Why I Love Poker

I love poker. Unfortunately, I haven't played online in a while. The site that I use did a complete overhaul of their software. Not only is the layout completely different, albeit better, but part of the overhaul meant changing their server provider. So, you had to take a "scenic route" to get the update by going to the website, re-downloading the software, and logging in using your email address instead of your screen name. Getting used to the layout was difficult, but doable, but because downloading the update was somewhat convoluted, I lost all of the lovely fishies that I could take advantage of in the sit-n-gos. I also lost my sit-n-go action, as with the launch of the new software, the only place for action at my stakes were the six-max cash game tables. Quite the opposite of my bread and butter. I'm waiting the whole thing out so that more fishies join the site again. Anyway, I digress. To celebrate my love of poker, and perhaps inspire me to get back in the game, I am watching/listening to my favorite episode of High Stakes Poker. It's Season 4, Episode 1. How can you not love the deuce-seven game?

How My Love of Poker Started

My fiance (my boyfriend at the time) first taught me how to play poker back in 2010. When I first learned, I didn't take the game too seriously. My intention was to know how to play so I could play with our friends. I had no interest in studying the game or in doing anything to improve my skill. That changed when I started watching poker on television.

Since my boyfriend/fiance and I liked poker, poker was something that both us could agree on watching. It was when I started watching tournaments, like the World Poker Tour, and saw that there were hardly any women playing. I didn't like that so few women were playing, so I decided that the only way to fix that was to take poker seriously and to do what it takes to get to the level of playing in the WPT. After all, you need to be the change that you want to see in the world, and I've loved the game ever since.

It Took Me a Little While to Get to Real Money

When I decided to get serious back in 2010, I was also scared to start playing with real money against real people. I needed to learn more and to practice more first. So, I started with a computer game playing AI called Governor of Poker 2. This actually turned out be a really great game because the plot is amazing!. The final boss is the governor of Texas, who wants to ban poker from the state. To beat the game, you need to play the governor in a heads-up Texas Hold 'Em match, best of three. If you win, then you get to become the governor of Texas and poker remains legal. I think all higher offices should be determined through heads-up poker matches.

Anyway, once I beat the game and felt more comfortable, I moved over to play money tables on Pokerstars and Full Tilt Poker. I focused only on sit-n-gos and spent my time building my "bankroll". I started with hold 'em, but I did spend some time playing eight-game sit-n-gos, which I really enjoyed and wish I could play again. But, I live in the United States and I can't use Pokerstars to play the eight-game sit-n-gos, and Pokerstars is the only site that has them. Sure, I could do the play money tables, but at this point in my poker adventures, play money is rather boring. Anyway, I built my "bankroll" and got to a point after a year or so where play money wasn't fun anymore.

Real Money is a Completely Different Beast

It really is. I joined a poker forum to post hands and to discuss strategy, although since I haven't been playing in a while, I haven't been posting much lately. The forum has helped a great deal, and offers tons of strategy articles that I still need to read. My initial goal when I started with real money was to double my deposit. The closest I got was a 50% increase, and right now I am at 20 or 25% decrease from the initial deposit. I'm down, but I still love poker. The swings are part of the game.

Las Vegas, Learning, and Other Updates

I spent five days in Las Vegas, and came back with a cold. That's the main reason why I didn't blog right when I came back. It's hard to blog when you're stuffy and having trouble sleeping.

I also came back a winner, but when you have a cold you can't enjoy the winnings right away and you can't go back to being an earner right away either. But, my cold is just about over, and I'm ready to get back to work and to blogging!

I Won in Las Vegas!

I won over $500 playing poker, and it all came from two big pots! I didn't have to do anything tricky, as all I did was play my hand. In the first big post, I got pocket queens and won the pot on the turn. In the second pot, I had Q7 suited, flopped trips, and shoved on the turn. Two people called my shove, and ended up winning when neither opponent could beat my three sevens. I understand that's not going to happen every time I sit at a table, but sometimes, all it takes is a big pot or two to change everything.

Even though I came out a winner, I didn't win all the times I played poker in Las Vegas. I tried a live poker tournament at the Quad (the old Imperial Palace), and ended up taking 12th out of 30. Nothing to complain about, but not a place that pays either. I also played a few hours in a cash game where I bought in for $200 and ended down $15. Essentially I broke even, which isn't bad either. In both sessions, I didn't get many good spots to build a big pot or to make any moves.

Learning

I've previously written about coming out of my comfort zone, and chose to learn how to drive a stick-shift as the activity to do to take myself out of my comfort zone. Finally, I've set aside time this Friday to get behind the wheel and to learn how to operate the clutch, to switch gears, and all that good stuff. I know I said that I would do this weeks ago, but it's in my schedule and I am going to get started this week. Eventually, I will know how to operate the vehicle Considering that I live in the city, I'll also be spending a lot of time learning how to parallel park. Unlike most people, I actually didn't have to parallel park to get my license.

Getting Back into the Swing of Things

Going back to the office and to work, so I'm excited to be doing all of that. One of the toughest parts about vacation is ending it and going back to what you were doing before vacation. Half of my Las Vegas winnings went to groceries (I now have food to make for lunch and to take to work), while the rest will go towards a new pair of glasses and lenses that I purchased six months ago. I could only pay for half of it then, and after all this time I have the other half of the payment to get those new frames. It's about time too. I've been needing to zoom in on every website just so I can read it from a reasonable distance. Leaning in hurts my back. I also can't see the community cards from certain seats at the poker table, which isn't too bad, as you should be watching the players when the flop comes. The cards never change once they hit the table!

And Just Like That, I'm No Longer a Night Owl

I woke up at 7 a.m. this morning, 4:30 a.m. yesterday (I had a 7:30 a.m. meeting, in my defense), and 10 a.m. the day before. I don't see myself going to bed very late tonight, so it's looks like my whole night owl phase is over. This is actually good, as I am going to Las Vegas this weekend to visit family, and I don't think my parents would appreciate it they never saw me because I was sleeping whenever they were awake. This schedule is also good because I do feel more productive and I am getting more done. This whole thing started because I had a job interview a week ago at 10 a.m., and even though I didn't get the job, I've been nervous and energized ever since then and haven't really done back to the night owl schedule. Also, this past weekend was pretty hectic since I had guests over, and you don't really want to sleep until 2 p.m. when you have guests over. You need to be awake and welcoming when you have guests.

I Didn't Get the Job :(

It was a great job, and it sucks I didn't get it, but I do think it was a blessing in disguise. I interviewed for a director of marketing position with a content marketing company, and it's a position I really shouldn't be qualified for at 25. But, I was considered qualified for the position, and even though I didn't get it, the interviewer did say that I would have done a great job in the role if I had been chosen. It's still a confidence boost and a huge testament to my skills and what I'm capable of. It's hard to get this kind of feedback when I'm self-employed, and although I'm not actively looking for a full-time position, I will consider another one if the right opportunity comes along.

However, everything will be fine. I've picked up quite a bit of new work lately, so it would have sucked to turn around and tell those people I can't do their work anymore because of the new job. Still would have liked to be director of marketing, but it's not as if I don't have anything going for me now or anything to go back to. I can keep doing what I've been doing, and I can do it knowing that I'm really good at what I do and am capable of directing the marketing of a major marketing brand.

I'm Working On My Poker Before I Go

I haven't played too much poker over the past several days because I've been focusing on my work and getting as much done as possible. It's tough to get work done when you're out of town, especially in Las Vegas. Not only are there a ton of distractions, but getting Internet in your hotel room is expensive. But, I am trying to get some poker time in before I go, as I don't want to go to the table and have the last time I played be over a week ago. One thing I am working on is getting comfortable quickly when I am outside of my comfort zone. Part of the reason why it was so tough to play live back in March was that I as out of my comfort zone and second guessing myself sometimes. I know I am a better player than I was in March, so I think I will do better this time around. I won't let any of the regulars scare me this time!

3 Things I Could Do to Come Out of My Comfort Zone

In a previous post, I discussed how I was supposed to do something that takes me out of my comfort zone. I did that something, but felt like I could have done something more or better. I still feel that way, but I haven't taken any time since then to think about the risk I should take. So, I'm taking that time now, and like with my to-learn list, I'm going to commit to one of them and come up with a short action plan to take this risk. Below are a few ideas:

Learn to Drive Stick with My Fiance

I hate driving. I really hate driving. I hate driving more than cleaning up my cat's poop. My fiance has offered several times to teach me how to drive stick so that I can use his car when I need it. I haven't taken him up on the offer because I hate driving. If I learn how to drive stick, then going to the bank wouldn't be such a hassle. It would also be easier to get to new coffee shops and to review them.

Work at the Library

I got to the library regularly, but only to borrow books. I've never actually gone there to spend a few hours getting some work done. This would be something new for me, and would be out of my comfort zone because I'm afraid the library might be too quiet. When it's too quiet, research has shown that it's not good for creativity and concentration. The library is probably not that quiet, but it's worth a shot to work here, especially since I don't have to buy anything to stay awhile.

Organize a Private Screening of Half the Sky

As a Half the Sky Ambassador, one of the things that I'm supposed to do is organize a screening of the movie. I'm in the middle of doing that now with the St. Louis chapter of Young Ambassadors for Opportunity, but I do need to do a screening on my own. I think I could do a private screening with a few friends, or with my old business coach and a few others from that network. Or, I could break the mold even more and do a public screening.

What I'm Going to Do to Come Out of My Comfort Zone

I think I'm going to do the first one: Learn to Drive Stick with My Fiance. I think it's the one that I need to do the most, and at least with this one I get to do it with someone. Once I get used to driving stick, then perhaps the next thing to do to come out of my comfort zone is to drive to the office or to drive out to the county to review a coffee shop. Or, I could drive somewhere at night. I haven't driven at night for a really long time.

I've Completed One of My September Goals!

Now that I've gotten through the tough stuff, let's talk about the fun stuff. Last week, I made a list of my September goals. I've made progress on some of the, but I actually completed one of them: I have over $100 in my poker bankroll! I've moved up in stakes and it's a wonderful feeling. Creating those charts has helped, and I've made one per day for the past few days. I think I only have one left, and I still haven't created a chart today, so once I finish this chart I can continue reading Harrington on Hold 'Em. It's awesome to accomplish goals.

Setting My September Goals

I know it's a bit late to do this, but better late than never. Part of what it means to be awesome is to set goals, to create action plans to meet those goals, and then actually meet those goals. I'm going to set myself for awesomeness for the rest of the month, and eventually the year, by setting a few goals for the latter half of the month. These aren't the most ambitious goals in the world, but I also need goals that I can meet in two week's time.

Finish My DMV Appointment Articles

I have 52 articles left of the 102 articles that I need to complete. I want to get this done by the end of the month so I can invoice my client for the next set of articles. This set is taking longer than expected since I don't have the hired help to get them done. The articles aren't hard, just a little tedious since there's a fair amount of research and fact-checking that needs to go into each article. I'm putting it here as my top goal, and telling the world that this is what I'm going to do, so that I stop putting off these articles and start getting them done.

Finish Harrington on Hold 'Em

I haven't touched this book much since I last wrote about reading this. I'm stuck in the chapter on starting hand ranges, and my plan was to make a set of charts that I can refer to as I am playing poker. I've only made one chart, and I actually made it wrong, and ever since then I haven't touched the books or the charts. I really ought to get back to the book, since I think these charts and memorizing these starting hand ranges would improve my game and better ensure that I put myself in a good position when I decide to play a hand.

On a side note, I have already finished one book on my list of books to read this fall (I could have added a few more to this list, actually). Working on my second!

Have $100 in My Poker Bankroll

I am so close to meeting this goal! I currently have $91 and change, and if I reach $100, then I will have broken even with my original deposit. It's only up from there, as once I reach the $100 I can move up a buy-in level. Then, I can work my way up to doubling my money. Completing my second goal on this list will increase my chances of making this goal.

Answer 5 Questions for International Political Forum

So far, I've only answered one question about the Prime Minister and the Syrian conflict, with research started to answer questions about changes to the food stamp program and the welfare system. I need to get those up before they become outdated. This goal is doable, since I'm already 20% there, with two more questions in the works. I'm going to make it a mini goal to get both of those questions up this weekend. This would put me 60% toward my goal, making the other 20% that much easier to do in two week's time.

I'm Back into Playing Poker

And Other Things that Are Happening This Week

I feel like I don't have one big thing to talk about today, but several little things. As I write this and prepare to do this blog post as a weekly roundup, I also feel like this post will also end up as one big post about how a lot has happened this week and there's no way I can talk about just one single thing. I think all those previous words are just a long-winded way of saying I am very crazy.

About the Poker

I have played four nine-top sit-n-gos over the past week. I have made the money in three of them, and in all four of them, I got my money in with the best hand only be to be outdrawn by my opponent. It happens. It's only a matter of time before my hand holds up and that I win a sit-n-go. I've won them before, don't get me wrong. It's just that the trend for me lately has been to do real well, only to lose it all (or most of it) in one key hand where my opponent gets there by the river. It's really the reason why I haven't taken a first place yet. I haven't made any huge mistakes. I will play three more sit-n-gos tomorrow and see if this changes.

I Need a Dining Table

My next quest for SuperBetter is to commit to eating at a table for the next two days. No eating in front of the television. No eating in front of the computer. No eating in the car (although I don't have a car so I can't ever do this). I'm supposed to help myself by making this table more inviting. The only problem is that I don't own such a table, unless I want to eat outside in the summer heat, quite possibly with Oden.

There is some decent patio furniture on our porch that was here when we moved in, which I could theoretically clean up, move into the apartment, and use as a dining table. The only problem with that is that I don't have anywhere to put it. There's no room for it. I might have room for it in my office if I didn't have half an l-shaped desk (kind of a long story on that one). There's also no place to make more inviting as each room has a computer and/or television. I could eat in the bedroom, but that's kind of awkward. I don't know what I'm going to do for this quest.

Two More Days Until I Can Redeem Points for Video Games!

I am so excited! I really want to get Rogue Legacy, and I saw on Steam that there is a Grand Theft Auto pack that has four or five of the Grand Theft Auto games! I have a $30 budget for the video games, and those two things might take up the whole budget. That's okay though, because that will be five or six new games that I can play, and that's plenty to keep me occupied. I've been really productive this week too, earning about 12 points each day. This will put me in a good position to continue for my file cabinet after I redeem the points. I think I'll break even once the week is over, the points are tallied, and I redeem the 60 points needed to purchase video games. I might even be about 10 points ahead of last week. I'll take it for the sake of a few new games, especially since Rogue Legacy and Grand Theft Auto are awesome!

I am Back at Lab1500!

After almost a two-month hiatus, changing the direction of my business, giving my laptop a bath, and accommodating my night owl habits, I'm finally back in Lab1500 working again! It's so nice to be back in downtown St. Louis, typing away at my favorite table and getting more things done than ever before. I get lots more done here than I do at home, and that is still the case today as it was in the beginning of the year when I first joined Lab1500. This is exciting because, as of yesterday, I was one-third of the way to my file cabinet (which I understand costs, like $25, if I know where to look, but the point is to work for it so it's a huge achievement and my home office is that much better when I finally get it). At this rate, I'll have that file cabinet in another month. Perhaps I'll be able to get a bookshelf or a dresser too.

Being SuperBetter is Super Amazing

It's only been one day of me playing SuperBetter, and I'm already having a blast and feeling extra motivated to do everything! It' so easy to get caught up doing quests, using power ups, and killing the bad guys. I also love how all this can be incorporated into my day and into my own Inferno of Productivity game. I get a point when I complete my SuperBetter quests for the day, and what I plan to do over the next few weeks and months is incorporate other goals and tasks into SuperBetter i.e. poker goals, business goals etc. In SuperBetter, you can create your own Power Packs, with its own set of bad guys, power ups, and quests. It would be really cool if I could eventually do this with my own goals, and then write blog posts on how to set these up so others can do them as well. It's exciting because I am essentially talking about a game, but I am also talking about building identity capital and helping others. It would also be really neat to create a Power Pack that works in conjunction with one of Stirring Media's digital content sites. I don't see how coffee would work for this, unless a lot of people really want to increase their daily coffee intake, but it's a good vision nonetheless.

I Want to Play Poker Tonight

Because I am burning in my inferno of productivity (Completing this blog posts puts me at 1o points for the day! And it's only 4 p.m.! I am amazing!), I do believe I will play poker once I get home and have my dinner. I will play at least three sit-n-gos at the smallest stakes, since I haven't played in a while. I played one over the weekend, and I won that, but I did get lucky in a few spots. I don't see it as too much indication of my skill level.

I'm making it a point to get back into playing again and to go for some of those items on my life goals/bucket list because two women have won an open event at the World Series of Poker, and I AM NOT ONE OF THEM! Too much time is passing with me wishing I was playing more poker and being more awesome and winning tournaments. Spending too much time wishing and dreaming, and not enough time making it happen. I need to change this, and then create a Power Pack for this so I can add it to my SuperBetter.

In the meantime, I will try to make it 11 points.

Back on Track

I woke up today and committed to making today a productive, awesome day. I committed to making today a great day and to getting things done. Not only did I accomplish that, but I also found a dollar bill this morning on my way to the bus stop. It's the second dollar bill I've found in a three-day period. I hope I find more money on the sidewalk within the next few days, the next one being a 10 or a 20. You know it's going to be a good day when you find money on the ground, especially when the ground is covered in snow.

However, I'm Nervous

I applied for an Arch Grant about two months ago, and today is the day when they are notifying who moves on to the next round. Haven't heard anything yet, although they announced on Twitter three hours ago that the notifications will go out by the end of the day. It's less than an hour until the end of the day and I haven't heard anything. What's considered the end of the day? I'm nervous because if I don't get the grant, I will start on my project that I hoped to fund through the grant. If I do move on, then I will do the next round and go through the waiting game once more. Getting this grant will be huge, but I think my idea is even better, and I will want to make the idea a priority. However, I don't want to start on it if I do move to the next round. When will I hear something? Eeek!

Other Than That...

Today was a committed and productive day, and I will continue this by playing poker tonight (or maybe game night with the neighbors, as they haven't said anything yet). I played a SNG yesterday and lost, but I was incredibly spaced out. Before I knew it, I only had 2/3 of my original chip stack, and it felt like I hadn't played any hands or made any bad moves. I had no idea where the money went. Alas, I will play again tonight. It will be fun, and I will make the best decisions possible.

Poker, Poker, Poker

I need to practice for my Las Vegas trip, which is less than month away. I am super excited to go! I can't wait. I have this trip to look forward to as well as the Heartland Poker Tour in April. On Pokertube, they have videos of two separate HPT final tables. I plan to watch that to get a glimpse of how tough the competition is that these HPT events. I'm excited, and nervous. I feel my awesomeness exponentially growing. I want to be featured on Pokertube because that would be the coolest thing ever. I would be a semi Internet star. Also, if I happen to win big over the next few months, I could maybe make it out to the World Series of Poker to play one tournament or two. I want to play in the WSOP so bad, even though 2014 is probably when I'll make my first appearance. I need to win super huge to be able to play this year, even though a couple of events have a $1000 buy-in.

Finishing Up

I need to hurry and to finish this post because I want to catch the 5 p.m. bus. I was hoping to catch the 4:30 p.m. bus, but I took too long thinking of something to write about and then I got distracted with the Arch Grant announcement. I keep hitting refresh, hoping to see the notification, but a watched pot never boils. It'll probably come in while I'm on the bus, and then I'll get home and completely forget about it. Then, I won't see it until tomorrow morning or something. Why wouldn't it happen that way? It's usually how these sorts of things go.

Today Isn't My Poker Day

But I Wish it Was

I'm not tired yet, and Sean has already gone to bed. I want to play poker, maybe a tournament or a sit-n-go or two, but I don't want to be up too late as I have to do work tomorrow. My poker days are usually Thursday, Friday, and Sunday because that's when I've scheduled my poker. It's weird, I know, but I pretty much fill my schedule a week in advance. My computer has also been weird today, as my desktop hasn't been refreshing on its own when I move/rename files, and my Google Chrome has had trouble all day loading new tabs. I did have trouble over the weekend with a horrible server connection, although I can't blame that one on my computer. Perhaps this is a classic case of, "one thousand reasons not to do something." But, perhaps some of those one thousand reasons are reasons I should strongly consider.

Bad Run This Weekend

Yes, indeed. It felt like I was getting outdrawn every single time. It's just one of those runs! There were a couple of misplayed hands, I admit, but as a whole things were just unfortunate with me having the best hand pre-flop and then getting outflopped or the villain hitting their card on the turn or river. It really sucks, but it's poker, and the trick is determining when you are running bad or just playing bad. Sometimes, if you're not careful, running bad can turn into playing bad. I feel like this particular time was a little bit of both. I also admit that prior to this run bad I did have a streak of run good. I won a tournament two weeks ago, and won about four heads-up matches in a row. You don't do that if you're not playing well, but you also need a little luck on your side to do that too.

I will Be Going to Vegas in March!

I am excited to get some live experience in, finally! I'll be staying at the Orleans, so I at least know I'm going to play one tournament in their poker room. First prize is usually around $6500 for their 7 p.m. $125 buy in. OMG that would be amazing if I was able to win that. Depending on how I do in my first few attempts (hopefully I can win something at least once), I can play tournaments at some of the other casinos, such as the Rio, the Venetian, the Aria, or the Bellagio. Okay, maybe not Bellagio, because I just checked their buy-ins and their cheapest buy-in is like $250. Granted, I'll certainly have that if I win one at the Orleans, but I don't know if I'd be ready for a $250 buy-in yet. Anyway, I'm looking forward to the trip.

Until Then...

However, it's not March yet, so I am left practicing online. I should make it a point to go to a local casino and play in a tournament, at least once before I go. That way, I'm not going to Las Vegas completely inexperienced. My business coach also suggested that I find a poker coach, so I need to do that too. I did a quick Google search and I didn't like what appeared on the first page. I'm not sure if I want to go through a poker coach directory, and I certainly don't want to go through a poker coaching site. My coach also suggested that I find a live coach, not someone who will coach online. I'm not sure what to do here. Maybe if I make an awesome run for it, someone will volunteer to coach me.

What a Week!

Actually, the phrase should be, "What a Past Few Weeks!" I've been MIA on the blogging for two weeks now, where in that time I've turned 25, have quite possibly put my business on track to double last year's revenue (is it big shot to be able to say that February), and won my first online poker tournament (okay, it as a $15 win, but I bested anywhere between 164 and 324 people, which is an accomplishment no matter what the final prize is). I stopped blogging because I was really tired after hard week, too tired to write anything. I've started up again because a friend said that my blogging was amazing and wanted me to continue blogging. So, with a two week hiatus (which will be factored into the quarterly blogging analysis), I will restart this blogging case study of mine. I have one loyal reader out there, and that's good enough for something.

Not Without Hiccups

Of course, these past two weeks haven't been without their share of problems, even with the good things that are happening. I have a client who was trying to backup his Wordpress site, and now nothing happens when you want to add a photo, or change the publication date, or fix the widgets, or add tags to a post (can anyone tell me how to backup a Wordpress site and whether its worthwhile. I would think investing in Wordpress security is a better option, but oh well.) This started two days ago and it's still not working, which means there's not much I can do with it.

The Internet has improved at the coworking space, but it has been a bit choppy this afternoon. Watching video is still difficult, which makes me sad because I can't watch live poker when I eat lunch. Nothing like Monday or last week, but it's still no one hundred percent. I think the space got its own network yesterday, which should be fully functional tomorrow. Hopefully.

Managing Your Online Reputation

I also earned the ire of an "investigative blogger", who wrote a disparaging article about my company and how we provide awful advice to citizen bloggers regarding the first amendment. Fortunately, that's all that's happened, since this particular person has previous history of buying domain names and writing all sorts to stuff to trash your online reputation. It's also fortunate that both me and my company have maintained a strong online reputation, where one post isn't going to ruin our search engine results. I want to be as vague as possible about this, because this person hasn't made the connection between me and my company, and the last thing I want is an online cat fight or to have to defend myself against really odd claims. However, the article can be found on page two of results when you search for "Stirring Media, LLC", if you are interested in a laugh or some weird insight into the crazy world of online reputation management.

But, as the saying goes, "if they're shooting at you, you must be doing something right."

I'm Blogging Again, I Promise

This isn't some weird fluke to entertain a friend and this isn't some stupid "update post" where I apologize for not blogging for two weeks only to not blog for two more months and then apologize again in two months. I'm back in the swing of things, with good ideas to discuss! Tomorrow, I'm going to go over building a personal brand and answer a few questions to build my own personal brand (will do the same with my company's branding, but will answer completely different questions). This weekend is Mardi Gras in St. Louis, and I might have a few things to say about that (not sure if I'm going or not). I'll also do some blogging from Las Vegas, when I go in about a month. Plan to play a whole bunch of poker tournaments in the casinos. Crossing my fingers I can announce a few cashes!

The past two weeks may have been hectic, but I'm looking forward to the next two months, that's for sure!