I took an 11:00 pm flight from Las Vegas and got into Philly at 6:30 am. What a huge difference in climate! I went from warm, sunny weather to snow and ice. Unfortuantely, the airline lost my luggage. I was told I should expect it to arrive this afternoon. I sure hope so. My digital camera was in my bag along with the footage of Bill Clinton orating about how in 30 years the world will collapse into environmental disaster, lack of oil and not enough food production to keep America fat. I also had a great little video with Trent Carlini in the white jumpsuit. He is such a fantabulous performer, he saw me holding my camera and he stood still so I could snap a picture. So yeah– I took the monorail from the MGM Grand to the Sahara and bought a 92.00 ticket for a front row seat. Trent’s show has really changed since the Boardwalk days. He has a 12 piece band backing him up and he is now wearing wigs and stick-on sideburns. Don’t get the wrong idea! The wigs are high quality. He looks GREAT! In fact, using the wigs allow him to do a more drastic transformation from young Elvis to VEGAS/White Jumpsuit Elvis. He is still showing video clips between some of his costume changes. I think I would prefer if he had someone else come out and perform during this downtime. A Buddy Holly impersonator maybe. When Trent came out in his white jump suit, he GAVE ME A SCARF AND A PECK ON THE CHEEK! Every time I see Trent he gives me a scarf and a kiss! I am, like, the luckiest girl in the whole wide world! And for everyone who remembers my past entry from 2001 in which I reported that the crotch seam in his black leather outfit had finally been darned with a grayish burgundy thread— I’d like to say it’s still holding strong.

I hope dinner will be scheduled earlier tomorrow because I really want to go to the Sahara and see Trent Carlini.

I have tomorrow and Thursday left. Then it’s home again home again jiggity jig. I am one day into it and already I am tired of the meetings and just want to go home.

I am now going to go to sleep. About time. Me so tired.

What was I thinking? I wanted to get the Caribbean Curried Jambalaya but everyone was getting the Brazilian Rodizio-style “fire-pit.” So, under extreme peer pressure, I opted for the meat. Dammit. Now I am full of animal flesh and I don’t know what to do. Vomitting is not an option. (My travel toothbrush isn’t nearly long enough). It’s going to take days to get this meal digested. WHAT WAS I THINKING?

Oh my gosh! The weather is tremendously wonderful! The sun is warm! The air is not humid! There is not a single cloud in the sky! I think I can live here!

The conference is going well. Tomorrow, I think tomorrow, the keynote speaker is going to be Slick Willy! I can’t even imagine what he is going to talk about.

Tonight we are going to the Rum Jungle. I hope they still have on the menu that paella in the halved pineapple on a bed of coconut rice.

The Dream King, Trent Carlini, is back performing in Vegas! He’s now at the Sahara Hotel and Casino. I think I will be taking the monorail to the Sahara to catch his show one of the next few nights! Gosh, suddenly I am very excited! ME LOVE TRENT CARLINI’S ELVIS ACT!

More evidence that Youtube has EVERYTHING! I found a ton of Shakin’ Stevens clips. And is it just me or does he look like Han Solo in this video?

Tomorrow I am flying to Las Vegas! I wish it was a vacation. My company is sending me there for an industry conference. I can’t complain. The weather looks like it’s going to be nice and warm. It should be a nice time.

My new laptop arrived yesterday. I love it! It is the most perfect size! Not too big, not too small! It even came with a remote control! How cool is that? So far I love it unconditionally and would marry it if it were human. We shall see if this devotion continues.

This afternoon I went shopping. I had to pick up a few items for my trip tomorrow. I stopped by Ann Taylor to look at their clearance section. There was a really cute shirt that I decided to try on. Ann Taylor sizing is insanely inconsistent so I grabbed a small, medium and large. The medium fit pretty well except I would have liked it a tad bit longer. I tried on the large. I couldn’t tell which shirt fit best and so I asked the salesgirl who was minding the fitting room.

“What do you think? This one or…….. this one?”
“Are those jeans you’re wearing Ann Taylor jeans?”
“Uh, no, the jeans are mine– it’s the shirt that I need to know about”
“Well then, I’ll keep my mouth closed about those, ahem, jeans… go with the medium shirt.”

I couldn’t believe how insulting and patronizing she was regarding my jeans! There was nothing wrong with the jeans I wore– NOTHING! In fact, I was wearing my GOOD jeans. My evil jeans were back at home in my closet.

Last night I saw Music and Lyrics starring HUGH GRANT! I had heard it was a terrible movie but I LOVED IT! Because I had heard such bad reviews, I wasn’t exactly sure if I should even go see it. I started to think about the last good movie Hugh Grant was in— Four Weddings and a Funeral. And then I thought about his first picture that gained him attention, Four Weddings and a Funeral. This isn’t looking good. Wait, there are other movies in between and even before Four Weddings, I opened up IMDB. He was fantabulous in the Bridget Jones’ movies! He sucked in Two Weeks Notice but About a Boy was pretty cute. Notting Hill was horrific but Micky Blue Eyes was decent enough. I enjoyed both Nine Months and The Englishman who went up a hill but came down a mountain. And then we get to Four Weddings and a Funeral which I positively LOVED when it came out in 1994. Before that there was Impromptu in which he wore a fake nose and portrayed Chopin. He was also in Lair of the White Worm and he portrayed Lord Byron in Rowing Against the Wind. One of my favorites was Maurice in which he and James Wilby played sucky face during most of the movie.

Yes, Hugh Grant has done good in my book.

In Music and Lyrics, one thing I couldn’t understand was the casting of Brad Garrett (6 feet 8 inches) and Kristen Johnston (6 feet) as the leads’ best pals. It made Hugh and Drew look like little people. Munchkins.

Last night, Lisa, Bo, and I congregated in my bedroom and watched the Secret. It wasn’t as mystical and new age-y as I thought it might be. I do believe that it works since I have at times used it to great success. The one thing I didn’t like so much about the DVD is it’s focus on material goods. I wish instead the focus was on being the best you can be. Maybe the reason is that when using The Law of Attraction, it is good to be specific. That is one thing I have always found. I get my desire but there is sometimes a catch. I really wanted Lisa to watch the movie with me since she struggles with being positive. She left about 2/3 of the way through but I think she got the most salient points. My plan is to start aiming bigger. My own usage has always been in small doses. Finding a parking space, dissipating clouds, locating a blouse, buying a car, getting a boyfriend. It’s time to start applying it more regularly and for a greater good.

If you are interested in ordering a copy of The Secret, you can do so here.