Best Week Ever
24/07/07 15:37 Filed in: Nights Out
Basically, I have decided that I now love Las Vegas.
The last time I was there, I had an O.K. time. In the
"I'm Not Big TIme" and "You've Got to be Kidding Me"
entries, I watched the beautiful celebrities splash
champagne in the VIP while I was crowded on the dance
floor. This last trip was very different my friends.
Why was it so diffewrent this time? Hmm I dunno.
Maybe it had a little something to do with the fact
that I was there with the Memphis Grizzlies. Yea,
that was it. I was in town with 20 NBA teams. It
makes a little bit of a difference. Oh yea, I
happened to be staying at The Venetian ... eeevvverrr
heard of it?
You haven't heard of it? Well take a look at both of the plasma TVs that were in my room. There was also a 20 inch LCD in the bathroom which could easily be seen through the glass shower doors. The downstairs TV was actually an LCD too and was only 32 inches, whereas the upstairs one was a full 42 inch plasma. Sorry, I had correct myself on the awesomeness of my room. Once I saw the room, I knew this was going to be the best week ever. It only got better...
So, we played a game on the first Friday and had 2 days before our next game on Monday. Perfect. Nice. When we got out of our game, it was about 7. Got back to the Hotel at 8 after dinner. I call down to TAO Nightclub and tell them that I want to be added to the guestlist. They inform me that the list closes at 7pm. I say "Well that's a shame because my teammates and I thought we could get on a list." They ask me what team. I then say "Memphis Grizzles." I hear plenty of typing and then "O.K. my sincerest apologies Mr. Benson. I have Benson plus six on the list. Is there anything else I can do for you?" "Nope," I reply, "that will be all."
That was the first time I've ever gotten such treatment. The night would only get sweeter. When we got into TAO some other NBA guys (names much bigger than Rod Benson) already had a VIP booth reserved. Some of us knew some of them and all of a sudden, I find myself in VIP at TAO. The sweet thing about this was that our booth was next to the main walkway, so we all just stood out at the front of the booth. This is no joke, whatever girl I asked to come chill with me in the booth said yes. Every single one. I'm talkin striaght up ready like spaghetti. I've never had such a great success rate. It was like being the lone fisherman, in a clear pond, fishing for record sized, starving fish. My bait? Good looks and NBA promises.
After our game on monday, we had another two days off. It was that monday night that I had the best night ever. I had my 32 ounce steak at Outback -- delicious. Then I headed back to the hotel. As I was making my way towards the elevators to go to my room, I saw a kid who I hadn't seen since high school. He tells me about how successful he is nowadays and that he gambles so much that they comp his room at The Venetian. He then asks me if I want to go gamble with him. I let him know that I have no intention of gambling because my Per Diem has to last me for weeks after summer league. He says: "Hey, don't worry about it. I'll give you a couple hundred, lets just go." How could I turn that offer down?
We sat down at the blackjack tables and got to work. I got down to $50 very fast. I then won 5 straight hands to get up to $400. I then got up, gave my boy his $200 back, and went to my room -- $200 richer.
I wasn't sure if I was gonna go out that night or not, but my boy Matt wanted to check out some club at the Palms. We caught a cab over there and the place was dead. We then decided to check out Pure. I let it be known that the last time I was at Pure, I hated it. Somehow we still decided to go.
When we got to Pure, it was almost the same scene as I remembered from last time. I was standing at the end of a very long line that would take about an hour to get to the front of. It was right then that the similarities to my last trip ceased to exist.
"Rod Benson," I hear someone call from a short distance, "are you Rod Benson?" I tell him that I am indeed Rod Benson. He then says to me: "Your blog is awesome and I watched you play in the summer league man, good stuff. Anyways, we have a list in VIP. Just go up to the front and say the name Adrian Abello."
So I walk right up to the front and stand in the VIP line. The guys says: "Name?" I reply "Adrian Abello." He checks his list and lets us in. BOOM Tho. Well, actually, since Matt got in too, BOOM got them DOS!
I get in and make a couple laps. The pussycat doll burlesque is in full effect. Some people think that I'm in a strip club or something in "Boom got them DOS!", but it's actually inside of Pure during the pussycat doll show. Anyways, I keep moving and I notice a couple NBA vets have a VIP table. Turns out again that some of us knew some of them and now I'm in the VIP son. Im talkin about Grey Goose and Courvoisier son in the VIP like rockstars. It gets better.
The bouncer says to me that I can bring a girl in but she has to look good. I say to him that I don't see any immediately. He then invites me to take a walk with him. We walk to the elevator and go to the outside part of the club. He then says a pretty amazing statement to me. "Pick one." "What do you mean pick?", I say back to him. He then says "I mean tell me which girl you want to talk to and I'll get her over here."
I stood there and started thinking to myself. Could this be real? It didn't seem real at all. I guess I was daydreaming for longer than I thought because he came up to me and said "Do you see that girl over there? I told her you wanted her to come to VIP with you, but she thinks you're out of her league. Anyways, my job is done here. See you back downstairs."
So, now I'm downstairs, in VIP, with NBA stars, sipping courvoisier (actually, probably obnoxiously, repeating the phrase "pass the courvoisier"), with a girl who ROD BENSON is out of her league. There's pretty much nothing that can make this moment any sweeter.
And then I hear someone bark into a microphone. "Grrrrr. Arf, Arf!" No way is it DMX having a surprise performance up on the stage. I might have shed a single, joyous tear right at that moment. I couldn't have scripted the night any better than what really happened. DMX rocked the house. Mann he must have performed like 6 songs. I looked at him, then at her, then at the Courvoisier, and decided right then and there that these times must go on. I must make the NBA. I must.
See the joy and disbelief in my eyes? The VIP has that effect on a brotha!
GRRRRR ARF ARF! DMX up on the DJ Booth getting loose son!
I now have 2 very specific and related goals:
Goal 1: Make the NBA at all costs.
Goal 2: Use my NBA-ness to get into a party that Megan Fox is at (See Transformers) and hope that she finds me to be out of her league.
Everything else is just details.
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It! or
Bookmark it!
You haven't heard of it? Well take a look at both of the plasma TVs that were in my room. There was also a 20 inch LCD in the bathroom which could easily be seen through the glass shower doors. The downstairs TV was actually an LCD too and was only 32 inches, whereas the upstairs one was a full 42 inch plasma. Sorry, I had correct myself on the awesomeness of my room. Once I saw the room, I knew this was going to be the best week ever. It only got better...
So, we played a game on the first Friday and had 2 days before our next game on Monday. Perfect. Nice. When we got out of our game, it was about 7. Got back to the Hotel at 8 after dinner. I call down to TAO Nightclub and tell them that I want to be added to the guestlist. They inform me that the list closes at 7pm. I say "Well that's a shame because my teammates and I thought we could get on a list." They ask me what team. I then say "Memphis Grizzles." I hear plenty of typing and then "O.K. my sincerest apologies Mr. Benson. I have Benson plus six on the list. Is there anything else I can do for you?" "Nope," I reply, "that will be all."
That was the first time I've ever gotten such treatment. The night would only get sweeter. When we got into TAO some other NBA guys (names much bigger than Rod Benson) already had a VIP booth reserved. Some of us knew some of them and all of a sudden, I find myself in VIP at TAO. The sweet thing about this was that our booth was next to the main walkway, so we all just stood out at the front of the booth. This is no joke, whatever girl I asked to come chill with me in the booth said yes. Every single one. I'm talkin striaght up ready like spaghetti. I've never had such a great success rate. It was like being the lone fisherman, in a clear pond, fishing for record sized, starving fish. My bait? Good looks and NBA promises.
After our game on monday, we had another two days off. It was that monday night that I had the best night ever. I had my 32 ounce steak at Outback -- delicious. Then I headed back to the hotel. As I was making my way towards the elevators to go to my room, I saw a kid who I hadn't seen since high school. He tells me about how successful he is nowadays and that he gambles so much that they comp his room at The Venetian. He then asks me if I want to go gamble with him. I let him know that I have no intention of gambling because my Per Diem has to last me for weeks after summer league. He says: "Hey, don't worry about it. I'll give you a couple hundred, lets just go." How could I turn that offer down?
We sat down at the blackjack tables and got to work. I got down to $50 very fast. I then won 5 straight hands to get up to $400. I then got up, gave my boy his $200 back, and went to my room -- $200 richer.
I wasn't sure if I was gonna go out that night or not, but my boy Matt wanted to check out some club at the Palms. We caught a cab over there and the place was dead. We then decided to check out Pure. I let it be known that the last time I was at Pure, I hated it. Somehow we still decided to go.
When we got to Pure, it was almost the same scene as I remembered from last time. I was standing at the end of a very long line that would take about an hour to get to the front of. It was right then that the similarities to my last trip ceased to exist.
"Rod Benson," I hear someone call from a short distance, "are you Rod Benson?" I tell him that I am indeed Rod Benson. He then says to me: "Your blog is awesome and I watched you play in the summer league man, good stuff. Anyways, we have a list in VIP. Just go up to the front and say the name Adrian Abello."
So I walk right up to the front and stand in the VIP line. The guys says: "Name?" I reply "Adrian Abello." He checks his list and lets us in. BOOM Tho. Well, actually, since Matt got in too, BOOM got them DOS!
I get in and make a couple laps. The pussycat doll burlesque is in full effect. Some people think that I'm in a strip club or something in "Boom got them DOS!", but it's actually inside of Pure during the pussycat doll show. Anyways, I keep moving and I notice a couple NBA vets have a VIP table. Turns out again that some of us knew some of them and now I'm in the VIP son. Im talkin about Grey Goose and Courvoisier son in the VIP like rockstars. It gets better.
The bouncer says to me that I can bring a girl in but she has to look good. I say to him that I don't see any immediately. He then invites me to take a walk with him. We walk to the elevator and go to the outside part of the club. He then says a pretty amazing statement to me. "Pick one." "What do you mean pick?", I say back to him. He then says "I mean tell me which girl you want to talk to and I'll get her over here."
I stood there and started thinking to myself. Could this be real? It didn't seem real at all. I guess I was daydreaming for longer than I thought because he came up to me and said "Do you see that girl over there? I told her you wanted her to come to VIP with you, but she thinks you're out of her league. Anyways, my job is done here. See you back downstairs."
So, now I'm downstairs, in VIP, with NBA stars, sipping courvoisier (actually, probably obnoxiously, repeating the phrase "pass the courvoisier"), with a girl who ROD BENSON is out of her league. There's pretty much nothing that can make this moment any sweeter.
And then I hear someone bark into a microphone. "Grrrrr. Arf, Arf!" No way is it DMX having a surprise performance up on the stage. I might have shed a single, joyous tear right at that moment. I couldn't have scripted the night any better than what really happened. DMX rocked the house. Mann he must have performed like 6 songs. I looked at him, then at her, then at the Courvoisier, and decided right then and there that these times must go on. I must make the NBA. I must.
See the joy and disbelief in my eyes? The VIP has that effect on a brotha!
GRRRRR ARF ARF! DMX up on the DJ Booth getting loose son!
I now have 2 very specific and related goals:
Goal 1: Make the NBA at all costs.
Goal 2: Use my NBA-ness to get into a party that Megan Fox is at (See Transformers) and hope that she finds me to be out of her league.
Everything else is just details.
Digg
It! or
Bookmark it!
