Back from Reno. It was a nice, relaxing trip with a lot of fun, some gambling, the Street Vibrations event on Virginia Street in Reno, and a little golf. It was nice to get together with friends and I'm enjoying the new tradition of only playing one of the two tournaments on away events and spending the other day with Darla.
We left Friday at about 1:30 dropping some toys off at the Pet Resort where Samson was staying. Darla had forgot them at home and he is such a toy boy. We drove up to Truckee and met Charlie and Frieda for a late lunch at Jacks At The Trax, our favorite diner. I love the mac n cheese there, but wanted a burger, so...we ordered burgers, fries, shakes and I ordered a mac n cheese appetizer for the table. It was absolutely delicious, but we paid the price for all those calories later in the day. We drove on to Reno and then to Sparks and the Nugget. The Nugget is undergoing renovations, but they are limited at the moment to the lobby and check in areas that are getting new furnishings and flooring. The rooms have all undergone a complete redo and the furniture, floors, bathrooms and hallways have all been completely updated. It was a nice stay and we took advantage of the valet parking. We all relaxed until about 7:30 and then headed out to gamble. I was feeling really bloated and Darla was having some stomach pains. It turns out that Frieda had been having some stomach issues as well. We sat and played the poker machines and drank a few adult beverages on the house. We quit about 11 and decided to get some food. The café, Rosie's, had breakfast specials, so we all ordered pancakes and eggs.
Darla and I slept in Saturday, actually longer than we had intended as when I woke up I asked Darla the time and it was almost 9:30. The hotel has those big full blackout curtains and they worked their magic. We headed out to Sparks and the Black Bear Diner and each couple shared a meal. From there we drove into Reno and parked at the Silver Legacy and wandered the Street Vibrations event. Charlie and I walked along looking at all the Harleys and motorcycles and Darla and Frieda shopped their way through all of the booths and vendors. Frieda bought some shoes and a nice leather purse and Darla bought some pajamas, two pairs of shoes, a blouse and several jars of salt scrub for her heels and skin. I've actually used the scrub on my elbows and it works great.
Neil and Lilly drove in Saturday morning and met us at the event, although we had some trouble hooking up. I told him we were at the corner of Virginia and Plaza outside the Silver Legacy and the girls were shopping, but they walked up the sidewalk that had the backs of the booths facing the sidewalk and completely missed us. Why you would use the sidewalk and not walk along by all the bikes and vendors is beyond me. He got frustrated and went to Harrah's for lunch. He texted me and invited us over for a drink at Harrah's. Darla was finishing up her negotiations with the shoe vendor and then we headed over.
We did a bit more sightseeing after drinks and then headed back to the casino to get a little rest before dinner. We all drove over in our Explorer as we put up the third row seat. We had dinner at what has become a tradition for us, Bertha Miranda's Mexican restaurant. It was fine and the company was great. Sometimes the food is just so so and this was one of those nights. I had the pork carnitas and the pork was a little dry. Darla shared the mixed fajitas with Frieda and said they were marginal. The margarita that I had was superb and the sopapilla we had for dessert was to die for. We had a great time with friends and took pictures to remember the evening. We drove back and gambled until about 10 and called it a night.
Neil and Tim were meeting at the course at 8:30 for breakfast and Charlie and I agreed to meet them. We got there right at 8:30 and showed up to see them finishing up their meal. Apparently they got there at 8 AM and decided to eat because they were hungry. Rude much?
I had a really good round of golf on the front side and shot 42. Charlie shot 44 and Neil had a 49. Tim hurt his back and soldiered on for a 53 and quit after nine. The front nine at Wolf Run has several holes that are risk/reward holes. You can see a picture of the 6th hole above (the last picture) that gives you three options off the tee. The fourth hole has a 240 yard carry hole over reeds and water and all of the guys I played with laid up, except me. I decided to go for it and really nutted a drive. Charlie had duffed one off the tee and hit his second shot before I drove across the hazard with him to look for my drive. There was a ball in the center of the fairway that would have been about a 280 drive. Charlie said it was his. I looked in the area where I thought the ball would land and saw a ball in the creek. I dejectedly drove back and told Charlie I should give up the game if I couldn't clear 240 in Nevada. I dropped and hit one on the green. The other guys hit up as well and then Charlie and I drove to his ball....which was MY BALL. He looked at me when he saw it was mine and said, "Well, at least you don't have to give up the game." I ended up bogeying the hole, but had about 90 yards into the green on my original drive. Charlie was in the rough right of the fairway.
You can see a picture of one of the marmots that swarm the course. They are squirrel like rodents that can get big and fat and were clogging the driving range when we warmed up. How they keep from getting clocked is beyond me. I took a close-up of one of them.
The wind came up in a big way on the back nine and it was about a two club wind. I shot 46 for an 88 and had a 67 net to win the low Net on the day. Charlie shot 53 on the back and his 76 was good for money. Neil is now a 24 and shot 49+48-97, net 73. Our threesome all was in the money and I had a 5 on the number 1 handicap par 5 which gave me a 3 net and I won $26 in skin money for that. Not a bad day.
The girls joined us at 3:30 and we drove back to Auburn and met Charlie and Frieda for dinner in old town at the Bootleggers restaurant and sat outside and listened to a duo playing the music of the Beatles, Jim Croce, Elton John and Neil Diamond. It was a great end to a really fun weekend.
We got Samson back today and had him groomed and he got his Summer cut. He's been shedding like a snake lately and leaving a mess on the carpets. In fact he completely clogged both of our vacuums and I had to take them apart and clean them out today. He looks great and our first 100 degree day was on Sunday so he I'm sure feels better now.
We talked to Jennifer last night and firmed up plans to have Samantha visit us this Summer. We have her signed up for Breakaway, Adventure's Summer Camp for Kids. She signed up for not the Extreme Sports or Water Fun, but Creative Kids were she will do crafts, art and cooking. Darla will actually fly into Vegas and pick up Sam and bring her back on the weekend of June 30.We will meet Diane's husband Bill on the 1st and she will fly back with her cousin to Dallas. They will return Sam on the 6th and she will be with us until the 14th. We will rent a house in LA and meet Jennifer and McKenny and hopefully Becky, Dan, Dave and Miya for a weekend at the beach. We will drive back on Monday the 15th. We plan to rent a house where we can bring Samson and they can bring Maceo.
Well, that's enough for a Monday night. We had an okay May, but one of my favorite employees gave notice on Friday and went over to a competitor that is run by my ex employee, Matt. She was very thankful for our five years together, but is looking forward to a more laid back work environment. They wear jeans and tee shirts every day. Oh well. Hope all is well with you. Ciao.
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