June 9, 2022

I begin today’s writing with an appeal for everyone to keepmy sister Janet in prayer as she recovers from an injury to her ankle and lower leg. She is resting, uncomfortable I’msure, at home, so please help us in lifting her spirits and helping her during this time. I’m excited with an upcoming trip to Georgia to meet my daughter-in-law, new grandkids-in-law, and the newest addition of my grandson to the family. I will also get to see my daughter and granddaughter, who are traveling from Tennessee to see me. I’m truly blessed to have such awesome kids; they continue to amaze me with their accomplishments and desires to do even more. Anyhow, last week we followed Hadji to jail and learned of the threats and abuse that led to his signing a confession that has him facing drug charges in a foreign land. Not the best situation to be in, three days after entering the country. Now we fast forward to life after the military and find there are two sets of gamblers on the turn of every card, the spin of whirring machines, and the drop of a ball or die.

Winners and Losers in Las Vegas

After walking out of the offices of the 57^th Missile Maintenance Squadron Headquarters, my military career ended as quickly as it had begun, and the feeling of just being a service number instead of a serviceman, returned. The Viet Nam ended badly for the US and its Allies, with communist dictators taking over in many of the neighboring countries with the evacuation of our troops and military weapons. The American people grew tired of the increasing injury and death reports on the nightly news, and the reductions by military services made it more difficult to obtain rank. I was notified of a promotion to Technical Sgt shortly before my enlistment was to end but I had committed to my new wife and family that the Air Force was firmly in the rear-view mirror. I had worked at Sears part time while in the military and was hired for a full-time position as soon as I applied. I started in Men’s wear and with my college education and military service, I quickly became a trusted employee. The pay was better than what I was making in the Air Force, but it did not supplant the benefits of military services such as the base commissary and all the health benefits. I returned to school for the extra income the GI Bill provided but it was not enough. I was at a store meeting one evening and I recognized an employee that worked in the receiving room at the store. They categorized and stored catalog orders, received inventoryshipments and handled returns of large or expensive items. I know that he and another associate had worked a scam in the past and I asked him if things were still the same. He explained that the operation continued to supplement his salary, but it was a constant battle with management and loss prevention systems that specialized in employee theft. We agreed to catch up after the meeting was over. If the military taught me nothing else, it taught the principle that every system has built in flaws and every chain is subject to its weakest link. The weakest link at Sears was the lack of supervision or oversite at the registers. Tony, my friend from receiving, had been there for ten years, enough time to know which areas were under strong leadership and those managers who did the least they could and still stay at the store. Within a month, we were operating scams in returns and at several registers. I worked hard to clear my lines as quickly and efficiently as possible. This led to less direct supervision and gave me ample time to assist my “special customers”. The store’s checking verification system ‘allowed clerks to cancel transactions because a customer’s check or credit card was declined. I would simply cancel the transaction but allow the customers to leave with the merchandise and a long receipt that no one knew was canceled. The store’s return policy allowed the same merchandise to be returned for cash,trade, or store credit. This went on for nearly six months, and then I was promoted to hardware. Now I was earning commissions on my sales and my cut from our scams was close to 300.00 a month. The bigger score was that we lacked for nothing at home. We had all the latest gadgets for the kitchen, an endless supply of fine linen, electronics and of course, an abundance of hand tools and power tools from Craftsman. This helped with the transition to civilian life and married life was not much different than shacking up had been. We didn’t buy rings, Cheryl had hers from her first marriage, and I was still paying for the one in Okinawa. The kids were sent to Grandma for the summer, and we used the free time to expand our network of friends. Cheryl became a poker dealer at one of the downtown joints and then she started playing the game after work. She was a natural at cards and we made great partners in Bid Whist and Spades. I taught her to play pinochle and we were among the leaders at the base clubs. We joined a bowling league and played on recreational coed teams in softball and volleyball. We were the King and Queen when it came to the social scene among blacks on base and those living in nearby North Las Vegas. We looked good together and drew appreciative stares wherever we went. Cheryl was drawn to the lights and glitter of Las Vegas night life and soon left the downtown casinos for the glamour of The Strip. She began working as a shill in the poker room at The Sahara and started dealing there shortly after. Her success led to me applying for work in the casinos and I was hired to work at the Circus – Circus Hotel and Casino, in their Slots Department. I filled out an application and three hours later, I was given a set of keys that opened nearly a thousanddifferent slot machines. Those keys opened more than some slot machines. They allowed me to enter parts of Las Vegas that arefilled with unseen movers and shakers from around the world, wealth that is hard to imagine, and in the end, a long stint at the heart of the casino industry.