CACHE CREEK CASINO

CACHE CREEK-2
Today is July 14, 2010. We are leaving Quail Creek at 9:15, headed for the Cache Creek Casino, located at Brooke - near Winters. It is time for me to pay my “annual dues”. It is also a beautiful day to be cooped up inside - but one has to do what one has to do! Nearby, Manual Campos Drive is now open. They did a great job on it, and it is a very appealing thoroughfare. The landscaping job is very attractive. This new road will save about five minutes between Quail Creek and the freeway. The rolling hills are a pretty golden brown now, in mid-summer.
We are heading eastbound on I-80, and will exit on to the 505. Traffic is quite light. I would think that there were more vacationers out. We are passing irrigated sugar- beet fields and orchards. This is a very fertile area. We turn off the 505, and head west on the two-way Highway 16, to Esparto. This is a “Daylight Headlight” section - a deterrent to head-on collisions between cars passing in opposite directions.
I notice a sign, “Manca’s Ranch - Fresh Apricots.” A little farther, in Esparto, there is a roadside sign - “Sweet Cherries”. The small burg of Copay ahead, with a 35 MPH posting. I was surprised to see a large vineyard here. It is a pretty drive through this area - about 15 minutes from Esparto. We arrive at the Casino 10:05. I am surprised to see eight “gambler” busses already here. The last time we came, there was only one!
The Casino is one large place - but still very crowded, noisy and smokey. You wouldn’t come here if you were looking for a health resort. I decided to play the nickel machine, but had more trouble than before locating a vacant one. We had two hours - before re-gathering for lunch - so I put a 20 dollar bill in the machine. The last time, there were a lot of vacant machines. But, not this time. I didn’t notice so many one and two cent machines last time. Today, these were all packed with gamblers! I would guess that the management removed some nickel machines and replaced them with the “Cents’ machines.
I “cashed out” before lunch, and had a $10 credit left, which was imprinted on my Cache Creek Club card. I had a nice lunch at Kung Fu Fats restaurant in the Casino - a bowl of chicken-noodle soup. It was very good. My fortune cookie insert says, “You will attend an unusual party and meet someone important.” It didn’t give the date of the party, and directions, though. I had a ten dollar credit remaining, from the original $25 credit I received, when I registered for the first time, the last time we were here. So, I guess you can say that I broke even - considering my $10 “donation” to the slot machine.
I have another couple of hours before our scheduled departure for Quail Creek, so might as well invest the remaining $10 credit on my Club card. It was difficult to find a nickel machine, just as before lunch. You can just push a button on the slot machine to activate the three reels. The old fashioned way of pulling the lever also works. I decided to do this. It is not only the most familiar to me, but I feel that it will slow down “feeding money” (this is automatic - controlled by the remaining credit on your Club card that you inserted to start play,) into the machine. Too, I feel more in control of the action with my manual operation. You can also speed up your “dues paying” by playing five nickels at a time. While this method will multiply your “winnings” by five, it also has the same effect on your losing! I selected the horizontal middle line for my play. It is interesting to watch the results on the two lines above, and the other two lines below my middle line. The winning (and losing) combinations are also shown, but there are no payouts for these lines. I was tempted to chase after the paying results shown on the other four lines, by changing the line that I was playing, to the line that just showed a winning combination. I know this is confusing. You will just have to go and check it out, to better understand the options. I would win some and then lose some, by sticking with the middle line. Finally, I had “slot fatigue”, and decided to cash out the $10 that I started with over an hour ago.
I “people watched” until it was time for us to leave. It was interesting watching the people scrambling to board their busses. We departed at 2:25. One of the eight bus drivers was in a big hurry. Tony had to park in front of one of the buses to load the power chairs. The driver was in a big hurry and complaining about our holding up his departure. We had a young CNA along to help Kelli. JV whipped out his I phone and called the phone number listed on the back of the bus. He got a “this number is no longer in service”. So, JV went to this phone directory, and got the phone number of the bus lines. He called this number and reported the offending driver to the dispatcher. I thought JV’s fast reaction to the situation was pretty classy for a young fellow to use his modern electronic equipment so effectively.
We had an uneventful trip back to Quail Creek. When we passed the Shell station I noticed the $3.14 price of their gas. While price at the pump is up, the $70 spot price is about the same as it has been. We arrived back at 3:18. RCL - 8/6/10.