A-F

Wise Words from Bart Simpson

"Women are easy... state capitals are hard"

Seven

burst through the vaginal canal
stand your ground on the playground
find yourself
backpack through Europe
meet that special person
be what you want
create what you love
bestow your wisdom unto others
leave a legacy
fade with grace

Update

Well we busted in the first round with a final score of 6-3. I pitched half the game and a few runs scored off a couple errors. Our team was missing some of our better players, but we were outmatched a good bit at the tournament in general. I guess we just dominated the easiest division around town and aren't very competitive in the big city. Oh well.

Sunday

Today is the big Atlanta kickball tournament. The best from the state come to play in a 16 team bracket and the winner gets to go on to nationals in Las Vegas. Word is I will be pitching every inning every game. We are the number one seed going in...

It's Not that I'm Not Playing Good...

Longest winning streak, most profitable month, largest bee beard. This constant desire to break records is a recurring problem of mine. It's not like this is some arcade game where the goal is the beat the high score; I literally gamble away tons of money like a dumb ass trying to break my own meaningless record books. I hate my job

u...u
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a...a
d...d
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r...r
u...u
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Words

So the guy who does our roster decided to put me in outfield for the whole kickball tournament despite my 0.0 ERA over 15 innings of regular season play. I was pretty bitter about it, but we won the tournament and will most likely be the number one seed going into the state tournament this Sunday. On a brighter side of things I really feel back in a groove with poker. I've been consistently winning at the biggest regular no limit cash games on full tilt and stars. Considering less than a year ago I had to be backed and at one point was grinding out 1/2nl this feels like quite an accomplishment. It's been about two years since my last high water mark with my bankroll. With another good month or two I'll finally be back.

HH

u.rba.nd.b8.88 posts the small blind of $25
RAZ...IT..U.P2.00.7 posts the big blind of $50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to gamblegambel [Ac 7d]
dm.oo.ng...irl folds
c.ap.it...a..n.o poker folds
R.oc.k.e...t.M.an244 folds
gamblegambel raises to $115
ur.b.an.d..b.8.8.8 folds
R.AZ.I...TU.P2.007 has 15 seconds left to act
R.AZ.IT.U.P..2.0.07 calls $65
*** FLOP *** [Qc Ah 3c]
R.AZ.IT.U.P.2..007 checks
gamblegambel bets $185
RA.ZI.T.U...P2007 has 15 seconds left to act
RAZ.IT.U.P2.0..07 raises to $370 would expect him to 3bet AA KK AK AQ ~AJ pre
gamblegambel has 15 seconds left to act
gamblegambel has requested TIME
gamblegambel calls $185
*** TURN *** [Qc Ah 3c] [Qs]
RA.ZIT.U.P.2...0.07 has 15 seconds left to act
R..AZI..TUP..200..7 bets $500 and just flat call QK QJ QT Q9 on flop
gamblegambel has 15 seconds left to act
gamblegambel calls $500
*** RIVER *** [Qc Ah 3c Qs] [7s]
RA.Z.I.T..U.P.2.0..07 bets $515, and is capped and run all green lights with air
gamblegambel calls $515, and is capped
*** SHOW DOWN ***
RA.Z.I.T.UP.2.0.0.7 shows [9h 8d] a pair of Queens
gamblegambel shows [Ac 7d] two pair, Aces and Queens
gamblegambel wins the pot ($3,022) with two pair, Aces and Queens

Weekend Sports

My divisional kickball tournament is tomorrow. Our team is the number one seed going in and bearing no bad beats we should easily be on our way to state. During the season my pitching didn't have as much as an impact as I had envisioned. It's nearly impossible to get strikeouts, but I have had a foul out or two (4 fouls and you're out). I guess I just need to work harder on my curve ball.

By a Thread

I am a shitty professional gambler. My work ethic and self discipline are terrible. If I was in any other career right now I would have been fired years ago. I only manage to get by on my intellect and good fortune. I am a bit of a joke of human being. I've had some lame jobs before: thrift store, tire changer, and a delivery man. And come to think of it I pushed the limits of getting fired at all three on a regular basis. I'd take extra long lunch breaks, disrespect my boss, and sleep in the truck on the clock while claiming I was stuck in traffic. I guess I just enjoy barely getting by in life with doing as little as possible.

School in Session

Many people in academia say in order to really understand something you need to teach it. Well tonight I gave my gf her first poker lesson. It's hard to decide where to start. When most beginners ask me how to learn the game I usually just tell them to play for fake money. A good portion of the game is similar to riding a bike; you can only really learn by doing. Maybe it was just the short stacker in me, but I began with pre flop fundamentals. It has always been a weakness of mine that I stumble with teaching rudimentary mathematical ideas. Within an hour I was trying to teach her to check raise flops with air and float. Maybe part of the beauty of the game is its difficulty to teach makes it so tricky to master.

Poker Talk

I've been giving much thought lately to the old adage of "sending a message". In other words: doing a play that is somewhat out of the ordinary in order to let your opponent know you aren't going to take it like a vag. This of course isn't restricted just to poker. For example, in football with a 35 point lead with 4 minutes left you might leave in all your starters and go deep just to try and run up the score [Cassel can figure out the game later] or in politics you might get some pawn to claim your opponent pals around with terrorists. A standard poker example might be you are playing in a 25 50 cap no limit game and you raise with A2s to 125 on the button and the big blind 3bets you to 375. A jam for 1500 every time will unquestionably be a a poor play against any decent opponent. But is it a good idea to occasionally send a message and 4bet that jerk face? The interesting thing about pre flop poker in the modern era of statistical analysis programs is that if you know someones exact range more or less you can always make the correct decision when facing an all in. So can showing someone you are capable of straying far from the expected range be a profitable play and how far can lines be pushed to play optimally? From a purely mathematical standpoint an opponent can really narrow down on your exact reship range and tear apart any sloppy plays in the long run. But there are some other factors in play. Psychologically if an opponent knows you are capable of reshipping in light and they are slightly on tilt, you might not be too surprised to see them show up with a slightly negative EV call at times when they know they should be folding; in an attempt to chase loses or to fulfill that gambling addiction they constantly try to subdue. Also timing is a pretty big factor. If you are a starting out a new session and are totally card dead, an opponent might think you are playing a tighter game this session and favor a slightly tighter calling range to your 4bets. You also have to be careful of the reverse table image tell. You can relevel them by knowing they know you know its a good time to 4bet and sticking to the original game plan. So I guess in conclusion when in doubt, click your time bank, and reread this post.

Graph

Super Fun Game Time

Try and find the night were I was on tilt:

I Hate My Job #46

Short

With dripping wet hands, it was the broken brown paper towel dispenser that really got me on tilt. It would be nice if it wasn't the little things that set me off. It can get rather tricky to figure out what's really going wrong in life when the big problems get bottled and ignored and only the little things set you off. As a child I use to catch lightening bugs in mason jars. I didn't understand at the time that it was the lack of air holes that left them for dead every morning. Maybe if I could just suffocate my fundamental short comings the little things wouldn't set me off. I started carving a wooden sculpture a few months ago. The project began as a canoe, but I really don't like canoeing much so I am salvaging what's left into an abstract work of art. I honestly don't care for abstract art. There are too many beautiful and magical things on earth to mimic, but I had trouble seeing anything but a canoe every time I looked at that old log. My creativity and prostate are growing inversely proportional. I'd like to be able to look over my shoulder one day and enjoy the sight. It's just the little things that really set me off.

News Flash!

Apparently cap poker is deep enough to tilt off stacks

Update

I facking hate coin flips

Gone Fishing

It's a bit mystical, but it seems like setting goals really helps my poker game excel. It's nearly superstitious in a way. Why should it matter if I say I want to make 5k or 100k or -10k next month; regardless the cards are going to fall how they are going to fall. Yet without any faux finish line it becomes so easy to get lost in the this sea of ups and downs and wild swings. The money can become very meaningless, the objectives can turn hazy and the undercurrent can take you down if you aren't careful.