STATE OF THE CITY |
Tumblers, Toilet Bowls—Eh, What's the Difference? Last week, as rain and reports of the ever-elusive roof rat filled the news, something else filled our storm drains: shit. And not just a little—2 million gallons of raw sewage, from a broken pipe behind the T.I. Enough to fill two Olympic-sized swimming pools. Sanitation crews poured 750 pounds of a chlorine-based disinfectant on the plume. They redirected as much of the flow as they could, but those 2 million gallons still made it out to the lake—the same one that provides flow to our faucets. To no one's great consternation, either. Two million gallons of waste on the street made hardly a ripple in our awareness. There were articles in the Sun and the R-J making it clear, as Marty Flynn, spokesman for the county Water Reclamation District, did in an interview, that "they were not expecting it to be a threat to our water supply." What's more frightening: feral poop or the nonchalance? We asked J.C. Davis of the Las Vegas Valley Water District why the spillage came off as such a nonissue. "One, the water reclamation district got disinfectant out there pretty quickly; two, it was raining during that period, which diluted the concentration of bacteria; and three, since the intake where we draw drinking water from is 120 feet below the surface, it's highly unlikely there'd be any intermingling of the sewage and drinking water. We watched it closely, and we took extra precautions, increasing the amount of ozone, which kills bacteria, in the supply." So, see if we have this straight: Between the disinfecting chemicals, the diluting power of rain and the, hmm, flotation qualities of certain waste, we've got nothing to worry about? Not convincing. It's too hard to stop picturing Mr. Hanky in a glass, toasting us with a "Howdy Ho!" |
The News Story Said 'Roof Rats,' but We Couldn't Help Reading 'Politicians'
Excerpts from a story in the February 25 Las Vegas Sun:
• "Vivek Raman, a health district environmental health specialist ... said the rodents were crafty foes.
"'People don't give these rats the credit they deserve for being intelligent creatures,' Raman said. 'They are very smart, good swimmers, good climbers and highly adaptable. They outsmarted us for the first few days.'"
• "'Man and rats have existed together for thousands of years,' Maxson said, noting that all humans can do is control the rat's population to make the creature a manageable nuisance."
• "But trapping and killing alone will not significantly reduce the numbers, experts said.
"'We have to take steps to prevent them from coming here,' said George Botta, a member of the Nevada Department of Agriculture Board."
This Is One Time It's OK to Shoot Them
Republican National Committee Chairman Ed Gillespie telling the Review-Journal that Bush acolytes will invade Nevada in the pre-election run-up: "You will see a lot of messengers coming in."
Scenes from the MAGIC Convention
Urbanized
The vibe was "urban wear" at "the edge" section of the MAGIC Convention, with names like Shady Wear by Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Triple 5 Soul, Phat Farm and Playboy, among many, many others. To capture that urban feel, many booths employed up to five people to stand around their area, presumably attracting customers and attention. But there seemed to be more talk among the gangsta-looking twenty-somethings than there was business solicitation, and they gave off a distinct loitering feel, just like you can find in those areas of the inner city that these really expensive clothes are aspiring to.
These Boots Were Made for ... Um ...
On the first floor of the Las Vegas Convention Center's South Hall, which was overflowing with men and men's clothing companies, stood Pamela Anderson and her new PETA-endorsed line. Though women's wear was on display over at The Sands Convention Center, Anderson's placement here made a bit of sense, judging from the crowds of ogling men around her raised, semi-enclosed platform. The audience swelled when she emerged and walked down the stairs to speak with potential buyers or media. But going up proved problematic: Her skirt showed a little too much skin. Aware of the problem, she became proactive, grabbing a pink—and animal-free!—boot from her collection and holding it over her ass.
Love(man) Affair
Steve Wynn, Terry Lanni and George Maloof get the ink, but it's Harrah's Entertainment CEO Gary Loveman who's getting the pot of slot-financed gold. This is according to Fortune, which is agog over the way Loveman, rather quietly, has built Harrah's into what, upon the acquisitions of Binion's Horseshoe and Horseshoe Gaming Holding, will be the world's largest casino company (25 casinos in 12 states and topping Caesars Entertainment's $4.45 billion in annual sales). The mag notes that Loveman has put Harrah's on top not by feting big spenders, exhibiting Monets, relying on Cirque or catering to the Paris Hilton set. Nope. The former Harvard B-school prof has won by focusing on a decidedly downscale demographic—"slot-obsessed grandmothers and NASCAR dads" in places like Latrobe, Pennsylvania, and Grand Island, Nebraska, offering them free or cheap flights to Harrah's properties, where they're often met with New Orleans-style beads, dancing girls and, perhaps the deal-sealer, blue margaritas.
You Ask, 'How Long Do the Effects of a Roy Jones Jr. Butt-Whooping Linger?' We Provide the Answer.
Apparently, the 12-round shellacking Roy Jones Jr. gave Las Vegas resident John Ruiz in their WBA heavyweight title fight last March has Ruiz unsure of himself. Jones vacated the title last month. The WBA gifted the belt to Ruiz, who told Maxboxing.com he's perturbed, check that, proud to be top dog again.
"I'm happy not having "interim" next to my name," he says.
But…
"As proud as I am to be the first Latino heavyweight champion of the world, I'm equally proud to be the first two-time Latino heavyweight champion of the world."
Tripping on the Western, Starbucks, Chipotle and My Kid's Future, or How I Spent the $13.68 I Got from the CD Lawsuit
Staff writer Joe Schoenmann recently got a windfall: Almost a year to the day that I applied online for the money owed me by the money-grubmeisters of music, Mailman Harry came to the door with a special twinkle in his eye.
"Something real special for you this time, Mr. Schoenmann."
It was my first check, my first "royalty," if you will, from several record companies and music distributors who last summer agreed to reimburse consumers $143 million in cash and CDs to settle allegations that they fixed prices and overcharged customers.
$13.68.
"Honey, I'm feeling lucky!" I yelled to The Wife as I ran out the door, The Kid screaming in the background, slurries of various foods stuck to his face.
First stop: The Western, for the nickel slots. One dollar, 20 pulls. No wins. $12.68 left.
Next stop: Starbucks, for a grande mocha, $3.69, plus tip, $4. Now I'm juiced, now I'm rocking, now it's time to eat.
A Chipotle burrito salad thing plus Coke: $7 plus change. With tip, $8.
Sixty-eight cents left.
Off to Nevada State Bank for a down payment on The Kid's college fund, much of which will go toward the purchase of music in whatever form it comes in in 2020. But hey, it's already a proven investment.
Thanks EMI!