Profitable Strip Stroll

Friday morning began with coffee, a bagel and an hour-long visit with our Italian friends, Tony Soprano and his family.

About 9 a.m. I hit the road to the Strip. I parked at Bill's Gambling Hall and made a football bet for my friend Terry. He likes the Cardinals -12 vs. Detroit tomorrow. I played a little blackjack at Bills, cashing out with a modest profit of $26.

Then I strolled next door to the Flamingo where I sat down at a $10 bj table and played for about an hour, racking up a profit of $50. So far in two stops, I'm up $76.

Over dozens of Las Vegas visits, I've always tried to do a few of these "hit and run" strolls down the Strip. My theory is that during any single bj session there is a point where a player is usually up, even if it's only $20 or so. If you stay longer, you often give back that minor profit. But if you take that profit, then hit the next joint, you can rack up $100 or more during several stops.

With that in mind, I wandered into Harrah's and played at a bj table for about an hour or so with two farmers from Kansas. They were still there when I cashed out with a profit of $57. That's $133 in three stops and I decided to take my profit and have lunch - an eight-piece order of wings and a diet Pepsi at WingStop inside O'Shea's.

From there it was back to Bill's where I parked the car. Now it was about 2 p.m. and I fully intended to head home with my $133. But I saw a $5 bj table beckoning me and I bought in for $40. A young couple was playing there and it was obvious they didn't know what the heck they were doing. I cringed inside and bet minimum bets of $5-$8, fearing the impact their goofy decisions would have on my cards. After about 15 minutes, I was up $23 and decided to walk.

So during the four sessions, I profited $156 - nice!

When I got home, there was an email from my brother Gordon, explaining that this weekend they will be bringing my Dad back to Michigan from Florida. Dad will be going into an adult care facility in a Detroit suburb, near my sister Bev. Dad's been falling repeatedly and needs more care than Gordon and his wife Chris are able to provide. I'm feeling sad about this, but hopefully Dad will get quality, compassionate care in this new home.

For dinner I slapped together some tasty chicken salad sandwiches, with a crunchy dill pickle and corn chips. Not fancy, but delicious.

Tonight Helen and I will be going to the Las Vegas Ballet performance of The Nutcracker at Paris Hotel and Casino. Really looking forward to this holiday masterpiece as our LV adventure continues...