Thursday, December 23, 2010 – Day Ten of Nineteen

[This is part ten of a nineteen part trip report.  If you want to start at the beginning, go here.]

It’s official!  My trip is more than half over.  This is bullshit.

After my ordeal of moving rooms at the California hotel last night, due to my room being flooded, I actually manage to sleep until 10:30.  That is a record for this trip.

I head out at 11:45

Lost $15 Keno.

I found my glasses case in my bag from when I moved last night. I broke a $100 bill and went back to my room to get rid of the glasses case and to put lucky glitter on my new bills.  Back out, I made it halfway to the Golden Gate before I realized I hadn’t put on deodorant.  Back to room AGAIN.  Oh it is going to be one of those days, eh?

It’s now 12:15 and my day is finally just starting.

Back to the Golden Gate to have breakfast at Dupars.  I used a $10 comp slip because the Golden Gate insists on using comp slips.  Three cheese omelet, ended up paying $1.08.  This will never stop grinding my gears.  I have comps.  Why am I paying anything in cash?  But they will not let you get a comp slip for $11.08.  It has to be in increments of $5.  If you get a $15 slip, then you lose $3.92 because the overage will not be returned to your account.  Infuriating.

I still play here though.  You know, racking up more comps that will cost me money not only in the machines, but in the restaurant.

I find an old school Moolah slot machine – not to be confused with Invaders From the Planet Moolah.  I play this:

$5-$0
$10-$50
$10-$0

Used my pee pass to take the Deuce bus away from Downtown.

I got off at the Stratosphere and went in for some Starbucks.

I played Double Double Bonus video poker quarters and lost $80.  Then I lost another $20 in a Press Your Luck slot machine.

I walked over to Sahara to take the bus to Palace Station.  Today was the first time I had seen blue sky in many days.

The bus took forever to come.  I could have walked in less time than it took.

At Palace Station, I play nickel full play Double Double Bonus video poker and lost not only $15, but my Diet Pepsi.  Argh.   Topped this off by losing another $100.  This was my first visit to Palace Station in so many years and I am being punished.

I take the bus back to the Sahara to do the daily free pull.  I win nothing.  Sigh.

I play a Barkin’ Bucks slot machine.  This game is so adorable.  I turn $40 into $60.

It’s 4:30, I’m going back downtown.

I do my typical stop at Dunkin Donuts for iced coffee and start playing video poker.  Where?  Damned if I know.  You would think it would be on my favorite SuperTimes Pay machines right outside Dunkin Donuts, but the pictures say otherwise.

$20-$30 on four of a kind Queens and then $20-$0.

Maltese Fortune slot machine: $20-$20.

Frog princess $20-$0

Back to the Golden Gate to rack up more comps that will just end up pissing me off.  I turn $20-$0 on Monopoly, and $20 to $0 on Wizard of Oz.

Golden Gate has a drawing that you earn tickets by playing.  I stick around since I have several entries and hey, who knows?

They award prizes from smallest value to largest.  One prize is $200.  Some guy wins it and forfeits it as you can only win one prize and he wants a bigger one.  Soon after, a camcorder comes up.  Same guy wins it and again forfeits it to not have to give up a bigger prize.    Finally we get to the grand prize: an enormous flat screen television.  Do you want to guess who won it?  Do you?

Sigh.

The guy’s WIFE won it.  How does this even happen?   Maybe it has something to do with him being a bigger degenerate than I am and had way more entries than anyone else.  Even while the drawing was going on, he was playing slot machines while they were calling names.

I walk over to Binions and play around until I have enough points to do the daily promotional swipe.  I have played enough to get two swipes today.   I further assume I lost a lot of money because nowhere in my notes is what I played documented and surely I would have written if I won.

For the first spin, I win another freaking deck of cards.  STOP IT WITH THE GIVING ME DECKS OF CARDS.  THIS IS NOT A PRIZE. IT IS A BURDEN.

My second spin awards me with $15 free slot play.  Much better.

I get a Binions burger to go and bring it back to my room for dinner.

Fremont Street Experience Christmas show:

After eating, I decide to stay in my pajamas and my DRY bed for the night.   Good night.