Phoenix is a city of pawnshops and drive-through liquor stores.

After all, baby needs a full ride to Rutgers. If only Atronic would offer public tours of its headquarters, so we could learn some tricks to landing that one gigantic progressive jackpot that's been eluding us. Frankly, we're sickened by this crass commercialization, and prefer the more generic - yet still exciting - slot machines produced by Atronic Casino Technology, a Scottsdale-based company that produces themed slots with thrilling names like 'Angels & Devils CASH FEVER' and 'Black Thunder.' They've got all the bells and whistles of an ordinary machine, but without the endorsement of Bob Barker. Many casinos try to get us spending with machines featuring various licensed properties like The Addams Family or The Price Is Right. Many a lost weekend has been spent in front of these one-armed bandits, working the levers in a zombie-like rapture, and feeding in loose change until our fingers have been dirtied by the coins. As much as we live for the exhilaration of the table games like Texas Hold'em and blackjack at the multitude of casinos in the Valley, we sometimes like to simply slip off to the slots section with a few dozen rolls of nickels, for a slower-paced way of wasting our kid's college fund.

The lounge lizard portland