Okay, this entry might be a lottle choppy as I am multitasking between it and actual work, which is just slow enough to let me do other things, just not with full attention.

Vegas was awesome. It was their Centennial Celebration, and there were huge amounts of people. An awesome fireworks display on the tips of all large casinos, synchronized with each other. I saw my older brother who I haven't seen in at least 2 to 3 years. I failed to hook up with two other friends who also made the trip to Vegas, and also didn't get a chance to drop in on another friend who lives there, Amy's Mom.

I learned a few things from the trip:
1) Not all buffets in Vegas are created equal. (Riviera = awesomely good, especially the all you can eat prime rib sliced from the main cut right in front of you and the hottest "mild" horseradish ever had. Circus Circus = bad. You really do not need to find out for yourself. I had that food a long time ago when I was a kid and thought it was awesome. I guess I didn't know what real food was.
2) Gambling is not as easy as it looks. Learn more about Blackjack strategies before actually playing Blackjack. Slot machines are only exciting until they have eaten your money. I am glad I specifically budgeted for money playing around.
3) Plane tickets to Vegas: approx 50-80 dollars. Gas money to bribe a friend to take you to the airport: 5 to 10 dollars. Time of flight: 1 hour. Avoiding ever having to spend 7+ hours driving back home: Pricless!
4) When you are offered free stuff to view a "brief sales presentation", be prepared for it to take a huge chunk out of your day, to be bussed to another location so you cannot escape on foot, and to have several people attempt to hard sell you timeshare property. (This was my first experience in this, some of the free stuff we were unable to use, most of them put up a nice and sincere front, but are really hardened salespeople)

My New Years resolutions have included:
1) Eating right! Minimal to no fast food. Am setting up a reward schedule for keeping to this goal.
2) Lose some weight. Seriously. I've been hoovering around 200 lbs for a few months now and it totally needs to stop. Currently going to put together a schedule for a reward at every 10 lbs lost.
3) Stay Active! I'll be visiting my new gym today, to see how long it takes to get there from work, and to get home from there.
4) Driving! I have a behind the wheel test schedules for Wednesday afternoon. I need to get some lessons this weekend, pass the test, get my license, and then get my car fixed and insured again. (and washed!) I would love to spend most of this year being drive-capable!
5) Start a savings account. I have not had one for forever. I need to put money into it regularly. I'm too old to not have anything in case of emergency. I need to have at least a grand or more by the end of the year.
6) Take a chunk outta my debt. I know I just need to plan on paying some extra on a regular basis. It's not a lot of debit, but enough to whittle away at my checks.
7) Stop Biting My Nails! So far so good this year. I have clear polish on them right now, and have managed to not chip at it. I have a ton of products for my nails that have remained unused, but I plan on using them this year.

And that's it for the major ones right now. I've gotten into the habit of bringing lunches. I just finished two books, "French Women Don't Get Fat" which I highly reccomend to anyone who is looking for a different outlook on staying healthy while enjoying life and food. I also finished Trainspotting, which the movie almost identically adapts to film. That one was a difficult read at first, subject matter a bit dismal, and reading a heavy scottish accent written down as it is spoken is very difficult to do without reading out loud. I did eventually get the hang of it.

Currently, I've ben writing in my moleskine notebook, and will be starting the first Stephen King Dark Tower book/Gunslinger.

Hope all Happy New Years have come true for all you folks!