today, again i decided to explore more of california on my own. i woke up at 9am and left at 10:45 to head down to the taylor guitar factory in el cajon. i decided that i needed to at least do something before school starts again. i got to the factory around 12 and waited for the tour to begin at 1pm. everyone told me that if you own a taylor that you should take the time to take the factory tour and see how taylors are made. the tour took about an hour and 20 minutes and after, i finally realized that the price i paid for the guitar is worth every penny. the quality control is the most important thing that stood out and every taylor is made to perfection. outside the factory, there were so many exotic cars and they are owned by robert taylor, the founder of taylor guitars. he had classic ford cars, amg C55, hummer, Gt2, lexus, and many other benzs. after the tour was over, i decided to go to barona valley casino since it is only 10 miles away from the taylor factory.
cue song: kenny rogers - the gambler (coincidently he is the spokes model for barona)
i got to the place after missing a turn and driving for another extra 10 miles. the roads that lead you there reminded me of going to big bear. there were mountainous roads that curved and went uphill but it was fun driving them in high speed. you wouldnt have thought that a huge casino could fit in the mountains but after the last hill, a huge barn-like structure in the middle of nowhere appeared surrounded by green foothills. barona is a nice place and i bet thats why they barona indian tribe decided to stay there. i parked my car and hurried into the casino because i was starving. i headed to the buffet, but then it was closed between lunch and dinner. therefore, i found the food court and ate some awesome pizza. i intended to leave because i dont really enjoy gambling. usually i only spend the coins and 1 dollar bills in my wallet thats all. but after seeing the casino, it was as close to vegas it can get. in my opinion, the best indian casino i have been to. so my first stop was the 10 cent slots. i put a dollar in and went all the way down to my last 10 cents. but then the slot began to tease me. at first i gave me 5 more credits, then another 10, and then i struck a double bar, 3 times in a row. i won 14 dollars and i cashed out! (dumb indian tax, i only got 13.40). i thought to myself my luck is pretty good. i never won that much anywhere. then after, i tried to find the video black jack, but long behold i walked next to a WAR table. i remember someone telling me that WAR was an easy game to play. so i stood there and watched these 3 white boys around my age with a stack of chips in front of them. they were winning big. so i sat down and put in 20. this game was a $5 minimum bet table so it wasnt a big deal. i started to bet $5's and right on, everyone on the table was winning big. to give you an idea how good it felt, i only had $20 in my wallet. i must have been sitting next to these white boys for at least 3 hours straight, and the next thing you know, i had $300 in front of me. the dealer was surprised and everyone was supporting me. the guys next to me musta had $500 easily. people were crowding around the table wanting to play because there were only 2 WAR tables in the whole casino. then around 9pm things began to change direction. the white boys left and cashed out. they left happy. i bet they didnt even have to work because they were locals and they play there all the time. theyre even cool with all the dealers. so i was alone again, but instead these old people started to play. they were losing and i was sorta maintaining my pile. then these 3 old chinese farts sat around me and i had smoke in my face and i understood all the rude things they said to the dealer in chinese. but these chinese people were rich, wearing rolexs, and putting out $200 at a time. they were stupid because they lost all of it, about 2 G's in an hour. then i started to go downhill and i mean bigtime. i became a cheapskate and betted $5's at a time. i figured $20 got me $200 so why not again? i was wrong. i was greedy and i kept going. the next thing you know, i was alone at the table and down to my last $5 chip hoping that the miracle will dawn on me. if i had a .45 i would shoot myself in the mouth. last deal: i think i had a 5 spades and the dealer had a 9 hearts. DONE. im a loser. i walk away with an empty wallet and a $1 Barona chip. what could i have done with $300? maybe pay off some bills, get my gears installed, bought supplements, clothes, etc. i remember when i had $300 and sitting at the table, that i was gonna write a happy blog tonight, but with a twist of fate, everything goes down the toilet. i left and stopped by the san diego temple, took some pics and prayed outside the steps so that my $300 would fall out of the sky, but it didnt. so i drive home like a madman trying to rationalize that i had only lost $20, which i did. but this is not the end of the game. i am determined to go back to barona real soon to get my $300 back!
KENNY ROGERS - THE GAMBLER
On a warm summers evening, on a train bound for nowhere
I met up with a gambler, we were both too tired to sleep
So we took turns at staring out the window at the darkness
The boredom overtook us and he began to speak
He said, son I've made a life out of reading people's faces
And knowing what the cards were, by the way they held their eyes
So if you don't mind my sayin', I can see you're out of aces
For a taste of your whiskey, I'll give you some advice
So I handed him my bottle, and he drank down my last swallow
Then he bummed a cigarette and asked me for a light
And the night got deathly quiet, and his face lost all expression
Said, if you're gonna play the game, boy, you gotta learn to play it right
Chorus:
You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away and know when to run
You never count your money, when you're sittin' at the table
There'll be time enough for countin', when the dealin's doneEvery gambler knows that the secret to survive is
Knowing what to throw away and knowing what to keep
'Cos every hand's a winner and every hand's a loser
And the best that you can hope for is that I end asleep
And when he finished speakin', he turned back for the window
Crushed out the cigarette, faded off to sleep
And somewhere in the darkness, the gambler he broke even
But in his final words I found an ace that I could keep
