Travelogue: Dee-Va Las Vegas, Fri-Dee

I’m standing in the middle of the desert

Waiting for my ship to come in 

But now no joker, no jack, no king 

Can take this loser hand 

And make it win 

I’m leaving Las Vegas

Oh, I’m leaving Las Vegas

For good, for good 

Leaving Las Vegas

“Leaving Las Vegas”, Sheryl Crow, 2023 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee

Fri-Dee morning arrived and my first order of business was to clean up the federal disaster area (otherwise known as my hotel room) and get packed for the 11 AM checkout. I had debris from my five days of womanhood scattered on the second bed, hanging in the closet, in drawers, as well as makeup and accessories in the bathroom. My five Dees in the Dee-sert were coming to an end, and I was in-Dee-d Leaving Las Vegas, although unlike Sheryl, I’m more likely to return.

My flight was not until late afternoon so after checking out (and checking my luggage) I had some time to kill. There was an appealing group gathering at 10:30 AM at the Pinball Museum (I am not a Pinball Wizard but in the pre-video game world I did enjoy playing them), but I decided against. In the end, I decided to pack my bikini in a carrying bag for one last visit to the swimming pool at the Paris Casino, now that I knew how to find it.

First up though was lunch. I decided to dress more casually today, in part to be more comfortable for my flight. I had recently bought some shiny jeans from White House Black Market that I wanted to wear, along with a favorite Ted Baker top, and flats for comfortable walking. I wandered over to a nearby shopping mall on the Strip in the same direction as the Paris Casino. I was hoping for a food court but settled for a Panda Express. The fortune in my fortune cookie was appropriate; “Take time to relax.”

After lunch I went to the pool and changed into my bikini in the rest room. I found an empty lounge chair and settled in for a couple of hours, doing the tablet and puzzle book thing again. I decided against getting the suit wet, because I didn’t want to have to pack a wet suit into my luggage. Again, I was just happy to be out in public in a bikini. 

After my pool time, I returned to the LINQ, retrieved my luggage, and headed to the airport in a cab. Once again, no issue “flying pretty”.

My five Dees in Las Vegas was an anniversary of sorts for me. This same week, seven years before, I had my coming out; nails, makeover, trying on dresses, buying a wig. 

After many years of wanting, I finally did. 

Over the last seven years, I have done my best to make up for lost time. As my friend Renee suggested a couple of years ago, I needed to expand my comfort zones, and I have. 

During this week, flying pretty, back to back nights in slinky sequin dresses, dancing without a care, four days in swimsuits, walking crowded streets without a worry. 

During the last seven years, I’ve made friends, outed myself (intentionally) to one friend, who has accepted me won-Dee-fully, accidentally outed myself to another (and she says nothing has changed), bought lots of fun clothes and figured out places to wear them. It’s been fun, and I get to share my experiences with others, thanks to Kan-Dee. 

Happy Anniversary to me.

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