The City of Sin is a canvas of human culture …There are many features in the complex culture of Sin City …Today we will talk about two types of obvious features of culture in this city ….beautiful fakes and that includes some of the people and the all to real often ignored realities of this painted lady in the sand we call a City of Sin

Some Real Things And Some Fake Things

by Royal Hopper

 

You drive down a lonely desert highway on a winter morning with casinos on the left and right as the rare wift of winter fog rises from the hood of your car. As you near your destination and pull into the turn lane you stop and wait…You see a man riding a bicycle bundled up like a gray nylon snowman against the chill of the desert winter. In his hands he carries four large packages struggling to balance the bike and the packages as he hurries across the crosswalk to let your waiting truck into the parking lot.

What does this brave soul carry ? What is he risking his health and safety to carry cross this burden across a frosty desert highway where drivers are known for occassionally picking pedestrians and cicylist of sidewalks …Pampers ..This bundled up bike rider is carrying four huge packages of disposable diapers ..Now imagine being sent out for the monthly supply of diapers on a bike ..in the winter across a Las Vegas highway knownfor being dangerous to pedestrians and bikers …That is reality …..
In the same city a man pauses and poses disgusied as a performer that died before he was old enough to cross the street without his Mama holding his hand. Fake …….One of many fake Elvi…..
In the same City still a woman walks across a Sin City sidewalk obviously exhausted from the day’s activities … her jacket over her shoulder just to tired to put it on …her cocktail skirt and silk stockings implying an exotic treasure you have to but drinks from and her cynical frown saying louder than words that even she doesn’t buy it anymore. She reaches her vehicle a small commuter car built for the city and her face lifts up and a small smile curves the corners of her mouth. A medium sized mixed breed mutt barks and wags its tail with enthusiasm at her arrival while her significant other unseen through the dark cheap 90s style tint of the cars wind shield and a small child wakes up from a nap and nearly jumps for joy at her arrival….Real and brother don’t you forget it ….

You what looks like a man sized statue so realisitic you can resist the tempation to touch it. It flinches making you nearly jump out of your skin. It is a picture poser dressed like a bronze statue..His partner dressed as Big Bird is just down the street along with several power rangers and a fouut six Darth Vader …cool fakes …
A kind hearted woman who has kind words even for people she doesnt like struggles into her motorized wheelchair adjusting the tubes clamped to her nose from the oxygen tank sh carries to breath and stops to take her medicine she she can catch her breath enough to shovel bills into her favorite 1 cent slot machine…….Real man …real
In a bar in a casino in the City of Sin a girl talks to a man twice her age hanging on every word maybe even buying him a drink offering to be his girl friend for the evening. Hint this is fake and the dude is going to get rolled …….

Every night tourists stand on the end of miles of concrete three feet thick and snap pictures of hand built volcanos four stories tall and powered by Coconut scented natural gas while down the artifical streets of Sin City a pretend lagoon and pretend ships a pretend skyline…a pretend Paris and Venetian cityscapes and miles of neon jungle dot the horizon.
In that same city street A dozen different realities scurry across the road between light changes or stumble into traffic after a long night out , bask on a rock in the desert or go to work to punch a clock and pay the mortgage ….
Las Vegas is a world of fake things ..of pretend things ..fake waterfalls..fake valcanos and Paris style fountains in the middle of the Nevada desert but it is also a place of all to real things ….

Every night beautiful fakes light up the desert night while awestruck tourist take snap shots, stare out at a loving audiences every night and wait to be cleaned, polished and prepared for the next batch of awestruck shutterbugs. Every night the real things go home and walk the dogs pr bte the cat as it chasers a rabbit.
There is an art to making fake things ..an art to allowing peole to enjoy fake things and getting them to gove you their money to do it …and a art to looking the real things with out judging ….
That is life, love, real things and fake things in the City of Sin…
Love You Sinners

 

 

Halloween recount in the City of Sin

by Royal Hopper

 

The coyotes howl and the desert wind blows
the sun rapidly sets and everyone here knows
the freaks are out in force their faces all aglow
You see a goblin three feet tall her silk cape red
her eyes are full of tears her face full of dread
She threatens to trick you and you treat her instead
The Woman of Wonder follows next in line
her friend a ghost mouth agape holding a sign
I need candy on which to feed and to dine
wave after wave of monsters in polyester
a ghoul a robot a princess named Lester
Freddy Kreuger is there and knight Leo the Quester
A fake little cow walks up and says boo
stops walking away to squat and take a poo
His cousin a ninja looks back and says eeewww
It’s not on planet far away in the stars
its not a soap opera or movie about cars
and its not protest by pirates with scars
Its outside my houses front stoop on Nickel Mine
and was over before I went in to dine
before I tie this all up in a big ball of twine
Its not a drama, or a dream inspired by a bottle of Gin
I tell you its just another Halloween night in the City of Sin
Love You Sinners

Halloween was fairly tame in the City of Sin this year. The kids had dressed up in costumes and had fun