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September
September is a big month for conventions. The National Office Products
Association, the American Baker Association, and the Men's Apparel Guild, all meet in September, bringing over 100,000 people to Las Vegas.
I spent most of my time working on Oui Gals, my computer and studying my
accounting books. I was on the phone with Steve constantly, asking his advice on such subjects as "File Not Found", "General Protection Fault", and "Fatal Error". Computers
are such fun.
On the third weekend, Steve finally arrived for his monthly mini-vacation. He was
going to stay at the Trop, as usual. I met him at the airport Saturday morning and took him to my condo. I hadn't been with anyone since his last visit and we both were impatient. As soon as we opened
the door we were hugging and kissing and leaving a trail of clothes into the bedroom.
Afterwards, we lay naked, our bodies entwined and talked. He asked me about my
years as a hooker, my aspirations, and my studies. We talked for hours and hours, totally open with each other. It was a wonderful feeling, being with someone with whom I could share my soul, and my body
as well. We talked and snoozed the day away, made love when we awakened, talked some more and then fell asleep again.
We finally woke up for good around 6:00 pm and Steve told me he had a new system
he wanted to try. He wanted to go to Binions to do it, because they have no table limits there. Steve told me he had learned how to play craps at Binions and thought the dealers were a little more
lenient than at other places. He also said he wanted to bet on the eleven, which paid 15 to one. The true odds of the eleven or three are 18 to one, which means that they should hit once every 18 rolls.
His idea was to bet just on the eleven or Yo, but only after there were seven
consecutive rolls with no Yo. Then he would increase his bet by a progressive system each time. He would add the current bet to the bet number to get the next bet. For example, the first betting
progression would be bet #1=$1, #2=$2, #3=$4, #4=$7, #5=$11, #6=$16, and so on. On the tenth bet, which was really the 17th roll after he started, he would be betting $45 on the Yo. The total amount he
would have bet was $173 so far and if the Yo rolled on the tenth roll, he would win 45 x 15, or $675. Subtract $173 from $675 and he would have a $502 profit!
He showed me how he worked this all out on my computer craps game at home. The
money won would keep increasing until the 29th roll, where he would be betting $408 on the Yo. The total played so far would be $4,101 and if the Yo hit on that 29th roll, he would win $6,120, for a
profit of $2,019!
However, from the 30th roll on, the winnings would decrease, until the 44th roll,
where he would lose $41. On this 44th roll, he would be betting $948 and winning $14,220, but his total in play would be $14,261. So, he figured that if we ever made it to the 44th roll, we'd have to add
an extra $5 to each bet to make a profit.
Steve brought $20,000 with him to try this scheme. I was very skeptical of the
large bankroll he needed, but Steve said he just couldn't lose. We drove down to Binions and walked to the crap tables. I looked around for Jack but he was nowhere to be found.
We found a medium active table with six players and we stood across from the stick
man. We just watched for a while and I counted the rolls. Six rolls with no eleven. It was time to bet. On the come out roll Steve bet $1 on the Yo. We made sure there were no table limits, and told the
dealer we might be making some big bets. He said it was fine with him. The point was nine, which eventually was made. Still no eleven. Steve was on bet #8, $29. In five more rolls, bet #13, the eleven
rolled! Steve had $79 on the Yo, won $1185, had total bets of $373, so he made a $812 profit!
We tried it again. Waited seven rolls, and bet $1 on the Yo. This time it rolled
on the fourth roll, with only $7 bet, giving us a profit of $89. Then we changed tables, just for luck, Steve said.
We made sure there were no table limits again and told the pit boss we might be
making bets of $1000 or more. He just smiled and welcomed us. Everyone is so nice at Binions. We waited seven more rolls and began betting on the Yo again. This time we waited and waited for the elusive
eleven. Steve was betting $302 (his 25th bet) and had already played $2633. Finally, on the 32nd roll, the eleven came up. He had $498 bet, won $7470, played $5503, so he made $1967!
I was getting really nervous with all these big bets, but Steve was way ahead and
wanted to win once more. He waited another seven rolls and bet the Yo. This time, it took until the 21st roll, where he had a $212 bet, had spent $1565, and, won $3180. He had $1615 in profit.
Now, we were both getting nervous and Steve was tired. We had been playing for
three hours. He looked at me and agreed immediately when I suggested we stop. We asked the pit boss for two gourmet dinners, which he gladly gave us. Then, we cashed out and made out way over to the
cashier's cage. It turned out that we had won $4483! Not bad for three hours of work!
We took the elevator up to the restaurant, called Binions Skyroom, a wonderful
place with a terrific view of all of Las Vegas!
While we were waiting for our table, we stared down at the neon lights of
downtown, each lost in thought. In a few minutes our table was ready. We ordered and started talking.
"You know," said Steve, "we could have won more money if we were
betting on both the three and the eleven. It would be harder to keep track of, but we would win more. Maybe you could bet on the three and I'll stick to the eleven!"
"But weren't you nervous with so much money being bet? And what if the eleven
didn't roll until the 80th roll? You would really get behind."
"Sometimes it's good to get a little behind," Steve snickered.
"But, no, we couldn't lose money. The break-even point was 44 rolls for the Yo. Past that we would have to increase our bets by five dollars. But remember, we started betting on the eighth roll, so
it was really 52 rolls. I would bet that an eleven would roll once in 52 rolls. It's a pretty safe bet."
The food was good, but the company was better.
"And," he continued, "I have credit at Binions. If I spent over
$20,000 I would just have to keep betting until an eleven came up. Eventually, it would. Let's talk about something else. I need to get my mind off gambling. So, what's happening with the club? I know
you went to a meeting yesterday. How's it going?"
"Oh, its going great! The opening is set for New Years Eve! We've decided to
open it during the daytime for lunch with reasonable prices to get people in, and then sell stuff at the tables. The gals will walk around modeling lingerie which we'll sell, along with sexy toys and
some men's wear. I think it'll go over big!"
"Oh, eh, are any of the girls in, uh, your former profession?"
"Well, yes, but most of us don't want to hook any more. The girls will be
honest with the patrons and tell them where they can find a prostitute if they want one. Most men are very reasonable when they know they have to pay for sex. If the girls flirt with the men, they'll buy
more stuff, maybe for the girls themselves, as tips. We're now working on getting some Japanese groups there for a "free" lunch on Valentine's Day. I think it'll go over very well!"
"Wow, sounds like you're all doing a lot of work on this! And no problem with
the liquor license?"
"None at all. The gals have lots of contacts. And at lunchtime we'll have
drink specials, maybe for a dollar. If people drink more they'll buy more. All of the items will sell for over $50, so the more they drink the better!"
"And they'll be no gambling?"
"No, not even slots. This will be a classy place. We'll even have Oui Gals
skimpy T-shirts, mugs, and other souvenir items available on the way out. If no one buys the high ticket items, maybe we can sell them a few mugs or pens. Once someone gets in the door, they'll be so
pampered and fussed over, they'll want to buy something!"
"That's great! Sounds like you've got a real winner there. By the way,
I'll be back here for another four days next month . . . have any plans?"
"Eh, no, why?"
"Maybe we can spend the four days together, either at the Trop or your place.
It'll be fun to spend all four days together, just to see how things work out."
Hmm, what did he mean by that? Is he thinking of some kind of permanent
relationship?
"Sure, why not, my place is fine," I said with stars in my eyes.
We finished the meal, looked down on our town and left. Back at my condo we made
wonderful, glorious love. Afterwards he held me tight and looked into my eyes.
"I love you, Tina."
"I love you, too, Steve."
He didn't go back to the Trop that night. As we snuggled, I dreamed of our future,
Oui Gals and, of course, craps.
The next day we worked out our three/Yo plan. Steve would bet on the eleven and I
would bet on the three. We would both wait for seven rolls without the three or eleven before we started betting.
We went back to Binions to try it out. Walking across the casino, I literally
bumped into Jack.
"Tina!" He exclaimed, "Look . . . I, uh, just wanted to thank you,
thank you very much for that information . . . " He kissed me on the cheek and was gone.
"Who was that?" Steve asked, staring at me.
"Oh, let's sit down, I'll tell you all about it." We found a lounge and
I told him all I could about Jack. Everything, nothing held back. I would never lie to Steve again.
"Tina, I think that's great," he said. "Maybe you really helped
him. And thanks for being so honest."
"I love you, Steve.
I'll never lie to you again. Come on, now, let's go play craps!"
We bought in for $1000 each and counted. A three rolled right away so I had to
start my count over and bet independently of Steve. I also had to concentrate on what I was doing, not on what he was doing, so I tried to ignore his bets altogether. Soon there were seven rolls with no
three so I bet $1, then $2, $4, etc. The three finally hit on bet #8, I had $29 bet, spent $92, and won $435, giving me a $343 profit.
I started betting on a new series, but a three never rolled. Twenty rolls went by,
then thirty. I was betting over $500 each time and getting nervous. I thought about Steve - "It's a sure thing!" and Big Red - "Have confidence!". I smiled. I was going to beat
this game. I am invincible! The 40th roll passed. So what, I was betting almost $900 on one number. So what, it's only money. Easy money. I smiled and smiled. I was going to win. Finally, the three
rolled on the 43rd roll! I had bet $905 on that roll, and had won $13,575, but had spent $13,313, giving me a profit of only $262. I could hardly breathe!
I stopped playing, but Steve was still at it. I watched him for a while, until he
won, and pulled him away.
"Let's go! I have a hunch we should stop now." As everyone knows in
craps, you should always play your hunches, so he quit too. We had made over $2000 in less than two hours!
We cashed out, got some more comps, and started to drive back to my place. I was
silent for a minute.
"Steve, even though this seemed to be a good system, it was nerve wracking,
and I don't want to do it anymore. It wasn't fun, and I had to concentrate too hard on everything and make sure my count was right. If I forgot to place a bet and a three came up I would lose
everything. You want me to be honest, and I am. I like to have fun playing craps and this was torture. You can play this way if you want, but I won't do it anymore."
"Tina, I don't want to play this way any more either, but for a completely
different reason."
"Oh, and what is that, may I ask?"
"I have a new system in development at home. Next month I'll show it to you.
To be a good craps player, you can't depend on just one system. You need to know everything about the game, and be able to play in any way the game warrants. I just wanted to try out this system, to see
if it would work, and it did."
What a relief! Steve wasn't mad at me. And, we were driving back to my condo, not
the Trop. I had a hunch that this relationship might work out after all. As everyone knows, you should always play your hunches!
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