Old Vegas

There are many, many places that I haven't been and would love to visit. Las Vegas isn't one of them.

I envision elderly human smokestacks parked at slot machines, praying for either death or the big jackpot to take them away, families with their screeching offspring barrelling up and down the halls of my hotel one hour after I've finally gone to sleep in a drug-and-alcohol-induced haze, and a Disney-esque, cleaned-up version of what was once the greatest adult playground in the country.

The only thing I could see myself enjoying in Vegas would have been the YESCO Las Vegas Boneyard. This is the junkyard where they kept the old signs from now-destroyed or updated hotels and casinos. These are the signs that were glowing outside the window when Bugsy Siegel, Meyer Lansky and Lucky Luciano were deciding who needed an "offer they can't refuse", and the Rat Pack was performing downstairs.

The boneyard has since been converted into a museum (??correct me if I'm wrong), which just doesn't seem like it would have the same mystique as something called a "boneyard". Luckily, I can still see the old version by visiting this great Flickr set. The photographer has some other great sets as well, most dealing with the concept of abandoned spaces. I don't know how my obsession with abandoned places and old signs began, but I'm definitely getting my fix here. Thanks "Lost America"!