I’m Las Vegas bound… again! This Thursday I will be flying out to Las Vegas on Allegiant Airlines. Allegiant does only one route from Austin, and that is Vegas, and it’s just $55 each way almost all the time. Apparently that’s how they stay in business–they only fly from mid-tier cities to fun, vacationy destinations. Tickets are dirt cheap but they charge fees for virtually everything else, from choosing your seat to a cup of water to bringing along a carry-on bag.

I’ll be along for the ride with friend Bart, who is flying out a couple days early on a business trip, which means free hotel! In addition, we’re walking the floor at the Consumer Electronics Show (which I’ve worked a couple times in the past) with free passes courtesy of Microboards Technology, then attending an open-bar after party hosted by Mashable at some swanky club. Bart has some sweet club/drink hookups in town and we’re meeting up with various friends and former colleagues, one of which is treating us to dinner. So essentially this trip is costing me $110 in airline fees, 2 days of PTO, and probably around $150 for other food, drink, and entertainment. A very reasonable price for a fun guys’ getaway weekend.

I am going to attempt to completely disconnect while in Vegas. No Facebook posts, no checking in places, no texting various people after a half-dozen giant drinks in mason jars at Toby Keith’s. Just going to try to kick back and enjoy it. I should certainly come back refreshed; after all, I am coming off a streak where we had 11 of 16 days off work, and now I’m taking another 4-day weekend right off the bat.

In other news, Baxter ate half of a pumpkin bread loaf today that he stole off the counter.