Still in Florida

I'm still in Florida and I'm still enjoying what has been a much needed vacation both for my mental well-being along with spending some quality time with family that I don't see nearly as much as when I lived in Florida. We've eaten well, either watched a lot of football or did a lot of fishing based on preference, drank (in moderation except for our eventful day/night last Wednesday), and caught up with the lives of one another. Again it's been a perfect trip but I'll also looking forward to getting back to Vegas on Thursday morning.

I'll quickly jump to the poker front and I'm happy to say there has been none. I left my laptop at home and the ones I've borrowed don't have any poker software downloaded so it's been such a much needed break from that grind. I know most of you have jobs and families that you deal with on a regular basis so playing poker is more of a time consuming hobby, and you must be thinking ten days with no poker, I'd be going fucking crazy with boredom, but for someone who is trying to make a go of it in Vegas, it's fucking awesome to not even think about poker.

That said there will be some important decision to make regarding this fickle game once I get back to Vegas. Really I've spent way to long being an internet player and while it certainly has its conveniences I did move to Vegas for a reason. Fuck I could live in any shit hole in America and be an internet player, and no offense to anyone who lives in a shit hole or plays online but we all have different things that make us happy or we're better at, but for this player, my strengths lie in playing live and it's something I need to reembrace once I return or move on to something else.

There are also a couple other private goals that are important to me that have fallen way down the priority list and it will be a challenge to see if I can once again make those something that I strive to achieve. Playing online combined with my general laziness has started to turn me into something I'm not 100% happy with and it is time to make these important changes or like I said earlier move on to something else. I'm not trying to be drastic or dramatic but it's time for a change and I'm more than willing and confident in my abilities to make these changes and become the happy-go-lucky person I once was and who I've seen myself become less of. That and a bad-ass live poker player!

In other news, I've already qualified for the play-offs in our blogger Fantasy Football money league as well three of my four other leagues. In the other one I'm on the bubble but I still have a shot to get in. FF is a crap shoot once you get in the play-offs so hopefully I can stay hot and get lucky when the money is on the line. $500 is top prize in the Blogger league along with bragging rights for a year so the first step of getting in is accomplished.

Watching your NFL team go 0-11 (14 loses in a row going back to last year) is something I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. There is hope this weekend as we get a sorry ass J-E-T-S Suck Suck Suck team at home. Although they have owned us for the last decade it would be fantastic to get of the schnide against our most hated rival. The Canes getting clobbered doesn't help matters much either. Both teams lack talent from previous coaching staffs so I do feel like there is hope for both to be contenders in as soon as 2009.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and that you were surrounded by people you love. I also hope you all took time to reflect and be grateful for all the wonderful and beautiful things that fill your life. Talk to you again on Thursday from Vegas.

Back in Florida

I'd forgotten how beautiful late November is in Florida. The humidity is gone and the ocean breeze and sunshine make for a wonderful morning. Of course the weather has been perfect the last two+ months in Vegas so I guess I get the best of both worlds.

Today is one of my favorite all-time drives as I'm heading across Alligator Alley to Naples. All of my family will be together for the first time in 18 or so months and I'm really looking forward to the long weekend with all of them. Or at least until someone has too much to drink and starts a ruckus. Well that only used to happen during Christmas time so Thanksgiving should be safe. Football, family, food, fun, the beach, makes Thanksgiving in Florida one of my favorite times of the year.

I haven't done anything poker since Sunday night's Big Game. I'm hoping to not play at all for this ten day vacation and just enjoy some time doing other things. I'm also looking for some time to reflect on myself and my game so I can break this rut I'm in at the tables. You know, clear my mind and start playing winning poker at the game that suits me the best.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving and that you are truly happy with yourself and your life.

JT

R.I.P. JT. (1965-1992)

Wow it's been 15 years man. I think about you a lot and what could have been for you, your wife, and your kids. Heroin is a killer as you know all too well and it's a shame it stole so much from so many innocent people. You are missed.

Speaking of addiction, check out this NY Times article about halfway houses in Delray Beach, FL. This is where I founded my previous business and it's the one I'm consulting for presently. Also an interesting Slide show narrated by a highly regarded therapist that we outsourced a lot of clients too. My ex-wife makes an appearance in there also.

Hope everyone has a good weekend and see you Sunday Night for the Big Game.

Mookie & Buddy

I had a blast as the special guest on Buddy Dank radio last night while playing the Mookie. It was tough concentrating on the show and on the cards but mainly my cards sucked so it was really easy to fold.

Of course I went out with QQ < AJ. That fucking QQ in my nemesis like you can't believe. It doesn't matter live, online, tournament, cash, I get stacked or go out of tournaments that hand on a regular basis. I certainly play it more cautious now but at times it really plays itself and nothing you can do but take it. Usually I run it into KK or AA so last night was actually a change of pace losing to everyone's favorite AJ.

Big Game on Sunday. Super stacks.

Big Game

Not much going on here other than being an internet donk. I'm looking forward to ten days in Florida which will hopefully get me jumpstarted into being a live player once again upon my return. I suppose I've started the process since I withdrew 90% of my online roll. I figure if I don't leave money online I might in fact start playing live again. Seriously, whats the point of living in Las Vegas if I'm an internet donk.

Playing online is the way to go if you are a tournament player but my results over the past two years show my strongest game being live cash. Sure I'll take pops at bigger MTTs online but for cash and everyday grinding I need to get out of the house, get a social life, start living like a regular human being and not a caged animal.

The Big Game is upon us this Sunday. I decided to mix things up somewhat and make it a Super Stack so there will be 5000 chips to start with. With a smaller field than the other blogger tournaments I don't see this becoming a time issue for the East Coasters. Go win a tokens, or a SnG or some cash and join us Sunday.

Mookie

As always I had fun meeting up with Mookie and the crew yesterday. If Mookie wasn't such a good guy I could have stayed home and played the Mookie saving both time and money as the play in the live $60 tournament was just as awful as most blogger donkaments.

For those who have never met Mr and Mrs Mookie they are two of the nicest people you'll ever in your life meet. When the Weekend at Mookie's is announced for sometime in late April I hope a bunch of you can get the weekend to head down to Austin for what is a fantastic time. Golf, poker, heavy drinking, good company, the works. Start clearing that calender for late April. Love you Mookie.

Since I've been an online tournamnet donk for the past month I've forgotten how bad the $1/2 game at MGM is. I was on the wrong side but as usual for that place it's either huge wins or small loses so I'll take my small loss knowing that putting in the hours at that place is like printing money long term. I am ready to start playing live again so I'll probably warm up with a few sessions of $1/2 down there so I can work my way back up to the $2/5 games. Might as well knock the rust off playing $1/2 instead of not being fully prepared to face the better/more aggressive players at $2/5. Anyway, it was nice to get out of the house again.

I'm looking forward to ten days in Florida over Thanksgiving then following that up with the Blogger gathering the following weekend. Life is good man.

No Mookie but Yes Mookie

No Mookie for me tonight as I'll be playing live with him and the crew from Austin. Looks like an afternoon of $1/2 at MGM then the 7pm donkament at Planet Ho. It will be nice to actually get out of the house and play live poker after spending the last three weeks or so as an online tournament donk.

Good luck to all of you playing in tonights Mookie and also to those who are donking it up in FTOPS #1.

MTT Fun

This BBTwo is a blast. I've never seen so much bad play since well any tournament I play in. I think players, bloggers and non-bloggers alike, fail to grasp the concepts of late stage tournament strategy and man you see it everywhere. Calling with Ace rag or QT, KJ, or 22 is not the answer people and while you might occasionally knock a player or two out you'll never win with that style unless you are an absolute luckbox. So good luck with that Passive weak-tight poker for those who play that style.

I've turned into an online tournament donk the past few weeks and I must say it's been a nice change of pace. I finally made a decent score and I'm now actually about even this year chasing these tournaments. I think I've grasped how to play the late stages of tournaments and since I've made some changes and plugged a few leaks the results have been much better. I think another big score is somewhere close.

One of my favorite all-time quotes is, "If you keep doing what you've always been doing, you'll keep getting what you've always been getting." That applies to all facets of life and it also applies to poker.

I know many people play the game for recreational purposes so perhaps they are happy with where they are with their game and their results but after having many chats with a bunch of successful and unsuccessful players, what I've found is the successful players work hard to improve their games by reading, adapting new strategies, discussing hand histories, crunching numbers and odds etc. while the unsuccessful players keep playing the same way, keep getting stuck in the same stages of play, are not willing to try something new and who predominately call themselves "unlucky".

If you are one of the unlucky ones, and I know I've been in that camp before, try something new because it's obvious your style is not one that results in long term success. Take a chance, change things up, get out of that rut, try something new, it may refresh your game and give you the results you are looking for.


New England 45
Indy 31

Oregon 42
Arizona St 24