The time we had left on so called holidays and ended up living in Las Vegas, we had a reasonably a good size of contract with DND with the responsibility to do work for Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC). Simply because DND was paying us since they had initiated the project to start with, we as contractors were obligated to keep the folks at the Headquarters informed of the progress and report back to them in case if there were any problems. While the DRDC folks were happy with the progress and Adam’s ability to manage the project, the Headquarters folks were asking questions about what happened to me. Obviously, I was the main person who should have been leading the team.
In any case, the person at DRDC who oversaw the project from the client’s side, had asked Adam to get me back in Ottawa to meet with the folks at the Headquarters to answer their questions.
It took two weeks for me to meet with the folks and go through the process I had out in place to continue my involvement in the project.
Perhaps the most important for those was that the people at DRDC were totally satisfied with the progress regardless of whether I was there or not.
Wehn, I got back to Vegas, I made sure that almost every week I called one of the major contacts in the Headquarters to keep them up to date which helped.
Life in Vegas was good. Lynda and I were getting used to the people we were dealing at the place where we were living. We also started going on day trips with a group of folks to visit places in the area.
On one weekend we decided to go on Lake Mead Cruises which offered a “Champagne Brunch Cruise” that included a buffet breakfast and scenic views of the Hoover Dam and Lake Mead. The cruise was a popular way to experience the dam and surrounding area while enjoying a meal. The Desert Princess, one of the boats used for the cruises, offers climate-controlled indoor seating and an open-air promenade deck.
There was a tape playing to help folks on board learn about the features as well as the history of Lake Mead as well as Hoover Dam.
We found out that:
- Lake Mead is a reservoir formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River in the Southwestern United States;
- It is in the states of Nevada and Arizona, 24 mi (39 km) east of Las Vegas;
- It is the largest reservoir in the US in terms of water capacity;
- Lake Mead provides water to the states of Arizona, California, and Nevada as well as some of Mexico, providing sustenance to nearly 20 million people and large areas of farmland; and
- At maximum capacity, Lake Mead is 112 miles (180 km) long, 532 feet (162 m) at its greatest depth, has a surface elevation of 1,229 feet (375 m) above sea level, has a surface area of 247 square miles (640 km2), and contains 28.23 million acre-feet (34.82 km3) of water.
We also learned about the history of Mead Lake that in the area that was chosen to become Lake Mead, native Americans referred to as Ancestral Puebloans settled in the area. Many archaeological sites were submerged by the creation of Lake Mead, including the most representative, which is referred to as the “Lost City”. The lake was named after Elwood Mead, who was the commissioner of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation from 1924 to 1936, during the planning and construction of the Boulder Canyon Project that created the dam and lake. Lloyd Joseph Hudlow, an engineer with the Bureau of Reclamation, came to Boulder City in March 1933 to assist in the survey, and ended up as the project manager. The other points of history included:
- Lake Mead was established as the Boulder Dam Recreation Area in 1936, administered by the National Park Service; and
- The name was changed to the Lake Mead National Recreation Area in 1947, and Lake Mohave and the Shivwits Plateau were later added to its jurisdiction;
- Both lakes and the surrounding area offer year-round recreation options.
The accumulated water from Hoover Dam forced the evacuation of several communities, most notably St. Thomas, Nevada, the last resident of which left the town in 1938. The ruins of St. Thomas were currently visible (as of May 23, 2022) via dirt road and hiking trail, due to Lake Mead’s low water level. Lake Mead also covered the sites of the Colorado River landings of Callville and Rioville, Nevada, and the river crossing of Bonelli’s Ferry, between Arizona and Nevada. Six years after the dam’s construction, the lake filled to an elevation of 1200 feet.
Another interesting point to mention that at lower water levels, a high-water mark is visible in photos that show the shoreline of Lake Mead. The high-water mark is white because of the deposition of minerals on previously submerged surfaces.
Even though the folks, our friends, had been there before but decided to go with us on the cruise and they were very helpful to repeatedly pointing out important aspect of Lake Mead which Lynda and I thought very helpful for non-US citizens like us.
I was trying constantly to keep myself busy. In addition to the morning routines for me to do exercising and swimming, I continued to spend time in the clubhouse to have coffee and chat with the other folks.
I continued to write and publish articles in various Canadian as well as American magazines on the topics of Activity Based Costing (ABC), Business Process Reengineering (BPR) and
I was also attending the activities at the Chamber of Commerce. Victoria, the coordinator, was very kind to me. She was not only inviting to me for various business activities, but She was also introducing me to different small business owners which was helpful to get to know the people, but I was finding it very difficult to share my experience with them as I was at the peak of doing ABC (Activity Based Costing) to help optimize the performance of the resources when I left Ottawa.
I was publishing articles regularly in various magazines in the states as well as in Canada on various topics including ABC, Business Process Reengineering (BPR), eCommerce, and Smart Cards which was opening doors for me but wasn’t good enough to get a contract.
I also realized that the work I had been doing in Ottawa didn’t come easy. Typically, for initial contracts, clients look for the organizations with reputation to award first contract and I had no organization with any reputation to represent here in Vegas.
Folks in Las Vegas had no clue what was happening in the real business world. They were making enough money to enjoying their lives in Vegas and they didn’t seem to be interested learning different or better ways of doing business.
It was turning out to be much more difficult but then again, I wasn’t supposed to be doing business in Vegas. I was supposed to be retired. Throughout my professional life, Lynda had been a rock for me. She always provided unwavering support and stability, especially during challenging times but unfortunately, I couldn’t possibly discuss anything with her. I was afraid that the first thing shou would say, let’s go back home which I wasn’t prepared to do at this stage of the game.
I decided to do something different. I felt as I needed a break from marketing activities. I used to be a member of the Association of Information Technology in Ottawa and actively participated in the professional activities under their umbrella. As a matter of fact, I had gone through the process with them to earn a tittle called Information Systems Professional (ISP) which was well respected throughout Canada. As a matter of fact, the ISP associated with my name, helped me to get contracts in Ottawa. I realized that I couldn’t possibly expect ISP to be recognized in Vegas. Nevertheless, I decided to get involved with the Association of Data Processing folks in Vegas.
I became a member and started attending meetings. I met some folks with the Information Technology (IT) background who were retired in different states and decided to live in Vegas.
More specifically, I met Earnie Mayor who was a retired banker with IT background. Coincidently, his office used to be right across from the offices of Hartford Insurance where I worked in Chicago. We had quite bit things in common, and we became friends. His wife Bety was also a very nice lady who go along very well with Lynda. We started socializing regularly.
Earnie understood what kind of contracts I had in Ottawa and what kind of things I had done. He immensely appreciated my experience. Finally, I found somebody who thought I had accomplished a lot in the field but at the same time he wasn’t convinced that I will find some organizations in Vegas who’s run by creative people. I remember exactly what he told me about casinos.
He said “Don’t bother getting in touch with the casinos in Vegas because they already have a successful formula which is working for them, and they are also arrogant enough not to pay attention to any technology.
I was trying to convince Earnie that Smart Card technology has so much potential to be deployed in the casinos as well as in the hotels which were connected to casinos. I also gave Earnie an example of using Smart card not only for accessing the premises but also financial transactions. He liked the idea, but he wasn’t optimistic at all.
At the same time, Earnie knew somebody who was very knowledgeable about casino business, and he arranged a breakfast meeting with him so that I can explain my idea about the use of Smart Cards in the casinos.
To make a long story short, we met with that guy and after listening to my idea or ideas about Smart Cards, he said to us that it has a potential, but he wasn’t sure if he was the right guy who can help us.
As soon as we finished the breakfast meeting, I told Earnie that I may have to give it a rest for now.
