Thursday morning we drove to Reno, NV through snow-covered mountain passes. The roads were clear, but the tree limbs were white. We went to lunch in Reno at In N Out Burger. The fast food joint has been around since the 1940s, but the burgers are par for the fast food course. Caylan continues his search for the perfect shoe at Sierra Trading Post and DSW. While Caylan shopped, Jane tried on Halloween costumes at PetSmart. She was embarrassed that the XXL gnome costume was too small.
While Caylan visited a client, I crawled in the back of the wagon and napped with Jane. I fit right in with the Reno vagabonds. Jacob recommended we stay at a hotel casino, but none allow dogs. One hotel hung up as Caylan was describing that our Great Dane was petite. We finally found a hotel that allowed dogs under forty pounds. We confidently signed our lives away on the hotel pet form, went back to the car, and told Jane to suck it in. She’s only 100 pounds and everyone knows that a 40 pound dog can do just as much damage as a 150 pound dog. Caylan threatened to start a petition on change.org to make hotels change the pet weight limit.
Once Reno’s flashing marquee lights came on, we went out. We ate at a cheap Vietnamese place. Caylan is adventurous, but tonight he ordered something he couldn’t stomach - salted plum soda. We sat at the bar and noted all the health code violations. We got what we paid for.
Walking along the strip with one dollar in hand, we hit the casinos. First we went to the Nugget. It was smoky and depressing. The first slot machine we sat at we won $8.75! We cashed out and took our winnings to Harrah’s.
We played a few different slot machines and eventually put all our money on one with a mermaid theme. Caylan’s mother, Linda, liked mermaids, so we were hoping for some luck. We walked away empty handed.
The next morning we went back to the food coop to grab breakfast and snacks for a 12 hour drive through Nevada. The cashier asked me how I liked Reno. I am generally a poor liar, plus it was early. After a solid 30 seconds of silence I said, “we, uh, kinda like it.” Caylan was mortified that I couldn’t lie and say how much we liked it. The truth is we loved their store and the community they built - but the city itself was a pretty crummy fit for our tourist needs - sadly, dog unfriendly.
I can totally imagine/hear you telling that to the cashier- ha ha ha!