My wife is in Las Vegas tonight with her boss, while I am relegated to pet sitting. I know she would rather be with me, since we were married at the Bellagio over sixteen years ago. (See Post #340). She was not enthusiastic about her business meetings there, but our dog Tinker ended up needing my attention with an ear infection, so it’s fortunate that I stayed home this time. In her absence, I had also planned to visit a friend’s house near the Oregon Coast, watch the I.U. vs. Duke basketball game with him, and take the dogs for a romp on the beach. Tinker’s ears are probably burning, not just from infection, but she probably knows that I’m writing about her, and that her health prevented our journey. Instead of Vegas or the Coast, I’m at my computer tonight, reminiscing about trips to Vegas, and killing time before the game.

My first trip to Vegas was in 1970, when I quickly passed through there as part of my “Blueberry Hill” adventure. (See Post #295). I was in college, underage, and traveling with a friend, but our interest was not Vegas but rather the Pacific Ocean. As a result, we did not go to the casinos, although fascinated with the lights, especially as we were approaching through the dark desert. Our funds were limited, so we only stopped for gas, a toilet break, and orange juice before continuing our route west. The ocean seemed to draw us like a magnet, and fortunately we could go no further. As my dad is credited with saying when I reluctantly told him where we were in a phone call back home, “thank God there’s an ocean” was his witty reply. He did not know that we were taking his car that far, assuming that we were simply going camping at the nearby Indiana dunes. Honestly, we did not even know where we’d end up, having packed for only a weekend, but the ocean was calling. I give him credit for maintaining his temper, but I’m sure he was simply in shock from discovering our whereabouts. The wise words he muttered were very true, since we surely would have kept driving if there wasn’t an ocean to stop us.

I got my first true Vegas experience in the late 1970’s as the result of a sales contest. I was selling advertising time for a radio station in my hometown, and was excited at the prospect of winning a group trip to Vegas if our sales team could achieve our annual sales goal. We all worked hard to make it happen, using advertiser credits to put us barely over the top. I think the station manager was stunned that we made it, and was not prepared to lay out the cash to send us all to Vegas and had to justify it with the owner. In retrospect, it was a very low budget trip, but we did get to take our spouses. We flew on an off-brand flight and stayed at the Westward Ho, right next to Circus Circus. We got to go to a show, had a group dinner, and each got a $100 bill to gamble away. I had a young son, very little in my wallet, and fortunately didn’t own a credit card. I lost all my money the first night, but put together a plan to earn some cash. In those days, each casino offered incentive dollars that you could claim each hour. I had to sign up for a time-stamped card and with each hour that passed could claim a roll of nickels. It was like Trick or Treating for cash. My wife and I set up a route down the strip and spent many hours using coupons to collect money. We found that by dividing and conquering, we could gather even more, and when we got back to the room placed all our “candy” in a big pile on the bed. I can’t remember how much we collected, but it kept us busy, bought a few cheap meals, and allowed us one last chance to potentially strike it rich. That did not happen. What I remember most of that first trip, was how thin the walls around our room were, and became convinced that there was a conspiracy among the housekeeping staff to keep us awake all night so that we had no choice but to go out and gamble. There were no clocks and the air conditioning system was not working properly, so I got very little sleep and got frustrated with the whole Vegas scene. I never wanted to go back – but have many times since.

I won another trip to Vegas while working at a radio station in Indianapolis in the mid 80’s, and remember my boss getting us all front row seats for a Sammy Davis show by tipping the host with a pile of poker chips that he had won. This adventure was a big step up from the first and second visits. We had tickets to several shows, stayed in a quieter hotel, and got more gambling money to lose. It was the prelude to several personal trips that we took over the next couple years, making Treasure Island our home base, but I was never as big of a gambler as my first wife, so I was never happy in Vegas. I do remember going to Hugo’s Cellar for dinner at the Four Queens downtown where the ladies each received a rose and we enjoyed our first encounter with a Sommelier and good wine.  My wife at the time would stay up all night playing Blackjack, while I often went to bed early counting my losses. I did enjoy walking the strip, observing the unusual people, watching the outdoor displays, and thinking about all the free money that I collected on the same route years ago.

When I got remarried, we started going to Vegas for work-related conventions. We would stay at the Bellagio and go to meetings, shows, and cocktail parties. Through the years, I saw several different Cirque du Soleil shows, the most memorable being “O,” The Beatle’s LOVE, Avenue Q, and Mamma Mia.  I even got to meet Pete Townsend and The Who at a CBS party as part of introducing the television show, CSI.  I had talked my wife into getting married in 2001 as part of the TVB convention. She was reluctant because at one time she saw a VHS tape of my first wife and I getting humorously hitched by “Elvis,” and it left a poor impression of the Vegas wedding scene. We eventually settled on a much classier Bellagio ceremony in their rose garden, but after our honeymoon night, for business reasons, had to move to the less expensive Rio. She also reluctantly needed to get back to Indianapolis while I stayed for meetings, so even though the ceremony was unforgettable, some of the circumstances around it were less than desirable. Two of the most memorable moments were the limo ride to the courthouse to get our marriage license, and nearly missing the 12:30 p.m. ceremony because I had to wait to cash out on a winning slot machine. We had to scramble to get to the “chapel on time.” We had dinner at Delmonico’s where I presented her with a cake-topper Limoges of a bride and groom.

From 2001 through 2005, we traveled to Las Vegas each year, but haven’t been back since 2011 when we celebrated our 10th anniversary, with the exception of connecting flights. Her being in Vegas tonight is a distinct reminder that we need to go together soon. For us, it’s a romantic adventure that has been missing from our busy lives, even though the city is as accessible as anywhere we’ve lived. Our Vegas dining experiences have included Michael’s, Seablue, Bouchon, Joel Robuchon, Noodles, Aria, Fellini’s, Emeril’s, Aqua, 808 Ceasar’s, 3950 Mandalay Bay, Joe’s Stone Crab, Flavors By Alex, and Chinois, along with several visits to the fabulous Bellagio Buffet. I’d tell you more but, as we all know, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.”