Wow, something's wrong with me

I love to gamble.  I gamble on sports occasionally, but my real love is the casino.  Lately, I've been hitting the blackjack tables but my real love is playing craps.  Nothing beats the camaraderie of a table full of people exploding with glee when a point is made or when a shooter gets hot and rolls for awhile.  I'm not a big gambler because I like to play for awhile and don't want to get busted early.  My conservatism also comes with a slight whiff of responsibility, you know, just in case I get busted.  Besides, I gamble because it is fun.  I don't gamble like it's a second job because one job is enough for me.  Knowing all this, you would think I would be excited to head to Vegas for a week on a basically all expenses paid trip?  Truth is, I'm really not that excited.

Gambling has been a real bitch to me ever since 2008 when I raked in about $8500 in winnings on four trips, the biggest being $3200 on my last trip of the year.  Since that epic year I haven't walked away a winner on a gambling trip.  It's been about two years of losing that has gotten into my head.  Yes, I gamble because it is fun but, for crying out loud, losing all the time kinda takes away from the fun.  And by "kinda" I mean "majorly".  I attribute most of the losses to playing more blackjack than usual after hitting big a few times in 2008.  Blackjack can be a very frustrating game.  When you constantly get dealt 12-16, the worst hands to be dealt, it's demoralizing.  I also blame my decline on my decision to gamble at the Hard Rock in Fort Lauderdale.  That place is full of losers and I think their funk has rubbed off on me.  The final piece of blame lies in my attitude when I get to the tables.  I catch myself nervous about losing and feeling cursed instead of saying, "Win or lose, who gives a crap, let's have some fun!"

On my last trip to Vegas in April of this year, I couldn't believe that I spent less than 30 minutes gambling on my entire trip!  And that was a 4 night stay!  I think it was good for me though.  I got back to having fun in Vegas the old fashioned way, with good ol' alcohol and partying.  Maybe that's what I needed?  A kickass time in Sin City without gambling to boost my spirits and get back to having fun in Vegas.  With a pocket full of cash and a flight that leaves soon, I guess it's only a matter of time until I find out.

Quest for 50

Travel, travel, travel. Seems like I'm always on the run (cue the Kravitz). This month has been pretty epic for travel though. Epic in the sense that this weekend I was able to knock off my third of the 14 untraveled states left on the list on my quest to visit all 50 of the United States.

I started November with 14 unvisited states left on my quest for 50, that number including Hawaii and Alaska.  Earlier in the month I went to Tennessee and there aint no place I'd rather be (cue the Dead). Well, there are plenty of places I'd rather be but the bbq pulled pork sandwich I had at Golly Whoppers at least made me I was happy I was there at that point in time.  I just wanted to make the Dead reference.  A week later, I was headed to Minnesoooota, as the locals would pronounce it.  Didnt really get to see the full Mall of America but I did have a few good meals, one being a burger that was almost better than the one I had at Burger & Beer Joint recently.  This puppy had a burger patty with shredded lettuce, cheese, pulled pork, AND bacon on top of it!!  My sales rep and I ate at a couple of sports bars out in Minnesota and the food was surprisingly good as was the service, something you never really get here in Miami.

The last state knocked off in November was Biloxi, Mississippi.  This trip was pure pleasure though, no work involved.  Why Biloxi?  Good question.  As I may have stated a few times on this blog, I love to gamble.  The MGM group knows this because I have their players card and play often at their casinos when Im in Vegas.  Well, they decided to mail me a postcard offering a free flight, transportation, and hotel for 2 nights for me and a companion to check out their Beau Rivage casino in Biloxi.  At first I ignored it because it seemed like one of those "too good to be true" deals.  Then, they called me and left a voicemail about the promo and sent another postcard.  I called my cousin, who also loves gambling as much as I do, and asked him if he was down to go.  They had also been sending him postcards and calls about the deal so we decided we would each take one of our buddies and head to Biloxi for a dudes weekend.  I'm not going to go into detail but lets just say that it was a full weekend of over-the-top debauchery.  Extravagant meals, a lot of drinking, and a lot of gambling.  Oh, and I got shitfaced and fell asleep at a blackjack table for about 10 minutes which the casino staff all got a great laugh out of not only on that night but when they told me about it the next day as well.  I had no recollection of that.  Yay!

Biloxi was a great time with lots of hilarious memories.  The casino was actually really nice and probably the closest outside-of-Vegas casino that I've been to that actually resembled a Vegas casino.  The only buzzkill of the trip was that we didnt get to take a drive to New Orleans on Saturday, mainly because the rental car company had no vehicles but also because none of us were in any sort of position to drive, let alone sit in a car for 2 hours.  Louisiana is one of the 11 states I now have left to visit.  Wouldve been nice to knock that one off but oh well.  There's always next year...

An offer I couldnt refuse...

Just got back into town from a great trip to Phoenix where I had the honor of becoming a Godfather. The weekend was a great escape. I spent time with my aunt & uncle, got to see my grandma, and even got to see my cousin, HB, who I rarely get to see. She is the Godmother and that pretty much puts a stamp on it that this kid will never go thru anything his godparents havent gone thru previously. The best part outside of meeting my Godson and becoming a Godfather had to be playing with my little niece. This kid is too damn cute and she knows it. I couldnt get enough of her calling me "uncle" in her little high-pitched voice. Its crazy but Im really starting to like hanging out with little kids, even if theyre whining or fussing about something. Maybe its because it taps into the little kid in me haha. I also got in a round of golf and, with the exception of the last hole, didnt duff any off the tee like I did in the SFDB Classic a month back. Ended up with an 87 and if these greens werent so slow (and if I could putt) Id have broken 80 easy. On Saturday night we went out to dinner and then my 2 cousins and I hit the casino. Yes, I love gambling. After winning a few hundy in Buffalo earlier in the week, I figured Id give another strange Indian casino a try. I got up about $150 early playing blackjack then got buried by a new dealer making 21s like it was his job and found myself down $100. Luckily, I was able to battle back and finish even on the night, playing at a table filled with dumbasses who had no idea what they were doing, people hitting 14s against a dealer showing 4, 5, or 6. It was brutal but a nice comeback. Next up - Bahamas in October and Vegas in November! YAY GAMBLING!

I think my favorite part of the weekend on a personal level was that I hardly consumed any alcohol at all. I had 1 bourbon and a glass of wine the 1st night, a beer the 2nd night, and a beer the last night I was there. Thats unbelievable! It made me feel good though. I had gone WAAAAY overboard at a wedding at the beginning of the month and it scared the crap out of me. I just wasnt paying attention to how much I was drinking because I was having such a good time and I got bombed. I pretty much finished an entire bottle of bourbon by myself. I still barely remember anything after the reception and a lot went on afterwards. Many people confirmed that I wasnt an asshole or a total liability, just having fun and being a clown. That was a semi-relief. Not being able to remember it all really bothered me and was kinda embarrassing and I never get embarrassed. Since then, Ive really been watching my alcohol intake. I know I can still pound em down if I feel like it but Im more conscious as to what Im doing now and Im making an effort to keep it within reason. Being around family and little kids definitely helped. Im happy to say that I came back and had 2 beers while eating dinner with friends and watching Heroes tonite and totally lost interest in having another.

Its good to be back home refreshed and ready to finish off what has been a hellacious travel month. I will bid farewell to some of my best friends tomorrow as they are moving away and taking their little 1yr old with them. That is gonna suck because another outlet for the kid in me will be gone.

Crawfish Boil @ Tobacco Road - Good Times!

Yesterday Tobacco Road held their annual crawfish boil and I made the trip for another year of peeling tails and suckin crawfish heads. The weather was beautiful out yesterday, maybe even a little on the warm side but not dreadfully hot like some Miami days can be. This made for easy crawfish consumption. They were really good this year. Lots of nice fatty crawfish in my 2 pound box and they were spicy but the spice didnt overpower the meat. A clean meal this is not. I felt like I needed a shower after dominating my platter o' crawfish but boy were they good. They also had burgers, dogs, and other grill fare. I think the setup this year was great too. Huge "you have to be a total dumbass not to understand" signs let you know where to order and where to pick up and there was never more than a line of a few people. That could also be because the turnout wasnt as great this year. I remember years past where the entire lot would be packed with people. Maybe because it was April 20th, a stoner's holiday? Lots of people partaking in a doobie or two all around the parking lot. Gotta love Tobacco Road for that haha. Anyways, the lack of crowd mustve sucked for the band that was on stage around 5pm because they were basically playing with absolutely no one standing within 20 yards. Oh well, they did play good music anyways. Overall, it was a great excuse to be outside with a big group of friends swilling beers on a gorgeous afternoon in Miami. Im already looking forward to next year. I just wish I didnt have to get up at 4am to catch a flight this morning...ugh.