Where else but LAS VEGAS might you end up at Hooters with your Dad on Thanksgiving? It may seem counter-intuitive, but the Hooters Casino is a perfectly family-friendly place. Not for underage family, of course, but hey, the cocktail waitresses wear t-shirts. In this town that's more covered than just about anyplace.

This particular year, Dad and I had enjoyed a traditional Thanksgiving of shrimp cocktail, wood-fired pizza, pot stickers, enchiladas, pork roast, prime rib, Italian meatballs and miso soup. Dessert round at the Mirage Buffet was as decadent.

After dinner, we engaged in another tradition typical of many families — We had a minimum of two drinks while some guy who thinks he's funny took passive aggressive potshots at everyone in the room. It just wasn't at Grandma's house — it was at Hooters, the home of this particular comedian's show.

Thinking of this reminds me to finish my "Things I Like About Living in Vegas" list — The one I started in a Wanderlust column last week. I named my top two items because they're travel related...

1. Joining the vacations of many out-of-town visitors.

2. Getting out of town yourself.


This touching holiday story touches the next things on the list...


3. Being able to say "Only In Vegas."
Any tale that begins with "Only in [name anyplace]..." gives the storyteller the smug satisfaction of knowing some exclusive scoop. There's an implied eye roll in the phrase that lets you get away with being inaccurate. The important part is the translation, which means, "I'm interesting, because I know..."


4. Entertainment Galore
Only in Las Vegas can you see three stage performances in a day. Locals have a number of resources for free tickets to see any D-list show in town. Plus, and I'm totally serious about this, one can never tire of lounge acts covering "Brick House."


5. The Buffet For Your Stomach
I did not know before I moved here that dining sometimes requires strategy. But most everyone I know here has a plan for how to approach a buffet. There are as many personal strategies as there are casino buffets to tackle, but there is one thing people seem to agree on: Hitting the salad bar first is considered a novice mistake. 


6. The Buffet For Your Eyes
With hundreds of thousands of annual visitors who think what happens here stays here, Las Vegas is a veritable feast for a people watcher's eyes. From Kansas City housewives wearing sequins and stilettos to urban cowboys in bolos, boots and belt buckles, living here allows you to be a bit of a voyeur... Sometimes you get to see people for who they are when they think no one is looking. 


7. The Generous Helping of Cheese
If anyone asks me, "would you like cheese on that?" I'm pretty much always going to say yes. That's why I love the fact that the people watcher's buffet is oh so generously cheesy. One delicious and timely example is a scene I witnessed in front of a wedding chapel, which was tucked between a Texaco station and a souvenir superstore, of course. My commute one November Tuesday was timed perfectly to see a party of pilgrims coming out of a ceremony. The bride carried a turkey-shaped topiary. Standing beside her was the real turkey — The groom wore knickers with tights.


8. The Weather
This is not a cliche. I was sitting on my patio on a tank top just last week. Of course, it's in the 40's with hurricane force winds more recently, but winter here is relatively short and sweet. We get a wee bit of snow in the valley sometimes, but most of the year offers the famous dry heat.


9. The Landscape
When I first got here, all I saw in the natural landscape was one endless sea of brown. But I've grown to love the desert and all its rebellious plant life. When I get outside of the concrete city, I notice every tiny flower or blade of grass.


10. The Possibilities
I don't know what the current statistics are, but before the economic meltdown, Las Vegas gained 3,000 new residents every month. That's the net change after an average of 5,000 move in, and 2,000 move out. It creates a pretty interesting culture when things are all so new.

I'm sure there are many who wouldn't endorse this description, but it's felt to me like this place is in perpetual puberty. Other cities have deep roots with long-standing traditions people are reluctant to change. Las Vegas is in constant change, which makes the possibilities for future exciting.