jenny and theo. we had a lot of fun. theo took us GV's (gambling virgins) under his wing and we hit the slot machines. major letdown there. i gave it a shot, but when surrounded by chain-smoking gambling addicts, the thrill was dulled. since neither jenny nor i could muster up enough enthusiasm to spend more than a dollar on the slots, we moved on to the blackjack tables. LET THE FUN BEGIN!
i'm no cardshark, but i enjoy a few hands of blackjack. what i don't enjoy is a sadistic israeli dealer named symi. she was BRUTAL! first she was mad bc we turned down the cocktail waitress... it's so much harder to deal to the sober. second, we interrupted her shellacking of two hammered frat boys. they were splitting hands and doubling down left and right, and symi was bathing in their money. add to that the fact that i won five hands straight, and she unleashed her fury. she barked at me for not holding my cards in the proper horizontal position. she snapped at me for not scratching the felt hard enough when i wanted a hit. she growled when my hand touched my chips mid-deal. THIS WAS THE FIVE DOLLAR TABLE! it's not like we were high-stakes folk.
anyway. i won a bunch but left with $2.50. not bad for a single $5.00 bet. but the big fun came afterwards at the sushi bar. we sat down, and the following conversation ensued:
JnT: let's order a pitcher of margaritas. what flavor do you want?
me: i don't drink.
JnT: it's fine after conference hours.
me: no, i don't mean i'm not drinking tonight. i mean i don't drink. ever.
JnT: confused silence
me: i'm mormon
J: what does that have to do with anything?
T: don't you know? jon smith said they're not allowed to drink. WAIT A MINUTE! i thought you married to a brotha?
me: you saw my family picture. you know i am.
T: i KNOW all about that. jon smith let him marry a mormon?
me: my husband is mormon too.
T: WHAT? jon smith don't like that stuff.
me: it's joseph smith. and i think you've gotten some bad information along the way.
J: so you can't have margaritas? wow. how are you different from catholics?
so at this point i have to decide whether the sushi bar at the silver legacy casino is the right place to begin "mormonism 101" with JnT. i clarified a few of theo's misconceptions, answered a couple of jenny's questions, refrained from margarita consumption, and got them to promise me the next time they see two mormon missionaries walking down the street, they'll stop them and ask them a few more things.
i had a great time. i didn't get much sleep due to a hard mattress and a crazy yearning for my husband. reno is a hideous, filthy place and there are a lot of slot machine junkies out there. but the food was excellent, i met great people, and learned a lot of things. jon smith would be proud.
4 comments:
Oh yeah, I'm dying. Scary how fun gambling can be, huh? I've only done it once, really, but I can see how people can become addicted. Sort of like blogging....
Great missionary moment. I can't wait until you share that one in church. Now that is a talk I could stay awake for!
I feel like I was there. I love those guys-j & t-they're the best. wasn't symi impossible? crazy night.
next time try the 25 cent roulette...shouldn't be hard to find in Reno.
well, at least you came home with a good story, which is usually the case when spending more than 24 hours in a place like reno. that place really bites.
I love this story. Those conversations are so crazy. I always wonder where they get their info. A nonmember friend called me about 5 years ago. I've known her since jr. high. she said her mother in law was telling her about mormon's special underwear and the evil book of mormon. So she actually called me and asked me about it, even though her mo in law told her that I would be mad if she asked me. I told her I was glad she asked me and to ALWAYS call and ask me.
You did an awesome job! Good call telling them to stop the missionaries next time!
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