It’s October! The official end of summer is here in Canada and it’s time for Blog Post #38. Thanks to everyone for the positive responses to Blog Post #37. It was easily my second most responded to blog post and a lot of people told me they really liked the Spanish language learning jokes/comments. If you haven’t read it, check it out here.  My wife and I are getting ready to travel to Great Britain this week. First, we had an annoying little side trip to Las Vegas that we had to get over with.

Viva Las Vegas

Having never been to Vegas, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Did you know there is a lot of casinos, gambling, and partying down there? Almost everything stayed open all the time. When do the people sleep?

It was a fun and adventurous four days that saw me still get in a good workout at the hotel gym and follow a 16:8 intermittent fasting protocol. Travelling often means that healthy habits are a part of life that you shouldn’t take a break from.

“Vegas Nights Yes! Vegas Knights No!” – Canucks fans, Roy & Lesly

La Reverence

One thing we were really excited to do was check out some shows. We saw Cirque de Soleil’s La Reve at The Wynn. This water extravaganza was simply the best show I have ever seen live. It was a phenomenal jaw-dropping, perma-smiling, action packed piece of moving art that I can’t stop thinking and talking about. It was amazing!

Criss Angel Makes Money Disappear

We also took in Cirque de Soleil’s Criss Angel Mindfreak at The Luxor. As good as La Reve was is how bad this show was. It was an ego-inflating tribute to Criss Angel by Criss Angel in order to celebrate the past work of Criss Angel. No real magic, very bad music, and a feeling of being manipulated from start to finish. I came out of that show thinking, “Ok, that gamble didn’t pay off. I can now say that I’ve been to Vegas and lost.”

No Cameras or Cell Phones!

At the beginning of Mindfreak, everyone was warned that the use of cell phones would lead to security escorting you out of the theatre. This show was so bad, I wanted to take out my cell phone and pretend to take video so I could get out of there. A couple did get kicked out for cell phone use about ¾ of the way into the show. I thought, “Awww….jealous!”

Bonus Photo. Here’s a photo of me getting into all sorts of trouble in Vegas:

Monorail

Las Vegas has a great Monorail system that made it easy and convenient to get around. I couldn’t help but think that downtown Vancouver could really benefit from having a Monorail. Monorails put Brockway, Ogdenville, and Northhaverbrook on the map. Why couldn’t it do the same for Vancouver? Then again, it’s probably more of a Shelbyville-idea.

Workout Music: I was asked to share more of my workout music. I like to listen to inspiring music that keeps my motivation up when working out or running. I recently added this remake of Toto’s “Africa” by Weezer to my playlist. “♫ ♪ Hurry Roy it’s waiting there for you!!! ♪♫ ”

Words of Wisdom

1. Last post saw me talk about putting the phone down. On that same note, I’ve seen a lot of people in the gym spending all their time on their phone. Talking, scrolling, texting, and even watching videos (non-workout videos). Why? It’s better to get there, get it done, and go home. I use an MP3 player in the gym and leave my phone at home. If I want to watch workout videos as I’m working out, I stay home and put a tape in the VCR. Way better!

2. If you go to Vegas, catch a show. It’ll give you a good break from gambling, drinking, over-eating, and embarrassing yourself. Waiting for a shuttle in Vegas, I started talking to a couple. They said they had been to Vegas many times but had never been to a show.

The wife said, “I would love to go to a show.”

The husband said, “Yeah, we haven’t been to a show in Vegas… but I’ve put on a show.”

“Yes you have, honey.”

3. Follow your passion and let people know your goals. I enjoyed sharing my goal to learn Spanish on this blog. It was liberating and added to my accountability.

New Goal: After much (too much) thought, I have decided to write a book. I don’t have details at this time but I will share more info over the next few blog posts.

Thanks again to everyone who reads and supports this blog and a special thank you to those who email me their positive (mostly) feedback. As always, here are the ending jokes. Enjoy!

My wife might start working at an Italian restaurant but she’s concerned that she doesn’t know enough about Italian food and wine. I told her to relax, “You already know what goes well with a nice chianti.” 

“Yeah, that’s true…. liver and fava beans.”

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I was asked:

“Are you trying to learn Spain Spanish or Mexican/Latin American Spanish?”

“Sí.”