I spent the last weekend in Vegas and I’m not a gambler. I know that sounds weird as any entrepreneur is by nature a risk taker, but sitting at a slot machine pulling a silver handle (or these days, pressing a button) is not for me.

But Vegas is great! If you have not been there lately you should check it out. In addition to the gambling, they have shows, shopping and even some nearby recreation areas like Lake Mead, Las Vegas Motor Speedway… and Las Vegas is alive with construction projects. I was impressed by the scope of some of these projects, and best of all there is a lot of metal.

When we got in our room we were not happy with our view. We wanted to overlook the pool, so we asked for a different room. And when we got to our new digs, the bonus was that we could see the construction on the property next door. It was awesome, the project is the New City Center on the strip.

You could see all the action from the crane operators to the banks of welding machines, to the actual welders working from Sky Lift’s while they Stick welded the structural steel frame and architectural details. Of course there was a lot more welding going on inside the building as the entire core of the building requires a huge amount of welding and fabricating, from high-pressure pipe, HVAC, and on and on. I was thinking for young people this would be a great opportunity to travel, learn a valuable skill and make great money as a construction welder. It sure looked like fun to me!

EDITOR’S NOTE/ QUESTION: Is Joe Welder the only person who would be thrilled to have a room overlooking a massive construction project??