1/16th of an inch

hello blogosphere.

sorry for neglecting you lately, but i have been really busy.

about 10 day ago i took my thesis to committee and got it approved.  we've narrowed down the focus of the project, but it will still be sweet nonetheless.  right now my advisor and i are thinking "long term" and using the master's thesis to create a "protocol" that will then be used as a survey/questionnaire to be administered while i'm working on my phd.  so far everything looks to be in place.

but i could care less about school right now.  i'm technically on spring break, and it is an awesome feeling to know that i get a week to just relax and catch up.

i didn't want this post to turn into a post about school.  instead, i realize that i failed to mention the shenanigans that went down at grand casino mille lacs.

what a great overnighter to catch up with some old buddies.  i really needed that trip to just forget about the world, hang with friends, and get a ton of gambling in under my belt.

i wanted to share one story with the TBTOO faithful.

we went to grand casino on a friday night and spent the night in the hotel.  fridays are easily the busiest day for the casino.  so when we went to go play blackjack...well, the tables were pretty full.  i got kind of tired of waiting for a spot to open up, so i meandered over to an interesting looking slot machine.  it was the "hot shot wheel progressive" slot machine.  basically, the machine had 5 reels.  if you bet the max (which was $2 per spin) you had a chance to win the progressive jackpot...which was (when we were there) well over $20,000. i decided to put in $20 and bet the max.  i just wanted to have at least 10 spins to see what happened.

aside from possibly winning the progressive jackpot, there was also a "bonus" round that you could win.  the bonus was triggered by having at least 3 "hot shot 7" symbols in your reels.

once you go the 3 symbols, bonus reels would appear for each symbol.  the reels would spin and you were basically guaranteed to win money.  there was also a bonus within the bonus...if in one of your bonus reels you got a "wheel symbol" then you got to spin wheel at the top of the machine for a chance to win BIG bucks.  (i'm attaching a video someone took of their "bonus" within the "bonus."  the way i described it might be a bit confusing...but if you see it, you'll understand what i'm talking about.)

basically, the wheel was a lot like the wheel on the game show "wheel of fortune" except it was vertical rather than horizontal.  whatever the arrow lined up with was the amount that you won.  the wheel had various amounts on it.  most of the amounts were between 500 and 3000, but there was also a 10,000, 20,000, 250,000, and a 1,000,000 amount.  (keep in mind: these amounts are credits, not dollars.  i was playing a penny machine, so the maximum on the wheel was 1,000,000 pennies, which is the equivalent of $10,000.)

anyway, after a few spins (as all luck should have it) i got the bonus round.  my 3 reels won about $18, but i got no wheel symbols.  nonetheless, i figured that it was house money, so i decided to keep betting the max in hopes of having the wheel spin bonus.  after a number of spins, i was down to $4 and only had 2 max spins left.  i bet the max...and got the bonus round.  the first reel won $2.  the second reel won $4.  and the third reel...got the wheel bonus!  (check the video to better understand.)



i looked up and noticed that the wheel was spinning!  it spun super fast then gradually began to slow down.  as it slowed, i couldn't help but notice the green section that represented 1,000,000 credits.  as the 1,000,000 section passed the arrow, i noticed that the wheel still had a bit of speed.  the 1,000,000 green section inched closer and closer to the arrow.  suddenly i realized that i was going to be VERY close to winning the 1,000,000 credits.  it inched closer and closer...until the green 1,000,000 section rested 1/16th of an inch away from the arrow.

dang.

i was literally 1/16th of an inch away from walking with a cool $10,000.  no big deal.  i still won $55 on the machine and just took the money to the blackjack table.

as a whole, the weekend was great.  it was awesome to be reunited with the boys and be in the company of my closest friends.  i sure hope that we all can still get together in the future...regardless of where our lives take us.

i promise, dear blog, that i will not neglect you.  i know i'm the last person on earth to start watching dexter, but i plan to blog about the show in the very near future.  i also have to discuss fantasy baseball, the NFL draft, and spring break.  don't worry, blog.  i'll be here for you from now on.