The Lights Are Off

Last night, we were very excited to leave the woods behind for a taste of sophisticated life in the big city—or at least, Indiana’s version of it. We were headed out to dine and gamble in French Lick.


If you’ve never been to French Lick—specifically the French Lick Resort or my favorite, the West Baden Springs Hotel—you need to crawl out from under your rock and go. These two stunning, historic grand hotels are architectural gems. Wandering their storied hallways feels like stepping back in time—back when life moved slower, the world wasn’t quite so instantly accessible, and elegance wasn’t reserved for special occasions.


Over the last six years, we’ve visited these hotels often—for hospital galas, Christmas tree viewings, golf outings, and tours with visiting friends and family. One of our few regrets is that our boys were already too old to enjoy the Polar Express train rides they offer at Christmastime. They would’ve loved that.


But this visit was bittersweet. Our last hurrah in the area. A little sad, yes—but also the perfect excuse to dress up and go out in style.


Gary and I each packed one nice outfit in the RV, and last night, those outfits finally got their moment. I put on real jewelry, even my good underwear, and for once felt truly girly. We may have looked a little too classy rolling out of the park campground in our convertible, but honestly, that just made it more fun. We weren’t trying to blend in—we were going out to celebrate.


Dinner at Sinclair’s was, as always, exceptional (and yes, expensive). The food was worth every penny. Afterward, we hit the casino, and luck was with us both—me on the slot machines, Gary at Blackjack.


And then, I made a classic mistake.


We stopped to watch a man on a hot streak at the craps table—roll after roll, he just kept winning. It was kind of mesmerizing. And then I leaned over to Gary and asked, far too audibly, “What does he have to roll to lose?” Like a movie script gone wrong, he immediately rolled a seven—hundreds of dollars gone in an instant. Gary didn’t even blink. He grabbed my hand and quickly walked me away from that table before I could jinx anyone else.