Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1715 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Sunday, July 29, 2007 - 2:30 pm: | |
We wondered about you, Elvis. How goes it? |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5472 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Sunday, July 29, 2007 - 5:58 pm: | |
Careful Elvis, what goes to Las Vegas, stays in Las Vegas. jjaba. |
Goblue Member Username: Goblue
Post Number: 221 Registered: 03-2007
| Posted on Monday, July 30, 2007 - 11:33 pm: | |
Not everything stays in Vegas...but most of it can be cured with penicillin. |
Elviswithteeth Member Username: Elviswithteeth
Post Number: 38 Registered: 03-2007
| Posted on Tuesday, July 31, 2007 - 12:51 am: | |
Its going pretty good. Had a few interviews and staying in the Flamingo/Pecos area. |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1721 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Tuesday, July 31, 2007 - 1:10 pm: | |
My old neighborhood. Nice pub just east of you on Flamingo at Sandhill called Thumpers. And I retired from Desert Springs Hospital just to the west. Had a two-mile commute to work; that was pure ecstasy for 15 years! |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5477 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Tuesday, July 31, 2007 - 1:54 pm: | |
If Ray1936 wasn't in Las Vegas, maybe he could have prevented Cass Tech. from burning down. Sadly, true. Ray1936 walked that beat for yrs. Tom Snyder is also Tom1936. We loved him on NBC for all those years. jjaba bets (Las Vegas pun intended) that Ray1936 has a similar laugh. jjaba, Proudly Retired Westside Detroit Times Newsboy. |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1723 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Tuesday, July 31, 2007 - 2:32 pm: | |
"If Ray1936 wasn't in Las Vegas, maybe he could have prevented Cass Tech. from burning down. Sadly, true. Ray1936 walked that beat for yrs." No, I just missed that stretch of Grand River. The 2nd Precinct (Vernor) beats on Grand River started at the Lodge and went northwest. Loved it when I got the stretch from 14th to the Boulevard during hockey season. I don't suppose any "beat work" is done in today's policing, but it was a great job, even in the dead of winter. Maybe my Detroit Times route prepared me for that! "Tom Snyder is also Tom1936." Yeah, I always feel a twinge whenever a "class of 1936" fellow passes away. One becomes more and more aware of his mortality with each passing year and reading obits of folks younger who cash in their chips. |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5481 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Wednesday, August 01, 2007 - 2:05 pm: | |
Compare Las Vegas beats to Detroit in January? In other words, how many cups of piping hot coffee and how many donuts to trudge through the snow? It must have been rough on your horse back then too. Yes, old newsboys learned alot, and have served their communitiers ever since. jjaba, Proudly Westside, "dooring 'em." |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1727 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Wednesday, August 01, 2007 - 2:20 pm: | |
Compare Las Vegas beats to Detroit in January? Oooo...I'd take Detroit in January any time over Vegas in July for working outside. Seems like there was always a coffee shop somewhere along a Detroit beat, or a bar that had a coffee pot going. Like in the Detroit Times days, you always dressed for the weather. One learns fast. |
Elviswithteeth Member Username: Elviswithteeth
Post Number: 40 Registered: 03-2007
| Posted on Thursday, August 02, 2007 - 12:15 am: | |
Well...think I'll be heading back to Michigan next week for the house looks to be sold. So anyone want to accompany me for the trip back from Vegas.....ALL ABOARD! |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1731 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Thursday, August 02, 2007 - 12:17 pm: | |
Going back the same way or via the southern route on I-40??? |
Elviswithteeth Member Username: Elviswithteeth
Post Number: 41 Registered: 03-2007
| Posted on Thursday, August 02, 2007 - 2:04 pm: | |
Hi Ray...which way is quicker? |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5484 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Thursday, August 02, 2007 - 2:55 pm: | |
Ray1936, take Elvis back on US 66. It takes two dedicated drivers and navigators to do it right. Ride the Mother road. jjaba. |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1732 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Thursday, August 02, 2007 - 5:15 pm: | |
The route through Utah/Colorado/Nebraska etc (I-70 & I-80) is 100 miles shorter. But you avoid all the steep grades and mountain curves of Utah and Colorado, so time-wise it's not that much different. Also, the drive through Missouri is particularly nice, compared to Nebraska/Iowa. As Jjaba urges, you'll follow most of the general route of old US-66 from Kingman to St. Louis. A real bit of American history there. Do watch out for the Joad family along the way...... |
Goblue Member Username: Goblue
Post Number: 230 Registered: 03-2007
| Posted on Saturday, August 04, 2007 - 11:41 pm: | |
The two tackiest cities in the U.S.A......Las Vegas, NV and Orlando, FL...both absolutely without charm. |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1743 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Sunday, August 05, 2007 - 12:22 am: | |
Yeah, well, U of M football is also tacky. |
Bearinabox Member Username: Bearinabox
Post Number: 247 Registered: 04-2006
| Posted on Sunday, August 05, 2007 - 12:39 am: | |
Rudyard Kipling summed up my view of Vegas perfectly (though he was talking about Chicago): "Having seen it, I urgently desire never to see it again." |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5493 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Sunday, August 05, 2007 - 3:49 pm: | |
Orlando and Las Vegas are inventions of the 20th Century for tourists. As for pure natural geographic spots, one can do much better. Both are particularly challenged in summer when heat, heat, and more heat dominate. How either of them can attract tourists in summer is way beyond this traveler's imagination. Yes, anything US 66 Mother Road is well worth the time and trip. It is wonderful to get a guidebook and take the time to explore this slice of Americana. 2,400 from Grant Park, Chicago to Santa Monica, Calif. Again, if you don't want to endure huge heat, see it far away from summer. jjaba, pulling out of a cafe in Joplin, Mo. heading to get me a "Concrete" in St. Louis. |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1750 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Sunday, August 05, 2007 - 4:21 pm: | |
"How either of them can attract tourists in summer is way beyond this traveler's imagination." Unlike the Dexter bus, everything is air conditioned. |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5498 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Monday, August 06, 2007 - 4:00 pm: | |
Air conditioning can't eliminate the brown and lack of rain. Touring in a desert in summer should only be reservaed for the German tourists who think it is quite novel. jjaba's wife hiked to bottom of Grand Canyon in 125 degree heat in June. How crazy is that? After that, with her exhausted, jjaba drove to Las Vegas. At Midnight, the pavement was still hotter than everybody at a Senior Prom. Yes, the Dexter is hot these days. jjaba, Westsider. |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1751 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Monday, August 06, 2007 - 4:39 pm: | |
"Touring in a desert in summer should only be reservaed for the German tourists who think it is quite novel." Well, touring Michigan in winter is something that only skiiers and other assorted nuts do. So there. |
Goblue Member Username: Goblue
Post Number: 232 Registered: 03-2007
| Posted on Monday, August 06, 2007 - 11:17 pm: | |
There's no skiing in Michigan...the highest hill is 500 ft...hell, I've fallen that far on some world class mountains. |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1754 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Tuesday, August 07, 2007 - 12:33 pm: | |
How high is Mt. Elliott? |
Elviswithteeth Member Username: Elviswithteeth
Post Number: 44 Registered: 03-2007
| Posted on Tuesday, August 07, 2007 - 12:38 pm: | |
Our Motown Mile High! |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5500 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Tuesday, August 07, 2007 - 3:36 pm: | |
Skiing vacations in Michigan? Ray1936 has been away a long time obviously. Michigan skiers head for the Rockies or Vermont in winter. Richer ones go to Zermatt, Switzerland. Yet again, they have huge ice festivals in Canada all winter, eh. But that's Canada and they are a hearty lot. jjaba, sipping latte at Sun Valley, Idaho which is nice summers and winters. |
Karenk Member Username: Karenk
Post Number: 49 Registered: 07-2006
| Posted on Tuesday, August 07, 2007 - 4:41 pm: | |
Like those of us who live in Las Vegas our motto is, "YOU DON'T HAVE TO SHOVEL IT!" I moved here to avoid the rain/snow, taxes and high energy bills. It is perfect for me right now. The brown as you call it, has a beauty of it's own if you just look at it. The sunrise or sunset on the mountains is a sight to see, the same brilliant colors as house burning down. It's a different way of living, love it or leave it. Not everyplace can be Detroit, thank G-d. Oh yes, only tourists call it 'Vegas'. |
Margaret Member Username: Margaret
Post Number: 37 Registered: 06-2007
| Posted on Tuesday, August 07, 2007 - 7:26 pm: | |
every place has its great time: Michigan in October (and perhaps May); Las Vegas/the desert in the spring. hey, do the Route 66 trek in March, when those long gray Detroit winters have just about driven you nuts. the best sort of spring break. getcher motor runnin, head out on the highway... me, just singin "I've been everywhere mannn..." LOL |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1758 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Tuesday, August 07, 2007 - 7:59 pm: | |
Margaret hit the nail on the head. Every place has something special about it, and I'd not knock anyone's choice of living locations. Not so sure about Nebraska, though...... |
Tponetom Member Username: Tponetom
Post Number: 93 Registered: 06-2007
| Posted on Tuesday, August 07, 2007 - 11:02 pm: | |
Ray: I once heard that there are miles and miles of nothing but miles in Nebraska. I have been through Nebraska about ten times. It never changes. |
Goblue Member Username: Goblue
Post Number: 234 Registered: 03-2007
| Posted on Tuesday, August 07, 2007 - 11:35 pm: | |
Las Vegas and Orlando, FL...both the same...all the charm of a pile of plastic. |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1759 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Wednesday, August 08, 2007 - 12:43 am: | |
Whatever. |
Bearinabox Member Username: Bearinabox
Post Number: 255 Registered: 04-2006
| Posted on Wednesday, August 08, 2007 - 12:47 am: | |
Sheesh, I don't hate Vegas because of the climate! I love the desert. I'm just a sucker for old buildings. Entire cities built after 1950 don't hold much appeal for me. I like Las Vegas about as much as I like Troy, and for exactly the same reasons. Nothing against anyone who chooses to live in either of those places, but they aren't for me. |
Lowell Board Administrator Username: Lowell
Post Number: 4059 Registered: 10-2003
| Posted on Wednesday, August 08, 2007 - 12:55 am: | |
What a great thread! Thanks Ray1936 for starting it and all who have 'chipped' in. I made the trek back around 99, but not the 'hard way'. Mrs. Lowell, the kid and I, found a Key Tours charter flight with transfers to Circus Circus and seven nights for one grand. What a 'deal'! How could we not do it? We have no interest in gambling so the plan was to rent a car and day trip to Death Valley, Zion National, Hoover Dam. Regrettably my first option, the nuclear test range is off limits. I always wanted to stand on the spot where one was lit. [I'll risk the residual radiation hit.] Vegas is amid natural wonders... and unnatural wonders. The strip is unlike anything in the world. It is unnatural, pure kitsch and glitz, a laugh and a surprise every minute, yet very revealing of the human desire and dreams. It is all so thin and fragile and yet has figured out how to prosper, even boom, with absolutely nothing going for it -- a former rail junction town in the middle of the desert. Mind over matter. If the Hoover dam were blown it would likely vanish. I loved it, pimples and all, and understand why it is the fastest growing city in the country. I shall return. [And, hey, those Teamster pension payments I made that I will never collect helped build it!] |
Ray1936 Member Username: Ray1936
Post Number: 1762 Registered: 01-2005
| Posted on Wednesday, August 08, 2007 - 1:01 pm: | |
"Regrettably my first option, the nuclear test range is off limits." Actually, Lowell, the Department of Energy does offer occasional tours of the test site, including a long stay at Sedan Crater, the nuke blast from 30 years ago to test the use of nukes for construction excavation. It's a huge crater. Anyone interested need simply call the Las Vegas office of the DOE for schedules (they even bus you out there from Las Vegas). When I first hit town in '84 after retiring from the DPD, I applied at Whackenhut Security for a security position at the test site. Lot of testing, and then they bussed me to the site (Mercury, NV) for my physical. Half way through my physical, they gave me a lunch voucher and turned me loose in the cafeteria. I took my loaded tray and sat at a table, realizing that the man opposite me with a lab coat and thick, bushy eyebrows looked exactly like Dr. Edward Teller. Well, it wasn't, but I'd of made book that he was the one that "pushed the button"... The job was eventually offered, but by then I had taken a management job in town so passed the offer by. Would have been interesting, though. |
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba
Post Number: 5501 Registered: 11-2003
| Posted on Wednesday, August 08, 2007 - 3:59 pm: | |
It was the Detroit Times route in the 1950s on your resume' that got you in. Good work. jjaba, Westsider. |