Good News, And No News.

Still no clarity on Vegas, but more clarity in life.

We would appear to be closer on the timescale to the resorts opening than how long it's been since they closed. Nevada has begun a very slow process to start re-opening, starting with low-density things like parks and golf courses. Casinos would seem to be several phases later in the plan. The problem is the governor has not made the timeline for the plan clear, so the resorts and all their potential patrons are still in a waiting game.

Even well connected sources like the @VitalVegas Twitter feed/blog have no solid info beyond rumor, really. A few of the resorts have said they are going to start bringing back staff to prepare for opening, but that seems almost as much hopeful thinking than having any idea what the "go" date will be. Some resorts are still taking reservations in May, others have blacked out May and still others are saying they definitely WON'T reopen until mid June. The smart thinking/guessing is some resorts begin to re-open first week of June and more in phases based on demand later on.

Meanwhile the resort group I've put all my chips into stay/play-wise, MGM, is starting to do a purge/bloodbath of many of its mid-level management. Resort VP's and directors are dropping like flies and apparently many more rolling heads coming next week. A thoughtful culling of an inefficient management structure or panicked cost-cutting? No one knows yet. In any event not the greatest of signs for the industry.

It's frustrating. As the dates continue to slip I keep having more days like today. Today I had a trip scheduled to be starting, the dates having slipped to today from March. I'd have been starting 5 days at Delano; instead I'm in my hobbit hole in my underwear typing this. Yes - first world problems, but I live in the first world, so fuck you. But at least there seems to be SOME light at the end of the tunnel.

So that's Vegas. In personal news my employment situation has clarified, and it's positive. My and my team's jobs seem to be safe, as our site client has signed our full employment contract for the forseeable future and they'll begin to re-introduce researchers back onto site starting next week, so our onsite schedules should start ramping up. I had two shifts last week and hopefully as May/June roll on that'll increase back to something like full-time onsite. In the meantime we continue to work from home for full pay/benefits.

I feel pretty lucky about this. With the lockdown the unemployment rate continues to skyrocket and after being on UI last year it's unclear what my status would be with it now. Grateful that I apparently won't have to find out. When I see too that my former long-term employer, an events company, has furloughed all its employees and who knows if the business will even be able to survive. Unclear how long it will be before big person-to-person events will be happening again, if ever. Had I still been there no idea how I'd be able to navigate things.

So sitting around the house, not going out on weekends I'm just stacking up the cash. By the time I'm able to get back to Vegas I'll have north of $6K burning a hole in my checking account. With another $8K available on credit cards (that I won't use, but nice knowing it's there in case, I don't know, murder hornets attack or something). That's a full trip and a half fully financed, ready and itching to go once the trigger can be pulled.

Maybe some Nevada news next week. Pull, trigger.

UPDATE 5/7: Gov Sisolak says "phase one" reopen begins this coming Sunday. Restaurants, barber shops, retail etc can reopen, all with spacing and capacity restrictions and employee masks. If all goes well and cases don't spike, casinos can't be too far behind, Nevada being Nevada. The June 7th Bellagio trip looking more and more likely, fingers and toes crossed.