Day 83

Whew...I made it! I'm here in Las Vegas! And what a day it's been...I am so ready to crash.

I started my day by working for a few hours...had to get payroll done. Then I ran home and picked up Rob and he took me to the airport. We got off without a hitch, and I was on my way to Salt Lake. Other than the man who sat next to me and chatted the entire time, it was an uneventful flight.

When I arrived in Salt Lake, I traversed what was nearly the entire airport...seriously...from E to B Concourse. But I found my next gate with no problem, and hung out in the general area, until I realized we should be boarding in only a few minutes and the screen no longer displayed my flight information, and I was the ONLY person waiting at that gate?!? So I raced up the stairs, heading back to the last screen I had seen, when I happened to glance over at another gate that now had my flight information displayed, along with the dreaded...Delayed! So I hung out there for a bit waiting for our plane to come in, they offloaded, quickly boarded us for our flight and off we went.

I landed in Vegas without much trouble, but dreaded that with the change in planes, somehow my luggage would be lost. But after taking a tram, walking what seemed like a mile, and waiting about 20 minutes, my luggage magically appeared on the belt! Yay!

As I had been directed, I then stepped outside and went to the first shuttle service I could find. In no time myself and two others were boarding a shuttle...with me as the first stop here at the Flamingo. All was well until they dropped me off two blocks away due to construction, and I had to shlep my bags to the hotel, not to mention THROUGH the hotel. I have walked so much today, my dogs are barking!!

So my next encounter was with the gal at the check-in desk. She tried to charge me an extra $20 a day, but we got that resolved relatively quickly. By this time all I wanted to do is use the bathroom...and maybe cry a few tears from exhaustion, and just for relief and release that the day is finally over. I managed to keep it together until I got myself up here to my room on the 9th floor.

But wait...my day isn't over yet...I hadn't eaten all day! I needed some dinner. I'm so beat that I decided to call room service...only no one ever answered. Well that kind of speaks volumes to wrap up this day of mine. So I grabbed my wallet, phone and room key and headed back down to the main floor where I spotted a couple restaurants and cafes. Right at the base of the elevators was a little pizzeria type place, but not wanting to wait, I just asked for a beer and a Caesar salad. The girl tells me they only have Ranch dressing, and what I want to say is - of course you do, but at this point...who cares. So I headed back up to my room, and did exactly what that lady at the front desk had warned me not to, put my phone and my room key in my pocket together. So with an open beer in one hand and a salad in the other, I tried to get into my room, and realized I had deactivated my key! I hadn't even been in this place for 30 minutes and I was locked out of my room! I was just planning my next move, and like a giant yellow angel, a security guard happened around the corner and clearly sensed my distress. He was able to call down to the front desk, confirm I belonged in this room and let me in.

So now that I'm back in my room, this is my view...most of it is Caesar's Palace, and I can see the Mirage and Planet Hollywood too.  Now, to get into my jammies, settle into my room, and get ready for a busy day tomorrow.  Today certainly has been an adventure!