Living in Las Vegas

Ok, life has been hectic lately.  Maybe that’s not a good excuse for being MIA these last couple weeks, but that’s my story and I’m sticking to it! :)  I am going to try and rundown some of the  latest happenings here in the Las Vegas Valley.

Thumbs up to . . . . .

The housing market is remaining steady and the supply of single-family homes is down to 11.8 months from a 3 year supply.  Foreclosed homes are moving and nearly twice as many homes were sold this month compared to September last year.  Now’s a good time to buy if you are looking for a deal.

The new $2.3 billion Encore Resort and Casino is on schedule to open in December.  Encore is still accepting applications for the 5,300 available jobs in housekeeping, food and beverage, retail, security, casino operations , etc.

 The guys and girls from the E! Channel hit reality series “Sunset Tan” will be at the Palms all weekend.  And Jay Leno will be back in town to host the “Tonight Show” at the Mirage. Great weekend for star gazing!!

Thumbs down to . . . .

Washington Mutual Bank going under.  It was bought out by JP Morgan Chase who is now competing in size with Bank of America.  There are/were 37  Washington Mutual branches in the Las Vegas area.  The good news for customers is that it will be more like two banks merging and service will not be affected.

The Las Vegas Hilton Race and Sports Book was robbed this morning.  Allegedly the suspects may have taken over $500,000 in what looks like was a large organized operation. 

Bill Heard Chevrolet on Decatur Boulevard and Vista Chevrolet on Drexel Road closed on Wednesday.  Employees came to work that morning and customers’ cars were still in the service bays and they just shut the gates.  If you bought a car there, this closing will definitely affect you. You will have to get warranty repairs at another GM dealership and your loan will be refinanced with another company.

Just for fun . . .

Fright Dome at Circus Circus is opening October 3rd.  The website says it’s one of the top 5 scariest hanted attraction in the country.  Tickets start at $ 33.95 and it’s not recommended for kids under 12.  Any thoughts on if it’s worth the price?

Since it’s early this morning, I don’t have the scoop on all the details, but OJ Simpson is back in Clark County District Court today to begin trial for armed robbery and kidnapping charges.  The short version of the story is that on September 13, 2007, he went to a hotel room at the Palace Station with some friends to get back some of his sports memorabilia and allegedly held the two sports collectibles dealers at gunpoint. 

He was arrested on September 16, 2007.  Simpson claims he didn’t ask anyone to bring guns and that he didn’t know anyone in the room was armed.  But some of the men that were with him already pleaded guilty and have agreed to testify against him.

To top it all off, yesterday afternoon OJ was pulled over on suspicion of driving under the influence.  Someone tipped off the Nevada Highway Patrol that maybe he shouldn’t be driving and the cops went to check it out.  Turns out OJ was fine.

 Both stories are a little strange, but it is OJ Simpson and it is Vegas . . .

With the school year going full speed ahead already (or at least it seems like it), I happened to find a great source to check out what’s going on with Clark County high school sports, Nevadapreps.com.

 The home page of Nevadapreps.com features a top story of the day, as well as several headline stories and a scoreboard. 

To do a quick check, you can just go to the left hand side where there is a drop down menu to pick the high school and then one below it to pick the sport.  Or, if you look across the top, all the sports are listed and then each one has a choice for news, teams, schedules, scores, standings, etc.  All the info you need is right there.

This seems like a really great resource for all us sports parents out there!