Marty figured it out, so I guess it's time to come clean.

I couldn't stand his repeated success, while I am relegated to being an irrelevant limit holdem robotron player. There's no glory in that.

So in order to keep myself from plunging into a fit of depression, I just spent very minimal time on this site for the past week.

That's also the reason I canceled radio, as I knew people would call and harass me to talk about Marty's success.

 

Okay, there may have been another small factor.

I took a vacation to New Orleans, Miami, and Key West.

Much of this was done through my recent credit card bonus whoring, though I also coughed up a fair amount of Jew Gold for nice meals and other miscellaneous stuff.

I finally made it out to the "ruins" of Katrina, nearly 10 years later. Neighborhood (Lower 9th Ward) has recovered a lot, and the only evidence of what occurred is several vacant lots where houses once stood, as well as some vacant or destroyed structures. But it isn't the disaster area you might expect. The "ruins" of Detroit were much more dramatic.

Went on an airboat in the Everglades. I've done it before, but it was still fun/interesting. Benjamin and his mom were on this trip, as well. Our day in Key West got ruined by a persistent rain storm. However, we've ran REALLY well with weather on all of our vacations, so this was bound to happen at some point. The rest of the weather on the trip was good.

One day I'll make it out to Dry Tortugas National Park off Key West. Looks really cool, but it's a pain in the ass to get there (70 mile ferry ride each way).

Key West itself is a pain-in-the-ass drive -- a slow 160 miles from Miami.

Had a moment of frustration when some Cubans backed into my rental car in Miami Beach. Was sure I was going to go through the whole hassle of an accident with a rental car (plus proving it was their fault), but amazingly there was no damage to either car other than a few scratches. Rental companies don't give a shit about scratches unless they are of a certain size (they actually tell you this), and these weren't big enough to matter. The Cubans were thrilled to just drive away and not exchange info. They kept begging me to just "let it go". I wonder if they weren't licensed or insured. They got lucky that it was a rental and I only gave a shit if it was enough damage to charge me.

Stayed at Harrah's New Orleans for the first 3 nights. Finally made it out to Cafe Du Monde for some beignets, which Benjamin loved.

Also tried Emeril's new NOLA restaurant on the first night, which was pretty good.

We all saw armadillos for the first time, in New Orleans. They don't live in the western US.

Harrah's New Orleans is apparently cheaping out on their limo service. They have gone from having alcohol in the limo, to just soft drinks and water, to now just water. Gotta save those pennies!

It's actually a nice hotel, though. Definitely the best of all the Harrah's, and on par with the three Caesars brand properties.

Radio will return on February 10. I am posting this from the airplane right now. Don't bother cockbombing the site, because I'll be on here while flying.

I am rebroadcasting the internet I purchased, so Ben's mom can also use it. I should resell the connection to others here at a discount.