I was feeling restless on Friday. I didn't really have any plans, but I knew I wanted to DO something. I had a few things weighing on my mind and I just wanted to get out of Salt Lake. I ran a few errands after work and suddenly I had this brilliant idea. Wendover! Hmmmm...who would go to Wendover with me last minute AND be a fun travel companion? Only one person I could think of: Monty! Now those of you who know me well may be surprised by my new found spontaneity. I'm not known for doing things on the fly. I like to plan things, research, know everything in advance. But this is a new year, a new Jessica. I'm trying to be a little less anal and neurotic.
FYI: Wendover is an isolated desert town about 90 minutes west of Salt Lake City, just across the Nevada border. Why go to Wendover you ask? Gambling. The motto of the town is "So much fun it must be Nevada!" Yeah, well it's definitely not Utah.
In preparation for our long night I ran to Starbucks to get a quad shot venti latte. Monty and I decided that we were to make no plans for the night, only spontaneous thoughts. Do we look spontaneous?
Off we went into the dark, dark night on I-80 through the West Desert. Although the drive west is fairly boring, there are few unusual sights on the way.
Several oil refineries light up the night
Dugway Proving Ground
Dugway is US Army facility that tests chemical and biological defense systems. I had to stop reading about the consequences of all this testing because it was really freaking me out. There are also some rumors of UFO sightings in the area.
The Tree of Life
There is a plaque on the tree that reads: The Tree of Utah (Metaphor) by Karl Momen. Completed January 1986. "A hymn to our universe, whose glory and dimension is beyond all myth and imagination." I'm not sure what this metaphor is supposed to mean...
Bonneville Salt Flats
In the middle of our drive Monty decides he has to pee. We had just passed the Tooele exit and saw a sign for Grantsville.
We thought it would be a good idea to stop there because my sister's boyfriend, Nolan, is from there. However, after driving down a deserted farm road for 15 minutes I had to call Nolan to ask him where the hell we were going. Apparently we took the wrong exit. Nolan told us to keep driving until we hit a stop sign...we never reached the stop sign. Verdict: Grantsville gets a big thumbs down.
Soon we reached the bright lights of Wendover. As we drove into town Monty exclaimed, "It's beautiful!"
We started off at the Montego Bay for dinner at the Paradise Grill.
Definitely not paradise, but the nachos were good. The old Jessica would have ordered some stong vodka drink for dinner. The new Jessica ordered a grasshopper...sickeningly sweet, green and minty. New Jessica couldn't finish it.
Monty's $12 mai tai was good and strong though.
Next stop the Rainbow for some gambling. Monty sat at the blackjack table and I went off to the penny slots with $20. The thing about Wendover is that it's great for people watching. There are some rough looking people who frequent these casinos. I think I even saw some homeless dudes...how did they get there?? After a couple of hours at the penny slots I was down to $8 and I decided to try one last machine. After a few spins I won $15 and soon I was back up to my original $20. In the end, I left with $20.39. Not a bad profit. Monty doubled his money and left with $180. The ride home was long and we were tired. We rolled back into Salt Lake around 5:30 am. Pretty good night!
After sleeping for a few hours I woke up and saw The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. It was very, very good. However, I kind of have an eye phobia and there were a couple of parts that made me squeamish. Highly recommended!
About 6 months ago I borrowed Hedwig and the Angry Inch from Lesley...I finally got around to watching it. I loved it!!
Saturday night was a birthday party for Lesley and Sonny. A good time was had by all!
Lesley and Diane
This is obviously old Jessica...AKA Peppa. It was the Jameson!
Tommy and Sonny
Me and Metra
Maberly and Bill ( I LOVE his shirt!)
Jager Bombs!
Sunday was the Super Bowl. We went over to my aunt's house to watch the game and eat some soup. I though it was a pretty boring game until the last 4 minutes.
My cousin Kathryn
My cousin Thomas and the biggest drink I've ever seen
My mom thinks she's a rock star
Apparently so does Paige
Sunday nights have become movie night for Paige, Nolan and me. If you're a frequent reader you know Nolan tries to make me watch all kinds of horror movies. Last night he wanted me to watch Hostel. I just wasn't in the mood. Then I found out he had never seen Trainspotting. What?? It had been awhile since I had seen it and I must say I'm still impressed. CHOOSE LIFE!
2 comments:
Did Monty also cry when he exclaimed that Wendover was beautiful?
Ha! No, but there were some mounatins involved. If you were there, tears would have been shed.
Post a Comment