Politics, Poker, and... What Else Is There?

At first, I was going to write this after the State of the Union address and include my thoughts about that. However, I plan to play the State of the Union drinking game, and so I don't want to risk indefinite publication of whatever thoughts will come out (relevant to the speech or otherwise). I also don't think blogging while intoxicated is against my blogging case study rules, but I have no idea what sort of things I would type, so I'm going to avoid the shame and embarrassment. I also have no interest in the pre-speech coverage, as there are better things to cover and we don't need two plus hours of coverage, so I suppose I have nothing good to say about the speech now and will have nothing good to say about it later on tonight or tomorrow.

My my, Isn't My Intelligence Progressing Forward?

Probably not, but it's not like I'm not trying either.Tonight is also the premier of the PBS Frontline on the fiscal cliff, so I do plan to watch that afterward (PBS is good about posting their episodes like the minute after it ends on the air). I can guarantee that I'll learn anything new about the fiscal cliff, but I'm sure it'll be a much more accurate presentation of the whole thing than what we've been getting through cable news and other news outlets. Has that whole thing even been averted? I don't remember.

Okay, I'm Easily Distracted

There's also those documentaries I need to watch. I haven't watched documentaries in a long time, since I've been preoccupied watching Netflix's new original series (way dramatic and intense, characters and relationships are weird and therefore intriguing, worth watching) and all sorts of poker reruns and interviews. They're live-streaming major tournaments on PokerTube, and they're really great to watch since the action isn't edited to a few select hands and the commentary is insightful and can actually help you in how to think about hands. Granted, it's only great if you're into poker the way I am. Granting that it's currently WPT season, and that WSOP season starts in June, I'm not watching another documentary until August or September. Then, I have a month or two window until the WSOP main event final table, which will be 14+ hours of glorious poker. After that, I have another three months or so until this cycle starts all over again. Hopefully by then, I'm part of the cycle instead of just watching it.

Politics, Poker, and... What Else Is There?

I feel like this sort of combination and attitude makes me something real special. I suppose if anything, it makes me someone who likes things that start with the letter, 'P', although pickles and pork are out. Pickled mango and pork barrel legislation are totally in, however. Pocket pairs and Pokemon are, of course, wonderful. I hoped to end my title with one more thing that starts with a 'P', but I couldn't think of one that wasn't random or something that I couldn't nicely discuss in a paragraph. I do like paragraphs, but they are no fun for the most part.

I'm kind of waiting around for a client to call back. Not sure if he will or not. Essentially, his website is broken from the back-end and there's nothing I can do to update it, fix it, or to diagnose what's wrong. Whatever the case may be, I'm catching the 5:35 p.m. bus home, because I've finished all my work for the day and I'm hungry, so I want to go home and eat dinner. I have no idea what I'm going to eat. I need more recipes.

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.

The 801 Books that I am Reading

Okay, it's not quite 801, but it certainly feels that way because I am trying to read more than one book at this time and reading more than one book at a time is very difficult. I accomplished once when I was 16, but all three books were fiction and I could blast through them fairly quickly. Considering that the books that I am reading now are all non-fiction, it's not quite the blast through that I would like. I also don't have the time that I used to have when I was 16 (who does, right?). Anyway, here's a list of those many books that I am reading. Maybe writing about them will get me a bit more excited about reading them.

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide

I actually read this book a few years ago, but I need to read it again for my Amnesty International chapter's book club reading. It's a powerful book about women's rights and what can be done to improve the position of women in societies around the world. You read this book, and your first world problems seem trivial and that you shouldn't even be complaining in the first place. I am excited to read it again.

Yes, the book now has two accompanying documentaries, and I've seen those too. They aren't a replacement for reading the book, but a nice supplement since they cover the same topics but do not discuss the same, exact stories.

How to Beat Sit-&-Go Poker Tournaments: A No-Limit Hold'em Guide to Beating Sit-&-Gos

Almost done with this one! It's an easy read, and I have learned a thing or two about playing SnGs. However, the book is a bit elementary, and I want to move on to poker books that have recommended and recommended over and over, poker books that folks have said have changed and have really improved how they played. Although this book I'm ready has helped, it's not in that category.

Of course, once I finish this book I have to move on to numerous other poker books, those highly recommended poker books I mentioned. They include (but aren't limited to):

• Harrington on Hold 'Em, Volume 1: Expert Strategy for No Limit Tournaments: Strategic Play
• Harrington on Hold 'em: Expert Strategy for No-Limit Tournaments; Volume II: The Endgame
• Caro's Book of Poker Tells: The Psychology and Body Language of Poker by Mike Caro
• Internet Texas Hold'em: Winning Strategies from an Internet Pro by Matthew Hilger

Food, Inc.: How Industrial Food is Making us Sicker, Fatter and Poorer - and What You Can do About It

This book a companion to the documentary by the same name (which is really, really good, by the way). I've gotten interested in food recently since I went vegan about six weeks ago (I think I've lost about 10 pounds, just by eating differently). So far, I've watched other documentaries and have read vegan cookbooks and what not about what foods to eat and why they are better and what's going on with the food sold in restaurants and supermarkets. I want to read this book, and to watch the documentary again, to continue educating myself about food and the food industry/

More on the Way

Yes, I am adding even more to this list. My business coach wants me to get started on reading the two content marketing books I said I would read by the end of March. I've chosen my two, and once they are available at the public library, and I need to get on reading those. I tend to get though books on topics like the media and marketing really quickly, since I am very interested in the topic and I find these topics the most relevant to me.

Okay, I need to get to my reading.

The Notebook of Interesting Topics & Poker Troubles

I was worried that I wouldn't get around to writing this piece, but "technical difficulties" have taken place on the poker site I use, and my tournament has been paused for at least the past 15 minutes. I played one hand and then got booted from the servers. When I was finally able to get reconnected, the lobby wasn't showing me any available tournaments, ring games, or sit and go's. I was able to take my seat again 15 minutes ago, when the tournament was paused and site announced that all tournaments have been paused to address issues. Have no idea how long this is going to take.

So... that Notebook

In the summer of 2009, I put together a notebook of interesting topics. All of these topics were taken from Helium.com, of which I had written a few articles for way back when, and it was my intention to write on these topics for the website. These topics covered a wide range of subjects, from African cultures to chemistry, from Islam to ecology and environment. I never did get around to writing on any of these things for the site (I wasn't going to get paid anyway), and for most of them I couldn't tell you what the topic is or why I found it interesting four years ago.

I do need to go through them and decide which ones I'm still interesting in writing on, and get them on that editorial calendar. No, I didn't get around to scheduling more ideas, or even coming up with them. This notebook of weird and interesting topics should help. Helium has also completely redesigned their site and how people create content, so it's not the easy minefield for topics that it used to be. Maybe I can do that now, since I have an indefinite wait for my tournament to restart, and perhaps I could win this one by having the luxury and willpower to wait it out while everyone else considers it a loss and does something else. I admit, I'm afraid I'm going to miss that it restarts, and then I end up folding pocket aces and kicking myself for doing something else with my time.

Or not...

First, the site says that all tournaments are cancelled and that remaining players will be paid out according to the policy. Okay, great. I at least will get my buy-in back. Then, I go back to the table and I'm being dealt a hand. Don't get me wrong, because I'll play. It's just now weird and confusing. The tournament is now on its hourly five-minute break.

Scratch that..

After the tournament went on break, it officially got cancelled and the site said that the tournament will be paid out according to the cancellation policy. It took a quick Google search, since I couldn't find anything on the site's own website (they could use a good marketing agency, hint hint nudge nudge), to find their cancellation policy, and here it is:

50/50 Tournament Policy

If a tournament is canceled before the money, we will try to compensate all remaining players based on their play up to the time of the cancellation. This is best achieved by awarding 50% of the prize pool to all remaining players and the other 50% of the prize pool will be awarded proportionately based on each player's chip count. All remaining players will also receive a refund of their entry fee. Any player who was eliminated prior to the cancellation will not be entitled to a refund. All awards for a tournament canceled in progress will be cash. If the canceled tournament has a guaranteed prize pool, only the entry fee will be returned (not the guaranteed prize).

Considering that everyone played, like, three hands, and it was a $400 guaranteed (where $400 is automatically added to the prize pool, no matter how many players enter), it looks like I'll make a few on this one. Awesome.

Now, I'll go do something more constructive with my time, since I've just finished going through somewhat of a fiasco.