I’ve bet the lot on women’s curling. These things happen to me, and it’s not the first time with women’s curling, either. It must be four years ago, of course it was four years ago because it was the Swiss. I was home for almost all of the Winter Olympics, home in Denmark and there was a weird confluence of events that made Denmark the center of the women’s curling world. One of the anomalies of Danish television is that you get most of the Danish channels, some Swedish channels, some Norwegian channels, some German channels, some English channels, and then Eurosport. And it just happened to be that between those countries, five of the ten nations taking part in the women’s curling at the 2006 winter Olympics were covered. So when the women’s curling preliminary rounds were on, I had it going on five different channels at once. And I watched every match. And bet, of course. I was heavy on the Swiss that year, who produced a big upset to finish in second. But I probably still did my money.

The other day I was looking around the net and started reading about the Chinese. It seems that the Chinese are the only nation spending millions of dollars each year to have a team who does nothing but train in the north of China in curling. If you’re not Chinese, it’s a tough way to make a living. Every other nation in the world of women’s curling has been represented by basically the same team forever. They are mostly moms with full-time jobs and every four years they pick up the phone and say, “We’re getting the team back together.” The Swedes are led by a 44-year old, and the Canadians are led by a 42-year old. The Chinese have five ladies under the age of 27 who have been going at it for the last four years non-stop. And although they have never even competed in the Olympics before, the Chinese team won the last two World Championships from nowhere and are now a legitimate curling superpower.

Couple this information with two important facts. One, the Chinese are between 9:4 and 11:4 to win the gold. And I hit Paul Nicholson at 66:1 to win the darts last week. Now you’ll understand why I have piled into the Chinese ladies. I love bets like this, although I have a horrible record with them. Anyway, it may qualify as a bet of the century. I am now the most interested women’s curling fan that I know. Join me! Only fourteen days until “The Greatest Show on Ice!” This year I might even learn the rules.

The sun goddess and I touched down in Vegas yesterday. So far it has been a perfect trip. Everything went right. Nice seats on the plane, an easy ride, and then we successfully navigated the most important and often underrated moment of your entire Vegas trip: the hotel check-in. There are some things you can do to increase your chances of success, but at the end of the day you always roll the dice with whether you get a friendly check-in clerk. And we hit the jackpot. Which is why I am now writing this blog from a petite suite on the top floor of the Treasure Island hotel and the sun goddess and I have just come out of the Jacuzzi. Can’t beat that.

We took a walk down the Strip around 11pm last night, after we’d slept off the jet lag. It was too chilly for a walk, but too warm not to be walking, with memories of the European winter still fresh. Our destination was the Peppermill, but we stopped off first for a couple of drinks at the Encore, the new hotel put up next to the Wynn, because we wanted to see it. I have never been so underwhelmed at a new Steve Wynn hotel. Nothing says, “I just don’t care anymore” quite like the tacky décor and lack of elegance that makes up this newest jewel in the Wynn crown. I still remember when the Mirage opened, one of the greatest hotels to ever open in Las Vegas, if not the world. The fresh flowers alone had to be costing fifty thousand dollars a day. I swear. Steve Wynn, what’s happened? A sad day for everything being bigger, newer, and better in Las Vegas. Two drinks and we were out of there.

Thank god for the Peppermill. I was actually worried while walking there that it may have gotten hit by the recession and closed down. But if you do something right for 35 years, not even a recession will hurt you. And the Peppermill was packed. The Peppermill, for those who don’t know, is a 24-hour coffee shop in the front room, a 24-hour diner with the largest portions (read meals served on manhole covers) and some of the best diner food in Las Vegas. In the back though, is a 24-hour bar complete with lava lamps, fake fireplaces, cozy lounge seating, and a great roster of specialty cocktails. Very popular with locals in their twenties and thirties. It was hopping. Fun night for people watching. We had specialty cocktails in the lounge and dinner in the coffee shop and took a taxi home about four am. Fun night in Vegas.

Today all the boys arrive for Superbowl Weekend. Dr. Bob likes New Orleans, and I’ll probably follow suit. But the big bets are always prop bets, so I’m just waiting for the Luma Kid to discover some third string receiver to bet the under on, or for Liberace to convince me to bet my roll on what the call will be in the coin toss again. But that’s another story, and quite a painful one at that. Suffice it to say that everybody in the world knows that “tails never fails”. Everybody that is, except for offensive linemen.