Kaleidoscope Vomit
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
I am going to take a moment to discuss something a little off topic.
It was about 3 in the morning and I was wondering, admittedly drunk, through the Showboat casino when I became transfixed on the carpet.
Casino carpet is an interesting thing. It's appearance closely resembles kaleidescope vomit. The colors alone are dizzying, and the patterns don't help either.
Allow these pictoral examples of the carpet at the Showboat:
I got lost staring at the carpet for a while. What can I say, nothing goes better with excessive alcohol consumption that swirly colors. But I also had enough of my bearings to contemplate the meaning of the carpets.
I have come up with three prevailing theories:
1. Stains- A randomly colored, dark carpet will not show the urine/blood/hopes and dreams that will eventually spill onto the casino floor. A light tope won't work, but kaleidescope vomit creates a natural spill camoflauge. This, to me, is the frontrunner in my theories.
2. Loose chips- Rumor has it, casinos make lots of money with a machine not traditionally on the casino floor: the vacuum. The rumor goes that every night/morning during clean-up the vacuums pick up all sorts of chips that have fallen on the casino floor. The kaleidescope vomit with its reds ($5 chips) and greens ($25 chips) would serve as a perfect way to fool patrons into losing their dropped chips. Really, though, aren't there enough desperate people to comb the floor for loose chips? That, and the fact that the casino doesn't need vacuum tricks to win money, are the leading reasons why I doubt this theory.
3. Hypnosis- or at least some sort of psychological reason. I don't have this one fully fleshed out, but it was posed by Roose when I asked him about the carpet design. We all know of the casino "tricks," whether they are real or not, like banning clocks and pumping oxygen into the room. Of course, I have no basis for this theory, so it's all just theoretical at this point.
Of course, this is really just the extended meanderings of a drunken mind, because in the end, who cares what color the carpet is...but if there are any insiders out there with answers...your secret is safe here.
Until next time, make mine poker!
posted by Jordan @ 9:30 AM,
4 Comments:
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At 10:59 AM,
said...
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This is a commonly debated topic, believe it or not. On the Travel Channel they said it was because the designs are so ugly that you are forced to look away, and thereby, at all the games...
Interesting article on the subject -
http://www.lvrj.com/living/17137906.html -
At 10:51 AM,
Weak Player said...
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J,
Not only did that picture make we want to spew, but it reminded me of the last time we were viewing casino carpet together. Kaleidescope indeed. -
At 12:32 PM,
GrayCalx said...
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"A randomly colored, dark carpet will not show the urine/blood/hopes and dreams that will eventually spill onto the casino floor." - Classic man. Cracked me up.
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At 4:14 PM,
Astin said...
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Linked on neatorama and only 3 comments? Freaking intarwebs readers and their not bothering to type. :)
A craps dealer once told me the carpets were ugly to hide stains. I believe it. I'd imagine there's more drinks and vomit than anything else that hits these things. Much easier to hide beer/bloody mary/redbull on those puppies.
Or maybe they're ugly to keep the drinks from looking down at them...
