Some old school to start it off
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-MLp3l2fkA
And this was an absolutely foreign concept to me when i was first involved in debate, the idea that there would be debate groupies, people that would follow around certain debaters to do whatever it is that groupies do, and generally just try to be/get/stay close to that person. I was familiar to the idea of a groupie, having played high school football (can you say HS quarterback and not think of the hangers on? if not, it's because your football team blew goats, and nobody likes a loser), but having played a position for which there may have never been a groupie, the punter, although I'm pretty sure Ray Guy would have had hangers-on, but he played in the '60's, where it was all about "free love". So the idea that, through athletic prowess and proficiency, one could attain some level of status that made those that found status attractive would want to make sure to be around those people is a concept that, at it's core, makes sense to me.
That being said, when i first started going to debate tournaments, i noticed a couple things, 1) there was an incredible lack of women in general, and 2) who they were attracted to seemed to have little to no correlation with the general way i understood the world to function. I would see, given the circumstances, an attractive woman with a guy...well let's just say he ain't that attractive, and comparatively, it's a travesty- to inaccurately quote a WGLF debater "it's hurricane Katrina times the tsunami times 9-11." when you see them together, you start asking all the obvious questions...is he filthy rich...does he drive a Porsche...does he have the golden tongue...does he beat it up tough...is she blind...and so on. I went for almost a year before i broke down and asked, and that was when "The "A" List" was described to me. Debaters at the top of the list find themselves in a much higher level of interaction with members of the opposite sex they previously would have classified out of their field. Older friends speak of the finer days of college CEDA debate, where it was almost a formalized process for the top speaker at given tournaments to get "The Kings/Queens Treatment" for their hard work and exceptional output from that work...but those days are done...nobody thinks this way...or do they?
Yes, it still happens. Is it that the people on the A List has no value, quite the contrary, some of these kids have a lot to offer, and have been too absorbed in whatever their passion is (i've met a 21 year old Grand Wizard at a tournament, and you'd have thought The Jonas Brothers were coming on stage (save the 11-14 year old girls panties thrown at those shows...the oldest makes them into a quilt, rumor has it). It just was a small reminder that people appreciate excellence, and really they admire and strive to be around it wherever it happens to appear. Most of us can think of a teacher we hated in high school/college, and we can also think of a teacher we really enjoyed, teachers we would consider excellence. That excellence is noticed in the classroom by the students, by the amount of love you put in the product. I'm a teacher, and i can tell you in no uncertain terms that it's the hardest job in the world when you don't want to be there, beacuse they can smell apathy like pit bulls can smell fear. But when you want to be there (and i'm definite 95% of my apprehension is when i'm not sure if i prepared the material enough or if i somehow have a different interpretation and can't see what the kids are doing) and you convey that passion to the kids, they will follow.
Vegas quote of the day, at the craps table at the Venetian...
"I love that look. Smug and condescending until you slip it in the brown eye." He was talking to himself.
Before I forget that even haters have to love up what deserves love. Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill. The Yucatan Chicken Tacos were to die for. Still not like an orgasm in the mouth, but really tasty. Get a beer with them, as the spice is there for a reason- he ain't kidding, there's even habanero sauce on the blue corn pancakes...has he no shame? Apparently, he has none, but the food is on point...i'll be having dinner there before i leave...may even have to forgo the steak...
But i am still in Vegas, doing a little beer drinking before the evening is to get really started...i like drinking in the bar, but it saves me 7 bucks a bottle until i get it started, so that seems pretty reasonable. it also gives me the time to write, which is faster than i generally anticipate, and if i could type with any modicum of proficiency, it would be all good...i love this town, but it always seems like there's too much to do and not enough time to really get it all done. You want to go out and have beers with your peeps you don't see, but you also want to chill with people that have commitments so they're a much more locked down standard. This is an awesome town, but one of the things that sucks is trying to find people in this town. If you get separated from someone you happen to be rolling out with, you can have a helluva a time finding them, not just because it's so big, but because it's so hectic. you can have a line of vision on someone, and before you know it, they're gone into the masses of people. I actually consider walking down the strip a lot like i imagine Running with the Bulls of Pamplona, the critical mass begins in a general direction, all you can do is try to outrun it, lest you be run over- you can try to push yourself in a corner and hope for the best. And this describes a situation where you're already with these people...
...when i have friends that are supposed to meet us on The Strip, I ususally assume we will never cross paths, because it's all working against you..being hammered means nobody stays still for too long unless they're gambling and winning, the casinos are cell phone graveyards, and if you are lucky to have service, you'll never be able to hear over the insane amounts of noise that will be going on there. And then there's my cross to bear, only being 5'5", means i can't see over anything, so i have to physically walk through crowds to find someone. it's also problematic for them finding me. So the way you resolve this? Don't lose your friends? If that was feasible, i wouldn't have written all the shit above. You don't. You go out, get your drink on, and hope for the best. I've had some (not all, just some) of the best times I've ever had in this town alone. It's one of the few places where you can be alone and invisible (if you choose), but also facilitates all kinds of madness, when not tied to a big group of foolios. Gambling resolves almost all of this, but i like to gamble alone or with people i don't know (when your boy or girl craps out with $225 of your loot out there, it's hard not to take that shit personally, for me at least) so if i want/need to be by myself, i can just go hit the poker table. Ironic the place I find some of my most endearing solitude is at a table with a bunch of other people...
closing it out with more Little Brother...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uTVHKxw4BnU
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