| |
I believe that I came to Las Vegas when it was the best time to carve out a career. Jobs were plentiful. The strip hotel owners, long known for trying to out do each other were always looking for something bigger, better, grander or greater than the one next door. This, in itself, created a large market of positions from housekeepers to high echelon upper-management. In order to run a resort casino, especially ones that boast 3,000 or more guest rooms, you need good, old fashioned, hard working people. Do you know when Steve Wynn (the billionaire resort mogul) opened his Mirage Hotel in 1989, at a cost of $600 million dollars, it cost him one million dollars per day to run. That is what he needed to win in the casino to cover his overhead. One hundred thousand people were expected to show up on opening day, instead, 200 hundred thousand showed up! The casino won $40 million the first month and posted $44 million in the first-quarter profits. Employment opportunities? You bet.
When you live here, unless you have unlimited monetary resources, gambling is not an option. Working on the strip is one thing, gambling, that is another thing altogether. For approximately 10 years out of the time I lived here, I worked in the resort industry, coddling the high rollers, and for me, a stellar experience. The 'percs' were great, the pay appealing, and the benefits quite adequate. I learned quite early when you sign on, you are totally captive, but they do make it worth your while. It was worth the price of admission.
The best of times I can remember, was when a 'whale', casino jargon for the world's biggest gamblers, would come to the hotel. We would call it 'whale watching', recognized only by their worth, not their girth. Dropping a few million made no difference to them, knowing every wish was our command. They would dine on fois gras, caviar or whatever met their fancy. Everything was 'comp', because one way or another, after giving up most of their money, they paid their way. Now, that was a sure bet! As we all know, the 'house' does not favor the player! As you meander through the casino, do not expect to find any of these 'whales' out and about. No, they are tucked away in private, obscure places where no routine gambling protocols reside. And, whether they win or lose, they come back; they always do.
In light of the WTC attack, everyone knows how it has affected the state of the economy and sources tell me that Las Vegas is no exception. They have had their share of cutbacks, even though some hotel occupancy rates have improved on weekends. Even so, business is still below normal. Approximately 3,000 of the nearly 14,000 casino workers who lost their jobs, have returned to work, but many of those are back part time, while tens of thousands more have reduced work schedules.
Las Vegas isn't down, and by no means, out. Like the Phoenix, it will rise again from the ashes, triumphant. Without a doubt, there is no other place like it. Where else can you see a full-fledged medieval jousting match as you dine, sail down the Nile, see the skyscrapers of New York, tour the tomb of King Tut, ride the Grand Canal in Venice, see a 50 foot Eiffel Tower reach for the sky, watch a real-life battle between a pirate ship and a frigate, where one of them literally sinks into the sea. (the pirates usually win) watch a life-like volcano erupt, and yes there is more, so much more.
I stayed in Las Vegas 34 years and in 2002, I will have been gone 6 years. After a recent visit, I was amazed at how the city had changed. Like any large, growing metropolis, change is inevitable. For me, the Chinese proverb says it so well: 'you cannot step into the same river twice, the river has changed and so have you'. So, now, for me, it is time to share the fruits of my labor. And for any of you who have 'been there, done that', are more of you just waiting to begin. It is there for the taking, there for happenstance to create that one golden time, the time that you, and you alone can claim as I did, "this is gonna be the best time of my life."
sources: Super Casino, by P. Earley
The Player, by J. Sheehan
LV Review Journal/Sun
Economic Analysis, WEFA
The Times - Picayune
|
Help Us Stop Plagiarism -
Nearly all works at PnP are original. However a few people choose to plagiarize.
To check, choose a phrase from the work, then either drag and drop to the search box or copy and paste.
click on search and works at Google will be shown which match. Just to be sure, please do this before
you recommend or rate the work highly...
|
 |
|
|
|
Select a Random Work
from Stories
|
|
Welcome !
