Taking A Dip In The Cement Pond.............

Still in Las Vegas.

I must admit that I am just a wee bit disappointed to find out that there is NO large statute of Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel anywhere in the city of Las Vegas. There is a monument to his memory in the garden of the new Flamingo hotel, but it just doesn't seem to be big enough. After all he was the "founder of the feast" so to speak. Bugsy had a certain style and vision and would have gone far if he didn't develop sticky fingers. He started skimming off the top and got paid off with multiple rounds of M-1 carbine ammunition fired through a window of his girlfriend's living room. Play with fire, you can get burned. Particularly if you are messing with the mob.

I make no bones about it, I am country as a chicken coop. I haven't had a great deal of money and never got out much, so I am not very sophisticated. (Not as bad as a relative of mine who drank from a finger bowl at a dinner party.) So this trip is quite a adventure for a fellow who thought staying at the Motel 6 and eating at a all you care to eat Chinese buffet was the ultimate in good living.

The place we are staying is a very high end place, mint on the pillow, room service, the whole 9 yards. The bathroom is almost as big as my living room at home. But what got me was the fact that the suite has THREE televisions, one in the living area, one in front of the bed, and bless Moses there is one in the bathroom. O.K. the first two, I can see. But one in the BATHROOM? That, I don't understand. The same thing for the telephone in the bathroom. I don't know about you, but I think there are some things that should be left alone. Time in the bathroom is one of them. I don't see talking on the phone while taking care of other business nor watching the idiot box. Bathroom trips should be times of quiet contemplation or at worst, reading. I have been in public restrooms in the past when someone received a cell phone call and all I could think was " Dang, I am glad that I don't feel so important that I have to take a call while sitting on the throne." Not to mention I am not very sure that I want to put a telephone that is kept in a bathroom up to my face. I am sure that it is clean, but...........

And in weather news, I spoke to some of the locals and they felt the need to apologize for the humidity yesterday. I told them that I didn't notice it. I mean humidity to me is walking out the door and feeling like someone just slapped a hot wet towel in your face. Anyway, the humidity is dropping and the temp is going up. It should hit 107 today and there are predictions of 114 before the weekend is over. As normal, nothing but Mad Dogs and Englishmen go out in the noonday sun.

More to follow........

Oh yeah, need some sage advice. We are moving down to the Golden Nugget in a day or so to get a taste of Old School Las Vegas. I thought it might be fun to toss down a period appropriate cocktail circa 1960's. Any suggestions?