Leaving Ely was made easier by the fact that I was roughed-up at one of the two Blackjack tables in the Hotel Nevada's Gambling Hall. Even with a table limit of $25 a hand, I managed to lose $600 last night. Now my Nevada gambling take has been reduced to only $100.
This morning, I rolled the dice and took a shower. It wasn't too bad. I felt the water temperature fluctuate a few degrees, but nothing like I assumed it would be after reading the warning sign on the shower. Then I packed up and again hit the road. After doing a quick drive-by of the two Ely brothels to satisfy my curiosity, I was on the highway again. Today's destination: Zion National Park in Southern Utah.
Finding my hotel in Ely (pronounced "e-lee") was no problem. After all, the "Hotel Nevada and Gambling Hall" was once the tallest building in Nevada. Built back in 1929, six stories was quite an engineeing marvel. And apparently they haven't updated the plumbing since 1929 either. My bathroom door warned, "Due to the age of the hotel, the shower fluctuates from hot to cold without warning." At 25 bucks a night, I knew there would be a catch. But otherwise the place was quite a spectacle to behold. The Gambling Hall bar offered 99 cent margaritas and $2.25 domestic beer. And the condom machine in the men's room offered the "(French) Freedom Tickler -- it's the patriotic thing to do."
I left Lake Almanor this morning around 11 and picked up a sandwich at the Knotbumber for the road. I made it to Reno sooner than I wanted, so I detoured out to Pyramid Lake to kill some time. Pyramid Lake is an interesting lake, but in order to do much, you need to have the blessing of the local indian tribe which owns the land, so I snapped a few photos and headed back to Reno. I checked in to the Silver Legacy around 5:00, but after discovering they put me in a handicapped room, I requested a move and got the bottom (4th) floor, but at least I had a room with a shower that didn't have a chair in it. After freshening up, I went down to the Blackjack tables.
I actually didn't want to start the gambling paly so early in my trip, but as they say, when in Rome... I bought in for $200 and played that for about two hours, treading water most of the time. Then I bought in for another $200. Wouldn't you know it, my luck actually started to sway to the positive. Without any dramatic highlights, I worked up to $1000 on the plus side, but watched it drop to $700. It was only about 11:00 p.m. on a Saturday night of a 3-day weekend, but I cashed out and hit it. Afterall, I have a few miles to clock tomorrow.
I'm a road trip enthusiast. I think it comes from my dad. He always liked to load up the old station wagon with Mom and all five of us kids (and sometimes even the cat) and get out of Dodge.
There's something about a good road trip that enlivens my feeling of freedom. And when I get the itch, I've gotta scratch. But over the years I've learned that while I'm not alone in my fondness for the roadtrip, I do seem to be in the minority. Seems most people I know would rather endure long waits at an airport and the cramped confines of an airplane than hit the road. To each his own...
In any event, ever since CNF gave me my walking papers, the road trip itch has been getting me bad. And now that I've got my new (used) wheels, I'm going for it.
Winter road trips can be a gamble, that's why I'm going to Nevada and heading south. I'm leaving tomorrow. I estimate this trip to be three weeks plus. And this thing is going to be a ROAD trip. I'm going to log some serious miles.
I'm going to start off easy. I'm hitting the family cabin at Lake Almanor as a first destination. It's familiar territory and I'll be able to make sure my new (used) 4Runner is in proper working order before I get too far. I need to make sure the 4 wheel drive is ready for the long haul.
After a couple of nites at Lake Almanor, I'll be heading out to Reno for one night to pick up some money the Silver Legacy owes me, then it'll be a plunge into Bumfuck, NV. I'll head out via U.S. 50, a.k.a. "the loneliest highway" in the US, then turn south on route 376 to Tonopah, NV. After a night there, I'm headed to Ely. If I don't post by then, call out the troopers.
Back on January 14 when I deposited my severance check via the ATM at Wells Fargo Bank, the bank put a two week hold on the funds. They later informed me that if I had deposited the large check with a live teller, they wouldn't have put any restrictions on the money. Who knew?
So last Friday, when I received my bonus check for 2004 (yes, it really took that long to get it), I headed over to my other bank, Bank of America, to deposit it the check in the flesh just in case BofA had the same policy as Wells. While I was waiting in line, I saw what appeared to be a homeless man in line in front of me. "What kind of bank transaction could this man have?," I asked myself. In fascination, I watched as he approached the teller and had the teller make some change for him. Seems that he didn't want to be carrying around such large bills. It's probably bad for his image...
Funny thing, I saw this same guy again Monday as I walked down the street. I'd never noticed this bum before and then I see him twice in four days?
Then I walked into Lytton Street Brewing Co. this afternoon to get a cup o' joe. It was just before closing. Guess who walks in just in front of me? The "rich" homeless guy! He serves himself a cup of coffee to go. Just as the store owner was about to ring him up, he opens the cookie jar on the counter and proceeds to reach in to the bottom of the jar and grab a cookie. I could tell the store owner was not pleased to see this guy's grubby hands in the cookie jar. I'd seen enough. I just dropped the $1.50 for my coffee on the counter and got the hell out of there as quickly as I could.
Later, I thought maybe it wasn't such a big deal. After all, the store was about to close, so they'd probably wash the cookie jar before they open tomorrow. Then again, maybe not.
Jeff and I bellied up to the Clubhouse bar at around 11:50. We both marveled at the site of an empty bar.
"Wow, I've never seen it like this," I said.
"Neither have I," said Jeff.
One of the many advantages to a healthy drinking problem is that you often drink in the morning, And if you get there early enough, you usually get the best seats.
Today was Bay Meadows sweatshirt day. It was quality 50/50 fabric. I'm stoked.
Jeff bet. I bet. Jeff lost. I lost.
Jeff bet. I bet. Jeff lost. I lost.
Jeff was betting on Santa Anita and Bay Meadows. I joined in on the Santa Anita action.
Wouldn't you know it, I finally hit a winner.
In the 7th race at Santa Anita, Jeff bets on the 7 horse. He finally wins. I tell him to bet again on the 7 horse in Bay Meadow's 7th race. Jeff ignores my suggestion. The 7 horse wins in the 7th at Bay Meadows.
The day winds on. Jeff is down but mounting a comeback. I've been nursing a couple of wins and am still up a bit, but not a lot. Our train is going to leave soon, but we still have time to bet on the 9th race at Santa Anita. Jeff bets the 6 horse to place. I bet the 4-1 exacta. The 4 horse is strong and wins the race, but an unknown horse pulls up at the end to take second. I'm hoping for the 4-1, but Jeff is sure the 6 horse took second. It's a photo finish.
A guy at the bar says repeatedly, "Four won, four won." Or was he saying "4-1, 4-1?" Jeff still thinks the horses came in 4-6. Finally, the replay shows it was indeed 4-1. The six horse was no where to be found. I pocket $211 on the exacta and call it a fine day at the races.
Those who know me well know I've been looking to buy a house for over three years, but I've never been able to pull the trigger, at least not far enough to get an offer accepted. Well, I was determined not to let that happen in my pursuit to buy a car.
As I noted in my last post, I prepped myself psychologically by visiting a local car dealer on Wednesday. Today I went out like gangbusters.
I did my research and then visited Stevens Creek Toyota, a fine establishment. They've been around for a long time, and there's no better place to buy a car than in the 408 area code.
Before I could even pull in the parking lot, Abe was on the case. Abe showed me where to park and asked what I was interested in. I handed him my internet print-out of a 2000 4Runner. He told me to get in a car waiting nearby, he'd drive me to the lot the car was on.
Okay, I admit it, I was perturbed already. My cynical personality was already telling me that Abe was taking me on a wild goose chase, and this was just the beginning.
A few blocks later, we were on the right lot and he showed me the vehicle. It looked good, had everything I wanted except for a sunroof. We test drove it, and then went back to Abe's office. He was ready for negotiation mode. Abe asked me how I'd be paying. "Cash," I replied. Then Abe asked if I would be trading in another vehicle as part of the deal. I informed him I'd listen to their offers on my 1994 pick-up. After running a blue-book check, Abe offered me the full discounted price of the 4Runner less $3000 for my trade-in.
"Well, I was hoping for more like $4000 for my trade-in and maybe $2000 more off the 4Runner," I said.
"But you know this is a great price, and Toyota's really hold their value," he said.
"I know Toyota's hold their value, that's why I think you are low-balling me on my pick-up," I said.
Abe went back to speak with his manager. When he came back, he informed me that his manager didn't want my pick-up afterall. Now we were only dealing with the 4Runner. Somehow I felt this actually made it easier, which it did.
"Okay, this is easy, then," I told Abe. "I'll give you $18k for the 4Runner."
Abe went back to his manager. He came back with a sheet of paper reading:
$21,995 original price -$2000 discount $19,995 advertised price
**$19,695
"My manager says this vehicle has already been discounted $2000, but he'll take off another $300," said Abe. "Besides, it is a certified pre-owned Toyota and has a warranty to 100,000 miles." "I can't pay $19,600 for that truck" I said. "It's four years old and I could buy a 2002 for that price."
"How much do you want topay? "Abe asked.
"$18k," I responded.
"Can't you help me out a little bit?," Abe asked.
"Well, your manager didn't give me much slack on my trade-in, so, no, I can't help you, either."
"How about 18,350?," asked Abe.
Now I knew we were getting close. "No," I said.
"What if I told you I had a friend who would buy your pick-up for $4200 cash today?," asked Abe.
"What?," I said.
"I have a freind who is looking for a truck like yours and will pay $4200. If I can arrange that, will you buy the 4Runner for $18,350?," asked Abe.
Now this was getting a bit weird. The dealership wouldn't buy my pick-up, but Abe knew someone who would for a lot more money?
"When will your friend buy my truck, today?, I asked.
"Yes, right after this deal," Abe said.
"Sure, you say that now, but how do I know you will follow-through after I sign the papers?," I said.
"I promise you. Trust me," said Abe.
At this point, I had the 4Runner in the price range I wanted, and I knew that even if Abe's friend didn't buy my truck, I could get more than $4200 for it. Therefore, entertainment value was the bonus here and I had to go for it.
"Okay," I said. "$18,350 for the 4Runner, $4200 for my truck."
"Congratulations," said Abe. Somehow he knew his boss would approve the deal even before he asked him.
After I completed all of the paperwork, Abe and I went out to my new (used) vehicle. Abe instructed me to follow him driving my old truck. Abe would take me to his friend.
Before I knew it, we were at Union Bank, and Abe was withdrawing $4200. Abe gave me the money, I signed over the pink slip. Abe didn't want me to fill in the mileage. I didn't give a shit.
Warning to a person buying a green 1994 Toyota pick-up. It has 124,000 miles on it!!!
I ventured over to my local car dealer today. The experience seemed the same as is was the last time I bought a car, and that was nine years ago!
Since my company car disappeared with my job, I've been driving my old 1994 pick-up truck and that's just not gonna work long term. Therefore, I searched the net and headed over to my local Toyota dealership to check out a "pre-owned" 4Runner. David, the "sales consultant," was nice enough, and took me for a spin. He only reminded me of the car's great resale value once.
After the test drive, David asked me what he needed to do to make a deal today. I told him I just wanted to check out some other vehicles before I got into heavy negotiations. He said that was fine, but he needed to introduce me to a sales manager first. I played the game and met Tony. Tony offered to drop the price a few grand, but I still insisted I had to leave. Eventually, he let me go. But his damn cologne is still on my hand and I am beginning to wonder if it will ever come off!
If Beavis & Butthead ever die and go to heaven, this would have to be the scene. Last night I went with my sister and her eclectic friends to the Mystic Theater in Petaluma to see AC/Dshe, a twenty-something, all-female AC/DC cover band. They only have one rule, it's gotta be AC/DC, and no Brian Johnson songs.
"Bonny" Scott is trailer-trash hot, without the meth-mouth. Like Bon, she's lanky and lean, but that's where the similarities end.
Behind what appeared to be a padded bra and the trademark shorts and "A" hat, "Agnes" Young played a mean lead guitar, copying Angus' solos note for note. She was making it look easy. Is this good for the male ego?
Rhythm guitarist "Malory" Young banged out the familiar guitar licks that made AC/DC famous. "Riff" Williams provided the steady bass. "Phyllis" Rudd beat a loud drum, but Bonnie and Agnes stole the show.
And given the fact that the Mystic Theater allows drinks on the hall floor, this was a sure thing.
The homeless popultaion in downtown Palo Alto is really starting to get out of hand. I got accosted three times by homeless people just walking down to Walgreen's and back. When are these bums going to get jobs?!
Last Friday morning I called my contact at Agilent Technologies to see where I stood after three interviews with the company. I figured that the week I spent in Costa Rica plus the next few days I spent in South Lake Tahoe might give them enough time to make a decision, and apparently I was right.
"It's like the Miss America Pagent," Allen said, "but you came in second place. We decided to go with an internal candidate."
Pardon my dislexia, but maybe he was right. After all, given the chance, I'd definately go internal with a Miss America candidate.
Nevertheless, I now find myself with no irons in the fire. This could be a long haul. I'm just glad I'm not bored of unemployment yet.
I leave to Lake Tahoe again tomorrow afternoon after I have lunch with some former co-workers. The weather looks great for skiing Thursday and Friday.
