Well today was my token 'day off' from work. What is nice is that it's a Monday and in the past Sunday nights were just ominous and as the night wound down I started missing the weekend .. even before I went to bed. Now it's a different kind of feeling with the prospects of having an entire day to do what I want (usually Sue is at work and Carter at school). Monday nights aren't like Sundays since 3 days of doing nothing (but mostly house stuff) is enough and I actually look forward to going back to work.. hey, it's only 4 days of retail torture now...Ever since I mentioned the new SANDS casino (in Bethlehem, PA) my father has been bugging me (or asking whenever I see him) about going. Last Monday we were supposed to go but nothing was set. I get a call about 6pm and my dad is on the other end, "What happened? We were supposed to go to the casino today"..
So, when I saw my Dad on the weekend I told him we would go. We had planned on heading over there around noon. Well, today I get up around 9:30am ... I get a call from my dad at 10am saying "I'm on my way over". Luckily he doesn't own a cell phone so "on my way over" means he's just leaving the house.
I was in the middle of a bagel and coffee when he called, so I needed to step things up a bit. My dad still drives at 83 but doesn't drive far. He knows where we live but can't see to remember the two turns after getting off of Route 191. So, I meet him down the road in the church parking lot.
My dad followed me to our house and we came inside for awhile so I could finish my coffee and brush my teeth. We headed out about 11pm.
The casino opened about a month ago but Sue and I haven't had a chance to go there. She tells me that her and her friend (Lani) are going sometime soon. The casino is about 15 minutes from our house.
I wasn't thinking but my dad brought a baggie full of change with him to 'play the slots'. I had to use the restroom so when I came out and found my father he looked confused. He says, "Where do you put the money?". For a second I almost forgot myself that the machines no longer accept coins. He probably hadn't been in a casino in about 4 years. But I'm pretty sure they didn't accept coins back then either.
The next problem is that my father has all these 'ones' with him. Well, go figure, the machines will only accept a $5.00 bill and higher. You would think that maybe you could put a one dollar bill in a penny machine.. but no. But the casino is happy to print you out a .04 receipt.
So after about 20 minutes.. maybe 30 minutes my $30.00 I came with is gone. I figure if I only spend $30.. then I only lose $30.
My dad seems to be doing pretty good on the video poker machines. I think he's up to $10.00 now. He notices that I'm just sitting there and tells me he'll give me $5.00. So I start playing the $5 and after about 20 minutes I'm up to $20.00. I'm thinking I should have started to play the video poker in the first place. But after about another 10 minutes I've lost it all again.
The casino isn't too big.. mostly a large room filled with slot machines and restaurants. Free parking (as most casinos have) and no ticket to redeem; just drive in, drive out.
My dad enjoyed the day and it was great taking him there since he worked at Bethlehem Steel (the site of the casino) back in the late 50s (when they produced 23 million tons of steel a year!) and worked there for 15 years.
Check it out: www.pasands.com
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