Where in the world are we now? About 1500 miles North of the Equator, in a state with its own time zone, in the middle of the Pacific Ocean...on The Big Island, Hawaii. We are trying to appreciate the natural beauty of the place while coping with a father's illness. Dad Benardella is terminally ill and we are grateful to take time to spend with him and help out where we can. A lot happened before we arrived here, and in light of the circumstances of our current location, I thought it best to work backward from here.
Pheonix, AZ. Michael B. ended a four day trip (flight attendant) by flying into McCarren International and joining us for our last night in Vegas and our road trip to his house in Pheonix. It was the stuff of TV movies. Fred had just made final table (I'd went out only moments before at a respectable 15th), midnight was approaching which meant Michael needed a pick-up. Our phone battery was almost dead (funny how that happens in Casinos) and Fred was reluctant to release his good luck charm :) The clock struck for a 10 minute table break, I tried my best for a tournie winning pep talk, then left Fred to take rake in the win while I sped off to hopefully find the airport. Michael and I returned to find Fred the proud winner (chopped with the final 3 players) of an 84 person Texas' Holdem' tournament. What a way to finish out Vegas, but I'm supposed to be going backwards here. So, sunny Phoenix. We've been working our way that far West for months, giving Michael time to think of lots of projects. Painting atop a 24' ladder, installing misters, cleaning out and organzing the garage, computer overalls...too much fun to keep track. Phoenix also offered bowling night, gay bingo and several very memorable home cooked dinners with Keith and Michael. We got to hang out with Ken and Thomas a bit, but didn't get a chance to see everyone we were hoping to before hopping a next day flight to Hilo with Michael.
Las Vegas. Alright, I know I cheated and spilled the grand finale when I wasn't even supposed to be on Vegas yet, but I couldn't resist. Besides, what happens in Vegas stays there, right? So perhaps I'll say no more. Or, I'll summarize the highlights. Winding through the mountains for a sunset arrival, splitting the win of a midnight poker tournie on my first night to begin the visit with $450 in winnings, meeting up with a group of English blokes and Casino hopping with them, moving into our very own Vegas condo (ok, more will need to be said about this), finding out that Uncle Dick and our cousins Rory and Julie would be in town (Holy Happy Aniversary!), playing the fishing game with Rory and Julie and all of us coming out ahead (but me winning the boat race and $278!) bullshitting with Aunt Sandy and all of Uncle Dick's friends, including Geno and Pete and his never-ending stories, Fred finally winning the Hard Rock 9:00 tournament, dancing away in a nightclub (without having had to wait in line), sitting down for all you can eat spaghetti at 4:00 AM, playing Keno with the old folks, pretending to play Keno to get free drinks from the waitress the old folks had buttered up, working on our tan, relaxing by the pool, walking the strip on Saturday night, losing $200 in 2 minutes at a was hot craps table, writing a new character, cashing out ahead on our favorite slot: Antique Appraisal, making homemade meals, watching an entire marathon of meaningless reality cooking show in a quite hung-over state.
Our condo. We have this dream of hanging out in Vegas for a week or so, playing some poker and writing some words. We mention this idea to one of Fred's best friends, Dave, who mentions it to a good friend of his (and EFF fantasy football rival of Fred's) and then some magic happens. Mike is in the process of switching to a different company to manage his condo, his unit is vacant, he doesn't mind if we stay, we don't mind doing a few things to make the transition easier. Literally one block off the strip, a pool, a fully furnished kick-ass condo including a coffee pot :), a work-out room, lots of parking, you get the picture here. On one hand, we can't believe our luck, but on the other hand, this is exactly what we are putting our belief in. We can spend our life working, hoping to earn the luxury of a retired life, or we can live the life we want right now and trust it'll work out.
Salt Lake City. We are thrilled that it just so happens Michael B. has an overnight layover in Salt Lake City the same evening we planned to pull into town. We got a taste of why he and his partner Keith like this place so much. Despite them walking in the door from work the same time we descend upon their house, Amy and Wade did not hesitate in bringing out the cocktails and appetizers while they simultaneously entertained us and got Micheal's belated birthday dinner into the oven. Mindi joined us for an evening of conversation, great food, and some rousing games of left, right, center. Mindi graciously offered to take us in and played host extraordinaire for the next two days, giving us the run of her home, pantry, and high speed internet. After a lazy afternoon catching up on emails and putting our feet into the Great Salt Lake (Fred loved the sea monkeys) Mindi gathered some friends (of which we now qualified :) on her front porch and got the party started. It was hard to go, but Vegas was calling, so, bright and early, we drove off into the high noon sun...and drove into the Vegas sunset.