Patience is a Virtue

That's what I kept trying to tell myself Saturday while I searched for Grandma and Poppi for two hours in a casino. Grandma (the notorious gambler) got me, Frankie and the folks a free room at Tropicana Saturday night (because nothing says family time like drinking and gambling). She was supposed to leave a key for us at the front desk and forgot. I just kept telling myself, she's old, she doesn't remember (repeat to self, mom and now aggravated father for two hours). So we called her cell phone, nothing. Then we tried her usual spots- the private club, her favorite machines, the restaurant, called up to her room- nothing, and keep in mind that we've been dragging around bags all this time. No where to be found. So after we left six or seven voicemails and couldn't find them, we started to worry- it's only natural. So I give it one more shot and low and behold Poppi answers. I'm glad that he's the sane one. I started to tell him we had been looking for them and did he know where Grandma is since the room is in her name and only she could get a key for us. He proceeded to tell me that he wasn't sure where she was, so I said OK, where are you we'll come meet you. He tells me to hold on and I heard him give the phone to grandma and say "here, I think it's Jaimie". Ok, first...he told me he didn't know where she was and she was there the whole time. Second, you think it's Jaimie? Who else would call you Poppi? You only have one granddaughter!
So finally we get Grandma and then I try to tell her something went wrong when she checked in because when we tried to call the room, they said she had three rooms. She was only supposed to have two since I was rooming with the parents. Grandma just sat there clueless and Poppi became his usual angry self saying that I was wrong. So I just let it go and suggested that they might want to double check. Sure enough, three rooms were booked but eventually it was taken care of. I can just imagine the fit my grandfather would have if he had to pay the $2 in tax for a third room they weren't supposed to have.
You would think with all this confusion maybe the night would turn out ok and we would win some money...haha, yeah right! They took us for everything we had. The highlight of the weekend was grandma entering me in the slot tournament. Basically you go in this room with about 70 slot machines lined up. You get a number that corresponds to a machine. For ten minutes you need to keep smacking the "spin reels" button as fast as you can and rack up as many points as possible. Your family and friends can sit in front of the room behind a rope and watch you. So here I am, possibly the only person under 80, smacking the button over and over again while a very flamboyant emcee, dressed as a clown on stilts, made fun of me and my "cheering section". It was quite hilarious. They give one $1,000 prize and 21 $50 prizes. I won the $50 which was fine with me. The people who didn't win were very angry and I was almost scared that they might jump me in the lobby for the $50.