvious reasons, I was excited for this trip just to get away from the life of being a cancer patient. Since I had plenty of time on my hand, I was joking that I would spend 2 weeks in Vegas for all the conference tournaments. Instead, I decided to take the morning non-stop on Tuesday from Cincinnati and spend almost 5 full days for this trip - Tuesday through Sunday. Layup would come later on Tuesday, Wiz even later - and then the golfers Don, Mike D and Mike A would come in Wednesday morning. And then we had the expectant return of Micah on Wednesday! So 7 Vegas veterans for the trip.…. and 6 separate 7-way parlays each day!
The trip out was tiring. I was (and still am) getting used to being fatigued when I fly - so a 7 am eastern flight out was tough, and I tried to sleep but couldn't on the flight. So I arrived at around 9 am Pacific and was dead tired - with no room ready.
But first - time to sign up for the SuperContest! For the first time, sign ups for the Supercontest started March 1 so I could sign up this trip and not require a separate trip in August. I met the proxy in the dead Westgate Superbook at around 10 am on a Tuesday, and was a zombie. Signed up, waited there for all the parlay picks to come in from the group.....and then entered the first parlay of the trip at the Westgate. I couldn't do it at the Mirage since some of the picks were obscure teams like UMBC and Fairleigh Dickinson - only available at the Westgate. Ah, I love this trip.
Back at the Mirage, with no supervision, the first gambling session was at UTH (of course), and was a complete disaster. It was so bad I had to get up from UTH and play High Card Flush. Layup showed up around lunch time - we had CPK and then I was off to our ready room to shower and nap.
Wiz got in later that afternoon and there was another UTH session that was non-descript - except for the big sports news of the day---- OBJ was traded to the Browns at this time!!! My phone was blowing up for a good 30 minutes - and the pit boss was NOT understanding. I was pissed. I couldn't respond to all the tweets and messages I was getting while playing speed UTH with Wiz and Layup. That was frustrating.
Dinner that night was the three of us at Heritage ---- and that was interesting. During the trip, I was having trouble eating red meat and had to keep my portions small - or else there would be some issues with vomiting/burping up air. And I had to limit my alcohol. So my order at Heritage that night - Lobster Bisque and chocolate milk while Layup and Wiz are enjoying filets and merlot. Yes, I was a bit jealous.
About 3/4 through the meal, I didn't feel that good and knew I would have to vomit up some air. I eft the restaurant and made a brisk walk to the elevator - and realized I may not make it. I eyed the trash can in the elevator lobby, which was right below the up/down buttons. Ah - ok, let's make a beeline to the trash can just in case. Well, a family was in front of me and the 7 year old also sprinted to the elevator - so he could push the button to go up. No!!!!! I had to politely push him out of the way of the trash can so I could use it...….thankfully, I didn't need to.
After dinner, there was a disasterous (as usual) craps session, a neutral UTH session and the day ended with a new game for Vegas - Face Up Pai Gow! So now the Mirage has regular Pai Gow (with John as the star dealer there) and Face Up, which has taken over in Cincinnati.
Wednesday, March 13
First golf session of the trip that morning - at Canyon Gate CC, a new course in our rotation But first, I got all the picks for the parlay from the morning travelers.....and one of them included Lamar. I went to the Mirage book to place the parlay - and saw the Lamar game was not listed. I asked about it.
"What conference is that?"
Southland.
"Southwestern?"
No! Southland.
"Is that Division I?"
YES! you idiot!
If you are working in the book on Conference championship week, you better know the Div I conferences. Period. Who are they hiring in the book? So I decided to take a walk across the street to the Venetian where, yes, the Lamar game was listed and I put the parlay in.
And before golf - some quick gambling at, you guessed it - Face up Pai Gow.
The weather all week in Vegas was cold - I bundled up as much I as I could on a blustery Sunday where the temperature never broke 65, I think , in the afternoon. I liked the course - driving the ball relatively well helped - but I got tired and faded over the last 3-4 holes. The highlight of the round was on the 11th hole, where Layup hit a ball off the tee left into the pines. He was next to a bush and about 10-15 feet inside the fence line protecting the course from million dollar mansions.
With an awkward stance, he swung - and I'm still not sure how this is physically possible, but the ball went about 85 degrees left. It hit the fence twice - BING BING - and we heard another BANG as the ball hit some house somewhere. Thank God it was about 2 pm and no one seemed to be at home in those houses.
Also - since we didn't know the course, gooches were prevalent. Drives that seemed to be down the middle started taking sloped we didn't know existed and ended up in the rough or worse, hazards. I remember one horrible moment by Layup on my drive on the 13th where my ball landed on the right edge of the fairway and ended up in the penalty area on the left - after Layup said "great drive". I think our gooch score that day was Layup 4, Eric 3.
All in all, a nice course to add in the rotation; the weather ruined it a bit but can't blame the course for that. Food and bar area was very nice as well.
We got back, and I think we saw Micah for the first time - at a usual position at a Pai Gow table with a cigarette in hand. Before dinner, we all joined him (around my nap) at Pai Gow and I think we introduced him to Face Up for the first time. I think ( but not sure) that he prefers the old style Pai Gow better. I have in my notes that Wiz got a straight flush in Pai Gow but misplayed it - Face up! - and ended up pushing instead of having an easy winner. How do you screw up a straight flush??
Dinner that night was Lavo - and, of course, it was great as usual. I passed on the Veal parm and had the pasta carbonara - which was a perfect choice for me. Micah was introduced to the Fried Oreos. There was a bit awkward conversation where I forgot he won the big golf pool last year and he didn't know about my SuperContest adventures in 2017.
Walking back from Lavo to the Mirage, it became clear on how low my energy levels were. I just couldn't keep up a normal walking pace on the strip - and lagged behind the group more and more. That was a little depressing - seeing a bit of deterioration of my stamina - but it could have been the golf that day.
The final session for me was a UTH session with the group, which ended up being the best session of my trip where I more than doubled my money. However, there was a lady at our table that I wrote as our "girlfriend" - she had her arm around Don and hit on Mike D, from my notes. Anyone remember this?
That includes actually writing the Vegas diary from this year! I've been doing most of my writing on Caring Bridge giving updates on my condition, and therefore ignoring this blog.
(For those that may not have it, here is the Caring Bridge link: Eric's fight)
But it's time to have fun on the blog with the diary and the picks! This year's diary will be light, and I EXPECT to have lots of comments/additions from the attendees in the comments. My notes are pretty light, and after 4 months, I can't even read some of them. But we'll make the most of it. So here we go!
Tuesday, March 12
For obvious reasons, I was excited for this trip just to get away from the life of being a cancer patient. Since I had plenty of time on my hand, I was joking that I would spend 2 weeks in Vegas for all the conference tournaments. Instead, I decided to take the morning non-stop on Tuesday from Cincinnati and spend almost 5 full days for this trip - Tuesday through Sunday. Layup would come later on Tuesday, Wiz even later - and then the golfers Don, Mike D and Mike A would come in Wednesday morning. And then we had the expectant return of Micah on Wednesday! So 7 Vegas veterans for the trip.…. and 6 separate 7-way parlays each day!
 |
| Tuesday parlay - 5-2 |
The trip out was tiring. I was (and still am) getting used to being fatigued when I fly - so a 7 am eastern flight out was tough, and I tried to sleep but couldn't on the flight. So I arrived at around 9 am Pacific and was dead tired - with no room ready.
But first - time to sign up for the SuperContest! For the first time, sign ups for the Supercontest started March 1 so I could sign up this trip and not require a separate trip in August. I met the proxy in the dead Westgate Superbook at around 10 am on a Tuesday, and was a zombie. Signed up, waited there for all the parlay picks to come in from the group.....and then entered the first parlay of the trip at the Westgate. I couldn't do it at the Mirage since some of the picks were obscure teams like UMBC and Fairleigh Dickinson - only available at the Westgate. Ah, I love this trip.
Back at the Mirage, with no supervision, the first gambling session was at UTH (of course), and was a complete disaster. It was so bad I had to get up from UTH and play High Card Flush. Layup showed up around lunch time - we had CPK and then I was off to our ready room to shower and nap.
Wiz got in later that afternoon and there was another UTH session that was non-descript - except for the big sports news of the day---- OBJ was traded to the Browns at this time!!! My phone was blowing up for a good 30 minutes - and the pit boss was NOT understanding. I was pissed. I couldn't respond to all the tweets and messages I was getting while playing speed UTH with Wiz and Layup. That was frustrating.
Dinner that night was the three of us at Heritage ---- and that was interesting. During the trip, I was having trouble eating red meat and had to keep my portions small - or else there would be some issues with vomiting/burping up air. And I had to limit my alcohol. So my order at Heritage that night - Lobster Bisque and chocolate milk while Layup and Wiz are enjoying filets and merlot. Yes, I was a bit jealous.
About 3/4 through the meal, I didn't feel that good and knew I would have to vomit up some air. I eft the restaurant and made a brisk walk to the elevator - and realized I may not make it. I eyed the trash can in the elevator lobby, which was right below the up/down buttons. Ah - ok, let's make a beeline to the trash can just in case. Well, a family was in front of me and the 7 year old also sprinted to the elevator - so he could push the button to go up. No!!!!! I had to politely push him out of the way of the trash can so I could use it...….thankfully, I didn't need to.
After dinner, there was a disasterous (as usual) craps session, a neutral UTH session and the day ended with a new game for Vegas - Face Up Pai Gow! So now the Mirage has regular Pai Gow (with John as the star dealer there) and Face Up, which has taken over in Cincinnati.
Wednesday, March 13
First golf session of the trip that morning - at Canyon Gate CC, a new course in our rotation But first, I got all the picks for the parlay from the morning travelers.....and one of them included Lamar. I went to the Mirage book to place the parlay - and saw the Lamar game was not listed. I asked about it.
"What conference is that?"
Southland.
"Southwestern?"
No! Southland.
"Is that Division I?"
YES! you idiot!
If you are working in the book on Conference championship week, you better know the Div I conferences. Period. Who are they hiring in the book? So I decided to take a walk across the street to the Venetian where, yes, the Lamar game was listed and I put the parlay in.
 |
| Wed parlay - 4-3. Lamar did not come through. |
And before golf - some quick gambling at, you guessed it - Face up Pai Gow.
The weather all week in Vegas was cold - I bundled up as much I as I could on a blustery Sunday where the temperature never broke 65, I think , in the afternoon. I liked the course - driving the ball relatively well helped - but I got tired and faded over the last 3-4 holes. The highlight of the round was on the 11th hole, where Layup hit a ball off the tee left into the pines. He was next to a bush and about 10-15 feet inside the fence line protecting the course from million dollar mansions.
With an awkward stance, he swung - and I'm still not sure how this is physically possible, but the ball went about 85 degrees left. It hit the fence twice - BING BING - and we heard another BANG as the ball hit some house somewhere. Thank God it was about 2 pm and no one seemed to be at home in those houses.
Also - since we didn't know the course, gooches were prevalent. Drives that seemed to be down the middle started taking sloped we didn't know existed and ended up in the rough or worse, hazards. I remember one horrible moment by Layup on my drive on the 13th where my ball landed on the right edge of the fairway and ended up in the penalty area on the left - after Layup said "great drive". I think our gooch score that day was Layup 4, Eric 3.
All in all, a nice course to add in the rotation; the weather ruined it a bit but can't blame the course for that. Food and bar area was very nice as well.
We got back, and I think we saw Micah for the first time - at a usual position at a Pai Gow table with a cigarette in hand. Before dinner, we all joined him (around my nap) at Pai Gow and I think we introduced him to Face Up for the first time. I think ( but not sure) that he prefers the old style Pai Gow better. I have in my notes that Wiz got a straight flush in Pai Gow but misplayed it - Face up! - and ended up pushing instead of having an easy winner. How do you screw up a straight flush??
Dinner that night was Lavo - and, of course, it was great as usual. I passed on the Veal parm and had the pasta carbonara - which was a perfect choice for me. Micah was introduced to the Fried Oreos. There was a bit awkward conversation where I forgot he won the big golf pool last year and he didn't know about my SuperContest adventures in 2017.
Walking back from Lavo to the Mirage, it became clear on how low my energy levels were. I just couldn't keep up a normal walking pace on the strip - and lagged behind the group more and more. That was a little depressing - seeing a bit of deterioration of my stamina - but it could have been the golf that day.
The final session for me was a UTH session with the group, which ended up being the best session of my trip where I more than doubled my money. However, there was a lady at our table that I wrote as our "girlfriend" - she had her arm around Don and hit on Mike D, from my notes. Anyone remember this?
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