My move to Vegas turned into a dog movie
The prior M2Vegas thread I started was like a prequel to my actual move, full of mushy crap I mainly wrote for myself and it was pretty boring. Gonna start this thread off fresh with the day I arrived in Vegas.
This was about 6 years ago now, (a week before covid shutdown) but I remember it all like it was yesterday.
Gonna state something from the prior thread real quick...
Seems like almost all of the M2Vegas threads I have seen on here were obviously doomed for failure from the start... and mine is definitely status quo. Every time I start reading one of these moving threads it never gets finished and it's safe to assume the writer's move ended in a trainwreck that we never get to hear about/got deprived of. I don't want to type spoilers but a blind man could see I was destined for a trainwreck myself. Of course it happened and it was horrific in ways that I never could have predicted or imagined... it was all really something, quite the story. I've been told it's a story that needs to be told so I'm gonna tell it... and I promise not to bit** out like I often do, procrastinate as bad as usual, I'm gonna finish it... and I promise not to deprive you of the trainwreck as it was a horrific and very unusual one to say the least, no way has anyone had one like mine.
For perspective with this new thread, this was the last tidbit of the other thread in regards to finishing the drive from home, arriving in Vegas
If there were ever a moment I wanted "Five More Minutes" that was it. It was the greatest time of my life and I hated it had to end. That was the end to not just the greatest trip of my life but a once in a lifetime journey. I wish someone who could actually write experienced it to give it proper justice, I sure can't. All the emotions and happiness I experienced were indescribable and are impossible to duplicate in a single lifetime.
"The sweet is never as sweet without the bitter"...
Finally overcoming that bitter depression during this journey made it even sweeter. I had completely overcome the horrific depression... little did I know, horrific anxiety was just a few days away when the covid shutdown happened.
Nonetheless, as that trip came to an end and I figured all the excitement was over with for at least that day... little did I know I was about to meet the girl I would fall ridiculously and pathetically in love with. The girl who I would depend on like I had never depended on anyone before. The girl who would eventually make me experience heartbreak like I never experienced or even imagined was possible... and the girl who would eventually be the reason for the inevitable trainwreck of an ending.
Once again, "Happiness is Only Real When Shared" is one of my favorite quotes, so thank you for letting me share all this.
The trip/journey across America was the greatest time of my life but it was exhausting. I thought I would get to my new home and sleep for 24 hours. Well, that didn't happen as my new roommate/landlord "T" was heading to meet someone, asked if I wanted a ride to the strip. I couldn't say no. I'll never forget that ride with T. I knew her father had cancer and died about 8-10 months ago. I figured he died gradually, didn't know he had a sudden heart attack and died inside of T's house with her there. I knew her dog that she loved so much had died not long before that also. The poor girl had been through some rough times. I think she needed a good, trustworthy friend like me around. It made me feel good that I could help her by moving in and being a friend. She was certainly helping me by allowing me to live with someone I trust.. which obviously isn't easy to find in Vegas.
I asked an old friend to hang out, actually the girl I had contemplated moving in with instead of T.
Firsts are a big deal to me. Found a bartender I was good buddys with to serve my first drink as a Vegas resident
Went to dinner at Strip House, good stuff
Ironically, T and her friend ended up meeting us for dinner. The other girl I contemplated moving in with told T that she thought I'd be a good roommate, wanted me to move in with her but I told her after much deliberating, I moved in with T because I had given her my word.
Again this was over 6 years ago but I remember it well. I ended up hanging out all night, boozing it up, then waited for my friends working grave to get off work and drink with them.
Made it home around 11:00 am. The last thing I needed to do was go 30 hours or so without sleep but had a great time. I remember thinking I knew I couldn't go crazy like that every night but it sure was cool having the option on the nights I could. I was really excited about living in Vegas. My home situation seemed to be great and that was a huge relief. T's dog/my new roomie Lucy/"Looce" was asking me where I had been all night
To say Looce was a great dog would be a heck of an understatement. Most boxers are overly hyper/obnoxious. Looce had to be the chillest, smartest boxer I had ever seen. Probably as soon I met Looce I said she had to be the best dog in the world.
Everyone says it but she wasn't even my dog and I said it to everyone. She was just great.
T didn't want another dog because she worked such long hours as a nurse. However, her Dad got Lucy for T, 2 weeks before he passed away. I think he got Lucy for her because he knew she was gonna need Lucy to help get her through his passing. Her Dad loved the number 22, I believe because of angel significance. He was especially tickled that Lucy's birthday was 2/22.
Looce took to me pretty quickly. When T worked nights, Looce insisted on sleeping in the bed with me, even the first time I slept there. Of course I sent a pic to T to boast
She was also miraculously well behaved for any breed barely being a year old. With T working long hours, it made me feel good helping out for her sake and Looce's. I took her to the park daily and pretty much anywhere else I went.
Around 2-3 nights after I arrived, one of the P Hollywood employees celebrated his birthday at the boobie bar. There was this thing going around called the "Corona virus" so I was hesitant at first but said screw it and went. Little did I know this was the last time I would be going out and doing anything like that for quite some time.
I always joke that I like 2 dollar bills because they look like 20s in a dark boobie bar and they have the girls flocking your way... so I stupidly brought the brick of 2s I had planned on lasting for many years.
Ronnie Milsap could have seen it wouldn't be long at all before those 2s were gone like last week's groceries 🙁
Regardless, I had a great time and I remember how excited I was to be able to go out and have fun like this anytime I wanted now that I lived here... then of course here came the covid insanity.
By that Friday or Saturday it was announced every non-essential business would have to shut down for 2 weeks to "flatten the curve" Everything shut down abruptly on the evening of the first Sunday I would spend in Vegas. Everyone was terrified from uncertainty, including me.
Gonna stop for now but I have a decent supply of meds for my adhd so I'm gonna finish this thing sooner than later.
Again "Happiness (misery too I guess) is only real when shared" and I appreciate you let me sharing all this.
Thanks, Slim
15 Replies
Slim,
I want to reiterate what the poster above just said. I haven't commented previously, but I do enjoy your threads and have been patiently waiting for your updates.
All the "Corona" or covid crap was really something. Not since JFK was killed had Vegas casinos locked their doors.
I was really hearing it from the group texts. Everyone thought I would be home in a week
Aside from all this "Corona" mess, my first impressions of living in Vegas were really cool. It was exciting living somewhere different for the first time in my life. I remember looking up at the snow capped mountains and thinking these views would never get old. I remember being shocked by how close homes were together. It was crazy, definitely never seen anything like it in NC.
The first time I went to the grocery store, I just couldn't believe what I saw.
I just stood there with my mouth hanging open, shaking my head, dumbfounded. I just never really thought about how it was legal to sell liquor pretty much everywhere in Nevada. I started texting friends at home with excitement. It was cheap too!
I always drank vodka because I remember Joe Namath saying he quit drinking "the brown stuff" because it would kill you faster than "the white stuff" I bought a bunch of whiskey thinking it would be just for guests... somehow I started loving whiskey. This would be a first of many hauls from the grocery store.
I always had a personal rule to never drink alone thinking that it would lead to alcoholism... but with this corona nonsense tearing my nerves up, I needed a drink... found a loophole
My job was considered "essential" so no long break for me, but I didn't have to be at work for another 2 weeks. I did like many people during the shutdown, watched movies and drank. While I never drank alone in my life, I must say I really enjoyed having Looce as my company when I did get to drinkin. Watched the Big Lebowski a lot, went on a white russian kick.
As I post this, I realize that the guy who gave me that little Trophy glass the last time I had a beer with coworkers in NC, passed away a few years ago. He was in his early 30's died in a very tragic way. We all have so much to be thankful for.
Seeing Fremont street like this right after I moved here... All you can do is shake your head
All of this happening really had my nerves tore up... so of course I drank to fix that constantly. I was never, ever one to sit at home and drink. However, I was pleasantly surprised to realize how much I loved getting drunk and listening to music, so I did a lot of that.
I do know that my landlord/roomie T was happy to have me around... had to be as tolerant of my drunkeness as she was. She would go to bed and I would beg her to let Looce stay up and hang out with me. For some reason, often I would get to drinkin and think T wouldn't hear the loud music if I did this
Disrespectful, I know but I honestly convinced myself that it worked or she was a really sound sleeper. She had always thought I was entertaining, got a kick out of my goofiness. She must have to put up with it all. I think under any of a million other circumstances, I would have been kicked out and moved back to NC. It wasn't so much about T getting a kick out of it all than it was having a miraculous good heart. I distinctly remember after 2 weeks, my "2nd Mom" on video chat with T begging her not to kick me out.
Of course the gun was unloaded at the time, even I'm not that careless
While I was a drunk that was a handful, I can say that I was very nice to T, as respectful (besides drunkenly slipping up playing music too loud) as anyone could be. I really appreciated how nice she was to me.
I had a couple of buddies that worked at Planet Hollywood. They came over often, Looce and I loved having someone to drink and listen to music with. Spent a good deal of the shutdown hanging with these guys
With no restaurants open we did a lot of grillin
My "2nd Mom" had a chalkboard at her house and always wrote a good quote on it. I was ecstatic when I discovered T had one
Looce looked a lot like Scooby Doo when he was young, found a moniker for her
I had a lot of fun with that chalkboard
I've never had a dog that was soley my dog. We grew up with dogs and my Mom always had dogs I considered my family but I had never had a dog that loved me more than anyone else. Call me weird but I would never drop the "L bomb" to a dog til after about a year and a half. I was just weird about it. After just 3 weeks, T caught me saying I love you to Looce on my drunken instagram videos and called me out. I couldn't believe it myself... but I knew it was true. In a short time, I loved that dog with all my heart, in a way like I had never loved another dog or anything else before. I had never needed someone so much like I needed her.
Looce knew how much I needed her so I think she paid more attention to me than T because of it. Of course it started to bother T. I left her this note so she would see it when she left for work
I eventually started working... I have only worked one full time job my whole life and I had stayed with the company, transferred to the Vegas office. I thought I was going to have it made at the job like I did back home... but due to covid it was just friggin horrible. I hated it... hated a job I had absolutely loved my whole life. I never experienced much work stress at all. This was excruciating. I just could not stand it.
One thing that made it more bearable was spending a few minutes with Looce before work. I called it "Morning puppy time" Looce slept with her Mom, but I always begged T for a few minutes with Looce every morning.
During this time, I was selling off the last of my crypto. I knew it was a bad move but I was just ready to be done with it all after having it make me sick for over 2 years since it crashed in early 2018. T and I both remember well how I offered her 1 bitcoin for Lucy. Which from the pic I just found was $6,300 at the time, obvioisly way more now.
I'm from a small town in North Carolina, we don't deal with many homeless people at all. When I got to Vegas, I just couldn't believe it.
These pics aren't even nothing to describe the homeless in Vegas. The 7am tweekers, people arguing with "the invisible man" and even fighting, dripping elbows on the ground on the invisible man. I was in constant culture shock to say the least.
Meanwhile, my job kept on sucking... horrifically. I'm not gonna go into detail about what I do but it's a rare situation where things could alter drastically from one day to the next. It had the chance to get better so I had hope. Historically my job was great but due to covid and a few other unfortunate circumstances... man I just hated it. I remember like it was yesterday, maybe just 3 weeks into working that job, I came home one afternoon, flopped down on the couch, sat in quiet and just thought to myself I can't do this anymore. Between everything being shut down, all the covid insanity, and my job just being something I absolutely hated... I sat there on that couch and thought there's no way... I'm gonna have to move home. Right then, I heard a scratch on T's bedroom door. About 10 seconds later, I heard the door open. Looce came downstairs quickly, got on the couch and slowly/shyly walked up to me with the sweetest look being so happy to see me. I decided to keep on and give this move to Vegas some more time.
Like a lot of people did during covid, T got back with her ex. None of her family liked him and weren't happy to see her back with him. I was cool with him though. I didn't care for the way he talked to her at times, he reminded me of my Dad who was a selfish sum bit** but we didn't have a problem with each other at all. T started staying at his place a lot so it was just Looce and I at the house most of the time... along with Jack Daniels, Johnnie Walker, Mr. Tito, etc.
I felt bad for Looce seeing me enjoying myself so much drinking whiskey all the time, so I got her a bottle
Due to many elective surgeries being cancelled and other factors, T got laid off from her nursing job. She started doing travel nursing as it paid very well. Then it was just Looce and I all the time. Through all of this I was making a complete fool of myself on instagram, getting drunk, making videos of me talking to Looce and her toys. I had named all of her toys and would have little puppet shows (or something like it anyways) pretty much every time I drank. I felt bad for T being away from her dog. I made as many videos as I could so she could see Looce. I would have what I called "Committee meetings" with all of Looce's crew.
I made a complete fool of myself to everyone I knew but "If you get drunk enough anything is fun" and I certainly got drunk enough, so I didn't care if people got a laugh at my expense, it was fun.
I named Looce's little village
This was Mayor Sotterfield. He was a corrupt politician and a drunk
Due to this guy's blue lips and flamboyancy, I assumed he was gay... Seinfeld disclaimer-"not that there's anything wrong with that"
His name was Bi-Curious George.
Bi-Curious George talked with a lisp. He was a pervert and an antagonizing little sh**. A troublemaker... but he was pretty funny and a favorite among instagram followers.
Seems like a lot of people were asking each other where was the first place they were gonna go eat when the good restaurants reopened around late May. I didn't have many friends to go eat with, but I had a best friend. Looce and I had been looking forward to eating at Lazy Dogs where dogs are welcome and they have a doggie menu.
Through all this time I battled homesickness something fierce. Constantly I would get to drinking and play "Home in My Mind" The song was specifically written about my small hometown. I would play it, miss all my friends back home and most of all my Mom.
It was really tough. I know I couldn't have made it through all that without Looce, no way in the world. I remember my Mom telling me on the phone shortly after I got there (in her deep southern accent) "Jiiiiiiim the Lord sent you that dog" She said it all the time.
Through all this time, my good friends kept asking me when I was moving home as they were certain it would be soon.
All my close friends were saying come on back home, noone is going to call you a quitter with all this covid mess going on and whatnot. I wanted to go home, wanted to get back to the most comfortable comfort zone in the world... back to where I wasn't scared all the time and everything made sense... but if I did that, I would have to say goodbye to Looce... so I decided to keep toughing it out for a bit.
Done for the moment. Once again, thanks for letting me share all this and the nice comments.
I know it was 6 years ago, and hope all is well today, but this post makes it look like you are calling out for help. If so, this thread can be an intro: https://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/34/ot...
I know it was 6 years ago, and hope all is well today, but this post makes it look like you are calling out for help. If so, this thread can be an intro: https://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/34/ot...
Thanks, I sincerely appreciate it, but as much as I drank through the lockdown, I did stick by a lifelong rule of not drinking 2 days in a row. I still drink now but just occasionally (often very heavy when I do however)
Going through pics from 2020, I'm reminded how crazy the times were
Eventually the casinos opened back up but my Disneyland ended up being one of the last to reopen
I went to Caesars Palace a lot but it wasn't the same at all. I loved PH because of the people/my friends more than anything.
T lived close by to Aliante, a local casino. I was surprised how cool the local casinos were. Hardly any other city can you drive to one place and have dinner, watch a movie, gamble, go bowling, hang out at the bar, watch games at the sportsbook, etc. Of course I took Looce with me
I know many don't care for dogs at the casino but if every dog was so well behaved and chill as Looce, I don't think anyone at all would disapprove.
At first, T said she didn't want me taking Looce to casinos... until I explained how Looce brought out so many smiles from old, ornery people losing money all day. She let me keep taking Looce with me 🙂
One thing we still got to enjoy through all this was In and Out burger. If you've never had In and Out burger there is just no describing it. The best way I can think of is to say I don't know how they make it so good, so cheap. Man it is just unbelievable. "Happiness only real when shared" so it seems like every time I went I had to send a pic to someone
Looce always got her a "Puppy Patty" or two
With T doing so much travel nursing, like Forrest would say... Looce and I were "like peas and carrots" she was always by my side
T wanted to leave the option of Looce having pups open so she wasn't fixed. Unfortunately, while T was away with travel nursing, Looce went into heat for the first time. Poor girl 🙁
Obviously, I had never assembled a diaper in my life
Looce didn't feel like leaving the house much for those 2-3 weeks so we sat around and you guessed it, drank whiskey
Looce watched me get drunk, make a complete fool of myself on instagram constantly.
Looce had torn this chicken's leg off so we named her Eileen
With T being out of town, I didn't mind looking like I was insane since she got to see Looce on video while she was gone. A lot of her family started following me on instagram because they all wanted to see Looce. I can only imagine how they must have seen those videos, told T she was crazy letting a Looney Toon live in her house. They found it entertaining nonetheless. About 90% of people thought I had lost my mind, but about 10% loved the crazy, unique mess. I got a lot of praise from the 10% so I kept on doing it, got pretty creative and crazy with it. I started buying all kinds of different dog toys, funko pops and crap just to make a fool out of myself more creatively on instagram.
We had special guests come to Looce's town often. Bicurious George got real excited when he thought he saw a bird, a plane....
Wound up being Superman! Bicurious George was so excited
I played the Superman theme on the speaker real loud and all, went all out with production value every time for "The Gram"
One evening, out of nowhere we heard Ric Flair's entrance music as he arrived in his private jet. He kept telling Minnie Mouse he was going to take her for a ride on Space Mountain
Mickey didn't care for Ric Flair
Bicurious George just didn't know what to think of Flair's lewdness and womanizing ways... had a panic attack
After a while, the tough guys in Looce's little town had enough of Bicurios George's antics, threatened to bust his mug with a hammer. Darth Vader's theme was playing loud
Going through my phone, seeing videos. We had our regular friends stop by often. Just imagine delivering a pizza to several black guys and the whitest, loudest, thickest southern accented drunk he had ever seen... having a "committee meeting" for Looce. On the video I told the guy Ric Flair just arrived, invited him in to meet Ric but he declined
Sometimes I look back at my Instagram memories/videos and just can't believe the crazy crap I did. I didn't care at the time though. Whenever someone is away from their dog, they want live pics sent often. With me putting on an instagram show with Looce all the time, T got to see her dog and that was my excuse to get drunk and stupid I guess. Her nursing friends looked forward to it also
Looce and I were pretty proud of our craft. I didn't want but so many people see me doing all that crazy crap so my instagram was kept on private. I probably should have tried to promote it, make some money as so many told me I was crazy and a few told me they loved it, but everyone said they had to see what happens next. Looce and I were proud of our little cult following. We embraced the moniker "Slim City Productions"
With all the covid and "socially distancing" crap, noone could properly celebrate Birthdays in 2020. Slim City Productions did everything they could to make the day special for our friends with custom Birthday videos. This particular party wasn't for the "dog toy" Mickey, it was for our longtime friend we call Mickey Mouse I've written about in other threads. We hadn't seen my human friend Mickey or many other people who's friendship I was depending on to adjust to this move and it sucked. Being away from so many great friends from home to very few... It really sucked and was very tough to adjust... but I was blessed with the miraculous surprise of Looce, so it was all tolerable for the time being.
I had to keep an eye on Sylvester... always trying to score supper
Looks like I got to rambling again. Thanks for letting me share all this crazy mess. I promise the eventual ending to this thing will be worth all my personal crap. It will be as unique and crazy of a trainwreck than anyone could imagine, I'd wager anything on that
Usually my threads are filled with pic like this
I know my phone was filled with pics like these after the casinos reopened... and I'm sure I deleted them all with disgust at some point. When I moved here, I lied to myself the same as every other degenerate who moves here. I acted like I was gonna have all this self control since I was living here now. Blah blah blah, I ended up having no self control... shocker huh?
Anyways through all this time I lost a ton of money... a ton. That's not what this story is about though so I'm going to skip all that.
This story is about the "best dog in the world"
My job in Vegas still horrifically sucked. It was around late August when I had all I could take. In the middle of the day, I said I can't take it, was gonna tell em that afternoon I'd like to transfer back home. Right when I made my mind up on that, Looce's babysitter sent me a pic.
It turned my day around and I decided to keep sticking it out.
Looce and I kept making daily instagram videos, going to the park every day, etc. I had fallen completely in love and completely dependent on her
Percival the pig was her favorite
Got Looce some shoes. She didn't care for them
With all the divisive and crazy stuff going on in 2020, Slim City Productions did all they could to find humor in it.
Looce's town got all in an uproar when He-man was an acting deputy and got too aggressive when he saw Akeem from Coming to America attack Samuel Jackson with a mop handle. He Man walked into the McDowells restaurant on the butt end of that one, had it all out of context and messed up.
The local "Pawlice" wasn't sure what was going on, didn't take immediate action and faced much backlash from it all
Before you knew it, Looce's town was in an uproar. Randy Watson, with his soul just a glo-ing was leading a movement
People constantly thought I was off my rocker but they still enjoyed it. I had to chill out for a while when one of my friends ratted me out to my Mom. Had to hear her deep southern drawl
"Jiiiiiiiiiiiim.... I heard you were teasing that poor dog with a gay puppet"
Obviously I had too much time and too much alcohol on my hands
Through all this, T wasn't at the house much. She had gotten back with her ex a while back, got serious and got engaged. I nor any of her family thought this was a good idea at all, but tried to be supportive. That aside, my heart dropped when I heard the news, thinking about Looce not being my roommate anymore. It was terrifying. Luckily her fiance had just moved into a new area where T had a friend that had just bought a house also. They lived less than a mile apart So I asked T's friend if I could move in and she was cool with it. I had devised a plan to keep Looce while T worked nights and that worked great for everyone.
The job still sucked, PH had yet to open... If living so near and babysitting Looce hadn't been an option, I know I would have moved home right then.
Apparently PH finally opened in early October. I was so happy to see everyone
Looks like my luck didn't change though
Still, with all the barriers, masks, etc. Vegas sucked compared to the old days. It was pretty ridiculous
Miraculously, right around then work got way, way better. I was really enjoying it like I did back home, looked forward to experiencing some really cool things on the job. I had a good place to live setup, would have Looce around plenty and PH had opened. I was looking forward to what Vegas had in store and very happy... until...
I don't want to tell T's business on here too much but she went through an extremely rough patch. Her and her fiance called it off among other things. While I was sad for her, I was extremely relieved Looce and I would still be roommates. We dressed up to celebrate
During this time, T was really bad off, going through what had to have been one of the hardest times of her life. In hindsight, it made me feel really good that I was around to help her through all that. I did the best I could and I know she appreciated it, glad I was around.
While T was going through a very hard time and that made me very sad overall... as far as my personal situation, things were looking up and going good for me. I had a great place to live, a job I loved again, PH was back open... and I had my best friend in the world with me every minute
My spirit and hopes were higher than they had been during this entire move.
Then just like that, T decided her and Looce were moving back home to Salt Lake City
Gonna finish this soon.
As always, thanks for letting me share all these memorable times... and once again, I promise the ending to all this will be one like no other.
Thanks -Slim
Sorry to hear of T's rough patch. Glad to hear your situation was picking up. Hope hers gets right, and yours continues on the upward swing.
Really liked the pic of Looce with the cape, leaping forward. Nice shot.
I do not like dogs one bit, but that picture with all legs off the ground is amazing.
Whoa!!! Looce got a compliment from The Pope? She really is awesome lol. Just kiddin. She could really fly, made for many jaw drops, oohs and ahhs at the dog park
My Mom always told me that dogs live in the moment. I realized that ever since I met Looce, I was living in the moment. Very quickly I loved her and depended on her to a pathetic level. I never thought about how she wasn't my dog, that at some point saying goodbye was inevitable... I was just living in the moment. T put her house up for sale so I figured we had a little while... but this was the bizarro world of 2020. First day it went on the market she had many offers, sold it to a lady that wrote her a long, kind letter.
If the job and everything else had not have gotten way better, I would have just moved home. However, T did say that for 2-3 months, she would be coming 4-5 days a month to work her old job and would stay with her friend I was moving in with so I decided to at least stick it out to see Looce again.
The countdown of losing my best friend was on. It was an indescribable reality to face.
Through all this, naturally it bothered T how much attention Looce was giving me.
I felt kinda bad but it really didn't matter since it was soon to be irrelevant anyways 🙁
We did get to spend Halloween together. My Shaggy wig sucked but Looce was a great Scoob
Spent every minute I could with her those final days. She went to vote with me even.
Besides saying goodbye to my Grandma for the last time, saying goodbye to Looce was gonna be the hardest thing I ever did. I kept thinking, well we have another day... until we didn't.
Made a fool of myself pretty bad that night on Instagram, whining and crying about having to say goodbye to Looce. I also thanked T a lot for everything she did for me, putting up with me. A lot of people reached out, said they were gonnna miss Looce too and they were sorry I had to say goodbye to her. She had developed quite the cult following lol. Even the toughest of tough guys that I haven't spoken to since high school reached out. Our last night together I wanted to spend all the time I could with her. Took her to Aliante one last time, had a friend take a ton of pics
For a while, T had asked me what my final message on the chalkboard would be. I couldn't think of anything to do it proper justice just yet
Everyone's bed was loaded up so T and her family that was helping move stayed at Aliante that night. I begged her to let Looce stay with me the first night I would spend at my new home and I was so relieved when she said yes.
T's friend I was moving in with was cool but I really didn't know her all that great. The only time I had done anything like this was with T who I had known for many years and Looce was there. I was abnormally nervous about it all but Looce made the first night easier
I only slept a few hours. T was leaving early so I got on up, took Looce to the park one last time
Our ride back from the park would be our last ride together. I made one last instagram story, talking to Looce, kinda informing everyone where she was going and her situation. When I first rolled into Vegas, I was coming off such a great moment, "Five More Minutes" was the perfect song to play... and it was the song to play once again with this last Looce video. I told her she's going on an exciting adventure to a new home, gonna make new friends, etc. til I couldn't talk anymore because I was crying like a little bit**
I've been going through my phone from 2020, reliving and writing all this. Even now, watching that video made a grown man cry. I know Looce was confused through it all
Please excuse all the mushy stuff I'm gonna write as this was one of the most emotional days of my life.
All the moving was done, her family was outside in their car waiting on her. She had Looce on her leash, ready to go. I knew walking out of that house for the last time was gonna be a moment for her, so I stayed in the kitchen and peeked around as she was leaving.
She opened the door, but before she walked out, she stopped. She slowly looked around the whole house, obviously reflecting on her times there. I'm sure the first time she walked in that house she looked at it and had dreams of making it the home she would live a great life in, raise a family and everything...
but as she looked around that house for the last time, it was one of the saddest things I had seen..
Eventually she looked up towards where her father passed away, then broke down in hysteric tears. I knew exactly what she was thinking about. Her mother lived far away and they weren't at all close, her Father was everything to her, a great and kind man. In a relatively short time, her father had a heart attack and died in that house. Her dog of 12 years she loved so much died in that house... and I can't get into it, but something just as painful happened also. So many awful things she had to endure while she was living there. I don't know many that could have made it through what she did and not completely lose it. When she started crying so bad, I ran in and hugged her. Her family and others had teased me weeks prior about how I was gonna cry saying goodbye to Looce, so I had prepared myself and was determined not to cry.... but I wasn't prepared to say goodbye to T... leaving that house as sad as she was. I cried so hard I couldn't speak. I was barely able to utter to her... "You're one of the nicest people I've ever known" she said "you are too Slim". Again, I've never been a cryer at all, but for probably the 7th time that year, I was crying harder than I ever had in my life again... then when I looked down, saw Looce looking at me so confused, I kneeled down to her and cried even harder for #8. To watch someone so nice, so selfless with such a kind and genuine heart go through the things she did, suffering the way she had, completely broke my heart. Me moving to Vegas had been a disaster and a mistake I deeply regretted... but if nothing else, I'm glad I was there for her at that moment. I shut the door behind her and that was supposed to be goodbye but I couldn't let it be. I didn't want her family to see me choked up like I was so I threw on some sunglasses. I went out to her car she was already in and I was still so upset, it was hard to get words out. I tried to tell her this was a good thing, referenced what I had finally written for my last message on the chalkboard, told her she can "Start Fresh"
I said don't be afraid, be excited.... and of course I said bye to Looce again... looking at her confused face made me once again, cry tears like I never have before.
T pulled out as I stood still in the driveway. I held one hand up in a motionless wave goodbye. As she pulled away, I took my sunglasses off so she could see the tears in my eyes. Her walking out of that house for the last time is one of the saddest things I have ever seen.... but at the same time... as hard as it is to explain, it's what Kenny Chesney would call "The Good Stuff" I will never forget it.
I was so scared for her as she was leaving... I was so worried, terrified. About 30 minutes later I felt just a little better when she called with excitement. She said she had driven in silence til she turned on Pandora and the first song that came on was a song she had heard me play all too many times... "Home In My Mind" by Scotty McCreery.
She used to see me playing that song when I was drunk and homesick several times a week... judging from the excitement in her voice, I think it helped the sadness, made her happy about going back home to her sisters and cousins. I will never forget that.
I promised to include the trainwreck ending to this "Moving to Vegas" thread and here it is. T and I had become family, not having her as a roommate and friend was gonna be hard as he**.... but I quickly realized living out there without Looce was gonna be impossible. I hadn't lived a day in Vegas without her. I cried like a little girl for 3 days. Not only did I miss her, I was scared as he** without her... and I quickly realized I had become even more dependent on her than I thought. Every moment was harder without her. No morning puppy time, no looking forward all day to getting the hero's welcome when I got home... no nothing. It sucked.
Every good dog movie ends in tears, often from the dog dying at the end. Looce was still alive and serving a great purpose as her Mom really needed her but she was gone from my life. Looce didn't die but saying goodbye to her was sad the same way it was in the movie "White Fang" when Ethan Hawke was moving away, had to say goodbye and see the confused look on White Fang's face like he didn't love him...
https://youtu.be/v6rkSs5G5rc?si=G0AI8Oz9...
Hardly any movies ever made me cry but that scene made me cry as a boy and it's making me cry now as Looce and I looked just like this
White Fang didn't understand why he had to say goodbye. Looce had that same look the last time I saw her pulling out of T's driveway. T said Looce kept looking back, confused during the drive. The only friends I had out there that were "family", T and Looce were gone. As Forrest Gump would say "It was one of the saddest times of my life" I wanted to keep making a go of it out there, but without Looce, I was beat like a drum. I felt I had "fought the good fight" the best I could but it became obvious there was no need to try anymore... It was time to go home.
All these moving to Vegas threads usually end in failure because of a bad beat/luck gambling, falling victim to temptation, lack of self control, lack of money and whatnot.... Well I'm obviously "not your average bear" to say the least. I had made it through the covid shutdown, so many good Vegas friends moving away because of it... I made it through my job being absolutely awful... and many other obstacles that cause people to fail moving to Vegas.... but leave it to me to get beat by missing a dog. I had never known a day away from home without ole Looce Goose. She was there the moment I pulled in the driveway. She was the best friend I ever had, a friend I was more dependent on than any other and her being gone was grueling. As much as I dreamed of a new life and wanted to keep trying, I couldn't take it
At that point, I knew I was going home but T and Looce would be visiting for those 4 or 5 days close to Christmas so I was gonna try to stick it out 6 more weeks and see them one last time. I also knew that there was no way on God's green earth that I would ever, ever get on a plane and visit Vegas again so there were a few things I wanted to do before I left Vegas for the last time. I contacted the branch at my job back home and asked if I could transfer in January. They said they'd love to have me back, and that if I could transfer in 2 weeks, they could make it just like I had it before... "the most comfortable comfort zone in the world"... but if I waited til after, there was no telling how my job would be and most likely it would suck... and suck long term.
The next few days I deliberated the decision and these days were just as bad as the first 3, living in a strange house without Looce and T, being without my best friend. I just couldn't take it 6 more weeks. I wanted to go home where at least someone genuinely gave a rat's a** about me as noone out here did anymore. I wanted to have my old job that I loved so much back like it was, I wanted to be around my Mom and good friends, people that genuinely cared about me... so I did... I moved back home.
It hurt knowing I would never see Vegas again... hurt worse knowing I would never see Looce again, hurt bad... so as crazy as it sounds, I did something that could help as good as anything and wrote her a goodbye letter. As exceptional of a dog as Looce was, she was unable to read so I sent it to T... As much as I've blabbed on... (addy) I might as well include the letter. If you're at all pressed for time you might want to skip it
Looce!!!!! "Whaaaaaat does that sweet girl think she's doing?"
Saying goodbye to you has been harder than I could have ever imagined. I hate getting attached to anything because I hate feeling the way I do now, but I am so glad you were in my life. There is absolutely no way in the world I could have made it here without you. In a relatively short time, I have grown to love you so much, it truly is pathetic lol. My mom said from the start... "Jiiiiiiiim.. the lord sent you that dog" and I know he did. It was so hard for me when I moved here, you have no idea. I moved here because I needed change in my life and this was the place where I would have many friends... but that dagon virus made it to where I didn't see hardly any friends at all... but I ended up being blessed with a new friend, my best friend in the world. Other than when I was at work, you were with me almost every minute, and when I was at work, my days were made easier cause I could look forward to seeing you. I always loved taking you to the casino and other places if for no other reason just to watch how people would look at you and have their day brightened ... not just cause you are a cute doggie, but because I think they can look at you, instantly tell how sweet and kind you are, see how beautiful life can be I guess. Whether it was walking in public or sitting at a stoplight, watching someone stare at you and smile was beyond priceless. I'm sorry for aggravating you with the camera so much but "happiness is only real when shared" and so many friends loved seeing your videos. Many have told me how much they will miss seeing you on instagram. The three brightest parts of every day for me were morning puppy time, the hero's welcome and our nightly scooter runs. Your mom would get upset because she thought I was your favorite at times but I explained to her that wasn't the case... you just knew how much I needed you and that's why you gave me so much attention. When your mom was working in Cali I think you needed me a lot and that made me love you even more. It is so, so hard to see you leave Looce, but I am glad you are leaving. Your mom needs change just like I did and as much as I need you... she needs you more, especially now. I had told myself I wasn't gonna cry when you left but I was choked up so bad I could barely utter any words to your mom as y'all were leaving. I've even been crying while writing this lol. Life is gonna be different now and it will be tough to adjust. I'm so thankful you were with me my first night in this new house. It helped me so much. I don't think your mom realized I put off moving my stuff in the new house til the last minute because I was scared. Your mom would joke how we were anxiety buddies like Scooby and Shaggy lol. Try not to be so nervous at your new home. You will not have to spend as much time alone and Mr. Titan will be there... so hopefully "Lucifer" will not be making many appearances haha. Take care Looce, thank you so much for everything. Hopefully we will hang out soon but even if I were to never see you again you will always be such a big part of my life. I will miss you so much, but it comforts me a lot knowing you are being there for your mom. Take care Looce. I Love you so much, Slim
The drive from home/across the country, moving to Vegas had been the greatest adventure of my life. The drive back... not so much. I drove back the same route as I came but without stopping to see much at all, not taking my time like before. They don't have In and Out burger where I live, so I stopped there, being amazed one last time how they make it so good so cheap.
I rode down the strip knowing it would be the last time I ever see it, driving slowly, pulling over at times to stop and reflect. I couldn't bring myself to walk into Planet Hollywood and say goodbye to all those people because I knew it would be tough... but I did stop and stare at the Planet Hollywood sign on the top of the building a while. I thought about all the crazy, memorable times there. Definitiely some of the best times of my life... and it was sad I wouldn't be making any more memories there.
Once I got good and on the road, I didn't stop at any of the cool places I had on the way to Vegas... Except for one, the crossroads from the Cast Away movie. I stood in the middle of that road just like I did before
but this time instead of reflecting on my life as a whole, thinking about what the future had to bring... I reflected on my 8 months living in Vegas. Pondered on an unrealized dream of a new life... pondering what if covid hadn't happened, what if the job was different, what if I had more friends, any friends that are like family still there and other what ifs. I didn't pull Wilson the volleyball out of the car this time, take any pics or anything. I just stood there, and reflected. Hate to sound gloomy but It was as depressing as the actual ending of Cast Away and similar in many ways. Again, not trying to make this depressing, just being honest...The whole drive back was like a Zoloft commercial.
After that last visit to In and Out Burger, I don't think I smiled again til I saw my Mom. My Mom was so happy to see me, glad I was back... and it made me feel real good... but I could also see her sadness when she saw the disappointment in my face after failing miserably on a lifelong dream/attempt at a new life. Having to move away from my Mom is what kept me from moving to Vegas for many years and I only did it once she got healthy, convinced me that as much as she would miss me, she wanted me to move to Vegas for me and it's what she sincerely wanted. She was sad I was back without living out a dream or finding a new life and that just sucked too.
It was nice getting into the old comfort zone I loved so much again. Going over to my "2nd parents" house, having fun playing Tecmo Bowl, drinking wine while rocking in their rocking chairs on the front porch, playing Connect 4 and other board games with their daughter again. It was nice seeing my old coworkers... but sucked seeing the condescension in their eyes as they all just knew I would fail and be back. It was nice the first time all my lifelong friends got together again. They did give me credit for lasting longer than any of them had bet on me making it out there... except for "my 2nd Dad" the smartest guy I know, who was right on the money with his prediction of being home by Christmas. It's nice being home. I have so many true and great friends here. I have a great job that I really enjoy. I have a very blessed life and I'm really thankful for it.
Not many people start "moving to Vegas" threads and finish em, much less making it wind up being a happy story. Noone in the world could have predicted covid but In hindsight, my move to Vegas probably wound up as most would have predicted regardless of covid. There's no way to sugar coat it... I wish I never had done it. Don't get me wrong, I'm thankful for my experiences, I'm thankful for being able to help T and others... and as they say "It's better to have loved and lost to have never loved" Even though it was a dog, I did experience a miraculous love like I never had and I will always remember.
I'm thankful for having the memories (even though many of those memories are hazy, being blacked out drunk, making a fool of myself on instagram many nights) during the covid quarantine. People will never forget their experiences during the quarantine and I did enjoy mine thanks to drunken nights at T's house with Robert, Brandon, and of course Looce. We had many a night that I look back at Instagram memories and smile at the fun we were having. Often shaking my head how I made a fool of myself doing puppet shows with Bi-Curious George and company... geez... I really can't believe I had a bisexual dog toy... but "with enough alcohol anything is fun" and it was. I'm thankful for those times and experiences for sure... and I'm very thankful for the miraculous blessing of Looce. It showed me how good doG..(oops, spelled that backwards again) can be in a way I never knew til Looce... Being shown the love, comfort and the company of the best dog/best friend I have ever known during the toughest, most memorable time of my life was a miraculous blessing...
All that being said, I do have to say I wish I had never moved to Vegas. One obvious reason is I blew a ton of money in those 8 months. Blew what should have been a nest egg that takes most a lifetime to save... and I probably wouldn't even regret the move if it were just that... but as great as my life is at home now, there is one thing different than before... My Disneyland is gone. Whether it was remembering/daydreaming about past trips or looking forward to/planning the next trip to Vegas with so much anticipation... it's what I thought about with joy all the time and now it's gone. You could say I can go back anytime, but no... I can't. It's different now. There is no way I could bring myself to go back. I just wanna put that place behind me forever. Might not sound like a whole lot to some but it is for me. Again, I'm thankful for my experiences moving there, knowing what it's like to live away from Garner, and the drive across country to a new life will always be the greatest journey of my life... but if I'm being honest, I have to say
"The juice wasn't worth the squeeze"
Sorry for such a depressing ending to this story but I've always taken pride in being honest and transparent on here... and if I'm being honest, there's just no way to make it any less depressing.....
that is.....
"If I did it"
When I say "If I did it" I mean If I moved home when I did. No doubt at all what I described is what would have happened if I moved home at that time.
Everything happened like I said, T and Looce moved away and all. I was miserable/couldn't make it without Looce and all that stuff... but I didn't give in, didn't move home just yet.
Again, thanks for letting me share all this. Gonna update soon and I PROMISE it's gonna be entertaining.
Slim
Not too long before I made the move to Vegas I watched the movie "Walt Before Mickey" The movie is crap, but it's supposed to be a true story. Towards the end, Walt Disney traveled to New York to sign some deal with a big cartoon agency. The deal went south and Walt Disney was ready to say screw it all. Walt left New York discouraged and depressed, planning to go to work for the city or something... ready to give up on his lifelong dream. During the train ride Walt looked up at the clouds and saw a formation of what I guess looked like this
Mickey Mouse was born and obviously, Walt didn't give up on his dream after Mickey appeared.
I mention that because right when I was about to give up on my dream, Mickey Mouse appeared to me also... not in the form of a cloud, but my old friend who I called Mickey Mouse showed up. I hadn't seen her since the first week I moved there because of covid and other reasons. I referenced Mickey a lot in my TR threads but not in this moving to Vegas thread.
Would take forever to describe what her and I have been through since I met her in 2016 but I'll try and be quick. She's extremely beautiful, inside and out. I'm not gay (Seinfeld disclaimer) so of course I was smitten with her for about the first year but she always had a bf. I have always taken pride in having extreme morals, so I sincerely never tried to put the moves on her or anything. We became close friends with a special bond that's impossible to describe. She and I had very similar hearts and values, always had the best conversations that I not only enjoyed, but genuinely learned from and got enlightened by. Conversations with Mickey always made me wiser and a better person. It got to where when I was on the plane to Vegas, I wasn't looking forward to gambling, etc ("Space Mountain") nearly as much as I was talking to Mickey. The "Mickey" moniker came from when I once said "coming to Vegas and not seeing you is like going to Disneyland and not seeing Mickey Mouse" We've always been completely platonic but very close in a way that's again, impossible to describe. Part of the reason I wanted to move back home was that I was completely over the casinos. For months my life had consisted of work, casinos, drinking at the house, and making a fool of myself on Instagram with Looce and her toys. As much as I had grown to love nature on the trip across country to Vegas, the most nature I had seen since moving there was the Bellagio conservatory. I asked Mickey if she wanted to go somewhere on the strip, some fancy place to eat or something. She said "you always wanna go to some 100 dollar lunch or fancy dinner all the time. It's a beautiful day, let's just get sandwiches and wine, go to the park." I wasn't too excited about that but I said ok. Parks where I'm from suck but I would soon learn some of the parks in Vegas are really great.
We got sandwiches from Capriottis and a couple bottles of red wine. The park we went to was huge. It was a Tuesday or something, noone was there, weather was perfect.
If you've ever seen the movie "Something About Mary" that is the best way to describe how people are around "Mickey" as far as all the attention she gets. One of my favorite descriptions of the word "Charm" is "The ability to make others feel good about themselves" From that, I've always said I don't like "charming" people (salesmen, politicians, etc.) as they can be good BS-ers. Genuine charm is completely different and that's what Mickey has probably more than anyone I've ever known. Obviously, being very pretty gets the initial attention from folks, but when they get to know her kind and GENUINE heart, many will do whatever they can to put themselves around her (self included) I've always joked "There's Something about Mickey" as it really gets crazy, just like the movie with all the people vying for her company.
That's why this day was so great. We really got to talk—just the two of us, in person—for the first time since COVID. There were no crazy distractions like in a casino, just our conversations and nature on a beautiful day. After all the $100 steaks I had eaten, thousand dollar hands of black jack, everything I had done in Vegas since I moved there... I enjoyed this day better than all of it by far. I had seen something completely different from Vegas with a great and genuine friend. One of the reasons I had decided to move home was that once T and Looce left, I felt like there was no one within thousands of miles who really gave a crap about me. That day with Mickey showed me otherwise.
I had such a great time just enjoying the simple things with Mickey. We started making plans to see more nature, go on hikes, and explore different places. I had almost forgotten that I already had the ball rolling on a job transfer to move back home, but after talking about all the amazing things there were still to experience in Vegas, I decided to put it off.
I was really screwing myself at work long term by staying past Christmas, but I said screw it, figured I could delay the move for six weeks, enjoy more nature adventures with Mickey, get to see T and Looce one last time.
The following week, Mickey and I decided to do the Railroad pass hike near Boulder City. Beautiful drive
Being from NC, I haven't seen nature like it is in Nevada. I was blown away by it all, really enjoyed it
Back home, we always checked the weather for rain when we made plans. In Vegas you have to check for wind. It was awful windy that day... Wasn't too windy to keep us from the wine though... which made the wind more tolerable
BTW, I don't get carried away with wine like I do liquor. Just had a little and was fine to get home as the drive back at sunset was really something
We had such a great time that day. We started making plans to go on several more "adventures" that I was gonna try and squeeze in before I moved home. During these times, I wasn't so worried about everything like I was when T and Looce first left. I was just looking forward to the next adventure. Most importantly, I had a great and genuine friend to share it all with... which is a miracle for me to find in Vegas as someone that values trust in a friendship over anything, very picky about who I choose to befriend.
Seems like the wind and cold weather foiled some of our adventure plans in the coming weeks but the wind couldn't stop a trip to In and Out burger. We would enjoy as Morgan Wallen would say "sipping on something from a paper sack" in the parking lot, catching a slight empty stomach buzz that was just mild enough to be able drive home without risk after eating a 3x3
One night Mickey showed me where she went to middle school. It was high on a mountain with a view of Vegas that was like no other
I kept being amazed seeing different sides of Vegas I had never seen. I was really enjoying it and amazed by it all
Before long, it was almost time for Looce to make her 5 day visit back to Vegas. I had taken PTO for the occasion to spend all the time I could with her. Bi-curious George and the committee were very excited, did a lot of teasers on instagram
It was completely pathetic how excited I was to see Looce again.
Of course I was excited to see T also... but, you know how it's different with dogs... had some fun with it
As I write this now, it brings a tear to my eye and a smile to my face remembering when Looce came back. I didn't think a grown man could be as giddy as I was when I saw her. As Forrest would say "It was one of the happiest times of my life"
I had given my bedroom to T during her stay. I slept on a mattress topper inside of a walk in closet... which was actually really cozy. Had some company
Looce never left my side, followed me to the bathroom even
Again to quote Forrest, "We were like peas and carrots again"
Of course getting so much of Looce's attention bothered T... but I know she was happy to see me so pathetically happy. During Looce's stay we planned an adventure with Mickey
We went to Floyd Lamb park and loved it, so did Looce
For something to make us go from being so sad and scared, to being so happy and secure... dogs truly are miracles
As happy as I was, the time flew by. It was almost time to say goodbye to Looce again. The last night T was in town, my new roommate/landlord, T and I went to eat at Sapparo. T never, ever drank but had a large beer so it hit her pretty good. That's when she told me that she had been talking to my new roomie and said that it would be cool if Looce stayed with me through Christmas and a month after that til T had to come back to Vegas. I felt weird because I knew that this Christmas was gonna be particularly hard for T and she needed Looce... but T knew this would be my first Christmas ever away from home so her being so selfless as she is... I knew she wanted to do it and it would make her happy. It was her Christmas gift to me. Man, that was just unbelievable joy when she told me that. There's no explaining it.
Every year, I ask people what their all time favorite Christmas gift was. I always said the Nintendo ever since I was a small kid
It took the good part of a lifetime for the Nintendo to be topped... but this year, the Nintendo got clobbered
When T got to the bottom of her jumbo beer, she looked at me sternly and asked "how does it feel knowing my dog loves you more than she loves me?"
I instantly answered, how does it feel knowing you just gave an old man the best Christmas gift he's ever received in his life... she had no response to that... and I could tell it touched her.
She also told me that she would be doing a lot of travel nursing and that if I wanted to meet her half way to Salt Lake City on a regular basis, that I could keep Looce about half the time... like shared custody haha
Just like that, everything changed. A few weeks earlier I was ready to run back home to Garner with my tail tucked between my legs. Now I was as excited as I'd ever been about the future and this new life I'd been miraculously blessed with.
I was gonna spend my first Christmas away from home with my roommate who I didn't know but so well, and her parents who I've never met. Believe it or not, without alcohol... I'm extremely shy with bad social anxieties... and often that's my excuse to drink. That Christmas would have been very awkward without Looce... but Looce put everyone at ease (especially me) Looking back now, it was a wonderful Christmas, one that I will remember and cherish like no other... all thanks to the blessing of a heaven sent miracle that was a dog.
Of course, "Happiness is only real when shared" so Looce made her instagram posts
For the rest of my life, T letting Looce stay with me during Christmas will always be the best gift I will ever receive
A few days later, Mickey, Looce and I went to Red Rock. Just like the other adventures, again I was overwhelmed with the beauty of nature
The drive there and back, all of it was beautiful and a great day that I will never, ever forget
They say "The sweet is never as sweet without the bitter"... after being horrifically sad, ready to give up on it all after T and Looce left.. to having such a great Christmas... that Christmas made for one of the sweetest times of my life. As I write this now, over 5.5 years later, I realize that what could have been the saddest and loneliest Christmas of my life will always be the best Christmas I ever had or will have.
Not trying to get all Biblical on here but just as the holy trinity needs all 3... I needed Looce, T, and Mickey for that miracle to happen. It took all 3 to save me from what would have surely been a life of depression if I moved home back then. Like my Mom always told me "The Lord made us to need each other"
6 days after I moved to Vegas the covid lockdown happened and I regretted I made the move to Vegas ever since. I regretted it constantly, said it to myself all the time "I wish I had never moved here"... but on that day, while sitting on this bench
With a calm, but great level of happiness... I remember slightly whispering out loud to myself something I had never said before... "I'm glad I moved here"
I always thought that pic of Looce and I would be the end to this thread but too much happened after. Including something that will make up for all my mushy personal stuff. It's gonna be crazy I promise.
Again, "Happiness is only real when shared"
Thanks for reading and letting me share all this
