Vegas Finally (and Everything Else That I Have Been Up To and Not Blogging About)

Well, last I wrote I was packing for Vegas and then...I dropped off the face of the earth. 

Vegas was pretty fun, but I don't think it's going to stay on the list of places that L and I will go on vacation.  We went there because L's friend was getting married.  I asked her about the wedding (who was coming, what her husband-to-be -- number 3 -- was like, etc) on the plane, and that's when I learned what I was truly in for.  L's friend found her new husband on the Internet, playing Quake 3.  All of the guests are also rabid players of Quake.  They'd all met before through tournaments, but everyone pretty much lives across the country.  I was kind of afraid the wedding was going to be like going to a little mini DragonCon.  Suddenly, I thought, maybe I didn't really need 5 pairs of pink shoes.  Perhaps the dresses I brought to wear out would be a little over the top.  Check, check, and check.

The first night, L and I got to our room, got spiffed up, and went over to Bally's to meet the nerd brigade (who surprisingly enough, were not actually computer nerds by trade.  Most of them had pretty normal jobs.)  We finally decided to go to one of the little casinos on the strip that had lower minimum hands, although L and I had no desire to gamble so much.  So what this really amounted to was that we went to a crappier casino and drank expensive but not very good drinks.  In fact, I asked for a Stoli and cranberry.  No Stoli, just house vodka or Smirnoff.  Hmm.  How bout a Crown and Ginger.  No Crown. (!!!)  I finally settled on a 7 and 7, which was a lot of 7up and not so much of the good stuff.  We didn't stay out super late, which was fine since L and I both worked all day anyway.

Saturday we had planned to go lay by the pool all day, but it barely got above 70 and the pool at New York New York was mostly in the shade all day.  So we layed around and watched movies on TBS all day and then finally got ready for the wedding at the Viva Las Vegas wedding chapel in their lovely garden filled with plastic plants.  Sadly, Elvis did not officiate.  I was sorely disappointed.   However, we did get to ride in the limo to and from the wedding, and that was definitely a plus.  As you can imagine, the ceremony was lightening quick.  After the ceremony, we all had dinner together.  This was when I probably should have learned everyone's name, but all I know is that I was sitting between two guys named Fatman and Killer Joe.  After dinner, we cabbed it to some of the older hotels, the highlight of which was the Stardust, where we saw the only Elvis impersonator I've ever seen in Vegas.  That was probably the highlight of our trip, watching him swivel his hips and watching all of the elderly women in the audience swoon.

Sunday, things picked up a lot, because L and I spent the day shopping and hanging out by ourselves...the vacation part actually began.   I bought a ton of new stuff to review for DeLush, and that alone made my day.  That night, we dressed up and went over to MGM Grand, where they have this awesome bar called Centrifuge and had some lovely champagne.  The bar staff would get up on the bar and do these incredible choreographed routines every now again.  Very impressive.  We tried to go out clubbing at some other places, but ended the evening back at the Centrifuge.

Finally, Monday we shopped before we had to get on our plane at 10:45 at night.  I was seated beside a woman with a cranky toddler (normally, this would make me really cranky as well, but I totally felt for the kid when we were delayed 2 hours because one of the passengers had the flu.)  L was seated next to the fidgetiest person on earth, which completely prevented her from sleeping on the flight.  I got a couple hours maybe.

Ever since I got back, everything has been a blur.  I was assigned the art project FROM HELL last Tuesday night, which I spent the majority of our absolutely beautiful weekend cooped up inside working on.  (I did lay out in the sun for an hour on Saturday, with no sunscreen because I am a very silly, silly girl, and got kind of sunburned.) 

Yesterday I started my new job.  I had to attend orientation for the morning, which was a pretty nice way to start.  My team took me and the other new hires out to lunch and I ordered a magnificent dessert for the first time in ages.  And I got a sweet new monster size cube.  I'm still working on my old assignment for the next month or two, but I really am looking forward to moving on to my next assignment now that I have my cool new digs.

Okay, phew.  Fairly caught up now.  I can resume blogging now that I've caught up some.