Range of Emotions

Expert poker players making instructional videos to help people get better at the game often use the term range, as in putting your opponent on a range of hands. You don't know exactly what your opponent has, but you can use a number of clues to put him on a range of hands. From the range you can use deductive reasoning to make the most logical guess of what he is holding. These clues include, his playing style, what he did preflop, the cards on the flop, the action on the flop compared to the turn, the amount of the bet, physical tells, timing tells, etc. A lot of the time you can narrow down your opponents range based on these clues and at times the range is wide and is near impossible to pinpoint the hand, and sometimes the range is narrow and there a great chance you will know exactly what your opponent holds. I could keep explaining and give specific examples cause people who don't play still probably don't know what the fuck I'm talking about but I don't feel like it.

But trust me if you play enough you'll start to be able to polarize people's ranges like it ain't no thang. And speaking of ranges, there is an entire range of ideas, a range of emotions and opinions going on in my head lately. I have absolutely everything to say, a range so wide I will definitely forget to include something by the end of this post.
First I hate haters. I hate 'em so much. Nasty people, dooshbags, people who don't think before they speak. Are you one of these people? Do you not think before you speak? Do you lack that mechanism in your brain that tells you not to say certain things to people cause it might make them feel like complete shit? Are you the kinda person who hears of an unrealistic goal someone has and accomodates them by telling them they are to stupid and incompetent to ever make it? To many people are like this. If I want to talk later in this post about a certain MTV show that I have been watching, there is always gonna be that asswipe who has to say "You watch that MTV shit? Loser!" With no knowledge of what its like.
Nasty fuckin people, haters, nay sayers, scum....................

Just the thought that something I've said to someone I've only encountered for a limited time came off the wrong way and they view me as one of these brutes worries the shit outta me. I want everyone to know I'm not one of these people at all. Judgemental fucks.
Well I'm gonna talk about an MTV show soon enough, yeah thats right.
For instance on two plus two, so many haters. Its unfortunate that so much of the poker playing community is a hater. And then you wonder why people who don't play still don't understand its a game of skill. Its always gonna have that negative stigma attached to it and people are always gonna associate it with problem gambling unless people who play seriously show they are good people and not degenerates. All you haters and all you dummies who curse out your opponents when you lose a hand are screwing all of us over everytime you let your emotions take over and become asswipes. Thats why there is a OTB/Off Track Betting place in Mahopac and slot machines at Yonkers Raceway yet poker, a game of skill, is still illegal almost everywhere.

These dudes made this video and put it on youtube. It was called Low Stakes Poker, and it was really cool. Its a knock off of High Stakes poker, and they played a 50 buyin game and filmed it, they had hole card cams and everything, it was nicely done. I thought it was awsome and good for them, its exactly what I wanted to do with my friends.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QngrOSNYmVg&feature=related

But ofcourse the dooshbags on Two Plus Two have only negativity to expunge as they spread the word of this cool little production. Take a look

http://forumserver.twoplustwo.com/37/televised-poker/low-stakes-poker-ep1-like-hsp-only-low-stakes-so-much-worse-471507/

Why are so many people such assholes? Why? Why? Why can't he say "Look at this video these kids made, not a huge production, but props to them on the effort."

It really makes me sick. Okay what else did I wanna talk about? I met this dude at my coffee shop today who was 44 and look 34. And he still is living it up. Member yesterday what I was saying I was worried about?

http://daysoffrank.blogspot.com/2009/04/buy-my-car-no-dont.html (4th to last paragraph)

This is a good sign. What else?

This MTV show. College Life.

http://www.mtv.com/videos/college-life-ep-3-halloween/1609744/playlist.jhtml#name=features

I really like this one character, I see a lot of myself in him, how I was in college. And this girl on the show he's in love with. This girl is like one of the most beatiful creatures I have ever seen. Black hair, blue eyes, damn. Has many different hairstyles that all look good, damn. And a genuinely good person. Yet she's to immature to realize whats going on. I see a lot of someone I used to know in her as well. I may have mentioned the person she reminds me of before...........

Man, this dude, if only he had met this wonderful girl in a different period of time in her life. He's gonna get so screwed by the end of the season, poor bastard. Even if you told him the future and he knew you were right there is still a 0% chance he would ever listen. And rightfully so, in a sick sort of way.

The show reminds me of college so much and I don't wanna watch it anymore but I keep watching it. It makes me remember shit and I don't wanna remember but I keep watching. By the time I'm done watching there is a range of emotions running through me its as if I've eaten a bunch of magic mushrooms.

I'm forgetting something. Oh yeah, movies. I love fuckin movies. The WWII movies we made still hasn't been finished. Still in the editing process. Its driving me insane. It sucks so much. Sucks as much as what the movie business is doing now a days and has for some time. I have a huge beef with trailers.

STOP SHOWING THE WHOLE DAMN FUCKIN DAMN MOVIE IN THE TRAILER!

Just stop! Please, your killing the movie. Yeah the trailers are awsome, and they are like entertaining little mini movies in themselves, but you know your giving away to much. The trailer wouldn't be so awsome unless you do give away, so you kinda have to. Well shit, you need to step back and realize that the trailer shouldn't be so good, the trailer should be short, a tease, a quick intro to the world we will discover with the movie. Not a random assortment of scenes from the beginning, middle, and near end.

Ya see Hollywood doesn't care, you know why? Its called $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. They know cool trailers attract viewers, and to make a cool trailer you gotta give away stuff, so they don't care. They mastered the art of making a mediocre movie look great with a great trailer. We need to abolish the whole trailer bullshit. Some one needs to step up. Spielberg, Scorsece, one of you famous fucks, do the right thing.

Do you know what the trailer for Pyscho was? It was Alfred Hitchkock standing in front of the big ass hotel or house where most of the film takes place. And he says "My new movie is about this place. Go see it." And that was it. You had no fuckin idea of anything that was going to happen. And thats why that shower scene is one of the most famous and scariest in movie history. People had know idea, it snuck up on em so perfectly.

But with Star Trek and Terminator Salvation, I already can piece together exactly what is going to happen through the outrageously long trailers for each em. I really wanna see em both, but they are both kinda ruined in a way.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pcg5t0mT8V4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0xaCB2nLS0
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puXPozd-kuc&feature=related

Yeah, really cool trailers, I agree, but trailers shouldn't exist. Infantry combat is really cool too, but we both know it would be better off not existing at all.

The trailer for Watchmen was probably the best movie trailer I've ever seen. The way they put the smashing pumpkins music in there, perfect.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4blSrZvPhU

Never got around to see it. And for some reason I don't even feel like I missed it. You see where I'm going with this?

Buy My Car.... NO DON'T!

I'm BUGGIN out WIGGIN out FREAKIN out SPAZZIN, flippin, spacing out thinkin about all these things that I swear everyone else doesn't worry the slightest for.

Like my car. Buy it please! Actually please don't. Then I won't have it anymore. I'll have some dough immediately, but why not just wait cause I'm gonna get money when my coffee shop opens. However my investing partners are not making haste in terms of getting opened already. Lot of bullshit with the Health department, encil system, flooring guy, etc.

I'm not gonna get a whole nother job for a few weeks obviously, when this sweet job is starting so son, mine as well wait it out. But I want money now! Sell that car of mine and that money will easily last me until June when we open, and I'll probly turn it into more as well. But I am just very conflicted about letting the car go.

I have been very limited with funds for a while now yet I still can't bring myself to sell it. Thats why it hasn't been sold. Not cause no one wants it , not cause I don't wanna go through all the annoying processes of getting it sell ready, not cause of any specifics of the car. I just don't want it that bad, don't want money in place of this car bad enough. And if you don't want it bad enough it ain't gonna happen. Its a convertible dude, I'm gonna be so sad if its gone.

Just really don't wanna go a whole month waiting till my job starts and have limited funds. But don't wanna get a whole other job if I'm only gonna be there a month. If I sell the car now I'll he happy for a month, but once that month goes by and I have a job I'm gonna be thinking: "Wow, now I have a job and money, if only I had my sweet convertible too. Wish I never sold it. Damn."

Obviously being limited on funds is not gonna last, but if I sell the car it'll be gone forever. So I shouldn't sell. Damn....... I don't know. I feel like I just overthink everything and always have. Always finding ways to bug out over issues I should just relax about. The mind can twist and turn reality quite a bit, until its viewpoint is as distorted as an M.C. Esher portrait.

Look at this baby.........And thats not even with the top down. Where it looks even sweeter. Nice interior ay? In perfect condition except for the small burn hole in the back seat. Some space cadet did it way back when, then lied about it.

It's pretty entertaining when you already know what happened and the person lieing to you doesn't know you know. Most people are pretty bad liars, and you should most likely spare em the lie and just tell em you know. But you can let em squirm for a minute or two, lol. It's like checking with a monster hand on the river when you know they can't have anything except a busted draw, checking and letting em bluff off a ton of money. It's hilarious.

So ya wanna buy it? Huh? Buying it? Don't leave fake comments, you gotta really want it. I don't know if I wanna let it go though. I just don't know. To many memories, some good, some so good I wanna sell it just cause I don't wanna remember how good it was cause I ain't still there...........(sigh) Go on enough blunt rides with enough space cadets and your gonna have burn holes in your interior soon enough..........

Well anyway the whole point of this post is I'm conflicted about the car. Got it up an running today, in good shape, but still can't pull the trigger and release my baby. So its stressing me. I'm stressing over my new job coming up, not necessarily to job, I wanna get it going bad and its exciting but stressin over the decision to come back to NY in the first place. One of my buddies is moving to the NYC soon. And a number of friends don't live around here anymore. So shouldn't I have just stayed in AC if no one is gonna be around here anyway? Like what was the point of comin back here? I'm always buggin and stressing and wondering if I shoulda just stayed there. Well, it really was financial reasons, u feel me? But seriously if in time no one lives around here anyway, why am I here?

And I'm here now for a while anyway, do I just get an apartment around here? Whats the point of getting a place around here if I can just live at my house for free? Will I regret signing a lease whether I have money or not?

Am I running out of time? Will I still look and feel the way I do now when I'm 27, 30, 35? I don't think I will, feel like I got only 5 good years left and then I'll be in the 30's fuck that. I don't wanna be old. Have I given away my chance at youth? Is running this coffee shop gonna be so demanding that by the time I get it to the point where it is a self sufficient business I will be to old and not feel how I do now?

One of my buddies with a similar attitude as me toward life and women and jobs and poker and money says times are changing and I can be 33 and look and feel the same way I do now. Says 30's are the new 20's. I hope he's right. I wanna feel like I feel now forever but always buggin out that I'm running out of time. Damn.

Don't worry, I'll have plenty of time to play poker even though gonna be working alot. Now I can really be free and flexible with money cause I have another source of income. I'm gonna play so much online soon and everytime I win I'm gonna buy more stuff for my cafe. Another flatscreen TV, better lights, more tables, etc. Gonna do everything I can to make it succeed. And eventually be 28,29,30, and feel the same way I do know hopefully and just be traveling the world, going to every casino there is, win money everywhere. Don't stop till I'm ahead, ya know, in the black not the red, ya know a winning player in every poker room on the planet....... So far I have accomplished this in almost every casino in Atlantic City, just gotta get ahead at Ceasers and Showboat I believe. Then Vegas would be next, never been, then all the rest. I got a long way to go if I'm gonna visit every single last one one the planet........

Don't have the resources now, but thats the plan. Looks good on paper, life never works out like it does on paper. But as long as you know you did your best. Just play good, just play good all the time, you'll have good luck and you'll have terrible luck, but just keep playing good and you'll be okay. In poker, and in life.

RAPS FROM THE BAT

"Tell mom I don't go to the church - tell Haq I dont' go to Mosque I blow blunts, hold guns, and I'ma be right there when the soldiers'll march I play the part, and my heart seem colder than March But on the flipside of things, it's still warmer than June I have talks with the Lord and he'll be callin me soon."

Rollercoaster

Here's a quote by me, concerning the ups and downs and brutal swings of poker:

"Poker is like a rollercoaster, not just for you, for everyone. If you can ride it without getting sick, you'll be okay."

Once again adding to my previous thoughts about how the swings and or bad luck hit us all, but skill prevails. Some people just can't ride without getting sick though. I have been on a bit of an emotional roller coaster as of late. I keep thinking about how I'm not going to be playing full time for a while and have mixed feelings, but I just know opening this coffee shop will in turn make poker a hundred times more profitable, and the fact that I know the location of this cafe/coffee shop is reason enough to open. We have the prime location in Mahopac and I really can't see any circumstance where its not going to be a gold mine. My investment partners are very excited. I'm really going to do as well as I can. Stop by when it opens, should be by June.

Yeah I would probably be happier playing poker all the time forever but it will always be a struggle and a grind. So I just can't pass up this opportunity. The owner of the property told me yesterday that approximately 25,000 cars pass it on route 6 everyday. Location is everything, and everyone feels there couldn't be a more perfect spot.

The emotions continue though as I look back and feel I could have tried harder to make it work. And speaking of looking back, I took a trip to Oneonta this weekend. That place is more of an emotional roller coaster than anything. And I can see my friends who hadn't been there since they left like a year ago going through the same thing I did. It's sad, since I lived there for like 3 years, some of my friends 4 full years. When we all met up this weekend I couldn't help but feel like we should all just stay and go to class on Monday. It was like we had all still been hanging out everyday and there was no break. I also saw some kids that are still going to school there and seems hard to believe that in all the time I've spent in the past 2 years since I left, they have been there that whole time. Crazy, just nuts. I have no explanation for why I did not take any pictures or video of Oneonta to post here. It just never occurred to me, woulda been a nice addition for this post. Hold on let me check facebook, maybe someone posted something.............

Nope, well shit, I'm just gonna show ya a pic from Haloween 07 in Oneonta, these are a couple of the same of the people I met up with this weekend anyway.


Thats me, Bryan and Ryan dressed up as The Price is Right contestants. And Beth in the army. I miss all these people. It doesn't seem right that you hang out with certain people so much in college and then you just don't at all when you leave. And I could see this weekend that everyone feels like this but we never do anything about it.

When I got home on Monday my mind was buggin out. I felt like I should go back to that alternate life I once had in Oneonta. I can never put my finger on it but there was just something decidely different about how I feel when I'm there as oppossed to home. I don't know..........
Well I couldn't stop thinking about it till Tuesday when Derick sent me 25 bucks on Full Tilt poker. I decided to practice good money managment skills so I can actually make it grow.

And ofcourse the only way to make money playing poker is to make it not fun and be smart with money and use 5% rule blah blah blah blah. Obviously with only 25 bucks on the site I can't really follow a 5% rule. You would have to microscopic stakes for a long time before you can even move up to stakes where you still can't even buy a toothbrush after playing all day.

But I decided to just do it anyway cause I was playing HA! My favorite game, the only time I even enjoy playing online is playing HA. You know the pot limit holdem and pot limit omaha mix. I played a a whole day of 2 dollar max buy in HA with 1c 2c blinds. I got my account from 25 to 42 bucks. Which is a really nice profit considering how low of stakes I was playing.

Towards the end of my last session where I skyrocketed from 28 to 42 bucks, and at one point was up to 54, it happenned. A horrible encounter with an extreme dooshbag. First of all you should never get emotional off a 2 dollar max buy in game in the first place. But of course this one guy did. Its really pathetic that I'm even spending my limited time on this planet even palying poker for this low of stakes, but since I enjoy playing HA so much and was on a short bankroll I didn't mind. I was having a good time and just loving the game. It was a low stress, don't matter if you lose, get better at Omaha type of thing.

So this asswipe is playing me heads up when the table broke. I felted a few players and they did not rebuy, opting to leave.

Felted - action verb- to take all of a players chips in one hand during a poker game.

Anyway so this one dooshbag is left playing me heads up and refusing to buy in for more than like 50 cents at a time. And I kept kicking his ass. He starts playing me heads up also on another table too and losing every hand there. It wasn't even like I was getting that lucky, he was just making stupid calls. All in all he dropped like 10 bucks to me probly, 50 cents at a time. And he's calling me all these names. Fagget, asshole, donkey, loser, idiot, moron, all these horrible names, he won't stop. And whenever he wins a hand, I just say NH. Yah know, Nice Hand. So I tell him NH and he writes fuck you! or S T F U.

I never respond to verbal criticism online as I've mentioned countless times. I just say NH. Thats all I ever type, unless the person is chill, then I'll talk to em. But if someone is a doosh I choose not to stoop to their level. I mean how is this guy this upset over a couple of pots that barely even add up to a dollar. What the fuck? So he finally quits and I have like 18 bucks in fron of me at a 2 dollar max buy in table, lol.

An hour later, I think its over and I'm playing with a full table and having fun. He comes back and buys in for another 50 cents and starts telling all the other players at the table that I am cheating. He says he reported me and my account is being suspended. I finally say 'what did I do wrong?' and he says 'You are a faggot and have access to hole card information'

Like this guy actually thought I have hacking software and I can see his hole cards. His massive amount of dooshbaggery doesn't allow him to believe he just sucks. And wouldn't I be at higher stakes if I had hacking software that gave me hole card info?

So this unbelievable asswipe tells me he just spoke to 'blah blah blah at Full Tilt poker security and my account is under review.' I'm not worried cause I didn't do shit obviously. But wow, what a doosh. Even the other players were saying "He didn't do shit, you just suck." What an evil morbid, cynical bastard this guy is.

The next day I try and log into my account and can't. I read an email that says my account is suspended!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here's the thing, I used to play under another name on Full Tilt but I changed it and got a new account with a new name. They found out that both accounts are me and your not allowed to have 2 accounts. Even though I haven't used the other one in forever. So until my previous account settles itself with full tilt, both account are fucked. They were only made aware of this cause some dooshbag accused me of cheating. They would of never looked into my new account and found out about my other screen name from years ago if not for this doosh. Now I can't play at all. Thanx a lot dude who can't lose money like a man.

I would compare this doosh to such tyrants as Kublai Kahn, Stalin, Hiter, or Napoleon but I wouldn't wanna cross the line. Thats not quite the same league. I'm really sorry for even suggesting it. My bad Kublai Kahn, Stalin, Hiter, Napoleon.

Undisputed yet Unrecognized

Poker is one of the only sports or competitions where the best player can be painfully obvious to a trained eye and easily missed by an inexperienced observer. The ignorant party will even mistake this star player as a donkey. For the greatest and most skillful play in poker is the fold. Sometimes its all you can do. And every time you do it you either break even or lose money. You can't win money folding under any circumstance. You can fold before the flop and just stay out of trouble, but you can't profit. You can fold on the flop and you lose the small amount you've invested. You can fold on the turn or river and chances are you invested quite a bit by then.
In the event that you do feel you have the worst hand on the turn or river with a lot invested in the pot the only thing you really can do at this point is cut your losses and fold. You wish you weren't in the situation, you wish you had the best of it and didn't have to muck, but all you can for your best interest at this point is fold.
Every time you minimize your loss with a correct fold you save money. Every last dollar counts cause it all adds up in the long run. At the end of the year every time you save even a measly 3 bucks by folding, add all those little folds up and its thousands saved. Its very hard to accept for players but poker is a game where you have to lose and to win you must lose as little as possible when there is no way around losing. Its the only sport where you can lose while showcasing great skill.
Like I have said countless times before in this blog. If you keep getting dealt the worst hand you need to keep folding, and yeah your going to lose money for a while folding, but it was inevitable for you to loss all those hands cause you were dealt the worst hand and what your dealt is beyond your control. What you can do is fold every time your beat. Ya see most people get caught losing more than they should when they keep getting the worst hand. And then when the eventual upswing comes and they start winning pots, they are not up nearly what they should be, they might be even, or still down, even after the upswing because they did not properly limit their losses during their downswing.
Yes its frustrating doing nothing but fold for a long period of time, but you have to do it. So look at it this way: Its defense. If you play for 5 hours and get shafted by bad luck, start with 300 and end with 100, your down 200 bucks. A lesser player woulda lost the whole 300. An even lesser player woulda lost the 300, re bought and lost another 200.
Just remember be merry as long as you keep making the right decision. If folding was right and its all you did and you lost money, still be merry, cause you lost like a champ. When your upswing comes you will be smooth sailing cause you limited your losses. Be upset when you make the wrong decision, even if you make a bad decision and suck out on someone, don't be happy, be upset cause playing that way will eventually be your demise.
Don't ever worry about what your up and down. If you always make the right decision you'll be okay.
So making great folds all day like the folds I'm gonna show you in this video, makes you an undisputed superb poker player. Yet your talents will still be unrecognized by most, those who don't see the game on a high enough level and just assume your losing so you suck. Your undisputed greatness will go unrecognized. But cheer up its unrecognized by a bunch of saps who would be down two or three times what you are after such a disastrous run of cards. You feel me?

Check this kids:

part 1 http://www.pokertube.com/Movies.aspx?movie=9599&KeyID=1&title=Aussie_Million_2009_Cash_Game_Part_2_1_4

part 2 http://www.pokertube.com/Movies.aspx?movie=9600&KeyID=1&title=Aussie_Million_2009_Cash_Game_Part_2_2_4

part 3 http://www.pokertube.com/Movies.aspx?movie=9601&KeyID=1&title=Aussie_Million_2009_Cash_Game_Part_2_3_4

part 4 http://www.pokertube.com/Movies.aspx?movie=9602&KeyID=1&title=Aussie_Million_2009_Cash_Game_Part_2_4_4

Better to be down 500grand than a full million. Durrrr is a great player. I've never seen such a ridiculous amount of second best hands comes someone's way and then great laydown after great laydown. You would figure Patrick would have the second best hand at some point but it never seemed to happen. Obviously the cards will even out in time but this is one of those insanely improbable streaks of bad luck for Durrrr and good luck for Patrick.

I'm going to concentrate more on showing what a game of skill poker is on this site. Since I'm not palying as much anymore and don't have as much to write about concerning my experiences playing, I'm going to switch it up a little. Even though I am not playing as much I still feel there is plenty to write about. I thought it was over, but it never is, my mind still twisting and turning all the time. I have other things to write about as well, my trip to Oneonta and a bad experience with an online asswipe. But I'll save it for next post.

I wanna concentrate a lot now on with legitimizing poker to everyone. Still far to many people dimiss it as a gamble. Years down the line people will not categorize it along with low lifes and self abuse. There should be a poker room everywhere, I shouldnt' have to go to South New Jersey to play. Its really ridiculous how they can stretch the law and open Yonkers Raceway, even put slot machines in their. But poker, a game of skill, is still shunned. Disgusting. People will see, in time, as long I keep up the informative posts and others continue to spread the word.

Time Travel and Boredom

Two subjects that can both exist or not exist depending on how you look at them. I guess this is more true for boredom. The time travel question probably has a more concrete answer. It either does, or does not exist and most likely does not.
Boredom is really not clearly defined and it's impossible to say whether your actually bored or not. There are levels of boredom, and some may call being only mildly entertained bored, and others might only call being bored having nothing to do but what they do normally. And I would call bored having literally no options but to just sit there. It's not clearly defined what boredom is cause no one knows what level of boredom you must reach to technically be considered bored.
But you can be bored with a particular subject. Lately I feel I am relatively bored with poker and do not necessarily feel the same way about it I once did. But there are still aspects of the game I love very much that do not depart.
For instance I want you to check out this video clip.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qp6EB1r0Hj4 (fast forward to minute 2:00)

Joe Hachem makes an excellent play here. Through watching how the betting goes, he is able to gather enough information about Howard Lederers hand to know that he does not have the ace of spades. And he is able to take the pot away from Howard and profit with the worst hand. This is a very nifty move and requires deep thinking. If Howard is an amateur donkey Hachem can not win this pot. It just shows how awsome poker is because when good players are against eachother the entire dynamic of the game changes and your thought process goes much much deeper.
Props to Joe Hachem for performing well and going with his gut, making a very sophisticated bluff that requires very deep thinking. Ya see people who don't follow poker religiously don't really understand who is a good player. Television gives the general public a distorted view of what poker really is. Showing mostly tournaments as oppossed to real poker, otherwise known as cash games.
If you watch all the high stakes poker episodes you will see that Daniel Negreanu is far from what an average poker viewer believes he is. He does not excel with the most important aspects of being good at real poker. Which is patience and steam control. The ability to lose hands, lose money, through the inevitable swings and still maintain your A game is a stranger to Daniel. TILT. The tilt monster has him bad. He is a great tournament player, one of the best, top 5 easy. But cash games, or real poker is just to brutal for him.
There are many "TV" players that people think are good, but you have to know who suceeds at real poker to really know whats going on. Now Joe Hachem was your typical candidate to be a "TV" player, but so far it looks like he can play real poker quite well. There is a lot more to come and we will see, but so far so good. I was very impressed with how he won that hand with no spade.
An example of players people think are good at poker but are really just "TV" players:

Sammy Farha (he's just a rich guy) Eli Elezra (a really really rich guy) Chris Moneymaker (plays tournaments well, not much else) Jamie Gold and Jerry Yang (two previous Main Event Winners who do not have the discipline to suceed at cash games or real poker at this point in time)

Not all TV players are necessarilly bad at real poker, but its mostly unknowns who are really the best players. The guys you should fear are the internet youngens. They've played more hands than anyone. These are the few people I can see myself honestly not being able to beat even if I was playing with money I am comfortable losing.

People you do not want to see at your table:

Barry Greenstein, Tom Dwan, Phil Ivey, Patrick Antonius, hate to leave anyone out, theres others.

Anyway remember, its never what it seems. Many a hater has told me I suck at poker because I have been broke at times. This is simply quick accusations that have not been thought out. Its the same kind of people who do not think of poker as a game of skill but just another gambling game like anything else in the casino.
Its relying solely on poker and not havin any other source of income that has cause financial woes, not how I play. But if I'm talking to someone I don't know to well, I just know they think the worst. Just think of it this way, I have played a lot of poker, and a lot of underbankrolled which is an immediate disadvantage. I have still come out ahead a lot, just not enough to sustain the expenses of living.
And think of it this way, if someone else has played as many hours as me, think about how heavily in debt they would be. I am not in debt, just stuck at zero. Cause for the majority of time I had no other source of imcome, and have spent what I have made.
But no one thinks deeper, just hears 'poker' and assumes the worst, its unfortunate. Perception is reality for to many of us. We all need to learn to think deeper, and not make quick judgements. Its never what it seems.
For example: One time I was standing with a friend in law of mine at a gas station.
(friend in law: friend of a friend, not necessarilly your friend)
So we see this hot chick walk inside. And I say "Hi Christina" to her. She does not smile and say hi back or anything. Just gives us a dirty look and flicks her cigerette to the ground right at our feet and then say "sup" in a real bitchy tone.
I'm standing there thinking "Wow what a stuck up bitch!!!!!!!" Just thought I'd say high since she went to highschool with me, what the hell?
So I just assume she is a bitch and forever in my mind she is a stuck up hoe who can't even say hi after I go out of my way to be nice. Little did I know the whole story. Soon after I find out that the kid stading there next to me, my friend in law was at a party with with her the night before and was calling a dirty slut and the C word in front of all these people.
So obviously her attitude was all directed toward him and had nothing to do with me. If it was just me there it all would of been different. But I would assumed the worst about her for the rest of my life if I hadn't found out the truth of the night before.
So from now, never accept anything at face value, there always more to it, always. The only person who know is yourself, you don't have the right to ever make a judement on anyone.
How many times have I gone one about how I would like have more money to play poker so I wanna sell my car or maybe get a job, or do some free lance work. Sure when I was broke I have said this, but I've also said it while I still had money. And when people would here me say this they would automatically assume I just blew everything I have playing poker and now I need more. What I actually mean is that I want to increase my overall bankroll size so that 5% of my bankroll is actually a larger sum, so that I can withstand the swings of my current stakes better, therefore continuing to use my mathematical advantage to earn more profits.
But what do people assume? Oh he's selling everything like a crack fiene so he can gamble more and will eventually be in the same postion. I do not wish to associate with anyone who takes perception as reality.
I consider myself a poker sucess because I am a relatively large amount based on the low stakes I have played. I am a winning real poker or cash game player. My overall time in Atlantic City playing real poker has yielded me a considerable hourly rate (20/hr) when most people have not only not profited, but are way down. I am barely a winner from online poker, but still 92% of online players are down. I have kept records all my life, but don't have one complete record from when I started in 2004. I know I am up like 5-6grand from AC. I know I was up like 2 grand early college days from home games. I know I've gotten like 6 grand in checks from pokerstars, but may have deposited like 3 grand. And I was down like 2 grand in college from online. My records are scattered and incomplete info, but somewhat helpful, much like poker itself. A game of incomplete info and then gathering as much as you can making the best decision. So honeslty, since 2004, if I was to give a modest estimate, I'd say I was up like 8 grand, and a generous estimate maybe 13 grand. Defiantely not less or more than those two guesses.
Pretty good compared to how low of stakes I've played. But not that good considering its since 2004. I would honestly be up a lot more if I had the right bankroll the whole time and if everyone in my life didn't constantly refuse to believe it really is a game of skill and neglect to support me.
I have been a victim of tilt, but that is directly related to bankroll issues and negative pressure. I don't regret anything with poker, I wouldn't be the player I am today without having been so obsessed with it that I refused to work for so long. If I could travel through time I would not change anything. But I often regret so many decisions I have and am always wishing for a time machine.
The first thing I think is going back to college and attempting to court BBL with a different approach. There is no way I would ever go further back because then the events that led me to cross her path might change and I may never have met her. But if I did have the chance to go back whatever approach I took probly would not work. If it was meant to work it would of. She would find a way to be difficult no matter what I did. If I could go back I would definately do everything I wanted to do but didn't cause I was afraid I would lose her. If I knew I would lose her anyway the whole time, the experience would be better. There are certain deep regrets I wish I could redo.
And then I'm always wishing I could go back to last year and never have quit my job. Could play poker and work and rake in the dough. I only worked 4 days a week, I had it made. But didn't realize it at the time. But even though I wish for time travel just to change that. I still wish for time travel to change things that happenned after. Which shows that maybe I don't need to change that.
For all the wishing for time travel so I never quit my job, I find myself wishing I never left AC a few months after I quit my job. When I had that one bad week after so many good weeks, why did I leave? I was frustrated at the time, and went home. Why didn't I just get a job and stay. Everything would of been fine. If all my friends eventually do not live around here anymore, why even be around here? Mine as well just stay in AC then.
But now thats not happenning anymore cause I'm committed to running this cafe. Now I'm difenately stuck in Mahopac for a while. So now I wish I could time travel again to go back and stay in AC. But at the time I left AC I was wishing I never quit my job.
Thats why I'm doing this cafe, cause its the first time I'm sacrificing right now and trying to see into the future. I know financially it is the best thing. And I know I won't look back and wish I had did it, because I'm doing it. And if it does go really well I'm gonna be loaded.
That has to be a better decision than continuing to grind out a living whether its work or poker.
True, but why do I kinda wish I never left AC? I really loved playing everyday, playing live. I was really doing well for a while. For all the talk about leaving hometown, never seems to happen.
I just hope I feel the same way when I'm 28 as I do now, by then I hope to have the financial resources to really do what I want with poker. Like travel the entire world and go everywhere, play eveywhere, win money everywhere. Just cause AC is away from home doesn't mean your not still limiting yourself if you just stay there.
Working my ass off to get this place to be a profitable source of income or franchised, just has to be the right choice. I'm not gonna keep wishing I could go back..........

A Smart Decision

Looking back, I do not feel I have always made the best decisions through life. Though no one is perfect and not everyone has made 100% right decisions I still feel I have not made enough smart decisions and have always leaned toward instant gratification as opposed to long term well being. That's like the 400th time I have said this on this website.
I want to make a smart decision for once and go against doing what I want. What do I want to do right now? Honestly? I wanna pick up a bar tending job, go back to Atlantic City find a cheap place to live and just play poker and bar tend and play online poker. What am I going to do instead?
I'm opening a cafe in Mahopac. BROOKLYN COFFEE HOUSE, opening May 2009, stop in and have a cup of coffee. A cappuccino, espresso, anything you want. And then relax and watch the game.
Setting this place up and running it is not going to be easy, and not necessarily how I wanna spend the short time I have left before I am 30 and life is pretty much over. But its the right thing to do. If I can make this business a success it will eventually be a relentless source of income under my name that I do not necessarily have to be there 24/7 for.
And I can still play poker, and obviously I'm going to make more playing less hours. There's no way its not a smart decision to take this opportunity. I know a lot of people who would love this opportunity but they don't have it.
Eventually I can get this business up and running and to the point where I can just watch it go and more or less sit back and collect. It'd be stupid not to do it and go grind the 1,2 in AC and play online and work for someone else wherever. It'd just be plain ignorant to go back to that. I'm not gonna do that. Just gonna put all my energy into this cafe and try to make it the best it can be, and a couple of years down the line it will be a profitable establishment I can get massive income from.
I plan on eventually traveling the whole world and playing poker everywhere. This is a stepping stone to get to that. I will never get there unless I take this opportunity. If I do what I really wanna do right now I'll just be stuck working for someone else or playing poker, grinding, with a performance based job. No matter how how much I love poker and the freedom it offers it will always be performance based. I'll always have to play really good for long periods of time in order to be winner. Any slacking off will immediately set me back. I will never be able to pay people to play poker for me. I will always have to be putting the hours in to make money. I know with the right bankroll I can do it. I would go insane at times and have to take days off though. But even if I have the right bankroll, and do all that it still will always be a performance based job. A job, where I have to be there to make money. A business is different from a job, cause a business can make money for you. Yes at first I'm going to be doing more work than anyone and it will consume all life as I know it, but eventually I can reap the rewards of being head of a business. Look at it this way:

Starting from the top:

Corporation CEO: Makes decisions, collects more income than anyone below him. The work that must be done to keep business going is all done by the pawns below him. And he has the money to pay them of course cause he owns the whole corporation and get the largest share of its profits.


Business Owner: The Boss, workload varies, collects more income than anyone. Oversees the operation, can work himself to avoid paying people, or just pay people, but either way a considerable amount of work that needs to be done to keep the business going is not done by him. Collects largest share of profits.


Worker: Employed by the business. Has certain responsibilities to obtain or the business can not run. Is paid a modest share of the profits for doing their job.


Poker Player: Only gets paid when he wins.

For all the freedom it does offer, a poker player still works harder than anyone because you can't slack off at all. If your a CEO or and Owner obviously you have a lot of responsibility but compared to your income you are certainly receiving a fair deal. All the schmucks under you are what really make things go. Thats the hard work and your not doing any of it.
A worker is never going to get promoted if he or she slacks off but can easily hold a job by just doing what they are asked. Come into work, do your job, get payed. No questions asked.
Now a poker player has to give it his all day in and day out and if there any let up at all he is fucked. Imagine your first day at the job you work now. Remember how hard you worked and all the way in which you tried to impress your boss? And think of now, your still doing your job ofcourse, but have settled into a routine of sort. Maybe come in hungover at times? Maybe took it easy to get through the week at times. It don't matter, as long as you show up and do a halfway decent job your getting that paycheck.
Imagine if you had to be how you were the first day on the job for every single day of your working existence? Thats what being a poker pro is like, a sucessful one at least.

Well I'm done with that for the time being. Yeah I know with the right bankroll I can still do it, but I would evenutually burn out anyway. With this oppurtunity I can have a business set up that I can collect income from without having to perform like everyday of my life is game 7.

And I can still play poker, who says I can't. But I'm gonna play tournaments. Gonna try to play one big tourny on my one day off a week. Winning that big tournament is what first got me into poker. Seeing a kid turn his 10 grand buy in into 2 million is what got me. But I was never playing tournies, always grinding cash, making 500 a night is sweet, but its impossible to make life changing money. I gotta get into tournies. And if I lose who cares, I have a job. Before I had to play cash games because they are low risk and I needed to win for definate. They are also low reward, as best case scenario maybe you triple your buy in.
A tournament is high risk, but high reward if you make to the end. Its the only way to multiply your buy in by like 300. I'll hit one eventually.

And I'm at peace with my decision to only play poker for such a long period of time. Even though it was insane to rely solely on poker without the appropriate funds, I would not be as good as I am if I had never been so obsessed with it. Soon enough I will have my very own money tree while playing poker and be unstoppable. (Evil Villain Laugh) Whooooo ha ha ha ha Whoooo ha ha ha ha ha!!!!