Another Microsoft OneDrive Memory from this Day that I actually do remember, though I think the month was August, not July.
A few months before I moved to Texas my two oldest nephews, Jason and Joey, flew me to Las Vegas for some fun in the sun for four days.
That photo at the top is from the buffet at the Stratosphere Tower and Casino. The day before we'd taken the rickety double-decker elevator to the top of the Stratosphere Tower. Upon reaching the top the elevator doors opened with our ears greeted with a screeching alarm.
Electric power had been cut to the tower. Nothing was moving. The elevator made it to the top on emergency backup power. Dozens were stranded on the stalled roller coaster on top of the tower.
The temperature was way over 100 degrees.
The temperature inside the tower quickly became quite warm. After an hour, or so, the natives started getting restless, demanding to know how long this was going to last. I loudly piped up with how about giving us something to drink to keep us cool. A call was made and permission was given to open the bar, with free soft drinks to the kids, free hard drinks to the non-kids.
If I remember right it was almost three hours we were stuck on that tower. When power returned we lined up for our turn to return to ground level. Upon reaching ground level we were greeted by the manager of the casino apologizing for the inconvenience. I asked him if he could comp us for three buffets because we were heading for dinner when we got stuck and are now real hungry.
So, the manager wrote some script, like a doctor's prescription. We found our way to the buffet, showed the script and got treated like we were special guests.
The buffet had the option to play Keno whilst eating. I had never played Keno. The nephews asked if they could play Keno. So, they filled out Keno cards, which I then had to play for them, since they were not old enough. The nephews won some at Keno and thought it to be great fun.
And so, the next morning, waking up at Excalibur, at the south end of the Vegas strip, the nephews wanted to return to the Stratosphere for the breakfast buffet. And Keno. And so, we did, which is photo documented in the photo at the top, Joey sitting next to me, which means Jason must have taken the photo.
On one of the Vegas mornings I read in the local newspaper that conditions were such that Death Valley might break its temperature record that day. I asked the nephews if they wanted to get real HOT in Death Valley. They answered in the affirmative.
I've driven Death Valley several times when it is the HOT time of the year. You don't sweat. The moisture evaporates before you have a chance to sweat. You have to constantly be drinking liquids. Previous times I have followed the signs suggesting not to use A/C, as such may overtask the engine. That and no A/C lets one enjoy the overheated experience.
But, the nephews insisted the A/C stay on.
We got to Badwater, and walked out into the flats a couple hundred feet below sea level.
It was HOT. There is a thermometer at Badwater, advertising the temperature, as this is the location where the temperature record can be broken.
I believe the above photo was taken at Badwater, with the nephews contemplating if they really do want to walk out onto the dried salt flats. Eventually they did so, but I have no photos documenting this.
Another day we drove to Hoover Dam. This was before 9/11 and so you could easily walk across the dam, to Arizona, with no overbearing security.
After playing on the dam, we were a bit overheated, and somehow found our way to a park slightly north of the dam, with swimming access to Lake Mead. That is Joey next to me, in Lake Mead, which, again, means Jason must have taken the picture.
I webpaged the Nephews taking me to Las Vegas as part of my Nephews in Danger series of webpages....
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