zips and zags

A buddy from high school called me during the course of the day and told me he was watching Gonzaga play the Akron Zips. He said he enjoyed viewing the zips and zags.

So did most if not all the people I observed at the sports books today. Zany characters spewing their wisdom, moaning about near misses, moving only every few hours off their coveted seats, and shouting--sometimes inexplicably--were all over.

One fellow told me he was "six for six" and I should "bet with the book" or "listen to me." Another person contorted like a pretzel every time his beloved Gonzaga "zipped, instead of zagged." A troop of rooters from Western Kentucky were exhilarated when their team prevailed and were popping off their seats as if they were mechanically propelled.

Today I met a person who had come to Las Vegas for 36 years. There was a father and son team from St. Louis where the son was likely in his mid forties. The mean age seemed to me to be no less than mid 30s. As I have observed previously, the people who come here annually seem less like inveterate gamblers and more like folks looking forward to spending time with friends in an environment which, to them, is like an amusement park.