It’s true. Four of my girl friends and I are headed to Las Vegas on Thursday for a girls’ weekend (Spring Break ’09!). The funny part? I’m the only one that’s been there before, and it was for work. (The engineers I was there with couldn’t have cared less that they were in Vegas. It might as well have been Milpitas, California.) This is very convenient, since the whole trip will be an adventure for everyone and almost everything will be new and exciting.

But, that means that none of us really know what to see and do… So I’m asking for your help, Internet. Have you ever been to Vegas? What did you love? What was overrated? What would you recommend we do with our 3 days and 3 nights? So far I’ve heard about dealers in costume at the Imperial Palace, drinks at the Paris to watch the Bellagio fountains, and comedians at Second City in the Flamingo (which is where we’ll be staying). I also found this gem on one website:

As long as the cocktail waitress thinks you are gambling, you can get free drinks. Cocktail waitresses prowl the floors of all the major casinos, giving out free drinks. Place your order and the next time the waitress makes her round she will bring you the drink of your choice. If you leave a tip they’ll come back again to take another order.

Although this is technically free, you really are expected to be actively gambling and leave tips to take advantage of it. It is easy enough, however, to hang out on a slot machine chair or in a sports book and still be able to recieve the drinks. People usually leave about a dollar tip per drink unless they are doing well at the tables or getting drunk.

Thanks for the insight, vegasfreebie.com!

I’m also looking for good sports bar suggestions, as I’m VERY interested in watching some March Madness basketball while I’m down there (the other girls most likely do not share this enthusiasm).

So bring it on! And thanks in advance. :)

When I was choosing where to go to college, I had narrowed it down to Lewis & Clark or Macalester. My brother (who tried to convince my cousin Kristin to go to UNC instead of Colgate because Michael Jordan was a Tar Heel) told me he’d like me to go to Macalester because he’d much rather go to a TimberWolves game when he came to visit me than a Trail Blazers game. Of course, I chose to move to Portland.

About the time I was sending in my housing deposit, Rasheed Wallace (also a North Carolina graduate) had just earned his 41st technical foul in one season, breaking his own record from the previous year. My freshman year, I went to three Blazers games. I was in the stadium when Scottie Pippen was ejected for launching a ball into the stands like a discus. I had a subscription to The Oregonian when they reported that Bonzi Wells had flipped off a fan during a game, then responded to questions about the incident by saying, “I black out sometimes…” and then winking. He was quoted in Sports Illustrated saying that fans, “…Really don’t matter to us. They can boo us every day, but they’re still going to ask for our autographs if they see us on the street. That’s why they’re fans and we’re NBA players.” I was in college when Damon Stoudamire, Rasheed Wallace and Qyntel Woods were busted for Marijuana possession. Multiple times. I heard on the radio that Qyntel was dogfighting and Zach Randolph sucker punched his own teammate in the face. I was in Portland during the Jail Blazers years and they were rough. If Clyde Drexler had decided to come out of retirement for one last game in a Blazers jersey, you still would have been hard pressed to get me to pay $30 for a ticket.

But somehow, not long after I graduated college, things changed. The franchise realized that they’d lost the fans and it wasn’t because of their record; it was because of their players. Most of the ones with legal troubles were traded, and the ones who couldn’t be traded were benched. Nate McMillan was hired as coach and Brandon Roy was drafted out of the University of Washington. In 2007, Brandon Roy became Rookie of the Year (thus becoming Brandon R.O.Y.). Since then, things have continued taking off at the Rose Garden, and I’m now proud to say I can name all but 3 players on the team (and I may or may not have crushes on a few). I’ve already been to more Blazers games this season than I have the rest of my life combined and I’ve even begun watching them on TV; a first for me.

But the moment I really knew things had turned around came on Tuesday morning.

Monday evening, the Blazers played the Lakers, one of the few teams I really don’t like. Not for any particular reason other than I hate Kobe Bryant, but aren’t all team allegiances and rivalries based on flimsy circumstances and opinions? Anyway, the Blazers won. I’ll give that a moment to sink in. The Portland Trail Blazers beat the Los Angeles Lakers. In basketball.

In the game, Rudy Fernandez, one of our two adorable, flamboyant Spaniards, was fouled. It looked absolutely horrible. Nothing like Joe Theisman breaking his leg, but definitely a replay that made you cringe and grab your side in empathy.

I’m not going to waste even more of your time debating over whether Trevor Ariza deserved the Flagrant 2 foul he received, although I did think Dave at Blazer’s Edge had an interesting argument:

“This was the NBA equivalent of the helmet-to-helmet contact in the NFL. Is the helmet-to-helmet intentional every time? No. Does it cause injury every time? Of course not. But it’s dangerous and that’s why it’s been outlawed and why it’s punished every time. “

Anyway, back to my boys. The real moment came the next day when the team reacted on camera to what happened and the announcement that Ariza would not be punished further.

Did you see that? Those players didn’t talk any shit. They didn’t threaten Ariza or “black out” and get belligerent. They calmly stated they weren’t going to stand idly by and watch the Lakers take advantage of them. But they acknowledged that it was a tough call and they didn’t think anyone would want to hurt Rudy. Both Sergio Rodriguez and Brandon Roy even ended on a positive note.

Nate McMillan was the only person whose reaction was even slightly… unedited. When was the last time the coach was the most candid member of our team? And when I say “most candid”, I mean, “he shook his head and said, ‘I’m not going to say any more’ because he didn’t want to be too critical or negative.”

Ladies and gentlemen, I am a Portland Trail Blazers fan.

How to Have a Great Valentine’s Day (Even if You’re Single):

Step 1: Make cupcakes. Add red food coloring to make them pink and festive.
Step 2: Get coffee with friends in the morning. (Couples are okay.)
Step 3: Walk around NW Portland and enjoy the sun. Take photos.
Step 4: Do some shopping. Buy yourself a few things. You’re a fantastic date.
Step 5: Watch the NBA Slam Dunk Competition. Continue crushing on Rudy Fernandez.
Step 6: Rent a funny movie, have a cupcake (or 3) and work on the bottle of white wine you opened last night.
Step 7: Enjoy.

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!

My cousin Kevin was on MSNBC. Like, the national TV channel.

He’s kind of a big deal.

Instead of listing the things for which I’m thankful this year, I’ve decided to show them to you. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

I just saw this commercial on TV and loved it.

That’s right. That’s A-Rod, Tony Hawk, Michael Phelps and Kobe Bryant.

Not only is this about the coolest program ever, but I just found out today that the women’s shoes even come in my huge shoe size online! So if you haven’t already, check out this year’s shoes. If you’re interested, I’ll even tell you all the things I’ve learned about these kids over the past few months. They’re absolutely incredible.

For my second Nike shout-out in the past month, I’m posting my favorite Nike commercial below.

My cousin Kevin writes for the Baltimore Sun. I have always admired him and his writing abilities, (since long before he was published in The Best American Sports Writing) and I love reading his posts. He had one the other day that I particularly enjoyed, which isn’t surprising considering it was about sports, Montana, and Barack Obama.

Anyway, in my lazy NaBloPoMo state, I have decided that my post for today will be a copy of the comment that I just submitted to Kevin’s blog. I spent a while writing and editing it (not that I’m neurotic or anything…) and don’t have much left in me.

So here it is! It won’t make much sense unless you read his post first. Thanks, Kev, for being such a great writer and blogger.

Glad you’re back, Kevin. I really enjoyed this post. And because you said so many interesting things, I’m going to comment on a few…

I thought that Post article was interesting, and I was heartened to hear that so many small town folks were examining their prejudices during this campaign and also encouraging their community’s young people to travel and experience more diversity.

However, I’m always sensitive to the use of the term “diversity” to mean “black people.” When I lived in Montana, I used to think there wasn’t any diversity, in the true sense of the word. However, now, having seen other places, I realize that, as my mom says, “our diversity just looks different.” In a lot of ways, I think the fact that I grew up exposed to so few black people made me think that that was the only kind of diversity. When, in fact, I was surrounded by minorities with which many other people from larger cities may not be as familiar. Hmong and Russian immigrants, Native Americans, as well as members of the GLBT community colored my world in very important ways and helped me become the person I am. In some ways, moving away from Montana has made me realize this because the city I currently call home doesn’t include them all.

I would never argue with someone who said Montana was severely lacking African-Americans. However, I don’t believe it isn’t a diverse state.

That being said, I’m sure that some of the small towns in the Post article don’t include much diversity, be it racial, socioeconomic, or any other kind. Hopefully Barack Obama will be a positive influence in their lives in more ways than one. It sounds like he already has.

I loved your view on sports as a unifying force. Fivethirtyeight.com was a fixture in my daily surfing, and I always think about the power of sports when used in analogies. When I saw Michelle Obama’s brother speak, it was interesting to see the way the crowd reacted to his sports analogies… I had the same thought you did – this is something almost everyone can understand and relate to. Granted, the crowd wasn’t very politically diverse, but still an interesting concept.

Thanks for the great post. And welcome back!

Q: How do you know you have the most awesome friends ever?

A: They support your team like its their own.

Two of my closest friends (Talia and Alex) moved to Chicago on Monday. I’m currently in denial and doing anything I can to distract myself. Bob Costas has come to my rescue.

Side note: Did you know that this is the SEVENTH TIME Bob Costas has covered the Olympics for NBC since 1992? Madness.

Even though I love watching the crazy stuff like synchronized diving, I live for beach volleyball, swimming, and gymnastics. I could watch Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh all day. They are so damn good at what they do and always look like they’re having fun. And I think I speak for just about every American girl when I say that gymnastics and ice skating were my gateway drugs to the Summer and Winter Olympics, respectively.

But swimming has become particularly interesting to me recently. Not just because of Michael Phelps and his amazing feats, but also because of people like Katie Hoff, Natalie Coughlin, Jason Lezak, Ryan Lochte, and Dara Torres. The other reason is because my cousin Kevin has been assigned by the Baltimore Sun to follow Katie Hoff and Michael Phelps (native Baltimorans) and all of their gold-medal-seeking adventures. He knows more about Michael Phelps than I may ever want to (including his eating habits), and even had to take a break from our family golf tournament in Waterton to call Michael’s mom Debbie from a pay phone to get some insight and hopefully a few quotes.

In every screen shot of the Water Cube, I’m looking for Kevin in the crowd, wondering if he’s sick of the smell of chlorine or the echoing cheers yet. Or if he still finds the whole thing interesting and surreal, even though this isn’t the first time he’s covered the Olympics for the Sun.

But at this point, I have to share with you my favorite part about Kevin covering swimming. And that is the following two videos (which I apparently can’t embed in this post).

ChloriNATION Episode 15

And the follow-up episode:

ChloriNATION Episode 16

U-S-A! U-S-A!