Diamond Rings

Had the day off. Still tired from my trip. Las Vegas was great, but when I compare it to my trip to the Dominican, I feel really bad. There I was helping people and seeing the world in a new way. In Las Vegas I was spending money right and left -- and aside from my poker tournaments which I paid for in advance ($75 each), I didn't gamble. But everybody had their hand out for tips. Waiters, bartenders, bellman, cab drivers. I carried a roll of ones, passing them out two at a time like a big shot. Beers on the Strip were $6 each. $8 in one of the restaurants. Downtown there were only $3.

I got to see what Las Vegas was all about. Rich people in limosines and old people riding around on Larks(motorized wheelchair scooters) with their 02 tanks in the back.

I went into a pawn shop -- filled with diamond rings, guitars, even fax machines -- they said people were always bringing them in, but never coming back for them.

Look at all those huge resort casinos -- Bellagio, Mandalay Bay, The Luxor, MGM Grand, the Venetian and the new Wynn -- all built on people's loses. Now I guess as long as you gamble for entertainment and lose what you can afford to, I guess it's okay.

Still I like what we built in the Dominican better.