showboat

michigan city, indiana.

i'm back with the blue chip crew - cayne, alida, and tim mason - plunked next to ye olde nuclear reactor, doing a big rally for 1500 people to open a huge-*ss casino boat tomorrow. there is an existing boat, but it wasn't big enough, apparently. now the boat is twice the size - maybe even 3 times, garish and "beautiful". today was a long tech for what is essentially a pep-rally to christen the gambling machine; though techs are tedious, with friends, nothing seems quite as long.

something i've learned in the last year while doing these gigs, amongst others, is that people in the gambling industry are just nice people. i was kind of judge judy when i came here the first time, along with the other streaks of casino chains several of us all hit to teach workshops, and first felt that the gambling industry is a gluttonous mess. it sure can be, however, the people that run it generally are not. i still have mixed opinions about gambling, and don't really know where i stand on it, but still have guilt pangs when i think about what it does for and to communities that choose to host it. it's sort of a car crash to me, and now, knowing people who are immersed in it makes me feel consistently conflicted.

i do know that if these people are happy- for now, i'm happy too. here, especially, on our 7th rally, we are treated as friends, spoiled like celebrities, and now, we are all invested somehow. i am honestly looking forward to tomorrow. i feel like celebrating with them.