Where There Is Smoke, There Is Not Always Fire

After delivering at Nellis Air Force Base just outside of Las Vegas this morning, we ran around town doing errands. We had to go to the bank, hit the post office, get the truck washed, have breakfast. Once all of that was done, we spent the rest of the morning looking for loads. The pickings are slim here, so we weren't feeling too confident that we'd get out of here today. We might even be stuck here for the weekend. Not my favorite place to be, but I suppose it could be worse; we could be in Alabama.

After we got the truck washed, we stopped at a nearby truckstop to air up the tires and Ed asked about truck parking at hotels near the strip. Turns out, there are three that offer truck parking closer to the strip than the casino we normally park at. We headed over and found plenty of room to park. We sat in the truck for a while, watching TV and taking care of some paperwork before deciding to go have dinner.

Since we couldn't decide what type of food we wanted, we did one of the buffets. This is rare for us since we usually hit a different restaurant when we're in town, never doing the buffets. I can't stand all the people, the shoving, the lines, the kids. It was okay, not a place I'd ever go back to, but I was hungry and it had a good selection as you'd imagine.

After dinner, we hit the casino. As much as I like the people watching and getting lucky every once in a while, my experience is always ruined by the cigarette smoke. I can't stand the smell of smoke. It's so unpleasant that it eventually upsets my entire evening. I just got out of the shower and I still smell a faint scent of it on me, or somewhere around me, I can't really tell where it's coming from. I wrapped all my clothes and Ed's clothes in a plastic bags, three layers of plastic, in an effort to contain the smell.

The smoke in the casinos is disgustingly vile. It makes the visit so unpleasant, that I always have to leave early. I wish they had completely non-smoking casinos. Some offer non-smoking rooms, but they're off the main casino and hello people, smoke travels through AIR.

I honestly don't know why people smoke. First, unless you're brain dead (which you may be if you're smoking), you have got to be aware of the health risks. Not that I care so much about that, because I'm no twig and there's plenty of evidence that being overweight isn't good for one's health, but how disgusting is it to SUCK smoke into your mouth? I mean, it's SMOKE. And you're intentionally breathing it. I'm pretty sure if something were on fire, you'd cover your face and run away from it, right? So why do you pay exhorbitant prices to suck it?

Secondly, are you aware that you smell disgusting? Your hair smells, your clothes smell, your teeth are gross, your skin is sallow. Why would you want to reek of smoke everywhere you go? It's physically repulsive. If you're a woman, the disgusting factor multiplies.

Smoking irritates me no matter where it's taking place. Even outside. Especially if you're the kind of person who goes on your work break and stands RIGHT OUTSIDE OF THE DOOR that people are entering/exiting from. Go around the corner. Behind a tree. By the dumpster. Not where other people have to be subject to your second-hand, cancer causing smoke. I don't care if you're addicted; get a patch or something. Maybe it'd be better to put the patch over your mouth instead of on your arm, to keep the cigarettes out.

My grandparents smoked, which oddly is one of the smells that reminds me of them. But those are childhood memories that I have no control over. They're just there. I don't like the smell of smoke, but the smell from certain brands remind me of my grandmother and I like that memory. My parents smoked when I was younger too, but I don't remember much about it because they quit when we were pretty young. And what did they know back then? But parents who smoke now, in the presence of their kids, especially in a car with the windows up, when they know the damage that smoke does to the little pink lungs of children...those people should be strung up by their pinky toes.

And just because I have a fleeting memory of my grandparents when assaulted by the odor of cigarette smoke doesn't mean I want to stand next to you, walk behind you if you have a cigarette dangling from your fingers and your smoke is going right up my nose, be in a car with you, or hang out in a smoky club with you.

Thankfully, I'm only in casino environments a few times a year, because the only thing worse than smoke in Las Vegas casinos, is seeing Las Vegas itself by the light of day.

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