Tag Archives: reno

Reno Nevada Blackjack May 29, 1974

May 29, 2024 – 8:32 am

In 1974 my 21st birthday was spent driving across Nevada with Andy, a pot-smoking pianist, and Carole, a blonde co-ed heading to the West Coast. We had made good time in the rent-away station wagon up to this point and I decided to celebrate my coming of age by gambling at every desert town along […]

By Peter | Posted in america, gambling, semi-fiction, Travel | Also tagged , , , , | Comments (0)

BACK AND FORTH by Peter Nolan Smith CHAPTER 6 – LUCKY IN LOVE

May 29, 2023 – 2:42 am

The dawn sun peeked over the eastern mountains and a stark brightness flared through Sean’s eyelids. He crawled from his sleeping bag and rose to his feet. A hissing wind pelleted his face with ancient brine and his body ached from the night’s sleep on the hard desert surface. The New Englander had woken in […]

By Peter | Posted in 70s, hitchhiking, semi-fiction | Also tagged | Comments (0)

Friday the 13th 9-13-1974

August 13, 2021 – 3:44 am

I respect the power of 13. Back in 1974 my friend Andy Kornfeld and I were driving cross country in a drive-away station wagon. We left from Boston, stopping at Sterling, Colorado-Thompson Canyon, the Id Lounge in Roosevelt Utah before hitting the Stateline of Nevada. I had never gambled in a casino and stopped at […]

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Lucky $1 Bet IN UK

January 13, 2017 – 2:30 am

On my 21st Birthday I gambled my way across Nevada with my good friend Andy Kornfeld. I won in several smaller casinos and hit Reno up about $500, which was a small fortune in 1973. Andy struggled to convince me to quit while I was ahead, instead a mini-skirted blonde waitress offered free drinks. I […]

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LUCKY IN LOVE by Peter Nolan Smith

May 29, 2014 – 12:12 pm

The dawn sun burned misty shadows off the mountains and a stark brightness seared through my eyelids, as I rose from my sleeping bag to drink in the austere surroundings. Flatness stretched forever. A hissing wind pelleted my face with ancient brine. The salt lay five feet deep this far from the lake. A quick […]

By Peter | Posted in 70s, Drinking, Driving, friends, gambling, semi-fiction, The West | Also tagged , , , , , , , | Comments (0)