On this episode of A-Squared Ramblers, hosts Alex and Adriana pull back the neon curtain on Sin City’s shifting glow - where AI meets Oz and $95 ATMs steal the spotlight.

Fresh off a work trip to Las Vegas, Alex recounts a week that felt universally “off,” from chaotic airport run-ins to emotional shuttle rides, before diving into the eerie calm of a quieter Strip. Together, the hosts unpack how technology is literally rewriting nostalgia - including The Wizard of Oz reborn inside the futuristic Sphere, where artificial intelligence expands the 1939 classic into a full-blown 4D spectacle.

From there, the conversation spirals into pop-culture gold: Wicked theories, Ariana Grande’s turn as Glinda, and the debate over whether Glinda was really the “good” witch after all. That leads to Harry Potter book-club confessions, e-reader love stories, and a surprising defense of digital pages overcrowded bookshelves.

But the heart of this episode belongs to Vegas itself - where tourists are thinning, prices are climbing, and $14 lattes, $30 cocktails, and $40 charcuterie boards have replaced the carefree glitter of old. Alex and Adriana weigh whether Sin City’s soul has been priced out, wondering if AI-driven spectacles and high-tech venues can ever recapture the wonder that once defined the Strip.

It’s a little nostalgia, a little tech, and a whole lot of reality - proving that sometimes, there really ain’t no place like the Strip.