December 2007 Archives
It's Christmas time once again, and you know what that means...yes, the tree is up, the presents are wrapped, the cookies are out, my Norad Santa tracker is up, and 24 hours of A Christmas Story are rerunning on my TV. I find that every year I can fall asleep to one point in the film and wake up the next morning in the exact same place without skipping a beat. I call it the true Christmas Miracle.
If you have never seen the movie, it is about young Ralphie Parker, a boy whose only Christmas wish is to receive a BB gun for Christmas. More specifically, an Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action Two-Hundred-Shot Range Model Air Rifle. Of course, his family, teachers, and even the department-store Santa are against it, famously proclaiming "You'll Shoot Your Eye Out." In the end he finally gets his wish and his gun...and only manages to prove everyone right.
It's a Christmas classic.
While the movie itself takes place in the fictional town of Hulman, Indiana (based off of Hammond), the Parker's house actually resides in Cleveland, Ohio and is open for tours.
The house itself was only used for exterior shots, but the owner has done a spectacular job of transforming the property both inside and out. Back in 2004 a Californian names Brian Jones won the house on eBay. He had been a fan of A Christmas Story since childhood and even created the Red Rider Leg Lamp Company to manufacture replicas of the famous prop (major award) used in the film. The property wasn't in movie-form when he bought it, with newer windows and siding, but Jones took intricate notes and fixed it up to transform the property back into film-condition. Although the inside wasn't used in the movie, he also fixed it up (as best as possible as the interior wasn't the exact layout) to reflect the family home: from portraits over the mantle, a turkey in the oven, comic books on the bed, and, of course, a leg lamp in the window.
Across the street, Jones bought another property that was converted into a gift shop and mini-museum that showcases movie merchandise and costumes.
If you love the movie it's a great place to tour since every nook of the home contains something you'll recognize. But even if you don't love the movie you have to admit, this is one silly American abode.
Site: A Christmas Story House
Location: 3159 W 11th St, Cleveland, OH 44109
Cost: Adults/$7, Children 7 to 12/$5, Children 6 & under/FREE, Seniors/$6
Hours: Thursday–Saturday: 10am–5pm; Sundays 12pm–5pm (closed, Easter, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Years Eve, New Years Day, and all other Major Holidays.)
Date: August 18, 2007
True story: A gondola ride through the Venetian in Las Vegas is more relaxing than a gondola ride through Venice.
I speak the truth here, I swear. And I highly recommend the ride as a diversion from the hustle and bustle of daily Vegas life.
Like many hotel/casinos in Las Vegas, the Venetian is built on a city-centered theme. This one replicating the canals, architecture, and aura of Venice, Italy. Most of the themeiness abounds in the "Grand Canal Shoppes," a mall of sorts disguised as an Italian oasis. From the painted-blue sky set on constant sunshine to the muted stone and brick facades to the "streetmosphere" of performers, the Venetian is a mini-Italy. What makes the hotel, however, into a true silly American oasis in that carved out through the mall is a replica of the Venice canal, complete with shining gondolas and singing gondoliers.
There are two gondola rides at the Venetian: one indoor and one out. Though I have yet to ride the outdoor one, I can't imagine it being better than indoor. Outside, I imagine, you'd be riding a gondola in Vegas, but indoors you are riding a gondola through Venice.
Site: "Authentic" Venetian Gondola Ride
Location: The Venetian, 3355 Las Vegas Blvd. South, Las Vegas, NV 89109
Cost: Indoor ride: Adults - $15.00 (Gondola Seats Four), Private two-passenger gondola - $60.00; Outdoor ride: Adults - $12.50 (Gondola Seats Four), Private two-passenger gondola - $50.00
Hours: Sunday – Thursday: 10 a.m. – 11 p.m.; Friday and Saturday: 10 a.m. – midnight
Restrictions: Reservations must be made in person, same day only. Ticket sales open daily at 9 a.m. for the indoor ride and 10 a.m. for the outdoor ride.
Date: December 1, 2007
Everyone knows the gambling standards of Las Vegas: Blackjack, Poker, Roulette, Slots, Craps. But tucked away in the midst of the card tables of the MGM Grand is my favorite game of them all, one that only a true Silly American could appreciate: Sigma Derby.
Picture this: five ponies line up at the start line, the bell sounds and they take off, each jockey vying for that win, each horse trying to outdo it's competitors, racing in a circle, until a winner is declared, as the fans place bets and jeer and cheer in disappointment and celebration...
Now, picture these ponies and these jockeys in miniature plastic, racing under glass as gamblers add quarters to bet on which ponies will place where.
You are given odds that you can follow for a chance at a small payout or ignore for a smaller chance at a big payout (heck, I won $20 that way). You are given a bucket, which to me is a crazy site in modern-Vegas as this is one of few (if any other) machines on the strip that takes AND pays actual coinage. And you get the chance to see a bunch of adults yelling and screaming in hopes that a plastic pony will come through (albeit...they may be a bit drunk).
I guarantee that this horse-racing game is definitely one of the best (and silliest) gambling experiences on the strip.
Site: Sigma Derby, plastic horse racing game
Location: MGM Grand, 3799 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Las Vegas, Nevada 89109
Cost: a quarter a bet
Hours: The casino is open 24/7
Restrictions: You must be 21 to gamble.
Date: March 20, 2006/December 2, 2007
There is widely-known fact about silly American (OK OK, American American) girls: We like things chocolate and we like things big (yes boys, size does matter).
Over the weekend I took my fourth trip in four years to Las Vegas, Nevada. The city itself is huge in a way only Vegas can be: over-the-top buildings, over-the-top shows, over-the-top buffets, bright lights and late nights. Whether or not you've ever been there I'm sure you can understand and appreciate what a mecca for weird Sin City is. Having now been four times I have plenty of sites to fill you in on, but I will start with one of my favorite tastiest silly sites on the strip.
While this is not the silliest of silly you can find in Vegas, it is certainly unique: the World's Largest Chocolate Fountain.
What makes this site most unique is that, unlike most world's largest anythings, it isn't found on the side of the road, in some podunk town, in some ramshackle room. The world's biggest chocolate fountain is housed inside one of the ritziest hotels on the strip: The Bellagio.
Tucked inside Jean Philippe Patisserie, is a massive glass structure where pools of white, medium, and dark chocolate drip down, artistically spilling in a waterfall. According its informational sign, six pumps work to circulate nearly two tons of 120o F chocolate in a 95o temperature controlled enclosure into 25 hand-crafted artistic glass vessels. The chocolate rises 27 vertical feet from lower level pump room and 6 ceiling spouts disburse chocolate 14 feet above floor level. And the whole thing took 2 years of engineering, planning, and design. And, I must say, is one of the most beautiful and tasty-looking sites I have found.
All I have to say is where's the world's largest spoon!
(Unfortunately, the fountain itself is not open to be eaten, but the patisserie that houses it has amazingly delicious desserts. Be sure to taste one...or twelve...while there!)
Site: World's Largest Chocolate Fountain
Location: Bellagio, 3600 Las Vegas Blvd South, Las Vegas, NV 89109
Admission: Free to look!
Hours: The pastry shop is open Sunday - Thursday 7:00 a.m. - 11:00 p.m.; Friday and Saturday 7:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.
Restrictions: You have to be 18 years old or a registered guest to enter the hotel.
Date: December 2, 2007
