Don't know if I told you, but I had made a New Year's resolution to give up gambling for at least three months. This decision was based on the fact that I'd just gone through a three-month losing streak. As I needed to get some landscaping done in my backyard, I figured the money I saved from gambling would just about pay for what I wanted done.
So here we are into March and I hadn't bet a dime in 2006, even though I go to casinos a lot for dinner or to see some entertainment. Anyway, tonight I went to Palace Station to have dinner with some friends. The coffee shop there serves some of the best Chinese food in town. I had allowed myself a lot of time to get there as rush hour in this city is anything but. You crawl, not rush.
Oddly enough, or maybe it was fate, I breezed across town and got there a half hour before we were to meet. I wandered around for a few minutes, then thought, I'll put 40 bucks in a Spin Poker Deluxe machine and play 100 nickels a hand, which is $5. If I hit anything, great. If not, it should last me 20 minutes. I immediately lost the first five hands, leaving me with $15 in credits. However, my friends, the next hand dealt me four Aces and I drew a kicker to give me $1,920 for my $5 bet.
So as you can imagine, I'm a happy guy. That doesn't mean this column is going to sparkle, but I just wanted to share my win. If the column sucks, don't tell my boss. He'll figure with my win, he can cut my pay in half and justify it with your complaints.
Okay, now that I have told you something you probably didn't want to hear, especially if you just had a losing session, I'll get on to something that I think you'll like. The Museum of the American Cocktail -- a global network of talented mixologists, historians, restaurateurs, collectors, chefs and writers on the subject of drink -- has established a new exhibit to celebrate the art of the cocktail inside Commander's Palace at Desert Passage at the Aladdin.
The Las Vegas exhibit, which kicked off this past Sunday, traces the history of the cocktail in the past 200 years and includes vintage cocktail paraphernalia, such as shakers, advertisements, barware, Prohibition-era literature, music and other cocktail memorabilia. As an additional appeal, the museum's "Mixology Seminar Series" will be offered throughout 2006 and presented by leading mixologists around the country.
The first seminar took place today from 10:30 a.m. to noon, but don't be discouraged. Additional seminars at Commander's Palace include "Great Classic Cocktails at Home" on Friday, April 14, and "Cocktail 200 - Honoring the 200th Birthday of the Cocktail" on Saturday, May 13. To register for these classes, call the restaurant at (702) 892-8272. The museum will be open daily from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
SUITE FANTASY
Las Vegas is and always has been a city of fantasy and The Palms is making sure it stays that way. It just opened its Fantasy Suites inside the new $250-million Fantasy Tower. Located on the Fantasy Tower's 25th and 26th floors, the Fantasy Suites range from 1,500 to 4,200 square feet and each suite features custom furnishings and never-before-seen amenities. The Kingpin Suite, a retro-style party room, has two full-size bowling lanes. The Erotic Suite features leather and metal finishes, an eight-foot round, rotating bed and a Show Shower equipped with special lighting and a dancer pole.
Other Fantasy Suites include the Celebrity, Director's, Hot Pink, Crib and g-Suite, all built with extra sound insulation (hmmm, wonder why). The Fantasy Suites follow in the footsteps of the Palms' Hardwood Suite, the only hotel room in the world with an indoor basketball court. And don't forget the first Playboy Club in 25 years will open at The Palms later this year.
CASINOS WIN (AGAIN)
Time for my trivia that lets you impress your friends. Not surprisingly, 2005 was the biggest year in Las Vegas' history, with records being broken across the board. The visitor tally was 36.8 million, up 3.2 percent over 2004 (the 2006 projection is 39.1 million). McCarran International Airport handled nearly 44.3 million passengers (arrivals and departures), a 6.8 percent increase. Convention attendance increased by 7.7 percent to 6.2 million. The average room rate rose 15 percent (OUCH!) to $103.12.
Of course, the most important statistic for the casinos is the gambling win and the 2005 figure didn't disappoint. Statewide, casinos reported winnings of $11,649,039,552 (count it, my friends, that's more than 11 BILLION dollars), a 10.3 percent increase over 2004. Strip casinos enjoyed a 13.1 percent increase; their combined $6 billion take represents almost 52 percent of the state total. The win was up 12.5 percent ($891 million) on the Boulder Strip and North Las Vegas' 17.2 percent increase ($302 million) was the biggest in Nevada. Downtown booked a decrease at minus-1.3 percent ($654 million). The total handle (amount bet) statewide was $162.2 billion. How much of that was yours?
Good luck and I'll see you on the Strip. And don't forget to check out www.valleyblogs.com
If you have a question or a Las Vegas experience you would like to share with my readers, please e-mail me at lennylv@cox.net. Please include your full name and the city or town where you live.
