AK2Vegas Halloween TR 2011

[AK2Vegas]

(Author's note: I've used forum handles for almost everyone in this TR. If I didn't know your handle or you didn't have one, I may have used your name. I also may have forgotten that you and I spoke because, well, I was drinking. Don't take either the inclusion or exclusion from this TR as an insult. To rookies that have not had the pleasure of an invasion yet, or are wondering how this many people could possible party this hard with strangers from the internet, I don't have an answer. I think it was destiny that I met these people. And facebook helped a lot too. This TR is 100% true, 60% accurate, and 12% embellished. It has been edited for content and shame, but not for spelling and grammer. I ask forgiveness.)

AOD Halloween Invasion 2011

Introduction

To Mr. Somnambulated,

In regards to your repeated requests for the report, please be satisfied with this latest, and final, report regarding the events and actions of AkOD units during the AOD Halloween 2011 offensive.

We have received your request, and apologize for the delay. Sadly your request was sequestered into our junk mail account and was likely thrown away due to the massive volume of mail we get here in the Alaska division. However, it has come to our attention that you are affiliated with a certain Mr. Rekon, with whom Mr. AK2Vegas has served two distinguished tours of Las Vegas with and they are quite close. His assistant found the correlation between you while we were combing through our data records and found a phone number, belonging to Mr. Rekon, but which was assigned to you temporarily. Once we found this correlation your file was bumped to the top of the queue. We consider the matter closed and settled.

Sincerely AkOD

Preface

A letter to my friend RickRothbury,

Greetings and salutations friend,

As I made clear, we could not afford to go to Las Vegas for Halloween and, bluntly, our trips to Vegas while not vacationing with out children smacks of selfishness at some point. That being said, the universe threw me a softball.

I was at Tesoro (a gas station) and on the Pepsi display was a contest for a trip to Vegas. Well, I couldn't pass this up, but there was no entry box available. So I took the slip of paper with me and read the instructions: two winners will be chosen from California, Washington and Oregon, one winner each from Hawaii and Alaska. The winner shall receive two round trip tickets to Las Vegas, two nights at Excalibur, two buffet passes per person, and two tickets to Tournament of Kings. It was a stretch, but even I know that in a state that is smaller in population than Detroit, these were fairly decent odds. Furthermore, I surmised that if the merchandising and execution of the Alaskan arm of this contest were as bad at the other Tesoro gas stations as the one I was at (I mean, there wasn't even an entry box) I stood a chance. I planned on going back and scooping up more entries at a later date. The rules stipulated the usual, one entry per person per day per envelope, to be sent to a PO box in Spokane, blah blah blah. (This may seem silly to you but I did do it) I consciously put energy as I closed the envelope with my one entry in it and thought how cool it would be if this one entry landed exactly where I needed it to land. Since I had read the fine print I knew that the drawing was 9/12 and the deadline was the 6th. I was determined to get more entries into the contest. However, this never happened.

The 12th came and went and I knew I hadn't won. This didn't really bother me too much since I hadn't planned on going anyway.

It was about September 20th and I was up and getting ready for work. It was about 06:20 and my phone rang with an unknown out of state number (we don't get many out of state numbers unless it's a solicitor).

I answer and a woman's voice asks me "Is this AK2Vegas*?" I'm thinking, who are you and how did you get my name and number?

"Yes it is, how can I help you?"

"My name is Norma. Did you enter a contest for a trip to Las Vegas?" First thought: these bastards sold my information to a marketing company. Why else would they call me after the contest is over?

"Yes I did. Why do you ask?"

"Well you didn't win the contest." Ok. I'm getting really suspicious now. Why would she be calling me to tell me I hadn't won?

"But we cannot find the winner and you are the runner up." I was silent for a long time.

"That is, if you want to accept the prize?"

Well, you can imagine me standing in my kitchen, my household asleep, a cup of coffee in front of me and I'm holding the phone and I can't speak. It was priceless.

So the stipulation was that I had to use the tickets before June 30th. I wanted to use them for May for the next invasion (which was crazy) but my greed and desire begged me to use them for Halloween. They allowed me to stretch the airfare and use the two hotel nights provided I found my own lodging the other nights. Done deal. Since I'm on a budget and it's easier, we'll be staying at the Excalibur and we'll be using the buffet tickets too. It will be a budget trip compared to my other Vegas extravaganzas.

I hope to see you in the field good sir. Until then...

Sincerely AK2Vegas,

And that is how I was granted the chance to join my fellows for another round in the trenches of lovely Las Vegaaaaaasssssss………

[AK2Vegas]

Thursday 10.27.11

This was to be our second Halloween and for some fucked up reason, I went back to my playbook and chose the same play (I'm a creature of habit). For three of the past four trips I'd gone in Thursday and left either Sunday or Monday. I think it's just because I want to get there as soon as possible and see the homeland, but I'm not sure. Anyway, without consulting the forums or anyone else, or even thinking about it, I chose Thursday-Monday again. Next time I will consult my advisors and plan things better. In the end I ended up swapping Cathouse Thursday for Marquee Monday and I'm a little bitter about it. And I don't even remember Thursday much either.



Since this flight was free (and I think as a convenience to me) Norma scheduled us with daytime flights. Because we are always looking to save money, I hadn't flown in the daytime for almost 20 years. It was kind of a treat. The first flight went well enough, we were put in the exit row where the tradeoff for extra legroom is not being able to recline. We made it to Sea-Tac on time and I am about to relax and get a coffee. I double check our boarding pass: gate D7. I look up and see that we're at gate N3. Good only four gates away. I glance at the time and realize that I've only got about thirty minutes. I tell Ginger to go to the bathroom and I start walking over to Starbucks when it hits me: these are in two different terminals!

We race downstairs and over to the tram and I'm hoping that we'll make it in time. Luckily it's easy to find and we are in time to be one of the last people boarded. No coffee for me.

Unlike other trips I hadn't brought any alcohol on board with me so when the guy next to me orders Crown Royal I can't resist. I have been drinking something a little less 'affluent' lately but I say fuck it, I'm on vacation. Crown never tasted so good. We order some teriyaki-chicken-grease bowl during the in flight meal and I devour it. I should know by now, but this is going to be the last thing I eat for almost 24 hours.

Something about not sitting by the window bothers me. I dozed off and when I come to we're starting our descent. I have to crane over the four people to my left but I can see it taking shape. The mecca of gluttony and excessive irrational exuberance, the Las Vegas Strip. I start to get excited seeing the motherland and we continue eastbound. Then we miss what should be our turning vector and I'm wondering what's going on. I can't see anything since I'm not close enough to either window (our seats put us at a pillar on our right so we have no window there). The plane rolls left and I'm assuming that we're heading north now. I'm frustrated by not being able to see and I'm craning my neck to see where we are when I spot the Hoover Dam. Now I assume the worst. Something is putting us into a holding pattern and I'm going to be even later than I want to.

McCarren airport. Gateway to Las Vegas. We go down to baggage and I am trying to figure out a way to get to the store for much needed supplies without performing wallet suicide by taxi. I've always done the airport to hotel in a limo before…and even though this is a budget trip I've got to get to the supply depot or I'm fucked. Aria asks me to get her supplies so now I'm on the line for a fellow AOD soldier. I bite the bullet and get a sedan. Not quite a limo, but at least it's not death by taxi. I promise the driver I'll be as quick as I can.



We head for the Von's at Tropicana and Maryland. (When I lived in Vegas this was the store we shopped at too. Memories.) We race inside, Ginger going for juice and soda, me getting liquor. In Alaska package liquor stores must be operated entirely separately from any other business (in practice this means that at every grocery store there is an affiliated, but separate liquor store). Here it's actually inside the store and there is an attendant that gets the alcohol for us and takes it to the register for us. So far so good.

I take our cart and go to register 3 like I'm supposed to…and get behind the lady with three kids who is on public assistance. I've got nothing against her or her plight, but after a while I can't help but feel a secret loathing for her and her progeny. The clerk has to take ten times longer double checking her and her items to make sure they comply with government regulations…meanwhile two other lines open up and I can't go to them because my alcohol is being held hostage at register 3. Needless to say my driver was not happy with my punctuality.

As we start driving back to the strip I can't help but feel a sense of completeness. The city, the lights, the smells, they all bring a certain feeling that is indescribable to those that haven't been there. My phone is blowing up (thank you Beluga) and I'm taking pictures and posting them to tease those poor fucks who aren't there. But my driver has other designs for me. Either because he was ignorant, or because he was vindictive for the wait at Von's, he pulls up at a large rotunda at the southwest side of excalibur where there are a few tour buses...

It's open…and there's a door…but it doesn't have the welcome feeling that EVERY casino hotel I've stayed at has always had. It feels odd. He can't shimmy up close to the door because of the way the tour busses are parked so he drops us off in the middle of the rotunda with our bags and groceries and shit. No one comes out to greet us and we're trying to hold bags on our arms while balancing suitcases up to the curb. And shame on me, I tipped him. It takes a few minutes to realize that no one is coming and that this isn't the main entrance.

I tell Ginger to wait for me and I make my way inside Excalibur. Once the largest hotel in the world, it is now the seventh largest and despite MGM's attempts, is showing both it's age and tackiness. Whereas the Venetian smells of Old Lady, and the Tropicana smells like a 'just-used' cab, the Excalibur smells of regret and shame. I kid. But not by much. Built during the 90's race to encourage families to visit Las Vegas, the Excalibur looks like an indoor mini golf course gone amok. And like it's brethren, it is designed to be confusing and disorienting. I tromp around a few minutes trying to find the bell desk and secretly cursing our driver.

I finally find my way to the bell desk and have a bell hop go and get my things while I check in. As I'm waiting in line I check frontdesktip.com (I'm lucky to get signal at this point) to see what my odds are. The guys in front of me are bragging to their buddy (who is waiting to check in like me) that they got upgraded. As I scan the website I find that the odds for an upgrade (cough, cough) are pretty high. Not one person on the website seems to have gotten anything other than a widescreen room. Everyone of their 'successes' consists of a widescreen room and/or a view. No suites. I assess my chances and roll the dice. I'm not going to waste twenty bucks on something I can probably get for free.

Ginger shows up with the bellhop as I'm finishing checking in. My theory, don't waste a sandwich to get 'a view' or to get 'closer to the elevator'. These are not upgrades. Extra beds, toilets, screens, and bedrooms make an upgrade. Do you research, don't get screwed.

As we're going up to our room I chat it up with the bellhop, Julius. He's a younger looking guy and I ask him how his night is going. He just got on shift so he's not really having fun yet. Even though he's a younger looking dude he tells me he's been there for seventeen years! I ask him if he likes this MGM property vs some of the newer better hotels. He tells me that when the economy is good Excalibur does well and when the economy is down the Excalibur still does well. Sound logic.

[AK2Vegas]

Finally we get to our room. What can I say about the Excalibur widescreen rooms? Mine was drastically reduced in price and it was clean. It matches the pictures. They're good rooms. (But one more thing about these rooms; the whole marketing point for these rooms is the widescreen, right? well the 42" HDTV gets not 20, not 30, but ZERO HD channels. I mean, if you're going to have a TV be the center point for the room, at least equip it with what it's designed for. End of rant.) Ginger goes to open the side curtains, those on either side of the window and she finds that they're covering the wall. They're not actually curtains. Having stayed at properties with 'floor to ceiling' windows, this is amusing.

I get some ice and we get ready for the night. Aria texts me and tells me that she and her roommates are downstairs at Dicks Last Resort. I go downstairs to get them and try and creep up on her. I am however, unsuccessful (I blame the copious amounts of whisky I had already consumed) and she sneaks up on me. Her roommates NR and B are lovely but famished. It is their first AOD invasion. They will not forget it. At the bottom of the elevators to our tower is a coffee shop and a Baja Fresh and NR and B order there.



We get back into the room and start what will be one of many pre parties. At some point Jenn, Charels~, Loves, Drew, and Addicted2SinCity all roll up and we are in full on kill mode. I had personally consumed half a bottle of Crown and I was totally good. I don't remember leaving the room or going to Cathouse. I do remember seeing Darryll for the first time since May. I'm pretty sure he comped us a few bottles and a hookah.



This was the most trashed I'd been in Vegas since Liquid during mAyOD. I was gone. Now luckily I'm still operable when I'm this fucked or I'd be on my ass. The rest of the crew was either already there or they met us inside. Warren and Benny Lava were there, and it's a good bet to say that Lava was as trashed as I was. It was good to see old friends. The pics are gonna have to speak for themselves, I don't remember much. People were kissing, groping, and riding each other. I don't remember it being that packed but I think that's because the AOD scared most of the rest of them out of there. We were probably a zoo.

I don't remember this picture.

As I've said, I've reconstructed these parts from partial interviews, memory fragments and photographic evidence. I have no recollection after the second bottle. Apparently we left and Ginger couldn't get us back right away. I decided it would be an equal trade if I just didn't sleep at the Excalibur and just picked a room at random at the Luxor. My drunk plan was to barge into a random Luxor room and go to sleep. Ginger didn't think that this was an intelligent choice and had me call Aria to walk us through the Luxor and Excalibur and back to our room.

[AK2Vegas]

Friday 10.28.11

I wake up and I don't know where I am or how I got there. I didn't remember getting back and I've never seen the room in daylight so you'll excuse the confusion. Besides, I'm still drunk. It takes a few hours to get up to speed and we're finally out of the room about noon. Loves wants us to meet up at PF Changs at Planet Hollywood to go get some lunch. I'm not exactly hungover, but I'm not exactly 100% yet. I need food. I hadn't eaten anything since Wednesday but the teriyaki chicken and grease bowl on the airplane. But PH is far away and I won't make it without something in me. McDonalds looks gross, the line for Quizno's is too long and while I'm hawing back and forth, Ginger gets some coffee. Next to Starbucks is Pizza hut and there's no one in line. Done deal.

We walk up to PH. I believe every Vegas trip should include at least one outdoor walk of moderate proportion. After that I get lazy and cab it everywhere. Those performers that just stand there in full costume or makeup and don't move. Are they on drugs? How the fuck do they do that? And are they out there when it's one hundred degrees? It boggles my mind. I wonder how much money they make. If someone knows someone that has done that, I'd be interested to know.

Inside PH we meet up with Restyle, Loves, Jenn, and Hug it Out. They had a reserved private table in the back and it was quiet and relaxed. I was so out of it I could barely read the menu. Gubuju joined us and invited us to pre-party in their room. My food got comped for a reason I cannot even remember. After May's seafood debacle this was a welcome meal.



Afterwards we went up to PH Towers two bedroom suite. The rooms were large and modern and clean. The size of the room was incredible. Gubuju made shots for everyone, eleven total. One for each of the ladies, two for Gubuju and I, and Hug took three. A while later Gubuju went to the airport and we fell into drinking around the kitchen table and talking. (It was almost 100% about sex. I'm not going to lie. Loves likes to talk about sex. A lot.)

One of the things that occurred in May was a total disregard for my dietary necessities. I felt like I was starving the entire trip. When the alcohol wore off, my hunger pangs would kick in. So this trip I was focused on eating more. Perhaps not better, but at least getting something to eat everyday. So we stopped at Quizno's this time and I felt guilty. Of all the places in Vegas to eat, what am I doing here?

Afterwards we hit the roulette tables. Ginger isn't much of a gambler and I don't think I was able to convince her much. I made the same mistake the house wanted me to make: I made money and stayed. That's all they want, is for you to stay. The longer you stay, the more they make. It's math.

I'm a go go guy. And I'm always rushing Ginger and she hates me for it. During May she wanted to kill me for it. I had promised her a more relaxed trip this time. But I lied. She gets ready for the night and Charles~ texts me and tells me to meet up at the Cosmo for the pre-party. I'm trying to urge her to go faster so we can get down there. This pisses her off. I'm sipping whisky while she does her hair and the clock is ticking.

I realize that I forgot my second 1MX back home. Dammit. So I rush Ginger out the door and we're off to make our 20:45 meet up with Charles~ at Cosmo. We get out at the valet and walk throughout the entire casino to the Chandelier Bar. Just as we're about to order drinks Charles~ tells me that they're actually meeting at PH. Fucker. Ginger has walked through Excalibur, through the Cosmo casino, and now I've got to convince her to walk through the PH Miracle Mile shops and back to PHT in her heels. And I rushed her. She doesn't like me very much at this point.

We march through the casino, and the mall, taking frequent breaks until we're finally back where we were just a few hours before, PHT. Ginger has had enough of her shoes and I'm a little pissed when everyone shows up and the girls go up to the towers and the guys start walking BACK to PH. I don't know which way I'm supposed to go, the guys are going one way, the girls another. Charles~ senses my frustration and apologizes, but if I'd known we weren't going up to the towers I wouldn't have force marched Ginger all the way from Cosmo. I tell the guys we're gonna catch up and we go on a side journey to find Ginger some shoe inserts to help with the pain. By the time we've circled the Miracle Mile shops it's time to head back to Excalibur so I can get in costume. So two cab rides and twenty some odd dollars later, and we're back where we started.

I reused my pirate costume from last year. The eye patch over my right eye added to my costume but fucked with my vision really bad. I couldn't see anything on my right side and my depth perception was effected enough that navigating the casino crowds was difficult.

Tropicana is a weird property. It's white decor lends to an air of sterility, like a hospital or something. There's something about the low ceilings, bright light, and white everywhere that bugs me. And then there's the smell. It's not Venetian bad, but it's noticeable. We march up to Club Nikki and there are the troops assembled and waiting. It's kinda like barbarians at the gates. Just about everyone is here now, team Nikki in full effect.



After a few minutes of waiting we're led in. Most of us are dressed up in costume and we're about to wreck shit, I can feel it. This is our first true night and the energy is tangible. Club Nikki is a smaller club, oval shaped with beds on the left wall and a ridiculous amount of tables.

We're placed near the dance floor on the right side and some of the girls sit down so I wedge in with them. My sword is at my side and as I maneuver it from impaling Addicted I get tapped on the shoulder. Even thought they let me in with it, I'm told that I must check my sword at the door. This pisses me off, but whatever. They should have said something at the door. The whole crew is bumping and we're doing shots and having fun. Put a bunch of OG AOD members together, thrown in a place to sit, some bottles, and play music and you basically have made it very easy for us to do what we do.

I think we're about twenty, maybe twenty-five strong at this point. I go to sit down but a stunning woman grabs my arm and pulls me over to her. She looks amazing and tells me her name and then her JC handle. I can't hear though and I introduce myself and ask her to repeat her names. Since I can't hear, she confuses me and I felt like an idiot. This combined with how beautiful she is really throws me off any charismatic track I would have normally been on. So I'm sorry Sydneygirl that I wasn't more social.

Benny Lava looks fucking ridiculous (in a good way). I tell him that he was giving out lap dances at Cathouse last night. He gets really serious, "Did I offend you?" and this makes me laugh out loud. Benny Lava, if you're reading this I'll roll with you anytime bro. Mystic Savage is there with his boy, and at first I thought he was some sort of office zombie because there was a clear bit of makeup on the shoulder of his suit. He tells me that Lava's makeup wiped off on him (and when you see Lava's beard from that night, it's fucking gold). I am having a blast but I wish the club would fill up a bit more. Either, we're the first and loudest, or we're the talent they've secured for the night.

Aria, ever the one to capitalize on a good thing, gets the girls a comped table and bottle right on the dance floor. I'm not sure which host to thank for that one, but it was pretty cool. I'm watching the girls on the outer table when the General Himself shows up. I start off immediately with Muhaha and he finishes it for me. Did I say it's good to see old friends?



The reader should understand that social media has an undercurrent throughout everything the AOD does. We had been getting reports from our SoCal units and we knew that they were racing to join us. Once we got into the club though, I quite checking my device. So you can imagine my surprise when Somnambulated and RickyRekon pull up to our table. RickyRekon is one cool ass motherfucker, and one of the few guys I know that can pull off pink well. They've been communicating with us via mobile, but I was surprised because I didn't think they would show up for another two hours. Mystic Savage bounds up on the wall separating the tables and starts dancing. In my head I'm giving him, at max, a minute, but security only gave him ten seconds. I blame this on the club being slow, the security had nothing to do.

It's shots and then shots with time to drink a little, and then more shots. I dislike vodka and I'm drinking whisky from the bar. But when the vodka shots start lining up, I do my AODuty and take every one that is handed to me. Rekon and I are chopping it up, Charles~ and I are doing our thing and it's great.

[AK2Vegas]

The Proposition

During May, we were at LAX and I managed to perform a mid-night club change to Marquee. It was a lot of effort but it was well worth it. So this time, when Rekon tells me he wants to go to Surrender to see Afrojack I'm 100% on board. I kiss some of the girls goodbye and get ready to bounce. But Aria is my exit buddy and I can't leave without her. She can't leave without B and NR. So we're rounding up Somnambulated, and Aria is rounding up her roommates, and Somnambulated is attempting to get Rekon back. Rekon has bolted from Nikki Beach and is out the door. I can't leave Aria and I realize, I don't have my sword. I tell Ginger to wait for Somnambulated who has gone after Rekon, I go back to get Aria and my sword and things are going to shit really really fast. NR and B are AOD recruits at this point, I don't know if they knew that mobilize meant 'right now' but Aria finally has them and Somnambulated is coming back with Rekon. Rekon has one look when he's drunk: I'm fuckedupoperational. One word. He'll do it, but he's drunk. Show him the target and he'll hit it. It may not be pretty but if you ever wanted a boy to go into battle with, I think he'd be it. He's got that look on his face now when Somnambulated brings him back. "What happened to my face?" he asks me. He's cut and bleeding under his left eye. It took me only sixty seconds to get my sword and Aria and I have no idea how he could have cut himself in that time.



He's becoming obstinate at this point and I figure that my best shot at pacifying him is to put him in a cab with two hot women and shut the door. Ginger and NR roll with Rekon while the four of us follow in a second cab. We manage to pull up right after them and Ginger is consoling Rekon who is stumbling around the flowers. Somnambulated goes over to him and Rekon just lets it all out in the bushes at Encore. I'm standing a few feet away and I get some residual splatter.
Somnambulated and I try to stand him upright and he hurls again. I'm not convinced that the mission is FUBAR yet and I work with Somnambulated to get him, stumbling drunk, into the Encore bathroom. Every time I step into the opulence of Encore I am awed by the beauty of this place. The details and colors are so rich. And here I am in a pirate costume trying to hold my friend upright. Great night.

We get him into the bathroom and Somnambulated gets him into a stall. I'm working the phone trying to see what our options are for getting in the club, still not convinced that this is really happening. I mean, who goes down this hard at the Encore? Somnambulated looks worried. He has already made an assessment I haven't made yet: Rekon is done.

"He's really fucked man." He leans against the counter exasperated. He speaks fast and his speech is almost clipped. Whether that's normal or just his drunklish I'm not certain but I like it.

"You don't think he can make it?"

"No man." He runs his fingers through his hair. "No, and here's the worst part. We don't have a room."

I look up at him for the first time, "What do you mean?"

"We're not supposed to check into the cosmo until tomorrow. We don't have anywhere to put him. We don't have anywhere to go!"

The severity of what he's saying starts to creep up on me now. Rekon comes out of the stall and his cut is bleeding again. His brow is heavy over his eyes and he has a way of floating back and forth as though he's ready to fall over at any moment. He looks like shit. By my count he's puked three times, and my desperate hope of a puke and rally is finished. I think it's about this time that Somnambulated realizes that he's lost his fucking phone. His connection to the hive mind is severed. No Beluga, no facebook, no texts...He's looking through the vomit covered bushes, running back to check the bathroom and freaking out about it. Poor fucker.

We will not leave Rekon behind, but as to where to put him, I'm at a loss. Luckily Aria is loving enough to house these two misfits for the night. Good, at least that's settled. I grab Rekon's arm as Somnambulated and Aria finalize what this temporary arrangement will look like. I get outside and Rekon collapses against a trashcan. The porter comes up to me and hands me a small bottle of water which I give to Rekon.

"He can't be like that man." The porter says, "You got to get him up or we'll have to call an ambulance. He's got to be standing."

As much a badge of honor the ER is for us AOD, I'm not ready to surrender him to the authorities yet. The rest of them are inside still (I guess) and I hoist him up and half walk him, half carry him to the cab line.

"Excuse me people!" I yell at the cab line, "I've got a Marine here who's in desperate need to get a cab. Can you guys let us cut please?" True patriots, about twenty of them let us walk right past them and we get to a group of two girls and two guys at the front of the line. I repeat my plea but they're being bitches and won't move. They give me some 'it's his own fault he's like that' bullshit and I call them unpatriotic. They're grenades anyway. What the fuck kinda inhuman fucks won't move for a man clearly in need of help? Then without so much as a peep, Rekon splatters the ground with his pink liquid vomit. We're inside his blast radius and since I'm holding him, I can't help it, but I give these dumb bitches shit as they scurry away from us in their bare feet and I know he got them. USMC 2, dumb bitches, 0. Fucking cunts. ,

This is number four and I'm certain he's got to be near empty at this point. But I was wrong. He lets loose one more volley and I wonder when he'll ever be empty. Aria is down at the end of the cab line and I motion for her to get down here ASAP if she's gonna get this guy back. I tell her that NR and B will go with me if she'll just take Rekon and Somnambulated back with her. She's my girl and a true fucking champ.



I'm now in charge of this splinter AOD group and I'm at a cab line so I do what comes naturally and I cab us back to Tropicana. It's then that Chappy texts me and tells me to get inside (he's at Surrender with the others). It's too late though, we're back at Club Nikki and I want to salvage what's left of the night.

I have no idea how late it is, but we're back inside and most of the crew is gone. Our side adventure was shit. I don't know what time it was when AODiego rolls in the house. I'm not sure if I've mentioned how good it is to see old friends.

We hit the bar up (our tables are long since gone) and chill out. I haven't seen Cisco and 2MSR since MayOD and it's awesome to see them. Charles~ and Drew are still there and we're having a good time. I'm visiting with Cisco at the bar and he pulls my phone without me knowing about it. I'm freaking out like Somnambulated was a little while ago when he shows it to me and tells me not to lose it again. Dick.

I'm visiting with NR and Ginger and Drew are dancing for a while. I'm pretty drunk at this point but I snap to when Cisco tells me that Ginger is getting kicked out. I don't know why they did it but this is the final movement of the night. I don't know when we left but it was probably pretty late.

[AK2Vegas]

Saturday 10.29.11

We sleep in until about 10:30. It's hunger that wakes me up, I'm fucking famished again. I really want some breakfast. But trying to get Ginger ready is a process I can't really rush. She's already sick of me rushing her as it is. But all I can think about is eggs, bacon, sausage, coffee, juice...



We had been comped two buffet credits and by the time I get down to the buffet it's about 12:15 (on a side note, I hate Vegas buffets. I haven't had the pleasure of one I like. And for the price, you can easily get something better. However, this was free). They stopped serving breakfast at 12:00 and I'm feeling let down as I stand behind one of the slowest lines ever. Luckily for me, when I get up to the food line they're just swapping things out and I'm able to load up on all my breakfast favorites, plus fruit, muffins, biscuits and gravy...mmm.

Of course I'm only able to get about half of it down. As you can imagine it wasn't that great. Ginger and I are pretty fatigued from the last night and the food, while sustaining, is not very palatable. I think Ginger was worse for it actually.

We plan on going back to the room for a quick nap but Cisco and Erik are just getting up there. They're just a few doors down from us so they come over and chill in our room while we try to formulate a plan for the day. Cisco leaves to get his bro and I go down and meet his boys from San Diego. We've already got people over at the GBDC and we're debating wether or not to go down there.

2MSR shows up in at our room while Ginger is in the shower and he and I have the most relaxed conversation I've ever had with him. Reader has to understand that 90% of my facetime with AOD soldiers is drinking, so this is pretty cool. He's got a room at Mandarin Oriental. I try to convince him to go with us to GBDC but all he wants is pizza from Cosmo...

Finally Cisco, Ginger and I load up in a cab and head over to the Palms. A year ago I stood outside here with Styna, Ginger, and Loves and I didn't know when I would see her again. While I lambasted the Palms last year, I find that I'm actually nostalgic as I walk through the doors. I had such a good time here and everything is nice and close and easy to find here. It's actually a really cool property. It's a little like coming back to summer camp after a year off.



There are tables with stuff set up near the elevator to the Ghost Bar and there's a crowd of people that I at first mistake for the line. I navigate through them and make my way back to the entrance to the Ghost Bar. Thanks to Dnix, who's been running support for us via Beluga, we're on someone's guestlist but the girl at the register doesn't know anything about that. So she refers me to the guy at the podium outside the hallway...who refers me to a clown that has just walked away from us. The other guys are watching me walk one way, then the other, and then back again and they're wondering what the fuck I'm doing. I chase down the clown guy and tell him that we're on the AOD list. He calls over to the podium guy to let us through...and instead of a $20 cover all six of us get comped entry. I love this shit.

[AK2Vegas]

GBDC

At the risk of losing all credibility on the forums and with my AOD crew, I talked a lot of shit about GBDC afterwards. I just want to clarify: of all the clubs I've been to in Vegas I had the most fun at GBDC than I'd ever had up to that point. It was only in its second weekend open and I don't know if it'll get better or not, but I tend to think it will. I hope that people don't base too much off of this. I won't be held responsible if you go there and find it's not to your liking, or that I'm hyping it up too much. I had an aboso-fucking-lute blast there, but I don't want people to go there and blame AK2Vegas for misleading them.

Before this the only way to see the Ghost Bar was at night or dusk. Even then it's a lot of fun, and it's small size lends to a more intimate experience. So to be there during the day is breathtaking. We got off the elevator and I don't really know what to expect. The music was fucking crazy. It was louder than Kaskade was at Marquee in May and the DJ is playing the highest high energy EDM type shit. The videos do not do this experience justice.

Since it's Halloween a good number of people are dressed up but other than that the dress code is a little relaxed. It's like a pool party, sans pool. The outside deck is amazing in the daylight and it's hot enough for me to be comfortably uncomfortable out there. People are rocking 40oz's and shit and it's gorgeous. The weather was clear and you could see the entire city that day. It's also quieter outside and you could actually have a conversation.

But inside it's fucking nuts. The staff is really really into this place. There are about six or seven main girls with pink tops and dark hair, a couple of shorter ones in funny animal costumes and the (hosts?) in clown suits. They're banging out the Fog guns (?) that shoot out confetti, to the beat. There is fucking confetti everywhere. It's like sand in the desert. It's fucking everywhere. They made it rain in that bitch.

Mystic Savage is there with his boy, Krewchas, Erik, Cisco, Aaron and Erock are also there. I practically walk into a fucking gorilla that's a good head plus taller than me. As I reel back from running into him, I look up and realize that it's Warren! Drinks are horribly expensive there, but it's Vegas fuck it. (40 oz are fifty bucks, but they come in a custom holding device: a paper bag with GBDC stamped on it.) I get a couple crown's and I'm really feeling the groove.

Ginger and I go outside and realize that the two side-wing bars are open. Mystic Savage is out here and he's a full on pimp. And I'm not referring to his overly confident social abilities. He's an actual fucking pimp. Purple velvet hat and all.

I go to the bar and ask the nice pair of tits for another crown and diet. She tells me that for three dollars more I can double it. An astute student of Vegas economic theory, I take her up on the offer. Behind her is a glass wall and the city 55 stories below but I can't see the bottom of the glass so to me it looks as if there is nothing behind her. This fucks with my drunken vertigo really bad. Erik is out here with us and we chill out in the safety, quite, and shade that this wing offers. But even out here, dozens of feet above us, confetti is still coming down.

My crown is kicking in and I greedily get another one, this time without the soda. Double on the rocks fuck it. I'm feeling really good now and we head back inside.

The guys are in here and music is just pumping. I almost forgot. The goddam whistles. The staff all have whistles and they use them profusely here. It's loud as fuck. And right as I'm trying to say something to Cisco, one of these super hot go-go girls walks above us. My brain has only seconds to absorb the fact that she's nine feet tall when I'm ushered aside by a whistle blowing pink animal costume holding a piñata marching a procession of girls to the entrance to the deck. Right in front of the GBDC sign they hang this piñata. This is all while the music is at level nine and it's raining confetti at the same time. I whip out my camera and they set up a platform underneath this piñata. A blonde girl is blindfolded and led up to the piñata and she swings wildly at it a few times till it falls off of the ceiling, not fully broken. The pink animal leaps on it in fury and begins thrashing it and within seconds it's turned into a confetti carcass. I'm taken aback by all this activity all at once.

As I said earlier, I'd forgotten my second 1MX back in Alaska and besides costumes, I didn't have any casual club clothes (although the 1MX would have been too much also). So the entire time I feel underdressed in an old Tshirt and jeans. A lot of people are wearing these headbands that remind me A LOT of the GLAAD logo. They are black and in turquoise letters they have the GBDC logo on them. I grab a runner and ask for a couple. He brings me two so at the least I'm wearing my AOD dog tags and now this headband to cover up my lack of dress. This proves to be a winner as girl after girl asks me for it or where to get one.

We had been drifting around in loose groups; inside, outside, but after a while, we kind of just congregated right in the middle of the Ghost Bar. Krewchas is one hell of a guy and he's dancing in the middle of this group of us which is pretty much an open invitation for Mystic, I'm a Pimp, Savage to bust out his skills. This causes us to bust out laughing. Now this is the part where I wish I had my camera rolling. Every now and then someone would walk through us (we were a circle in the middle of the main floor so they had no choice). When it was a cute girl we would let them enter but not easily leave. This lead to a few really champion encounters with women that were willing to dance their way out of our trap. You had to be there. This paragraph doesn't do justice to the fun we had with this part.

Cisco, Savage, Ginger and I go out to the south wing deck to take a rest. Ginger was eager to go but I was having too much fun. But at twenty dollars a pop, my confetti filled doubles were stretching my funds a bit. The sun is setting and it's beautiful. There are a few British beauties there and I can't help but making some drunk correlation between Savage and them being in the same commonwealth. We invite them to Chapps but I know they won't come. Ginger is pressing me to go and I realize that I won't be back here for a long time if ever. I bid the GBDC farewell and head out with Cisco, Erik, and Savage.

My only regret was I wish more of us would have gone.

[AK2Vegas]

I'm always eager to check out rooms in Vegas and I want to see the Palms Place suites where Mystic Savage is staying. We head up to his room and it's really nice. Sadly none of the doors to the balconies work so there is no way to go out on the deck. After this we head back to the Excalibur to get ready for Chapps.

Determined to eat more this trip, I urge Ginger to go with me to use the rest of our day long buffet passes. Once again, the food is just so-so. I would never recommend someone actually pay for that crap. But it does the job and I resign myself that that will be the last food I eat that day. As we're heading back to our room Cisco and them were heading down to go to Chapps place.
We quickly get ready and head over. I have no idea what time it is.

Chapp's house is the true AOD HQ. I can't even begin to list all the AOD peeps that are there. This is the only time we'll all be together in one place this trip. There are maybe twenty people inside and I walk out on the deck and there's more people outside here. Betty Boop is there, "AK2Vegas*?" she asks me and it takes me a second to place who this is. It's Rekon's sister but she's got a wig on and she doesn't fit the mental parameters I'd established for her in my mind.

There are so many AOD people here I couldn't name them all. The class shot tells you who was there. It was awesome. If I get to go in 2012 I will be honored. I'm really eager when Tombrokaw shows up. Rekon and I both pick up lightsabers that Chapp has, so we can ambush him. He's got a Darth Maul mask on and he can't see anything. His girl is there too and she looks fabulous.

Chapps got the UFC fight on and a lot of people are watching it. There are shots, shots, and shots, with mixed drinks to follow that. I'm hurting bad at this point and I'm drinking water. And Crown. Mystic Savage and his boy help me finish the bottle off. Thankfully Yellowandnavy is there and he hands me some relief which I quickly take him up on. This helps to settle my nerves as well as my stomach. We take some more shots and Chapp lines us up for a picture. But he doesn't want us to just pose for a picture, he wants the picture to go off at the same time we pop champagne so he can get that in the shot at the same time. I still haven't seen this picture, but if it came out it would have been badass.


At some point we mob out of Chapps, drunk and loud. We break off into two teams, team Surrender and team Cathouse. We meet one of the residents at the elevator, a lady with her dog, and she looks at us like we're mad. I get to the front door (where supposedly 'the cabs are heeerrreee') and I remember the previous year, where the cabs went to shit and I decide to dip out quick. I look outside and there is (as I suspected) only one cab. I look inside the front door and tell Charles~ and Addicted to come with me (they were closest). As we're leaving the compound we see Team Surrender standing on the corner, we have no idea what they're doing but Charles~yells out: "Gubuju* can suck it!" and we race off to Luxor.

We meet up at Cathouse and I see Justcole who I haven't seen since May. Sweatshop is there too as is the rest of the crew. Cisco and Warren and Ginger were all Santa Claus. Benny Lava was a reindeer and Aaron was an elf. Darryll is our host and he took great care of us. It takes a while to get all of us inside, but we've got five or six tables (an entire section) to ourselves. There are bottles just popping off and pictures snapping. Shit goes atomic for us. Even though I've done this before, I still forgot to bid certain people goodbye. Since we planned on being at XS Sunday night, I won't be seeing many of these people again this trip. Always say goodbye.

Our plan had been to put up some of the AOD girls for the costume contest and then have our section make the most noise and hopefully win the $5,000 prize. We would have won too, but the management decided to wait until the club was packed to hold the contest. It was maybe 01:30 or 02:00 at this point and we'd lost a lot of people to attrition. TomBrokaw's girl won second place despite this though.

I think the pics speak for themselves. There is only so much you can write about hours of drunken AOD madness. If you weren't there, you were totally fucking up.

[AK2Vegas]

Sunday 10/30/11

I had tried to get Cisco to go with me Saturday afternoon to the sports book and lay down some wagers but he had convinced me that we could do it Sunday morning. I wake up at 09:30 and text him. He's already down there. I feel like death. We'd bought a case of water and there's only one bottle left so I leave it for Ginger and drink tap water.

I head down to the sports book and I'm clearly not feeling this. I don't bet with a sports book, I usually use the internet to place my wagers so the whole thing with paper and pencil is confusing as fuck. Add to that the impatient guy at the counter, my body feels like crap, and the line behind me is growing and I'm practically throwing this money away. I wasn't thinking clearly about the wagers.

I head back up to the room and fall on the bed. I'm in no condition to be standing. I scan the shitty SD channels and the only game on is NYG at Miami. So I watch it, mildly interested in it, trying to sober myself back to life. Hunger pushes me downstairs to the Baja Fresh to get some grub. With the screaming I did last night for the contest, I have no voice and it makes it harder to order food.

I get back upstairs and I cannot even eat that much. I want a nap so bad, but with the nine gallons of Redbull I've had this weekend I can't do anything but lay there and twitch (Restyle had told me that this was withdrawals, she may have been right.)

I want to rest badly but Beluga is blowing up my phone. People are trying to get me to Tao Beach. It's the last party of the pool season and I've been summoned. The last straw is when Rekon orders me to show up. I can't refuse that. I throw on my Roman outfit and head out to Tao Beach.

To me the Venetian (and it's sister property the Palazzo) are probably the third best Vegas has to offer. It's an exceptional property, with it's main foible being it's Italian theme. The Encore and the Cosmopolitan being the second and first properties in my opinion and neither having the problem of an identity overload like the Venetian. I stayed here in 2009/2010 and I really do like this hotel. During Mayvasion I had made it to Tao Beach from the casino floor but this year I can't seem to find my way. I ask a cocktail server who directs me to the Tao restaurant. From there the receptionist directs me deep into the mall...where a custodian tries to direct me back to the restaurant.

Keep in mind that Beluga is blowing up my phone, and that all this walking and being mislead is starting to piss me off. And the last thing the renaissance Italians need is a pissed off Roman. I curtly dismiss the custodian's directions and walk right past her after she told me to go the other way. I keep walking into the compound until I recognize the elevators. The security guard won't let me on without a stamp but his instructions on where to go to get one are easy to follow and in no time at all we're finally walking into Tao Beach.

Being from Alaska, I'm hot as fuck. Part of it had to do with the helmet I was wearing, the other part had to do with the sun. Five months previous I had walked in and the place had been empty enough for me to spot Tombrokaw right away. That's not the case this time. I am looking for our people but I don't see anyone. And unlike the GBDC, no one here is in costume except me.

I'm about to order a drink because no matter the situation, it can be corrected by a cocktail, when I spot Aria. She directs me to a cabana that we've been comped (thanks Dnix) and I find everyone off to the side getting their groove on. I see Chaskrew and Krewchas here and they explain to me that we've got a b1g1 deal. Works for me, I'm in.

A few minutes later the waitress comes in and presents a menu. Chaskrew can't decide between the types of vodka so I chime in and suggest ketle one for one and he picks skyy for the other. She comes back with the bottles and he's counting out the money and he seems short. I'm standing right behind him and watch him count again. He's got this, 'why am I short' look on his face. But he hasn't asked me for money yet. I hand him a bill and we are at liftoff stage.

Ginger comes over to me and tells me that she's pretty tired and doesn't know how much she can drink. My answer; a vodka cranberry. She looks at me quizzically "what did you do?" "I went in on two bottles babe. Let's have fun."

I love Vegas daylife. Kenikki, Gubuju, Rickyrekon, Hug it out, Sweatshop, Chaskrew, Krewchas, Restyle, Aria, Aria's roommate NR, Ginger, me, and a couple others including Phoenix, his friend and a friend of Gubuju's. This was a classic Vegas party. Chas and Krew were busy putting in a lot of work, but the rest of us hung out and danced and drank. I look up at the marvelous Venetian, not fully accepting that just a few months ago I was here in this same spot. The heat and alcohol has gotten to me a little bit but it seems that the buildings are wrinkled? I take another look. They've covered the St. Regis Residences with a tarp that looks like the building. In my drunken state I cannot fully grasp it at first. Why would they go to so much trouble? Only in Las Vegas. (Update: the construction has stopped so they covered it.)

After a few hours of this party (and the others were there for even longer) Rekon wants to go back and I want to see his room at Cosmo. So Rekon, Sweatshop, Ginger and I take off to get a cab to Cosmopolitan. It's about 17:00 now and traffic is HORRENDOUS. It takes us at least ten more dollars than it should have to get us to the Cosmo. I want to see Rekon's room and he's adamant about this certain pizza...

The cab ride is uneventful until Rekon spills his beer in the cab. He hands me the almost empty beer and his debit card and insists we tip the driver for his accidental beer discharge. We try to convince Sweatshop to come with us but his mother is waiting for him at Aria and he has to go. He's a good guy and I'm sorry I didn't get to hang out with him more.

Rekon leads us through the Cosmo and whereas the other casinos are difficult to maneuver through lineally, the Cosmo is confusing to me vertically. Maybe cause I was still drunk from TB but I got misdirected pretty quickly. He leads us up and up and then to a small hallway offshoot of a main corridor. I follow him down a long hallway and I can smell pizza. I'm thinking, this is the place that Raul was talking about yesterday...

Inside this fantastic hotel is this hidden little gem of a pizzeria that doesn't look like it belongs at the Cosmopolitan. This cute girl walks up behind us and Rekon analyzes her quickly. She's got on red pumps, red nail polish, and red lipstick. This is offset by her black hair and black eyeshadow. Rekon doesn't hesitate and launches into his opener in a weak Australian accent. I'm grinning ear to ear cause I don't know if he likes to do this or if he's drunk or what. She tells him that she's there for her wedding...but this doesn't phase him at all. He continues on and clearly she's charmed by his approach. Instead of ordering an entire pizza, which may take fifteen minutes, Rekon just orders eight single slices even though it costs more.

We go up to his room and it's really really nice. I see why everyone likes the Cosmopolitan. It's a beautiful suite but it's been trashed by Sombabulated and Rekon who have rallied the fuck out of the room. There's clothes and shit everywhere and even old pizza boxes. The detail that got me most of all were the books. What a great touch.

The best part about the room though is the terrace. It's overlooking the Bellagio fountains and it's fucking awesome. We watch the show and eat the pizza. It's just about as serene and peaceful as this trip is going to get and one of the highlights of my trip was my conversation with Rekon on the Cosmopolitain terrace. Cheers Rekon, where ever you're reading this right now.

[YellowandNavy]

Yes , yes, yes. This brings memories back..

[AK2Vegas]

We head back to get ready for XS and I'm rushing Ginger again. Darryll wants us to be there at 20:45 and it's about 18:45 at this point. This leaves not much time. Ginger is tired from Tao Beach and she wants to kill me for rushing her again. I should correct here: she was exhausted from the entire trip; wake drink party, get ready, pre party, drinking, rage, repeat. So she's understandably unhappy. She's tired, she's hungry, and she's probably hungover too. Loves texts me to see if we're going to make it to the pre party for Vanity. I tell her that I'm not going to make it and that I'm not going to see her again this trip. I'm sorry Loves, but I'll make it up to you

We do make it to the Encore, a little late, but we're there, and I can't find Darryll. I get so lost in the Wynncore complex that he finally comes and gets me. We were supposed to meet at the Wynn anyway.

We meet up with Warren, Aaron, Wiscobrad, Morgs, and Rekon at the Parasol lounge. Actually there was another guy there in a Scooby Doo outfit too but I can't remember his name...sorry man. A few other guys had backed out at the last minute so the guys were trying to figure out how to salvage the night. Rekon is wearing a black gi and he's doing his swaying back and forth thing that he's known for. Darryll wanted us to be there early so we wouldn't get bumped and we are early when they start letting people into XS.

Since Deadmau5 was playing that night they had the front closed off and were taking people in at the back of the club. With Darryll's planning we are the very first people into XS that night. Darryll tells the host that it's us seven and that Snoopy is bringing up the end of our group. So the joke the rest of the night was that he was Snoopy and not Scooby.

We've got a beautiful server named Amber who is so attentive to us at first that I'm afraid we won't have any alcohol left later in the night. She's almost force feeding us shots and drinks and it's no time at all until I'm really good. Another thing that was awesome about this table was that for once, we had people who drink whisky. This really made my night. Darryll wants a shot of crown right after we had a shot and I secretly blow him off. We've already had about six drinks and I don't want it to go too fast but a few minutes later he's like "where's our shot of crown?" I pour it for him (doubles of course) and I take it back. He takes a sip and makes a sour face. He's already got a full drink (a really strong one) and he just took a double shot of Goose about five minutes before that. I tease him a bit and in true AOD style he chugs it back.

People are pouring in now and we get to see some outrageous costumes come in. Warren is rocking his Santa outfit and these four little Asians come up to him for a picture. They're pink 'Santa's Helpers' and I could tell Santa was a happy man. Aaron and I decide that we're going to go out and make our rounds. We surge through XS but it isn't the best. Or we just didn't have the right mindset. I don't know.

[AK2Vegas]

We get back to the table but now I'm feeling really antsy so I go back out. Having a taste of it but striking out has wet my appetite so I head back out. I get just inside the door of the main room when a I bump into a beautiful breezy and I talk to her a bit. She's gorgeous and she's got four friends. I figure this is what I came out to do and I lead them back for the guys. Darryll and Morgs look pleased though. I think I may have pissed Warren off though so if I did, I apologize bro. A table with seven dudes and my wife…I was just trying to even things out

These girls hang for a bit and I leave for the bathroom and when I come back, the five girls have been replaced by three new ones. By this time Kenikki, Gubuju, Yellowandnavy and Hug it out have shown up. I think that someone (it may have been me) got a text from Mystic Savage who is trapped outside. I ask Darryll what he can do for him but he shrugs and I think he may be to drunk to help. I look at everyone for a minute and tell myself that it's up to me to get him in. I'm going behind enemy lines to pull an AOD soldier in. I tell Ginger to keep an eye on Rekon and I go out to get him.

I get out into the main hallway and I try to call him and text him, but I can't find him. The bouncers are ignoring everyone (as they are wont to do on busy nights) and even my red wristband has no effect. I'm trolling for Savage yelling out AOD! every once in a while but I can't find him. And the bouncers won't even let me in this way. For a second I'm afraid I won't get back in. So I go all the way around to the front, which has been designated the re-entry spot and as I walk past the lines I hear people saying that the club is sold out. I walk right in and rejoin the table though.

Savage isn't here but now there are three new girls. One of them had makeup that truly freaked me out. But her and her bride (they were zombie newlyweds) wanted to makeout and for me to take the pictures. She even wanted to wear my helmet and I let her.

[AK2Vegas]

I told Rekon that we should go out and sarge and he's down. But he's also drunk as fuck. We get into the crowd and when I notice he's not with me I go looking for him. He's talking to Ryu from Street Fighter and by the time I get over to them he's gone. Fuck. I circle through the club and finally go back to the table and find him there. So again me and Rekon go out to the main dance floor. But I think he's too drunk for the amount of people there and he dips out after a few minutes.

I go back to the table and hang out with the guys. Wiscobrad and Morgs are cool guys and we chop it up for a little while. That's when we look up and Deadmau5 comes on stage. This shit is ON!

I grab Ginger and go up to the door (our table was just outside of the door) and there is a line formed up there because they're at capacity. I'm AOD though and we skip this line and head straight inside. I think the crowd is just coming to and it's packed as FUCK in there. I pull Ginger close to me and muscle my way as close as I can. There's only so much you can do in a situation like that. I hold my phone up and start recording.

I bump into someone and it's Scooby Doo from our table! He's got his phone going and the shit is fucking awesome! Deadmau5 is blowing shit up! I'm loving this. Here I am, at XS, in Las Vegas, a few meters away from Deadmau5 and I'm blowing out my eardrums to Ghosts and Stuff. Shit couldn't be better. That is until Sofia Toufa comes onstage and does Sofi needs a ladder live! I manage to stay up there for 42 minutes until my phone runs out of memory.
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsEpcuxzGjk[/ame]

[AK2Vegas]

I go back to the table and hang out with Hug it Out and Kenikki for a little while. In May Gubuju had taken us up to see Kaskade at Marquee and it was awesome, so now I grab Kenikki and pull them up to the main dance floor. This was my third run up there and I was loving it. If there was a drawback to being inside the womb of XS it was that you can't get your drink on. Small price really.

By the time I get back to the table it's late. Darryll is still there and it's as if he hasn't moved the whole night. Yellowandnavy is gone and I don't know where Rekon is either. Gubuju is about to dip out and we decide it's time to call it a night. Hug and Kenikki are with us and we start walking the Encore compound to get to the cab line but we get turned around and end up at a dead end hallway. At this point I suggest we go and get some food. We had walked past Stratta (we had had a late night meal here in May, but that's for another TR) and I wanted food so badly. I couldn't remember the last time I had eaten.

We sit down and get some food. Gubuju, Hug it out, Kenikki, Gubuju's friend P. and Ginger and I. They had been involved with something that seemed to deter their spirits and we spoke about it briefly. I realized that these were the last AOD peeps we were going to hang out with and I was sad.

We walked to the Encore cab line after that and we bid them farewell, not knowing when we would see any of our AOD peeps again. We went back to Excalibur after that and went to bed.

Monday 10.31.11

I slept fitfully that night, twitching, sweaty and unable to sleep for long periods. I think in my mind I knew I wasn't going to be back for some time.

We got up at 09:30, showered and did the hungover hurry pack. We got out of the room at 11:00, just in time for check out. We got some trinkets at the gift shop and headed out of Excalibur about 11:30 and back to McCarren.

As I always do, I took some sad pictures from the cab headed back to the airport. Once we arrived I decided it would be better to save four dollars and skip the curbside check in. This was a mistake.

Inside the line behind us grows longer and longer. Due to the layout of the airport, the self-check in terminals are behind the line, so someone who needs to check in has to bypass the line, and then depending on the situation, get back into the line. The place was a zoo. We finally get to the check in and the man I've been chatting with for half an hour starts to have a bloody nose. He's right behind us and since he waited for almost thirty minutes it's a shit place to have a medical nuisance .

I give him the roll of toilet paper Ginger has in her back pack and he's grateful. He tries to hand it back to me after he's got what he needs but I tell him "you'll understand if I don't want it back."

We get through security and go to Chilli's too and get a burger. I vow to myself that this is the last junk food I'll have before I start my new mAyOD regime. The flight sucks and by the time we get to Seattle we're both beat.

When we had left Anchorage a few days ago it had been a late fall. As I was looking out of the window of the plane on the way back I was slightly (undeservedly) apprehensive. There was a lot of snow falling and I couldn't see the ground. Suddenly it rushed up at us and there was a boom and the engines went into full reverse. The aircraft shuddered as the pilot pumped the breaks (a technique to avoid slippage) multiple times. I was back home again. Never to be the same.

I miss Vegas. I'll never be the same. Goddamn it.

AK2Vegas, 11/13/11

Post Script

Dear Las Vegas,

I found this letter while writing about this last trip. Clearly I haven't gotten over you. You're a destructive presence in my life. My therapy hasn't been going well. I was hoping to stay away long enough to resist your annual May Invasion. Sadly I don't know if this is possible. I was hoping you would leave Nevada and come live with me in Alaska. I don't know how else we can be together.

I hate how you've used my weaknesses against me. I no longer crave you massive clubs filled with sexy women. I don't crave skipping your lines as a member of the AOD while the masses watch on in awe. I don't miss your 24 hour gambling or drinking or endless array of food choices. I don't miss your pool parties filled with scantily clad women (ok maybe a little). I certainly don't miss the house music you've made me an addict of.

No, you've gotten me with something else. My friends. My AOD family. Each time you bring us together it makes it harder and harder for me to say I won't see them again. And that's the fucking truth. And each time you up the ante by introducing me to people that previously I wouldn't have had such a connection to. Damn you to hell Las Vegas. Damn you to hell.

AK2Vegas

05/24/2011
Dear Las Vegas,

I don't think we can see each other again. My test results came back today. The doctor was actually a little concerned for me. He says that it may take up to 12 months for me to heal, but that a full recovery is out of the question. He thinks I am lucky to have made it out of you alive at all.

This last invasion was mythic. Legendary. I am afraid that I will never be able to top it again and that worries me. I'm sure you understand, I'm going to need therapy for what has happened. It's not you, it's me. I just can't handle leaving you.

Please understand, I need space from you. I can't listen to music, drink, or go to bars anymore without seeing visions of you. You're everywhere I look, in the background of every song I hear. Every time I see you in pictures I get a little shaken up.

My doctor wanted me to give you this pamphlet and for you to give it to all of your recent partners, they may also be at risk.

Las Vegas ABUSE Effects:

There is a MYTH that doing Las Vegas once in a while will not hurt you.

Getting high on Las Vegas can lead you to do things that you normally wouldn’t such as risky unprotected sex or taking other unwise chances. People will build a tolerance to Las Vegas and soon you will be doing more than one trip just to get the same effect as before. Las Vegas is psychologically and physically addicting.

Las Vegas users commonly report a "burnout" for one-two days afterward, characterized by tiredness, soreness, and dullness of the senses and mental processes. It is possible that this is a result of temporary depletion of certain neurotransmitters in the brain, and that the brain needs time to replendish them.

The use of Las Vegas has been linked with a wide range of abnormalities such as impaired memory, chronic depression, anxiety, panic attacks, sleeplessness, "de-personalization", "de-realization", reduced cognitive ability, flashbacks, hallucinations, and paranoid delusions. Persons taking large quantities of Las Vegas in a binge pattern of use were thus at risk. Heavy users might develop depression and anxiety in the future. A user becomes a veritable neurological time-bomb.

Withdrawal Symptoms:

Las Vegas is Psychologically addicting and the most common withdrawal of this addiction is DEPRESSION.

I will always love you Las Vegas, please believe. We've had some amazing memories, but I have to move on.

AK2Vegas

[tombrokaw]

See you in may.