The Great Pennsylvania Casino Tour [Kicking Back with Jersey Joe] Sep16

The Great Pennsylvania Casino Tour [Kicking Back with Jersey Joe]

Pennsylvania legalized casino gambling in 2006, but the state’s casinos are about to pass Atlantic City in revenue to become the United State’s second gambling mecca, right on the heels of Nevada.  So, how did my home state turn into a gamblers paradise after years of shooting it down?  Some friends and I took a road trip to find out. The area where I live near New York City is littered with billboards and commercials for tons of casino action.  Take a simple ride on the subway, or a drive through the Holland Tunnel, and you will find ads for the glittering Indian casinos of Connecticut, New York’s Yonkers’ Raceway, several of Pennsylvania’s offerings, and Atlantic City – the giant who used to dominate the ads. Yonkers Raceway, just north of Manhattan, has recently dropped a ton of cash to overwhelm the local advertising, pushing their new craps games. PA’s casinos are right behind.  Emeril Lagasse’s face, touting his Sands’ restaurants and hotel tower, are plastered all over the PATH trains. The mascot squirrel on the craps table for Mt. Airy ads is all over the F train.  Some casinos are even sponsoring the weather on local TV stations, just to get attention. The New York area is definitely being targeted by the several Pennsylvania gaming halls that are just a short drive away.  We went for it, plotted our trip and decided that the best route was to explore the gambling halls in Eastern PA. After departing North Jersey, we went West on I-80 headed for the Poconos.  Our first stop was Pennsylvania’s first casino, Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. MOHEGAN SUN AT POCONO DOWNS Total Number of Slots: 2,232 Total Number of Table Games: 82 Just a few minutes off of I-81 and the Pennsylvania...

Cracking up in Traffic [On the Contrary] Jul27

Cracking up in Traffic [On the Contrary]

What is the one constant in life? It’s not friends and family, it’s not career and it’s not death (which technically would be the end of life, so hardly a constant). Don’t even bring up taxes—they’re always there, but there are plenty of ways to cheat on them or ignore them until the IRS comes after you. No, nearly everything in the world can be cheated but one thing. Traffic. The ultimate equalizer. The punishment for all of the convenience of our modern lives. If Dante were writing INFERNO today, one of the circles of hell would have to be a traffic jam that lasts for eternity, during which your car’s A/C goes out and you have to pee. As an apartment dweller in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, I spend a sizable amount of time sitting in traffic in order to make it to a job, which I have simply to pay for said Valley apartment. Vicious circle, no?  At times, I can spend up to three hours (an eighth of a day) just trying to get to, or from, the office. And while that can give me a sense of righteous indignation for my sorry lot, I realize there are those who commute much further. This is actually infuriating because these super commuters never seem to complain, diluting my self-image as a traffic martyr. I can only assume they have much nicer homes than mine. They must have, right? I really have no cause to complain. I choose to live in Los Angeles, and when you do that you simply have to accept that traffic comes with the territory, just as rain comes with Seattle, wind comes with Chicago, and a strong odor of garbage comes with New York...