Great Expectations

You know, I've been thinking a lot about this lately. I really think that we "get" what we "expect" more often then not. 

After our family visited Shark Reef, it was time for lunch. We wanted to do something different that we couldn't do just anywhere else. So, Pops and I decided that we should take the fam to Top of the World. This is a fancy schmancey restaurant at the top of the Stratosphere, located at the north end of the strip. 

So, we piled into the van and said we were going to the Top of the World for lunch and it would be lots of fun! Blossom wasn't so sure that anything was going to be fun if she didn't have lunch RIGHT NOW. So, we knew that our window of feeding HER was closing in on us and we were about to get ourselves a rip-roarin' melt down in a short amount of time. 

We got to the restaurant and discovered that this very fancy restaurant was in the vein of fancy = no children's menus. Uh, doesn't that mean that they don't really WANT kids in their restaurant? Oh, well. There was NOT TIME to pick another restaurant, get there and feed these hungry kids. So, we followed our hostess to our table with a view from the top of the world

Pops and I wondered how well our squirrelly children were going to do sitting at a table with chargers, a multitude of silverware, multiple glasses, bread plate, etc. While it is true that there was the occasional piece of silverware slipping off the table (thank goodness for the "multitude" so we need not ask for more!) for the most part, our overly-hungry children sat nicely and talked quietly. They used relatively good manners (I'll overlook the ranch dressing surrounding their mouths after their salad... those pieces of lettuce were just a bit big for my mouth let alone theirs!) throughout our meal. We told them it was fancy and that they were expected to act as fancy as it was. They met the expectations and then some. 

The strange thing is that when we went the next night to a more "chain" like restaurant, where it was full of noise, bustling people and such, they couldn't seem to get it together. They couldn't seem to keep their bums firmly planted on the seat and their clothes out of their plates and the milk off the table or their shirts. Oh,well. They performed up to the expectations of the place, eh?

After our lunch at the Top of the World, we went up to the observation deck. Uh, cool. Nice seeing that again. Let's go, now! I liked it better with the slow pace of sitting at a table and the room slowly spinning offering diners (Are you still called a "diner" when you eat at lunch?  Or are we "lunchers"?) a 360 degree view of Las Vegas and beyond. On the observation deck, there were many bustling people and we were all ready to go try something else.

So, we went on over to the MGM Grand to see if we couldn't see a few lions! We went inside and found the exhibit (wow, that is impressive!) and were startled to find the only moving things inside were on two legs. Hmmm. Must be "clean up" time if you catch my (or the lion's) drift! So, we decided to wait it out.

Speaking of getting what you expect... 

I expected to see the lions come out of the door that we were standing by. I expected them to come out quickly. I was poised. I had my camera ready. The door opened and out walked a PERSON with a LION at his SIDE! YIKES.

 We watched this man giving the lion little chunks of raw meat. Holy Cow. Trust involved in that relationship, eh? Uh, not enough horsemeat from Nebraska (honest, that is what they said that they are fed in the presentation) and that big old lion just might remove your arm for his snack. Don't mess with Bubba! (Was it Seifried or Roy... come on, it was in Vegas - a few doors down. OH, that was a tiger. Tigers are mean. Lions are nice. I get it now. The King of the Jungle isn't as violent in his demands as a tiger is. Ok. Mmmm hmmm. Right. I don't buy it, either. I watch the Discovery channel, too.) 

Anyway, I did NOT expect six legs to walk out of the door. I did NOT expect the man to throw a hunk of meat at us that stuck to the glass. I did NOT expect the lion to walk TOWARD us and lick the glass to get every last bit off the window. And that, my dear friends, is why this picture is such a mess.

I am sorry.  I really am. I could have had lion tongue for you to see. But I was so shocked about all the above mentioned things that I was frozen. Eyes bugged out. Jaw hanging wide open. 

Pops looked over at me and said, "Snap the pictures!" He rarely says that. I am usually taking so many pictures that I am asked if I ever saw anything "live" with both eyes! 

So, I hurried, got my camera up and was still so slow that the camera wouldn't focus on that behemoth of a beast. So, all I got of "The King of the Jungle" licking the glass is a great big smudge, or the other option that I didn't share that was a huge smudge with Pop's shirt reflecting on the glass. Great job. Nice. 

Most times, we get what we expect. I did NOT get what I expect so, therefore you will unfortunately not get what you expected.  Here is a not quite as fuzzy one that PROVES there was something to be shocked about.

I mean, seriously, who in their right mind (ok, so we were in Vegas and who in their right mind chooses to live there, right - but come on!) would stick their fingers in the mouth of a lion. I put my fingers in my dog's mouth (sorry Dad, shake off those squirmy shivers - I wash my hands. It IS gross..) to give her her necessary pills, now and then, at the back of her throat. Yes, she could bite me, but I have her jaw pinned open when I do it AND she is a 45 pound domesticated DOG who loves me and thinks she is a lapdog. OK, breathe. 

The man is a fool. Good luck to ya. Get out of there before Mr. LionKing discovers that you don't have a whole leg of beast and only a few morsels.

Here's  nice clear shot of the lion on top of the waterfall. After Mr. CrazyHuman was out of the exhibit and Mr. Mufasa finished noshing on Mr. Ed, I was able to line up a regular looking lion picture. The lion was behaving the way I expected. So, you can, now, have what you expected - a decent photo.

You can also expect another entry this weekend. I am trying to work through all the Vegas excitement and get on to our regularly scheduled uneventful life at home - just how you'd expect it!