Duffel On Off the Buffalo

You know how you really like a good cigarette when you sit down to play a slot machine? Yeah. Me neither. But apparently, it's all the rage. At least judging by the folks who sat down next to me all day (okay, for two hours) at the casino yesterday.

Hick and I went to get our FREE duffel bags.

We got there about a half hour later than last time, and the pallets of duffel bags were way down! I'd estimate over halfway gone. The line was only a couple of people deep.

"I think that lady in front of you was mad she couldn't get her duffel bag."

"There was no lady in front of me."

"Yes there was! She tried to get a duffel bag, and that gal told her, 'You have to get a coupon in the mail.' She said, 'Oh.' Then she turned and walked out. Kind of huffy."

"That wasn't a lady! That was a gay guy. And he said, 'How does this luggage thing work?' And they told him, 'We send you a certificate in the mail.' He wasn't mad. He just wanted to know who gets a duffel bag."

"Huh. I was sure that was a woman, trying to get a free duffel bag without a coupon."

"You don't ever pay attention. He was right in front of me."

Okay. So maybe Hick has a point there. He WAS between me and the huffy/polite lady/guy. So I guess he's the eyewitness. I DO have a habit of not paying much attention to people, unless there's something in it for me. The Pony and I are kind of similar that way.

Let the record show that this was not a profit trip. I dropped a couple of bills. Or at least a bill and a half. Not to worry, my casino bankroll is still fat for future attempts. Of course the casino would not be giving away perfectly good brand new American Tourister duffel bags if there wasn't something in it for them. I figure that something was all the gambling bankrolls that were left behind by FREE duffel-baggers. I still think I got a deal. That's just the price you pay for a FREE duffel bag.

These duffel bags are nice and roomy, but don't have the pull handle. They have wheels, and a strap handle on top for pulling, but unless you're about 5-foot-nothing, you'd have to stoop to pull it. I told Hick that a belt looped through the loop handle is all you need. Like one of those woven belts that come with boys' pants, with the two-ring cinch thingy instead of a buckle. My boys wouldn't be caught dead wearing one of those. So we used to have a collection hanging across a closet rod somewhere. Yeah, all people need to pull these FREE duffel bags is to find a boy, and take his belt.

I had the regular burger for lunch, while Hick branched out and had the giant foot-long hot dog. As opposed to the mini foot-long hot dog. He asked for pickles and onions on the side, and made that thing look almost appetizing. After dickering (heh, heh) with the heavily-accented order-taker again, over the food credit not the MyCash...we discovered that Hick was shorted the onions rings that he'd paid for. So he had to go back and wave the receipt.

That is the longest we've ever stood in line there for a burger (or hot dog). We met at 2:15, and got in line behind 4 people. That somehow turned into 8 people before we'd moved an inch! A lady jumped up from a booth along the line, and said, "He knows I'm behind him!" about the man in front of us. Who neither verified nor refuted her claim. Then a different woman walked in from the casino floor area, and sidled up to the guy ahead of THAT guy. And a woman came from the seats in the dining area, and proclaimed that she also wanted a chocolate shake. And a man stepped over the velvet rope to join another couple. Hick and I attract line-cutters like a fresh cowpie attracts green flies.

I had every intention of playing my favorite slot, Buffalo Gold, which was so good to me on our Oklahoma Casino MiniPalooza. Alas, that was not in Even Steven's plans, since short of knocking some oldster off the stool, I wasn't going to have the opportunity. I made do with the Wonder 4 Tower, which here doesn't have Miss Kitty. I played Buffalo Gold on that tower, and even got the tower bonus, which is hard to do...and was rewarded for such good luck with a sucky bonus of 2 CENTS! Yeah. Not two dollars, not 20 cents, but 2 CENTS!

The lady on my left was sitting there letting a bonus play out. I could tell by the music, and the coins cascading across the screen, out of the corner of my eye. I don't make it my business to stick my nose into other people's bonuses. Nor do I make small talk while I'm playing. But this Left Lady just had to start on me. "Are you getting any buffaloes?"

"Well, I just hit about ten of them on one of my four screens, and it paid me $108. And that's about all I've seen."

I really DID hit that screen semi-full of buffaloes a few minutes before she asked. But I was onto her. I know what she was doing. She was in the middle of a freakin' bonus, with cascading coins. It may not have been a fortune, but it was taking a while to pay, and I think she wanted me to notice, and comment on that. Not this ol' Val. No siree, Bob. And in fact, I got up and left after a few more spins, since I was ahead on that game, and I didn't like the ambience any more.

Next Saturday is FREE shoulder bag day. If Hick doesn't open his Storage Unit Store (it's supposed to rain), we can go early, and I can capture an actual Buffalo Gold slot before all the shoulder baggers plop down there.