Apologies to my loyal reader (hi Mom!) for my lack of updates. Life has been hectic and for the most part poker has not been a part of it.
We rejoin our hero after he posted his week 1 results of +2k and change. I lost 1k the next day and after that went to bed feeling not quite right. As the week progressed I felt worse and worse until the apex of my despair was reached on that Tuesday with my temperature spiking above fever level. Confined I was, to the bed in my studio apartment. The weather seemed to move in sync with my health as the rainstorms would fade and intensify with my temperature. I only left the apartment to obtain food or medicine, for no other reason did I leave.
That Friday I received some terrible news, my grandfather had passed away. It was not unexpected. I booked a flight home for that Sunday and went to the funeral on Monday. And that is all that I shall write on the matter.
I passed the next 2 days in Westchester as I plotted my next move. You see, it was late in October and although I had no intention of returning to the northeast until Thanksgiving I obviously had to for the above. My brother's birthday and Halloween are only 2 days apart and some of my friends in NYC were having a party for another friend's birthday. I also didn't/don't know anyone in Miami, so, rather than returning directly to Florida I decided that I should pretty much bum around until I had attended every event possible.
I spent Thursday night in Atlantic City at the Borgata where I have 2 nights a week free Sunday-Thursday pretty much forever it seems. A little poker playing was had by all and although I came out a slight winner I became increasingly frustrated as my very large edge was obvious to me and yet spots to apply it simply wouldn't manifest themselves. I instead exploited the leaks of my opponents by folding my random chaff and exercising considerable restraint to not spew. That is not wholly the truth, a spot or two did arise in which I took questionable lines that might or might not have been clouded by my boredom and latent frustration that had been brought to a low simmer by the aforementioned boredom.
I left Atlantic City and headed to Philadelphia wherein I stayed with Dave, a friend from high school who like most people from past parts of your lives I simply do not see enough. I spent Friday, Saturday and Sunday night there before departing back to New York on the bus sometime on Monday. A good time by all was had that weekend I think? My memory is a bit fuzzy. Excuse my use of an extremely trite phrase, but, it came to an end as all good things do. It was at this point that I was mostly at a loss as to what to do with myself. You see, everyone else I know does stuff on a normal schedule, they don't just decide to take 3 week jaunts around the northeast or they can't hang out during the week at 2pm because they are in school or working or something. Which is why I need friends with more awesome jobs like promoters or bartenders or something, but that's a discussion for another day. So I went back to my parent's house in Westchester, something that I really don't like doing mostly because of the lack of things to do, and waited until Friday. I started to catch up on tons of missed sleep mostly. How I have so much missed sleep when I work for myself if I want to is really beyond me, but it is what it is.
Friday was the occurrence of John's birthday at his then current location way the hell out in Bensonhurst. Somehow I got out there alive a bit early for the party. The term shit-show does not even begin to cover it. Although my man Tips was spinning some mad beats (yes there was a DJ at a house party ship it) some strange stuff still went down. Mostly having to do with a different roommate coming back plastered and starting a fight over the placement of some magnets on a refrigerator (no I am not making this up). Still, one or two assholes can't ruin the fun and the Dunkin Donuts/McDonalds runs early the next morning sans the aforementioned assholes were a great time.
My next step in my journey was to Pittsburgh for the Halloween/birthday celebrations. Little did I know that our villain, the great white menace, was barreling his way towards me...DUN DUN DUN
wow this is going to end up being 3 parts so allow me to hang a cliff right there.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Rain and 1 week results
NB: I tried to imitate a style of writing that I admire in the first part. It did not go extraordinarily well but I don't think it went too badly all things considered.
It's the rainy season in Miami. Or at least the hurricane season. Depending on who you ask it will either rain until November or it is a fluke that it is raining at all.
I went outside early this afternoon after waking up and getting ready. It was cloudy and cool with a slight drizzle, the wind was in quite a frenzy. My first day wearing a long sleeve shirt in Miami, quite the momentous occasion. Seventy three degrees has never felt so cold.
I went to the bar last night to watch the finale of the NLDS. The storm that blew through was a monster. I walked down to South Point park beforehand, thankfully I made it indoors before the rain started. Before the rain starts there is usually lightning. After that there is wind. And then comes the storm, a great buffeting thing with the gusts of wind only highlighted by the intermittent strikes of lightning and rolls of thunder. It is a mad, terrible chorus.
While crossing Biscayne Bay on the bus today I was struck by how different it looked. Usually it is stunningly beautiful, boats freely move among the multitude of islands in its midst on clear blue water. Today it was angry. The Weather Channel thinks we are in for some nasty stuff.
It was raining quite heavily when I got off the bus across the street from the casino. The casino does not abut the street, its parking lot does. The entrance to the poker room is set ever further back from the street. As I watched the sheets of rain falling from the cover of a McDonalds (no, I did not buy anything) I was struck by the irony of it all. I was staring across a desolate wasteland of pavement and fences. The problem with cities that sprawl, I was 150 yards away but no closer than at my apartment. I got impatient waiting for the rain to end so I ran for it, but first I snapped a picture so I could post it here. I showed up at the poker room wetter than when I began the journey but not too badly off. At least I was in high spirits.
I only played 3 hours today. The rain let up for a little bit and I caught the last bus on the line. I spent an equal amount of time playing as I did traveling.
The desolate wasteland I needed to cross.
Week 1 results:
Eh it's close enough so I'll just call the 1st-8th week 1. The main thing about this week is that I did not play nearly enough hours. I took Monday off to move in and yesterday off to screw around/take care of some things which is fine but I still did not put in enough hours regardless. I touched on this in a post I have since deleted but I like the idea of maximizing your ev when young. Even if it means working slightly harder (not too hard obv). Anyway I'm really conflicted about whether or not I should be posting my results online but I just spent a lot of time making this graph so I guess I will. Okay it only took me about 45 seconds but yeah. I ran very good this week some days and very bad on other day.
I flopped a bunch of made hands and got paid on most of them - running good.
I hit 1 set in almost 30 hrs - running bad
I got sucked out on when all in a bunch of times with 65%+ equity - running bad
An ace flopped 4/5 times when I held pocket kings - running bad
Seriously I flopped a bunch of made hands and got paid - running good
to wit: 67o flopped 2 straights
K3s flopped a boat
78o flopped a straight
The graph should have the x-axis in hrs. This is an oversight of mine. I don't think it matters too much in the end as long as I know personally what my hourly rate is. Hourly is, after all, what we seek to maximize. Sort of. If we increase the number of hours we play in exchange for a slightly worse hourly because we wouldn't be doing anything else in that time then it is a fair trade-off. There is, however, no reason that we can't maximize our hourly in every single hour rather than be satisfied with playing our B game for long hours. The goal is to always be playing the A game.
Rakeback is any bonus that I win. In my graph I have included the wheel bonus thing that I talked about after subtracting the dealer tip. Money won in bonuses spends just like any other as far as I am aware.
I only played 28.25 hrs this week. My sample size is meaningless.
It's the rainy season in Miami. Or at least the hurricane season. Depending on who you ask it will either rain until November or it is a fluke that it is raining at all.
I went outside early this afternoon after waking up and getting ready. It was cloudy and cool with a slight drizzle, the wind was in quite a frenzy. My first day wearing a long sleeve shirt in Miami, quite the momentous occasion. Seventy three degrees has never felt so cold.
I went to the bar last night to watch the finale of the NLDS. The storm that blew through was a monster. I walked down to South Point park beforehand, thankfully I made it indoors before the rain started. Before the rain starts there is usually lightning. After that there is wind. And then comes the storm, a great buffeting thing with the gusts of wind only highlighted by the intermittent strikes of lightning and rolls of thunder. It is a mad, terrible chorus.
While crossing Biscayne Bay on the bus today I was struck by how different it looked. Usually it is stunningly beautiful, boats freely move among the multitude of islands in its midst on clear blue water. Today it was angry. The Weather Channel thinks we are in for some nasty stuff.
It was raining quite heavily when I got off the bus across the street from the casino. The casino does not abut the street, its parking lot does. The entrance to the poker room is set ever further back from the street. As I watched the sheets of rain falling from the cover of a McDonalds (no, I did not buy anything) I was struck by the irony of it all. I was staring across a desolate wasteland of pavement and fences. The problem with cities that sprawl, I was 150 yards away but no closer than at my apartment. I got impatient waiting for the rain to end so I ran for it, but first I snapped a picture so I could post it here. I showed up at the poker room wetter than when I began the journey but not too badly off. At least I was in high spirits.
I only played 3 hours today. The rain let up for a little bit and I caught the last bus on the line. I spent an equal amount of time playing as I did traveling.
The desolate wasteland I needed to cross.
Week 1 results:
Eh it's close enough so I'll just call the 1st-8th week 1. The main thing about this week is that I did not play nearly enough hours. I took Monday off to move in and yesterday off to screw around/take care of some things which is fine but I still did not put in enough hours regardless. I touched on this in a post I have since deleted but I like the idea of maximizing your ev when young. Even if it means working slightly harder (not too hard obv). Anyway I'm really conflicted about whether or not I should be posting my results online but I just spent a lot of time making this graph so I guess I will. Okay it only took me about 45 seconds but yeah. I ran very good this week some days and very bad on other day.
I flopped a bunch of made hands and got paid on most of them - running good.
I hit 1 set in almost 30 hrs - running bad
I got sucked out on when all in a bunch of times with 65%+ equity - running bad
An ace flopped 4/5 times when I held pocket kings - running bad
Seriously I flopped a bunch of made hands and got paid - running good
to wit: 67o flopped 2 straights
K3s flopped a boat
78o flopped a straight
The graph should have the x-axis in hrs. This is an oversight of mine. I don't think it matters too much in the end as long as I know personally what my hourly rate is. Hourly is, after all, what we seek to maximize. Sort of. If we increase the number of hours we play in exchange for a slightly worse hourly because we wouldn't be doing anything else in that time then it is a fair trade-off. There is, however, no reason that we can't maximize our hourly in every single hour rather than be satisfied with playing our B game for long hours. The goal is to always be playing the A game.
Rakeback is any bonus that I win. In my graph I have included the wheel bonus thing that I talked about after subtracting the dealer tip. Money won in bonuses spends just like any other as far as I am aware.
I only played 28.25 hrs this week. My sample size is meaningless.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
[x] place acquired, BINK and encounters of a close kind: wild life edition
Edit: PLACE IS LOCKED UP.
My plan was to hold off on making another post until I absolutely, positively had a place to stay locked up. And while I haven't met that 100% threshold yet I still believe I'm at least a 95% favorite to hold in this particular life situation and too much other weird and cool shit happened tonight for me not to write anything right now while it is still fresh and some adrenaline is pumping.
I had pretty much resigned myself to taking this crappy place far up north in Miami Beach between 60th and 61st street. I entered desperation mode, (it's what happens when your optimism bar drains to zero) saw something that was still available on Craigslist and set up an appointment to meet the woman who was renting it the next day, Saturday. So I make my way up there and as I dejectedly note that there really aren't any grocery stores or laundromats or anything really in the area I remind myself that I will take it for just one month while I look for something better. I got there a bit early and for the fuck of it I decide to look over the Craigslist sublets in Miami where lo and behold someone had just posted a sublet less than a half hour before in the heart of South Beach for an extremely reasonable rate. I obviously call this guy as fast as possible and tell him that I want to see the place asap and that there is an extremely strong likelihood that I will take it. He doesn't get off work until 5 but after that I can come to see it. Perfect. I go upstairs to look at the place I had agreed to look at and it was even worse than I expected. The building is half-hotel half-condominium renters and the room was billed as a "studio". I think it should have been billed as a closet. There is no delineation between the kitchen and the bedroom, no couch, one crappy table and basically no space to move around. The small wrap-around patio with a view of the bay is nice but there aren't even any curtains on the windows!! LOL. A true travesty when you consider the 1k/month that they were asking. I say thanks but no thanks as I laugh my way out.
I saw Ben's (the guy who's ad I responded to) place later that day and it's pretty much awesome. A true studio in a nice area with plenty of room, a couch, a separate kitchen, a few closets and on premises laundry as part of a little 2 story condominium square thing is well worth the $900 price tag. The plan is for me to move in on Monday (hopefully) and to keep it until the New Year. It's on 7th street in South Beach although I won't tell you the cross street because I don't want one of my single digit readers stalking me. You can't make this shit up; me checking Craigslist as I am waiting to see the place I was probably going to take 10 minutes later only to stumble upon something that is perfect...serendipity.
So I left the hostel and I'm now staying in a hotel for a few nights in Coral Gables. The casino that I intend to put in most of my hours at is in the Flagler/Coral Gables area and is 1.1-1.2 miles from my hotel. I checked in to the hotel and was ready to laze about and just go on the internet but honestly, I'm here to grind and I desperately need to put in a lot of hours playing if I am going to make this whole trip worth it, not that it isn't already awesome just living in Miami and going to the beach and what not, but still. I made my way over there via the friendly airport shuttle guy and arrive around 9:35. I got on the 2/5 waitlist and around 9:50 they call down a new game at table 9 which is always the coldest table in the room. Awesome. Anyway the table is super good and I flop the nut straight and manage to "cooler" the lower straight. I say "cooler" because he played it so fucking bad but for a fish it's a cooler. Right, the night is young and looks like it could be awesome. At 10pm the floor announces they are going to do the "hot table" thing. I have no idea what it is but it sounds like free money so I'm down. They spin one of those metal baskets that bingo numbers come out of and one of the floor men reaches in to get one. My table is going absolutely bonkers screaming "Nine!! Nine! Nueve! Nueve! NINE!!". Obv they draw a 9 and half the table goes crazy fist bumping and cheering. I still have no idea what is going on. Basically they deal a hand face up to the table and the winner of the hand gets to spin the wheel for some prize that is not clear to me. I'm in the small blind for the weird one and get dealt T9o. Somehow I fade 8 other hands (Magic City Casino games are 9 handed which is ship-it-holla-balla awesome) on KT3cc7K and get to spin the wheel, BINK. The wheel consists of all the hearts in a deck (2-A, why hearts idk it doesn't matter) arrayed evenly around and which ever one it lands on you get 100x the value in cash with the face cards having their blackjack values of 10 while the Ace is special and pays out 2.5k. I start my spin with a hard pull and watch it go round and round. Eventually it starts to slow down and goes slower and slower as it rolls through the Ace, King, Queen, barely getting past the Jack and just when it looks like it will stop at the Ten ends up on the 9. So I win $900 for doing nothing, pretty fucking awesome. I mean really it's rakeback which still works for me, I've definitely never hit anything like that in a poker room before but I hope this is the start of a constant tradition. By the way, I did the extremely easy equity calculation and the equity of a spin is $838. So I'm running good and still up even after I tip the dealer what I believe is the standard 5%. Okay, I'm a bit cheap and gave him $44 but fuck white chips. I also was a small winner on the day at cards which gave me a very easy 1k day.
It had gotten pretty late by the time I pick up which meant I needed to walk back from the casino because the shuttle has stopped running. But I'm from New York, land of the long walkers, so I am not intimidated. I begin my slow and steady march (judging by New York speeds anyway) and as I round one of the first corners or whatever I hear some rustling in the bushes (it's a fairly suburban part of the city). Two animals then streak out with one chasing the other. At first I think they are feral cats but after they stop running I get a much better look at one of them especially as it walks out into the light. My next thought was hyena but I obviously dismissed that out of hand once my brain started functioning again. It looked like a very large cat with a bushy tail and a small mean face. I really had no idea what it was but after serious consideration I have decided that it was probably a fox. I snapped a hazy picture that I will upload tomorrow for your appreciation and perusal. I also eagerly await your sympathy and concern. I didn't get a chance to take any good pictures because it started walking towards me at a very slow pace while it would surreptitiously (can animals even do that?) look at me as it walked in my general direction. I slowly started backing away while facing it (lol is it a bear? that's just what I do) and, as it didn't seem to be stopping, I started backing away a bit faster. It finally stopped after staring me down a bit. I decided that going to the other side of the road was better than getting mauled by an animal and having to get rabies shots. Before I can even get to the other side I see another wild animal. This one is definitely some sort of rodent. It had a tail like a rat, hairless and a bit thick, with an absolutely pure white face with the second half of the tail white as well. For some reason my mind automatically flickered to armadillo but I can't remember ever seeing an armadillo or looking at a picture of one. So I decided walking down the middle of the street was better. It was kind of late anyway and no one goes out in this area so it wasn't too bad.
One side rant. When I was reading some of the Wiki articles about Miami I found a link to a list published by a group that evaluates which cities are the most walkable in the United States. I'm sure they have some complicated or else incredibly dumb algorithm to figure it out although what it could possibly be escapes me at the moment. Miami ranks 8th on this list. Do you know what this tells me? The United States is absolute shit when it comes to walking friendly cities. Seriously, walking here sucks and that isn't just because of the heat. It's just spread out. Sure if you never leave the central area you can get around on the "MetroRail" or whatever they call it which is the retarded half-brother of a subway with these ridiculous little cars. But if you aren't rich it pretty much sucks. And I wonder who is less likely to own a car, rich people or poor people. Lots of things are ass backwards a lot.
I need to play a lot in the next few months. I need to be growing my bankroll to move up because wasting time grinding out 2/5 for the next year+ just isn't a good life plan. I also don't know anyone down here so it really shouldn't be a problem! I also have yet to adopt the local fashion, that is to say, shirtless. So I need to go to the gym. Waking up early, hitting the gym, eating better and grinding a shit ton. Life goals go. As soon as I can move in to my place, the grind is on.
I consider poker war. A controlled bloodless war where the only casualties are money and ego, but war nonetheless. To paraphrase Shakespeare: Release the dogs of war.
My plan was to hold off on making another post until I absolutely, positively had a place to stay locked up. And while I haven't met that 100% threshold yet I still believe I'm at least a 95% favorite to hold in this particular life situation and too much other weird and cool shit happened tonight for me not to write anything right now while it is still fresh and some adrenaline is pumping.
I had pretty much resigned myself to taking this crappy place far up north in Miami Beach between 60th and 61st street. I entered desperation mode, (it's what happens when your optimism bar drains to zero) saw something that was still available on Craigslist and set up an appointment to meet the woman who was renting it the next day, Saturday. So I make my way up there and as I dejectedly note that there really aren't any grocery stores or laundromats or anything really in the area I remind myself that I will take it for just one month while I look for something better. I got there a bit early and for the fuck of it I decide to look over the Craigslist sublets in Miami where lo and behold someone had just posted a sublet less than a half hour before in the heart of South Beach for an extremely reasonable rate. I obviously call this guy as fast as possible and tell him that I want to see the place asap and that there is an extremely strong likelihood that I will take it. He doesn't get off work until 5 but after that I can come to see it. Perfect. I go upstairs to look at the place I had agreed to look at and it was even worse than I expected. The building is half-hotel half-condominium renters and the room was billed as a "studio". I think it should have been billed as a closet. There is no delineation between the kitchen and the bedroom, no couch, one crappy table and basically no space to move around. The small wrap-around patio with a view of the bay is nice but there aren't even any curtains on the windows!! LOL. A true travesty when you consider the 1k/month that they were asking. I say thanks but no thanks as I laugh my way out.
I saw Ben's (the guy who's ad I responded to) place later that day and it's pretty much awesome. A true studio in a nice area with plenty of room, a couch, a separate kitchen, a few closets and on premises laundry as part of a little 2 story condominium square thing is well worth the $900 price tag. The plan is for me to move in on Monday (hopefully) and to keep it until the New Year. It's on 7th street in South Beach although I won't tell you the cross street because I don't want one of my single digit readers stalking me. You can't make this shit up; me checking Craigslist as I am waiting to see the place I was probably going to take 10 minutes later only to stumble upon something that is perfect...serendipity.
So I left the hostel and I'm now staying in a hotel for a few nights in Coral Gables. The casino that I intend to put in most of my hours at is in the Flagler/Coral Gables area and is 1.1-1.2 miles from my hotel. I checked in to the hotel and was ready to laze about and just go on the internet but honestly, I'm here to grind and I desperately need to put in a lot of hours playing if I am going to make this whole trip worth it, not that it isn't already awesome just living in Miami and going to the beach and what not, but still. I made my way over there via the friendly airport shuttle guy and arrive around 9:35. I got on the 2/5 waitlist and around 9:50 they call down a new game at table 9 which is always the coldest table in the room. Awesome. Anyway the table is super good and I flop the nut straight and manage to "cooler" the lower straight. I say "cooler" because he played it so fucking bad but for a fish it's a cooler. Right, the night is young and looks like it could be awesome. At 10pm the floor announces they are going to do the "hot table" thing. I have no idea what it is but it sounds like free money so I'm down. They spin one of those metal baskets that bingo numbers come out of and one of the floor men reaches in to get one. My table is going absolutely bonkers screaming "Nine!! Nine! Nueve! Nueve! NINE!!". Obv they draw a 9 and half the table goes crazy fist bumping and cheering. I still have no idea what is going on. Basically they deal a hand face up to the table and the winner of the hand gets to spin the wheel for some prize that is not clear to me. I'm in the small blind for the weird one and get dealt T9o. Somehow I fade 8 other hands (Magic City Casino games are 9 handed which is ship-it-holla-balla awesome) on KT3cc7K and get to spin the wheel, BINK. The wheel consists of all the hearts in a deck (2-A, why hearts idk it doesn't matter) arrayed evenly around and which ever one it lands on you get 100x the value in cash with the face cards having their blackjack values of 10 while the Ace is special and pays out 2.5k. I start my spin with a hard pull and watch it go round and round. Eventually it starts to slow down and goes slower and slower as it rolls through the Ace, King, Queen, barely getting past the Jack and just when it looks like it will stop at the Ten ends up on the 9. So I win $900 for doing nothing, pretty fucking awesome. I mean really it's rakeback which still works for me, I've definitely never hit anything like that in a poker room before but I hope this is the start of a constant tradition. By the way, I did the extremely easy equity calculation and the equity of a spin is $838. So I'm running good and still up even after I tip the dealer what I believe is the standard 5%. Okay, I'm a bit cheap and gave him $44 but fuck white chips. I also was a small winner on the day at cards which gave me a very easy 1k day.
It had gotten pretty late by the time I pick up which meant I needed to walk back from the casino because the shuttle has stopped running. But I'm from New York, land of the long walkers, so I am not intimidated. I begin my slow and steady march (judging by New York speeds anyway) and as I round one of the first corners or whatever I hear some rustling in the bushes (it's a fairly suburban part of the city). Two animals then streak out with one chasing the other. At first I think they are feral cats but after they stop running I get a much better look at one of them especially as it walks out into the light. My next thought was hyena but I obviously dismissed that out of hand once my brain started functioning again. It looked like a very large cat with a bushy tail and a small mean face. I really had no idea what it was but after serious consideration I have decided that it was probably a fox. I snapped a hazy picture that I will upload tomorrow for your appreciation and perusal. I also eagerly await your sympathy and concern. I didn't get a chance to take any good pictures because it started walking towards me at a very slow pace while it would surreptitiously (can animals even do that?) look at me as it walked in my general direction. I slowly started backing away while facing it (lol is it a bear? that's just what I do) and, as it didn't seem to be stopping, I started backing away a bit faster. It finally stopped after staring me down a bit. I decided that going to the other side of the road was better than getting mauled by an animal and having to get rabies shots. Before I can even get to the other side I see another wild animal. This one is definitely some sort of rodent. It had a tail like a rat, hairless and a bit thick, with an absolutely pure white face with the second half of the tail white as well. For some reason my mind automatically flickered to armadillo but I can't remember ever seeing an armadillo or looking at a picture of one. So I decided walking down the middle of the street was better. It was kind of late anyway and no one goes out in this area so it wasn't too bad.
One side rant. When I was reading some of the Wiki articles about Miami I found a link to a list published by a group that evaluates which cities are the most walkable in the United States. I'm sure they have some complicated or else incredibly dumb algorithm to figure it out although what it could possibly be escapes me at the moment. Miami ranks 8th on this list. Do you know what this tells me? The United States is absolute shit when it comes to walking friendly cities. Seriously, walking here sucks and that isn't just because of the heat. It's just spread out. Sure if you never leave the central area you can get around on the "MetroRail" or whatever they call it which is the retarded half-brother of a subway with these ridiculous little cars. But if you aren't rich it pretty much sucks. And I wonder who is less likely to own a car, rich people or poor people. Lots of things are ass backwards a lot.
I need to play a lot in the next few months. I need to be growing my bankroll to move up because wasting time grinding out 2/5 for the next year+ just isn't a good life plan. I also don't know anyone down here so it really shouldn't be a problem! I also have yet to adopt the local fashion, that is to say, shirtless. So I need to go to the gym. Waking up early, hitting the gym, eating better and grinding a shit ton. Life goals go. As soon as I can move in to my place, the grind is on.
I consider poker war. A controlled bloodless war where the only casualties are money and ego, but war nonetheless. To paraphrase Shakespeare: Release the dogs of war.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Travel and First Impressions
I love flying. We move such huge distances in negligible time. The moment just before the plane lifts off causes an array of emotions to flicker through me. A crippling wave of nostalgia and a slight note of sadness are quickly replaced by a blooming peace and wonder. The unknown has never been a thing that frightens me, it exhilarates.
I flew out of La Guardia on a plane that was supposed to leave at 3pm around 3:45. It was a connecting flight to Philadelphia from where I caught my main flight to Miami. Kind of interesting, the flight to Philadelphia was aboard a small plane that had propellers on the front of the engine and only sat about 60 people. I make small talk with the guy next to me until he talks about how small the plane is and how his agent made this flight. He tells me that he is an NBA player. I am suitably impressed. I tell him I am a poker player; he is suitably impressed. If anyone follows this kind of thing (I don't) he was the 30th pick of the first round by the Bulls.
The flight to Miami was fairly uneventful. I did, for some reason, become fascinated at the way cloud cover looks 30,000 feet above the ground. I took a bunch of pictures of those infinite floors of smoke. We also passed by an enormous black thundercloud with lightning regularly flashing through it. That was cool, I'm glad we went around it though.
I'm sitting in a hostel in South Beach right now which actually isn't part of Miami. South Beach is gorgeous. Everything about it. The architecture in particular with the Art Deco buildings. It is always alive with partiers and the beach is never more than a few blocks away while the streets are lined with boutiques, coffee shops and palm trees.
I also really like some of the areas of Miami. Having really only experienced the northeastern cities I am shocked at the sprawl of it all. It goes on for a very long while. The parts by the Bay that are across the bridge from South Beach/Miami Beach like Brickell and Downtown are awesome. Then you get further out towards the west and it...really isn't that nice.
The casino. Umm wow I didn't know people race dogs. It was extremely surreal to watch dogs run by even if those dogs look like mini horses. The Action was extremely soft. I'm very satisfied with my decision even if it does suck that it takes me an hour or so to travel each way although I am only going 10 miles since I take the bus. Don't have too much to say about poker at the moment because I basically just arrived in town and I have been thinking a bunch about where I can find a place to live...it is not going well so far but I'm not really worried. It's pretty easy to argue that I should be but it's just not in my nature.
I flew out of La Guardia on a plane that was supposed to leave at 3pm around 3:45. It was a connecting flight to Philadelphia from where I caught my main flight to Miami. Kind of interesting, the flight to Philadelphia was aboard a small plane that had propellers on the front of the engine and only sat about 60 people. I make small talk with the guy next to me until he talks about how small the plane is and how his agent made this flight. He tells me that he is an NBA player. I am suitably impressed. I tell him I am a poker player; he is suitably impressed. If anyone follows this kind of thing (I don't) he was the 30th pick of the first round by the Bulls.
The flight to Miami was fairly uneventful. I did, for some reason, become fascinated at the way cloud cover looks 30,000 feet above the ground. I took a bunch of pictures of those infinite floors of smoke. We also passed by an enormous black thundercloud with lightning regularly flashing through it. That was cool, I'm glad we went around it though.
I'm sitting in a hostel in South Beach right now which actually isn't part of Miami. South Beach is gorgeous. Everything about it. The architecture in particular with the Art Deco buildings. It is always alive with partiers and the beach is never more than a few blocks away while the streets are lined with boutiques, coffee shops and palm trees.
I also really like some of the areas of Miami. Having really only experienced the northeastern cities I am shocked at the sprawl of it all. It goes on for a very long while. The parts by the Bay that are across the bridge from South Beach/Miami Beach like Brickell and Downtown are awesome. Then you get further out towards the west and it...really isn't that nice.
The casino. Umm wow I didn't know people race dogs. It was extremely surreal to watch dogs run by even if those dogs look like mini horses. The Action was extremely soft. I'm very satisfied with my decision even if it does suck that it takes me an hour or so to travel each way although I am only going 10 miles since I take the bus. Don't have too much to say about poker at the moment because I basically just arrived in town and I have been thinking a bunch about where I can find a place to live...it is not going well so far but I'm not really worried. It's pretty easy to argue that I should be but it's just not in my nature.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Where I Am
Hey guys,
Sorry for the lack of updates lately but I haven't been doing a lot. I arrived in New York Friday morning from Atlantic City and then had to scramble to find a place to stay. I ended up staying with a friend that night and then another friend's on Saturday night after a party. I have been at my parent's house in the suburbs since then.
Exciting news though! I am going back to New York in a few hours where I will be spending the entirety of the weekend crashing on different people's couches/floors. And then, on Monday, I am catching the ~3pm flight from La Guardia to Miami. FUCK YES.
It has been a week since I played poker and I am growing restless. I always grow restless in the suburbs though. I have been browsing around for sublets and stuff on Craigslist, ever since my cross country hitch hiking adventure via Craigslist I trust it completely, and while the prices aren't too outrageous they are still higher than I expected. A few promising ones have passed by my eyes so it seems pretty likely that I will end up subletting a 1 bedroom in Miami Beach. Everyone is invited to come down once I find it. I'm staying in a hostel for a few nights in South Beach while I look around.
I might even look for a *gasp* the 3 letter word (j*b). A fun one though...because I will need to meet people down there and break the monotony of it all. I think I might get a bartending license and look for a j*b doing that.
A note on lending money: don't do it...In the gambling world your word is your reputation. The first time you break your bond it's over. I think I will be one of the lucky ones and end up getting back most of the money that I loaned to people, even if it isn't within the time frame that was part of the original agreement.
So yeah, probably won't update for the next few days due to being afk and hanging out in the city. I will try and put up pictures of the 9/11 Memorial after I go on Sunday.
Sorry for the lack of updates lately but I haven't been doing a lot. I arrived in New York Friday morning from Atlantic City and then had to scramble to find a place to stay. I ended up staying with a friend that night and then another friend's on Saturday night after a party. I have been at my parent's house in the suburbs since then.
Exciting news though! I am going back to New York in a few hours where I will be spending the entirety of the weekend crashing on different people's couches/floors. And then, on Monday, I am catching the ~3pm flight from La Guardia to Miami. FUCK YES.
It has been a week since I played poker and I am growing restless. I always grow restless in the suburbs though. I have been browsing around for sublets and stuff on Craigslist, ever since my cross country hitch hiking adventure via Craigslist I trust it completely, and while the prices aren't too outrageous they are still higher than I expected. A few promising ones have passed by my eyes so it seems pretty likely that I will end up subletting a 1 bedroom in Miami Beach. Everyone is invited to come down once I find it. I'm staying in a hostel for a few nights in South Beach while I look around.
I might even look for a *gasp* the 3 letter word (j*b). A fun one though...because I will need to meet people down there and break the monotony of it all. I think I might get a bartending license and look for a j*b doing that.
A note on lending money: don't do it...In the gambling world your word is your reputation. The first time you break your bond it's over. I think I will be one of the lucky ones and end up getting back most of the money that I loaned to people, even if it isn't within the time frame that was part of the original agreement.
So yeah, probably won't update for the next few days due to being afk and hanging out in the city. I will try and put up pictures of the 9/11 Memorial after I go on Sunday.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Atlantic City is DONE
I can't stand being in the Borgata any longer. No, that's not quite right. Sort of. The basic problem is that I need other things to do and other places to be. I like grinding most days and the lifestyle that it entails, I just need other things to do outside of it. I need a place to go back to at the end of a session. This is fueling my bad play; every time I walk by the poker room I am filled with revulsion.
Also, when did it get cold outside? I was going to catch the jitney to somewhere else to play tonight and when I did I was blasted by cold air. Apparently the seasons changed while I have been hibernating in the Borgata. Not sure what day or time it is right now but my laptop says Friday at 4:13am. Hmm...not sure where I will sleep tonight but I will figure it out when I get to New York.
I think I ended up profiting ~2k after expenses while here because living in a hotel is definitely not cheap. Ah whatever, what could have been etc.
I play the lower limits like 2/5 to get to high stakes. If I don't reach that in the next year or so I think I will probably transition out of poker. But until then, poker is my thing.
Also, when did it get cold outside? I was going to catch the jitney to somewhere else to play tonight and when I did I was blasted by cold air. Apparently the seasons changed while I have been hibernating in the Borgata. Not sure what day or time it is right now but my laptop says Friday at 4:13am. Hmm...not sure where I will sleep tonight but I will figure it out when I get to New York.
I think I ended up profiting ~2k after expenses while here because living in a hotel is definitely not cheap. Ah whatever, what could have been etc.
I play the lower limits like 2/5 to get to high stakes. If I don't reach that in the next year or so I think I will probably transition out of poker. But until then, poker is my thing.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Self-Loathing
I've run pretty decent at the Borgata aside from one or six choice spots. I have played pretty well about half the time and absolutely fucking awful the other half. And for that, I hate myself. Everyone wants to do their job well and I am no exception to this rule, so why the fuck can't I? I don't know and it is a question that has been bothering me to no end. I can usually nitpick out a thing or two here but there must be some larger theme. In the past I would usually set a goal of something that I wanted and that would help for a bit until I lost sight of it. So maybe I will try that, but what should my goal be?
I did a few stupid things today. One was having a few drinks before playing. Thankfully I quite before the damage was too much. Drinking and playing is a terrible idea, especially for me. Then I just tried to play ~20 minutes ago but I am so tired I can barely think straight and it certainly showed in my plays. So I made another good quit while limiting the damage to under $200 which is nice but damage is damage.
My new thought is that I need a change of scenery. Spencer managed to talk me into (okay so I wanted him to do so) going to his party in the city on Saturday and taking those 24 hrs off should really help. I might even go outside tomorrow and say hello to the sun if it hasn't set by the time I get up. I don't think I have seen it in 8 days. No, that's not right. I went to the boardwalk with Chad and Luis a few days ago and had a few drinks but aside from that I have not seen the sun. Nobody needs that bastard anyway.
So, starting tomorrow I am going to pretend that I just got to the Borgata and am starting this journey. As I mentioned in a previous post, people's ability to delude themselves knows no bounds and I am no exception to this rule. I'm actually really good at it. Yay? I have put my winnings in a separate pocket of my backpack and have just the 4k cash that I began this journey with. Then, if I am feeling up to it and awake and well fed I will play some poker sessions. If not, then definitely Friday.
I always set a point and say "THIS IS THE BEGINNING!! I AM DONE BEING A SCREW UP!! FROM NOW ON, I AM DOING THIS THE RIGHT WAY!!" And you know what? I never can follow through. Hence the title.
I did a few stupid things today. One was having a few drinks before playing. Thankfully I quite before the damage was too much. Drinking and playing is a terrible idea, especially for me. Then I just tried to play ~20 minutes ago but I am so tired I can barely think straight and it certainly showed in my plays. So I made another good quit while limiting the damage to under $200 which is nice but damage is damage.
My new thought is that I need a change of scenery. Spencer managed to talk me into (okay so I wanted him to do so) going to his party in the city on Saturday and taking those 24 hrs off should really help. I might even go outside tomorrow and say hello to the sun if it hasn't set by the time I get up. I don't think I have seen it in 8 days. No, that's not right. I went to the boardwalk with Chad and Luis a few days ago and had a few drinks but aside from that I have not seen the sun. Nobody needs that bastard anyway.
So, starting tomorrow I am going to pretend that I just got to the Borgata and am starting this journey. As I mentioned in a previous post, people's ability to delude themselves knows no bounds and I am no exception to this rule. I'm actually really good at it. Yay? I have put my winnings in a separate pocket of my backpack and have just the 4k cash that I began this journey with. Then, if I am feeling up to it and awake and well fed I will play some poker sessions. If not, then definitely Friday.
I always set a point and say "THIS IS THE BEGINNING!! I AM DONE BEING A SCREW UP!! FROM NOW ON, I AM DOING THIS THE RIGHT WAY!!" And you know what? I never can follow through. Hence the title.
Monday, September 12, 2011
10 years
Apologies for the double post and please do read the post that I just made before this one, it is quite good and interesting.
I cannot believe it has been 10 years since 9/11. I remember everything about that day and where I was with perfect clarity. I remember my younger self being unable to comprehend the meaning of the situation and asking my mother "Why is it such a terrible thing?". I have seen and remember the ripples of shock that have echoed endlessly throughout our society and I remember people at their worst and people at their best. Before I get on a political rant allow me to say that I remember it all.
And yet something that I saw and heard the other day really sums it up the best:
The buses in Pittsburgh have a panel at their front that states which route is coming. The P1, the 14 Ohio Valley, the 18 Manchester etc. Now alternately flashing with the route number and name is: 9/11/01 Never Forget. Again, I don't want to get on a political rant about blind patriotism and such but I find this absurd. But that has nothing to do with the story. Anyway, I saw a young girl with her mother on one of my last days in Pittsburgh while I was waiting for that damn 14 Ohio Valley to take me to the casino. She said to her mother, "What is 9/11/01?"
And that is it. Such an innocent question from an innocent girl; and she cannot possibly comprehend the magnitude of that question, the pain of a nation struggling with itself as it reels from a destructive and deadly attack, of wars mismanaged, of lies told and of lives thrown away. Time truly does heal all wounds. Such a raw visceral image will fade in the coming generations, maybe not quite the same way as images have in the past due to things like the internet and memory storage, but they will fade all the same.
I cannot believe it has been 10 years since 9/11. I remember everything about that day and where I was with perfect clarity. I remember my younger self being unable to comprehend the meaning of the situation and asking my mother "Why is it such a terrible thing?". I have seen and remember the ripples of shock that have echoed endlessly throughout our society and I remember people at their worst and people at their best. Before I get on a political rant allow me to say that I remember it all.
And yet something that I saw and heard the other day really sums it up the best:
The buses in Pittsburgh have a panel at their front that states which route is coming. The P1, the 14 Ohio Valley, the 18 Manchester etc. Now alternately flashing with the route number and name is: 9/11/01 Never Forget. Again, I don't want to get on a political rant about blind patriotism and such but I find this absurd. But that has nothing to do with the story. Anyway, I saw a young girl with her mother on one of my last days in Pittsburgh while I was waiting for that damn 14 Ohio Valley to take me to the casino. She said to her mother, "What is 9/11/01?"
And that is it. Such an innocent question from an innocent girl; and she cannot possibly comprehend the magnitude of that question, the pain of a nation struggling with itself as it reels from a destructive and deadly attack, of wars mismanaged, of lies told and of lives thrown away. Time truly does heal all wounds. Such a raw visceral image will fade in the coming generations, maybe not quite the same way as images have in the past due to things like the internet and memory storage, but they will fade all the same.
Swongs and Boredom - Some Thoughts About my Next Move
Playing poker for a living is stressful. I have finally gotten to the point where the monetary swings don't affect me too much and I can simply pick up when I have hit my stop loss, but it remains stressful. Here is a graph of my cash game winnings thus far in Atlantic City:
I just finished losing that last $1000 about 20 minutes ago. The numbers at the bottom are the session numbers. I consider the last week a failure despite the 100k year pace. lol. But yeah, it's incredibly stressful.
Chad was talking to a girl from POF (Plenty of Fish) earlier tonight on Skype in our hotel room and she asked how much he respected money. We both started laughing. On a scale of 1-10 we insta said 1. How could we not? I can lose 1k in 1.5 hours playing relatively low stakes, respecting money is impossible given that. Luis lost 9k today and he obviously wasn't happy, but he wasn't altogether tilted or furious.
I'm quite bored. I hit my stop loss and don't want to play poker but I am also in a casino and I don't want to gamble because all of that shit is -ev. I actually think I will learn a very basic blackjack counting system and become marginally +ev at it when I have a little time and am a bit less tired. Then, even if my hourly is <$5 at least I am making money while I blow off steam. I ran some preliminary calculations and if I generally flat bet $25 I shouldn't have to spread my bet up to more than $75 to get +ev. For such small stakes, playing one spot and barely spreading bets I doubt I will catch heat from any casino. Although it apparently takes about 1000u to ensure that you can ride out the variance wave which is a bit more than my threshold of pain lol. Definitely something I will pursue in my spare time (if I ever have any) for my own edification. Advantage play is another thing I find fascinating. Obv fuck roulette but people card count baccarat!!? Beating the unbeatable is a thrill.
I wish AC had other things to do in it but it really doesn't. There are some concerts and of course the beach but other than that it is a barren wasteland of ghetto. Liquor store, deli, pawnshop, liquor store, deli, pawnshop, laundromat is pretty much what it looks like outside of the casinos/boardwalk. Whatever.
So I thought I was going to move to Vegas after spending a week or two in Rye Brook/New York once my Atlantic City journey draws to a close. That's probably not going to happen. Everything that I have been told indicates that the Action in Vegas is not that good aside from during the WSOP. Right now I am thinking Miami or Tampa. Maybe for a bit or maybe for a while. I really like the idea of following the major tournament series around the world for a bit and playing in the side action. That definitely means that I need to work on my tournament game though. Starting tomorrow I am going to start playing some of the smaller buyin donkaments that are in the $200-$400 range. I have no intention of grinding buyins greater than 1k ever but hey, maybe I run good and bink a few in the next couple of months.
I don't really know where I will be in the next year but I kind of like it that way. Def need travel buddies though, will have to think about it a bit more. Going to take a day or two off soon, I have been working quite a bit lately. I think I want to go exploring the seedier side of Atlantic City, will definitely take photos if I do.
I just finished losing that last $1000 about 20 minutes ago. The numbers at the bottom are the session numbers. I consider the last week a failure despite the 100k year pace. lol. But yeah, it's incredibly stressful.
Chad was talking to a girl from POF (Plenty of Fish) earlier tonight on Skype in our hotel room and she asked how much he respected money. We both started laughing. On a scale of 1-10 we insta said 1. How could we not? I can lose 1k in 1.5 hours playing relatively low stakes, respecting money is impossible given that. Luis lost 9k today and he obviously wasn't happy, but he wasn't altogether tilted or furious.
I'm quite bored. I hit my stop loss and don't want to play poker but I am also in a casino and I don't want to gamble because all of that shit is -ev. I actually think I will learn a very basic blackjack counting system and become marginally +ev at it when I have a little time and am a bit less tired. Then, even if my hourly is <$5 at least I am making money while I blow off steam. I ran some preliminary calculations and if I generally flat bet $25 I shouldn't have to spread my bet up to more than $75 to get +ev. For such small stakes, playing one spot and barely spreading bets I doubt I will catch heat from any casino. Although it apparently takes about 1000u to ensure that you can ride out the variance wave which is a bit more than my threshold of pain lol. Definitely something I will pursue in my spare time (if I ever have any) for my own edification. Advantage play is another thing I find fascinating. Obv fuck roulette but people card count baccarat!!? Beating the unbeatable is a thrill.
I wish AC had other things to do in it but it really doesn't. There are some concerts and of course the beach but other than that it is a barren wasteland of ghetto. Liquor store, deli, pawnshop, liquor store, deli, pawnshop, laundromat is pretty much what it looks like outside of the casinos/boardwalk. Whatever.
So I thought I was going to move to Vegas after spending a week or two in Rye Brook/New York once my Atlantic City journey draws to a close. That's probably not going to happen. Everything that I have been told indicates that the Action in Vegas is not that good aside from during the WSOP. Right now I am thinking Miami or Tampa. Maybe for a bit or maybe for a while. I really like the idea of following the major tournament series around the world for a bit and playing in the side action. That definitely means that I need to work on my tournament game though. Starting tomorrow I am going to start playing some of the smaller buyin donkaments that are in the $200-$400 range. I have no intention of grinding buyins greater than 1k ever but hey, maybe I run good and bink a few in the next couple of months.
I don't really know where I will be in the next year but I kind of like it that way. Def need travel buddies though, will have to think about it a bit more. Going to take a day or two off soon, I have been working quite a bit lately. I think I want to go exploring the seedier side of Atlantic City, will definitely take photos if I do.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
LOL Poker Players and The Probelm with the Lifestyle
Part One - LOL Poker Players
So I was grinding the other day at a 2/5 table when a guy sits down or moves next to me. I'm pretty talkative at the tables and I can obviously see that he is playing very aggressive with a wide range (a ton of hands). He's youngish looking so I give him a little shit about it and we get to chatting about poker and the donkaments (tourneys for the uninitiated) that he is playing during the series. He tells me about how he usually plays 5/T and his life traveling the world following the various tournament series with the big action and big buy-ins. Basically he is far more baller than I am. Anyway, his name is Luis and he wishes me well after remarking that he just can't take 2/5 seriously.
Strangely enough I end up seeing him around a lot over the next 24 hours and the three of us (me, him and Chad) hit it off pretty well so we hang out a bit. He's a really nice and chill guy and while I do question some of the moves he makes in donkaments I don't judge too harshly because I am not a donkament player and could be completely wrong. One of the most awesome stories that he tells us is about playing in a WSOP event with durrrr (the event during which durrrr got second) and how he sat next to durrrr for ~2 days in a row. Apparently he finished in the 30s in the same event. We make sure to get the correct spelling of his name to so that we can look him up on hendonmob.
And what do you know, he only has 22k in cashes lifetime. Not this year, lifetime. Turns out he is mostly full of shit (some of the time?). I then look up the results of the event he claimed to have gotten 30-whatever in and what do you know...there is no one matching his name or anything close to that name who cashed in the event AT ALL. He is a Venezuelan citizen with a US Green Card but I can't find a record of him ever cashing for more than 12k anywhere.
But he's a super nice guy and sometimes he isn't lying! It just doesn't make any sense. Even if he just travels the world playing 5/T or 10/20 during these series he is still considerably more baller than I am. I saw him talking to some of the 5/T guys in the poker room here so they definitely know him. Maybe he is the table fish and just has a rich family or is independently wealthy at 25. So strange. Kind of fits considering one of the hands he told us about. Just a terrible, terrible line.
He also went on about his hot friends and how he only dates super rich girls. And that seems to be true. He introduced us to his friend Lily who, as it turns out, is also some kind of super baller. I was introduced to her when she was at the blackjack table in the midst of losing however much money. She told me that she plays the same things Luis does: 5/T, 10/25 and bigger buyin donkaments. When I asked her for an estimate of how much she has lost lifetime in the pit she told me ~250k. Lol wtf. My number is somewhere around 5k I would guess and I am very proud to say that I have not played any blackjack the entire time. There really is nothing that compares to the energy at the craps table when a shooter is hot though. I definitely saw a guy sitting with ~30k yesterday at craps with a black on the pass line ($100) and $600 or so most of the numbers. But I digress. So at this point I am thinking, "wtf is everyone more baller than me fml". Today though Luis told me that Lily is a terrible poker player and that she is being backed/sleeping with someone who is actually good. So that made me feel better I guess. It's kind of amusing to think that there are lots of "professionals" out there who suck at poker but come from money. People's capacity to delude themselves knows no bounds.
Part Two - The Problem with the Lifestyle and LOL Poker Players
It's Saturday night in the nicest casino in Atlantic City and there are people everywhere. An absurd concentration of beautiful women and money pass by me in waves as I sit here typing away at my computer in the lounge that is reserved for hotel guests in a T-shirt and jeans. I think there is a lingerie themed party going on somewhere judging by some of these outfits. It's 12:15am and I woke up less than 2 hours ago. I am living in a casino for 3 weeks. I still have to work for 6+ hours as soon as I finish typing this.
And these are just some of the problems with the Lifestyle. Games are always best when recreational players don't have to be at work. That is, the evening, the weekend and holidays. Those are also the best times to go out and party with friends. Clearly I can't work and party and I do need to eat. So it's unfortunate.
Poker also has its darker side. I was playing last night and two guys sat down at my table. One of them was clearly mentally challenged in some way. I couldn't wait to play with him. Another one was clearly drunk. Same thing. Half of them are degenerate gamblers (this includes pros) while a bunch more are lying scum. There are good people everywhere but of all the places in the world the casino probably has the smallest percentage of them. Even prison is better I think; I once visited a prison with my high school Law class and met some nice guys. Meh, maybe it's close between prison and the casino but that is not exactly the most ringing endorsement I have ever given.
Of course, I have also met some amazing people through poker. People who's outlook on life is similar to mine, people that are incredibly nuanced in their thought and think deeply about the game, people that love the game as much as and often more than I do. It's unfortunate and strange that such a wild variation exists on the felt, but I guess that is everywhere and losing money happens to brings out the darker parts of people that usually remain hidden in deep crevices.
So I was grinding the other day at a 2/5 table when a guy sits down or moves next to me. I'm pretty talkative at the tables and I can obviously see that he is playing very aggressive with a wide range (a ton of hands). He's youngish looking so I give him a little shit about it and we get to chatting about poker and the donkaments (tourneys for the uninitiated) that he is playing during the series. He tells me about how he usually plays 5/T and his life traveling the world following the various tournament series with the big action and big buy-ins. Basically he is far more baller than I am. Anyway, his name is Luis and he wishes me well after remarking that he just can't take 2/5 seriously.
Strangely enough I end up seeing him around a lot over the next 24 hours and the three of us (me, him and Chad) hit it off pretty well so we hang out a bit. He's a really nice and chill guy and while I do question some of the moves he makes in donkaments I don't judge too harshly because I am not a donkament player and could be completely wrong. One of the most awesome stories that he tells us is about playing in a WSOP event with durrrr (the event during which durrrr got second) and how he sat next to durrrr for ~2 days in a row. Apparently he finished in the 30s in the same event. We make sure to get the correct spelling of his name to so that we can look him up on hendonmob.
And what do you know, he only has 22k in cashes lifetime. Not this year, lifetime. Turns out he is mostly full of shit (some of the time?). I then look up the results of the event he claimed to have gotten 30-whatever in and what do you know...there is no one matching his name or anything close to that name who cashed in the event AT ALL. He is a Venezuelan citizen with a US Green Card but I can't find a record of him ever cashing for more than 12k anywhere.
But he's a super nice guy and sometimes he isn't lying! It just doesn't make any sense. Even if he just travels the world playing 5/T or 10/20 during these series he is still considerably more baller than I am. I saw him talking to some of the 5/T guys in the poker room here so they definitely know him. Maybe he is the table fish and just has a rich family or is independently wealthy at 25. So strange. Kind of fits considering one of the hands he told us about. Just a terrible, terrible line.
He also went on about his hot friends and how he only dates super rich girls. And that seems to be true. He introduced us to his friend Lily who, as it turns out, is also some kind of super baller. I was introduced to her when she was at the blackjack table in the midst of losing however much money. She told me that she plays the same things Luis does: 5/T, 10/25 and bigger buyin donkaments. When I asked her for an estimate of how much she has lost lifetime in the pit she told me ~250k. Lol wtf. My number is somewhere around 5k I would guess and I am very proud to say that I have not played any blackjack the entire time. There really is nothing that compares to the energy at the craps table when a shooter is hot though. I definitely saw a guy sitting with ~30k yesterday at craps with a black on the pass line ($100) and $600 or so most of the numbers. But I digress. So at this point I am thinking, "wtf is everyone more baller than me fml". Today though Luis told me that Lily is a terrible poker player and that she is being backed/sleeping with someone who is actually good. So that made me feel better I guess. It's kind of amusing to think that there are lots of "professionals" out there who suck at poker but come from money. People's capacity to delude themselves knows no bounds.
Part Two - The Problem with the Lifestyle and LOL Poker Players
It's Saturday night in the nicest casino in Atlantic City and there are people everywhere. An absurd concentration of beautiful women and money pass by me in waves as I sit here typing away at my computer in the lounge that is reserved for hotel guests in a T-shirt and jeans. I think there is a lingerie themed party going on somewhere judging by some of these outfits. It's 12:15am and I woke up less than 2 hours ago. I am living in a casino for 3 weeks. I still have to work for 6+ hours as soon as I finish typing this.
And these are just some of the problems with the Lifestyle. Games are always best when recreational players don't have to be at work. That is, the evening, the weekend and holidays. Those are also the best times to go out and party with friends. Clearly I can't work and party and I do need to eat. So it's unfortunate.
Poker also has its darker side. I was playing last night and two guys sat down at my table. One of them was clearly mentally challenged in some way. I couldn't wait to play with him. Another one was clearly drunk. Same thing. Half of them are degenerate gamblers (this includes pros) while a bunch more are lying scum. There are good people everywhere but of all the places in the world the casino probably has the smallest percentage of them. Even prison is better I think; I once visited a prison with my high school Law class and met some nice guys. Meh, maybe it's close between prison and the casino but that is not exactly the most ringing endorsement I have ever given.
Of course, I have also met some amazing people through poker. People who's outlook on life is similar to mine, people that are incredibly nuanced in their thought and think deeply about the game, people that love the game as much as and often more than I do. It's unfortunate and strange that such a wild variation exists on the felt, but I guess that is everywhere and losing money happens to brings out the darker parts of people that usually remain hidden in deep crevices.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Okay, so I lied - Also my leaks
I said I was going to go and get drunk but Chad (a buddy of mine that I am splitting the room with) didn't want to go out tonight because the only club that is open is at Harrah's rather than the Borgata. I figured fuck it, it's past midnight so it's a new day, I might as well put in another session. I started off at 1/2 but I just can't take that shit seriously so I went to 2/5.
I ran pretty good. Cashed out ~1.5k profit. It was nice to actually make hands and not see the board runouts be terrible. Also made one c/r bluff that I am very proud of. It's kind of amazing, a lot of the game is just waiting for people to gift you stacks. Like I overlimped 78o in the cutoff and it went off 6 handed or so. Flop was 569hh giving me the nuts and the sb just leads out for 25...I make it 65, he says 125, I go all in and he calls. Now at this point I am thinking that I need to fade a combo draw or a board pair or that we are most likely chopping because I mean, 100bb deep in a limped pot after I 4 or 5 bet jammed lol. Anyway board bricks off and I can happily announce nuts, except my opponent had already beat me there with A9o tptk huh. Kind of sick, the turn was an A. If he had runnered the boat...lol...better not to think about it. Just so many hands where people would gift money bluffing with no fold equity into super strong lines, it really makes no sense.
I do wish that I could record the hands I play. I think I am making a number of mistakes, especially with respect to betsizing, that really cuts down on my winrate.
I want to take a moment to talk about my two biggest leaks:
The first is that I don't take enough time to think through my decisions and properly range my opponents. One of my bad beat hands from earlier is a good example. 5s full is definitely a fold given action and line but I just didn't think about it. It's kind of ridiculous given how much more time I have per decision when playing live. It's probably because I have trained myself to make decisions quickly online and don't adjust to the time that I have live.
My other major leak really isn't a leak per se. I am really hard on myself after I make a mistake, especially one that in hindsight is obvious to me (something that connects back to the first leak...). This is a good quality to have, I think, but I let it affect me to such an extent that I play much worse. I can be hard on myself all i want after I am done playing, when I am at the table I should focus on making correct decisions.
Run good everyone, I don't think there will be too much non-poker content in the next few weeks while I am at the Borgata because I did come here to work. Although I do think I will be attending a party in nyc before then so look out...
I ran pretty good. Cashed out ~1.5k profit. It was nice to actually make hands and not see the board runouts be terrible. Also made one c/r bluff that I am very proud of. It's kind of amazing, a lot of the game is just waiting for people to gift you stacks. Like I overlimped 78o in the cutoff and it went off 6 handed or so. Flop was 569hh giving me the nuts and the sb just leads out for 25...I make it 65, he says 125, I go all in and he calls. Now at this point I am thinking that I need to fade a combo draw or a board pair or that we are most likely chopping because I mean, 100bb deep in a limped pot after I 4 or 5 bet jammed lol. Anyway board bricks off and I can happily announce nuts, except my opponent had already beat me there with A9o tptk huh. Kind of sick, the turn was an A. If he had runnered the boat...lol...better not to think about it. Just so many hands where people would gift money bluffing with no fold equity into super strong lines, it really makes no sense.
I do wish that I could record the hands I play. I think I am making a number of mistakes, especially with respect to betsizing, that really cuts down on my winrate.
I want to take a moment to talk about my two biggest leaks:
The first is that I don't take enough time to think through my decisions and properly range my opponents. One of my bad beat hands from earlier is a good example. 5s full is definitely a fold given action and line but I just didn't think about it. It's kind of ridiculous given how much more time I have per decision when playing live. It's probably because I have trained myself to make decisions quickly online and don't adjust to the time that I have live.
My other major leak really isn't a leak per se. I am really hard on myself after I make a mistake, especially one that in hindsight is obvious to me (something that connects back to the first leak...). This is a good quality to have, I think, but I let it affect me to such an extent that I play much worse. I can be hard on myself all i want after I am done playing, when I am at the table I should focus on making correct decisions.
Run good everyone, I don't think there will be too much non-poker content in the next few weeks while I am at the Borgata because I did come here to work. Although I do think I will be attending a party in nyc before then so look out...
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Mini Borgata Update - running bad
I successfully made it to the Borgata yesterday. So far I have played something like 10 hours and I am down ~500. It was actually going pretty well until the following two hands which left me quite hurt :(
UTG limps and I raise 98s in the highjack. I get 3 callers and the flop comes 887 with a flush draw. It checks to me and I bet 3/4 pot, fold fold, and UTG c/r to ~225. I flat and call his turn shove on 2x. River is a 5 and he rolls 85s. LOL. One stack down the drain.
UTG+1 raises and I flat with A5s. The guy directly behind me comes along as well. Pot is 50. Flop is AQ5dd and I call a ~65 bet. The guy behind me comes along as well. Turn is another 5 and the pfr checks. I lead ~110 and the guy behind me snap calls. Now the pfr c/r to 320. This is a fold I think but it was one I couldn't make. Regardless I push and get shown QQ. FML.
I think I'm going to go get drunk now.
UTG limps and I raise 98s in the highjack. I get 3 callers and the flop comes 887 with a flush draw. It checks to me and I bet 3/4 pot, fold fold, and UTG c/r to ~225. I flat and call his turn shove on 2x. River is a 5 and he rolls 85s. LOL. One stack down the drain.
UTG+1 raises and I flat with A5s. The guy directly behind me comes along as well. Pot is 50. Flop is AQ5dd and I call a ~65 bet. The guy behind me comes along as well. Turn is another 5 and the pfr checks. I lead ~110 and the guy behind me snap calls. Now the pfr c/r to 320. This is a fold I think but it was one I couldn't make. Regardless I push and get shown QQ. FML.
I think I'm going to go get drunk now.
Monday, September 5, 2011
On Pittsburgh
My desire to take pictures in the last 2 days has been thwarted by Mother Nature. My desire to take pictures in the last 36 days has been thwarted by my lack of a working camera (a deficiency which has since been rectified) and my own laziness (something that I try to correct but seriously 22 years of momentum is hard to reverse). Okay so I might have lied a bit, I haven't been really trying to correct the latter problem but I would like to, which counts for precisely nothing. Whatever.
I do have a few things to say on Pittsburgh though. I always have something to say after all.
At its heart Pittsburgh is a town. Calling it a city disgraces the word and disgraces Pittsburgh itself. That isn't a bad thing, in fact in many respects it is good. The city part of it, however, is quite strange. Downtown Pittsburgh, where all the big buildings are, is the cleanest major downtown that I have ever seen. This has nothing to do with the diligence of Pittsburgh's government, it instead has everything to do with the lack of people who live downtown. There is nothing to do there, so no one lives there. No one lives there, so no businesses set up shop. When I went to the casino on Saturdays and Sundays it was incredibly eerie to see how deserted it was down there. During the week it is plenty busy with people going to and from work at places like PNC, yet on the weekend it is deserted. I went to the casino on Saturday and the Qdoba/Chipotle (I can't remember which) was closed...at 3pm...on a Saturday. Like I said, strange.
Everyone lives in the neighborhoods that surround the downtown and stretch out for quite a while. Each of them have their own distinct flavor. Oakland is the college student part, South Side is the bar district with more bars/whatever^2 than anywhere else in the world, Squirrel Hill is the Jewish part, Lawrenceville is hipster central etc.
It's actually quite a beautiful place in terms of landscape and such. The whole city lies in a valley with hills/mountains surrounding it. Through this valley run three different rivers. Standing in front of the casino/Heinz field at night and looking out over the river into downtown Pittsburgh and up at the surrounding hills is fairly breathtaking. Something I regret not exploring further.
Much of the shittier parts are also built in such strange ways. I have climbed more shady stairs/walkways than anywhere besides a medieval Spanish town. I find myself fascinated by decaying urban landscapes and the secrets that these tiny warrens and untrod streets may contain. It's mindboggling to me that things can disappear from human knowledge only to reappear years later, even if that knowledge is as something as small as a room once constructed or a track once built.
And finally, I must say something about the people. On the whole I found the people nice if a bit strange with their "pop" and "gumbands". I also encountered far more close minded and bigoted people than I am used to. For all that, there are good people everywhere.
From Andre and Bill at the local bar to some of the dealers at Rivers with whom I discussed life and with whom I conspired to go into business with to my brother and his roommates and friends, I have met so many awesome and cool people. It is sad to think that many of them I will never see again. This is definitely the greatest drawback to the life that I choose to live, it is so hard to develop friendships knowing that in a short time I will feel the need to wander or the desire for something else. Still, I am all the better for the people I have met and that makes it worth it. Until we meet again, it has been fun, I will probably try and pass through for a few days on my way west or maybe on my way east from a western journey.
And with that, my time in Pittsburgh is at an end. Atlantic City is next. Just another day living the dream.
I do have a few things to say on Pittsburgh though. I always have something to say after all.
At its heart Pittsburgh is a town. Calling it a city disgraces the word and disgraces Pittsburgh itself. That isn't a bad thing, in fact in many respects it is good. The city part of it, however, is quite strange. Downtown Pittsburgh, where all the big buildings are, is the cleanest major downtown that I have ever seen. This has nothing to do with the diligence of Pittsburgh's government, it instead has everything to do with the lack of people who live downtown. There is nothing to do there, so no one lives there. No one lives there, so no businesses set up shop. When I went to the casino on Saturdays and Sundays it was incredibly eerie to see how deserted it was down there. During the week it is plenty busy with people going to and from work at places like PNC, yet on the weekend it is deserted. I went to the casino on Saturday and the Qdoba/Chipotle (I can't remember which) was closed...at 3pm...on a Saturday. Like I said, strange.
Everyone lives in the neighborhoods that surround the downtown and stretch out for quite a while. Each of them have their own distinct flavor. Oakland is the college student part, South Side is the bar district with more bars/whatever^2 than anywhere else in the world, Squirrel Hill is the Jewish part, Lawrenceville is hipster central etc.
It's actually quite a beautiful place in terms of landscape and such. The whole city lies in a valley with hills/mountains surrounding it. Through this valley run three different rivers. Standing in front of the casino/Heinz field at night and looking out over the river into downtown Pittsburgh and up at the surrounding hills is fairly breathtaking. Something I regret not exploring further.
Much of the shittier parts are also built in such strange ways. I have climbed more shady stairs/walkways than anywhere besides a medieval Spanish town. I find myself fascinated by decaying urban landscapes and the secrets that these tiny warrens and untrod streets may contain. It's mindboggling to me that things can disappear from human knowledge only to reappear years later, even if that knowledge is as something as small as a room once constructed or a track once built.
And finally, I must say something about the people. On the whole I found the people nice if a bit strange with their "pop" and "gumbands". I also encountered far more close minded and bigoted people than I am used to. For all that, there are good people everywhere.
From Andre and Bill at the local bar to some of the dealers at Rivers with whom I discussed life and with whom I conspired to go into business with to my brother and his roommates and friends, I have met so many awesome and cool people. It is sad to think that many of them I will never see again. This is definitely the greatest drawback to the life that I choose to live, it is so hard to develop friendships knowing that in a short time I will feel the need to wander or the desire for something else. Still, I am all the better for the people I have met and that makes it worth it. Until we meet again, it has been fun, I will probably try and pass through for a few days on my way west or maybe on my way east from a western journey.
And with that, my time in Pittsburgh is at an end. Atlantic City is next. Just another day living the dream.
Saturday, September 3, 2011
What I Do + Anecdotes
So this is what I usually do:
Here's a funny story or two:
1) I was at the bar tonight and of course the best way to get the attention of the bartender is to wave around money. So I'm waving a hundo and I order 3 drinks. When she gives me my change the woman tries to give me back 30 some odd dollars lol. Then she walks away quickly. When I say...umm...excuse me wtf she mumbles something like oh I thought I gave you a 50 even though she didn't even look at my money to realize her mistake. LOL. No tip for you.
2) I was talking to a big black guy on the bus because he had a yellow yankees hat and we were shooting the shit about nyc and stuff. I also asked him where to find good jerk chicken because he had a giant jamaican shirt on. Somehow we end up talking about poker and he goes on for a while about how he wants to stake me in a highstakes game with Wiz Khalifa and 'Lil Wayne lolz. Apparently I have a baby face so no one will ever believe I am any good and they will all think that they can bully me around. He also sold me a bootleg month long bus pass at like 1/3rd the price. When I asked him where he got it he told me, "don't worry about it". As we walked around downtown while I waited for the bus to the casino he told me about the "easy money" in his roulette system; I swear he seemed to know like 40% of the people who were around just on the street.
My life is absurd.
Here's a funny story or two:
1) I was at the bar tonight and of course the best way to get the attention of the bartender is to wave around money. So I'm waving a hundo and I order 3 drinks. When she gives me my change the woman tries to give me back 30 some odd dollars lol. Then she walks away quickly. When I say...umm...excuse me wtf she mumbles something like oh I thought I gave you a 50 even though she didn't even look at my money to realize her mistake. LOL. No tip for you.
2) I was talking to a big black guy on the bus because he had a yellow yankees hat and we were shooting the shit about nyc and stuff. I also asked him where to find good jerk chicken because he had a giant jamaican shirt on. Somehow we end up talking about poker and he goes on for a while about how he wants to stake me in a highstakes game with Wiz Khalifa and 'Lil Wayne lolz. Apparently I have a baby face so no one will ever believe I am any good and they will all think that they can bully me around. He also sold me a bootleg month long bus pass at like 1/3rd the price. When I asked him where he got it he told me, "don't worry about it". As we walked around downtown while I waited for the bus to the casino he told me about the "easy money" in his roulette system; I swear he seemed to know like 40% of the people who were around just on the street.
My life is absurd.
August Wrap Up, Variance, Downswing, Borgata Open and September Goals
Hey guys it has been a while since I updated so this one might be a bit long. For the month of August I ended up profiting ~4k in cash which is alright but not spectacular. At my peak I was up around 5k but downswongs are fairly normal things so whatever.
In the last 10 days I have lost money. I think I am down nearly 2k since my height including today. You don't want to hear about the bad beats I am taking but trust me when I say that I have lost with 80% equity or greater multiple times. It's fairly standard really. Consider this: I played about 130 hours of poker in August at about 30 hands per hour. For the mathematically inclined amoung you that comes out to something like 4000 hands last month. Online I would often play 4000 hands in a day. The sample size variance associated with the small number of hands I played is absurd. Although my edge is far bigger in live poker the magnitude of it is not nearly big enough to compensate for sample size.
I am definitely going to the Borgata open. In fact, I will be spending the entirety of the open there. I have a room booked from the 6th - 23rd which is something absurd like 17 nights. I am splitting it with a friend of mine, he's a really cool guy. I'm really excited to get out of Pittsburgh with respect to playing poker. Although I have had an awesome time in Pittsburgh with cool people and the fact that I actually find this town to be pretty cool, the poker action simply isn't good enough or big enough.
So the famous J, the guy who I blogged about in "Empathy and Poker" which is apparently far and away my most popular blog post, and I talked earlier today. He disclosed to me that he won 7.5k on the tables in the month of August. While yes, he did play a bit more than me, the fact that he won more than me has approximately zero to do with our relative poker abilities. Like I indicated before, I highly doubt that he has taken any of the bad beats that I have while I know for a fact that he has given some of them. Take, for example, the hand where he won with queens against my kings. In that particular hand I had ~80% equity in the hand, yet I still lost. Sample size variance is insane; And his bet sizing still sucks.
For the totality of August I won the previously mentioned 4k, whatever. My goals for September are pretty much to grind as hard as I can in AC. After AC I am heading to New York to hang out with people before I go to Vegas. I leave for AC on Tuesday and the whole thing will cost me ~$900. I hope to play exclusively 2/5 in AC. I am going to bring 5k in cash with me to the Borgata and if I drop 3k I will move down to 1/2. I highly doubt this happens but runbad knows no bounds. My goals for September are as follows:
Play my A or B game the whole time - I had a number but it's just dumb to have that
150 hours on the tables in Atlantic City
Enjoy Life
Live the dream motherfuckers.
In the last 10 days I have lost money. I think I am down nearly 2k since my height including today. You don't want to hear about the bad beats I am taking but trust me when I say that I have lost with 80% equity or greater multiple times. It's fairly standard really. Consider this: I played about 130 hours of poker in August at about 30 hands per hour. For the mathematically inclined amoung you that comes out to something like 4000 hands last month. Online I would often play 4000 hands in a day. The sample size variance associated with the small number of hands I played is absurd. Although my edge is far bigger in live poker the magnitude of it is not nearly big enough to compensate for sample size.
I am definitely going to the Borgata open. In fact, I will be spending the entirety of the open there. I have a room booked from the 6th - 23rd which is something absurd like 17 nights. I am splitting it with a friend of mine, he's a really cool guy. I'm really excited to get out of Pittsburgh with respect to playing poker. Although I have had an awesome time in Pittsburgh with cool people and the fact that I actually find this town to be pretty cool, the poker action simply isn't good enough or big enough.
So the famous J, the guy who I blogged about in "Empathy and Poker" which is apparently far and away my most popular blog post, and I talked earlier today. He disclosed to me that he won 7.5k on the tables in the month of August. While yes, he did play a bit more than me, the fact that he won more than me has approximately zero to do with our relative poker abilities. Like I indicated before, I highly doubt that he has taken any of the bad beats that I have while I know for a fact that he has given some of them. Take, for example, the hand where he won with queens against my kings. In that particular hand I had ~80% equity in the hand, yet I still lost. Sample size variance is insane; And his bet sizing still sucks.
For the totality of August I won the previously mentioned 4k, whatever. My goals for September are pretty much to grind as hard as I can in AC. After AC I am heading to New York to hang out with people before I go to Vegas. I leave for AC on Tuesday and the whole thing will cost me ~$900. I hope to play exclusively 2/5 in AC. I am going to bring 5k in cash with me to the Borgata and if I drop 3k I will move down to 1/2. I highly doubt this happens but runbad knows no bounds. My goals for September are as follows:
Play my A or B game the whole time - I had a number but it's just dumb to have that
150 hours on the tables in Atlantic City
Enjoy Life
Live the dream motherfuckers.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
The Tilt Monster Rears Its Ugly Head
I hit my stop loss pretty quickly today at one of the softest 1/3 tables I have seen in quite a while. It's $600 and I picked up at -$575. I'm not sure why some days I am far more prone to tilt and spew than other days. It really doesn't make any sense, nothing happened at all the previous day to put me in an unbalanced state. Yet there I was taking one bad beat and then getting extremely frustrated at the glacial pace of action that is live poker while some donkeys make hand after hand. Most non-pros don't realize but it is really fucking hard to make a hand in NLHE. I have gone a day without making better than top pair while some fish retard hits 6 sets in 2 hours.
I don't even want to go back in the Rivers poker room because I am incredibly ashamed at how I played. Not at how I acted, I am always polite, courteous and respectful to customers, just at how I played. I couldn't make one damn fucking pair today as I get called down by A high by some fish in sunglasses who limps 85% of hands. Now I just want to get out of Pittsburgh, I guess, although there are a bunch of cultural things I want to do.
The Borgata open is next month and I might go for 10 days and grind what should be the soft games. Would probably be a good break but I'd say there is only a 50% chance it happens.
Well today's session knocks my profits for the month back to 4.5k, le sigh. Definitely going to take a few days off and do some of those other things I mentioned before getting back on the horse on either Tuesday or Wednesday. Definitely going to play in the 5k freeroll I qualified for on Thursday.
It's incredibly depressing to know that you are down a not insignificant amount of money due solely to your own actions. It is an extremely harsh and sobering reality which I don't think can really be explained, you need to feel it for yourself. At least writing this is cathartic.
Ah well, time to cope the best way I know how, consumption of copious amounts of alcohol.
I don't even want to go back in the Rivers poker room because I am incredibly ashamed at how I played. Not at how I acted, I am always polite, courteous and respectful to customers, just at how I played. I couldn't make one damn fucking pair today as I get called down by A high by some fish in sunglasses who limps 85% of hands. Now I just want to get out of Pittsburgh, I guess, although there are a bunch of cultural things I want to do.
The Borgata open is next month and I might go for 10 days and grind what should be the soft games. Would probably be a good break but I'd say there is only a 50% chance it happens.
Well today's session knocks my profits for the month back to 4.5k, le sigh. Definitely going to take a few days off and do some of those other things I mentioned before getting back on the horse on either Tuesday or Wednesday. Definitely going to play in the 5k freeroll I qualified for on Thursday.
It's incredibly depressing to know that you are down a not insignificant amount of money due solely to your own actions. It is an extremely harsh and sobering reality which I don't think can really be explained, you need to feel it for yourself. At least writing this is cathartic.
Ah well, time to cope the best way I know how, consumption of copious amounts of alcohol.
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
To Where the Blog is Going
Every entry which I have written thus far has been about poker. While the blog will continue to be primarily poker for obvious reasons, the gentle non-degenerate reader can rest assured that other things are coming.
Degenerates, well, go read BBV or something.
It is my desire to write about and exhibit the places that I visit and some of the people that I meet along the way. Since this is my blog and I am the Law, the Emperor and the Word, that is what will happen. The chief obstacle blocking my path is the lack of a working camera. Once that problem has been remedied you can expect a slew of entries with titles such as "On Pittsburgh" or "The View from a River" or "The Pirates Lose Again" and other such heady titles as I fall ever deeper into the delusion of my belief that I possess some artistic ability at naming things.
If I can't/don't/won't buy a camera I think I will draw everything in MS Paint or the equivalent Mac program. What could possibly go wrong?
Degenerates, well, go read BBV or something.
It is my desire to write about and exhibit the places that I visit and some of the people that I meet along the way. Since this is my blog and I am the Law, the Emperor and the Word, that is what will happen. The chief obstacle blocking my path is the lack of a working camera. Once that problem has been remedied you can expect a slew of entries with titles such as "On Pittsburgh" or "The View from a River" or "The Pirates Lose Again" and other such heady titles as I fall ever deeper into the delusion of my belief that I possess some artistic ability at naming things.
If I can't/don't/won't buy a camera I think I will draw everything in MS Paint or the equivalent Mac program. What could possibly go wrong?
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Thar She Blows
So it's Tuesday and I decided to take my second day in a row off. This is pretty awesome considering that I had played for something like 8 or 9 days in a row. Kind of weird, I say awesome yet it's my prerogative to take a day off.
So the whale; a little background first. The 2/5 game in Pittsburgh used to be a good game, or so I've heard. As a lot of the bad players lost money at an unsustainable pace and went bust or hit their threshold of pain, action at 2/5+ dried up. This is why many casinos in places like LA set the max buyin of the game so low, to prevent people from losing money too quickly. This can be a problem at the lower limits too. Here's a good example: a young guy sat down (probably my age or so) at the 1/3 game with $120 and posted UTG+3. I took all his money within 3 hands, before he even posted his natural blind. Somehow I don't think he enjoyed his time at the table or his "night of enjoyment". That's the nature of NL games though. Holy shit what a tangent.
Anyway, most days the casino only gets one table of 2/5 going that is filled with old nitty regulars who are solid and unspectacular. Saturday is the exception. The casino gets busy enough that a second table opens; the second table is usually solid gold.
The first table filled with nitty regulars is then referred to as the main game while the second table is the must move. As people get up from the main game you must move from the...must move in the order that you went on the waitlist. I only play 2/5 (usually) on Saturday's because my expected hourly at a 1/3 table is higher than my expected hourly at 2/5 due to table composition.
Fish are the dead money, the guys in business attire who just got off work, the frat bros who saw the game on TV, the cocky bastards who read a book and think they are god's gifts to poker, these are the people that lubricate the poker economy with money while people like me take it out. Whales are special, they are the type of player to make you stay at the casino and blow off a date or skip sleeping although you are confused as to why the dealer is your mother and the chips start talking to you. A lot of fish don't know that they are bad at poker. They don't think that they are incredible but they don't realized how much they truly suck. It's mostly irrelevant though because for them it's just entertainment money that they expect to lose like at blackjack or 3 card poker while they gamble. At least at poker you can talk to the other people at your table and have a decent chance to walk away a winner if you can catch cards. Most fish will at least try and conserve money and hate to put it in super light because they have an allotted amount of money. Meanwhile, whales know they suck (I think), they just like the gambool. The bigger the pot, the better.
He started off fairly innocuously in a polo and khakis with ~$500. Then he limp/shoved 89s utg and showed. Then he called off a $300 all in with J9o. Then my hand happened. I was sitting in the game ~$1100 after binking the nut flush draw for a nice size pot when I am dealt AA UTG. I make it 20 to go and get 3 callers including the whale in the big blind. He donks (that is, leads out) 20 into 80 on T95r which I then raise to 70. The other two guys go away and he calls. Turn is a K that completes the rainbow and the whale leads 80, I call. River is another K and the whale shoves in for 200 which I of course snap. He shows 79o for a pair of nines. As I am mentally celebrating my win he pulls out 1k and asks for black chips (hundos). With that, visions of a 3k+ day start dancing before my eyes. My dreams are crushed as Jamie the floor man tells the dealer to deal me out because I am to be moved to the main game. I sit there in a state of shock as the one other competent player at the table (the rest of the game was simply incredible too, honestly one of the best 2/5 tables I have seen ever) remarks "ah what a shame". As I sit there stacking my chips I watch this guy blow off $800 with second pair to a set and then pull out a roll of hundos, one of those wads that you get when you cash out large amounts. Benjamins arrive at institutions in wads of $5000 with a sticker band thing that indicates 5 grand. Tears of rage fill my eyes (okay not really but this is poetic license) as I move to the main game. I play 3 hands, rack up and leave, no longer in the mood to play poker. Before I do I watch Moby-Dick lose 2k with a flush on a paired board.
So the whale; a little background first. The 2/5 game in Pittsburgh used to be a good game, or so I've heard. As a lot of the bad players lost money at an unsustainable pace and went bust or hit their threshold of pain, action at 2/5+ dried up. This is why many casinos in places like LA set the max buyin of the game so low, to prevent people from losing money too quickly. This can be a problem at the lower limits too. Here's a good example: a young guy sat down (probably my age or so) at the 1/3 game with $120 and posted UTG+3. I took all his money within 3 hands, before he even posted his natural blind. Somehow I don't think he enjoyed his time at the table or his "night of enjoyment". That's the nature of NL games though. Holy shit what a tangent.
Anyway, most days the casino only gets one table of 2/5 going that is filled with old nitty regulars who are solid and unspectacular. Saturday is the exception. The casino gets busy enough that a second table opens; the second table is usually solid gold.
The first table filled with nitty regulars is then referred to as the main game while the second table is the must move. As people get up from the main game you must move from the...must move in the order that you went on the waitlist. I only play 2/5 (usually) on Saturday's because my expected hourly at a 1/3 table is higher than my expected hourly at 2/5 due to table composition.
Fish are the dead money, the guys in business attire who just got off work, the frat bros who saw the game on TV, the cocky bastards who read a book and think they are god's gifts to poker, these are the people that lubricate the poker economy with money while people like me take it out. Whales are special, they are the type of player to make you stay at the casino and blow off a date or skip sleeping although you are confused as to why the dealer is your mother and the chips start talking to you. A lot of fish don't know that they are bad at poker. They don't think that they are incredible but they don't realized how much they truly suck. It's mostly irrelevant though because for them it's just entertainment money that they expect to lose like at blackjack or 3 card poker while they gamble. At least at poker you can talk to the other people at your table and have a decent chance to walk away a winner if you can catch cards. Most fish will at least try and conserve money and hate to put it in super light because they have an allotted amount of money. Meanwhile, whales know they suck (I think), they just like the gambool. The bigger the pot, the better.
He started off fairly innocuously in a polo and khakis with ~$500. Then he limp/shoved 89s utg and showed. Then he called off a $300 all in with J9o. Then my hand happened. I was sitting in the game ~$1100 after binking the nut flush draw for a nice size pot when I am dealt AA UTG. I make it 20 to go and get 3 callers including the whale in the big blind. He donks (that is, leads out) 20 into 80 on T95r which I then raise to 70. The other two guys go away and he calls. Turn is a K that completes the rainbow and the whale leads 80, I call. River is another K and the whale shoves in for 200 which I of course snap. He shows 79o for a pair of nines. As I am mentally celebrating my win he pulls out 1k and asks for black chips (hundos). With that, visions of a 3k+ day start dancing before my eyes. My dreams are crushed as Jamie the floor man tells the dealer to deal me out because I am to be moved to the main game. I sit there in a state of shock as the one other competent player at the table (the rest of the game was simply incredible too, honestly one of the best 2/5 tables I have seen ever) remarks "ah what a shame". As I sit there stacking my chips I watch this guy blow off $800 with second pair to a set and then pull out a roll of hundos, one of those wads that you get when you cash out large amounts. Benjamins arrive at institutions in wads of $5000 with a sticker band thing that indicates 5 grand. Tears of rage fill my eyes (okay not really but this is poetic license) as I move to the main game. I play 3 hands, rack up and leave, no longer in the mood to play poker. Before I do I watch Moby-Dick lose 2k with a flush on a paired board.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Poker Update
It has been nearly 3 weeks to the day since I arrived in Pittsburgh. In the 19 possible days that I could have played poker (not counting today as a possible) I have played poker 16 of them. On average I play 7hrs per session which gives me a rough total of 110 hrs on the felt this month. Fun. I hope I can continue at this pace and finish the month with 150-160 hours played. This might sound like the same amount of hours people with typical jobs work but it really isn't. I don't get a lunch break, I can work 7 hours and break even or lose and every single hour of play is actual work. I don't get paid to browse Facebook or Reddit or whatever. There is a well known quote with regards to making a living playing poker that goes "It's a hard way to make an easy living". Truer words have never been spoken.
For the month of August my total profit sits right around 3.5k after yesterday's +843 session. While there have been times that I have run good this month there have also been times that I have run bad. Yesterday I didn't even run hot, my table was simply fantastic.
My table was basically all old guys shooting the shit and having fun while doing what they do best: limping everything and anything from any position that isn't called aces and folding to most aggression post flop. It sort of blows my mind that these guys can play so suboptimally and have not a care in the world, but I was a fish at one point too so it really shouldn't be that surprising. My life would be a hell of a lot easier if the government could simply send their social security checks to me in the mail instead of me having to win them on the felt, but I digress.
It's kind of strange...even assuming that I maintain a roughly 6k/month pace (which is a big if) then I would on average make about 72k/year. However, I don't get any benefits, that is before taxes and there is a growing hole on my resume. Thus that 72k is likely equivalent to a job that pays 55k or something. While that isn't bad by any stretch of the imagination it certainly isn't great. I have no idea what sort of opportunity costs I am giving up right now. On the other hand I am my own boss and can do whatever the hell I want wherever the hell I want basically which is still pretty frickin awesome. And I still might get murdered by variance or have the games become tougher or any one of a hundred things and only make 40k this year. Of course once I get out of Pittsburgh I will be playing in bigger games (2/5 and then hopefully 5/T) and will hopefully be making more money. Ah well, still another 5 weeks here. Grind on da mind for now.
For the month of August my total profit sits right around 3.5k after yesterday's +843 session. While there have been times that I have run good this month there have also been times that I have run bad. Yesterday I didn't even run hot, my table was simply fantastic.
My table was basically all old guys shooting the shit and having fun while doing what they do best: limping everything and anything from any position that isn't called aces and folding to most aggression post flop. It sort of blows my mind that these guys can play so suboptimally and have not a care in the world, but I was a fish at one point too so it really shouldn't be that surprising. My life would be a hell of a lot easier if the government could simply send their social security checks to me in the mail instead of me having to win them on the felt, but I digress.
It's kind of strange...even assuming that I maintain a roughly 6k/month pace (which is a big if) then I would on average make about 72k/year. However, I don't get any benefits, that is before taxes and there is a growing hole on my resume. Thus that 72k is likely equivalent to a job that pays 55k or something. While that isn't bad by any stretch of the imagination it certainly isn't great. I have no idea what sort of opportunity costs I am giving up right now. On the other hand I am my own boss and can do whatever the hell I want wherever the hell I want basically which is still pretty frickin awesome. And I still might get murdered by variance or have the games become tougher or any one of a hundred things and only make 40k this year. Of course once I get out of Pittsburgh I will be playing in bigger games (2/5 and then hopefully 5/T) and will hopefully be making more money. Ah well, still another 5 weeks here. Grind on da mind for now.
Friday, August 19, 2011
Empathy and Poker
One of my better qualities, or so I like to think, is the fact that I can empathize with my fellow man. As I'm sure most of you can imagine this is not a good quality to have on the felt. While I have essentially no qualms about taking people's money at poker since I view it as intellectual warfare or some such there are some exceptions to this rule that make me cringe. I have one such example from today.
There is this regular player who goes by the name of J (okay so I shortened his name to protect the innocent, sue me). He is a big guy, late 20s with thinning hair and he plays a lot. He definitely isn't a pro but he isn't the worst fish in the world. He has some of the worst bet sizing I have ever seen in my life. Frankly it should be a crime for him to size his bets the way he does. Anyway I digress. The other day I was playing with him and was talking about how his ex-gf told him that her mother has cancer. He also mentioned that she had broken his heart and he wasn't supposed to care about this now that he had gotten over her. Then I play with him today and he was talking about how life wasn't going well and how he was in a bad mood. He took some bad beat to bust a tournament or something and then he was playing cash. Every time a dealer came in he would say hello and try to talk to them. I honestly thought it was because he was simply lonely. Several times he remarked that he just didn't care anymore when he would make a play that I would regard as truly awful (trust me I'm a good judge of poker plays). I finally told him that he should pick up if he wasn't in the right mindset. He thanked me and said it was good of me to say that and it was true. At one point he even ordered a double gray goose cranberry drink thing. He truly looked so pathetic that I felt bad even attempting to take his money.
And that's the thing. As a poker player on the felt this simply does not work. I told him to pick up and me even saying that instead of trying to take advantage of his mentally weakened/upset state is -ev (expected value for the uninitiated). I simply can't do it though. I don't have any qualms about taking advantage of stupidity like the guy next to me who would raise his cards to look at them and thus leave them on display for 1/2 the table, but for someone who has been beaten down by life I feel awful. Obviously I am still going to make the right play but that doesn't stop me from feeling bad. Or maybe that makes me a bad person. I truly don't know. Of course I got KK (kings) in against J's QQ (queens) and lost for ~$500. That sucked but at least I didn't have to think of this guy's suicide or something on my conscience. I mean J tried to leave 2 or 3 times and he always came back 10 or less minutes later saying he had nothing to do or whatever. According to one of the dealers, his new job (J's) doesn't start for a few weeks.
Anyway I had a few drinks (if you couldn't already tell from my rambling) after I got back to the local bar while I was pondering the moral repercussions of what I do and whether or not it is tainting my soul. I even started to have an in depth conversation with the bartender who has become a friend of mine (and will be a subject of one of those "interesting person" posts in the near future) about whether or not he feels guilty when he serves alcoholics. However, his girlfriend was in town so he was a little bit distracted. I will be sure to continue that one in the future.
There is this regular player who goes by the name of J (okay so I shortened his name to protect the innocent, sue me). He is a big guy, late 20s with thinning hair and he plays a lot. He definitely isn't a pro but he isn't the worst fish in the world. He has some of the worst bet sizing I have ever seen in my life. Frankly it should be a crime for him to size his bets the way he does. Anyway I digress. The other day I was playing with him and was talking about how his ex-gf told him that her mother has cancer. He also mentioned that she had broken his heart and he wasn't supposed to care about this now that he had gotten over her. Then I play with him today and he was talking about how life wasn't going well and how he was in a bad mood. He took some bad beat to bust a tournament or something and then he was playing cash. Every time a dealer came in he would say hello and try to talk to them. I honestly thought it was because he was simply lonely. Several times he remarked that he just didn't care anymore when he would make a play that I would regard as truly awful (trust me I'm a good judge of poker plays). I finally told him that he should pick up if he wasn't in the right mindset. He thanked me and said it was good of me to say that and it was true. At one point he even ordered a double gray goose cranberry drink thing. He truly looked so pathetic that I felt bad even attempting to take his money.
And that's the thing. As a poker player on the felt this simply does not work. I told him to pick up and me even saying that instead of trying to take advantage of his mentally weakened/upset state is -ev (expected value for the uninitiated). I simply can't do it though. I don't have any qualms about taking advantage of stupidity like the guy next to me who would raise his cards to look at them and thus leave them on display for 1/2 the table, but for someone who has been beaten down by life I feel awful. Obviously I am still going to make the right play but that doesn't stop me from feeling bad. Or maybe that makes me a bad person. I truly don't know. Of course I got KK (kings) in against J's QQ (queens) and lost for ~$500. That sucked but at least I didn't have to think of this guy's suicide or something on my conscience. I mean J tried to leave 2 or 3 times and he always came back 10 or less minutes later saying he had nothing to do or whatever. According to one of the dealers, his new job (J's) doesn't start for a few weeks.
Anyway I had a few drinks (if you couldn't already tell from my rambling) after I got back to the local bar while I was pondering the moral repercussions of what I do and whether or not it is tainting my soul. I even started to have an in depth conversation with the bartender who has become a friend of mine (and will be a subject of one of those "interesting person" posts in the near future) about whether or not he feels guilty when he serves alcoholics. However, his girlfriend was in town so he was a little bit distracted. I will be sure to continue that one in the future.
Introduction
Hello and welcome to the inaugural post of my blog.
For those who don't me (how you came upon this blog is beyond me then) my name is Josh and I recently graduated from NYU with a degree in physics. The purpose of this blog is to chronicle my trials and tribulations as a professional poker player, recording not only the swings and bad beats that I take in any given day but also the nomadic life style that I currently live and the strange ways in which playing poker for a living affects my daily life.
I currently live in Pittsburgh with my brother and play at the local casino (Rivers Casino). The current plan is to stay in Pittsburgh until the end of September at which point I hope to return to New York for ~one week. After that I will move to Vegas for the rest of year or so and then hopefully to Canada. All of that is, of course, subject to change.
The blog itself is currently a work in progress as I work to make it much more snazzy. I play about 8 hrs/day and it takes me about 1 hr each way to get there so please excuse me if it takes a little while to get the blog up and running to its full potential, especially considering that I only take Mondays off at the moment.
I meet quite a number of strange and fascinating people in the course of my life; my hope is to make a continuously updated section of "interesting people" or some such that chronicles them.
My apologies in advance to the poker illiterate among you who read this blog, but there will be quite a bit of poker terminology that you probably will not understand.
Thanks for joining me, it should be one hell of a wild fucking ride.
For those who don't me (how you came upon this blog is beyond me then) my name is Josh and I recently graduated from NYU with a degree in physics. The purpose of this blog is to chronicle my trials and tribulations as a professional poker player, recording not only the swings and bad beats that I take in any given day but also the nomadic life style that I currently live and the strange ways in which playing poker for a living affects my daily life.
I currently live in Pittsburgh with my brother and play at the local casino (Rivers Casino). The current plan is to stay in Pittsburgh until the end of September at which point I hope to return to New York for ~one week. After that I will move to Vegas for the rest of year or so and then hopefully to Canada. All of that is, of course, subject to change.
The blog itself is currently a work in progress as I work to make it much more snazzy. I play about 8 hrs/day and it takes me about 1 hr each way to get there so please excuse me if it takes a little while to get the blog up and running to its full potential, especially considering that I only take Mondays off at the moment.
I meet quite a number of strange and fascinating people in the course of my life; my hope is to make a continuously updated section of "interesting people" or some such that chronicles them.
My apologies in advance to the poker illiterate among you who read this blog, but there will be quite a bit of poker terminology that you probably will not understand.
Thanks for joining me, it should be one hell of a wild fucking ride.
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