I hadn't been back to Vegas since the mid-1990s, so this trip felt like a return to a place I once considered home. I was super excited to see how the Strip had changed. While a few hotels from the '90s were still around, many of the classics I remembered were gone. The Riviera, for instance, which was demolished years ago, is still just a vacant lot. It was a little sad to see the original home of GLOW completely gone. Even some hotel names have changed, like the Las Vegas Hilton is now the Westgate. Personally, I’ve always preferred downtown Vegas over the Strip; it just has that classic Vegas vibe and you don’t feel like you’re walking for an eternity to get from one hotel to another. The Plaza, Golden Gate, Golden Nugget and many others are still there. Binion's Horseshoe is now simply Binion’s. It’s familiar, yet different – Vegas is always evolving!
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| Heading to the hotel in the Uber |
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Our hotel pool
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You guys know I work in the airport and we have our own dedicated security lanes as well as access to alternate entrances for those of us who have higher clearance but when we travel, we do have to go through regular security, or global priority which is why I always carry my badge when I travel, in addition to the discounts I get from any of the Avolta/Dufry/HMS Host/Hudson locations anywhere in the world. Employee perks are always a plus!!!
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Ashley Cartier & Royal Hawaiian
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| The view from our hotel room, I loved looking out and seeing this!! |
My flight experience, as I mentioned, was on my all-you-can-fly pass and I did splurge a bit to pick an exit row seat. I'm one of those people who shows up hours before a flight because I know how gate changes can happen. This flight was a prime example of gate change drama! If you fly Frontier in Atlanta, be prepared for a bit of a walk because aside from 3 dedicated gates at the very end of the E concourse, their flights never depart or arrive anywhere near the centerpoint of the concourses. It was supposed to leave from concourse D, but shortly after I arrived, the app updated to concourse C. Then, just before our boarding time, the gate changed again to the one right next to where an entire planeload of people were waiting. I told a lady next to me we were lucky it changed to a closeby gate, but as I said it, the gate changed again to E4! I literally bolted from C6, hopped on the plane train and booked it to E4. I was the first one to make it to the gate, with other passengers trailing a few minutes behind me. And then I saw it: no plane at the gate. GREAT, I thought, this means a delay.
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| Hollywood's CAC Merch Table |
As the crowd of passengers started arriving and noticing the empty gate, I mentioned to someone that I was just trying to get to a wrestling convention and hoped the only drama would be among the wrestlers. As luck would have it, it was Shooter Ronnie Gossett, who was headed to the very same place! When the plane finally arrived and unloaded, the boarding process began. I was in Zone 2, which is fine by me – I'm okay with not being the first to board, unlike some people who are always in a mad rush, as if they don’t have assigned seats! When I got to my window seat in the exit row, Ronnie was in the same row! We chatted a bit about who we knew would be at the convention. He knows way more people than I do; most of my wrestling knowledge comes from 1980s and 1990s WWF and, of course, GLOW. Once everyone was seated and the doors closed, there was yet another delay for a medical emergency – I think a passenger was having a panic attack. They reopened the doors, she left the plane, and then the doors closed again, and we were finally on our way to Vegas!
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| Hollywood working her magic at CAC!!! |
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| I doubled my money with Casper!!! |
I had originally planned to take the bus downtown from the airport since it’s the cheapest option, especially since my friend Ry aka “Stig” was at work. But since Ronnie was there, I opted for an Uber to get us both to the Plaza. Once we arrived, I went straight to the convention area to meet up with Jeanne, grab my key and take my stuff up to the room. I hung out with Jeanne while she worked her table; she's truly a pro, so good with both fans and other wrestlers. Later, we headed to the pool area where there was a pool party for the wrestlers going on. We didn't swim because our evening plan was to meet up with her friend Stephen at Circa, have dinner at an Asian restaurant there and then do some gambling. Stephen is a whiz with the slot machines, he really knows his stuff. Unfortunately, I started feeling a bit ill at dinner, so I excused myself and headed back to our room. Jeanne came back a few hours later and I was already in bed. We chatted for a little while, and once my meds kicked in, anything we talked about until I fell asleep is a complete mystery! I think the intense heat might have been a factor. When I was in Vegas in the '90s, I was there during the cooler months. This dry heat, at 113 degrees, feels like walking through the same heat you feel when you open an oven door and lean over to pull out something you’ve been baking.
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| Daisy and me |
The next morning, I woke up feeling much better. Jeanne was still asleep, so I snuck out to grab coffee and doughnuts from Pinkbox. Almost $50 for a dozen and they were ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!! We had a full day ahead of us, with lots planned: from Jeanne working her table in the meet-and-greet area to heading to Fashion Show Mall to get her hair done for the awards banquet and then off to see the Scorpions at Planet Hollywood. She invited me to see the Scorpions with her and her friend Kristi, but I really wanted to hang around Fremont and do a little gambling for some videos that Terry had requested. He gave me specific directions and strategies that he’d seen other YouTubers doing for their videos. I’d never really done video slots before; I used to play the old coin-operated ones, so the new ones seemed a bit intimidating. I decided I’d wait until Wednesday when Jeanne could guide me. This afternoon, I came face to face with a few GLOW girls I hadn’t spoken to in years. I knew they’d be there, but they had no clue I was and didn’t recognize me at first! It’s funny how the hairpieces I wear now make me look a bit different. Anyway, I spoke to Roxy Astor, Ashley Cartier and Sunny on our way out to the Fashion Show. The one GLOW girl who didn't know I was there at that point was Daisy. My friend Sammi Z invited me to go see a midget wrestling event that was going on after the banquet. I know that’s not the PC way to say it but that’s what they call it, so don’t judge me. I am a huge fan of people with short stature and if you have ever witnessed a wrestling event featuring little people, you would absolutely love it. Once Jeanne left for the Scorpions, I sent Daisy a text asking how things were. She answered back and asked what I was up to and I told her I was just hanging in the hotel before heading out to the midget wrestling at The Nerd. I think she was shocked I was there! We met at one of the bars on Fremont. Daisy, Roxy and I walked to The Nerd just in time for the start of the show. I showed them both the concept and some of the artwork for my book, because you know I am super proud of it and excited that it’s almost complete! I started feeling a little overheated in the bar again and walked down Fremont by myself, not that it was any cooler outside, until I got a text from Jeanne telling me that David McLane was at The Nerd. REALLY? This is the second time that David, by coincidence, was in the same place as me and the GLOW girls. He wasn’t in town for CAC but for other business. David is a super nice guy. I’ve actually had really good experiences with the men of GLOW that I’ve met so far: David, Johnny C, Steve Blance and the paramedics Ron and Scott. Once I meet Matt Cimber, Benny Diamond and Tony Cimber (aka Nature Boy!), I will have met all of the living men of GLOW… though I love the ladies, I have a deep respect for everyone who was involved in the production.
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| Micro Wrestling @ The Nerd |
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| An assortment of amazingness |
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| Love the Pinkbox Atmosphere |
Jeanne and I rode back to the hotel with her friend Kristi, and we went to bed, ready to get up early. She had to work her table one more day, and I had to catch my flight back home that same night, so I really needed to make the most of my remaining time. While she was getting her makeup done for the final banquet, I went downstairs to the casino to attempt to get the video footage Terry wanted me to get. As luck would have it, Ashley Cartier was down there and she walked me through the basics of the machines. She even filmed me at the Casper slot machine! I chose Casper because that’s the name of the main character in my book, so I felt in my bones he would bring me some luck. I have a very addictive personality, so I knew I needed to budget myself with a low amount, otherwise I could easily drain my bank account chasing a jackpot. I had $100, and my plan was to play $20 in each machine. Once that $20 was spent, I'd move to another machine. If I made over 25% of the $20 I put into the machine, I'd cash out and move to another. This strategy paid off! Within just $60, I cashed out at $154. Not bad for a novice, right? Of course, I played the other $40 and lost it, but that was OK – technically, I was still $54 ahead of what I put into the machines. I know some people love gambling, but it’s just not really my thing. I’m just cautious when it comes to spending money. It was fun though!
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| Daisy and David McLane |
I had one more order of business before I left: I needed to see my childhood friend “Stig.” He came to the hotel, picked me up and as we took the scenic route down the Strip to the airport, we thought about going to the indoor park at Circus Circus but ended up at the Pinball Hall of Fame, which was really cool. Both of us LOVE playing pinball! We only spent 30 minutes there before he dropped me off at the airport. While I waited for my plane, I popped into a few of the Hudson stores, the company I work for. They have better food options than we do, though I guess the grass is always greener.
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| Roxy Astor, me and Sunny |
During my trip, I met some truly iconic figures: Brian Blair, Jimmy Hart, Bushwhacker Luke and author Kurt Nielsen. From GLOW, I met the Royal Hawaiian as well as Scott the Paramedic. I also got to chat with Malia Hosaka, Andrew Anderson and Missy Hyatt. Funny story: I actually walked right past Susie Spirit from GLOW and didn’t even realize it was her at first! And get this, Greg Valentine, who isn’t really known to be the most fanfriendly person, said hi to me as I passed, nodded and said, “Good afternoon, how are you?” Must be my southern charm, lol. I’m not one of those people who will intrude on someone’s personal space or privacy; I’m good at reading the room and I’m always aware of my surroundings.
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| Hollywood will always be my #1 girl!!! |
The flight back was, let's just say, an interesting experience. While in the boarding line, an Indian woman who was with her husband started pushing me to the side with her elbow before edging her way in front of me, leaving her husband standing behind me. I had to put her in her place and give her a reality check. I don’t care about cutting in line because we have assigned seats, but she was touching a person who doesn’t like to be touched by strangers and disregarding someone’s personal space. She thought I was rude, but I am on my best behavior in the airport setting. If we were outside security, it would have been a whole different story.
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| Royal Hawaiian and me |
My flight, which Ronnie Gossett was also on, pulled out of the gate and then did a complete turnaround and went back to another gate. The captain announced they couldn’t get one of the computers to restart and needed someone to come on board to restart it. That’s reassuring for a 4-hour flight, right? We were supposed to depart at 10:30 PM Las Vegas time and arrive in Atlanta at 5:30 AM Atlanta time. They first said a 15-minute delay, which turned into 30 minutes, then 45 minutes and I looked out my window to see two guys working on something under the wing. We were delayed about an hour and a half. As annoying as it is, I would prefer a delay to get a potential problem fixed than a complete deplane and scramble to get onto another plane. The other passengers seemed to not understand the concept of patience and were making scenes of their own. I just put my earbuds in and zoned out. Once we took off, we made it back to Atlanta around 7:30 AM. I got to my house at 8:00 AM, took a shower and went to bed. Got up for dinner and went back to bed to be up at 3:30 AM for work Friday morning.
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| The mechanics replacing a part, not restarting the computer |
It was a truly great trip! I enjoyed my time with Jeanne as well as the short time I had with Stig. I actually lost 2 pounds while I was there, which is wild! Aside from a little bit of the Asian fusion food, doughnuts and pizza, I didn’t really eat, which is odd for me. Something about the heat kept me disinterested in taking advantage of the deals on prime rib, steak and lobster…or the White Castles that are always a bit of a fun experience…but definitely not ahead of a 4-hour flight.
So there you have it, my Vegas wrestling adventure in a nutshell! What are your thoughts on meeting childhood heroes or those crazy airport moments? Have you ever had a chance encounter with someone famous? Let me know in the comments below!
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