Leaving Atlantic City

Insert 20 bucks, clink, clink, clink, lights flash, clink, bet, hit button, hit button, hit button, clink, hit button, bet, hit button, clink, I'm up, clink, clink, bet, hit button, I'm losing, flashing lights, clink, hit button, you get to go fishing, win, win, clink, clink, clink, place bet, hit button, hit button, hit button, flashing lights, must keep hitting button, clink, click, clink, clink, I'm winning, lots of numbers on the screen, How much is that, must keep betting, must keep hitting button, must keep winning, lots of numbers, winning, clink, losing, bet, losing, hitting button, losing, losing, hit button, hit button, lights flashing, must keep hitting shiny button, must hear the clink sound, losing, losing, losing, losing, I can win it back, hit button, hit button, hit button, numbers dwindling, hit button, losing, losing, I can't be losing, numbers almost gone, numbers gone. They can't be gone, I just had oh ... no, I just lost ... oh no. Nauseous feeling in the pit of my stomach. Think I might vomit. Where's Mom? I want my mommy. I want to go home.

So what was all that, you ask? That was an account of my last trip to Atlantic City. Before the state was shut down and gambling not allowed for a week, my mom and I headed to AC for the day. It was supposed to be a short day trip -- you know, see the boardwalk, buy some saltwater taffy, gamble A LITTLE, have a nice meal and be back at a reasonable hour.

Yeah, not so much. We did everything we had on our agenda, but then we decided to go gamble some more after dinner. This was at 8 p.m. We headed back to the Tropicana's casino for more slots. And if you can believe it, I was seduced by a fishing-themed slot machine. I was enamored with the graphics, and loved "going fishing." It's insane how quickly I learned to love fishing for gold.

Now, before I knew it, I was losing money and wanted to leave. Let's not get into numbers, but say it was a learning experience. OK, so that's what my mom called it. She also said we're no longer taking a trip to Las Vegas. And that next time the BFF is to hold my wallet, and $20 is all I'm allowed to spend. Oh, and as we exited the casino, my mom told me it was past midnight. We still had a two-hour drive ahead of us.

So what did I learn from this: 1) don't take your ATM card to AC unless you have some crazy willpower; 2) if you always have to wait to be seated at a restaurant in the casino, then why is there not more seating? 3) the exit to GSP North is right after the toll booth, make sure you're in the right lane or that you have a map and 4) always listen to your mother ... or at least my mother!