It's Not A Bender, It's A Lifestyle.

MGM doesn't seem to want me to stay in a standard room. Without asking, and 3 days before arrival, I got auto-updated to an Executive King Suite at the Grand. I stayed in one once years ago before it was remodeled. It was a bit dark and dour, but the new design looks more bright and better laid out. It's almost 700 sq ft with a nice big bathroom, living area, 2 flat screens and possibly a strip view. It's always nice to have a little extra room to roam around in so definitely a worthy and appreciated upgrade from the standard remodeled King room. This has never happened to me before, at least as I can remember at MGM props. Being upgraded for free, and not having asked ahead of time, like I did for the Emerald in April. Not sure if this is a new thing MGM is just doing  now for certain guests or statuses, or if I have a shadow host in the background helping me out. Either way I'll take it. Happy for pennies from heaven however they fall, and if this is a new thing at MG...

About a week and a half to bonus 2026 Vegas. With not-shitty gambling the first two trips this year, we are able to squeeze in a 4th Vegas for the first time in a few years. Is good. With the bump from June assisting, I'll have $4K and a little walking around money in the bag going into town, with the ability if needed on the 2nd day there to hit a BMO and pull another $500 or so. Hopefully it won't be needed, it would be nice to hit something the first couple days and take the pressure off.  The only concession I made to the save was taking a couple Saturdays off from going out in the City, both of which will not be big losses due to weirdness at the bars I usually hang out at. So, the full 'Bies for #SeptemberVegas: -5 nights at MGM Grand in an Executive King Suite: $101 all in with my MGM Rewards rate, would be $2170, savings of $2069 over rack rate. -$120 Freeplay, $100 Resort Credit from booking package, value of $220 -$550 of anniversary and tier Resort Credit from R...

My company is doing rather well. All 18K of the other employees have actually done their jobs, and are in the process of carrying my ass to a healthy bonus this year. As it stands after Q3 earnings, I have a potential 8% company bonus in line, 2% higher than last year, and another nearly 4% in personal bonus possible. Personal will likely be a combination of bonus and raise, so if I top out on around 10% bonus, that will be very tidy indeed. Since everything on earth ties back to Vegas, what that means is my XmasVegas will be funded in total from bonus, no save necessary. I can continue to spend frivolously on Skittles the rest of the year, without having to think about putting away any Vegas save. Nice. There's still a quarter to get through. Cheeto Man could invade Greenland or start a war with Luxembourg or something, but failing a pretty complete collapse of the markets in the next few months things are looking good for a relaxed runup to the final Vegas of the year. Now I just...

T-minus 30 days to SeptemberVegas. Not much to report. The itinerary is locked in. I will be at MGM in a standard Deluxe room, no baller suite like April. Fine. I have a pretty good offer from Resorts World for 5 nights in a standard Hilton room for about $350, but that's a $400+ loss compared to MGM's package, with rate, RC and FP factored in. It's just silly right now to stay anywhere else other than MGM resorts. I love RW but I can taxi there, don't have to stay and lose money in the process. So unless some crazy suite deal opens up somewhere in the next couple weeks, it's locked. I will start opening up the VP training app daily starting this week. Not too many hands, maybe 50 a day, I don't want to get burned out with it. By the end of last trip I was fucking dreaming about VP. Not good. I have the hands in my head for the most part, but it helps to see them on the screen before hitting town. Other than that, yeah, it's just count down the days. Nothing...

The trip is set. Got long term parking bought today at a discount, which was the last piece that was outstanding. LTP garage at SFO. $90. It'll be more of a pain in the ass as opposed to the international garages in that I will need to take the tram over to that garage on the in and out, but it's over $100 less than the closer garages are. This being more of a "budget" trip, it seemed prudent. Standard room, standard parking...a standard trip. Nothing wrong with that. Not every trip is an "event" trip like a birthday or milestone. I don't always need terrace rooms with morning views like the above. Hell, this is the first year since '22 that I've even been able to do a 4-trip year, so I'm just thankful for that. A newly renovated room for 5 nights in an upper-mid resort for around $100 is better than 90% of the shlubs who will be in town that week. So the room is set, the flight is booked, the food reservations are made, the car is parked. No...

I just sold some stock in my company to finance #SeptemberVegas. $2K worth. I didn't think I was able to do this, thought there was a hold in place as a condition of getting a 15% discount on purchase, but Fidelity let me do it, the sell order was filled and the funds hit the bank. So I'm off the hook for what would have been a stressful save in September. Have $3500 put away now, I just have to come up with about a grand in September, which, pish posh. Not that I have any need to justify it, but I don't mind dipping into my "retirement" for stuff like this. I already have 2 small loans against the 401k, and this digs another $2K out of the fund, but whatev. Not to be morbid, but I just don't think I'm going to make it to 67 to retire. I don't live my life in a "live til you're 100" way, at all. In truth I'm all about "live for today", and always have been, much more than trying to save for some mythical glorious retirement ...