Moose Friend

I met this moose in the backyard of our condo rental in Jackson, Wyoming. She was cool.

The Price of a Traffic Barrel is Up

So I recently figured out why our car insurance is so high in Las Vegas. I have had a hunch for awhile, but it was solidly confirmed the other day. When I first moved here, I was surprised that my car insurance was going up from what it was in California. I thought EVERYTHING was more expensive in California. My car insurance was over twice as much in Las Vegas to maintain the same level of coverage. Anyway, that isn't the point.

I was driving home the other night, and I exited 95S to Summerlin Parkway. I was driving along, just like everything was normal, when all of a sudden, I came around the curve, and there directly in front of me was a traffic barrel. I tapped the brakes, held my breath while taking a quick glance in the rearview mirror to make sure that the people behind me were making a rapid slow down too, and moved over onto the left shoulder/merge lane. Once it appeared that neither me nor those behind me would be crashing into the barrel at that exact time, I breathed a sigh of relief. I thought that maybe I had been driving without exactly paying attention to what was going on, and that maybe I had missed a sign saying that my lane was closing. It seemed odd, as there really wasn't a defined detour from the closed lane. It was like just driving to a dead end. And that is when I noticed a roughly ten year-old boy standing behind the barrel. And behind him were two cars, with a group of people changing the tire on one of them. Apparently they had just commandeered the traffic barrel to make their own tire-changing lane. I haven't figured out why the shoulder wasn't quite good enough for them. Safety first, right? And, if the traffic barrel didn't stop an oncoming car, then obviously the 10 year-old would!

From all of this, I can only deduce that paying the high car insurance rates in Las Vegas gives you the opportunity to use traffic barrels as needed for your own personal purposes.

Rice Krispie Treats?

P&AF attempted to make rice krispie treats for our 4th of July barbecue. They didn't turn out so good. The project took a turn for the worse as the butter began to quickly brown in the sauce pan. It was all over as the marshmallows began to harden before the rice krispies were fully coated in the bowl.

We then had a special concoction to test tooth hardness.

Rolling Bellagio Mist

So I might as well say it. I really don't like Las Vegas. The number one reason is that I miss having rain. Sure, it is nice to know that pretty much any day that I want to do anything, it isn't going to get rained out. But, I just miss the rain. I didn't mind getting rained out.

Anyway, there are a select few things that I really love about Las Vegas. Near number one on that list is the Bellagio Fountain Show. I love the Bellagio Fountains. I could stand outside and watch them for hours. And I have spent a fair amount of time outside watching them since I have lived in Las Vegas. This past weekend, my enjoyment reached new heights though.

For some reason, I had never watched the fountains from the Bellagio side of the lake, outside. Right out front of the valet area, there is a little path leading down to the Strip where you can watch the fountains. It is so close! I generally am not a huge fan of the Celine Dion "My Heart Will Go On" show, but it was great from that vista. The show begins with mist, and as you stand there, the fog comes up rolling towards you over the railing. It feels like heaven when it is 100 degrees outside. And everything sounds even closer. It was incredible. I don't think that you see the choreography of the whole show as well, but it is definitely worth it.

When it comes down to it, I don't think I have seen a view of the show that I haven't liked---from a lake view room, from the Paris, from the strip, from the valet area---it's all great to me. Now there's two things that I really like in Las Vegas, the blimp and the fountains. I'll keep searching for more.