What happens in Vegas...

I just returned from my 6-day adventure in Las Vegas. No not a vacation adventure, but an educational one: the Western Veterinary Conference. Fourteen thousand vets & staff descended on the Mandalay Bay Convention Center...I dare say Las Vegas was the best place for a sick pet to be. (Okay, so most of us aren't licensed to practice in Nevada...must you be such a stickler for detail?)

I learned quite a bit during my stay, and it wasn't all regarding my profession:

1. Avoid realtors in red clothing. For the second year in a row, the Mandalay Bay put us and Kelly-Williams in the same area, added seasonings, and shook well. We were inundated with cult-like groups wearing some gawd-awful combinations of red hats, red coats, red shoes, red glasses, blinking lights...you get the idea. Some of them one-on-one, of course, seemed to be pleasant people; but in packs and herds they were rather an obnoxious, pushy lot. Our only consolation was hoping we could gross them out if they eavesdropped on some of our more gnarly horror stories.
2. Jay Leno is still funny. I saw Mr. Leno about 16 years ago (ironically while in vet school) and thought he was great, but I can't say I find him as funny on The Tonight Show. How the WVC landed him for our opening event I don't know, but he was freakin' hilarious. If you have a chance to see him in one of his club outings by all means do so.
3. No matter how much cash you bring, it won't be enough. And I'm not talking about gambling. I'm talking about eating! The food is still great, but it's definitely no longer $20/day. I took $120 cash and put some meals on my credit card, yet I still came home without a single dollar bill.
4. Southwest Airlines is still a great way to fly, but what happened to all the crazy jokes? When I first started going to this conference years ago, it took me a couple times before I discovered SWA. The fares were inexpensive, the planes were clean, and all the employees were pleasant & professional. (Key reasons why today SWA & JetBlue are the only airlines in the entire country that are in the black.) But best of all -- each and every one of them was (on purpose) FUNNY. They cracked jokes from the ticket counter all the way until landing. ("If you are flying with someone who needs assistance, please place your own oxygen mask on first before you help your husband.") But they don't do that anymore. Sure they are still pleasant & courteous...but I miss chuckling through the entire trip.
5. Wear layers. Because it doesn't matter that you were completely comfortable for 2 days and never wore that jacket you hauled around. Because on that third day, when you leave your jacket in the hotel room, THAT will be the day that you have to sit in a room that has delusions of being an ice box.

So that was my stay. I updated my textbooks, picked up some good practice tips, and came home with a lot of dirty laundry. As to anything else...that will, indeed, stay in Vegas.