HOLY THOUGHTS IN SIN CITY
What's a nice girl like you doing in a place like THAT?! I got some pretty funny looks and reactions when I told my friends that my best friend and I were escaping on a girls' getaway to Vegas after the High Holidays (I didn't say I was going FOR the High Holidays...). To make one thing clear, our husbands surprised us with tickets. That means this was not my decision. No, I'd never been to Vegas before. Yes, it was crazy. Yes, I gambled ($2). Yes, I made money (50 cents). No, I didn't do anything else that you're thinking about. No, I never need to go back. Yes, I'm glad I went. No, my husband is never setting foot there. Ever. Yes, Sin City is a very apropos name. But believe it or not, I learned a thing or two in Vegas. Here we go:
What's a nice girl like you doing in a place like THAT?! I got some pretty funny looks and reactions when I told my friends that my best friend and I were escaping on a girls' getaway to Vegas after the High Holidays (I didn't say I was going FOR the High Holidays...). To make one thing clear, our husbands surprised us with tickets. That means this was not my decision. No, I'd never been to Vegas before. Yes, it was crazy. Yes, I gambled ($2). Yes, I made money (50 cents). No, I didn't do anything else that you're thinking about. No, I never need to go back. Yes, I'm glad I went. No, my husband is never setting foot there. Ever. Yes, Sin City is a very apropos name. But believe it or not, I learned a thing or two in Vegas. Here we go:
1. There's no such thing as free champagne. If someone is offering it to you, there a reason/catch/etc. Probably they don't want you to use your "free drink" voucher for a Diet Coke. I tried.
2. The frog does not drink from the pond in which it lives. I saw this on a postcard at Red Rock Canyon (we did some hiking in the magnificent Mojave Desert). It roughly approximates one of the first verses in Isaiah - an ox knows its master. Know where you come from... know where you're going.
3. People enjoy being in a fake world of smoke, mirrors, and contrived artificiality. It feels good. Even if the price is high. Even though they know it's fake. Why?
4. When you leave your Blackberry upstairs in the hotel room, you will check your pocket often. But you will be very happy you did. And the world will keep turning. You determine expectations of availability to your circle of friends and family.
Well. Who knew there were deep thoughts in Vegas. There's more, of course. But Shabbat is approaching... gotta go power down my Blackberry and spice up the cholent...
