This is a totally outdated report, but have been reminiscing since wife told me she's sending me back in June. Last March my wife surprised me with a trip to Vegas. 1st ever time there. I am a losing on-line player, but can make $100 last for 6 months playing micro-stakes nlhe and cheap sit-n-gos.

We stayed at the Strat which is a dated dump but cheap. Took out $600 to gamble with for the first 2 days. Wife insisted she hold the cash to keep me out of trouble. She got $100 and me $200 each day. Got in mid afternoon on Wed, and sat down for some 1/2. Raked in $70 in first 2 hour session. I play pretty abc tight-aggr, but can get tricky occasionally. I'm a social worker/therapist for a living and can read people well enough to make up for most of my strategic deficits. After a so-so buffet with the spouse, sat back down for a long eve of poker. Wound up up about $350 in that 8 hour session. Got a little sleep and was up for their 8 am tourney. Wound up chopping with the chip lead for 70% ($240). Took a break to have lunch and tour some with the wife and met up with her brother and a friend who came out to celebrate with us.

That evening we saw O (cirqe-de-wish-I-was-on-acid-ole). Pretty cool stuff really, but was wishing I had bonged out before going. We had the belagio buffet afterwards which is 1000times better than the Strats. After wife went to bed went back to the strat and again raked. I don't drink anymore which makes the drunks easy marks. Wound up up about $130 and headed off to bed.

Friday busted out of the Strat tourney early (first time not winning) and after breakfast went to Ceaser's for the noon tourney. Their tourney has slow blind structures so allows you to get creative. I stayed slightly ahead of the avg chip count and would call the wife at each break to tell her I was still alive. The tourney started with 120 people or so and paid out the last 16. Was starting to get shortstacked when I sensed weakness in an opponent and reraised all-in with pocket 5s after missing the flop. He called me down with top pair and I rivered a miracle 5 to survive. Eventually I made the final table. After a break and an excited call to wife they took us up onto the stage to play for the cash. It really was the most fun I've ever had with pants on. There was one serious jackass at the table and I took great joy in crippling him when I went over the top pre-flop with JJ and he called with QK. My Jacks held up and he was furious. After that I was the chip leader and started bullying people. I busted 5 of the 9 at that table and wound up heads up 7 hours into the tournty The last hand I re-raised my opponent all in with the magic JJ. He had A-10 and whiffed on every street. Wound up clearing 3,400 and they give tourney winners these cool hand protectors. I was floating on air the rest of the evening. I literally was so excited I had to pace through the casino while waiting for my friend, wife and bro-in-law.

That night went to Hugo's Celler to celebrate. Fantastic meal and hung out downtown, before an almost all-nighter at MGM. Was up-down all night at a fairly tough table. Eventually quit up about $20. Fun hanging out with the wife's big-bro. Got a call from my wife who really doesn't like to gamble much and sticks to penny slots. Gave her basic strategy for video poker and after going up a couple hundred she moved to the dollar machine and lost over $600!!! She said "it was crazy I couldn't stop". This is the person who's holding the money to keep ME in check...

Last full day in vegas we went to Hoover's Dam which was incredible in sort of a yawnish way. Got comped tickets to the strats "Bite" show. I've always had a thing for naked lesbian vampires so enjoyed the show immensely. My friend who joined me in vegas is a lesbian and we were in the front row high fiving left and right. Wierd night. Mostly stuck to blackjack so I could spend time with my wife and friend. Had a ball at the strat and we were quite rowdy. My wife and friend were liquored up and I was hollaring like an idiot. Good time but not very lucrative. Sat back down at the old strat cash game. Was populated most nights by drunken dealers from other casinos. Several were very sloppy and just too obnoxious to tolerate. Had I caught any cards it would have payed off big to stick around, but the annoyance factor just got to be too much, and I went to bed about 4 am. The morning of checkout I rode the strats ride where you shoot up the needle. Incredible rush. The trip was literally a once in a lifetime deal. I wound up paying for the entire trip (meals, hotel, flight and shows), and had enough to buy myself an ipod and laptop upon return.