Man Trip (End of Day 2/Day3)

Posted on August 15th, 2008 by admin

I apologize for the redonkulous f’d up tabs/bulleting crap that’s going on in today’s post. It all looked OK till I published this post. Then I realized then when you use more then 87,000 bullets in one post…it jacks crap up. I hope it’s readable for all of you. My name is Julie and I have a bullet/tabbing problem.

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OK…Let’s move on.

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Are you enjoying your vicarious vacation? I was.

Now I’m not. As each day passes, I’m more and more bitter and more and more jealous that I’M NOT ON THE TRIP. Frick! And I’ve just been in a crappy mood lately because I still haven’t found a new job. I want to get out of there ASAP! But…I have to focus on the task at hand. Man Trip ’08. As I mentioned yesterday, T has taken back the title of “Official Note Taker.” Big A tried. And failed miseraly. I received the notes and constructed the update for the blog and realized that I was in a state of total confusion. Really…how hard is it to type up a quick recap about your day. You are the one on the trip…I’m just here to record the memories and share them with the world. The least you can do is give me the correct information. OK….sorry bout that little soap box.

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Recap:

T and Big A left on Tuesday (8/12) and made it all the way to Wickenburg, AZ after a brief stop in Phoenix to visit a pal.

Wednesday (8/13) the guys changed up the itinerary a little and decided to hit up the Hoover Dam before rolling into Las Vegas. Their first night in Las Vegas involved the Cirque Du Soleil KA show. Which is our starting point for today’s update.

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Additional Information from Day 2:

Cirque Du Soleil KA show at the MGM Grand (Wednesday Evening)
- Costs of Tickets=$168.00 per person. I mentioned that yesterday, but wanted to reiterate because they were super expensive.
- Conclusion=Definitely worth the money! Both T and Big A loved the show. T had watched the show on a television special before and was a fan of the Cirque Du Soleil stuff. Big A had no idea what it was or how to pronounce “Cirque Du Soleil.” Was expecting clowns and cotton candy.
  - As soon as the guys entered the theater they knew they were in for a treat. The ushers were in full costume and got the sold out crowd excited about the show.
  - T and Big A had great seats. Sixth row, front and center. It was noted that at one time there were actors/gymnasts flying right over their heads.
  - Loved the intricate and unbelievable stage mechanics. The entire theater was full of moving parts and such to accommodate the complicated show.
  - “Non stop action and very entertaining!” “We loved every minute of it!”
  - Were very tired after the show. Apparently watching people work hard physically is a mental challenge for the spectators.

Man Trip ’08 DAY 3:

Miles Travelled: A bazillion (all on foot in blistering heat)
Woke up at 7 a.m. bright eyed and bushy tailed. Ready to paint the town red. (What does that even mean?)
Immediately hit up the MGM Grand casino. Were excited that they actually still had money left to spend. Ready to spend frivolously.
- Were a little creeped out by the massive amount of old people who had covered the casino floor in the wee hours of the morning. Determined that Las Vegas seniors do not sleep.
Made their way to the MGM McDonald’s. Egg McMuffins are possibly the best invention ever.
- Cost for breakfast=$11.40
After breakfast they had to find some ice to refill their cooler of Man Food. Although most of the Man Food is able to survive without refrigeration, the cheddar wursts, hot dogs, and ham would spoil in the heat. Spoiled Man Food was not on the itinerary.
- Cost for ice=$3.00 for 2 bags (Purchased from Rebel gas station)
- Big A was carrying the ice back to the car when the bottom of one of the bags suddenly fell out.
  - Were able to salvage 1.5 bags of ice.
  - “Worst ice ever!” I didn’t know there was a difference…
  - Want to warn others against the dangers of purchasing ice from Rebel gas stations.
After tending to the cooler T and Big A set out to explore some of the surrounding casinos and see what they offered.
- Assumed that most casinos offered multiple chances to blow money and people watch for freaks.
- Hit up the following casinos:
  - New York, New York
  - Tropicana
  - Excalibur
    - Hit up the Pizza Hut Express in the Excalibur casino for lunch. Please note that both, T and Big A would be happy boys if the only food available was pizza. Both prefer the Octo Meat pizza. Meat=Man Food.
      - Cost=$12.50
      - Speed=Lightening. As soon as order was placed and they walked to the other end of the counter the lady was there with their bag of food. T suspected that the “cooks” had either made a mistake or had read their minds when they walking in the door. Considering tin foil hats to block other possible mind readers.
      - Taste=Mediocre
  - Luxor
    - While in the Luxor casino decided to visit “Bodies: The Exhibition.” Not sure what to expect, but hoping to see boobies.
      - Cost=$40.00 per person
      - Conclusion: The Chinese started preserving bodies about 30 years ago. The body parts on display were those of dead people who had donated their bodies to scientific research. Exhibit was “awesome and very interesting.” Were able to view the entire human body…real dead people! Unfortunately, the exhibit did not allow camera. Determined to have a high creepy factor as the bodies/body parts were skinless. The eyeballs on the bodies were the only fake parts. Also determined that they would rather die then spend a night locked up alone in that place! Saw boobies…but apparently skinless boobies have almost zero sex appeal.
- Played the slots at each casino. Didn’t do well. May have to offer sexual favors for gas money. Relieved that prostitution is legal in Vegas.
  - Gambling debt as of 5:00 p.m. (Wednesday)
    - T= -$25.00 (Considering a lucky clover tattoo on rear to bring luck)
    - Big A=+$3.50 (Feeling very triumphant. Flexing muscles and asking others if they’d like tickets to the gun show.)
Next Stop: M&M World Store
- Huge 4 story store that sells…*drumroll please*…M&M’s and M&M Memorabilia. Go fig! Store was “awesome.”
- Didn’t purchase any M&M’s as they were $11.99 per pound and were a little leery about the statement, “Melts in your mouth, not in your hand.”
  - Determined that the hellish heat would in fact case the M&M’s to melt in hand. Refunds were not available for those candies that had not withstood the bold statement.
- Big A was able to do a photo op with the real live M&M’s!
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- Please note the classy ‘Tuxedo T-Shirt.’ Big A knows how to roll in style. Wishing he had chosen the white tuxedo shirt as his skin was melting under the hot sun.
- Was the Red guy a child slave?
Next Stop: Game Works
- Huge (everything in LV is huge!) acrade with tons of “sweet” video games.
- Decided to purchase the 2-hour Unlimited Gaming pass for a total cost of $54.00.
- T began to feel depressed as he realized that his “little” brother could take him in most any game they tried.
- Fave Game=House of the Dead 4.
  - “Typical shooting game except the awesome factor was multiplied by 10!”
  - T and Big A entered a simulator with a seat belt and safety bar.
  - Screen is both in front and in the rear. The game was flinging you around while you attemped to shoot dead people?
  - Were able to play the game midway through level two for a total of 12 minutes.
  - After the game they realized that Big A probably shouldn’t have played that game considering he had shoulder surgery a mere week before Man Trip.
    - T noted that Big A was a tropper and only whined like a sissy girl once from shoulder pain.
    - J is wondering why Big A is not wearing his arm sling in the picture above.
Next Stop: Back to the Tropicana to watch the Xtreme Magic show starring Dirk Arthur.
- Cost=$36.60 total
- Neither were expecting much from the show but were rather impressed.
- Before the show T sent Big A to the bar to purchase two Cokes. Unfortunately, being 21 is a requirement for purchasing pop. Big A and T were shocked. T returned to the bar and purchased the pops. Was not asked to show his ID as T resembles a “young looking 40 year old.”
- The show had dancers. The music was good! It was noted that the opening of the show was four “hot dancers wearing very little” dancing to Kid Rock’s Badwitaba.
- The actual magic was very impressing. Dirk Arthur is one of the last strip magicians to use big cats. He used lots of them! It was noted that one of the big cats was a Liger. Liger’s are the preferred animal of movie character, Napoleon Dynamite.
- At one point in the show, Dirk made a helicopter appear on the stage. T (being the critical engineer that he is) was “impressed.”
- Most laughable part of the show was when the male assistant busted moves to some ghetto rap music. T and Big A laughed but were secretly jealous of their inability to move both their arms and legs at the same time.
- Dirk Arthur apparently came off as a douche bag. That was his schtick. T noted that he had ‘douche’ down to a science. It was the sort of attitude that says, “Yeah…that’s right! I just made a lady disappear. Suck it.”
- After the show T wanted to get his picture taken with two show girls that were in the lounge area advertising for a show later that night (Folies Bergere). “I was all game until I noticed the line was full of middle aged creepers.” Did not know that T was able to achieve ‘game.’ No picture was taken. Stared and oogled at boobs for a few minutes then moved on.
Returned to the MGM Grand Hotel
- Checked out the lion habitat at the hotel.
- The habitat featured a male and female lion. Snapped a few pics of the felines.
- Noted that the lions only stay in the habitat for 1/2 of the day. MGM has a lion sanctuary that houses over 36 lions and the pair of lions on display in the habitat is rotated twice a day.
- T approved of the proper treatment of the lions.
  - Has began to notice that he is a softie for all animals since beginning a relationship with a freakish animal lover over five years ago. Considering allowing his girlfriend to adopt ten more animals from the local shelter.
- Typed up the review from the day and sent it to girlfriend.
  - Plans for later in the evening:
    - Going to the Tournament of Kings for dinner at the Excalibur casino. It is a dinner show featuring knights, horses, and sword fighting.
    - Total Cost=$123.48
  - May also check out the Bellagio Fountains, Paris-Las Vegas, Cesars Palace, and the Siren show at Treasure Island. Bonus: FREE attractions!
Tomorrow’s update will begin with the Tournament of Kings show and continue onto MT Day 4! Will this ridiculously awesome vacation ever end? I sure as heck hope so.
Other random points of interest:
- Grand Total for Day 3=$331.00
- VERY HOT! Heat is starting to cause various points of ‘chub rub’ on plumper body parts. May need to purchase bandages/ointment to stop further chub rub.
- Pop machines in the MGM Grand Hotel take Credit Cards! Cost for one bottle=$3.00
- Big A has a habit of printing the Cash-Out Vouchers when his balance reaches $.01. Turns in vouchers for a total of 7 cents.
- Wanted to attend the “Amazing Johnathan” magic show (vulgar magician/comedian) but Big A wasn’t old enough to attend. T experiences another bout of disapointment.
- At some point in the day the guys had parked the car in a ginormous parking garage. Became worried several hours later when they realized that they had not noted the level on which they had parked. T’s innate and strange sense of direction came in handy as he miraculously can ‘feel’ where he parked. Remembered a story that J had told him about her near death experince in a Wal-Mart parking lot when she couldn’t remember where she had parked.
- Would like to restate the fact that the magician was total douche!! No joke!