A parakeet goes to Vegas Baby! part 3

The mother ship is calling

Now Jimmy Buffett concerts are normally pretty wild, but when you have one in Vegas Baby! it's over the top. The streets were filled with aloha shirt wearing revilers who had flown in from the four corners of the globe for this party.

Sweety Pie, Ross, Rachel, and I went to Margaritaville for a late lunch.

The happy foursome at Margaritaville

After eating our fill (It was quite likely that this was the first time anyone had ever said grace there.) and watching strangers drink more than their due, we made our way to the party. They had closed the street next to the restaurant and the extravaganza had been in full swing all day. The gathered parrotheads had left their inhibitions at home and were having a wonderful time.

Sweety Pie and I showing off our new headwear.

We joined in the fun until the gathered throng dispersed to go to the concert.

Tomorrow, Buffett in Vegas Baby!

Thought for the day -

Happy Halloween to Drew's Crew. Don't you hate that you have to give out candy to the high school kids just to keep your house from getting egged?

A parakeet goes to Vegas Baby! part 2

We got out of bed at the crack of 10:00 to meet Ross and Rachel for breakfast.




The view from our room. Pretty cool.










With our stomachs full, we ventured out to explore the wonders of Vegas Baby! We started off the tour by watching the water show at the Bellagio. It was very cool.



Sweety Pie (left) and Rachel (right) by the Bellagio fountains.










Next, we made our way up the strip looking at all the casinos and shopping malls along the way.

The malls in Vegas Baby! are made up of stores I don't shop in and for the most part have never heard of. (I'm a Traget man all the way.) I am pretty sure that if I were to enter one of them, an alarm would sound and I would be forcefully escorted out by several large gorillas wearing tuxedos.

The weather was wonderful (75 and sunny) and we had a great time. It was kind of like Disneyland only with a lot more smoke, beer, slot machines, and guys handing out pictures of naked ladies.

Tomorrow, I will tell of how I found the mother ship.

Thought for the day -

When in Vegas Baby! never take anything guys on the street are handing out.

These guys suck!

Today, after watching Oakland put a huge butt kicking on my Pittsburgh Steelers, I had to face the fact that my team sucks. I will still cheer for them, but they really suck. At least I'm honest about it.

Thought for the day -

Don't stop rooting for you team just because they aren't playing well.

To whom it may concern

Dear whom,

There will be no blog entry today. Drew has contracted the flu and is unable to come up with anything insightful or funny. He will continue the highly entertaining story of his adventures in Vegas Baby! when his health improves.

We apologize for the inconvenience,

The Management

Thought for the day -

When you're sick, you don't feel good.

A parakeet goes to Las Vegas

OK loyal readers, (From now on to be known as Drew's Crew) here is part one of my Las Vegas (Vegas Baby!) adventure.

On Friday afternoon, my wife (sweetie Pie) and I dropped our car off at her parent's house and headed to the airport in our hired Towncar. I hate using Super Shuttle. You can read my post from August 18 to see one of the reasons. Also, hiring a Towncar costs just a little more than the shuttle.

So anyway, we arrive at the airport more than two hours ahead of time. There was no line at the ticket counter (The plane was full, so we didn't get to upgrade to first class. I didn't mind rowing with the other slaves because it was only a two and a half hour flight.) and very little wait (The only hold up were the people who didn't know that water is a liquid. It looks like brains are going to be a hot item again this Christmas.) for security. At least I had time to grab a burger.

At the gate, we hooked up with our traveling companions (Ross and Rachel) and were ready to go. Ross and Rachel are our good friends from college. We have not seen that much of eachother for a while, so we were looking forward to the trip.




It looks like Vegas Baby! was expecting me. :)
















Upon our arrival in Vegas Baby! Ross and I procured the services of a limo to transport us to the Aladdin hotel. This was a surprise for our lovely ladies. Rachel had never been in a limo before. We all enjoyed riding in high style.

After checking in, sweetie Pie and I went to our room. It was what they call a resort room. It had a king sized bed, sofa, and a lighted armoire. There was a soaking tub in the bathroom.

The only problem was the decor. The Aladdin has recently been purchased by Planet Hollywood. As part of the change over, they have put up pictures from movies around the room. I had to cover the one of Johnny Depp in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory up. And Sly Stalone in Cobra over the tub was just plain wrong.

About half an hour later, we met Ross and Rachel in the lobby. We spent the rest of the night and early morning in the under construction casino playing the slots.

Somewhere around 1:00 AM, we retired to our rooms. We had a big day ahead of us, and we wanted to get a little sleep.

Me and the worlds biggest aloha shirt. Is this a great place or what?














Thought for the day -

If it's not first class, it's no class.

I've been tagged

I was going to post about my Vegas trip today, but my wife has the camera and I can't download any pictures. I guess that it's a good thing that Trish tagged me today. Now I have to come up with 5 interesting thing about me. No problem.

1. 3 is my lucky number. I am not superstitious, but I always act on the 3 thing. When We were about 10, my friends and I just started saying 3 was the best number. We also said that 1, 7, and 9 were good. 5 is unlucky. It's weird, but I still do it today.

2. I will break out in a song or dance at just about any time. I am not very good at either of these things, it's just that sometimes I can't keep the joy in.

3. When I enter a room, I am sure that I am the most entertaining person there. I know that this is conceited and big headed, but I can't help it. I am a showman and I love being the center of attention. If someone else is being funny, I see this as a challenge. I am not proud of this.

4. I am very good at trivia. It has nothing to do with being smart. I just remember things. My brain is a storehouse of useless information.

5. I have written in candidates when voting for president twice. I will not vote for someone just because they're not someone else. The lesser of two evils is still evil.

OK, there you have it. Now it's my turn. Hotwire, Kari, and Rose. You're it. I will be looking for five things soon.

Thought for the day -

If you can't sing well, make up what you lack in quality with volume.

Time to make a deposit

I'm back from Vegas. Thanks for all the well wishing.

I will be telling the story starting tomorrow.

We got home late last night and I need to rest. Having Crohn's disease makes you live life differently than other people do. My body has what I call an "Energy Bank". I have a certain amount of get-up-and-go. If I make a withdrawal, I need to make a deposit. It normally takes about 2 to 3 times as long to refill what I take out.

Las Vegas is very cool, but it took a lot of energy out of me. I will need to rest for about a week to get my "Bank" balance back to normal.

Talk to y'all tomorrow. Peace out.

Thought for the day -

Play hard, rest hard, and have a good time.

Vegas Baby!

Yowza!!! I'm off to Las Vegas for the weekend. I'm going to see the talented Jimmy Buffett and do some other stuff.

If I get a chance, I'll give you guys an update from Sin City. Otherwise, I'll tell you all about it when I get home.

Y'all have a great weekend.

Thought for the day -

If the dealer shows seven or higher, hit on sixteen. If the dealer shows six or lower, stand on twelve. Always split aces and eights. Always double down on eleven.

New counter

Hey everybody, look! I got me one o them new fangled counter thingymabobs. Now I can see how many people aren't reading my blog.

Thought for the day -

Who are all those people in the audience on infomercials? I bet they bring them in on the small school bus, if you know what I mean.

The score is now 2 to 5

Wow. Thanks to my loyal readers for asking for a new post. I am so feeling the love right now. I'm sorry my posts have been sporadic lately, but I've been very busy (When I say busy, I mean lazy) lately. I should be less busy next week.

Now back to your regularly scheduled blog.

Yesterday, I got another request for a partial from an agent. Let the happy dance commence!

It would appear that my query letter is satisfactory. One less thing to worry about.

It's amazing to me that just a year ago I said to my self "Self, why don't you write a book." and now real literary agents are considering representing me. I feel like such a grown up right now.

Thought for the day -

It is way more fun to get a request for a partial than to get a rejection letter.

Snicket tickets

Today I had the pleasure of traveling to the university bookstore to purchase tickets to see Lemony Snicket in person. It cost five bucks to see him. If you wanted to get him to sign something, you have to buy his newest book and pay the five bucks.

What a racket.

I remember the day when you just had to wait in line to get autographs. When I was 12, I waited in line for to hours to get Paul Stanley's (of Kiss) name on a piece of paper. But it didn't cost me a dime.

I'm sorry, but signing autographs is just part of fame and fortune.

When (not if) I'm famous, I will not charge for this kind of thing.

Thought for the day -

There ought to be a law against putting up Christmas displays in stores before Halloween.

You better shop around

Yesterday the new Jimmy Buffett CD came out, so I went shopping.

The new Buffett is pretty good. Not as good as his last one, but worth listening to.

While I was out, I also decided to get some much needed new jeans. This is something that I always put off because I'm a little hard to fit. It appears that there are very few people that share my measurements. Levi Strauss & Co. produce a small amount of pants in my size. I had to go to three stores to buy five pairs of jeans.

Oh well, at least it was a nice day for a drive.

Thought for the day -

Why do they call it a pair of pants? If I buy a pair of shirts, I get two. I should have twice as many pants in my drawer right now.

New guitar

Yesterday I took my birthday money and bought a new guitar. It's an Epiphone Les Paul 100. I know this means nothing to most of you, but guitar aficionados will know.

I went to the guitar store and found the one I wanted. The price tag said $249.00, but guitar stores are like car lots. You get to haggle. Using my best negotiating skills, I talked them down to $249.00. Oh yeah, I'm the man.

When she got home, my wife asked "Why do you need this one?"
"Because it produces the rich old rock and roll sound." I replied.
She gave me that look that I often get right before they change my dosage, rolled her eyes, and walked away.

Thought for the day -

Love one woman...Many guitars.

Word cloud

Hey look. It's a word cloud about my blog. Is this cool or what?

A parakeet looks at 40

Well here it is. My 40th birthday. Seems like a good time to reflect on my life.

My life so far -

3 years old - Watch Neil Armstrong walk on the moon.
6 years old - Pick The Pittsburgh Steelers as my favorite team.
7 years old - Get my first bike.
7 years old - Get my first bike stolen.
8 years old - Score a goal in my first soccer game.
12 years old - Go on my first extended sailing trip.
12 years old - Start Jr High in the public school system. Begin worst two years of my life.
13 years old - Go on my first extended backpacking trip.
15 years old - Contract Crohn's disease.
16 years old - Meet the Lord.
16 years old - Get in bike wreck. Break my skull in two places.
16 - 18 years old - Have a great time in high school.
22 years old - Get crush on and ask out wonderful girl.
26 years old - Marry wonderful girl.
29 years old - Buy first house.
31 years old - Start working with the youth at my church.
38 years old - Appear in first community theater play.
38 years old - Go on TV game show.

It's been a long road, but it's all good.

Thought for the day -

"Some of it's magic. Some of it's tragic. But I've had a good life all the way." Jimmy Buffett.

Everything I need to know

Everything I need to know I learned from watching CSI.

Always follow the evidence.
Never let your prejudices influence your conclusions.
If you get into trouble, your friends will move mountains to help you.
Life is not fair.
Sometimes the bad guys get away.
Sometimes doing the right thing means doing something gross.
Don't be afraid to ask for help if you need it.
Knowing a lot of trivia can be helpful.
Las Vegas is a very dangerous place to be.
You have to be really hot to work in a crime lab.

Thought for the day -

The evidence never lies.