Locals

I'm so looking forward to the day when I will be 'a local'.  Someone who is at a casino because they live very near vs. me as a current patron, driving hours to get there.  I am going to absolutely love being able to enjoy slots and only have to drive 1/2 hour to get to Reno - or 4 minutes to a casino in CC. 

(NOTE:  Do not worry.  We will be budgeting the same as always.  I promise.). 

I've played at Atlantis enough that I now recognize people. 

Last trip, I played (again) with Michael.  He works at a casino in Sparks.  The first time I sat next to him, he explained that he doesn't play where he works because 'I might have an outburst and say the wrong thing and I don't want to get in trouble with my job'.  He's probably in his early to mid 60's or so?  He plays max bet always - and he wins a lot, usually.  I watched him win around $2,000 in June and then played next to him again in July - and when he started chatting again, he realized that we'd played together before.  In June, he asked a slot attendant to go cash in his (many) winning tickets - but in July, he asked me to watch his machine, which I did happily.  He is a quirky kind of guy but very nice and fun.  He plays 'long haul' slots - like me - where he stays at a machine for a long time and keeps playing.  He's fun and I'm looking forward to seeing him again next time I play up there.

There's also a mysterious lady that plays a lot - I've seen her virtually every time I've gone to Atlantis.  She plays smaller wagers but is at the machines a lot - she's a Black Diamond level (the highest) and she's not shy about telling waitresses that.  She seems to pop in and out of the casino a lot and looks at her watch all the time - like she told her family she was running out to get a gallon of milk only she's in a casino playing (again).  And again and again. 

You wonder about people - how they support their slots.  Michael goes through thousands of dollars in a matter of a few hours.  I don't know what he does at the casino he works at - but he sure plays a lot of money when he plays.  In June, he was literally at the machine for 12 hours straight and considering in the morning, he told me that he'd come to the casino straight from work and had to get home to sleep before his next shift, he ended up basically playing all day - no sleep.  And he was back the next morning.  Yikes.  That's serious. 

Mysterious lady isn't chatty and when she hits something, she has no interest in commiserating about it.  When B. was with me, he sat to her right and I sat to her left and we were bantering back and forth and she never joined.  B. didn't know what he was playing so I helped him when he had a question - she just ignored us both.  So she's not a social player. 

J. is always surprised that I will strike up conversations with strangers but that's part of the fun - encouraging each other, sympathizing.  Getting excited for someone else's luck and appreciative that they are hoping for yours to improve.  Or they are excited for you when you hit something worth getting excited about. 

Mysterious lady is interesting because I know she plays a lot - Atlantis has drawings every Sunday and she ALWAYS wins something - ALWAYS.  I've never been there for the drawings that her name doesn't come up - and I know it's her 'cuz I've seen her enough to recognize her when she's claiming her winnings. 

I'm going to be Black Diamond level at Atlantis someday because it's based entirely on 'time at a machine' - not dollars wagered.  So I will play low wager and just wrack up time as a local and enjoy every minute of it.  I've met some really fun people and enjoy making connections with people - getting to 'know them' even if they aren't reciprocal in their demeanor towards me.  You can learn a lot about people just watching - how they treat the slot attendants and the waitresses, for example - and I want to be someone they get used to seeing and will go out of their way to help or 'serve' me because I am nice, polite and appreciative. 

It was a super long week (psyche-wise) while going by in a lightening-like way.  Time moves so quickly while I simultaneously feel things dragging at times.  The schools are back in full swing so it's a never ending stream of people, places and things. 

We are going to Modesto tomorrow to take H. to lunch - with his friend M. - who is a girl.  They are planning to date as soon as they are 'allowed' to do so - but for now, they are rehab friends who are supportive of each other and spend time together as often as they can.  She has a car and can drive so H. has been getting rides from her - which is nice and saves him bus fare.  (Which is really saving us bus fare since we are still his bank).  He applied for a job today and has a friend who works there so fingers crossed he can get a job. 

I'm going to work most of Sunday which I wish I wasn't?  But I am also sort of 'glad' I can - I have a lot of things to do that are best done in a quiet environment - and many things to catch up on along with working on year-end.