Bookstore, Blackjack and More

This morning Helen and I paid a visit to a nearby Barnes & Noble to check out their books.

I found a baseball book, "Crazy '08" by Cait Murphy, about the 1908 season, the last time the Cubs won the World Series. Probably won't start reading it for a week or so, since now I am enjoying "The Calamity Papers" by Dale Walker, a noted writer of non-fiction western tales.
Helen didn't find any new books for herself, but she's reading "Permed to Death" by Nancy Cohen, the first book in a series of mysteries in which the heroine is a hair stylist who owns her own salon.

By the time we finished browsing through the B&N it about 11 a.m. I decided to go to the Suncoast to cash a pair of winning SuperBowl tickets, while Helen just relaxed for a while before watching her daily dose of "Desperate Housewives." The Lifetime Channel runs a 2-hour block of DH every day from noon-2 p.m., so that's a good time for me to be gone.

I got to the Suncoast just before noon and pocketed $97 from the 2 tickets. I checked out the NBA and college hoops games, but nothing caught my eye for investing. Then I strolled over to the blackjack area and found a $10 game where a woman was playing alone against the dealer. I bought in for $100 and pushed the first two hands, before snagging a blackjack on the third hand. After the first shoe, I was up about $40. The other player, a raspy-voiced woman, was winning too. She was chainsmoking and friendly enough, calling everybody "Honey" ("Honey, I'll have a Manhattan when you get a chance." "Honey, I need a face card." "Honey, can you pass me a book of matches."

The second shoe went even better than the first. I hit a couple of nice double downs and as the dealer shuffled, I saw that I was up $110 after only 15 minutes of playing. That's enough profit for me, I decided, and colored up my chips and strolled to the cashier. On the way out, I had a 75-cent all-beef hotdog that they serve near the sports book. Ah, life is good!

Then I drove over to Albertson's where we needed a few groceries. Picked up coffee, chicken salad from the deli, salad fixings, guacamole mix, sour cream, tomatoes, apples, strawberries, strapping tape, and a few other things. Total for 5 bags - $68. Food is pricey here.

Later today, Helen got a phone call from her sister Natalie back in Traverse City. Seems that their sister Susan suffered from some numbness that started at her face then spread down along her left side this morning and went to Munson Medical Center's Emergency Room. They couldn't diagnose it as a stroke, but kept her overnight for observation. Helen called Sharon and Norman to let them know about Susan's situation. Natalie is pretty upset and we're all hoping for the best. Susan's health is an ongoing concern.

Tonight we're just relaxing and watching some TV, but tomorrow the adventure continues...