A coworker recently took his son to Vegas to celebrate his birthday. "Vegas?!" I was surprised. "Odd place to celebrate a young teen's birthday." "Well, it's not just Vegas. Since we've never been, we're taking day trips to the Grand Canyon and Hoover Dam." OK, that made a little more sense. When he returned the following week, I asked him what he and his son thought about their first trip to the Canyon. "Meh. It was OK. But Vegas was great!"
I had no response to that. I had to walk away. Every single time I've been to the Grand Canyon it's been a spiritual experience. One of the seven natural wonders of the world, the Grand Canyon typically inspires a reverent, wordless awe from people. Yet, this guy summed it up succinctly with, "Meh."
On the other hand, he had nothing but praise for Vegas. He and his son were spellbound by the bright lights, boundless food variety, glamour of endless shows, and the nonstop press of tourists. I didn't get it. If you really think about it, the city of Las Vegas shouldn't even exist. Why would you plunk a metropolis down in a place where average July temps exceed 104°F with practically no rainfall?
The boys from ZZ Top may mellow my stance on Sin City. Their Greatest Hits album from 1992 has a previously unreleased cover of Elvis's "Viva Las Vegas." Their version went to #16.
"Hey, li'l bro, why're you knockin' Vegas?"
"Jeez, Billy, we've been through this before. It's one of the cheesiest places on earth. Fake pyramids and Eiffel Towers, drive through wedding chapels, and then you've got the tourists. Man, some of those folks make Wal-mart look like a country club."
"Come on, now. She ain't that bad a joint. Look, meet us there and we'll cruise the strip in the Eliminator."
"Yeeeaahh. I don't know."
"We'll even make a high speed run up to Red Rock Canyon."
"Hmm."
"I'll let you drive."
"I'm packing my bags now."
"Hah! Get's you every time, li'l bro."
"Shut up. And it's your turn to buy the next round."
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