Almost two weeks ago my family and I took a little trip down to Reno and it was well worth the two day trip. At first, you hear all the horror stories about how boring Reno is and yet it still doesn’t compare to Vegas. I must say, having your experience driving down there and just having time to think about life, the people surrounding you, and the goals you want to accomplish is certainly fun and enjoyable. I typically have my only class left for my community college journey on Tuesday nights and on August 28th my brother, myself, my mom, niece, and my sister in law decided to leave right after that was over. I was waiting anxiously just to get the show on the road and the drive down there was fun. Me and my brother told some stories, shared some laughs, heard some music, and the whole time it seemed like the drive would never end. I told my brother what the fun part about Reno was and he told me “you get to gamble”. The reason we really went there in the first place was to check out the Reno rib cookoff which if anyone knows me, I love ribs. I don’t each much pork besides ribs as I find pigs to be a rather strange animal (cool author’s note: I’ve seen pigs having sex, not a pretty sight!). My brother and I also had some business to attend when it came down to fantasy football and what else a draft. I was discussing strategy with myself the whole drive down there trying to master up the perfect team. The most difficult thing about drafting a team is looking at injuries, bye weeks, matchups, team offenses, and most importantly the dynamic of staying up to date with the players themselves. Anyway, the first thing I realized when I got there was how different it was and how cool it felt to get out of your own reality without going too far. Sometimes, spending money is necessary to have a good time because we all deserve a little luxury and we can’t take ourselves too seriously. Once I got there, it was like a new place and a new time where people just don’t go to sleep/ I was telling my brother about how isolated Northern California feels sometimes because of all the big name companies that are up here and the luxurious lifestyles that some people live up here. Here, it was a bit different where people felt man I can win some money and come back a winner! It’s almost as if people aren’t afraid to take risks and they did so in this case. That was mostly the first night/day there where me and my brother just were roaming around the hotel casino watching people wasting money away. The next morning, I had completely forgotten that my nicece had come along an most of the time she can be a handful. She had woke up asking her mom whether her grandma, her uncle, and her dad had come along to this trip. She also kept insisting that we were going to the mountains and I thought to myself “oh yeah Tahoe isn’t too far away”. So, with sleep deprived bodies we first headed off to the rib cookoff. I found the place to be pretty packed for a weekday and everything smelled so elegant. You had banners up for the positions each company or group of people had placed in rib cookoffs. I must say, I was not let down with the amount of food that was offered. Between the beef brisket sandwiches that were offered and the ribs that smelled delicious, it was almost as if this was heaven. I enjoyed a beef brisket sandwich and everyone else had their ribs, fries, and icees on hand. My family said that the prices were really good and I couldn’t agree anymore as there was so much to be offered but the bad part was we only had one day to enjoy it all. I told my brother if it was possible, we should come back for the next one and like Homer Simpson in the Simpsons said “we’ll see”. After that, my brother and his wife wanted to head down to south lake tahoe for the beach (not for them of course). The drive was long and painless as I was pretty sleepy and everybody else seemed pretty sleepy too. I don’t know how my brother made through that whole drive but in the hot Reno weather it’s even tougher. First, you have the factor of the hot weather and the sun really beams down on you. So, I tried my best to not fall asleep on the way there. It really was a beautiful sight on there, feeling relaxed and soothing, and I guess some people had gotten there weekends off to an early start (mind you this was almost labor day weekend.) Once we got there, my brother wanted to go to another casino and it felt really cool just because this was my first time playing at a slot machine. I knew that I wasn’t exactly going to set the world on fire but it is low risk low reward for myself. I spent about 10 dollars and it was worth it just because spending that much doesn’t make you feel miserable and feel like you went overboard. My brother did a little better than I did as he won 9 dollars after spending5 dollars. I was happy with my experience because it was new and something I’d never done before. Once we were done gambling, we went and picked up my niece, her mom, and my mom. Of course, on the way back to the hotel I fell asleep and then it was almost time for our fantasy football draft. After grabbing food from del taco, it was draft time and my team didn’t end up being too bad. I was entertained during the draft about talk of certain players chances, strip clubs, TV shows, and even work which was very humorous in it’s own right. It was pretty funny because during the draft my niece kept trying to talk to all of us in her baby english and I kept nodding my head at her. At one point she told me that you can’t go to work because everybody’s asleep. After that all ended, we once again went to the casino but this time my mom came along. I figured that mom would never do this but she did and we both played slot machines. She ended winning more than me as she won close to 5 dollars but I won 2 dollars. Meanwhile,my brother was trying his luck at 21 and of course there was no luck there either. It was funny because when he was winning we were at his side but when he was losing we left. It was a fun night and needless to say I enjoyed spending some time with my family on these two days. I learned on the way back that family will love you no matter what you end doing with your life. I am in the process of almost finishing community college and they have supported me all the way. My brother has become a good father and we all support him no matter what he does. My mom and dad even in their late forties have started or are starting to look at new career opportunities. It was a fun time and I hope we can do it again soon. The drive back reminded me, cherish these times because they won’t be here forever. I hope that everyone does end spending some time with their family because there’s nothing better. Oh, and here’s some photos:
Just Another Day... 