Every morning when I’m driving to work at 6am I’m watching the sun come up over the local mountains, I’m looking at the snow on Mt Rose, I’m looking across the wide open spaces of the Nevada high desert, I’m feeling the cold clean clear mountain air on my face, I’m looking at all the natural beauty of the surrounding areas, I’m looking at all the evergreen trees that I love so much, I’m driving a very short commute of 10 miles, I’m actually looking forward to going to a job that I love, and I’m thinking about how lucky I am to be living here right now and experiencing all this.

I can’t help but smile and think to myself, “I can’t believe I’m here. I can’t believe I get to do this. I can’t believe I live in Reno and work in Reno. I can’t believe my good fortune. I just can’t believe it.”

Someone once said, “Happiness is when your reality exceeds your expectations.”

Well, I never thought I would be so lucky.

dark hardwood floors, leather furniture, muted lighting, cool jazz on the speakers, the smell of earth and leather and spice and vanilla, men in comfortable suits, Irish driving caps and fedoras, a skinny tie, pictures of Cuba in the 1950s, glass display cases full of men’s upscale shaving accessories, very expensive davidoff cedar humidors, laughter and camaraderie, where’s the new guy from again, the sun going down behind mount rose, wanna go fly fishing at pyramid this weekend, illusione fume d’amour, this would go perfect with a glass of cognac

Happy Chinese New Year

This year the casinos in down town put on some nice incentives for the year of the goat. The El Dorado casino had a beautiful chinese food buffet this weekend. Crispy suckling pig, roast duck, and many other delicious entrees were presented. There was a dancing chinese dragon and drum team that roamed throughout the common areas that El Dorado and the Silver Legacy share. And Pai Gow, so much Pai Gow.

On Saturday night after dinner I went to the Silver Legacy keno lounge, played $20, smoked a cigar, and had a couple of cognacs. I won my money back. Then it was time to go downstairs.

Pai Gow is my new jam. In no other game in the casino will the house show you how to play your cards, and in some cases even fix your cards, so you can win. You push a lot, so your money goes longer. Most of the time I break even. I’ll play for several hours, drink for free, socialize with interesting and friendly people, and feel properly entertained.

For Chinese New Year there were approximately eleventy zillion Pai Gow tables at the Silver Legacy and they were all full. I play the poker variant. I have no idea how to play the dominoes. But I got into a table right away, luckily, and had a good time.

Don’t say “Gung Hey Fat Choy”–it doesn’t sound nice in Mandarin. Please say “Gong Xi Fa Cai” instead.

Enjoy the year of the goat.