The Heart Brings You Back

Tomorrow is Keith and Sam's wedding...finally! It feels like they've been engaged for 12 years, so this is definetly due. It should be a pretty fun day, and since I've never been in a wedding before, it should be a neat experience. It's just weird to think that they're getting married...Wow.

Keith has been my best friend since I moved to Ridgedale in 7th grade. He'll probably always be my best friend, but it's going to be weird seeing him getting married. It doesn't seem like we should be at this stage in our lives yet...it seems like yesterday we were playing high school sports and acting like idiots. Oh wait, we probably we acting like idiots yesterday, but the sports was like 6 years ago...geesh, that seems like a long time. I'm getting old.

Tonight is the rehearsel dinner, so that should be fun too. It's a chance to see some people I don't see all that much, plus we get a nice dinner out of it. Can't beat that.

Well, congratulations to Sam and Keith. I've been around you two since the very beginning of your relationship, and I've watched the two of you fall in love. It is actually quite an inspiring thing, and you relationship gives hope to everyone who hasn't found love yet. I hope I can you what the two of you have one day...I think I'm well on my way :-) Enjoy your day, and have fun on your honeymoon!!! I'm honored that you asked me to be a part of your special day.

"Remember tonight, for it is the beginning of always.
A promise. Like a reward for persisting through life so long alone. The belief in each other and the possibility of love.
A decision. To ignore or simply rise above the pain of the past.
A covenant. Which at once bind two souls and yet severs prior ties.
A celebration. Of the chance taken and the challenge that lies ahead. For two will always be stronger than one, like a team braced against the tempest of the world.
And love - will always be the guiding force in our lives.
For tonight is mere formality.
Only an announcement to the world of feelings long held, promises made long ago in the sacred space of our hearts."

Hanging By A Moment

I haven't posted anything lately because nothing exciting has happened lately. The only thing of note is I spent $4,000 last week. I bought a 50 inch TV and some furniture…so now I'm po. That's slang for poor, in case you didn't know.

Next week is the big wedding, and the week after that I move, so I'll be pretty busy between now and then. I'll try to post if anything exciting happens, but don't cross your fingers. Til' next time...

"Playing not to lose any game is a surefire formula for disaster."

Every Night Is Another Story

Unbelievable…that pretty much sums up this weekend at Put In Bay. I had a great time on Friday night, and I think everyone else did as well. We watched the Cavs at a bar, and then went out and had a good time. Saturday night is when it got interesting.

All day Saturday I had a killer headache from the night before, so I pretty much slept all day. When it was time to go out, we all got ready and headed downtown about 10. We left 4 people back at the cabins that were too drunk to come, and they were passed out. Well, my friend Matt and I decide to come back from the bars early, around 1 or so, because we were tired. Lo and behold, when we get back, the cops are waiting for us. Apparently one of the people we left back at the cabin flooded the bathroom by plugging the bathtub and overflowing it. So we get kicked out of our cabins at 3:30 in the morning with no where to sleep…how wonderful.

Well, we ended up staying at some boat dock. It's about 35 degrees, the wind is blowing about 30 mph, and it's raining…just wonderful conditions. So we had to brave the weather outside, and I've been sick since then. How awesome is that. It sucked really bad at the time…in fact I don't think I've ever been so miserable, but it sure makes for a good story now. I guess you win some and you lose some.

On a different note, I think I'm going to stop playing poker for awhile. Probably at least until we move in to our apartment. I just don’t have time to devote to playing right now, and when I get on the internet and play I end up playing stupid because I'm in a rush to get somewhere or do something. I think the time off will do me good, because hopefully it'll reenergize my love for it, and I'll want to get better again. Right now I'm in a rut, and I don't have the desire to get better. I've sold my poker table, and my chips are on eBay, so if you want them go bid on them! I don't need them anymore, because I don't host a game, and the new chips have been used once…so I might as well get some money out of them.

T-minus 28 days til we move into the apartment. I'm pretty excited…not only to be moving out for good, but to kind of start my life with Kylie. I don't know what the future holds for us, but it seems like things are headed in the right direction, and since the beginning I've kind of had a feeling about her…I'm pretty sure she's "the one", but I guess only time will tell.
Ok, I've rambled on long enough…hopefully I'll have some other exciting stories soon, but I don't know if I can come up with anything to top this past weekend…I'll keep trying though!!!

"There seems to be a kind of order in the universe…in the movement of the stars and the turning of the Earth and the changing of the seasons. But human life is almost pure chaos. Everyone takes his stance, asserts his own right and feelings, mistaking the motives of others, and his own."

And The Days Keep Piling Up...

I was thinking about time today, and how weird it is. There are 24 hours, 1,440 minutes, and 86,400 seconds in a day…but for some reason, when the last second ticks from 11:59:59 to 12:00:00, it is a new day. Who decided this? Who's idea was it to proclaim that last second more important than the rest of them? We live 86,399 other seconds each day, but the last second proclaims a new day has come…it's weird.

The reason I was thinking about this is because yesterday was my friend Sam's birthday, and she's turning 24. So she's lived 364 days this year and been 23 the whole time, but this last day magically makes a year go past and she turns 24…just seems a little odd to me. Yeah I know I think about weird shit, but it's what's in my mind.

This weekend we are sending my friend Keith off in a blaze of glory…it's his bachelor party, and we're going to Put In Bay. I've never been up there, so I'm looking forward to it. It's gonna be a good time hanging out with some people I don't get to see all that much. I'm pumped. I'm pretty excited that I'm taking Monday off too…I'm gonna spend the whole day with Kylie (after a much needed doctor's appointment). I'm excited about that, because I haven't spent the whole day with her in awhile. It should be fun.

There doesn't seem to be much time for poker these days. I think I'm getting worse since I haven't been playing as much. I cashed out all but $100 of my online bankroll, so I'm going to start playing small and try to build that back up while getting my skills (or lack thereof) back up to par. Hopefully I can start playing more and get back into it…we'll see I guess.
That's all…I'll have a full trip report next week.

"You know it's been said that we just don't recognize the significant moments of our lives while they're happening. We grow complacent with ideas, or things or people and we take them for granted and it's usually not until that thing is about to be taken away from you that you've realized how wrong you've been that you realized how much you need it, how much you love it."

An Attempt To Tip The Scales

There has been quite a lot going on since my last post…and I haven't had the time to post something new. Imagine that. Let's see…I've been working close to 50 hours a week, we're trying to get everything squared away with this apartment (we'll be moving in June 23rd by the way) and dealing with a family issue that may or may not become a much bigger issue. So I've kinda got a lot going on.

I was supposed to go to a Fall Out Boy concert on Tuesday, but I didn't really feel like it. When we got to the concert, there were like 4 million 13 year olds, so I just sold my ticket and went back to work for about 2 hours…what fun! I'm really looking forward to the Jack's Mannequin concert on July 25th though, so hopefully that will be a good time.

Working all of the time really sucks…but it's kinda nice when the paycheck comes. I guess I just have to get used to it. I need to make something happen, and the only way to really do that is with hard work. My whole life I've always been younger than my friends or the people that I competed against in sports, so I always had to work harder than everyone else to make up for it. So why should the real world be any different? I'll just have to keep putting in the hours and trying to get ahead, and maybe I'll catch the lucky break I need. Let's hope so!

I haven't had too much time to play poker, but I played 5 sit n go's in the past couple of days. I won 2, finished 2nd in one, and didn't cash in the other 2, so I'm up a grand total of $47. Not great, but it's better than losing $47. Hopefully I'll be able to get a few more in this weekend.
I'm running short on time (as usual) so that's all I have for now…have a good weekend!

"You ever heard the expression 'The best things in life are free"? Well that expression is true. Every once in awhile, people step up...they rise above themselves. Sometimes they surprise you...and sometimes they fall short. Life is funny sometimes. It can push pretty hard, but if you look close enough, you can find hope in the words of children, in the bars of a song and in the eyes of someone you love. And if you're lucky...if you're the luckiest person on this entire planet, the person you love decides to love you back."

Let the Reigns Go Loose

Well…my return to the tournament poker scene was less then awesome…in fact, I really sucked. I got good cards, but couldn't hit any flops. I played pretty poorly overrall, but managed to hang around for a little while. I was eliminated when my A 9 ran into A K…the guy on the button in my big blind was stealing it all night, and I was fed up with it. When he raised, I pushed in with my A 9, which was a bad play by the way because I still had an average stack for our table. But anyways, I didn't suck out, and that was all she wrote for me. I didn't even stick around for the cash games because I was playing so badly.

I was going to play at the VFW on Saturday night, but I had the opportunity to hang out with some friends so I did. Plus with the way I was playing the night before, I didn't feel like flushing $40 down the drain. I need to get back in the swing of things, but I think I need to start low and work my way back up…I need to stop bluffing so much, that's for damn sure.
In other news…wait, I don't have any other news. Things are good with Kylie…we'll actually probably be living together in a few months. It just makes sense, because we both need somewhere to live, so I guess it's the best move. I don't think it will affect our relationship any…if it does, maybe we aren't supposed to be together. I have a feeling that we will be fine though.

That's all I've got for today…I'll try to be back this weekend sometime to report on our "old-school dealer's choice" game we're playing on Saturday night…that should be quite interesting to say the least. Peace out homies!

"Sometimes you have to step outside of the person you've always been, and start becoming the person you're supposed to be"

Return of the Future

The other night I got a chance to play 3 sit n go's on UB…and I wasn't very successful. I finished down $15 for the night which is nothing, but I had a chip lead in every single one, and proceeded to blow it. So instead of being up about $95, I was down $15. Oh well, what can ya do?

I'm really starting to get in the mood to play more, so I'll probably try to make some time to start playing online…I'd like to play live more, but it's so time consuming that I can't seem to make much room for it. Hopefully when I move back down to Columbus (who knows when that will be, hopefully sometime soon, but we'll see) we can get a regular game going again. Those were some pretty fun times playing with my friends, and it gave me the opportunity to play more as well.

I'll probably be working about 10 hours of overtime a week for awhile…I've been spending too much money, so I have to make some more to replenish the funds. Regular time sucks, but overtime sucks more, because I have to be at work longer…but overtime is much easier to take when the time and a half hours show up on the good ol' paycheck.
That's all for now, I'll probably post something on here before the weekend is over.

"Everything in life is luck"

The Games That Play Us

I played in the heads up tournament at the VFW this weekend…it wasn't all I thought it was gonna be. There were only 11 people in it, and luck of the draw gave me a bye in the first round. The top 4 people got paid (3rd and 4th got their money back), so I only had to win one match to get in the money, which I won pretty easily.

My second match would send me to the finals if I won…which I didn't. I've never played with the person that I played, but he seemed to be a pretty decent player. I had him on the ropes more than once, but I just couldn't put him away. We played for about 45 minutes, and in that time he picked up these hands: AA, KK (twice), JJ, 1010, and 88…he got the Aces and Kings on back to back hands…it's kinda hard to beat someone who is on a rush like that. Another hand I flopped top pair only to lose to his runner runner 10's to give him trips…very frustrating. I think the most frustrating hand is when I had a 3 to 1 chip lead and I put him all in with pocket 10's…he of course called with pocket Kings. The first card off the deck was a 10, giving me a set and the lead…but the turn came a King, and that's all she wrote on that hand. He played well and caught cards when he needed to, so I can't really complain…that's poker.

I played one hand badly that might have cost me the match…but I won the hand. I was on the button and called with 77, hoping to flop a set and take a huge pot. Well the first card off the deck was a 7, and he bet 200 (out of a starting stack of 2,000) after the flop. I just called and a deuce hit the turn. He bet another 300, and this is where I messed up. The board read K J 7 2, and I wanted to raise him in case he had a straight draw…so I moved all in for another 1,100 more. He thought for awhile and eventually folded, but I think I could've called here and saw what happened on the river…I'm pretty sure he was probably drawing dead, and I might have been able to "take his legs out" if I would've slowplayed it a little more. I guess that's just a mistake I'll have to learn from.
I'm going to try to play more…I've been playing a few more sit n go's and I've been doing fairly well, so I'm going to try to play at least 6-7 a week, and see how things go. Next weekend I have the 4 horseman tournament…it would be nice to make a good showing there…we'll see.
Nothing else to report really.

I spent Easter Sunday with Kylie and her family, and that was nice. I got to meet her grandparents and one of her uncles, and they seemed pretty cool. I got to meet the family, so she must not hate me…that's always a plus.

"Most of our life is a series of images. They pass us by like towns on the highway. But sometimes a moment stuns us as it happens. And we know that this instant is more than a fleeting image. We know that this moment, every part of it, will live on forever"

Suddenly Everything Has Changed

My life has been going non-stop for about the last month and a half. For those of you who don't know, I now have a girlfriend named Kylie. She's pretty awesome and I've been spending a ton of time with her because, well she is a blast. All we do is laugh together, and no matter what happens between us I think I've got a friend for life.

I also took a new position at work which is going to require alot of overtime...so I'm super busy. Kylie is the sister of my best friend's fiance, and the three of them live together. I've been staying there quite a bit, so I'm sure Keith and Sam are tired of seeing my ugly mug. Guys, I'm sorry if I've been imposing...I'll try to make it up to you somehow.

So with all of that going on, I haven't gotten to play hardly any poker...at all. I'm playing as we speak for the first time in probably about a month, and I'm finding out just how rusty my game is. It'll come around though, I'm sure of it. I have a heads up tournament to play tomorrow, and another tournament in a couple weeks, so I'll be playing a little more.

Well, that's all I have time for now, I'll try to update this damn thing more often from now on.

"There is a tide in the affairs of men, which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune, but omitted, and the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and miseries. On such a full sea are we now afloat and we must take the current when it serves or lose the ventures before us. "

Enough!

Ok...my blog is here to stay now. It will remain here, and I'm not going to move it anymore...so tell all of your friends...lol. I'll be on here in the next few days to make a real post, but I figured I'd just post this so that if anyone is checking this link from the post I made on the old site, they would know that this was the right place...so yeah, this is it.

"Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get"

I've Got Dreams to Remember

I can’t remember a time in my life where I’ve been more frustrated and tired. I constantly feel like I’m stuck in this rut in life, and most of it has to do with my job. I never thought it would be half as hard as it has been to find a good job. I guess I’m fortunate in a way, because I’ve had a job since before I graduated that has paid the bills…but I didn’t go to college to make $12/hr. I’ve got to find something that challenges me and allows me to earn more money at the same time. It just seems that nobody will give me a chance. All I want is a chance…

I guess in life you can’t rely on people to give you opportunities, and I’m fine with that. I have no problem with making my own opportunities…the problem is that I don’t always know HOW to create my own opportunities. I’ve been thinking a lot lately about trying to start a business, but I can’t figure out what kind of a business I would like to start…or even how to go about starting one. I think I’m going to do some research and find out some stuff about it. I’ve got to do something. It doesn’t make any sense to sit around and complain about not being happy without doing anything to fix it.

On to more exciting things, or at least less depressing things. I’ve been playing poker quite a bit lately online, and I’ve been doing pretty well. I’m starting to get that feeling again that something good is going to happen…like me winning a big tournament. So I guess we’ll see what happens, I’ve been right every time I’ve gotten this feeling so far.

I’ve also started to try to qualify for the WSOP Main Event online. I have only tried a few supersatellites, but I haven’t had any luck lately. I still have quite a bit of time, but I’d like to be able to do it ASAP, if I’m able to do it at all. Only time will tell I guess.

I’ll leave you on that note…wish me luck trying to qualify for that damn tournament!!

"Recognize that everyday won't be sunny and when you find yourself lost in the darkness and despair, remember its only in the black of night when you can see the stars... and those stars will lead you back home. So don't be afraid to make mistakes and stumble and fall cause most of the time the greatest rewards come from doing the things that scare you the most. Maybe you will get everything you wished for... or maybe you will get more than you ever could of imagined. Who knows where life will take you, the road is long and in the end, the journey IS the destination."

The Mixed Tape

What's up? I found this band through the T.V. show One Tree Hill and I think this song is pretty sweet. Check it out and vote for it on T.R.L. Kinda cheesy I know, but I like their music so I figured I'd help the cause and post this bannner. UPDATE: I bought their CD "Everything in Transit" the other day, and I can't stop listening to it...pick it up, or at least check it out on amazon or something...Talk ta ya later!!

Sophomore Slump, or Comeback of the Year?

You’re probably wondering what’s up with these titles I’ve been using lately…they’re titles from either Fall Out Boy songs, or Episode titles from a few TV shows I like. I like them because their kinda crazy, plus they’re way more creative than something I could come up with. So I try to find something that is close to the subject of my post, and I use it. I’ll keep using them mostly because I’m entertained by it and I like the challenge of trying to find one that matches the content of my post.

I’ve been officially been playing poker tournaments regularly for a year and half, calendar time. I’ve really only been playing for about 15 months, because I’ve only played in one tournament in the last 3 months or so. So I figured I’d try to analyze how far I’ve come, how much money I’ve made, and some of my goals for the next year. So here goes nothin.

In the past 18 months or so, I think I’ve evolved from a very novice and inexperienced tournament player into an experienced player that has formed a solid tournament strategy. I’ve come to understand some poker theories that are more complex than anything I ever thought I’d be able to comprehend, although I’m still in the process of learning how to apply these strategies in the correct situations. I think I’m on my way to becoming a good player, and now that my little sabbatical from poker is over, I’m ready to start devoting more time to poker again. In the next year or so I hope to continue to improve as a player and continue to learn more strategies and how to correctly apply them. I also hope to improve on becoming better at reading players, and trusting these reads.

The past year was a pretty profitable one for me poker wise. Just counting tournaments, I’ve probably won about $2,500-$3,000. This isn’t a huge amount, but for the tournaments I’ve played in, I would say it’s pretty successful. If it wasn’t for a few untimely bad beats in big situations, I probably would have made close to double that. But that’s poker, what can you do. One of my biggest strengths in tournament poker is cashing in a high percentage of the tournaments I enter, but I want to improve on that as well. I am going to try to become more aggressive in the later stages and build a stack that can help me win, not just cash. I’d accept a few less times in the money for a few more higher finishes.

I have a couple of goals for this upcoming year of poker. The first one is to try to qualify for the World Series of Poker Main Event. There are online satellites everywhere, so I’m going to try my best to qualify. If it doesn’t work, I guess I’ll just gain a lot of tournament experience, so it’s really a win win situation.

I also want to become a better cash game player, whether it be limit or no-limit. I sometimes struggle in cash games with making good decisions, so I need to improve upon this in order to increase my bottom line. If I can cut down on the bad decisions I make, this will allow me to save $, and in poker $ is just as good as $ won.

That’s pretty much it for this one. I guess the question is, will I have a Sophomore Slump, or will it be the Comeback of the Year? Stay tuned, I guess we’ll find out together.

“Don’t be afraid to be great.”

Lonesome Road

So, it’s winter in Ohio and it’s cold…although it hasn’t been a typical winter here, because it’s been very mild. I figure we’re do for a monster blizzard sometime in February probably. There hasn’t bee much going on here, the winter is quite boring in the O-H-I-O.

I played in my first poker tournament at the VFW since I won the tournament there Thanksgiving weekend. It was a shootout, which means you start with a certain # of tables, and each table winner moves to the final table. I ended up finishing 2nd at my table, which didn’t get me squat. I had a big chip lead, but lost two big hands. One was when my pocket 2’s got beat by KJ, and the other is when my A8 got beat by A7. Oh well, that’s poker…what can you do?

I’ve been playing online a little more. My poker enthusiasm has started to slowly come back, and I’ve been doing fairly well in the sit n go’s online. I’ll keep playing those, and maybe I’ll move to cash games eventually. I just don’t feel comfortable playing cash games online for some reason. I’m not as good at cash games as I am tournaments, but online is completely different. Hopefully I’ll get better at that.

Speaking of poker, a few of my friends started a poker website for the Marion area, and I’m writing an article that is supposed to help people learn about poker. You can check out the website here. It’s got along way to go, but they’ve got a good start, so maybe it will turn into something.

Nothing else really going on, except for that I’m getting the Vegas itch again. I didn’t think it would come again so soon after last trip, because Vegas kicked my ass last time, but it’s back. I’m really hoping to qualify for the WSOP Main Event online, but that’s probably a long shot. Even if I don’t I’d like to go out and watch the final table of the Main Event. I’ll probably try to get out there for a couple of days before that though. I need to go out there for just a few days by myself and just play poker the whole trip. We’ll see what happens with everything.

Well, Porky Pig always says, That’s All Folks!

"The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good."

Have You Ever Seen the Rain?

I have...as a matter of fact, that's all I've seen today. It has been pouring all day...I mean it hasn't even stopped for a second. That makes January even harder to get through. January and February are the absolute worst months of the year, and then it goes and rains all day. Last week, I didn't see the sun for 4 days in a row. This is why I hate winter so much...if it's not raining, it's freezing ass cold and snowing. I can't wait until April!

That's all I've got...I haven't posted much lately, but that's because there isn't anything going on with me...same ole, same ole. Maybe tomorrow will be the day that changes my life or something and I'll have something to write about...if not, I'll be around sometime in the near future. Until then...

"Live each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influences of each."

Somewhere A Clock is Ticking...

...but not in Las Vegas. I lose all track of time when I'm there and for a week or so after I'm back...but finally I have enough energy and time to write about my trip to Las Vegas. It was awesome, but exhausting…which is too be expected I guess. I probably played between 40 to 50 hours of poker while I was there, and I ended up winning about $250. I was up $400 going into the last day, but I lost $150 because I was HUNG OVER. But the night before was definitely worth it.

I got a chance to do some things I didn’t get to do last time, like go up to the top of the Eiffel Tower at Paris Las Vegas, and head over to the Hard Rock Café, and to the Palms. I got some pretty sweet pictures of the Bellagio Fountains atop the Eiffel Tower.

The only 2 nights I really went out were the first night and the last night. I was usually too tired from playing poker all day (and sometimes all night) to really go out too much. The first night, we went to over to the New York New York hotel and went to Coyote Ugly. It’s a pretty cool place, but it gets pretty old after about an hour or so. The last night was the best night of the trip for me. A few of my family friends that I’ve known since I can remember were staying at the same hotel as us, so I got the chance to hang out with them. I have a huge amount of respect for the whole family, and a good time always seems to follow them. Well this night was no different, as we pretty much roamed our hotel and got HAMMERED. This night made the whole trip worth it…it was just good to hang out with them, because I don’t get a chance to that often, and we’ve kinda lost touch a little. But Courtnie and I said we were gonna start hanging out, so maybe we’ll keep touch better this time…I sure hope so.

Well, a fun night on Thursday leads too a LOOOOONG day on Friday. We had to check out at 11 a.m., but our flight didn’t leave until midnight, so I was stuck being hung over in the Sports Book all day. It was pretty miserable, but hey, you only live once, so sometimes you gotta suck it up. We ended up getting back to Marion about 12:30 on Saturday, so I slept the rest of the day. I was still exhausted on Christmas, but it was good to see some of the family.

That’s about all I’ve got…Two of my best friends, Kyle and Robin, are getting married on New Year’s Eve, so that should be fun…Good Luck you two, I love ya both.

Well, Happy New Year…and GO BUCKS!

"Losing your way on a journey is unfortunate, but losing your reason for the journey is a fate more cruel"

You Have to Go There to Come Back

T-minus 2 days until Vegas!!! I can't wait, but I'm already dreading coming back and going to work...that's gonna suck. I haven't posted lately because I don't really have anything going on. It's pretty much been me waiting for Vegas. I have been watching a new show called "One Tree Hill", and I'm hooked. I've watched the first two seasons on DVD, and I'm trying to catch up on the third season...you should check it out.

That's all I've got...I'm sure there will be a LONG post when I get back from Vegas...til then, Merry Christmas!!!

"Sometimes, you have to step out of the person you are, and start being the person you're supposed to be."

Winning is Sweet!

This weekend worked out pretty darn well for me. There was a series of 5 poker tournaments at the VFW here in Marion, and I played in all of them. There were 2 Hold 'Em tournaments at $30 apiece, a 7 card stud and Omaha at $30 apiece, and another Hold 'Em Main Event at $55.

The weekend started off horribly...I was the first one out in the first tournament, and I didn't cash in the second. The 3rd one was 7 card stud, and I managed to come in 2nd in that one making $143. I didn't cash in the 4th event, so all I had left was the Main Event to make something happen.

Believe it or not, I ended up winning the Main Event. That was good for $629. There also was a points system to determine the Player of the Series. $5 from every persons entry from every tournament went into the pool, and 1st place in the points got 70%, and 2nd got 30%. So with my Main Event victory, I was able to vault into 2nd place and take home $180 for that. So on the weekend I brought home $953 ($778 in profit). Not too bad considering the way the weekend started!

I ended up losing $82 tonight playing $2-$4 on Full Tilt. I played pretty bad, and had a couple of sets cracked, so that's never any fun...but my bankroll is at $2,200, so I can't really complain. I have to start playing better though, so I can keep increasing it.

I don't really have much else right now...16 days til Vegas!!!!

" Success is only a word, but achieving it is a lifestyle."

Foxwoods and The World Poker Conference

Well last Friday Pounds and I left at about 6 p.m. for Connecticut. The reason we were going there was for the World Poker Players Conference. We figured it’d be a good chance to learn from some of the pros there and we’d even get to play a little poker in the casino.

After a pretty uneventful trip, we arrived at the casino at about 4:30 a.m (with no sleep, I might add). After we got around and got a seat in the poker room, we started playing at about 5 a.m. The only game we could really get a seat is was the $4-$8 game. This place is absolutely huge!!! There are 100 tables in the room, and we had to wait for a seat at 5 in the morning!

Well, anyways, back to the poker. We ended up playing to about 8:15 a.m, and then headed for the conference. I ended up winning $77, and Pounds lost like $150. I only won a few hands, but I’ll go over a couple of them.

The first hand I won was when I had pocket Queens, and they held up. This game was very loose, and I had a couple of people call me down to the river. The J of spades hit the river and paired the board, so I checked, fearing that I was drawn out on, but the 2 pair held up and I had won my first pot of the night.

The next hand I won was a monster. I limped in with KQo in middle position, and 7 people saw a flop of 10 J A rainbow. Yes, I flopped the nuts with 7 people in the pot. I bet, and got called by 5 people…at this time, as happy as I was to have flopped the nuts, I was a little worried that maybe someone had two pair or something. Well, the turn brought the 8 of spades, which put 2 spades on the board. I bet out, and got called by 3 people. The river brought the J of clubs, and this obviously scared me, as I was worried someone hit their full house. Well someone bet into me, but there was no way I could fold, so I called. I had considered raising, but this was pretty early in the session and I didn’t know what the player betting into me was capable of, so I just called as did one other player. Well it turns out that the guy that bet into me had AQ, good for 2 pair, and I’m not sure what the other player had as they didn’t show. But my flopped Broadway was good enough for a monster pot, probably close to $100.

Those were really the only 2 hands of note…I won 2 more I think, but nothing exciting. The breakfast for the conference started at 9, so we headed up to the room and ate, and waited for the conference. At this time I had been up for about 27 hours straight and I was feeling pretty horrible. Well, the conference went off without a hitch, and at 6, after 36 hours without sleep, we were finished. We got to meet some cool pros, and get some pictures and such. My favorite pro was Mark Gregorich. He was incredibly knowledgeable and very down to Earth…he even told us to look him up when we’re in Vegas in December…pretty cool guy if you ask me. The conference did help me find a renewed passion for poker, and I left there truly believing that I will achieve my goal of playing poker for a living someday.
Well, we drove for about 2 hours and called it a night…Laying in that bed after all that time without sleep was the best feeling ever! The next morning we woke up and drove the rest of the way home.

On Monday and Tuesday, I proceeded to lose about $180 online…I was playing horrible and running worse. I couldn’t do anything right and was pretty much just bleeding chips the whole time. I played 10 straight 6 person $10 +$1 sit n go’s without cashing…I think that’s the worst streak I’ve ever endured. Luckily, I have a pretty good drive, so I didn’t give up.

So after those 2 autricious days, I managed to book a $42 win last night. Nothing big by any means, but enough to get off the schnide and get headed back in the right direction. I started playing much better and making much better decisions.

That’s pretty much all I’ve got for now, so I guess I’m out…Later!

" Never let your opponent play you, you play them...Look them right in the eye and let them know that they're defeated."

Poker, Friends, and Lots of Beer

This weekend went WAY too fast! On Friday night a few of my friends and I went to go see the movie JARHEAD. It was damn good, and I got to watch it with 2 of my friends who are in the Army. They enjoyed it as well, and said it seemed to stay true to the Army form. Jake Gyllenhall and Jamie Foxx did an excellent job.

On Saturday I played in a poker tournament at the VFW. In 5 hours, I saw one pocket pair...6's. I didn't get any cards, but despite that, I finished 4th...too bad only the top 3 paid! So after that we went to Columbus because it was my friend P.J.'s last night before he had to go back to Iraq.

We went to Adobe Gilas, and even though that place kinda sucks, we had a blast! My friends and I always have a blast, but even though we were kinda sad that P.J. was leaving, we made the most of it. He should be home for good in like 2 months, so hopefully everything goes ok and he gets home soon!

This weekend Pounds and I are driving to Connecticut for the World Poker Conference. It should be a good learning opportunity, as well as an excellent opportunity to hear the pros speak. It's a 10 hour drive though, so I'm not going to get much sleep this weekend!

That's all for today, hopefully all is well in your world!

" The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past. You can't go on well in life until you let go of all of your past failures and heartaches."