Alone or Together?

26 September 2017

By Frank Scoblete

Most days and nights casinos go from crowded to packed, as in crowded like a subway car just before rush hour or almost as packed as Times Square on New Year’s Eve.

You hear people talking, laughing, cheering and, yes, moaning. High fives are exchanged at the craps tables and jackpot winning slot players can be heard as their screams howl through the casino air. The average casino is hopping on any given night. And you’ll find such happenings throughout the country.

But who are the people crowding the palaces of Lady Luck? Are these players there with a friend, a spouse, a crowd? Or are they lone wolves; coming to the casino to refresh their thirst for action?

How do players feel about lone excursions to casinos? How do they feel about being there with a friend or crowd? Here are some answers:

DAMIEN: Oh, give me a trip with my wife. We work so hard during the week that occasionally a weekend at the casino is the thing to do. She plays the slots, I play blackjack and we enjoy ourselves immensely. I love going out to dinner with her and just chilling. Nothing beats a date at the casino.

PAUL: Alone, totally alone. I do not want to be with my wife because in a casino she is a royal pain. Every ten minutes she asks me how I am doing and if I am losing she gives me “that face,” you know, “the why did we come to lose our money.” She does not like to play so she hovers over me. Ruins the fun. So now whenever I can I get away alone. It is no fun if the person you are with hates the casino experience. And that is my wife.

DONNA: I go with a group of women I’ve known for over thirty years. There used to be six of us, now there are five, but we have a great time. We are a “tribe” of slot players. We often will play in the same slot area and encourage each other. It is a lot of fun and a lot of the fun is just being together and enjoying each other’s company. We go once a month.

MARY: I go with my husband but we play different games and do not interact while playing. I like that. I don’t want to be asked how I’m doing and I don’t want to bother him. We meet for meals and sometimes to go to a show. I have my bank account for gambling and he keeps his money in his underwear draw. To each his won.

AUGUSTUS: I prefer to be a lone wolf. I go once a week, play for about two hours and then head home. I used to go with family for two nights at a clip but I found the stress was too great if I was on a losing streak. My brother-in-law is a real annoyance, teasing me if I am losing (he doesn’t play much) and I prefer not being around the guy. I wish my wife wasn’t this jerk’s sister.

DIANE: I love going alone or with a person or with a whole lot of people. The experiences I have in a casino are fun and sharing them with others – the good and the bad – is fine too. Alone or in a group, I guess you can say, “the casino life’s for me.”

[Read Frank Scoblete’s books I Am a Card Counter: Inside the World of Advantage-Play Blackjack, I Am a Dice Controller: Inside the World of Advantage-Play Craps and Confessions of a Wayward Catholic! All available from Amazon.com, on Kindle and electronic media, at Barnes and Noble, and at bookstores. Visit Frank’s web site at www.frankscoblete.com]