Free Night at the Casino

My friend, Mary, gambles a bit more than I do and she was the happy recipient of a free night at the Fallsview Casino Hotel in Niagara Falls. These rooms are gorgeous with a beautiful view of the falls and in our room this year we had a view of both falls. They normally rent for around $200 per night so the only way I'll ever get to sleep in one is if we get one for free.

Mary picked me up around 10:30 A.M. and we drove off to enjoy our little mini vacation. Arriving at the casino, we got in line at the ticket office for a short wait to receive our complimentary stage show tickets. This was another great giveaway by the casino. Mary also had 2 free dinner tickets so we headed for the buffet line inside the casino. These giveaways are really excellent and it makes losing your money on the slots a lot easier to take.

After a wonderful buffet lunch that would actually be our big meal for the day, we decided to try out luck at the slots. Mary and I always go our separate ways with plans to meet again in a couple of hours.

I have this theory that a few slot machines are programmed to pay off better than the average ones so I travel around the casino a lot looking for that lucky machine. Unfortunately, I didn't find it within the first couple of hours.

At 3 P.M. we got our room key (shaped like a deck card) and moved into our room on the 22nd floor. They are beautiful, as I said, but we both agreed the choice of colors for the bed spreads could have been better. The view from the huge window was breathtaking and we were able to see both falls. What a glorious sight to see one of the seven wonders of the world from this vantage point. I guess I have a bit too much humility at times because when I'm in exceptional circumstances like this I can't help but wonder how I got so lucky. Considering my poor beginnings, why do I deserve to have landed here? My mother and grandmother worked much harder than I've ever worked in my life and they couldn't even imagine living like I do. I know...life isn't fair to everyone. Anyway, I always appreciate my blessings even if it comes with a touch of undeservedness.

Then we were off to the casino again with plans to meet at 6 P.M. for supper. Neither of us was hungry but we knew we could eat if faced with food. By 6, I still hadn't found that elusive lucky machine and had lost almost all my money. As expected, we were able to stuff a tiny bit more food into our tummies but this time it was at the Tim Horton's concession.

After supper, I took the meagre remains of my gambling money and tried a few more slot machines until I hit the lucky one. There I stayed until it was time to meet for the stage show. Wouldn't you know I'd find that damned lucky machine and then have to leave it!

The show was wonderful. Full orchestra and some of the best singers I've ever heard singing all the tunes from the 60's, 70's, and 80's. I really don't know how the casino can afford to give all these tickets away because they don't make enough from me even though I lose every time I'm there.

After the show we gambled some more but this time decided to meet back at the room whenever we were finished. I couldn't find my lucky machine but did find one like it and damned if it wasn't a lucky one, too. It held my interest until 1 A.M. when my sore butt made me give up on gambling and go to bed. Mary had made it back to the room just before me so we watched T.V. for about half an hour before calling it quits for the day.

The next morning we packed up and moved out but we weren't finished with our little vacation yet. We headed for the U.S. side of the falls to do some shopping. I don't care what anyone says, the prices in the States are far better than what we pay here in Canada where we're being gouged in every store. I bought a beautiful pair of Naturalizer sandals for $30 in a store that was filled with bargains like that.

By mid afternoon we were ready to go home. Mary and I have a very comfortable relationship so even though we'd spent so much time together we continued to yak and laugh right up until she dropped me off at my house. That comes from being old time friends, I guess, because we have a lot of history together.

It was so nice to get back to my quiet little house and settle into my real life. I loved the casino, the room, and the show but it's always great to come back home.

I took my mail out of the mailbox and found a letter from Fallsview Casino with a complimentary $40 meal voucher inside. It's good for most of September so I guess I have to go back.