Sept 8th - Something like happy

Note: I wrote this a while ago. I'm just posting it now because I wasn't thinking I'd get a blog until recently.

Last weekend, I went to Atlantic City with my aunt and uncle as a birthday present. It was a little awkward at first, because I hadn’t spent time alone with my aunt in many years, and never with my uncle. The ride down was spent mostly making small talk.
We went to Caesar’s, which basically makes a mockery of ancient Roman sculpture and architecture, but I think I’d rather go there then any other casino. Where else in the world can you find Roman pillars, busts of famous emperors, and 5 billion slot machines in one room? Seriously though, there’s probably more slot machines then people in these places.
I was a little anxious, it being my first time in a casino. We started at roulette, where I very swiftly lost $50 – didn’t win a single bet! Luckily there were cocktail waitresses that hand out free drinks, to drown my sorrows – ha ha.
I soon graduated to blackjack, which I had a little more luck at, but not much. People at the tables are very helpful with advice – which I came to need more and more as I got progressively drunker. The hands move very fast, and there are very specific rules for when you have a 15 or 16. Apparently if you take a card and you shouldn’t have, people can get angry (upsetting the natural balance of who gets what cards). That made me think a little while of the nature of destiny and freewill – deep thoughts for a seedy casino blackjack table. After an hour or so of ups and downs, I eventually bowed out, another $100 lighter.
You meet some interesting people in the bathrooms of casinos. My first trip to the W.C. (that’s what they call it in England), someone was throwing up in one of the stalls. It was only 3:30 pm – that guy must have had a very long night. Later in the evening, I was standing at a urinal when I noticed the man next to me liked to groan in a most sexual way to himself. When he said “Ooo c’mon baby,” I decided I needed to hurry up and leave.
We decided to take a walk on the boardwalk – I’m told it’s much cleaner than it had been in the past, even a couple years before. While walking, we started to get pretty hungry. When Steve asked me whether I wanted to go to an expensive steakhouse or Hooter’s, I naturally picked the latter. My mother jokingly said later that she breastfed me for too long as a child. By this point Aunt Tracy was a little drunk, and I had a slight buzz. She’s a fun girl – I think we definitely would have been friends if she was my age and we were in college. Once in Hooter’s, we naturally ordered a pitcher of beer to split between the two of us (Steve was driving home, and had stopped drinking at this point).
When I saw a bunch of well-endowed waitresses headed my way and clapping, I was confused at first. It was a month past my birthday, and I had forgotten that was what we were here to celebrate.
“They’re not for me are they?” I asked.
“Oh yeah they are!” my aunt replied.
Apparently the Hooter’s tradition for 21st birthdays is to force you to stand up on your chair and chug a full beer while the girl’s sing some silly chant. I was a little anxious, not being a great chugger, but I passed the test with flying colors, to the cheers of everyone in the restaurant. A few burps later, I was feeling very good, and proud of myself. I’m very good at holding my alcohol now, which I think is a good thing, if maybe a little boring compared to my freshman year escapades.
Twenty wings, a basket of onion rings, and 3 chili dogs later, we walked out of Hooter’s with a renewed spirit and were ready to finally win some money. We walked back to Caesar’s and played roulette late into the night. I lost my last $100, which Steve had graciously given to me. He was on a winning streak, so me and Aunt Tracy watched him win some major money.
Steve told us about his system, which he plans to write a very short book about. It consists of betting on the same 9 numbers every time in roulette. It may sound too simple to be true, but he walked out of Atlantic City $1000 richer, even after me and Aunt Tracy lost a good portion of his money. He gave me another $100 so I didn’t go home completely broke, which was really nice of him.
Aunt Tracy and I were very excited over Steve’s big wins. She proudly gambled away his money, and me a little less proudly. Still, it was uplifting to see them both happy. They are really wonderful people. On the ride home I dozed on and off, something like happy, and ready to go to England.