I'm happy to report that (finally) my gambling fortunes turned around a little today. My wife assures me that I shouldn't worry about my results as she's "saved" more than enough while shopping to make up for my losses, but as a good husband, I like to pull my own weight. We went to a locals casino today that even I'd never been to, and the good hands started coming almost immediately. I even managed to come up with more useless casino gifts, as the casino was giving away bottles of alcohol with every 300 points. I doubt that I've ever looked more like a degenerate in my life than leaving a casino in Las Vegas with a bottle of Bacardi in one hand and a bottle of Jack Daniels in the other. It was enough to make me stagger a little as I walked, even though I had been drinking Diet Coke all day.
Tonight we went to see Terry Fator. I've never been to see a ventriloquist before, and I really didn't know what to expect other than something similar to his performances on America's Got Talent. It's amazing what Terry can do with his voice, and it's hard to describe his show as just a ventriloquist act since it has equal parts of ventriloquism, singing, impersonations and comedy. The puppets are so lifelike that you really do forget that Terry is controlling them.
A live band provides backup while the puppets do impersonations of today's (and yesterday's) music superstars. The comedy is great and there's a part in the show where he takes a volunteer out of the audience and turns him into a life size puppet that is one of the funniest things I've ever seen. The best way I can sum up the show is to say that it would have been a fantastic evening out if Terry had been moving his lips the entire time. The fact that he does the performance without should have people beating down the door to see this show. We went out for a little bit after the show and took in some of the free Vegas attractions. The volcano at the Mirage has been souped up a lot, and is actually now a much better show than it used to be. The Sirens of TI show has also been souped up a lot, but is still every bit as bad as it used to be. As it was the last night out, even the girls sat down to play some slots, although it's a much different vibe gambling when your wife is sitting beside you. I do laugh at the guys trying to teach their wives to play video poker. I long ago gave that up, and if, for some reason, Lori and I are in a casino together, it's Lobstermania time. Which we did quite well at last night. Now if only they'd been giving out more bottles of rum.
