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

All set for pre-birthday Vegasness. Flights booked, room locked in, Gold MGM assured, even a food rezzy locked down. 2 1/2 months out and I have nothing to plan. I haz a sad, but a good sad. Bellagio will be the base of operations, a good one. This room was pretty bomb when I stayed in it a couple years ago and it's been remodeled since then so it should be posh. More than enough room for little big me. Across the street from most of the things I love in Vegas, so it's a great home base, no endless cabbing. Added a seat on Alaska for the in, so it should be no issues with getting on/off and stowing the bag. It's an early flight but that gets me there to maximize day one and hopefully I can check in soon after arrival. Out is unchanged and fine. Not too early and gets me home by around 2:30p if all goes well, so I can find parking here. I imagine I'll just drop coin on SFO onsite parking again like last time, it was expensive but convenient. I loved my filet so much last...

Well having not shit the financial bed (by the skin of my teeth) over Xmas, next Vegas can be confidently planned. The next will be a premature birthday trip. The week of my Bday is prohibitively expensive for some reason, probably some convention or other, so I am going the week before. Another 5-day journey. The PTO is already approved, so April 13-18th it is. Bellagio will be the muse. Now that I'm MGM Gold again I was able to lock in 5 nights there in a Resort Tower King (nice, big, non-standard room) for a tick over $250. Un. Beat. Able. Not even going to look at anything else. As chronicled here ad nauseum, I'm not a Bellagio "guy", but the price/nice/location ratio is not going to be beat anywhere. Flights are a mixed bag. In on Alaska arriving around 8:30a (hope that room's ready!), out on Frontier (ugh) leaving at about 11:30a. Got a bag and a seat on Frontier so it shouldn't be too awful. Total about $200 for both flights. Early in to maximize the 1...

Rode 2024 out on the wings of a Desert Eagle. Or something. Flights:  Both on time, no issues. TSA a POC on both days, despite Xmasness. Room: Aria Stay Well King, stayed well bored. Nothing whatsoever different from a normal room aside from a loud ass air filter that was a good white noise machine. Nothing bad happened, predictably fine. Drinking: Yes. Food: Not much of it, 3 "good" meals, one at Kyu at FB which sucked in food and service, one at Jean George which was a transcendent steak and one at Blue Ribbon which was great pork chop. Not much else eaten. Gambling: Absolute ass all trip until literally 12 hours before I had to be at the airport, hit $3K at Gem bar at Aria. Was down to about $500 of my budget. Could have come home busted, instead have a nest egg for April. Would like to have hit something earlier to enjoy it a bit more, but eh. Also made MGM Gold, which was the goal so all around pos. Body: Hung in OK, never felt destroyed or mentally beat. Slept OK. Over...

The Vegas drought? I'm over it. 2 days til XmasVegasfuntime. All is ready. The bag is down and 70% packed, most of the money is out of the bank and the rest drops in tomorrow, I'm checked into the room, and have early bird boarding with Southwest so that's locked in, too. The money's a little better than I thought it would be. Will be able to take a little over $5500, so that's helpful. Even then from this last check that allows me to pay down the CC to about $500 and will make it a breeze to pay off when I'm back, even if I plunk a grand onto it in town. Sometimes it's just easier to use a card and frankly if MGM opportunities to use it present themselves it's dumb not to (triple points). Cash will be king for most of the trip though, no excuse to not get to MGM Gold again fairly easily without having to smash the CC. Naught but MGM gambling until I do.  I have added a reservation for the 26th just in case I haven't yet by that point (last day of th...

No real need for a plan post. Here's my plan post. Sunday: If all goes well with Southwest, I should be on the ground by about 9a, in a cab and over to Aria, and depending on the check-in sitch may be able to head straight up to the room, or may have to dump the bag and chill for a while. Hopefully the former. In whatever case, I can start to unwind, maybe find someplace to sit and watch one of the early NFL games, then scope out the lunch deals. If I'm not checked in will probably stay close to Aria so maybe Proper Eats or something at Cosmo. Other than that my day is free so commence the gambles and drank. Monday: No day plans, maybe a sleep in day after the long day prior. Shits and giggle in the daytime then probably freshen up later afternoon to head down to MB for the 1st free (minus tip) food reservation of the week. Love the Bolognese and it will be ate, mate. After dinner, tits to the breeze. See where the night takes me. Tuesday: Xmas Eve. No plans. I am Cowboy. Wedne...

In just 10 short days I will be on the ground in Vegas. It almost feels a little unreal. It's been so, damn, long since the last trip. It's been tough to get a heat on for this one but it's here now. Good room, great resort, good location, should be a good time all around. I so need a week to just fucking relax and get out of my own head. Was thinking about adding a night on the back end if I got an even bigger bonus in my review today. No more bonus but a 6% raise, which is better in the long run. So the trip is locked. I committed to "just" 5 days at the start of this after the Junepocalypse and I'm sticking to it. I really can't get myself into too much financial trouble on this one and that's going to make it more enjoyable. If I blow through the $5K in cash I'll take, fine, but no more lasting damage than that will be done. No more coming home to $7K in CC debt on top of cash broke. My SF weekend adventures for the month are over too, which wi...

Man, has it been a stretch since I've been able to say that. My long harsh Vegas drought is close to coming to an end. Less than 3 weeks now until I get release, and relief, from the daily drab. No changes to the arrangements. Aria it shall be. Black Friday deals came through and nothing remotely in the resort/rate range of Aria. MGM rates have gone way up too so it's Aria. Fine. Not every trip has to be a room blow out like the April trip was. That was a special occasion and this is just...another Xmas. Less than $100/night for a Stay Well view room in a 5-Star is fine by me. Still the same reservation regime, just the two dinner rezzies at Carama and Jean Georges, and then I'll grab bar seats for whatever else I need while there. I looked at shows, as Vegas.com has their normal buy $75 get $100 thing on, but there just aren't two shows I'd even want to see anymore in Vegas. I've seen the ones I want to see and the rest are either boomer-bait or otherwise unint...