http://www.bosxe.com/hunger-games-vocabulary-lists/
If A Casino’s Goal Is To Keep The Visitor Gambling Thru Hunger, Thirst And Exhaustion, Then Why Did Dover Downs Hotel & Casino Set Me Up In A Room With A Jacuzzi As Tempting As A Vat Of Champagne?
If a casino’s goal is to keep the visitor betting thru hunger, thirst and exhaustion, then why did Dover Downs Hotel & Casino set me up in a room with a jacuzzi as tempting as a vat of champagne?
Perhaps, I wondered as I ran the water, the Delaware property was making an attempt to relax me, thus easing the discomfort of future losses in the casino. Perhaps, I assumed as I tossed in a dash of scented bath salts, the hotel was provoking me with the good life, so that I’d place high bets in an attempt to sustain this level of luxury. But what if, I mulled as I sank into the warm churning waters, they were just being really, really nice, booking me into this unjustified suite? Aah yes, I concluded with a soft splash, Dover Downs is wonderful.
I’m not a rube when it comes to hotel-casinos. I have done my time in Atlantic Town, Las Vegas and Albuquerque. But Dover Downs is shockingly different. For one, it is not garish no flashing neon, bombastic sound system or hyper-patterned carpeting that can trigger an eye twitch. The lobby is, dare I say, classy, with sky-bound white columns, marble floors and a plentiful floral centerpiece. The hotel is attached to the casino by open passages (can’t have players fumbling with door handles), but there is enough of a buffer to maintain a separation of slots and sleep.
In the Dover Downs timeline, the harness racing and NASCAR track came first (1967-69), followed by the slots (1995) and then eventually the lodging (2002). Though the hotel was the last to join the party, it’s not straggling along behind the other operations. It has grown from 232 rooms to five hundred rooms, nabbing the title as the country’s biggest hotel.
At the front desk, I respectfully requested a room with a view of the track, which was dormant during my July stay but active with harness racing from late October to mid-April. With a go-
Ahead-and-accept-it smile, the employee handed me the key card to a Jacuzzi suite, one of 14 on the 10th floor. Not needing to spoil the illusion that I used to be a major player, I kept my history as a penny-slot shark to myself.
The elephantine suite living space with freestanding kitchenette, bedroom, two lavatories might have swallowed my Washington studio plus half my neighbor’s place. The classy decor (desert colours, framed pictures of flora, mirrors aplenty) deferred to the floor-to-ceiling windows, which let in the muted lights of the track and the dusky night sky.
While I was playing dolphin in my Jacuzzi, temptation called from other parts of the hotel-casino complex. I considered drying off to try one or all the above : the spa ; the gymnasium with punch bag, pool and jacuzzi ; the bars and lounges ; and / or the cafes, including Michele’s, a fine-dining conglomerate on the second floor. As an alternative I threw in another little spoon of bath crystals. Finally, though, my resistance eroded. Or perhaps I was simply beginning to feel damp.
As an element of my reservation, I’d received $25 in free slot play. On the way to the Capital Club Members desk to collect my card, I detoured to the free soda machine (nice touch) and the winners’ board (nice demonstration of fake hope). Sure, I’d love to win $4.8 million like Bert D. Of Fairfax, but I’d also settle for a few bucks to buy a sticky bun at Sweet Advantages.
I won $4.91 on She is a Rich Girl, enough for a treat and a coffee, and lost the rest on slot machines featuring cute critters. (Never trust a mysterious wolf.) Returning to my suite, my pockets empty, I recognised the true windfall of the night : my Jacuzzi, which would never let me know “Game over”, writes tagza.com.
General Hospital 11/23/11 Part 1/2