A possible substitute for the Beat Hotel?

[Cadaverous Pallor]

I just had a synchronous moment.

I'm reading an uncorrected proof of Money for nothing by Edward Ugel, regarding gambling. At one point the author mentions that a friend's father had a tradition of taking his grown sons to Vegas, gambling etc. When he passed away, he left them a bit of money that was earmarked for "one last trip on the old man's dime." The sons took some friends and had a blast...

He wanted them to do it right. Get the suite instead of the standard room. Order the lobster...<snip> The point was to celebrate life as their dad enjoyed it, at its best, at his best, in his happiest place. Thus, the Las Vegas Memorial Extravaganza was born. We liked it so much, we decided that the Extravaganza needed to be come an annual event.
<snip>
One of the real coups of the entire weekend is that no one ever has to beg and negotiate with his wife about why the hell he and all of his dipsht friends are headed off to Vegas...again. <snip> News of an impending trip to Vegas is often accompanied by sessions of the silent treatement, the length of which is directly commensurate with the duration of the husband's stay. But this gig is different.
<snip>
Its origins being legitimate, sad, poetic, lovely even, who would dare do anything but offer her hubby a lift to the airport come Columbus Day, each and every year?

Our origins may not be the same, but it seems that others are reclaiming Columbus Day for their own hedonistic purposes. (psst, theirs dates back to 1996.) Makes me want to research other Columbus Day gatherings.