Stylish Handwriting

In light of Dana being in Vegas, I, EP, thought I would share a gambling story (since I've not been fortunate enough to have visited Vegas since I turned 21.)

Unfortunately, I only have been to the casinos ONCE in my life, and the night was an interesting one.

My friend A was in town for the weekend, and I was so excited to see her. She'd been in Houston all summer, and we had been planning her visit for a few weeks.

Right after she got into town, A and I headed to our favorite restaurant and bar -- The Chimes. After ordering an appetizer, we decided a celebratory pitcher was in order because she was back in town. Our favorite beer, Purple Haze, was one of the cheaper pitchers for $5, and we were ecstatic.

We drank the entire pitcher over our appetizer, dinner and dessert. It was incredible, and when we finished everything up, we decided to head back to my apartment.

We didn't know what we wanted to do for the evening, but we knew two things. First, we wanted to have a few more drinks (specifically our specialty, Sebastian.) And secondly, we wanted to hang out with our boys.

Back at my apartment, we prepared Sebastian. One packet of raspberry Crystal Light. One packet of lemonade Crystal light. A few cups of water and LOTS of vodka. The Crystal Light masks the vodka burn, and this drink? It's dangerous.

We poured our first drinks.

Sebastian was a great idea.

We poured our second drinks.

Oh, yes it was.

Somewhere around our third drinks, we decided to round up our boys and head out on the town. And once they arrived at my apartment, the decision was made that we would go to the casinos.

I threw on a dress -- a gorgeous dress I actually wore the night my boy and I started talking. I thought it'd make the evening more exciting. A did the same, and we were ready for whatever came our way.

Now, me being the glorious lightweight I am, I was just along for the ride. I was no part of the decision making process, and I sure wasn't going to be our driver. No. No. No.

A's boy drove, and we stopped at the ATM before heading downtown to our final destination. My boy had to enter my information into the machine, and he limited me to $20 for the evening. That choice saved my bank account.

Then we were off to the casino, looking fabulous with cash in hand.

The rest of the evening is a little fuzzy for me, to be completely honest.

We spent our time at the casino on the slot machine floor. I loved the lights. (Yes, I'm THAT drunk.) And pulling the lever? It was quite possibly my favorite thing EVER.

I spent my $20 in about 15 minutes, having lost every penny to the quarter slots. My boy had a $5, and we were able to play that a long time. I couldn't tell you how long we played because, well, I was a little out of it. But I was having fun. That's what mattered.

My boy speaks about it like I was the happiest I had ever been in my life. He tells me I was so joyful about everything, especially pulling the lever and watching the wheels on the machine spin. ... He gets a good laugh whenever we talk about it.

A and her boy were playing the slots, too, and they took home around $50.

We called it a night early.

A and her boy cashed in.

My boy and I made our way out, empty handed. I remember seeing some of his friends -- I couldn't tell you their names or anything -- but I met them that night. I'm sure they had a fantastic first impression of me.

My boy and I were dropped off at his apartment, and I turned in for the night.

I awoke hours later, my tummy feeling horrible. Sebastian did me in, and I was sick for the rest of the evening and into the morning. To this day, this is the only time I have been so miserable after an evening of fun, friends and drinks.

And, to make everything worse, I didn't even have anything to show for me having gone to the casino, unless you count my bank account, which was $20 poorer in the morning.

Here's to hoping Dana fares better -- physically and monetarily -- in Vegas!