It better not fucking rain

[Mikey]

Heading off in a few hours to see Tedeschi-Trucks Band and BB King at an outdoor venue.

It's the first day in probably 4 months where they've predicted any chance of rain around here. Friday they were saying 30% chance of thunderstorms. Now it's down to 10%, which usually means no rain. But if we get one of these I will be fucking pissed off.

[Jerkovich]

Heading off in a few hours to see Tedeschi-Trucks Band and BB King at an outdoor venue.

It's the first day in probably 4 months where they've predicted any chance of rain around here. Friday they were saying 30% chance of thunderstorms. Now it's down to 10%, which usually means no rain. But if we get one of these I will be fucking pissed off.

100% chance of fire storms. :P

[Mikey]

Soooo...did it rain?

How was the concert?

Rained out. The whole thing was freaking surreal.

Highway 76 is a road that goes from the coast up to the top of the coastal mountains as Santa Ysabel (near Julian) about 50 miles from here. four lanes for the first 10 miles or so, then two. Before it starts really climbing is passes through some very rural areas which include the reservations for the Pala, Pauma and Rincon Indian tribes. All three tribes have seen fit to construct modern casino hotels nestled among the foothills, orchards and decaying trailer homes. The farthest one out is Harrah's Rincon casino, about 20 miles east of where I live, where the concert was to be held. They've erected a really nice stage in what used to be a parking lot. It has a horseshoe of bleacher stands and three sections of seats at ground level, probably 1,500 to 2,000 seats max. We saw Steely Dan there last year from the bleachers and had great views and sound. We had seats last night in the 14th row (out of 30) near the center of the floor section.

I had made reservations for dinner at this little country restaurant that specializes in steaks and prime rib (Lazy H Ranch) a couple of miles before the casino. Their prices are much better than the casino restaurants and they have a nice quite atmosphere. They also have some cottages for rent at about half the price of a room at the casion hotels.

The reservations were for 5:30 and the show was scheduled at 8:00. As we were driving out there we could see some distant flashes of lighting and hear faint rumblings of thunder over the hills that the highway winds through. As we get to Pauma Valley and close to the restaurant the lighting strikes are pretty close and the thunder is sounding more like loud claps right behind the lighting. When we get to the restaurant it's sprinkling a little and the road is wet. When we get to the restaurant the chef/owner is sitting in the lobby with a few patrons, and we notice that there are no lights on. He says that the power went out in the entire area 45 mintues before. So much for our prime rib dinner.

Well, this wasn't looking too good, but these late summer storms tend to be pretty localized and pass by quickly, and the casino hotels usually have their own backup power so we decide to go on out to the venue maybe three miles farther down the road and see if we can get some dinner there before the show. I'm calling the casino phone number to see if the show is still on and only get a busy signal. Not a good sign but what the hell we're out here we might as well play this thing out.

As we come over the final rise before Harrah's Rincon all Hell breaks loose. The rain starts coming down in sheets so heavy that you can hardly see. Within a minute or so the road is almost flooded. We pull into the casino property and the entire parking lot is at least ankle deep with areas of water 8 to 10 inches rushing across the access road. So, I decide to pull into the four story parking structure, and up to the third level. The runoff was rushing down the ramp like a water slide at Disney's Typhoon Lagoon. As I pull into the third level, under cover and out of danger of being carried off downstream only to be found sometime next spring, I pass by two security guards leaning on the bed of their pickup, emptying out their shoes, wringing water out of their shirts and trying to get their walkie-talkies to work.

I roll down my window suddenly thinking that this is a really dumb question but ask it anyway:

"Excuse me but...uh...we have tickets for the show..?"

"Cancelled."

"Uh...OK. Thanks."

Well this was not a good sign at all, but things still seemed to be operating at the casino, we were getting pretty hungry for dinner (it's just about 6:00 at this time) and we wanted to make doubly sure about the concert. So I park the car and we start walking toward the elevator to the casino on th opposite corner of the floor. As we pass by the two security guys I ask.

"So, the concert is definitely cancelled...?"

"Definitely. The stage was basically blown away."

"OK. Thanks. Do you know if the restaurants are open?"

"Oh, yeah, the casino never shuts down."

So we get to the elevators and they're not running. Another ominous sign.

By this time the rain has mostly let up, but it's still sprinkling. We go down the stairs, which are outside but under cover. Around the corner and into the elevator lobby where some firemen are extricating some people who were trapped in one of the elevators when the power went out. The lights are all on, though, so I find the sign pointing to the restaurants and start going in that direction. As we start weaving through the thousands of slot and poker machines I notice someting strange. There are hundreds of people sitting in front of lifeless machines. I really wish I'd had the presence to pull out my iPhone and start snapping pictures because this was one of the more freakish scenes I've encountered in a long time. These people looked so fucking clueless, each sitting in front of the one machine that they didn't want to give up, staring at blank screens waiting for renewed life.

When we get over to the restaurants we find out that none of them are serving, except the counter with clod sammies and that has a line that looks like one of those snakes at Chinese New Year. At that point we decided to get the hell out and go find a restaurant close to home. I told the wife that we could probably stay and play blackjack or pai gow but she wasn't going for it.

...more in a while.

[trev]

Wimp.

[Smackie Chan]

When we get over to the restaurants we find out that none of them are serving, except the counter with clod sammies

Mmmmm...dirt sammich.

[Jerkovich]

OMG! I laughed so hard. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy. :P

[Mikey]

OMG! I laughed so hard. Couldn't happen to a nicer guy. :P

Do I know you? I think you must have me mixed up with someone else.

( )

[Jerkovich]

Yes & No :wink:

[Mikey]

So, what brings you back here?
Finished plowing through the in-laws' cayshe and looking for cheap entertainment?

Or maybe the OL finally wised up and dumped you. Living in some RPV back alley and posting via some unsuspecting resident's unprotected wi-fi.

Edit: Sorry for the insult. It should have been PP, not RPV, right? My bad.

[Jerkovich]

Bitter much?

Sorry about your shit date.

[Mikey]

Bitter much?

Sorry about your shit date.

Not bitter. Just trying my best to be an asshole.

:wink:

[Goober McTuber]

Bitter much?

Sorry about your shit date.

Not bitter. Just trying my best to be an asshole.

Go for dumbfuck. That's more your speed.

Leave the asshole schtick to the pros.

[Mikey]

Dumbfuckery is easy.

True assholedom is an art that doesn't come naturally to most.
I admit that I'm a mere dilettante, but I still strive to do my best.

My respect for you in this area is similar to the respect I have for Fred Couples.

[Goober McTuber]

Fred and I are both gracefully-aging long hitters.