So it's Tuesday morning and I decide to check out a Trop. tourney I play in the morning $35 buy-in and after 15 mins decide that I haven't learned anything in the last week about how to dress for poker. I've been wearing flipflops all week while playing. I've also been freezing my azz off in each casino. I am a very slow learner.

Bottom line, I am so uncomfortable I can't wait to get out of the room. The room is fine if you aren't wearing flipflops, shorts and a T-shirt. (at least for me) I make some spazz moves and am out either 1st or 2nd with about 15 runners left in. I am totally fine with it.

Play a later afternoon tourney (with runners and socks on) make the final table. Go out 3rd after having the chip lead and get $30 bucks from 1st and 2nd place finishers out of ther prize pool. I am learning very quickly that I cannot play well on or near the lead. I am either too passive or too aggressive and never "just right". I need to date Goldilocks.

Wednesday, a.m. the kid wants to play a cheap tourney. It's 11:30 and if we hurry we can make the Rio noon $40. W grab a cab and enter. There are about 18 runners I think. The kid and I make it to the last 6 players then this happens. I look down at JJ under the gun. The BB has about 4k in chips, the kid has about 6k. I go ALL-IN, the kid (my son) 2 seats over calls, BB calls. It's oh oh time. Everyone turns over. I have JJ/kid has KK/ bb has AA. The AA holds, the kid is pretty much crippled. I eventually get the AA guy but can't remember the hand. Ends up me and another guy who was at my original table. We have played on the same table for a few hours and I haven't heard him utter a single word other than raise or fold the whole time. He has about 30% more chips than me when I hear these words, "theres just the two of us, do you want to split it?"..I say 50% each? He agrees. Now here is the thing. For the only time on the trip I KNOW I'm the better player. I'm sure I could have taken it down. We each took $240 and that was the end of it.

Walk the strip a bit and there is some serious talent out there as usual. Nice to watch. End up walking past Tix42nite booth and ask the kid if he wants to see a show. We grab tix to MYSTERE. I have seen it before. Son loves it. Good times!!!

Thursday is BC FLIGHTLINES day. I don't remember whether or not someone mentioned it on here but maaannn, what a great time!!! Basically you get a ride from the Excaliber to Boulder City via shuttle bus. Then you get orientation and take a bus up the mountain. A fairly strenuous 15 minute (carrying your harness and glider) hike from where the shuttle stops to the top of the mountain and you're at your first of 4 stations.

A great view of Vegas and the lake and the surrounding countryside. Really pretty and suddenly really scary. I was really happy that I used the "facilities" at the base because I was quite sure that as I was being strapped in for the first decent that I was going to be embarrassed enough screaming like a litttle bitch all the way down. The saving grace was that I was at least unlikely to piss myself too. I mean, I could feign the screaming as some sort of exultation. The wet seat would trump that.

In all honesty I went from extreme fear, to excitment, to near euphoria in mere seconds. On the first flight down about 20 seconds in, it actually felt like flying. Sounds weird but it did. There were 4 separate flights with a short hike between them. It took about 2 1/2- 3 hours in all to get it done. One of the most exhilarating things I've done. Crazy fun (and scary)but totally worth the money. For the kid and I it was about $280. I would do this again for sure and probably will.

Back at the hotel sitting at a slot for a bit the kid is 2 seats to my right when a buxom blonde walks by and I look, she looks and IT'S ON!! I figure I'll show the kid that his old man can still get his mack on. I got game. (I thought). She comes over introduces herself as do I. She asks if I'm here with anyone and of course I say no. The kid just smiles. Now I notice that I'm sitting beside a blonde SNOOKI. (I never looked below her...ummm....eeeerrr....lower rib area before this. I also can't help but notice that she's chewing her gum like she thinks her teeth have muscles. Oh well, time to get the game on. I ask her within the first 30 seconds "you workin??" Apparently , this is either not proper etiquette or she is related to MR CHATTY-PANTS plane guy.I know this because she is sure I want to hear EVERYTHING about her. Eventually it gets down to do I want company. I say no, I'm poor, but she's in the mood to barter. I repeat that I'm poor, REALLY poor but she says we can work something out. I decline of course. I mean, I wouldn't ever do that. At least with just the one tequila I had in me at that moment.

Now let's just say I was sitting there with oh, I dunno, maybe 15 tequilas in me and I was the kind of guy that would do that sort of thing,,,(I'm not) but if I was, I would probably be doing my best the entire time trying NOT to think of where she may have been 10 minutes earlier. In this case though, even with the 15 tequila brain-bender on, I doubt I would be able to miss the HICKEY she had on her right breast!!!

Yikes!!!!!! We said our adieu's and the kid and I hit the sack...

(to be continued)