4 Ben Franklins Later

By noon yesterday, I had already worked 39 hours and couldn't take one more minute of it. I decided to ride North with my mom and grandma to the casino. Yeah, I know I should learn my lesson since I got spanked in Las Vegas.

I don't normally spend more than $40 when I go.

When we got to the casino, I decided to play a progressive slot machine called Fort Knox. If you hit the bonus, you can win levels of cash. The first is bronze, then silver, gold and finally platinum. The bronze level usually only pays about $20, but it's a 2 cent machine, so really that's not bad.

When I put my $20 in, I won $70 immediately. I took it and walked around for a bit. I decided to play Black Jack but only use my winnings to play. I played and was up about $50 more dollars but quickly lost most. I walked away another $15 up.

I went to another Black Jack table where you can bet a side bet. You can bet $1 up. The object is that if your first two cards are the same suit, you are paid 2 to 1. If the first two cards are the King & Queen same suited, it's called a royal flush and it pays 50 to 1. I had been betting $1 right along and had been losing, but winning at Black Jack. I got brave and said, "It's my turn!" and bet $5 on the side bet. I got the Royal Flush!! I thought at first that I had won $15 and was so excited! Imagine my surprise when the dealer started handing me $100 chips! Duh! I had won $250, not $15. I let out a yelp and could hardly contain myself. I tipped the dealer and turned my chips in.

I was fully ready to keep my cash and go home, but my mom wasn't ready to leave. She convinced me that I was on a roll and should keep playing. Against my better judgement, I put $20 more into the Fort Knox machine. Not long after, I hit the bonus level and hit Fort Knox's Silver level for $100!

My money was tucked away and I drug my mom and grandma out. This is what I came home with (plus a little more):

I more than made up for what I lost in Las Vegas. I'm still on cloud nine.