The Biggest Little City in the World

Reno is a fun town, by which I mean that I had fun there. I had a lot more fun than I had expected. Since I don't drink, smoke or gamble, I had foolishly assumed that I wouldn't find much to interest me in Reno. After all, the words "Reno" and "casino" have much closer links than the fact that they rhyme. Regardless of my unfounded preconceptions, my one night in Reno turned out to be a highlight of the whole journey.

Reno is actually quite a cute little casino town. It has bright lights and shows and excitement, but on a comfortably human scale. The biggest little city in the world is a good description.

Based on my net surfing in a Nevada Internet Cafe I had decided to go to the Catch a Rising Star Comedy Club at the Silver Legacy Casino. When I called the casino to book a ticket, the woman on the phone asked me if I wanted to do the show and dinner combo. "Quite possibly. Tell me more," I said.

The nice woman explained that I could purchase one of three packages that included dinner in the basic restaurant, at the buffet, or in the premium restaurant. The premium dinner option was $35 and included a $20 credit on my meal and my $19 ticket to the show. Sounds like a deal to me!

The check-in process at my accommodation turned out to be rather complicated by a receptionist with a head cold and an escapee cat. By the time I made it to the casino there wasn't a lot of time left for the leisurely dinner I'd decided to shout myself. I told the Matire d' that I was in a bit of a rush and the crew devoted themselves to the task of feeding me in record time. Every staff member who touched my experience was a credit to his profession. The meal was not only quick, but delicious and well presented too.

"It almost seems a shame to eat something so beautiful." I said to Robert, my waiter.

"Oh no," he said. "Oh no it isn't."

After my high speed dinner I sprinted back downstairs to the comedy club and took my seat. The warm up act was already on stage. He's an affable white guy of indeterminate middle age who did a light-hearted, funny musical set. When I walked in he was playing the piano and singing. By the time I sat down he was playing the saxophone. Then he picked up a trumpet and transformed himself in Louis Armstrong, complete with gravelly vocals and big white hanky. Then he did a trombone number. Then the guitar. Finally the fiddle. Once he had exhausted his supply of instruments he introduced the first comic.

I had never heard of Jorjeana Marie, but she did a competent set of semi-autobiographical humour: "The thing with older men is that I might not always get the wedding ring, but I get an allowance." There was one very strange moment when a guy sitting near me told her that he was in the military and got a round of applause. It seems very odd to me that a particular occupation, especially that one, should be singled out for special praise during a comedy show.

The headliner is somewhat famous here from his roles in sitcoms that I have never watched. Tim O'Rourke was a lot of fun, although typical of a distinctively harsh style of comedy. You can see a brief teaser his act here. My favourite line was one of the most innocuous. He did a nice little riff about airline security taking your toothpaste: "Doesn't it scare you that this shit blows up?"

It was a fun night, with lots of good laughs. Steve the warm up act was the highlight for me and I went up to the stage to shake his hand on my way out. We chatted for a minute or two before I left him to his other admirers. During that brief exchange he said something startling:

"You look like you must be somebody. Who are you?"

It looks like a "line" in black and white, but it didn't feel like one. It felt like a genuine question and I found myself without a satisfactory answer. Ever since that moment I've been trying to figure out who I am so that I can go back and tell Steve.