Jan 20 2007

Shark (but not Card) and Lizard (but not Lounge)

by Megan Edwards
Offroad Impact
Offroad shark

It still amazes me that people who don’t live in Las Vegas think that there is nothing here except smoky casinos, feather-twitching showgirls, and the people who inhabit and ogle them. They seem to be perfectly aware that the valley is home to nearly two million people these days, but, like Pittsburgh’s long-outdated reputation as a sooty steel town, the enduring Las Vegas image is a relic from Rat Pack days.

Well, just to provide some evidence that just a little more goes on here than card counting and bottom pinching, I thought I’d mention a couple of events I attended this week. The first was a trade show at the Sands Expo Center. Trade shows in Las Vegas are wonderful things. First of all, there are so many, you always have a choice of subject matter. Got a thing for ventriloquists? They’ve got a show. Prefer geeks, florists, wife-swappers, or old soldiers? They get together in Vegas regularly. Whenever I need a peek into another universe, I just head for one of the growing number of venues around town that boast vast expanses of carpeted display space and mingle with people I never knew existed. This week it was the folks who sell everything you need to turn your perfectly respectable Jeep into an off-road monster.

I have never seen shock absorbers so large, and I still don’t understand why it’s so great to jack a truck up so high you need an extension ladder to climb into the cab. But who cares? The rigs made me laugh, and I couldn’t help thinking it might actually be fun to head out into the desert in a truck that looks like an attacking shark.

Iguana
Jane Pitchford’s iguana pitcher

Another thing that always seems to surprise outsiders about Las Vegas is how many artists live and work here. Today I went to the opening of a ceramics show sponsored by the Nevada Clay Guild. The exhibit featured the works of over two dozen local artists including Jane Pitchford, whose entrancing iguana pitcher is pictured here.

While shark-shaped four-wheelers and whimsical ceramic sculptures are not things most people might associate with Las Vegas, they offer a tiny taste of what makes life here so delightful. There’s endless variety, constant activity, and vibrant creativity. The Rat Pack would be amazed.

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