Poker Observations

Hi all! No, I haven't died, I just haven't felt like blogging lately. Blame the second job, blame the first job, blame the fact that I watch a lot of TV in the evenings, blame the fact that it's hockey season and my Sharks aren't off to the best start, or you can just blame me for being one of the laziest people on the planet. Moving on....here's some observations I've made over the past week or so. I may expand on one or two in a future blog post but for now I'm just throwing them out there.

• Just because you can call an all-in doesn't mean you should. I don't know how many times I've watched some moron double up a short stack by calling with absolute crap.
• On the other hand, if I'm in the blind for $800 and it's only going to cost me another $170 to call your all-in, I'll do it every time. I hope telling me I'm "a moron for calling" after I rivered you made you feel better because all it did for me (and Pauly) was cause lots of laughter. Oh, and you losing on the river was irony at it's finest.
• However, I am a moron for not paying close attention during the Blogger Championship and calling a $7,000 all-in when I thought I was just calling a minimum raise. That was the beginning of the end.
• Someday I hope to be healthy during a blogger tournament. Last Sunday was not that day, I'm shooting for perfect health in Vegas in December (or at least a good hangover).
• Using the note feature to call bad players things like "fucking moron" and "total dipshit" can be therapeutic. Plus you can get a good laugh when you come across the player at a later date and read what you wrote.
• The play at Poker Stars really is tighter than other sites. It took me going back to Full Tilt to fully realize how true that really is. I would now like to thank the players at Full Tilt for the Vegas bankroll they are going to provide me.
• Continuation bets can be very profitable at a passive table.
• No matter how many times I show down premium hands, there will always be one person at the table who will believe that I'm bluffing when I raise on every street. Thanks for making chip accumulation so easy!

That's it for now. I'm sure I'll think of some others as soon as I hit "publish" but I'll just have to use them in my next post.

Until next time......what's an observation you've made at the poker tables in the past week?

Diamond’s Really Are A Girl’s Best Friend!

I just finished 7th in the first WWdN: Where’s My Burrito? Invitational over on Poker Stars. That finish was good enough for a nice little profit but that wasn’t the best part of the tourney. The best part was when I got my

FIRST EVER ROYAL FLUSH!!!!

If you haven’t guessed from the title of this post, it was a diamond royal flush. I even managed to double up on it. I was just trying to bet enough to get a call so I could show it but I ended up all-in when the other player tried to bluff at the pot. Since I suck at screen shots, I offer the following hand history as proof:

*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to April98 [Ad Jd]
cfinnn: folds
Joanne1111: folds
Bugsy 99: raises 200 to 400
striker_dj: folds
Maudie: folds
AcesFull2221: calls 400
Beck2Knaves: folds
April98: calls 300
Decker711: calls 200
*** FLOP *** [Kh Qd Td]
April98: bets 400
Decker711: folds
Bugsy 99: folds
AcesFull2221: calls 400
*** TURN *** [Kh Qd Td] [Kd]
April98: bets 400
AcesFull2221: calls 400
*** RIVER *** [Kh Qd Td Kd] [4d]
April98: bets 800
AcesFull2221: raises 4568 to 5368 and is all-in
April98: calls 2815 and is all-in
*** SHOW DOWN ***
AcesFull2221: shows [Jc Qs] (two pair, Kings and Queens)
April98: shows [Ad Jd] (a Royal Flush)
April98 collected 10655 from pot
AcesFull2221 said, "nh"
DuggleBogey [observer] said, "holy crap!"
Beck2Knaves said, "holy ****"
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 10655 Rake 0
Seat 5: April98 (small blind) showed [Ad Jd] and won (10655) with a Royal Flush

Seriously, I thought I was toast at the start of the tourney when I found myself seated at a table with Joanne, Jaxia, and tournament host Wil. Later, I was seated with Joanne, Maudie, and Derek. I’m still not sure how I survived to the final table as, according to my stats, I only played 20 hands. I guess it was the quality of the hands not quantity.

Anyway, Wil plans to run a tourney every Friday, as his schedule allows, and I can guarantee that I’ll be playing in the future.

Until next time……Royal Flushes for everyone!

Pajama Bottoms And A Helmet Cam

Last night Maura and I made another stop on the April and Maura concert tour to see the men who proved that hell can indeed freeze over. That's right, the Eagles were in town and we had 3rd row, upper bowl seats, at the side of the stage. We were also in a relatively mellow section so I didn't get to experience any of my normal concert going pet peeves. No one was standing in front of us dancing or in back of us talking through the whole show and, best of all, no one was singing every song in a horribly out-of-tune voice. Seriously, if you want to do any of that, stay at home and pop a CD into the player and sing, dance, and talk till your heart's content. I paid money to hear the band, not you and your drunk ass friends.

For the next 3 and a half hours (minus the late start and the "we're getting old and need to rest" intermission) we heard beautiful harmonies and awesome guitar playing, as if they hadn't aged a day. For old men, they still have what it takes to put on one hell of a show. They started with some of their early hits, moved on to some solo stuff, took their break and came back to hit some of their ballads as well as a new song that seemed familiar though I've never heard it before. It wasn't too long before they started to rock and we got to hear a bit more of their solo work. Luckily Don Henley sang "Boys of Summer" before the break so the worst part of the show was over before things had really gotten started (no I don't like the Alien Ant Farm re-make either). The other good part was that Glen Frey stayed away from his "Miami Vice" days (again, not a fan of that song).

Finally we arrived at the first of 3 encores and I finally figured out why bands save their biggest hit for last, it's to reward those who stay until the very end. I just don't get people who pay fifty or more dollars for concert tickets only to leave before it's over. Those who left early last night missed "Hotel California" and "Desparado" as well as an awesome Joe Walsh spotlight moment when they performed "Rocky Mountain Way". Is getting out of the parking lot first really worth missing that?

One thing I was paying attention to as the show moved along was the crowd reaction when certain band members sang or had an instrumental solo. It was obvious that some people have a favorite Eagle and I must admit I fall into that group. Don't get me wrong, I love everyone in the band and I want to be listening to their music as I drift off on my death bed (a long, long time from now) but there is only one person who can make wearing pajama bottoms and a helmet cam on stage look cool. If you've ever seen the Eagles perform you'll know who I'm talking about and, if not, well there must be something seriously wrong with you.

For me the show rated a 100 on a scale of 1 to 10. If I had any money I'd see them again at their second show on Friday night but, instead, I'll settle for playing their CD in my car for the rest of the week (if I can actually find it).

Until next time.....tell me whose music you would want to have playing in the background as you take your
final breaths?

Because My Twin Said So

I have registered to play in the
Online Poker Blogger Championship!

This event is powered by PokerStars.

Registration code: 3690452

I can't say no to a free tournament especially if my twin is playing! If you have a blog, go sign up and join the fun!

Random Sunday - It's All Gone

Poker

Every bit of money I deposited at Titan Poker is gone. It took me less than a week to lose it and I am leaving a nice amount of bonus dollars just sitting in my account going to waste. I will not be re-loading as I can't stand the software and since I can't seem to win there, I don't see the point. I should have known that I wouldn't win. Anytime anyone says the games are soft and anybody can win, I lose. I can't win at Party either.

Luckily, I still have money on Poker Stars and UB as well as some free money on various other sites. I think the new goal is to get my bankroll on Stars back to where I started and then consider moving my money somewhere else for a change of scenery. Maybe I'll go back to Full Tilt for a bit.

I did play the WPBT tourney on Tuesday night. I was knocked out by a bad beat in 30-something place. Same guy who knocked me out, took out Derek in an even worse beat. At least the chat room was fun.

Oh, I forgot to mention my 33rd place finish in the $5 Katrina charity tournament on Stars. I wasn't the longest lasting blogger but I had fun and it was nice to have a decent finish.

The Best Dog In The World

I really don't want to leave on a depressing note but I need to mention this because it fucking sucks. The day after my mom's birthday, and just a few days after her hospital stay, the best dog in the world got hit by a car. He was a gorgeous Rottweiler, Black Lab mix who was really just an overgrown puppy. My step-dad got him when he was a puppy to take on the road with him (he's a truck driver). He saved my step-dad's life on at least one occasion. Al was at a truck stop and a guy with a knife tried to rob him in the parking lot. The best dog in the world attacked the robber who ended up in jail, probably with a nice dog bite.

We'll never know why he chose that exact moment to run into the road. 2 seconds earlier or later and there may have been a different outcome but you can drive yourself crazy with those kind of thoughts. At least his death was instant and he didn't suffer. My step dad is blaming himself and my mom is really sad. It hit me when I realized that I couldn't hear him barking in the background while we talked on the phone. He was a good dog and he will be missed by many.

Until next time.....give your pet a great big hug.

If You Can't Spot The Fish....

What a horrible fucking weekend at the poker tables. You name the fishy move and I probably made it at some point.

"I know I'm beat but I'll call your all-in anyway.".... I lost two buy-ins that night.

"Just because there are 3 spades (or any other suit) on the board, doesn't mean he has the flush."....uh, yes he does, every fucking time.

"I'm working off a bonus so I'll loosen up my starting hand requirements.".....so I can lose my deposit twice as fast.

"Although I'm losing at this level, all I really need to do is change tables and I'll start winning.".....no, you need to move down a level or two you fucking moron!

I'm sure I could keep going but you get the idea. I think my brain finally started to function about the last half hour I played and I was able to win a little of my money back but it didn't make me feel any better.

I'm just so pissed off at myself right now because I knew I was playing bad poker and yet I kept right on playing like an Emu (or whatever the hell the new term for donkey is).

Anyway, I haven't signed up for the next WPBT tournament yet but I will tomorrow. First person to identify me (I couldn't use any of my normal nicknames) gets absolutely nothing but the knowledge that they were the first to figure it out.

See you all on Tuesday night and if your lucky I'll still be playing like an idiot.

The details (as stolen from Tao of Poker):

What: WPBT Tournament
Where: Titan Poker
When: Tuesday, September 20th at 9pm ET
Buy-in: $20 + 1
Format: No Limit
Dress Code: Pants are optional
Password: thehamma

Not The Post I Intended To Write

I'm actually not sure if I had intended to write anything today but if I had, I don't remember what I was going to write about. See, I just got one of those heart-stopping phone calls. I checked my voicemail and there was a message from my step-father, Al, "You're mom is in the hospital." That was when my heart stopped.

I immediately called him back only to get a busy signal. "Get off the fucking phone!" I said aloud to an empty room. Finally, after about 5 minutes, I got through. He told me that she had been having chest pain for about 3 weeks and today it got so bad that she went to the employee health clinic at her work. They called an ambulance.

The good news it that it wasn't a heart attack. Her EKG and blood work was normal but they are keeping her overnight and won't let her go home tomorrow until she has a Stress Test. I talked to my mom and she sounds like she is doing fine. The idea of being on medication for the rest of her life is unappealing to her but I know she'll do whatever the doctor tells her to do. If she doesn't, I'll be on the next plane to Bangor to give her a swift kick in the ass.

Next WPBT Las Vegas Event

Per Bill's blog:

"Well it looks like things have started to move forward and here’s what we have so far:

Date: Dec 10th, 2005
Place: Imperial Palace Casino
Time: Shooting for around 10am’ish

Despite having some reservations regarding the Harrah’s buyout of the IP, the poker room manager has done a good job at convincing me that they are committed to pulling this off for us.

Blind structure is being worked out but they have been open to structuring things as we would like them. Buy in would be $50 + $5 (dealer bonus) + $10 (juice) or $50 + $15 for those who are mathematically challenged.

I’ve spoken with the manager of guest relations at the IP and he said the normal room rates for $49/$69 (weekday/weekend) but he’s pretty confident he can get us a rate of $29/$39. We’re still working on that and I’ll post more about it as the info becomes available. In the meantime, if you would like to book at the IP, pop me (Bill) an email with your name, email, dates you plan on staying, phone number, and preference of smoking/non-smoking and I’ll start getting that over to Bob. If we can batch up all of the requests, Bob will have player club cards waiting for you at check-in as well.

As far as associated events, pros, etc., we’re still putting that together. We might have a sponsorship for the event so perhaps we’ll have some goodies to give away. "

"I have an annoucement to make!"

Those were the words declared by my step-brother about 2 weeks ago. He is stationed in San Diego (Navy) and had brought his girlfriend with him to visit us for the week. We (step-mom, my dad, and I) were all in the kitchen making dinner when he felt it was time to make a big announcement. I was thinking maybe another promotion or he was transferring to another base, I don't think any of us were prepared for his next words.

"My wife is pregnant!"

Those were his exact words and the room fell silent for about two seconds and then his mother asked, "are you joking with me?"

This was when I went into smart ass mode and replied, "well that ring on his finger looks a lot like a wedding band to me!"

From there it went into congratulations and all the questions that follow that type of announcement. I'll sum the answers up for you:

"3 weeks ago"
"no one was invited"
"15 weeks along"
"we're really happy"
"Tyler Patrick if it's a boy and Alexandria Nicole if it's a girl"

Yes, they have all ready picked out names. I'm actually happy for him but I'm wondering if the Navy is slipping a bit. I thought sailors who had been to countries like Thailand had some sort of mandatory sex education class at some point. Must have slipped his mind or he was really drunk. He probably just slipped back into irresponsible mode as men are prone to do from time-to-time.

Of course, he has a very secure job with free health care as well as a car and a condo. He's doing much better than the rest of us. I guess what I have the biggest problem understanding is what she sees in him. Don't get me wrong, he's my favorite step-sibling and, although not the smartest bulb in high school, managed to work his way up from potato peeler to Master Helmsman of an aircraft carrier. He's just always seemed so socially immature that I figured it would be awhile before he got married. I'm not sure of the maturity exchange rate but she just turned 20 and he's 26, does that make them even?

Oh, one more interesting tidbit, her name is Esther which happens to be my mom's name. I bet my dad thought he'd never have to say that name again.

Lastly, for those looking for a gambling reference, I put the over/under at 4 years.

Until next time.....Just call me Auntie April (only if you want me to kill you instantly).

Quick Update

Poker is really, really sucking right now.

I am way, way behind on my blog reading so don't be surprised if you get a new comment on a week-old post.

Punkin is back to her old self but tried to milk it a bit yesterday. I caught her playing with her favorite toy mouse so I knew she was fine.

I have never been to New Orleans so I don't have a story to share. I did watch the entire season of Real World New Orleans and thought it would be a cool place to visit, looks like that won't be happening for awhile. My heart is with everyone from who has been devastated by this disaster. Poker Stars and Wil Wheaton have planned some charity tournaments to help in the recovery of those areas hit hardest. If you have been waiting for a good excuse to start playing online poker, this is the best time. Click Tournaments and then the Special tab for more details.

Now I must go to bed so I can be half awake for work.

I'm A Bad Mom

There are three cats in my household. Ricci and Punkin are mine, and Tye-Dye belongs to my dad. When the flea population rises it becomes my job to put flea killer drops on their necks. Even though it's expensive I have always used Advantage which I buy it at my veterinarians office. It averages about $10 per tube and comes in a package of 6 tubes. Because the two boys weigh over 9 pounds and Punkin is around 7 pounds, I have to buy two different packages for a total of $120. Last Friday it was time to apply the liquid to all the cats. I had enough tubes for the boy's but I was totally out of the one for Punkin. Since I didn't really have the money to buy it from the vet, I went to the local Wal-Mart to see what they had as an alternative. After perusing the choices, I decided on Hartz 4 in 1 Flea and Tick Drops Plus for the bargain price of $8 for 3 tubes.

It was pretty obvious about 2 hours after applying the liquid that something was wrong. Punkin was drooling and her head was twitching a bit. Later I caught her scratching the area with her back legs and as she walked she would shake her legs as if they were wet and she was trying to dry them. I immediately tried washing the stuff off and eventually had to take some shampoo to the area. I did the best I could but whatever that substance is it's hard to get off. For the rest of the weekend my baby was obviously not herself. She was lethargic and would only leave the bedroom if I carried her out. This is another sign that something was wrong as she hates being held. I also don't think she was eating or drinking much but since I couldn't watch her every second, I didn't know for sure.

Last night I decided to do some research and found a very troubling web-site. It's called www.hartzvictims.org and is dedicated to getting all these crappy Hartz products off of the shelves. If you check out the site you will find hundreds if not thousands of stories of animals who have gotten extremely sick and even died after the use of these products. And don't think dog's are immune because they aren't. I also read a couple of horrific dog stories as well. I will be fair and point out that not every animal has had a negative reaction to these products but I also feel that the numbers that have should not be ignored.

As for Punkin, she seems to be doing better although she still isn't at her best. She has been eating, drinking water, and purred for a good ten minutes this morning. She even managed to hiss at Ricci but she is still a little twitchy and not her normal, active self. After speaking with the assistant at my veterinarians office I decided not to take her in as there probably isn't much that can be done at this point and she gets way to stressed when put in a carrier. I just don't think that added stress would be good for her. At this point, I just have to wait it out. From what I read it could be a couple of weeks before she is back to her normal so I'm sure she will be back to her regular princess duties soon.

I wrote this as a warning for all my pet owning readers. I put my trust in a product based on the limited information I had at the time. Had I known then what I know now, I would never taken the cheap way out. My veterinarians office said that they have no way of getting information out to the public as to how bad Hartz products are. Luckily for me, I have a blog and I'm not afraid to use it to get this information out. Please check out the web-site and share this information with as many people as possible. No one should have to go through what I went through this weekend.

UPDATE: I just found a link on the Hartz victims site to the EPA web-site. Apparently the company recently changed the labels to add warnings, plan on stopping production of this product by the end of September, and stop selling it, at least temporarily, at the end of the year. I just want to state that I followed the instructions and read the warnings but felt Punkin would be okay as she met all the requirements on the label. Obviously I was wrong and I personally feel this stuff should be off the shelves now, not at the end of the year.

I Need Some Help

I need the assistance from the blog experts out there. I need to add a banner to my site but I need to figure out how to host it and the HTML code to add it to my template. This is not an affiliate or money making banner. Basically I need someone to tell me what to do in simple, step-by-step instructions. Please e-mail me ASAP if you can help. Once I get this taken care of I will edit this post to explain the situation and the purpose of the banneer.

UPDATE: I've decided not to put up the banner. I will be back later today with a new post explaining what the hell is going on. Thanks.

Blogger Tourney Madness

Last night the 45 player, $1 SNG on Poker Stars didn't know what hit it when five poker bloggers decided to have a little fun with the fishies. The line-up:

Everyone's favorite Austin blogger and my twin.....April (Currently no blog to link)

Everyone's favorite Canadian blogger.......Joanne

Everyone's favorite dead tired blogger......Drizz

Everyone's favorite pathetic poker blogger......Gamecock

The game started out great, as we were seated and I found no other bloggers at my table. My game plan was to play super tight and let the idiots knock each other out but I found myself with a monster on the second hand of the tournament. I was in the small blind and several players ahead of me decided to limp in. I figured adding 10 more chips wouldn't hurt much so I went ahead and limped with my monster...... A 4 offsuit. I thought I'd end up folding after the flop but the poker gods were shining down on me as the flop came 3 5 2 giving me the wheel. My next step was figuring out how to get some more money out of the hand. I had forgotten that $1 tourneys are really just a giant aquarium.

As first to act I went with a small bet of T60 and found 2 callers. Turn came a K and I fired out T120 and was down to one caller. River is a Q and the flopped flush draw doesn't complete so I know I've got the stone cold nuts. I didn't think my opponent would call so I only bet T200. He raised me all-in and I, of course, called figuring he had a pair. Cards are flipped and it turns out he went all-in with Ace high, he wasn't even on a draw. With that hand I had taken the chip lead and knocked the first player out of the game.

After that it was standard poker with an occasional bluff. The first blogger casualty was Joanne. I didn't see the hand but she evidently was on the wrong end of a bad suckout. We had a chat room going and I realized I was missing some good stuff by not having Gamecock's table open. I remedied that and couldn't believe what I was seeing. No matter what he did he was getting called all the way to the river. He had the chip lead for quite a while but eventually he became the next blogger victim. I'm pretty sure he didn't care as he was having a lot of fun trying to rile up his opponents.

In the meantime I had been moved to my twin's table and later, Drizz ended up there as well. Three bloggers at the same table, time to get serious.

Unfortunately, Drizz was playing in his sleep and didn't last much longer so it was up to the twin's to bring home the victory. I don't remember the exact sequence of events but we both ended up doubling up with pocket 7's and we decided that from here on out pocket 7's are the official hand of the WPBT Twins. Not only did we win with that hand but I took out a player who dared play it against me.

At this point we had both made the money and Joanne was continuing the encouragement. Austin finally went out in fourth place and I found myself shortstacked with one guy having about 70% of the chips. I knew winning was going to be close to impossible so I set my sights on second. I actually made it to heads-up play but was severely out chipped. I fought for a few hands but finally decided that the extra $4 for first wasn't worth it.

I had a great time and want to thank everyone for coming out to play, especially Joanne and April for sticking with me until the end.

Until next time.....

The End Of The World!

Those who know me know that I am a hockey fan. Those who know me well know that Mike Ricci is my favorite hockey player (I actually named one of my cats Ricci). When I first started watching hockey he was playing for Colorado and was the only player on the ice I could pick out of the mass of players out on the ice because of his long hair falling well below his helmet. He was the reason I continued to watch and I was thrilled when he left Colorado to become a Shark. Unfortunately he is now on the Phoenix Coyotes but I still look forward to seeing him play when his team is in town.

So, you are probably wondering what this has to do with the end of the world. I'll tell you in one simple five word sentence: MIKE RICCI CUT HIS HAIR!!!! I'm pretty sure this is a sign of the apocalypse.

First person to direct me to a picture of Mr. Ricci with his new look will get a special mention in my next post (I know, you can barely contain yourself).

Here We Go Again!

It looks as though some poker bloggers have made their reservations in Vegas for the next WPBT get together on the weekend of December 15th. I'll tell you right now that I will be there, I just have to rob a bank first. Even though I went through a lot at the June event, I had a good time, and saw the potential for a better time if I had actually been alive for the Saturday events. This time I plan to be healthy.

That being said, I realized last night while doing preliminary trip pricing, that the travel industry likes to screw the single traveler. Vacation packages are about the same price for one person as they are for two people. Tell me how that makes sense! Basically, I am being punished for traveling alone. So, I then went on to price airfare and hotel separately. I discovered that hotels charge five to ten dollars less a night if you say there will be at least two people in the room. If I claimed two people were sleeping in the room how would the hotel know that I wasn't telling the truth? I would think that all I would have to do is say my friend is flying in later. If anyone can see a flaw in this logic, please let me know.

I would also like to state that I have no problem sharing a room so if you are also planning to travel alone and would like to split that cost, let me know. I am looking at staying at the Sahara or Imperial Palace but will consider other accommodations if the price is right. Leave me a comment or e-mail me at
April9807 AT aol DOT com if you are interested.

Until next time.......(still got nothing).

Complications

It's been over a month since my surgery and I figured I was in the clear as far as post surgery complications go but, as anyone who reads this blog knows, I'm an idiot! Over the weekend one of my incision sites started to give me problems and yesterday I had to visit the surgeon for a little procedure. I won't go into the gory details but I will say that the next time anyone tries to stick a needle into my abdomen, I'm kicking them in the junk and getting the hell out of there.

There was some good news this week as my co-worker/boss (depending on who you ask) had surgery and will probably be out for at least three months. It isn't anything life threatening and we knew it was coming but it's going to take me a couple weeks to get used to the peace and quiet that comes with her being out. I considered throwing a party to celebrate her departure but figured she'd kick my ass and have me fired. Unfortunately I need the benefits so I have to behave myself.

As for poker, I won another SNG the other night and had a second place finish the next night. In the first one I made a couple of early mistakes and was down to a chip and a chair when my patient side kicked in. I waited for good cards and managed to go into the final three with a decent chip lead. After a few hands of heads-up, it was all over and I went to bed a happy person. The second place finish was a similar come from behind game, except the other player had a huge chip lead going into heads-up.

It was a good thing I won some money in the SNG's because the ring games have been horrible for me lately. I take full responsibility for the losses but it really has sucked. I've been playing like an idiot and have deserved every loss I have encountered. Hopefully, by admitting to my stupidity, I can begin to turn my game around. No more chasing, no more playing marginal crap, NO MORE FISHY PLAY!! Something tells me that's a little easier said than done.

One last thing, to all those going to Brad-o-ween this weekend, have fun (although I think that is a given). More importantly, take lots and lots of pictures so I can spend a few minutes living vicariously.

Just Call Me Lucky!

I had just won a $12 pot at the .25 table when I decided to enter the $3 tourney on Stars. I was hanging out in the Big Brother 6 chat room and needed something to do as I kept track of the HOH competition (heading into it's 6th hour if anyone cares). I really didn't think I would last long as my tournament game is sucking lately.

I actually did fairly well in the early part of the tourney, at one point I was in 20th place. The few times I went to showdown I actually won, even with the Hilton's (Queen's). Then I made my stupid move of the evening and lost a good portion of my stack. Basically, from that point on I was short-stacked.

After the second break, and with the bubble approaching, I managed to win enough chips to keep me alive but not comfortable. It was a struggle, but I made the money (top 135).

After the third break my only moves were fold or all-in, and this is where the luck really kicked in. I would get down to barely a big blind and finally get a decent hand. I would go all-in pre-flop and get anywhere from 1 to 3 callers. My hand would not necessarily be the best, but I would ultimately win. I think I did this about ten times, winning just enough to make it to the next rung on the payment ladder. Towards the end I had to go all-in at least once every orbit just to cover the blinds. It was crazy! My luck finally came to an end when I was forced all in with Q 6 off. I actually flopped a 6 and the turn was a Queen but I ended up being beaten by a better 2 pair, K 9. I was so close to the next payout but my luck had run out.

Of course 20th place out of 1398 isn't bad, even if I only made $16.

Here's my stats for those interested. Probably a little too tight but I'm still okay with the result.

During current Hold'em session you were dealt 285 hands and saw flop:
- 17 out of 35 times while in big blind (48%)
- 6 out of 34 times while in small blind (17%)
- 16 out of 216 times in other positions (7%)
- a total of 39 out of 285 (13%)
Pots won at showdown - 17 of 19 (89%) - only lost the hand I went stupid on and the final hand.
Pots won without showdown - 6

Dumbass Idea

I just unregistered from a SNG on UB after sitting in the waiting room for almost 30 minutes. How ridiculous is that? I thought the point was to sit and, once the table is full, play some poker? Instead, Ultimate Bet "improved" the system by having you sign-up and put your name on a wait list for some undetermined amount of time. It's stupid and the dumbass who thought this up should be fired or, at the very least, smacked up-side the head. Is there something I am missing here because I just don't see how this new format makes any sense? Anyone?

Anyway, in honor of this "new improved" format I am suggesting a new name. How about we start calling them the "sit-and-wait" tournaments? I think it's kind of catchy. Who's with me?

Post Deleted

I had posted a fun quiz result from a link on Maigrey's site. The HTML came out looking like crap so I erased it.

Sorry, but I suck at fixing HTML!

2 Down, 47 To Go

I have just finished my first week of my new diet and I am celebrating my 2 pound loss. If I lose 47 more I'll be back to my high school weight, which is my dream goal but probably not the most attainable goal. I'll definitely settle for 35. Last time I tried this I lost 11 pounds before I gave up, this time I will not fail. I actually feel motivated and have yet to feel as if I am missing out on something. As far as food is concerned, I have tweaked my intake by adding more fruit and removing most sweets. I am making better choices at work and did not deny myself cake when we celebrated a co-workers birthday. I feel no guilt over that choice and probably would have felt worse if I hadn't had the cake. Besides, other than sweets, my diet isn't the real problem.

The real problem is that I never get up off the couch. The only exercise in my life is the walking I do around the hospital as I go to different departments to do EKG's. Most days there isn't a lot of movement and I've discovered that I get winded while getting dressed every morning. Add to that my increased blood pressure and heart rate and it becomes obvious that I needed to make the change. I have done some form of exercise almost every day this week and I am already feeling better. We have a treadmill and cable machine in the house so I don't even have to go to a gym (I hate being around other people while I exercise). The best part is that I can set my laptop on the treadmill and catch up on my blog reading while I walk (not that I'll ever catch up since you all write so damn much). ;)

Poker Content

I finally won a SNG yesterday on UB. When we got 4-handed I had to fold for awhile. There was one player who was sitting out and I wasn't about to go out before him. Once he was blinded out I started to get some cards but we were just exchanging chips for what seemed like ages. Finally the guy across from me was knocked out and I was heads up with a slight disadvantage. Again, we exchanged chips for a bit and at one point I was down to 800 but had the other guy's number and started to build back up. I finally got the chip lead and then crippled him with a hand I don't remember. The last hand I knew he was going all-in (I don't think he could cover the blind but I'm not sure) and I made up my mind to call no matter what. When I saw my cards I knew he was done as I had been dealt The Hammer! A 2 came on the flop but he had paired his Q. I tried not to worry and when the 7 came on the river it was all over. The hammer brought me my first SNG victory since June 11.