Random Thoughts

Blogging -

Life has been hectic, so I haven't really been able to blog much. Even so, it's been normal life things, and not necessarily blog-worthy. This will attempt to be a catch-all on all of the other things going on right now.

Christmas -

I spent the entire holiday sick with pneumonia/bronchitis. Fortunately my girlfriend was there to take care of me most of the time. Even so, it was miserable. It was a fun time with Abby though, as this being her third Christmas, she was really into the Santa thing.

Birthday's -

With Abby's birthday only 3 days before mine, I become much more excited for her birthday and much less excited for my own. It was also the first time since I was 18 that I don't recall going to a bar to celebrate with all of my friends, as I have a ton of friends with birthday's right around my own. The joys of getting older I guess.

Other Abby -

Me and her mom signed her up for her first extra-curricular activity, pre-school ballet. She was so excited to go, with her ballet slippers and leotard and tights. The only ones more excited then her were me and her mom, to be able to watch her. Unfortunately they made parents leave the room. I can understand the logic of not having parents around 10-15 children under 5 years old, but I was incredibly disappointed. She has since demonstrated her ballet to me. But she seems to love it, and her second class is this week.

Otherwise, she keeps getting funnier with age. Some of the things she says or does literally amazes me. I just got her a computer game, and she is getting very adept at handling the mouse. She may be a budding online poker star in the making!!!

Fantasy Football -

In the league that me and Paul were winning, we got beat by 6 pts in the last few minutes of the last game, a very painful way to lose. We got 2K back for 2nd, but a big drop off from the 6K....meaning that I came very close to breaking even on fantasy this season.

Both Paul and I are toying with ditching the WCOFF and joining the NFFC this year. There are a few issues we are concerned with...reducing the juice we pay, and the WCOFF's overall handling of rules interpretations and customer service have left a lot to be desired.

Poker -

I was starting to really allow all of the beats that occur in SNG play to affect me, and it was likely affecting my play in a negative manner as well. I was having way too many bubble type finishes.

Since then, I have been playing limit cash games exclusively, primarily the 5/10 and 10/20 on Pokerstars. There are essentially 3 types of players in that game. The loose passive ones that you just have to value bet to death. They are unbluffable, but generally a consistent cash machine. There are the maniacal aggressive ones, that you sometimes find yourself calling down with Queen high. They are highly profitable, but their style of play results in huge positive/negative swings. The third one is the tough aggressive player, of which I like to think I am a part of.

I played in a home game with some buddies the other day. My friend Dan said that I taught my girlfriend well...maybe too well, as she beat me in game 1 heads-up. I got redemption by winning the 2nd game, with her finishing 3rd. She has a very good game, and is at the next and most difficult part of becoming a tough winning player, and that's finding the balance between playing too tight or too loose. At this point she plays too tight, which is good enough to win against bad or average players. But better players will be able to exploit this. I think she'll be able to do it though, as she hasn't been playing the game all that long.

Legislation -

What a topic, this could take pages and pages. I'll just make it very short and sweet. The government is a bunch of hypocritical assholes, who try to tell us that I can't gamble online, but I am free to go gamble my life savings away on Horse Racing, state lottery or state casinos. If they would be honest about why they are doing this it would be much more tolerable (and even understandable). But to do it under the guise of saving us is disgusting.

The funny thing is that all of this work they have done, as far as blocking financing, may cost most of the people with money online, as some of these operations may hit and run and steal customers money, that pre-legislation would have been safe as hell.

Television -

I've been in a television lull lately, as a few shows have been on hiatus. Currently I only watch "The Office", "Lost", "Survivor", "CSI - Las Vegas" and "Desperate Housewives" (for the girlfriend!!!). In the meantime, I have been watching Season 1 of Lost. I wish I had watched this show earlier, as the beginning episodes are great. I'm not sure how I feel about the direction the plot has taken in Season 3. Some of it is good (The Others) and some of it is bad (the supernatural black cloud). I am starting to believe that they are trying too hard.

Survivor is starting again in February. I kinda wish I could stop watching this show, but I keep coming back over and over again.

I have a list of shows I'd like to watch at some point. I'd like to see Season 1 of "The Office", Season 2 of "Lost", and then watch all of the seasons of "24". That should cover me for the next year or so.

Golf Trip -

My golf trip is a little more than 3 weeks away. We (Greg and Jim as Dan bailed this year to have another baby) are going to Las Vegas this time. Me and Greg have gone every year, the trips have been to Pinehurst, Pinehurst, Myrtle Beach, Orlando, Phoenix, Orlando, and now Vegas. I especially love playing out west. There is something serene about being at the base of a mountain, overlooking most of the city. Amazingly it wasn't my idea to go there, though I suggested it. Greg and Jim are going on a "romantic" getaway to San Diego after I leave, so that was one of the highlights of this destination. We will not be at a shortage for things to do, or poker to play either.

Sonny will be our 4th on most days (you can see him at the link on the right, knocking out TJ Cloutier from the WSOP). That was another selling point of going out there.

I should probably go to the range once or twice, to make sure my game is in shape for the desert golf.