Flipping out

Saturday night the PQ and I decided to hit Derby Lane for the 8pm tourney again.  As good as the PQ has been playing, she was itching for another crack at this tourney.  For me, I was hoping for some redemption after the way I went out last time.  One of us did pretty well.

The tourney started much better for me card wise than last week.  Early on I picked up AJ, AQ, AJ and AK.  But the table I was at did not lend much to my chances.  With the AJ and AQ hands there were raises and reraises before the betting even got to me.  Both times I was in the small blind.  I let the AJ go after a raise and reraise and called with the AQ but dumped after completely whiffing the flop (and watching my opponents both bet the flop).  Not an auspicious beginning.  I get AK in late position and raise with one caller.  The flop is another complete miss and when my C bet got reraised I let that one go as well.  He might not have hit anything either but that early in the tourney,  it made no sense to me to be risking big chunks of my stack on an unpaired AK.

After that the cards dried up a bit and I got to watch my seatmates play.  A lot of gamble in those boys.  Even early in the tourney these guys are raising and reraising with A10, AJ, A6, just about any ace is enough for most of them.  I'm sitting in the 4 seat so I can see the whole table pretty well.  The guy sitting just to my left in seat 5 was the worst, over betting the pot by putting in 3K when the pot has 600 with JJ.  Reraising all in with AJ.  I was just waiting for a chance to trap him and take a chunk out of him but the cards refused to cooperate.  Not too much later he got moved to another table and I lost my chance for now. 

My stack was down to a bit over 7K from the 10K start when I picked up JJ in late position.  Guy in the 1 seat who had been playing fairly aggressively raised it to 550 (blinds 75/150).  I popped him to 1800.  Everyone else folded and the flop was a 532 with 2 hearts.  I'm not gonna fool around too much in this situation, especially since my opponent might be in with A6 or a suited A of hearts.  If he has A4 well them's the breaks I suppose.  He checks and I decide to shove there as I don't have enough chips to put in a 2/3 pot bet and then be able to push him off a draw on the turn I fear.  With 4K in the pot and only a little over 5K left in my hand I didn't see any other way to go.  Luckily or maybe unluckily as I might have been able to double up, he dumped his cards and I get a bit healthier.  The next hand I get AQ and pick up some blinds and antes with a preflop raise.  The table had settled a little from it's rather wild beginning and I wasn't playing many hands so I did get some respect for raises there.  I managed to get AA in early position but unfortunately no one wanted to gamble with me and I just didn't want to try slow playing AA under the gun and out of position.  Still I managed to chip up with a couple of steals later to get back over 10K by the time the table broke. 

I got seated at a new table and lo and behold, to my left is the loosest aggressive player in the tourney and just left of him is my old seatmate, Mr Overbet.  He's still up to his old tricks but as play goes on my hands just go dry and with these 2 on my left, I can't afford to be throwing chips in the pot at will.  I do get a double up when I spike an Ace on the turn when I raised an A7 in late position.  At that point I am having to push any ace as the blinds and antes are getting high.  I now have some chips but still can't afford to wait around.  I'm in the small blind when I look down at AK off.  Ok, that can play.  Guy in the cutoff puts in a raise to 2200 on blinds of 400/800.  I'm sitting on about 14K now which doesn't give me much wiggle room.  I'm debating raising to 5K leaving me 9 behind but Mr Overbet is still in as he called under the gun.  If he calls and I expect he will, there will be at least 16K in the pot and I will only have 9K left.  Then again I get a chance to see the flop and get away if it's too ugly but at this point, I feel I need to gamble.  If I can take it down here, I get about 4K more in chips and if I double or triple up, even better.  I'm pretty sure I'm ahead of the original raiser and I have no read on Mr Overbet but don't put him on a really big hand.  So I push all in.  I want to see 5 cards here and being out of position, I don't want to be trying to play the hand out of position and not knowing where I stand by just calling. 

Mr Overbet goes in the think tank and I feel pretty good about that.  I figure he instacalls a big pair or AK so I'm hopeful he is AQ or AJ.  Finally he calls.  The original raiser thinks a bit but mucks and I'm heads up.  He flips over QQ to my AK and it's a race.  Not a good race for me since I'm up against a made hand.  I don't feel good.  And I'm right as the board goes out all low.  I do get a straight draw by the turn but no 4 A or K on the river and it's goodbye.  I wasn't thrilled but thought I had played it ok there.  Just a tourney that didn't work out too well.  Contrary to my post title, I wished everyone good luck and went to get a beer.  The PQ on the other hand is making some things happen.  She's gotten AA four times and has built a stack over 50K.  She got hurt early when her 2 pair ran into a straight in the hands of the table gadfly.  Lady calls down with near anything but this time she had the nuts.  The wife makes it back though pushing AA in against a guy who really liked his AK and busting him. 

A little later I go to play some 1-1 NL holdem.  The first table is pretty loose with a lot of raising.  I lost some chips when I raised JJ and got 4 callers and a flop with and A and a K.  When the bets started flying, I started folding.  I watched for a while and got a read on some of the guys there while I waited for something worth playing.  Finally I'm in the small blind with AQ offsuit.  Short stack in early position raises to $5.  He's been pretty loose but in his position I figured him for 2 face cards or a mid pair.  The button who hasn't met a hand he doesn't like but has a good sized stack calls his raise.  I am debating reraising but AQ I have learned from painful experience is not the hand you want to put a pile of chips in preflop against 2 loose aggressive types.  So I called to see the flop and decide from there.  Flop is A of diamonds with a 7-8 of spades.  The shorty pushes in for his last 9.  The guy to my right sighs then calls the bet.  I liking my position and if this guy wants to see the flop and turn, he's gonna pay for the privilege.  So I raise to $26.  Guy to my right really didn't like that but called.  I put him on either a straight or flush draw there.  If the flush hits on the turn I do have the A of spades for a redraw too.  The other guy I put on an A but not a great one, I think I'm ahead unless he is on A7 or A8 but with the guy on my right, I can afford to lose to the shorty and take a pile from him.

Turn is a red jack.  I'm sure that didn't help the guy to my right.  He checks and I push in for $33.  He really sighs heavy then but he calls.  I'm liking my chances now.  River is a pretty red 2.  The shorty showed KQ of spades for a busted flush and the guy to my right had a 67 for a missed open ended straight.  I more than double up even after the rake so I'm happy.  The other 2 not so much as both were gone after that hand.  The table broke and I end up at another table.  The PQ comes up to me right after I'm seated.  She is at the final table again and sitting pretty good at 65K as the average stack is only a little over 40K. 

I'm up and down at this table.  I get some good cards but some really loose players and bad flops.  I lost with AK and 99 when neither hand flopped well (AQJ on the 99 hand, yuck).  The room is running a promotion and anyone making 4 of a kind or better wins a jackpot that starts at $50 and increases by 50 for each time someone hits until it hits $500 then they start over again.  We're sitting at $250 and I'd love to finally hit a monster hand.  I get QQ in mid position and raise to $6.  I get 4 callers which I don't care for but if I'm gonna win on this hand, I have to improve probably especially if an ace hits.  Of course an ace hits.  But the flop is AQ5 which is a great flop for me so far.  It's checked to me and I put $10 in the pot with 2 callers.  Ok.  Turn is not so good as a jack hits the board.  I hope no one is sitting on K10 but I hope someone has AJ or even QJ though it kills my chances of quads if they do.  I bid $14 on the turn and am shocked when everyone folds.  No chance of quads for me.  Maybe I should check that turn but I can just see a K or 10 hitting and losing my set to some clown with K5 suited or something.  But I made profit at least. 

And then a little later I give it back.  I call a small raise with A10 off suit.  Flop is nice with A 10 4 but 2 hearts.  I put out a pot sized bet and get 2 callers.  Turn is a 3 of hearts.  Ouch.  Gal in the first seat puts out nearly a pot sized bet and the lady next to me calls.  I'm outta there.  The first lady takes it down with a flush.  I hated losing that pot but some people will chase flushes with anything.  I got some back with the world famous grump a little later.  I called an early raise to 5 from the small blind with a 42 off and 3 of us see a flop of 356 rainbow.  Can you say Bingo?  I make a smallish bet and the original raiser calls while the other guy folds.  Turn is a king.  Please have AK buddy.  I bet half the pot and he thinks then calls again.  River is a jack.  I was hoping the king had hit him and he was willing to think I was bluffing at the pot so I put in a bet of about a quarter of the pot.  He sits and thinks and starts counting chips.  Please push in buddy I'm thinking but eventually he just calls me.  I turn over the 24 to his K6 (rasing a K6 in early position???) for 2 pair.  A decent pot but if I could have convinced him to push in, it would have gone much better.  Maybe I should push harder on the river.  I got the grump 2 more times not long after but neither time did it pay off though I almost pulled a second straight the last time.  Still it cost me some cash instead. 

The last hand I played I got KK in the small blind.  This time I'm willing to see the flop and try to make quads for cash especially when 6 people call so I just check.  Then the big blind decides to raise the pot to $5 and 4 people call.  Ok, now there's $30 in the pot and it's worth my while.  I'm not tossing in another $4 with 5 people to beat.  So I'm raising here.  I was about to raise to $30 when I realized I'm giving these guys a bet of $25 into a $60 pot and if the original raiser calls, at least a couple of others will call and I'll be costing myself a pile of cash when an ace hits and some guy with A rag beats me.  With about $85 left, any raise bigger will both commit me and maybe not give me enough to push someone with a draw out post flop.  So I pushed all in.   The original raiser was not too happy with me.  He starts yakking how I could have gotten a lot more out of him by not pushing so hard.  He's probably right but if I don't push hard I'm apt to lose to someone else instead.  I'll take that small victory over a big loss all day.  I gave back a few chips playing A rag suited when my flush draw didn't pay off but the PQ walks up shortly afterward after getting knocked out of the tourney and she's tired so it's time to go.

The PQ didn't have as good luck as last time.  She was the bubble girl.  She got back her buy in but nothing more and was disappointed.  She put in an untimely bluff and it cost her dearly.  Still she has final tabled this tourney 3 times in a row and had one really nice score last week.  She likes the tourney and she's in a zone playing it so good for her.  There is something to be said for having a comfort level in a tourney helping you play better.  I don't know myself but I can't argue the results.  And I made back half my buy in on the cash tables so it wasn't a horrible night.  I guess it's time to wrap this up.  Happy MLK day everyone.  Stay lucky you nuts, just a little luckier than the PQ was.

It still hurts

I'm so hurt, to think that you lied to me,

Darling I'm hurt, way down deep inside of me.

You said your love was true and we'd never part,

Now you want someone new and it breaks my heart.

I'm hurt much more than you'll ever know,

Hurt because I still love you so.

But even though you've hurt me like no one else could do,

I would never, never hurt you

There is a common phrase, usually used around with guys and gals who have recently broken up or lost someone close to them that goes something like "time heals all wounds."   Speaking from experience I can tell you time doesn't heal the really deep wounds but it does dull them quite a bit.  While not nearly as deep, I can also tell you the pain from last night still hurts and it's gonna continue to pain me for a while.

Last night the PQ and I went over to Derby Lane for the 8pm tourney.  She has done pretty well lately in this tourney final tabling her last time there (but not cashing) and splitting the top 5 places the time before that along with scoring club level tickets for the Bruins and Lightning on the 17th for knocking out the tourney host.  There is definitely something to be said for having a comfort level in a certain tourney leading to good results.  My results have been up and down, I have scored well in it and I have been knocked out early but I do like the tourney structure.  Also I was bringing my new positive attitude with me to the tourney.  And my new Walken Dead t shirt the PQ got me for Christmas.  That has to count for something.

The tourney started slow for me.  I decided to stay out of most hands unless I was willing to raise them up so outside of the blinds I was mostly dumping hands.  This hurt me early as I dumped 8-7 off in the big blind to a 5x raise and of course the flop is 10-9-6 rainbow.  But I let it roll off my back and continued to keep it tight but aggressive.  Picked up some chips when I raised in position with 55 and took it down post flop on a J-8-4 flop.  After that I kept dumping for the next half hour or so.  Finally I get something playable.  AQ of crubs 2 in front of the button.  I raise to 400 (blinds are 50/100) and the next 3 people who have all been playing with me for the past hour, dump their cards but the big blind was new to the table and had only been there for 4 hands or so.  So he puts me on any 2 cards trying to steal and calls. 

The flop is ok, 10-9-4 with 2 clubs.  I bet 2/3 pot expecting him to dump.  He reraises me to 1600.  Hell I can call that.  He started this hand with just under 10K and I had just over 10 at the time.  Turn is a bingo.  7 of clubs.  Now my only fear is he was sitting on J8 of clubs for a straight flush.  Highly doubtful.  He puts out another 1600.  I was just going to call but I really wanted to get him to commit chips here.  If he has 2 pair or a set he is apt to call a reraise or to reshove on me or possibly rethink and dump it.  If I let another card come off that pairs the board, I have a hard decision to make and if it is a 4th club he is probably out of the hand then.  So I figured reraising was my best chance to get more out of him and I bumped it to 4K leaving me about 4200 chips behind.  I was surprised when he called but had to put him on either 9-10 or a set.  River is a 5 of hearts.  May have completed a straight draw if he didn't already have one.  I half expected him to push in from there.  But he checked.  I thought for a sec and figured, if he puts me on AK or AQ off and thinks I'm stealing, he may call.  So I pushed in.  He had about 4K left and 6K into the pot so he was almost pot committed but with 40 big blinds left he could afford to dump if he needed to.  He immediately starts hemming and hawing.  He starts talking it out and while he's doing that, I do my best to appear nervous as hell.  Finally he says, this might be a terrible call but I call.  I flip over my top flush and he is gone.  He apparently had just finished chopping up the 1pm tourney final table so he wasn't feeling too bad and ended up buying in again but being seated at another table.

I played a good bit longer and that last hand allowed me to steal chips from time to time without getting into any issues.  I kept dumping a lot of hands but when I played it was almost always with a preflop raise.  I did make some chips on one hand when I called a small raise with J8 of clubs on the button, flopped top 2 pair and took it down with a reraise over the initial raiser's c bet.  I was hoping he had a big pocket pair and was willing to push it but it was not to be. 

We hit the first break and I'm sitting on just over 20K and in really good shape but it's still early.  Not long after we restart I get moved to another table to balance things out.  Lo and behold, sitting directly on my right is the PQ.   "Oh great, just what I need" she says as I sit down.  Really she has little to worry about.  When we play at the same table it seems she takes me down most of the time.  Whether I go in with the best or worst hand, it seems I end with the worst hand.  So I'm watching her more than she is watching me.  I'm glad she is on my right at least. 

I dump a few hands then my cards finally change and I catch 10-10 in middle position.  I raise it up and both blinds along with one early caller all fold.  A couple of hands later I get JJ but this time get multiple callers and a flop with a K and Q convince me to get the hell out of that one.  The next hand I'm in the big blind with J9 of diamonds.  Guy in early position raises and I figure on calling this one when a guy 4 places to my right reraises.  Ok, good bye J9.  These 2 eventually get all in and original raiser had KK but reraiser had AA and takes him out.  I take out a fairly short stack when I raise in early position with AQ and he pushes all in over the top.  I had been watching him a bit and knew I was no worse than 50/50.  Turned out I was a lot better as I call and he flips over A5.  A queen on the flop seals his fate and I add more to my stack. 

People are dropping pretty quickly at this table as the blinds and antes increase.  I'm feeling pretty good and hey, I'm actually getting cards to play with so I figure I'm gonna push this a bit.  A few hands later I get KK on the button.  Mr AA puts a raise in to 1600 and I make it 4K from there.  Everyone else folds and he calls.  Flop is a semi dangerous 532 of hearts.   He checks and I check my kings.  Damn, no heart.  Ok, I'm all in.  I decide I don't want to fool around with this hand.  If he played 2 hearts or AA, so be it but I'm not giving him a free or even expensive look at another card.  I have him covered by a little.  He thinks for a good bit and I know I'm not up against AA.  He ends up folding QQ.  I think he had the heart Q but I don't know.  So maybe a bad all in but I felt the risks were too great to not put him to the test there.

Our table breaks a little later and I get moved back to the same table I started at.  There's still plenty of guys who were there when I left and they were impressed with my stack which is now at just under 35K.  My run of cards pretty much stops but I am able to maintain my stack by stealing a few chips here and there.  Other guys are pushing in with short stacks and there's only 2 tables left so it doesn't take too long before we're down to 12 people.  I see 2 different guys slow play AA to perfection, both in early position.  Both times they just call, there is a later raise, and they come over the top all in and they bust a guy, one with KK and the other with AQ.  In a fairly short time we get down to the final table.  I am pleased to see the PQ is still in there.  She has managed to double up and has around 20K which makes her a shorter stack.  I am an average stack and there a couple of really big ones and a number of smaller stacks so I am maybe 5th in chips.  One guy in seat 2 has a monster stack.  I get seated in seat 8.  Seat 7 is ...... the PQ. 

Play goes slow for me while there is a fair amount of action, there is a lot of chip trading.  Only 4 people get paid so no one wants to be first out.  The guy in seat 2 I'm watching call almost every single bet.  I figure to wait on a big hand and go after him but I would only have a big hand if K3 were considered a biggie.  The old king crab became a constant in my hands at the final table.   I really grew to hate those cards.  While I'm not getting anything going, I do manage to steal enough to keep my stack between 25 and 35K.  One older guy is playing really aggressive in seat 5 and seat 6 is making a lot of big hands and chips up hugely.  He starts by tangling with seat 2 on an all in.  He had AQ and made a queen and pushed in.  Seat 2 was happy to call with a black J-10.  There were 2 spades on the board and a third one hits the river.  Seat 6 gets up to go as he thinks he got flushed but it turns out the guy had a spade and club in his hand.  He called the all in with basically only an inside straight draw.  The PQ tells me he had an amazing run of cards and hit all kinds of draws to knock out a bunch of people.  Instead of sitting back and using his stack to steal and push people, he keeps trying to outdraw people.  The odds catch up to him and all those 3 and 4 to one calls he hit before stop coming (except once) and he gives up all his chips a hand at a time.  It was amazing seeing him call almost every preflop raise or just call and play down to the river.  He gets more and more frustrated as his draws keep failing.  He ends up giving a lot of chips to seat 1 and 6 and busts in 8th place.  Chipleader with 10 left to 8th place. 

Unfortunately I am getting nothing to play with against this guy.  I know I want to have a good hand because you almost can't bluff him.  But I can't draw flies.  Finally I get AK in the big blind and the aggressive old guy raises in late position.  He has been playing some half assed hands so I figure I'm in good shape.  I push in for 26K.  He calls and also has AK off.  Flop is all diamonds and neither of us have a diamond so it's a chop.  I'm ok with that, just wish I had caught him with a bad hand.  Still it beat losing.  I get up to 36 then the blinds and ante's get me down to 24 and I gotta push something.  We get down to 7 and I get 10-10 in the small blind.  Seat 6 makes a raise to 10K and I push all in.  He has A-10 and doesn't improve and I double up to 50K.  Finally I have a little breathing room.  Seat 6 knocks out the guy to my left in seat 10 getting us down to 6 and I can taste the money. 

It looks like we are getting down to five as seat 1 gets all in against both 5 & 6 but his A2 prevails and he triples up.  PQ shows me something when she min raises under the gun and gets a walk.  I forget how suspicious it looks when a shortie min raises.  Its like advertising a monster hand and it got a lot of respect there.  I know I respected it.  I lose some chips when I call a small raise with 89 of diamonds hoping to make a big hand but the flop is all high and black,  Yuck.  2 guys start raising and I fold.  I make up some chips stealing with Q4 and a little later with 56.  I've got about 40K when I get AQ of spades in the small blind.  Seat 6 raises to 12.5K and I push in.  In a tourney if you make a spade royal flush you get a big bonus which is now up to about 10K so I would love to hit that but I mostly want to double up and make the money here.  I am pretty sure I'm ahead and I really just want to take this down but he calls my extra 27K with A of diamonds and 7 of clubs.  I feel pretty good.

Flop is AKQ which is great except they're all damned clubs.  Turn is the stinkin J of clubs.  I'm hoping the river is an Ace, Queen or a club higher than 7 but its the 10 of damned spades and I'm out in 6th.  I double up there and I'm over 80K and second in chips with 6 left.  Instead I go out.  I am so hurt.  I knew the damned AQ would get me in the end.  It almost always does but it had been so kind to me all tourney till then.  Still in keeping with my positive self I wished everyone good luck and wandered off to lick my wounds in silence. 

Do you remember a singer named Juice Newton?  She had some pop and country hits in the 80s like Queen of Hearts and Break it to me Gently on the pop charts.  She really had a powerful soaring voice and she used songs like Break it to me Gently to showcase her range.  Kind of a modern Patsy Cline (one of the great singers ever in my opinion) with her power and range.  She did a song a few years later titled "Hurt" which was a big country hit.  I posted a portion at the start of this entry.  Well I also hurt way down deep inside of me after that loss.  I know it's only a poker game and means nothing in the grand scheme of things but I really wanted to kick some ass and do well in that tourney.  While losing is never fun, after 6 hours of playing and getting that close to the money, it is that much harder to deal with.  Still I was happy with my reads and pretty much with my aggression though I could have done more there.  I put myself in position to do well and just got unlucky at the end.  But it effing hurts to not hit the money after all that.   It's not like the deck hit me in the head either.  I got some luck with 2-5 once and made some hands with junk but I didn't get much in the way of big hands either.  KK once, JJ once, 10-10 twice and a few small pairs.  AK twice and AQ about 4 times.  In 6 hours of play. 

I stumbled off  to the cash games for a while hoping to make something back.  Not much happened there and after awhile the PQ comes up to me about 30 minutes later.  I was afraid she had gone out 5th but she is all happy.  She doubled up off the big stack after I left, a couple of others went out 5th and 4th and they decided to chop up the top 3 places for an $830 score for her.  I was really happy for her, she played very well and while we don't play the same, I cannot fault her success at all.  Especially when looking at her results.  Which kick the crap out of mine lately. 

So today has been lounge around and recover day, since we didn't get home until near 3:30am.  The PQ graciously took me out after we left the poker room and fed me.  She felt so bad about how I went out (so did the guy who beat me apparently though he didn't offer to give me back my chips lol) and while extremely happy for herself, she was very sympathetic to me.  She played very very well with a short stack just about the entire time which made her results even that much more impressive.  As Lightning says, its a good thing I have her around to keep the family in the +EV territory.  I must agree.  Right now I am consoling myself with a few glasses of Cardinale which is a red wine blend that has become among our favorites.  Surprising as we usually go with whites but this wine is a major winner.  So I hope you all are having a great weekend and imbibing in your favorite adult refreshment while watching Denver??? beating Pittsburgh - they're up 14 in the 3rd quarter as I write this oops make that 7.  I'll pour me another glass soon and I won't be worth much after that I imagine.  Stay lucky you nuts, luckier than your wino host at least.

The shape of things to come

Remember those ads (for Infiniti I think) where the punch line was "the shape of things to come"?  Well I'm no fortune teller - or meteorologist for that matter - but I've seen what will come and I'm not thinking it's better.  Then again, I do a fair bit of carping so take that for what it's worth.

I remember  an old sci fi book by Isaac Asimov, the Wayne Gretzky of science fiction imho.  Back in the late 50's he wrote a book called "The Naked Sun".  In that story, people lived in huge estates and hardly had contact with anyone else except via some kind of teleconference.  Some would spend their whole life without human contact with anyone else, even kids since they had figured out how to have children without all that icky exchange of fluids etc and raised them in creches rather than parenting.  They had robots to take care of their every need and spent their life pursuing what interested them, gardening, research, whatever.  Sounds almost ideal doesn't it?? Or maybe not. 

This is what got me thinking along this line.  I was reading some recaps of the recent blogger meet in Vegas over the past week or so.  One day I will join in the festivities myself.  But there was a remark in Bam Bam's blog post about the WPBT I found very telling.  He said he doesn't tweet or blog post while there because he found he was so concerned with telling everyone else about what he was doing that he missed out on some things he wanted to do.  We've got facebook, twitter, myspace, blogs, etc.  We can go online and order our groceries, pay our bills, even do all our Christmas shopping.   It's getting so much easier to avoid human contact. 

I'm just as guilty as the next guy.  Though I refuse to get a facebook page and I think twitter is the 21st century way of saying "look at me, I'm so witty (or smart or fun or great or whatever) " and that's not my style either, but I do pay almost all my bills online, bank online, did almost all my Christmas shopping online, even occasionally post a blog or 2.  And all of this takes away from different contacts we would make with other members of our own species.  We have hundreds of cable channels not to mention movies on demand in our own homes and we can download all of our music - not from Apple in my case - whenever we want.  When is the last time you went into an actual music store? 

Last week I was playing poker and 2 or 3 people had earphones in and were listening to music.  Now far be it from me to tell someone else what to do at the table but one of these guys constantly had to be told it was his turn, made wrong bets, and generally held up the game because he wasn't paying attention.  Not only that, how sociable are you gonna be if you're listening to music the entire time.  Kinda makes it hard to interact with others at your table that's for sure.  Now you can't be forced to interact with others at the table if you don't want to, but if everyone at the table was doing that, what difference would there be between playing live and playing online?  One of the things I like about poker is the sociability in it.  I'm not a gadfly at the table but I don't mind talking a bit, especially in a ring game.  Well its bed time for me now.  I'll try and tie this together tomorrow.

What I am getting at is that some of us are so busy with our electronic interactions we are losing out on our human interactions.  We have 1800 facebook friends and 2 real friends.  And it certainly seems to be impacting how people act toward each other in public.  Common decency seems much less common.  Very few people seem to consider how their actions will impact other people.  And its a lot easier to think of the avatars online as electronics and not as actual people.  We get used to acting that way at home and how do we act in public then?  When I was young my parents taught me something called manners.  Ok in some cases they beat it into me.  But basically they tried to teach me rules to interact with people I may not know in a manner designed not to offend others and to show that I was a functional member of society.  Manners provide a fabric to help guide people through social situations.  And when people are ill-mannered, the social interations break down.  People are offended, pissed off, etc all because some one doesn't think about the impact of what they say or do. 

How many times have you seen this at the poker table and other places?  I referee football and its all around me there too.  In high school and youth it's not as public perhaps because if we see or hear anyone taunting another we immediately slap them with a 15 yard penalty.  But don't tell me it doesn't go on in the lines or in a pile of tacklers.  Why does it happen?  Kids see it on tv and in person as well.  When did it become ok to grandstand and taunt and try to embarass your opponent whether on the field or on the felt?  How often do you see someone act like a jerk at the poker table?  On the road?  At work?  And it's not always a person going out of their way to do it either.  Too often it's someone not thinking ahead and not thinking about what effect their actions or words would have on others.  From the idiot who pushes his way into the correct road lane at the last second to the clown who brings 18 items into the 10 item or less lane at the supermarket, we are developing into a society of people who think their time is more important than anyone else's time  and therefore they are "entitled" to not wait in a regular line, or not get their car in the right lane 200 or 300 yards early and wait in line like the rest of us. 

We're all in such a hurry that we don't take the time to think of the other guy.  Oh I'm in a hurry or I'm running late so it's ok if I cut in front of everyone else.  In other words, "I'm more important".  This is probably why 90% of us think we are either excellent or better than average drivers.  Now certainly we can only view things from our own viewpoint but it's politeness and manners that ensure we aren't completely thinking of ourselves.  I'm as guilty as anyone of thinking of myself first but it's high time we all try to think of how some of the things we do effect others first.  So in this new year, one of my vows is to think of the other guy too.  Life is short, let's try to have a positive impact on more than just our bankrolls.  I know I'm getting preachy here and I do apologize but lately I've had a lot on my mind and though I don't express it too well sometimes, I would like to make a positive impact on those around me instead of being this guy

It's sometimes hard for me to not be that way.  I do tend to focus on the negative instead of the positive in my life.  And I shouldn't.  I have so much to be thankful for.  My wife and kids and dog are healthy and happy and we have jobs and homes and cars and friends and family etc.  Hey I even got a 5% raise at work this past week.  So time to cut down on Mr Nattering Nabob of Negativity and time to become Mr Positive and Hopeful instead.  Let's see if my results in life (and poker) are better this way.  If not, what have I lost?  Well with luck I am gonna play some cards today so I bid you all adieu (my wife has some French Cooking show on the tube right now) and I hope you all have a good weekend.  Stay lucky you nuts. 

Hope you got everything you wanted

Its the day after Christmas and I hope everyone got all they wanted today.  Or at least their kids did.  My kids were spoiled again, especially the girl but hey if I can't spoil them, who can I spoil?  But they're good kids, their mother did a great job raising them ( I missed a lot of time working odd hours when they were young) and their aunts and uncles helped a lot too.  I had a good day as well though Santa did not bring me the winning lottery numbers.  I'm sure he will next year or maybe the Easter Bunny will come through this spring. 

On Christmas morning we had brunch at my sis in laws place.  We made some sausage balls and a sausage/egg bake dish as well and brought it over with us.  There was a lot of people with in laws, nieces, nephews, girlfriends, etc there but we managed to have a fair amount of food left over still.  The kids (except for old ones like my boys and my nephew Jay) all got presents from their aunts and uncles while we oldsters ate and gabbed and caught up from our last visit.  A good time all around. 

Last night dinner was at my house.  We made a 10 lb standing rib roast, about 6 lbs of loaded mashed potatoes (including cheese, garlic, butter, bacon, and cheese), green bean casserole, corn, brussel sprouts, plus appetizers.  Oh and the ham from brunch made a second appearance as well.  It was another major food fest.  At the end of the meal there were 2 pies and a birthday cake (my son's girlfriend had her birthday on Dec 25 as well lucky girl) to finish it off.   The house was fit to burst with 16 people in it but we managed to feed them all.  Not so much on the leftovers though as we only had a some corn, less than a pound of the rib roast and some ham left at the end of the day.  But no one left hungry either. 

After that I was one tired puppy.  So was the PQ as she made a lot of the food.  Luckily the roast itself was very simple.  Most everything else was too, probably the most work went into the potatoes and I did the work on that.  Still it was a good bit of effort involved in preparing and getting ready.  And we both were falling asleep by 9 last night.  I slept pretty good too until I woke up with pretty bad heartburn.  I forgot to take my Omeprazol pill in the morning and paid for it that night.  So my sleep was interrupted at 3 am and though I managed to get more sleep later, I'm still pretty tired.  But all in all, a pretty good Christmas with friends and family. 

This morning I made breakfast for the daughter and myself.  I cut up a few potatoes and made home fries for us.  While they were cooking I cut up some of the left over roast and heated it up in a little butter and garlic then made omelets with the beef and some cheese.  Prime rib omelets with cheese and homefries.  Not too shabby if I do say so myself.  The rest of the day I've spent relaxing and and doing a little reading.  The PQ went out with our girl to do a little Post Xmas shopping.  The last thing I want to do is shop right now.  I do need to read up on some of my new games to play but maybe I'll do that tomorrow. 

I still have to buy 2 things though and I want to do that in the next week or so.  I was reading the best time to get furniture is after Christmas and we need a new mattress so I imagine we'll be buying one this week or next weekend.  Also, I am planning to buy a handgun in the next few weeks as well.  Now I know some of you will look upon this with undisguised revulsion and disdain, others will shrug it off and still others may actually applaud.  We all have our reasons for how we think of guns and private gun ownership.  My view has been espoused before but to some it up, I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

It's not like I live in a high crime area or go to areas that are high crime, though some of the areas I referee in are not the nicest parts of town.  Still I cannot bring a gun with me onto school property so I won't be armed and dangerous while I'm refereeing.  Thank God for gun free zones like schools.  They disarm the law abiding but provide a bunch of disarmed victims to the criminals who do not obey the law.  But the thing is, I don't want to be at the mercy of some criminal who may decide his best chance of not going to jail for robbery or something is to leave no witnesses. 

When I was a much younger man, the general thought was "give the robber what they want and they will leave you alone."   This also extended over to rape as ladies were told it was best not to resist and get it over with.  Back then, states offering concealed weapons permits were few and far between.  Now many states have rethought this issue.  While it is true that usually a robber is not interested in harming you and just wants your money, victims were injured or killed enough times that people got fed up and demanded the right to protect themselves.   Think back to this past June when a guy robbed a pharmacy up in NY and killed the 4 people inside.  The pharmacist gave the guy drugs but that wasn't enough for him and he killed all the witnesses.  That is a statistic I don't want to be a part of.  I've been at the wrong end of a gun twice, once I was lucky not to be shot while another guy there was wounded. 

Studies have proven that areas that allow the citizens to carry weapons have less violent crime than areas with strict gun control.  The main reason is, most criminals want to get their money, drugs, etc in the least dangerous way.  Can you blame them?  They don't want to go to "work" with a good chance of dying when they do their "job".  That's why places with more liberal gun laws tend to have less violent crime.  Arm the victims and the criminals don't want to work so hard for their money.   And for women, I would think it a no brainer to be armed if at all possible.  After all, many criminals target women specifically because most are not armed and most are at an extreme physical disadvantage in a confrontation with a man.  But enough preaching from me.  Just keep in mind that I am not a gun nut in any sense of the word, in fact guns still scare me a little.  They are tools, but they are tools that can seriously harm or kill a person who takes them lightly.  Still I think gun ownership is for me. 

Scoring Big

I got to play poker twice in just over a week?  Say it ain't so, Joe.  Back on the 10th the PQ and I hit the company Xmas party at Raymond James Stadium with about 200 other people from all of Security Operations.  I introduced her to some people in my department she hadn't met before as well as some people from other departments.  It was my duty I felt since she has done the same to me on countless occasions for different County functions and outside of the Clerk of the Court and a few others, I couldn't tell the difference between Sally and Darlene and Sue if you paid me.  Of course she is better at names than I am anyway.  That's why she makes the big bucks.

So after the party which we left around 10 or so, we headed down the road to the Tampa Hard Rock Casino.  We hadn't been there in quite a while and had never played in their new poker room so it was almost like the first time for us both there. 

We both sat down at a 1-2 NL table while I was waiting for a seat at 3-6 Omaha Hi/Lo to open.  I played for a while folding almost every hand and losing a couple I did play as nothing was hitting for me and my cards were nothing to write home about.  Fortunately my Omaha seat was called before too much damage occurred and I headed there.  Omaha did not start well as my hands were still not so hot and the ones I did play would not come through for me.  But after losing half my original stack in the first hour or so, I finally made a hand stick and even though I only got half the pot, it got me started back on the road to plus ville. 

A little while later I get into a hand with QQJ9.  Flop comes down 998 and I bet my trips with both a flush and straight draw as 3 people calling me.  Turn makes me golden when a queen hits.  I check this time and a guy bets, another calls and I check raise them both.  They call.  River is a 7 and I bet out with one guy calling me.  His straight doesn't beat my boat and I scoop a decent pot to put me a little over even for the day.  Later on I scoop a pot when my 2347 flops trip 2's and turns quads.  2 hands later I call down a guy with a with trip aces even though I think I'm beat,  He has trip aces too but I outkick him and scoop another.  After that it's pretty slow for me, I mostly fold stuff pre and postflop but I'm not losing much.  I played for about 4 hours and came away up by almost a buyout while having a really good time.  The PQ on the other hand lost some but not too badly then decided to play video poker for a while.

Once the clock struck 2 am I went and found her and played a little video poker with the PQ.  She lost a bit more but I managed to pull quad Queens and won a little cash.  It was a good night for me, not so good for her, but we had a fun night all the way around. 

This week I've not been feeling too well, I came down with another cold somehow.  Seems a little soon to get another one after I just got over one, especially since they've had very similar effects, all in my lungs.  I was coughing a bit last Saturday and Sunday but felt ok on Monday.  Then Tuesday I started coughing again for some reason.  Tuesday night I had a scary moment as I woke up choking at about 2am.  My lungs had built up fluid as I slept I guess and I was coughing so hard I thought I was going to vomit.  After that, sleep did not come easily for me and when I did sleep, I woke up really groggy on Wednesday.   I almost didn't go into work but decided I had to as I had a lot of stuff on my calendar that was due.  I managed to work 7-1 and went home to nap.

I probably should have stayed at work.  I'm just falling asleep and a delivery truck pulls up outside.  My daughter was home for a few days but wasn't in the house so I got up and brought in a couple of Christmas packages for my sons.  I get back down and nap for almost an hour while my daughter goes to get the dog from my sis in laws house.  She came home then went to my mother in law's place next door to make sure she ate and took her pills only to find her gone.  She comes back home and wakes me up.  I tell her to drive the neighborhood to see if she is walking around then she goes to the convenience store to see if she walked down there.  While she's doing this my sister in law is heading over to look as well and stops at the grocery store near the house.  And that's where she is, sitting outside resting after walking there.  She apparently wanted some ice cream.  We all breathed a sigh of relief. 

The rest of the week was just muddling through to the weekend.  I managed to put in 7 hours overtime even though I took time off on Wednesday.  Friday night I took the PQ out for Chinese food then we both came home and crashed before 10pm.  We're getting old it seems.  Saturday we didn't do a whole lot but went to play poker last night.  I again got into an Omaha Hi/Lo game while the PQ played a small tourney.  The tourney didn't go well for her but I was doing pretty good in Omaha about doubling my buy in within 2 hours.  She was thinking of playing the 8 pm tourney so I gave her some cash to play it while I continued playing. 

I'd have been better off quitting and putting my money in the tourney.  Omaha went real bad.  I just kept getting bad cards and mostly folding.  When I got good cards, flops completely missed me.  Low cards got all high flops.  High cards got all low flops.  I watched this guy get AA four or five times and I can't get one ace most of the time, never mind AA.  I never got a really premium hand like A23x or AA24 the entire time I played, which was about 6 hours.  I still managed to keep my stack up there until I got into 2 big pots in a very short time.  I was winning them both comfortably until the river managed to completely screw me.  Guys kept calling down on so/so draws and getting the magical card but every draw for me died on the vine.  First I got AA57 double suited.  Flopped a set of aces and a flush draw.  Board had another low card.  I pushed the betting but couldn't get a couple of guys off.  Of course the river screwed me putting a wheel draw in which is what I lost to.  Never got my flush.  All I was looking for on the river was a card over 5 or one to complete the flush but of course not.  Same thing happens 2 hands later when I'm sitting on 2334 and flopped a set of 3s on a 359 board.  No one has much I can tell so I push the 3s.  I would love to see an Ace or 6 hit for the straight or the board to pair but river is a 2 and I'm screwed again.  It was ugly.  I lost a big chunk of chips in those 2 hands pushing winning hands that became losers and after that it was a matter of time.  By the time the table broke I was down 40 bucks after being up over 100.  I was not thrilled. 

The PQ on the other hand was killing it at the 8pm tourney.  First off she knocks out the tourney host to score club level tickets to the Lightning vs Bruins in January.  She called his limp on the button with 4-5 and got the bingo when the flop came out A23.  He bets, she pushes in over the top and he calls with A9.  Good bye Fisher, hello tickets.  I go and see her and she is rocking a pretty big stack.  I talked to her on her next break but she doesn't need much advice from me, she is doing fine without it.  When my Omaha table broke I sweated her for a little bit then went to play a little 1-1 no limit hold em with the 40 bucks I had left from Omaha.  Should have just sweated her.  Again I lose on the river, this time with a set of 6s.  I pushed all in on the turn for about a pot sized bet and got called down by an open end straight draw.  3 on the river and that's that.   I was a bit pissed because I felt I played it right, especially waiting for the turn to push.  I knew then I'm only giving one card and the wrong odds for the guy to draw with and yet he calls anyway, which is fine as his odds are over 5-1 against, and still here comes his magical card.   Some days it doesn't pay to play

So I sweat the PQ some more at the final table.  8 are left when I get there and she is 6th in chips.  Action is pretty tight for a while but 2 gals a few places to her right are starting to push a bit, one of them really started building her stack while the other went up and down some.  Finally one gal pushes the PQ when she gets some decent cards to push back - K10 suited - and she goes all in over the top.  The gal thinks for a bit but calls with A7 off.  PQ flops the flush draw and gets there on the river to double up.  A bit later the other gal to her right really builds a big stack and knocks out one of the guys to get to 6 and the PQ takes out the guy to her left when he pushes A8 into her AQ and she flops QQ.  Four of them have pretty close to equal stacks and the one gal has about twice what everyone else has so they make a 5 way split of the cash with the big stack getting a little over $900 and everyone else dragging $700.  Can you say cash??   So at least one of us had a good run that night and actually since I staked her for part, I did ok too. 

I started this post a week ago and just am getting around to finish it now.  Sorry about that folks, it's just work is really putting it to me and I come home late every night and tired out of my mind.  Most nights I start to nod off in my chair as well.  Concentrating enough to write is just beyond me then.  Still it's Christmas Eve.  Got all your shopping done??  Mine was pretty pain free all in all.  Just like the last few years, I did almost all of my shopping online.  As long as you do it early, its not usually a big deal and a lot of place provide free shipping.   I get to miss out on the lines, the pushing, the traffic, the parking lots, and lining up at 4 am.  I feel so deprived and depriving the rest of the world of my company at such a time is also just mean of me.  Not much holiday spirit for me huh?  Anyway, outside of a few odds and ends for the PQs stocking, I am all set for tomorrow.

Well let me end this hear.  I got more to say but I ought to do it in a separate post.  I suppose this time I'll get it done in less than a week or 2 as well.  Merry Christmas everyone.  Enjoy some family time, some food time, and don't forget those not as fortunate as yourself as well. 

Just not feeling it

Sorry about my dearth of posts of late.  You know when you're playing poker sometimes and you can almost read exactly what you're opponent has everytime you get into a hand.  You're just feeling it and it feels so good.  And other times, your reads are all wrong, things aren't going right and even when you make a right play, it turns out bad.  You just aren't feeling it and you really can't trust your reads at all. Well that's me, just not feeling it lately. 

Normally I enjoy the time around Thanksgiving a lot.  And I have much to be thankful for.  My boys are happy, healthy, have good jobs, girlfriends, and they're not out occupying Wall St, or Tampa, or even my house.  My daughter is doing well in college and is far enough away that her hand isn't in my pocket looking for spare change.  Hell she even has a job now so she's almost self sufficient.  The PQ is doing well and so is the dog.  Life should be sweet and easy shouldn't it?

It actually is quite good.  Just got my year end bonus which was pretty nice.  We had a good year this past year.  Also just got paid for my high school football games.  another nice little check.  Tonight is our company Christmas party.  Well actually our division, Customer Operations, is having a party.  We don't do a company wide party as it's not easy to find a place to seat 4000 people plus guests in one place.  Of course we could do it at the site of our party, Raymond James stadium.  After all what's the use in having the naming rights to a stadium if you don't make use of it.  Still outside of putting everyone on the field for dinner or taking over a few sections of stands, I don't see how we could do it as a whole.  So we break down into divisions or even departments. 

Last year my department was a new addition to Customer Ops and so we just did a department party.  We went to a Brazilian steakhouse here.  I recommend it highly.  Everyone had a great time and we were hoping to do the same thing again this year but instead we are going as a whole division so there will be 200 or 300 people in the club section of the stadium where it will all be set up for a party.  My first year with the company we were part of Security Ops and the division party was at the stadium as well.  We had a good time then and hopefully a good time tonight.  After the party the plan is for the PQ and myself to hit the Hard Rock Casino in Tampa and play some cards.  After all besides a party today, its the PQ's birthday.  So if she wants to play cards, we're playing cards.

I've come down with another cold and am pretty pissed about that.  It's similar to my last one which wasn't long ago.  Has me a bit worried, I shouldn't be catching a cold this soon after the last one.  I'm not coughing as much or feel as poorly but still.  The PQ is just getting over this one so by Monday I ought to be ok but I am still not happy. 

Well time to sign off.  I'm trying to track down what happened to one of my online orders and I gotta get a few things done still.  Hope everyone is doing well.  Stay lucky boys and girls.

They're just like you and me

What makes a person into a serial killer?  What internal defect of the mind, chemical imbalance, brain malformation, etc allows a person to go up to other people and just kill them?  Sorry for bringing up a pretty grim subject, but I've been wondering about this for awhile. 

What got me thinking in this vein was watching a program about a man called The Railroad Killer.  This guy, an illegal alien (though most US serial killers are home grown) would hop on trains and kill people that he found near the railroad tracks or break into people's houses and kill the occupants.  They figure he killed at least 10 people (he confessed to a bunch more) between Ohio and Texas but it could be a lot more.  Mexican authorities felt he killed a number of people over the border there as well.  The FBI felt he could have been linked to up to 200 cases in all.  He was tried in Texas convicted in 1999 and executed in 2006.  None of this sitting for 20 years waiting on appeals there. 

What got me on this kick was the execution of Oba Chandler here in Florida this week.  Oba was convicted of killing 3 women from Ohio in 1989 by taking them out on Tampa Bay at night, probably raping them, then pitching all of them into the bay with a cinderblock tied around their necks.  All 3 were alive when they went in.  If anyone personified evil, it was him.  The PQ was a court clerk when the trial occurred here and though she did not handle that case herself, she was in court a few times during the trial.  She thought he was one scary guy and that he had dead eyes.  A few weeks before this he had raped a Canadian tourist by taking her out on the bay.  The only reason she was not killed the cops thought was because her girlfriend declined to go with her and Chandler knew there would be a witness left behind who could identify him.  I guess it was ok to rape her though.  Police also believe he had killed before based on the way he did this and the fact he was willing to take on 3 at once but he never admitted to killing anyone before his execution, including the Ohioans. 

At the trial, against his own attorney's advice, he took the stand and denied it all, managing to make himself look even more guilty in the process by being caught in a number of lies.  The jury was only too happy to convict him then.  They felt he was pretty scary too.  The cops were pretty sure a killing in 1982 of a woman found floating off Anna Maria Island was his work but never tried him for it or for the rape of the Canaidan woman.  He ended up spending 17 years on death row here before his execution last week.  

Anyway, I have been wondering what makes a person into that.   Do they have no conscience, no compassion at all?  They must be pretty sure there is no heaven or hell, no consequence in the afterlife for their deeds in this one based on how heinous these crimes are.  Many people have lived next to major serial killers and never knew there was anything different about them.  They were just like anyone else.   A local lady who was a juror in another murder trial had retired from a Chicago Cadillac dealership where John Wayne Gacy bought his cars.  He would come by the dealership every other year to get a new car and everyone thought he was this nice well to do guy.  He usually had one of his many "nephews" with him as well.  No one thought anything of it. 

I used to be very pro death penalty but over the years I have gotten a lot less certain of it's effectiveness as a deterrent.  Also I know mistakes have been made when some people were convicted and given the death penalty, not to mention more than once the prosecution has convicted the wrong guy either by manufacturing evidence or having evidence the accused was innocent and not turning it over to the defense.  Convicting someone in error whether by illegal means or misidentificaton, is bad enough buy once you execute them, it's a little late to say "Oops, we goofed". 

Having said all that, some people just need to die.  There are some people so evil that society is better off without them rather than risk the chance one may escape and kill again.  "He just needed killing" is a valid point with some people I think.  But what defect in their makeup causes a person to be so unredeemably evil that society has to kill him?  Outside of defending yourself or someone else, how many people can see themselves killing another person?  Not to mention all of the deviant things many of these killers do to their victims as well.   Is it a power thing, knowing you have complete control over another's fate?  That may explain more as I have seen some CEOs and politicians whose desire for power led them to do some pretty unsavory things.  Not to mention what they did when they had power. 

Well I think I've said enough on that topic now.  Let me finish this up by saying, be aware people.  Know what's going on around you and try not be a victim.  If someone wants you to go somewhere with them, you're usually better off making your stand then and there where other people may be able to help you rather than going somewhere of his choosing.  And ladies especially, arm yourselves.  So many times men attack women because they see them as the easier victim.  Don't be a victim.  Stick around awhile, your loved ones will appreciate it. 

Saturday's short term investments

Betting on sports takes a lot of analysis and a little bit of luck as well.  You can have everything going for you and still lose on a last second score in garbage time or a pick 6 to turn a close game into a blowout at the end.  I wish I could say that has caused my recent losing streak but in the end, I've just made some bad bets.  Today I'm turning it around, believe that if you feel lucky. 

I really like Michigan -3.5 at home vs Nebraska.  Good teams give Big Red trouble and Michigan fits the bill.  Running QBs also seem to be hard on their defense and Michigan's Robinson is definitely that.  I am not sold on Robinson as some kind of star as he seems to throw the ball up a lot and pray his receiver takes it away from the defense, but he extends a lot of plays with his legs and can go for a long run at any time.

I'm taking Ga Tech -10.5 over Duke.  Ga Tech runs better than anyone in college football.  Duke can't stop the run.  Nice weather so assuming Tech isn't in the giving mood, they win by 20+. 

Finally I like the over 57 for Boise St/San Diego St.  Both teams can score with top notch offenses.  SD St doesn't prevent the score as well as Boise.  Looking for a game in the 42-27 range.  It will probably be 10-7 instead but I'll take my chances.  I also looked really closely at taking SD St +18 as they are a pretty solid team.  Boise has to be down after blowing their chance at a National Championship game, especially with OSU losing last night.  I may yet take that flyer. 

In other news, PQ wants to play poker tonight so looks like we will be gracing Derby Lane with our presence.  I've been playing a bit online lately but not particularly well.  I also need a nap this afternoon as I have been up and down since 3:45 this morning.  The dog had to go to the bathroom then.  I turned to her after I took her out and said "You know, I really wanted a fish."  I wish she understood but I don't think she did as she was jumping on me at 7 for the same reason.   At least I am able to walk around outside in shorts and a shirt still.  It was cool but nice out, maybe low 60s.  Sucks to live in Fla in the winter. 

BTW I took Denver +4.5 over the Jetskis on Thursday.  I was very happy to see how that one ended.  Tim Tebow will never be confused with a classic pro QB but the man gets it done one way or another.  I noticed at the end of the game, his passes were right on target.  And he can make plays with his legs and take hits that would wipe out other QBs.  You are gonna see a bunch of teams using the option read offense like Denver is because most QBs are not big enough to stand up to that kind of pounding.  I seriously doubt Tebow can for many years either.  But he can run it now and say what you will, he wins.  I've been a fan of his for a long time.  I know he's converted a lot of non-fans with the way he plays.  I am no Bronco fan but I am now.    Well enough for now, I need a nap. I hope you all are lucky today. Maybe bet against me and you will be.

Lucky we have a dog

The PQ left me all alone yesterday as she headed out to Orlando with her sister and our niece to spend some time at Universal Studios.  Our daughter joined her there and they had a good time last night or so I am told.  I on the other hand was all alone, flying my big ole bed with no copilot.  Well I did have the dog at least.   And a good thing too as it was a bit chilly last night, all the way down to 50 and below.  Brrr, haven't seen weather that cool in many months.  But the dog kept me warm, no frost bite or anything.  Of course there is a bad side to this as someone licked my face at 6am to go outside. Still a bit chilly then as well. 

Today I don't have much planned.  Maybe I'll actually pitch some cards this afternoon or tonight.  I need to do a couple of things with my car today and some laundry as well. I'm so domesticated sometimes.  I was thinking about making a beef stew for when the wife gets home but maybe not today.  She might end up picking up dinner on the road back from Orlando.  But before I do anything else, I better put down a few short term investments on the college games today.  Haven't been running well the last couple of weeks but today we turn it around

I'll take over 50 in the Miami/FSU game today.  Game should be fairly high scoring, I wouldn't be surprised if they are close to the over by half time.  Then again I've been wrong enough lately to know it might be 3-0 at the half as well

I also like Western Ky getting 42 against LSU.  WKU is a decent team playing in a classic let down game for LSU.  LSU should still win comfortably but they are already #1 and beat Bama last week.  I'm sure there are a lot of bumps and bruises they want to get healthy so I'll take the dogs. 

I was looking at the over in the Oregon/Stanford game today but the weather has me worried as it's supposed to be rainy today.  A wet natural turf field would slow Oregon down a bit.  So I think I'll avoid that one.

Finally I want to take Iowa +3 at home vs Mich St.  Iowa has played well vs Mich St covering the last 5 times they played.  I think they win outright here but I'll play it safe and take the points.

Well gotta get to work here.  Hope everyone has a great day.  Hope it warms up a bit more today like to 75 or so.  Cuz it's supposed to be in the 40s tonight. 

Finally getting my due

I finally received my just recognition for my superior refereeing today.  I must say it has taken long enough for this to come but it was well worth the wait.  Today I had to referee a couple of youth playoff games.  Both games were very close, the first one ended 19-13 and the second one was even closer.   In the second game, the score stood 0-0 until there was 1:20 left in the game.  Both teams were able to move the ball some but never got too close to the end zone. 

But as we got near the end of the game, the home team (East Lake) took a run wide to the right and managed to out run everyone to the end zone.  Boom, finally someone scores, now we won't have to go overtime.  East Lake kicks off and for some reason kicks an onside kick.  Me, I kick it deep and make them go the whole field but maybe they were worried someone on the visitors (Lakewood)would take it all the way.  Anyway the ball gets kicked past the front line guys, is scooped up by a guy in the next line who goes left around the end and runs it all the way for a TD.  Boom tied up again.  Of course both teams missed the extra point so a minute later we are in OT.

East Lake got the ball first.  4 tries from the 10 yard line to score then the other team gets a shot.   On 4th down, East Lake is just inside the 3 yard line still.  They hand it off and the runner is stopped inside the 1 but before he goes down he reaches the ball out and gets it to the goal line.  I look over to the linesman and he is charging in from the side with his hands in the air as I nod yes to him that the runner was not down when he put the ball out.  So we give them the TD.  They don't get the extra point but they have the lead.  Lakewood gets the ball and scores on a run on the first play but it's called back for holding by the head ref.  One of the blockers grabbed a defender's shirt right at the point of attack and kept the guy from participating.  No TD.  Lakewood ends up not scoring and we all head for home. 

I was limping toward my car (I hurt my calf in the first game and it was really aching by then) and outside the gate I ran across an old lady, The old lady said to me "There you are you cheater.  That wasn't a touchdown.  You stole that game from our kids."  I explained to the lady that the runner had reached out and the ball had reached the goal line. 

"No it didn't, we were right on the line and that ball never crossed the goal line."  I decided not to get into a fruitless argument in the parking lot and continued walking while I was thinking - sure lady, you are 40 or 50 yards away from the action and blocked off from view on your side and you saw it better than 2 referees who were 10 yards and 5 feet from the action.  As I walked away she continued, "I hope you were well paid for your call."

"Thank you, I was" I called over my shoulder as I limped to my car and drove away. 

Really lady, it's the ref's fault you grandson's team lost?  Because we ruled the ball reached the goal line and you didn't think so?  There are times when a referee's call can be significant but hell, these 2 teams went at it for an entire game and were still tied after that.  Also a lot of these people don't understand about the goal line and the end zone.  The end zone starts at the edge of the goal line closest to the field.  For my part, I imagine where the goal line begins is a pane of glass extending up in the air and if the tip of the ball just kisses that glass, it's a touchdown.  It doesn't have to get into the end zone, it doesn't even have to cross the line, it just has to reach it.  And from my point of view, it more than reached it.  So too bad lady, your team lost.  But at least you gave me my due.

My wife gave me my due tonight as well.  No not like that you bunch of pigs, get your mind out of the gutter.  She gave me my due for cooking up dinner after coming home tonight.  I made some roasted pepper chicken penne for dinner tonight and was well complimented by her and my mother in law.  So at least she didn't think I cheated her. 

Well thats all for me.  Off to bed and to rest my calf.  Other than the calf I feel pretty good. Tired.  At least Mark Sanchize and the Jetskis came through for my wallet today.  And at the half, Pitt and Balt have only scored 15 points.  Of course the Pats and NYG had 0 points at the half and ended up with 44 so things can definitely change there.  Good night all.  Hope you get your due as well.

Another bad investing weekend

Went 1-3 yesterday again.  Ugly.  Of course after looking at it, I didn't play the Arkansas game which at least would have brought me up to 2-3.   I am looking at a couple of pro games today however.  Here's another chance at investing glory or going down in flames. 

Give me the NY Jetskis +2.5 over Buffalo.  I hate picking Mark Sanchez but I think they are playing well while Buffalo is searching for who they are.  The road team seems to win this one a lot.  I'll take the points and a 1 point game.

I also like the under 42 in the Pittsburgh/Baltimore game.  Pitt has maybe found a defense and last year both teams were under 32 in both games.  I throw out week 1 as an anomaly, especially in light of what Jax did to Flacco. 

Stay luckier than me everyone.  At least in betting.

The days go too slow and the years go too fast

A couple of days ago, the PQ and I celebrated our 27th anniversary.  We didn't do anything overly special but I did take her out to dinner at an Italian place up the road that night.  Last year I took her to a really nice local place and would have taken her back there this time but I couldn't get a reservation before 8pm.  The place was closed for remodeling for quite a while, they redid the dining and kitchen areas, and since they reopened they've been pretty busy.  On a Thursday night when we had to work on Friday, we didn't want that late of a dinner.  So I checked around and this place in Palm Harbor had a good reputation and had no problem getting us in.

What a nice dinner we had.  Started with mushrooms stuffed with italian sausage in a sherry wine sauce which may have been the highlight of the meal.  The PQ had chicken saltimboca and I had veal abruzzi.  Both were delicious.  We also got a bottle of reisling to go with it.  When they showed us the wine list they told us every bottle was $29.  Not a terrible price for a bottle of decent wine at a restaurant.  Then I noticed they had Eroica which is a reisling that was produced by Chateau St Michelle in Washington state with the help of a famous German winemaker Dr Loosen.  When it came out it was listed as one of the best 100 wines in the world and I had tried it a couple of times and loved it.  It also normally goes for around $25 a bottle (maybe 21 or 22 at Total Wine, my favorite place to shop) so to get it for $29 at the restaurant was a steal.  The PQ had never had it so I'm not sure when I drank it without her but she loved it as well.  Needless to say we enjoyed a splendid dinner.  PQ was just raving about dinner to her sister a few minutes ago, especially the stuffed mushrooms.

Last night I had to referee a football game.  Kind of a weird game, a lot of turnovers and crazy stuff happened, and I was with a put together crew of guys I had not worked with before.  The head ref was very good though.  Both coaches were mad at us at different points, the visitors especially so after we spotted the ball favorably for the home team on a 4th down play and they made a first down by millimeters.  I had one oddball call for assisting the runner.  The visitors had gotten an interception and run it back to the home team's 20 yard line.  On first down they tried a run off tackle.  The runner got hit about 2 yards into the run but before he gets tackled one of his teammates grabs him and helps drag him forward.  They go 4 or 5 more yards.  Well since it happened right in front of me I felt it was my duty to drop a penalty flag for assisting the runner since you really aren't supposed to do that.  Unfortunately for the visitors that was the best thing to happen on that play.  Before the runner finally gets taken to the ground another guy hits him and knocks the ball out.  It falls to the ground and the home team recovers.  Visitors were unhappy about that as well but it was a good fumble.  If the runner hadn't been helped he would have fallen to the ground my earlier and never fumbled. 

No youth games for me today.  Today starts playoffs for the youth league.  They are playing games on both Saturday and Sunday.  I don't ref today but have 2 playoff games tomorrow.  Its nice to be able to rest today, I hurt my achilles a little last night.  Nothing too bad but it is sore a bit today.  Many years ago I was playing with my boys in the backyard.  I slipped on the grass and ruptured my achilles tendon pretty badly.  It occasionally bothers me today.  Luckily it is the other leg that is sore today.  I should be fine tomorrow I think but am glad I get today to rest. 

On to the short term investment strategy for today.  Last week was a very bad week.  Only Andrew Luck tying the game against USC and going to OT saved me from a goose egg.  1-4.  First bad week all year.  Then on Thursday, Transocean (RIG) reports a horrible quarter missing earnings by quite a bit.  The stock which I was up 10% on at the time got crushed, down over $7 a share in no time.  It finished the day falling from 56.5 to 49 and now I'm down a couple percent in it.  Friday it was up $1 so I am close to even.  I'm not crushed by this, I have faith RIG will turn it around and I almost sold out of something else to buy more shares.  Probably should have.  I plan on selling some stocks over the next 2 months.  I think the market will be pretty good through the end of the year so I am definitely selling some winners (and losers) to raise cash so that when the bear returns - which I think will happen within the next 6-9 months or less - I can pick up some bargains along the way.  I am keeping my gold positions and may even add to some of them.  I missed an opportunity to pick up some Yamana when it temporarily tanked when gold got hit last month.  It's now back up to 16 so I'm leaving off of that for now.  But I think they are in great position to take advantage of today's gold prices not to mention how gold may go a lot higher soon.  They are one of the lowest cost producers in the business and they have more and more gold coming out. I expect a very nice quarter from them on their next report.   Ok enough of the stock talk, now for the very short term investments.

I'm taking Alabama -4.5 in the big game against LSU.  2 things motivate this call.  Satan is the coach of Bama and Les Myles will never be confused with Jesus.  I have also heard the head of the sports book at Caesars said he would set the line at Bama -6 and take all the action he could get on LSU.  If he is that confident with Bama, so am I, and I only have to give 4.5. 

Give me UNC -3.5 over NC State.  Big rivalry game and NC State is just not very good.  4 wins but outside of beating a decent Virginia squad, they have wins against Liberty, Central Mich, and South Alabama.  Not Va Tech, Michigan, and Bama by any stretch.

I also like Washington getting 16 at home against Oregon.  This is a decent UW team but not in Oregon's class however Oregon may be caught looking ahead to their huge matchup with Stanford next week.  Its a home game for Washington and they're gonna be pumped up for this one.  I think Oregon wins a close one.  Last week that would translate to a 45-3 win for Oregon. We'll see about this week. 

Ow ow ow ow I just got a leg cramp in my calf.  Time for a V8.  I should have drunk one last night when I got home.   

I also might bet Virginia -3 over Maryland.   Maryland is terrible, I don't know how they beat  Miami early in the year cuz they are regressing.  After losing close ones to good Ga Tech and Clemson teams they get blown out by a decent FSU (next year they'll be a really good team) and then lost to a baaaad BC squad.  UVa is up and down, but they have victories against both Ga Tech and Miami sandwiching a loss to NC St.

I am also looking at Arkansas -5.5 at home vs South Carolina.  I liked this better at 4.5 but I might play it here anyway.  Arkansas is a better team, especially at home and though South Carolina is good I don't think they cover this. 

Well that's enough for now, gonna drag my aching leg into the shower and get ready for the day ahead.  Still putting together another unfortunately non-poker post.  Not much poker in my life, a little online small stakes stuff but I have been too busy with football and such to play much.  I did just get my winnings from my death pool victory last night.  200 bucks   Sweeet.  Well I hope you all have a great weekend.  Stay warm, it's even a little chilly here.  Last night was pretty cool and windy to boot.  When we went out for the pregame I was regretting not putting on my long sleeved shirt for the game but as soon as I started running around I warmed up quickly.  Hope my short term investments warm up as well.  Get lucky or stay lucky my friends.