Dinner and a Sign

Mike was in the mood for a salad bar last night, and one thing led to another, and here is the video of us going to the buffet:

Note that he ended up not "making a big salad."

That quote is one of the lines he fed me when convincing me to go out. It's fine; I had fun despite the ho-hum food, plus I told him I wouldn't go unless he signed up for Facebook. And uploaded a photo.

(Heather and Anne have done terrible things to my free time. This is time that is supposed to be spent leveling warlocks or doing genealogy research, people. Or maybe even reading that novel that I'm planning to teach in a couple of weeks...)

After the meal, we made a spontaneous stop at the "Welcome to Las Vegas" sign.

I've lived here just about four years and, until last night, had never stopped to see it properly. Granted, until three weeks ago you had to find a parking space (or break the law) and run across heavy Strip traffic (also breaking the law).

Now they've put in a newfangled parking lot, which I thought was going to be an eyesore, plus it means they can't move the sign again (it's been scooched several times as the Strip developed), but it's really quite nice. Which is exactly what I said on the video, so I may as well let it talk instead:

(Oops, I used the wrong aspect ratio. I guess that answers the "what happens if I pick this setting" question.)

If you don't already know, this is the original sign. (As opposed to similar ones recently added to downtown and the Boulder Highway.) It is 50 years old and its design is not copyright-protected, hence the zillion sign-glorifying souvenirs around town. The light bulbs, however, are not original (it's like I can hear the collective DUH): you can buy one for $39, with proceeds donated to charity.