Part 4: The Token Saga

After having been soundly whipped in the Slot Tournament, my wife and I decided we needed a little R&R.... What more relaxing passtime can you engage in while in Las Vegas then to take a stroll along the STRIP!

Racing freight trains to railroad crossings comes to mind, but we didn't have a car, so we settled on the stroll....

The plan was to pay a visit to the Bellagio. On the way there we came upon Caesars Palace. For some reason I had it in my head that there was a walk way between the 2 casinos. So with my typical master planning, I convinced the wife to go into CP and then we could just take the moving walkway to Bellagio. We were actually just looking for a place to cool off.

We get inside CP, and I ask a floor worker where the walkway between the 2 casinos is. She tells me there is none and we will have to walk around the LONG way.... Come on, lets get serious, is there any SHORT way on the Strip?

Well we had just started to cool off so we decided to walk around a little. So here we are, and what do my wandering eyes spot? On of those slot machines that give out the silver casino tokens. I figure what the heck.....

Drop a few bucks in, and lo and behold, I line up 3 single COIN bars, and one of these tokens pops out. This is pretty neat I think to myself.

Well we wander around in there for a while. I try to act all cool and collected as we walk past the big statue of David..... Try to pretend like I'm not impressed.....

We somehow or other managed to get lost in the casino, and came out the wrong door. Instead of being closer to the Bellagio, we were now back across the street from the IP.

Since we also planned to take in Madam Trussau's Wax Museum, we decided to stop by the room and get the flash for the camera. As we walked through the IP, what do my eyes fall on again? Yup, another one of those token slot machines. I already got one from CP so why not....

Plug a few bucks into the machine, and presto, out pops a token. Continue to play out my credits, and get another token. Then another. This baby was spitting out tokens like pea soup out of Linda Blair. By the time I'm done, I managed to win 6 of them......

Like the first faint wisp of smoke from a forest fire, an idea begins to form in my mind. Trust me on this people, this is NOT a good thing.....

What this trip lacks is a goal! A point of focus. A means to an end......

Why not try to collect one of these tokens from every casino we visit. The plan was sound, the timing sucked. This is our last night in town..... But damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!!!!!

First stop, Target Venetian.... Get to the casino and I corner the first floor worker I see. "Do you have any of those slot machines that give out the casino tokens?" asks I.

"Why yes indeed kind sir", she replies.

Armed with a set of verbal directions that would have gotten Christopher Columbus lost, we finally find the machine. A few bucks later and success is ours!!!

We're now 3 for 3.

Next stop, Target Bellagio.....

We enter the casino, and I see a friendly looking floor worker. I go up to her and ask my standard question. She points me to the machine and I explain we are trying to win a token from each casino we visit. Why did I explain that to her? Who knows, but I did. She advised me they are hard to win, but wishes us luck.

I plop down in front of machine and feed in a $50.00 bill. The plan is to win one token and punch out my credits and move on to the next target. I hit the spin button a few times, when all of a sudden the machine begins to make a rather strange noise. A very LOUD strange noise. A message is flashing across the screen saying something about "Runaway" and the Tilt light is lit. People walking by are stopping trying to figure out what I won. All I can see is this HUGE (well not really) TILT! light lit up......

How the heck can I Tilt a machine just by pressing the spin button I ask. It comes as no surprise when no one answers.... A slot worker finally arrived. She open the machine and pushed a button inside. It made the noise stop. Then she closed the machine, and BANG! 3 COIN bars show and my token pops out.

I punch out my credits, but then decide to give it a few more spins. Like manta from heaven, another coin comes plopping out. OK, we're 4 for 4 and counting.

We vector on Target Mirage. Things begin to take a turn for the worst here.... They have 2 token machines, near the entrance to the Lion guys theater, Roy and whats his name.....

On one machine you have to line up any 3 sevens and on the other, you have to line up 3 COIN bars. A lady is playing the sevens. I sit down and ask if she's having any luck. "No" she tells me. I shoot 20 bucks through the COIN machine with no luck at all. Meantime, her machine is spitting out tokens like a baseball pitcher. My wife spells me on the machine, hoping to have better luck. No go..... Discouraged, we leave.

We grab the tram over to Treasure Island. We find the token machine and in no time at all we get our token.

But like a face you just can't put a name to, the Mirage haunts me.....

I tell my wife we need to go back..... By now I'm sure that lady is gone, and I suspect we will have better luck on the seven's. The line, for the tram back, is like out the door, down the block and around the corner. We decide to hoof it. Make it back and come up to the machine.

DRAT! Some guy is sitting in front of it, playing. I act all coy, like I don't have any special plans in the world. Finally he gets up. Before his shadow leaves the seat, I'm sitting down....

Plunk in a few bucks. No deal. Plunk in a few more. No deal. OK, this is getting personal now.... This is like the Holy Grail of tokens. Drop a few more bucks in, and the reels are spinning..... Seven......Seven.......Seven......

KaPlunk!!!

Final tally? Managed to collect at least one token coin from The Bellagio, The Mirage, Treasure Island, The Venetian Caesars Palace and the Imperial Palace.

Life's good when you set goals.....

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