John with James Randi
Well, really, there was nothing incriminating about our time in Vegas – in fact, we didn’t even have the time or energy to gamble or see a show – but we had a great time. We were at the sixth annual Amazing Meeting (TAM) (scroll down the link to see some of the speakers), hosted by the James Randi Educational Foundation. It’s two and a half days of lectures, mostly by scientists, doctors, etc. and it’s fun! Penn & Teller are always there, too, and one of the guys from MythBusters – and, I got to meet Charles Darwin’s great-great-grandson, Matthew Chapman, one of the founders of Science Debate 2008. A couple of my favorite speakers were Dr. Steve Novella, director of neurology at Yale and host of the Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe, and Sharon Begley of Newsweek.
To see a couple of other photos from TAM, click here.
John flew out from his class in DC and we met Thursday night at the Flamingo. (Celebrity sighting: Robert Duvall was on John’s flight out.) He had a good time in DC, and got to see our friends Martha, formerly of Juarez, and Mary from our A-100 class.
Our one indulgence in Vegas was dinner Saturday night at Table 10, one of Emeril’s restaurants. John had a great steak, and I had gumbo with a couple of sides of veggies.
Bad Vegas timing: Bette Midler opens at Caesar’s next week. Doh.
One of my favorite things was walking the Strip each morning around 6AM. There are still people sitting in the casinos gambling and drinking, walking outside drinking and stumbling, hookers still out, etc. It’s pretty wild. And then there are the walkers and runners like me getting our exercise in before the temperature hits 100, stepping over beer bottles.
The week prior to leaving for Vegas was pretty low-key, especially since John was out of town. I’m continuing in the immigrant visa section. Luckily, we have tomorrow off to recuperate from the trip before we head back into work.
Flavia was happy to see us when we returned. Our friend Michael took care of her while we were gone.