Oct 24
by Don

To know 44 is to know that he loves the simple things when on vacation; a great steak, the “pick 6”, and of course a good fruity drink.  It seems that his love of Jimmy Buffet knows no bounds and thusly it’s always 5’oclock somewhere.

He and Goldie turned Lori and myself onto a little known gem that serves up the best fruity drinks that I have ever had, and the ironic part of it all I have personally walked by the place dozens times over the years and never gave it a passing glance except to look up and catch a score or something on the TV’s overheard.

The Fusion bar, a bar in the round, is in the Palazzo is near the cashier’s cage and surrounded by a few innocuous slot machines of little consequence.  I have walked by it on route to the bathrooms nearby countless times, but on this trip 44 insisted that we have a drink.

Wendy was the bartender and she was instructed to prepare 2 drinks with strawberry (for Lori and myself), a mango something for Goldie, and whatever she felt for 44 (turned out to be a watermelon concoction that was magical).  The resulting drinks were, well simply amazing.  This bar has infused vodka’s and what not so they are more prepared than most to make these wonderful drinks, and Wendy did not disappoint.

I have to say that if you are in the mood for a good fruity cocktail (and who isn’t really) find your way to the Palazzo and look for the Fusion bar by the cashier’s cage.  You won’t be disappointed.

Oct 20
by Don

It’s like I always say, if given a chance the gambling gods will strike down on with the cruelest of intentions.  Sports betting seems to be the worst of it because you have to wait a period of time when your money is tied up in a “Future” and anything can happen.

I am not one for Parlays per say, but I have a friend who wanted to get a three team parlay that would have a nice pay day if it were to hit and who am I to stand in the way of a man and his crazy dreams?  So I siddled up to the book at Paris and put down $200 to win $1200 on two favorites and a slight underdog. 

Now there are ways to lose a bet, and then there is the HBC (head ball coach).  The Gamecocks were only 10 seconds away from punting the ball and running out the clock for a 14-10 point win and a cover (the spread was -3).  But Spurrier wanted to make sure that Miss. State wouldn’t get a chance to even touch the ball as he instructs the punter to take the ball and walk out of the back of the endzone for the last play of the game.  He does and the safety ends it, 14-12.  No cover, No win. 

The only saving grace is that this was the first game of the three and although the other two cover, I am told that the agony would have been greater if this was the last game and then this would have happened.  I am not sure, it was brutal anyway you look at it if you ask me.

There were other bets won and lost for sure, but this one stung.  All there is left is the ticket that if not for the last few seconds of a meaningless midseason SEC conference game would have been worth $1400.  Thanks HBC!

Jun 14
by Don

Just got back from a very triumphant trip to Vegas with Lori and a assorted rabble to celebrate a birthday and have some general revelry. Details on that and the prior trip (I know I owe you guys big time), but I do need to tell this quick story.

We were on the 11am back to the ATL when we realize that we are not actually going anywhere. 20 minutes pass and the captain comes on and says that there is an issue with a valve or something and we will need to deplane. Uggh.

Normally this would be a time to both moan and groan, but Lori had made a killing at the BJ tables the day before and we all were in generally good spirits so a 5 hour delay was no big deal.

Well it turned out to be even sweeter as I was contacted by our newest sponsor, BestofVegas.com. They have it all, from shows to tours and everything in between. So please, take a moment to check them out here, or you can click on the link to the right under the search and find out more.

Thanks and more to come soon, I promise!

Apr 16
by Don

So I know I owe you guys a bunch of posts from the last trip to Vegas, and they are coming.  I recently switched phones (I will miss you BlackBerry) so I need to get some pics off of there to augment some of those posts, but really that’s for another time.

What’s in store for this time?  Well we will have a review of a room in the Centurion tower at Caesars, a review of a room at the Wynn (so choice), general mayhem with Level 10 and the Vault, and whatever else we can think of.

I love this town….

Mar 12
by Rolka Nation

Greetings, fellow degenerates!  Long time, no write.  First of all, some business to get out of the way.  I have previously been known here under the moniker of Pittsburgh Gil.  But that shall be no longer.  From this date on, I shall be known as Rolka Nation.  Why?  Shut up, don’t ask questions.  Kidding.  About 4 months ago, I started a full-time blogging endeavor called Rolka Nation’s Brewery, a craft beer themed site containing news, reviews, event info, videos, and more.  Check out my antics there.

On to the good stuff.  As you know, the crew recently took Vegas by storm yet again this past February.  This was my first trip out in roughly 17 months, which was quite the gap for me.  Therefore, it was time to do some serious gambling.  The budget wasn’t high but substantial and enough to maintain 3 days of play barring disastrous bad luck.

I learned the “hedge economics” blackjack betting system from ol’ Donnie Boy long ago and have practiced it.  However, I had never experienced that mystical run of winning a lot of consecutive hands to really cash in on it.

Until now…

My oh my, what a trip I had.  The good luck began the first night.  All 5 of us were playing at one table and I made a nice little $60 profit in about an hour.  A good way to start the trip.  The day was long, travel was involved, so off to bed I went at a decent hour.  But this, my friends, was just the beginning.

Day 2 was a little up and down but saw me come out slightly ahead again due to a nice quick session at Ellis Island as we awaited our table where we enjoyed engorging ourselves on their excellent BBQ.  The rest of the night saw me come out about even.

Day 3…wow.  It all started prior to dinner during the late afternoon.  Donnie, Lori, and War Eagle were at Caesar’s but I stayed behind at Harrah’s (homebase) as I had scheduled a deep tissue massage that afternoon at the spa.  No, I’m not kidding.  I like an occassional massage and schvitz in the sauna.  Deal with it.

So I had some time to myself post-massage.  I, of course, went to the casino and found one of the few 3-2 paying BJ tables in Harrah’s.  It’s located near an intrusive column right by the roulette tables, facing the cage.  This is likely placed her on purpose.  Know this and play at it, good stuff.  I bought in $100 and there were just 2 others at the table playing.  Well, before I knew it, I had turned that $100 into $375.  I won 6 or 7 hands in a row and had a couple of smaller runs mixed in there.  The session didn’t last long as the other two gentlemen pulled anchor and it was just me by my lonesome playing.  Not digging that vibe, I cashed out my $375 and rolled.

But wait, there’s more.  We had a fine dining experience at The Range, Harrah’s Steakhouse, and headed down to the casino for one last casino games session on our final night in town.  This is when the magic began.

Things got off to a bad start.  Lori and I sat down at a BJ table and each quickly lost $100.  This literally lasted less than 15 minutes and, being highly stuffed with steak and wine, I was about to call it a night.  However, it was still fairly early.  I played a little Pai Gow with Don and lost badly.  Things were looking even more grim.  I wondered back to my winning table from earlier in the day and saw Lori and Mr. Cub playing amongst the seat-filled action.  I observed for a while and then Mr. Cub busted out.  A seat was opened. Ok, one last time.

I sat down and my luck immediately took off.  I can’t remember too many exacts, but I know that I won either 9 or 10 consecutive hands and my bet got up to roughly $120 before I lost.  Wow, was this a rush.  I hit blackjack twice (3-2 remember) with $60 and $75 bets on the table.  My arms were raised high in the air, my voice bellowed in cheer, and my heart raced.  It wasn’t too long before I cashed out my $100 buy-in at a cool $600.

For the trip, I actually left with more money than I went with including every single expense while in town.  Food, cabs, drinks, the massage, my room…all of it.  So basically, a completely all-expenses paid Vegas Vacation.  Nice.

Never before had I experienced such a mystical run.  The ones you hear tales of.

I can’t wait for the next….

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