with my winnings

I like to be pampered, can't get enough of it, so when I had some extra money I decided to visit the spa. I once saw my friend Kari after a facial and she looked so relaxed and was practically glowing (you were glowing). Ever since I have wanted to try it, so I called the fancy Aveda spa Pyara to make an appointment.

I won't go into much detail, but let me just say it was extremely relaxing. The technician asked me about my skin condition and we chose products to use that would work best for me. While different masks/treatments were doing their magic, I got leg/foot, hand/arm, and head/shoulder/neck massages. It was like getting two treatments at once.

I highly recommend to anyone with a face.

Vegas: Part 2

Hello again faithful readers (all 5 of you); you have waited patiently for the next installment of the Vegas trip. I hope you won’t be disappointed. So, where were we…that’s right, Friday evening.

Before we got out there I had done some research on what to on Friday night and we all agreed that we would go to Ivan Kane’s Forty Deuce (it’s a burlesque club). Ralph, Rochelle, Tammer and I got all dressed up and headed over to the club where we met Kari, Erica and another couple that R & R work with.

The place wasn’t very crowded, but there weren’t any free chairs unless you ordered table service. Table service is nice in that you get a designated seat in a roped off area and a personal waitress. Table service is not so nice in that there’s a minimum alcohol purchase. After much debating we decided to go ahead and splurge. The first show didn’t start until 12:30am and the second show was at 3 (ouch, I usually go to bed at 11); there were two dancers in each show and both were a lot of fun. In between shows the bar turns into a dance club and patrons are allowed patrons up on the stage to do their own little dances, and I have to tell you that some of those girls better hope that their drunken stupidity stays in Vegas.

I can only stand so much base and bad dancing without a break, so I went to the casino (we were at Mandalay Bay) to hit the pennies. I found my favorite Alien game and within 5 minutes I had won $150! If you weren’t keeping track I am now $120 up for this trip playing nothing but penny slots. I went back to the club to enjoy the rest of the evening (or morning); we left after the 3am show and got home at about 4:30.

On Saturday we went breakfast/lunch with the family and spent the rest of the day hanging out at the house taking it easy. I thought it was a great way to spend our last day with our friends. That night my friends Ben and Renee got back home, so we made the 40 minute drive to their place to spend the night. In the morning we went to breakfast with Ben and Renee on the way to the airport.

At the airport I hit he nickel slots, which turned out to be a mistake because I immediately lost $60 (it kills me, too, because after 2 games I was $40 up, but I just couldn’t stop). I won something else, though, sort of. Our flight was oversold, and after discussing it Tammer and I agreed that I should volunteer my seat in exchange for a free round trip ticket. After Tammer got on the plane I got Ben to come pick me up and I got to spend the whole day with them. This was really nice because I don’t get to see them very often. Also, with my new ticket I will be able to go to LA in the fall for Kari and Christophe’s wedding!!

The rest of the journey was pretty uneventful, except I did get to see a 21 month old kid who could swim…I didn’t think that was possible.

Next time I’ll tell you what I did with my cash winnings.

health forms

I was just going over some health forms for grad school. Now I have the word "meningococcal" stuck in my head.

Vegas: Part 1

A little more than a week ago Tammer and I traveled to Las Vegas to visit some friends and take in the sin! While their whole campaign revolves the idea that it all “stays in Vegas”, I think that’s stupid, and I’m going to spill my guts.

We flew into the city on Wednesday evening, that’s July 4^th. Believe it or not, as we were landing, we could see fireworks going off all over town. It was absolutely beautiful. From the airport we picked up the rental car and headed on over to Ralph and Rochelle’s place in Henderson. I went to bed immediately while Tammer stayed up and visited with our host for a bit.

Thursday morning we woke up at dawn (we were still on eastern time) and relaxed until the kids tried to sneak up on us. After a little bit of playing and some breakfast, Ralph and Rochelle took the kids to school and went to work themselves, and Tammer and I were left to fend for ourselves (always a good idea). We headed over to downtown, the older side of Sin City where you can find cheaper food, the casinos you think about from old movies and the Fremont Street Experience. About 3-4 blocks of Fremont Street are covered with a giant structure with lights (there’s a light show at night) and lined on either side with casinos and souvenir shops.

Our first stop was La Bayou casino where in the back we each purchased a yard of frozen cocktail (Tammer got a margarita and I got a strawberry thing with lots of rum). We hit the street with our refreshments, and it was at this point we became the trashiest people in the area. Keep in mind it was about 10am. We were pleased to discover that all the businesses left their doors open allowing the air conditioning to escape. The effect was such that the area was a pleasant 75-80 degrees; however, once you left the protection of the awning the 110 degree heat punched you in the face. During a quick pit stop at one of the casinos I put $10 in a penny slot machine and walked away with $27.15.

After we got good and liquored up we hit the Main Street Station Buffet (I had read online that it was the best buffet under $10. The food had helped us sober up, but we were still suffering from the effects sugar in the drinks, the heat, and the impending food coma, so we decided to go back to the house for a nap.

While we were recovering Erica and Kari arrived in town (yea!). We met them at their hotel for happy hour by the pool (where I consumed copious amounts of water) and then dinner at a lovely Chinese restaurant in their hotel. After dinner Tammer and I went back to Ralph and Rochelle’s to spend the evening with the family.

Friday morning on our way to see where Ralph and Rochelle work our tire blew on the freeway. Luckily we were able to pull over at a gas station and poor Tammer had to put on the spare in the heat (it was already well on its way to 115). Ralph and Rochelle work for Ralph’s cousin, famous artist Michael Godard. After a quick visit/tour of their office, during which we met the artist himself (ooooh-aaahhhh), we were off to the rental car place to exchange our car.

Friday afternoon we met Erica and Kari at their hotel pool where they had rented a cabana for the day. It was so nice spending the afternoon lounging around in the pool and the cabana, but it was still terribly hot. At about 4 I couldn’t take the heat and decided to go inside to try my hand at the penny slots again. I lost $40 immediately, so I got $100 at the ATM (conveniently located on the casino floor). I was able to play with this for more than an hour and lost only $6. For those of you keeping track I am now $30 down.

More later…I am tired of writing and I’m sure you need a break, too.

where have i been?

Tammer's Birthday

Yesterday was Tammer's birthday; I won't mention how old he is. We had a great day.

First thing I picked up a chocolate/raspberry layer cake. It was decadent.

Next we hopped on the T to get to the annual Chowderfest at city hall plaza. They were handing out all kinds of free goodies outside the venue. Inside we were able to sample chowders from 9 different area restaurants; then we got to vote on our favorite to be named best chowder in Boston. I voted for The Skipper and Tammer voted for Ned Devine's. One entry was so awful that I feel too bad for them to even tell you who they were. However, I don't think anyone is in danger of being exposed to their chowder anytime soon, if you are, I will warn you.

Here are some photos of Tammer weighing the candidates and of the colonial marching band entertaining the crowds.













Also, in honor of independence day and our fine country, I include a photo of some cops on horses disturbing a guy who was just trying to grab an afternoon nap.











After getting our fill of chowder we went shopping for a while. Then we went to see the ultimate summer movie "Live Free or Die Hard". As the man says, "yippee kayee mother fu[BLAM!!!]"; I recommend it highly.

For dinner I took Tammer to a sushi place called FuGaKyu; it's the largest sushi place in New England. I haven't been able to stomach sushi since an unfortunate incident in 2000, but last night I tried some rather tame selections and was pleasantly surprised. I think I am ready to add the cuisine back into my rotation. I am pretty sure Tammer really enjoyed it, too.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETIE!