Wednesday, February 28, 2007

WSOP Satellites Here I come

5PM EST Saturday Full Tilt Poker... Ladies Bracelet Races... $24 + $2 Buyin....

I have two tokens in the hole right now...And my Doyle's Room money hit FTP...

BOO YEA!!!

I spent some time googling 2007 WSOP satellites. Info on Pokerstars is up but sketchy right now. Full Tilt's Race for bracelets is hidden under FTOPS??? Absolute Poker has been running pretty cheap sats and has one of the cheapest buyins for a ME package...$109

I'm coming out of online exile tonite (I did play a little Sunday afternoon). I planned on playing event #2 of the WPBT Sunday nite but was crispy fried after my 16+ hours of play Saturday into the wee hours of Sunday morning. Ill be on Absolute Poker for the Poker Analysis monthly bonus game at 9PM EST and hopefully the Mookie at 10 PM EST on Full Tilt.

Thank God the month of February is just about over (11 hours but who is counting). It was probably the most unenjoyable month I've had in a long time and I am a pollyanna by nature. Maybe that is why when things dont go my way it knocks me for a loop.

Thank you Miami Don for your most recent and most awesome post.

Thank you Iggy for returning home to Guinness and Poker where you belong. I just cant get used to my usual reads being at Pokerworks (no disrespect for Linda, I love reading her blog).

Thank you Isaac Haxton for having a great attitude about your $800,000 being held hostage. Put my small potatoes in persepective.

Thank you Shaniac for bearing a striking resemblence to Patrick Dempsey (Dr McDreamy) of Grey's Anatomy (Separated at birth and by a decade or so).. You looked mighty hot being interviewed by Shecky.

Dr Pauly.... Keep rocking and writing in our un-free world... I just picked up the recent Cardplayer and went into a tailspin when I saw someone had titled their column the Tao of Poker. That just isnt right.

Happy Late Chinese New Year everyone. Year of the Fire Pig---I'm a little late but will start my year over on March 1st 2007.

Monday, February 26, 2007

Deep Stack Recap 2/24/2007

Before I get ahead of myself I need to thank the bloggers who I have played against that have helped me take my no limit MTT game up to the level where I know I'm about ready to crack thru the ceiling very soon (it will probably be live!!)...I know Im going to miss some fabulous players and I mean no slight to anyone I don't name. These folks just come to mind. Some I have watched your play from the rail silently others I have played against in the Mookie, the WWDN, Riverchasers, the blogger tour etc: Smokkee, Surflexus, Iakaris, Hoyazo, Waffles, AlCantHang, Fuel55, Lucko21, Jordan, GCox, Otis and CracknAces. I mean no disrepect to the distaff crew either. There are some mighty fine chicas I play against regularly: Kat, Maudie, Carmen and Summerbabe to name a few. IGGY, Pauly, Change100, you make my day with your posts and its a pleasure when you are in the same tourney. (I would love Pauly and Change100 to give me some good setlists that I can download onto the IPOD since we like the same music).

I had planned for this tourney since the beginning of January. I knew Adirondack Poker League would be wrapped by then and no conflict with a Saturday/Sunday Game time. Scott and Val E, the hosts of the event had run some satellites. I passed on the sats which were cheap but rebuy formats because for me to drive close to an hour each way would be negative EV.

Tourney Structure follows:

Main event structure:

$110 Buy in Event Starting Chips: 30000; 45 Minute Rounds

1 PM Start time Saturday 2/24/07

1. 100/200 (1:45)
2. 200/400 (2:30)
Break 5 Minutes (2:35)
3. 300/600 (3:20)
4. 400/800 (4:05)
Break 30 Minutes for dinner (4:35)
5. 500/1000 (5:20)
6. 600/1200 (6:05)
Break 5 Minutes (6:10)
7. 800/1600 (6:55)
8. 1000/2000 (7:40)
Break 10 Minutes; Color Up $100 Chips (7:50)
9. 1500/3000 (8:35)
10. 2000/4000 (9:20)
Break 10 Minutes Color up $500 Chips (9:30)
11. 3000/6000 (10:15)
12. 4000/8000 (11:00)
End of Day One

13. 5000/10000
14. 6000/12000
Break 5 Minutes
15. 8000/16000
16. 10000/20000
Break 5 Minutes
17. 12000/24000
18. 15000/30000
Break 5 Minutes, Blinds increase 20k/40k, 25k/50k……

{The times listed after each round and break should be used for a reference point for day one play. Actual time will vary depending on official start time, (we ask that every one try to be here a few minutes early) and any pauses of the game clock for any reason. Please be aware that play will end on Saturday at the end of level 12. Chips will then be bagged and the remaining players will receive vouchers as record of their remaining chips after the end of day one play. Play resumes on day two on Sunday 2/25 promptly at 1 PM.)

So this is not Pauly and Change100's Amsterdam. This is Amsterdam, NY about 20 miles west of Schenectady. Most Capital District Residents refer to it as Amsterico because of its high population of folks from Puerto Rico. Amsterdam is an old Factory mill town whose heyday is long past... Cabbage Patch Dolls were once made there. No longer..

I head up out to Scott and Val's house in Amsterdam. Taking the scenic back road thru Ballston Spa out rte 67. Its an easy drive once I actually make it onto rte 67 and I crank Dave Matthews solo album because I havent had time to download anything onto my IPOD yet. I'm fueled with a Starbucks Dolce Cinnamon Latte since they are out of peppermint for a Lepruchan Latte(mint mocha) and Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi.

When I arrive Scott and Val immediately peg me for Lori/IG probably because the other women booked to play were all there already. There were 5 gals and 16 guys. Scott and Val had posted the house rules well in advance of the tourney and I knew no eating at the table and if you spilled a drink on the table You were liable for a fine to replace the felt.. I check out the tables which I knew Scott had built. Turns out there are two of them but just tops. Well done I might add (the cards slid nicely on them). Now I have never met Scot or Val before but they are warm and friendly and great hosts. I ask if he puts the tops on end and stores them when no games are being spread at his house... His reply which made me instantly like the guy..... "No we just put tablecloths on top of them, and use them as a regular table.... We are ghetto like that" This is a family who loves poker....

So two tables, twenty one players... I'm at the table with 11 and the other table has 10. A few folks are late arrivals and are blinding out.I have a dude whose wisdom teeth are killing him on my right. And a girl (Amy on my left). Her dad is across from us. Scott is at my table next too Dad on one side, Nicky another female who turns out to be a damn good player, is next to dad on the other side.. The other guys are all relatively young. My buddy Jim and his friend Gene are at the other table with Val (Scotts wife). One dude tells me he made his living playing poker for a year but is now broke. Not sure if he had a successful year and then went broke or it just didnt work out for him.

First hand I fold.. Second hand AQ.. I raise UTG and get numerous callers.. The flop misses me.. No time to get cute this early on. I check and muck when the pot quickly turns into an action pot...... This is gonna be a long day or a very short one. I have no reads on anyone except Jim who is not at my table. I decide to stay patient and observe. I have great observational skills and quickly pick up on several of the folks hand ranges.

My attempts at small ball arent working. Im getting connectors and gappers the hands I make the most money on out of position and I just hate that. But I keep grinding and I start getting some cards to work with: AA and KK a few times. I get AK two hands in a row which I steal with on one, and then I take a good pot down against Amy when her rag ace is dominated. I probably got down to T20000 chips at my lowest point early on (I had lost a pot with a strong Ace to her weak two pair Ace when I couldnt get her out of the pot-but from there I outplayed her and almost anyone else who got in my way).

A young guy takes his seat. He has game and his name is Josh. I rightfully assume he may turn out to be one of the folks who I have to watch out for. I like his style of play. Lots of small ball. I know he likes to play the hands I like to play. He winds up taking charge of the table. Amy who had been the big chip leader when she stacked the first one out at our table, loses a big stack on AK over played again I believe. She bleeds some more chips to me but her dad makes her healthy again... He likes his rag aces and is the second one out. He is also a flush and str8 chaser. I just lick my lips and bide my time.

Key Hand at Table 1. My first monster pot:

98S.... I see the flop which leaves me an OESD... I C bet it get a caller or two on the turn.. Hit my straight. Nice.... Bet out on the river as Im first to act and get another call from the dude who didnt make it as a "pro". Huge pot. Josh looks at me and I see the respect.. Well played he voices to me.

Our table is becoming the carnage table...One of the late comers arrives. Young kid named Michael... He open raises 3-4x bb to about $3000 at this point. I reraise him to $10000 which he calls (making up for lost time I figure). Flop comes down all baby rags. He bets large leaving him about $6000 chips . I look at him and tell him... I put you all in... He goes into the tank..... Then he looks at me and asks will I show if he mucks. I smile sweetly and say yes... he mucks 99 face up and I show my rockets... I look at him and state. You just mucked the IG... They can crack kk but not too good against AA.

Josh and I chop a pot.. I have A3 in the BB which I hit the str8 on the turn. I try to get him to put more money in so I check the turn stupidly. An Ace on the river gets him to bet and I raise on the end which he calls. we split as he is holding k3 and the Ace gives him his str8... UGH.

Meanwhile at the other table AA vs AA with one of the Aces rivering a flush. Sure Ive seen it online but never live.... Ouch for that dude..

Im grinding my stack up. Love this deep stack format. I send Scott to the rail When I raise with QQ he calls my raise.. Flop again is rags. He pushes all in having lost a bunch of pots to Nicky. I call. His JJ is no good to my QQ... the bitches hold... Another one out. I've now taken out a couple of players. Ive worked my stack up to 80k and probably have the 2nd or 3rd biggest stack at my table. The other table had two big stacks going.

We have a nice turkey dinner at the dinner break and chili..Im healthy. Im playing well. Im loving this format. Im confident in my reads and playing my hands well.... We decide at the rate we are going that we may be able to finish up tonite. Better for me it will save a drive back and forth.

Final table.. All 5 women make the final table. Gene and Brian the two big stacks from the other table and my friend Jim and Val make it. From my table.. Amy, Me, Nicky, Josh and I cant remember the other two guys. Thought one was Caeser a fellow DMB fan but I either knocked him out before the FT or at the FT. So maybe we only started with 9 at the FT.

Amy is relatively short stacked and goes out, Jim goes out, the nonames our out. The final 6 are me, Nicky, Val, Brian, Gene and Josh.. Nicky is the bigstack having taken down a few huge pots. Brian has bled off chips and Gene is blinding away. I take a huge pot to take the chip lead..... I have AQ and raise Nicky calls. Flop comes down A Q Q... Ive hit a boat and the almost nuts. I check ad Amy pushes all in. Now I know she will push in on TPTK.. I figure her for an AceX and am right she has AT.. I double my healthy stack to over T200000.

Gene finally succombs to the blinds and is the bubble at about 11PM est and we are in the money. The big stacks are now me, Nicky still healthy and Josh. From 11 PM EST to almost three AM no one goes out. Josh and I try our best to bust Nicky, Val, and Brian. They are on the ropes numerous times. I lose a chunk when I raise from the button $30000k and Brian moves all in. I have AK and make the call only to find he has kk in the BB. UGH.... That knocks me down a loop. I soon go from chip leader to blinding out. Down to 40k I have fish hooks..... Josh raises to about 40k. I push all in and he mucks. We rabbit hunt the one hand and a k hit the turn... But another J spiked on the river.. Im up to 80k again...

Nicky and I split a pot with J9 me vs JT her and both of us hit a st8. She looks at me and says.. I really like playing with you you are a great player. And I must give her the same respect. Aggressive and fearless she plays. Val is a very solid player too. She asks me what I think of her game as she described herself as weak/tight. I pretty much tell her her hand ranges to a T. (now mind you she wasnt at my first table so I didnt have as much time to get a full read on her). She looks at me and states.. You pretty much summed me up... Or so she lets me think.....

The hand that moves me into #2. Josh and Nicky are the chip leaders... Val me and Brian all have about the same stack size within the 90k to $130k range.... I look down to AA UTG... blinds are 10000/20000. I min raise to $50000. Nicky mucks. Brian calls the raise.. .Josh reraises to 100k.....Val is out. I insta call... Brian is now flusterd and puzzled. He is half asleep or it was a very good act.... He looks at me and states.. "I dont get it. You minimum raise and I call and then you call his all in???". I smile nicely back and state. "I have it easy. I'm all in. My decision is made.. I either more then double up or I go home. Take your time there is a lot of money at stake" Josh has me covered. I could have called the clock on Brian (and should have as that may have induced the call)....Instead he mucks QQ face up... .Josh flips 99 (the IG) and my slowplayed Aces hold... I am now back up over 200k. Man I love having chips but my M is still only like 6-7 with the blinds at 10k/20k.

Finally Josh goes out and gets his entry fee back. I get down to about 160k with the blinds taking their toll and unable to call Brian's and Val's all ins. Finally in the SB with Val and Brian out of the hand. I look at 78h. HMMM.. I love my connectors.... I just smooth call the bb. Nicky states she is checking in the dark. I dont know if I missed a peak at her looking at the cards due to the late hour and if she really was checking in the dark... Its 3AM and we are 16 hours in to this marathon/ironman distance poker tourney..... The flop comes kh9?3?/ check check... turn 9h.. I am now four to a flush...check check... river 3h... I hit my flush and bet. Nicky comes over the top all in. The odds of her having the Ace and another heart 4 way... not good I think... I cant put her on any other hand k9??? quad 99s. I didnt think it thru all the way so I call and....... I'm fucked.. she hit quad 3's....She boated on the river which is when she checked her hand. SHe played it perfectly. The perfect card fell for her to trap. ouch. SHe had me covered by about 50k and vaults into the lead. I GO HOME. In retrospect I should have never called he bb.... But then again. Would I, could I have gotten away from that call that late at that hour?

First prize would have been $840/second was in the $525 range.. 3rd was $420/ I doubled my buyin winning $210 ($10 of the buyin went for food/beer/soda/cards etc).

I think i played very well for 16+ hours. I only played one donkish hand when I got dumb in the sb with Q3 and donked off some chips getting cute late in the tourney and I admited when I mucked that I had no business being in the hand.. The AK vs KK was bad timing but what you expect at the end stages of a poker tourney. I could easily off spiked an Ace to knock Brian out (he went on to win over Nicky headsup.

Scott and Val put on a great tourney. And there was really no bad play. Everyone took their poker seriously. On the whole the play was better then in my live league.

A couple things I must say and would love some blogger feedback on... I tried to take notes but didnt follow thru. I didnt want to miss observing.. How do people do it..? I had my little note book and wish I had taken notes.

Second: The hours of a poker player suck... Long and hard and boring at times. 16 hours is a long time to play and I did it (I guess my tag as a triathlete fits my poker stick to it ness.). I could have kept going had I gotten to heads-up. Of course then I had an hour drive home. Nice gal I am I drove Josh home. He let a friend who was knocked out early take his car. He also lived on one of the three routes I could take to go home so I figured he could keep me awake for part of the drive. I of course couldnt sleep I had so much adrenaline.

My back and arms were/are sore as hell. My lower back is still on the verge of spasms... No wonder they employ massage therapists. Any takers for the position?? I tip well.

That marked my 5th live cash in 5 weeks and in a row... 5th in the APL top tenners tourney, a 1st, 3rd, 2nd last week and I rounded out Saturday/Sunday with a 4th....

Foxwoods beckons the end of March. I already put in for the 26th of March off. After that I will set my plans for Vegas. Waffles, Hoy, Jordan etc get your butts to Foxwoods. And just maybe Dr Pauly will be back in town to do some Tao of Pokering on the Foxwoods Spring Classic.

Deep Stack Extravaganza 2/24/2007

UBER POST ala IGGY to follow on this.......

21 paid $110 to enter/30000 starting chips//45 minute blinds/Top 5 paid

After 16 hours of play

4TH place for $210.... I was chip leader for a good part of the last 4 hours of play.

My back is in spasm/butt is fine/arms sore

Sunday, February 25, 2007

Foxwoods Ladies Tourney 3/25/07

Foxwoods Poker Classic 2007 March 19th thru April 4th

$300 No-Limit Modified Shoot-out
$600 7-Card Stud
$600 No-Limit Texas Hold'em
$600 Limit Texas Hold'em
$1,200 No-Limit Texas Hold'em
$600 No-Limit Modified Shoot-out
$300 No-Limit Texas Hold'em Ladies Only
$2,000 No-Limit Texas Hold'em
$3,000 No-Limit Texas Hold'em
$5,000 No-Limit Texas Hold'em
$10,000 No-Limit Hold'em Championship

Friday, February 23, 2007

BloggerPods--Blog Play Win

I’m registered in the free BloggerPods poker tournament.
Poker Mac

Thursday, February 22, 2007

What Every Poker Player would like to Say!!

I've played very little online poker this week. In fact I believe I only played the Poker Analysis Freeroll league game which was limit Razz. Only the second time I played Razz and I managed to finish about 14th or 15th of 79 or so. I was once again up in the top ten for most of the tourney only to get blindsided by an interloper who didnt belong in the tourney in the first place. I had to laugh at one hand where I had quad 8's and then another where I had rolled up Kings.. Now when I play 7 Card stud hi or hi lo why cant I get those kind of hands??? Its like getting three of a kind as your Down cards in Omaha---Useless. I have yet to attempt triple draw. But I am hooked on Chinese Poker.

The good news this week was that I was able to transfer the money I had on Doyles Room (about $95 or so) over to Full Tilt where it will be of more use to me. That news was enough for me to consider ending my self imposed online exile. I'll probably venture onto FTP tomorrow nite to get in a little No limit practice before my deep stack live tourney which starts on Saturday at 1 pM and which hopefully will take up the entire weekend (if I make it to day two).

I just finished the Professor, the Banker and the Suicide King what a fascinating read. I whizzed thru it in a couple of nites and couldnt put it down. What I did take away from it was not to think of your chips as money.. They are chips. I think Ive grasped that more when playing live then I every had. When I was making 24000k bets on Sunday I didnt think of it as representing dollars but more as units/power.

I've always played within my bankroll but now feel much more comfortable plunking down a $100 buyin. I remember when I went to Atlantic City with Carol for the WPC gathering in April 2005. I was hesitant to sit down at a ring game and the $150+ or so for the main event was a lot of money for me. It was a treat and something I wasnt going to do every week or month. In Vegas last summer the $200+ I spent for the Ladies Orleans Poker tourney was high for me too but I had just cashed in a SNG the nite before and felt like it was only costing me $120. I had no problems spending $60 or so for the tourneys at the Sahara or Treasure Island.

Now without batting an eye Im thinking of heading to Foxwoods to plunk down $300 for the Ladies tourney there on 3/25/07. My game has gotten to the point where I know I'm capable of the big win. Ive been doing my homework and Im starting to see the payoff.

Working at home is going well and has been like an immediate raise.. I havent filled my gas tank up in two weeks. I dont venture out every day for my USA today saving 75 cents a day.. Since I eat at home Im saving probably $30-50/week on lunch/breakfast/lattes/crap that I used to buy in our cafeteria or ordering out. I've lost about 5 pounds already too. I weigh less now then when I ran the NYC marathon. Of course I was rock solid then and cant say the same for myself now!!! Progress not Perfection..

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Sunday, February 18, 2007

Runner-Up finish 02/18/07-Live Play (Albany Poker Tour)

I'm extremely proud of myself. I just had my 4th live cash in a row, this time a 2nd place finish padding my live bankroll again. (I still havent found the $80 I lost from my winning a few weeks ago). I only knew one player there, my friend Jim who has played up in Fort Edward (though not in the league) and who I have played at home games at the Amadon's. There was one other female there who finished 4th out of 11 and a lot of aggressive young guys.

I played fairly tight early on (which was easy considering the cards I got) trying to get a read on my opponents. I wore no make up, I didnt wear my contacts and I had my fleece zipped up to my neck (no Tilly top). My hair was pulled up in what little bit of a pony tail I can still muster and I wore a Poker stars baseball cap. My hair is fairly thin and limp in this winter weather and I'm actaully considering extensions. I looked like hell and mentally I havent been 100%.

I was a dog going heads up.... I drew even only to get knocked back. I drew even again on a a well played hand I was behind on the flop with top pair but a weak kicker and a flush draw. I hit my flush on the turn and value betted the hell out of the hand. I then lost a chunk when my 104 on a board of 10 Q X got rivered by an ace. I finally pushed in with A6 got called by A8 and I go home in 2nd for a profit of $55 on my $25 buyin ($5 to the league). I made some pretty good reads and a good laydown. I know because I called out his hand when I mucked and he showed.

As much as I wanted the win, I was happy with second. Poker has been a chore of late and mentally I'm just not as sharp as you need to be to play your best. I was able to hold it together but I had no enjoyment even being around other people. It felt like a job. I'm grinding and building on my bankroll but Im taking no pleasure in my recent successes they feel like hollow victories. There is a saying.. This too shall pass.....

And now Back to the Professor, the Banker and the Suicide King. Its a good read so far and Im just amazed at the the fact that Ted Forrest and Huck Seed both ran a marathon for some wacky prop bet on the UNLV track on one of the hottest days of the year. I had heard the story before of course, but Michael Craig expounds on it in the book. That is no easy feat. I know I trained my ass off to run the one marathon I completed. Imagine doing one on no training???!!!

I'm trying to remember that all good poker players have gone bust at some point and Im far from busted. I just dont like the recent cards Ive been dealt with the DOJ holding my Neteller funds hostage, the winter weather here in the Northeast, and the fact that someone I'm close to is probably heading back into a totally negative EV situation again. I was once told I don't have to like something to accept it. I have a bunch of things I don't like going on right now. I've pretty much held my tongue on this one little life issue because it is really none of my business and there are some paths that people have to take on their own. I will always remember that insanity is doing the same thing over and expecting different results and outcomes. Unfortunately, people have to find out this out for themselves sometimes more then just once. Its no wonder we are a Prozac nation.

Stuck in a moment that you can't get out of

I feel like I'm stuck inside of Clifton Park with the Vegas blues again. When the death of Anna Nicole Smith and Britney Spears shaving her head captures my attention more then the good Doctor's writing on the Tao of Poker its bad shit. I cant wait to get to Vegas and finally meet Carmen. She has my love for pop culture, shopping and good steakhouses!!! Maybe we should co-author a Dancing with the Stars blog to amuse us thru the Spring.

Playing $1-$3 buyins is quickly losing its appeal for me. Been doing some small league buy-ins that I used to do frequently. I start off on a strong foot making some great plays and getting VNH's and VVNH's in chat, but then I lose interest and wind up donking off my chips short of the money from impatience. What's worse I am normally known for my patience. ITH has a league game today at 1 PM on stars but it is limit holdem which is not my forte. I did play a very solid 7 card stud hi lo tourney the other nite till one of my PA league mates started annoying the crap out of me with his constant raising and we got into a pissing match and he rivered me. That made him the chip leader but his antics got the best of him the next hand and he went out right after me. I hate when I turn a guaranteed final table and cash appearance into a donkout festivus. Same thing happened in an Omaha Hi tourney. I made some really good plays and was up in the top for most of the tourney only to go out 8th with 5 paying. Again the river got me and impatience.

So today I have some choices... Go up to Lex's for a $50 tourney at 5 PM or go around the corner to some dude's house Ive never been to and where I know no one and play a $25 deep-stack freezeout. A 5 minute drive or a 45 minute drive to South Glens Falls?? Hmm.... sounds like I may just meander around the corner and be anonymous. Ive talked to one of the organizer's on the phone who seems to be a Siena College kid who is the current Albany Poker league leader and whose name is the same as a famous NY Met.

Im gonna challenge myself to work 3 hours of overtime every morning this week (for 15 hours) from 5 AM to 8 AM.. then sign off till I have to be on phones at 9:30 AM to 7PM Monday thru Thursday... Friday is my short day 9:30AM to 1:30 PM. If I can get an extra 5 or so hours of OT in the next couple of weeks I will award myself with the Foxwoods Ladies tourney buy-in on March 25th. If I can keep it up I may just award myself with the WSOP Academy Ladies Camp at Casears Palace on June 8th and 9th. The camp is like $1700 but they are giving away ten seats to the Ladies WSOP tourney on the 10th if you place in the top ten of the camp tourney. Annie Duke is one of the instructors. If anyone has had any experience with any of the Boot camps or Camp Hellmuths etc please let me hear about it.

I skied for over thirty years from the age of 4 till I gave it up in my thirties. You could say for a long time I was more comfortable with two boards on my feet then I was standing on them. I was never an extreme skiier but did do my share of racing and free-styling. I never snowboarded but this video is totally sick. The descent takes your breathe away. Awesome control. The helicopter touching down on that peak is crazy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rd8AJdcnw4A

And for some strange reason I cant get Coldplay's "Clocks" out of my head. I think that sums up where I am right now:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=du6k1hJElqg

Friday, February 16, 2007

Britney Spears Stoned and Philosophical with KFed?

What a trainwreck this girl is.

I wonder if I was this annoying when I was drunk and stoned or tripping?



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlkzgI_jNUg&eurl=

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

I GOT MY IPOD

--A new toy to play with. The Ipod Nano (4G) I won for finishing 4th in the 2nd season of the Poker.com Blogger tour arrived. Man its small. Another gadget I can waste a lot of time downloading stuff onto from the computer. My good buddy JB (JeffBaldwin) sent me a link to a site that has Grateful Dead shows to download when were chatting on IM the other day so I expect to be hitting that up soon.

Last nite I had a surreal experience playing the WWDN. Wil Wheaton the host of this weekly jamboree of bloggers and other misfits was seated at my table along with my gal Katitude. It was amazing the inane comments coming from the railbirds... "Wil.....were you in Star Trek?" , "Wil I loved you in Stand by me"... " Wil Wheaton you suck".... blah blah blah... Not only must it be distracting for him, it was distracting for us.. All that green chat. Kat mentioned it gets worse for the late nite West Coast fun time tourney. I made a statement to Wil of.. "And I thought the FTP pros had it bad!" and his reply was " IG they have it a lot worse then me, especially Mike Matusow". After a number of inane questions, requests for money, requests to be coached etc. I mentioned that there seemed to be a lot of short bus poker players on the rail. That got a few chuckles from my table. Now Wil is a badass to me for looking into the camera and calling Otis a dumb motherfucker during the Keno crayon eating prop bet. You just dont expect that out of the mouths of clean cut looking guys.

I was card dead most of the tourney. I did double up off Iakaris who was bullying with his big stack when my JJ held against his AK (i think it was). That got me in good shape and in the top ten but I Called another dudes continuation bet on the flop and river when I had a flush and str8 draw and missed. Kat and I had some girl on girl action and a split pot which generated lots of Meows and Cat fights and requests for Jello wrestling... Now that would be a site in Vegas this summer.

As for Vegas I reread some notes from Falstaff and it looks like our next Blaggher gathering will be from the 6th thru the 10th of June or some such thing. That gets me out there in time to use that credit on Southwest. I stayed at Treasure Island last year. This year Im thinking of trying the Luxor or the Aladdin. The Neteller debacle pretty much limits my qualifying online for the Main Event with my roll virtually non-existent now. Unless I get some work during Main Event time podcasting or live-blogging I probably wont make the trek during ME time and it appears my services sweating from the rail wont be needed but thats a story for another day or not.

I just read Doc's Valentine Day post (he's a genius) and Ftrain's. I wanted to laugh I wanted to cry. Pauly has a way with words:

Relationships are bad beat stories waiting to happen. Several girls in my life ended up horrendous bad beats. At the end of our interaction with each other, not only did they suck the life out of me, they also left me completely broke. Of course, they all looked good preflop but somewhere along the line, they backdoored a better hand on you and you're toast. Like that cute girl from college I met standing in line at the bookstore one day sophomore year. Who knew that she was a cutter and would go Liz Wurtzel crazy on me? You bet your ass I was concerned when I found a note attached to my door with steak knife.


So a happy Vday to all my fellow Single and Fabulous Friends.. Im going to take a few nites off from Poker (the mookie is on Hiatus) as Ive been sitting in the same room for work and poker playing and feel a bit like a caged animal. Im going to curl up with the Professor the Banker and the Suicide King. We are the midst of a Blizzard here in upstate NY which is making me antsy and dreaming of dry hot weather.....I want to be going where them chilly winds dont blow.....

Sunday, February 11, 2007

Im Hot!!!!!.... On Sharkscope

--Seems like if you cash in 4 SNGS in a row you are ranked as hot... That would be me right now... I had a third last nite on Full Tilt in a $6.50 9 person turbo SNG, after taking my good buddy the Shamster heads-up in our AcesCracked Saturday night league game (only 4 runners so good shorthanded practice). This AM I finished #2 in one so maybe that makes it 5 str8 cashes.

I played like a complete TILTGIRL yesterday in my early games of Muffmoney and the PokerAnalysis buyin League game on pstars.. I did my best whining about pokerstars not liking me ala Hoyazo. I seriously donked it up good playing hyper-aggressively and chasing. But like the good trooper I am I turned it around and played remarkably well last nite. Snake5970's headsup pointers and coaching has paid off in spades. Especially once I get down to two.

Friday nite after mega tilting about Neteller and losing the $80 I netted from the win I had in live play on 2/2/07 I headed up to Karen and Steve's for a $20 buyin at their house. To back track a bit... I have no idea where I put it, how I lost etc.. I just know my recent live winnings I had of $280 less my hair and starbucks should have meant I had $215 left in the envelope.. I only had $135.. My guess is its the $80 from the win over Lex and I am sure he paid me. Perhaps I tipped the hair dresser really well. Anyway, I managed to finish 3rd for a profit of $20 at the McDonald's running my KQsuited into eventual winner Juddy's QQ... Ladies were good to me that nite. They held twice once against Zoe's AJ... Zoe loves that hand. Calls it the Amazon hand... In fact that is what got her to heads-up against Snake5970 for the top tenners tourney when she sucked out a J against AK and AQ on a three-way all-in. I will not share Hoyazo's Jack-Ace theory/strategy with her as I did how to play middle pocket pairs. I dont need to be giving away any more secrets or tips on how to seal leaks in your game.

I started the day with a runner-up finish in a turbo on FTP.. Then moved to Pokerstars for a ITH league game. Im on a quest to either increase my limited bankroll there or bust out spectacularly. I played well. Very well finishing 7th of 41 or so with 5 paying... Another stars suckout.. One of the other two females fired all in with 79 suited on a steal. She had done this on a couple of occasions and I figured she couldnt always have a hand for the number of times she did this on the button. It smelled weak the all-in why not just raise 4-5x the BB.. I called as the short stack with KQ and had her dominated until........ she sucked out a str8 on me and IGH... UGH @#$@S.. She Pm'd me to apologize but there was no need to, thats just poker...I was actually seated at the final table with a local dude from Glenmont so I shared my newly aquired wealth of local tourney happenings. Just ask IG.. like the NY times I'm all the poker news fit to print.

Got a couple of freerolls lined up on Vegas247 to amuse myself with. One is the weekly muffmoney freeroll you get to play for playing the $3 buy-in league held Saturdays and Sundays at 2 PM. I decided not to head to Smallbany for the live game at one of the Local sports bars. Gonna wait till I get my income tax refund.

Two weeks till the Deep-stack $110 buyin out in Amsterdam. Looking forward to it. Depending how that goes I may just head to Foxwoods on 3/25/2007 for the Ladies Tourney.. Its a $300 buy-in but starting chips are $5000 and blind levels are 50 minutes. I'll post some info soon in case some other Ladies would like to join me there. Maybe I can lure Waffles and some of the NYC blogger crew to Foxwoods for a get together.

I'm also trying to decide about Vegas for this summer. Im scheduled for Main Event time but that may be subject to change or I'll be doing two trips. I have a credit on Southwest I have to use up before June 8th. That means I could be out in Vegas for the Ladies WSOP on the 10th of June and the reported Blaggher gathering..... I've also offered the credit up to my buddy Shamanalix to use for his May/June trip in trade for a stake or a trade for my July plane ticket or for funds on a poker room. Its about a $250-$300 credit. Sham has the right of first refusal if I decide not to go in June but the offer may be open to any blogger who wants to do a trade/swap.

Back to the Grinding......

Monday, February 05, 2007

Mamma Always said I was Sassy....

NO, IG doesnt rant ala fellow blogger Waffles (thanks sweetie for sending me some blogger love). And as patient as she can be at the poker table she tends to be a "I want what I want when I want it type". And that means NOW!!! So rather then sit and fiddle why Rome burns she tried every ploy known to mankind to solve the Neteller Dilemma.

A very good friend in Canada was willing to do a peer to peer with me and then withdraw it off and mail me a check. I trust Carol as she trusted me this past summer when I helped her avoid the exchange rate on a withdrawal for her Vegas bankroll . I knew Neteller was suspending the Neteller accounts of foreigners who took a peer to peer froma US citizen and then immediately transferred it right back out onto a poker room, so that was too obvious. So a check or money order with me absorbing the fees and exchange rate seemed to be the best route to allow my Casinowhoring friend to safely "launder" my money. To no avail... Fuckers at Neteller disabled the cancel button to cancel my PENDING eft withdrawal and have since suspended peer to peer transactions. Seems a certain forum advocated this method and their was a huge increase in foreign players aiding and abetting their American comrades in arms. DRATS FOILED AGAIN...

Last week was a week of just overall Life Tilt. For everything good that happened there was an equal and opposite bad thing that happened. Minor Car Tilt (again, now resolved), Work Tilt ( i got sprung and am now working at home as of friday and Im getting a bonus in two weeks), Poker Tilt in a full moon sucko-out on IG way early in the week only to be rectified by a tourney win Friday nite over Lex (BIG TAI) whose game I really respect, Bankroll Tilt (aka the Neteller debacle) and Family and Friend Tilt (more then I care to go in on). This left me feeling lethargic and helpless and as I mentioned in my earlier blog I let loose and cried not just Saturday but Sunday too. Thank goodness I watched no sappy movies or I would have been blotting all over the place. And I must confess, I cried when Tony Dungy got his good dang super bowl win!!!

I even did a drastic change and chopped off my long hair which I had painstakingly grown out. I finally decided that my sister was right. I dont have the funds ala Courtney Cox or Jennifer Aniston for the spectacular Blow Outs that leaves ones hair straight and shiny and perfect. Nope, I was pulling it back in a pony tail way too often and frankly I think it made me look older. So, I changed hairstylists too (as my old one hated bangs) and went chin length layered bob ala Sandra Bullock (or is it James now) from the December 2006 cover of Glamour sans the highlights right now.. I had showed Snake the cover Friday nite and got a "Do you have that top she's wearing?" . Without batting an eyelash (well maybe a few). I smirked " Of course I do and I fill it out a hell of a lot better the she does". Im a fan of the INC blouses at Macy's. they appeal to my hippy roots and the plunging necklines do wonders for my cleavage. I got year round Tilly tops as Snake calls them. Coupled with my new do, I got my eye brows waxed and god forbid I even mention this.... my lip for only the second time (IG was mortified Thanksgiving when momma IG pointed out some dark hairs springing from above the corners of her mouth). No bikini wax, as I had just had a regroom a few weeks prior.

So Sunday AM, after trying to wrest my funds from Neteller I took myself out for Pad Thai noodles with Mamma IG and I fessed up about why I looked like hell (although she loved my hair)... I told her about my bankroll issue. That got her to say... Maybe you should just play live now and get the rest of your money out and quit online. Your on a computer all the time with work. And for a minute I almost thought about quiting online poker. In fact, I may just do it yet. Adirondack Poker League is on hiatus but the Albany Poker League is gearing up. Games every Thursday and Sunday. Plus I'm doing a deep stack tourney in Amsterdam, NY (not Pauly's and Change100's Amsterdam) the last weekend of February. I so wanted to go up and do Katitude's weekend in Toronto (as I could visit the above mentioned Carol (DCIassassin) who lives in Scarborough and Sandy (Poker Princess) and Kevin (Tilter) who live in Toronto. Alas Neteller foiled those plans as I expected to have the money but the 9th/10th.

In the grand scheme of things I'm not a poor college student who has been using their roll to pay the rent and eat something other then Ramen noodles. The $1946.20 isnt even huge compared to some of the big sports bettors or poker pros who are caught in the crosshairs. But I worked damn hard for that money. Its about 71 hours of overtime which I can earn in about 4-5 weeks legitimately with 401k match etc. But It was money I was earmarking for bigger buy-ins which Im ready for I believe and Vegas.... It was money for WSOP sats etc.

So i trolled the forums and on some sports betting site I found an address for some regulatory agency on the Isle of Mann and filed a complaint against Neteller. And I got a response. Not just one but two.

The first reply with my original email attached (which is not as carefully worded with Iakaris words as is my usual habit) follows:


Dear Lori,

thank you for your email however I have to primarily advise that the Gambling Control Commissioners is not the regulatory authority of Neteller.
Your email has however been forwarded to the Department of Trade and Industry who will respond to you on this matter.

Kind regards


Derek

Derek P Cannon
Gambling Inspector
Isle of Man Gambling Control Commissioners
Oaseiryn Kiarrooghys Ellan Vannin
Homefield
88 Woodbourne Road
Douglas
Isle of Man
IM2 3AP
Telephone +44 (0) 1624 694303 Fax +44 (0) 1624 613777
e-mail derek.cannon@gaming.gov.im
website www.gov.im/gambling
From: Lori Christina [mailto:Lchrist4@nycap.rr.com] Sent: 04 February 2007 22:48To: DHA, Gaming CommissionSubject: Neteller holding on to USA residents funds

I would like to file a complaint against Neteller the online payment processer which is a publicly traded British company or was till they suspended trading in the stock. The FAQs they list on their site leave a lot to be desired. I asked for a withdrawal of my funds that had been sitting in neteller since October 2006 in the amount of $1946.20 on January 17th 2007 and to date I have not seen the funds show up in my account.

They have not addressed the issue of when funds may be released short of a cagey... your money is being held in trust. I would like financial disclosure of where these funds are. Are they stuck in the labyrinth of the banking system. Did they lose the ability to interact with my bank account. What is the hold up.

Expect to be inundated with requests similar to this.

I sincerely doubt the US Dept of Justice has asked that the funds of US resident accounts be siezed as has been rumored in the Washington Post. If so Neteller has to disclose that immediately I believe by law.

Regards

Lori Christina
USA

And Derek turned out to be a pretty cool cat (wonder if he lunches with Lee).. He forwarded my email and I got this reply:


Thank you for your e-mail in relation to Neteller.
We are informed by Neteller that it is in continuing discussions with the US authorities
Neteller have advised us that it is their top priority to return funds to its US members and to achieve this they are working with the US authorities to determine a mechanism to do so
We are also advised by Neteller that unfortunately until such time as this has been achieved Netellers US members will continue to experience delays


Bill Mummery

Head of e-Gaming Development
Department of Trade & Industry
Isle of Man Government
Hamilton House
Peel Road
Douglas
IM1 5EP

Tel : +44 1624 682307
Mob : +44 7624 494113
Fax : +44 1624 687171

bill.mummery@dti.gov.im

A ray of hope maybe, Im not walking in sunshine yet, in fact the fascist state I live in probably will find some way to seize it. At this point I dont care about an EFT withdrawal Send me a check written on a bank in Cyprus for goodness sake and Ill find some bank to cash it even if I have to pay a foreign check fee. It would be friggin worth it.

Sunday, February 04, 2007

Neteller Funds Seized by FBI

We are now totally screwed. Should have set the over/under on this one.

Edit ...Not that I still believe we are not screwed this from the online wire:

Meanwhile Neteller maintains that the company holds all members’ funds (all deposited, in-transit and un-cleared funds) by holding the value in independent trust accounts.
To Neteller’s credit the company would be required to immediately disclose seizure of funds to the Financial Services Authority in the U.K. No such disclosure was reported to date.
Attempts to contact Neteller’s spokespersons have gone unanswered.
Effective January 18 Neteller no longer provides service to US members to transfer funds. Neteller discontinued to process withdrawals on behalf of its U.S. member in the 2 weeks following January 18.
On February 1 Neteller stopped offering its Peer-to-Peer service to US members, the last remaining way for U.S. customers to transfer funds out of their e-wallets.
Neteller maintains that the company holds all members’ funds (all deposited, in-transit and un-cleared funds) by holding the value in independent trust accounts

The whole article is here http://www.theonlinewire.com/articleView.aspx?ID=2352

Saturday, February 03, 2007

Neteller

On 1/17/07 I requested a withdrawal of $1946.20 from Neteller. This amount represents more than half my current bankroll. As of today 2/3/07 the transaction is still listed as pending. I doubt I will ever see the money again. I fully expect Neteller which gets most of its business or got most of its business from the USA will soon go belly up. The funds are being held hostage in the labyrinth of the electronic banking system.

I'm usually an optimist, but the fact that Neteller hasn't issued a proclamation of when we may see our funds except for their limited FAQ's doesnt bode well for us. My guess is they are holding the funds pending the outcome of litigation that could take years. My guess is the DOJ(Dept of Justice) will not only go after neteller founders Stephen Lawrence and John Lefebvre, but they will subpeona the financial records of Neteller itself and find some kind of RICO violation. That would make all of us vulnerable under RICO. Although I highly doubt I will be wearing bracelets I highly doubt I will see my money.

I've read the posts on 2+2, Card Player and Lou Krieger's blog and have that feeling of AGITA that I had last October twelvefold. The fact that they suspended peer to peer transactions has only compounded that AGITA.

Sure I can start over but a $2k loss reduces me to grinder status again and I worked hard for that money. That severely dampens my plans for a nice Vegas trip in July unless I have a big score or put in lots of hours of over-time. Everything I have online is pure profit. I have never gambled bigger then I can afford to lose and I have managed my bankroll remarkably well. my initial investments of $100 to $200 from 2004 were withdrawn along with some winnings to pay for Vegas 2006.

So I did what I havent done in a long long time... I had myself a cry.

Friday, February 02, 2007

Sometimes the Cards Aint worth a Dime......

--If you dont lay them down....... The Grateful Dead

Last Saturday I finished as the bridesmaid in two tourneys. Count them two tourneys. What really peeved me off is I went into heads-up ahead in one of them and only a slight dog in the other. I played pretty dang well all day. I then went out suffering typical beats for me. Why do my two pair on the flop always run into a set in heads-up.

So I played the WPBT and went out a run of the mill 24th, but I did earn POY points whereas some very good players didnt. I did knock out Hoyazo when he was crippled. He went over the top and all-in on my open raise with AK and I called holding pocket tens. The tens held and Hoy went home. I had a lucky break when my two pair boated up on the river. For most of the tourney I was near to or up in the top ten, so I feel like I didnt live up to the way I had been playing.

Wednesday nite I played the PA bonus game for those of us in the top 50 of points standing. I managed to final table and finish 9th. Against the chip leader at the final table I either limp or raise the BB from the SB with 6T.... flop comes 6T5.. I check trying to trap. MatrixRunner fires so I push... Once again..two pair into a set of 55's. I was chatting to Snake on the phone and he was like WOW.

That wouldnt have been so bad except I had finished 2nd in a turbo $6.60 sent tourney on FTP. Once again I raise with 7T as the chip leader from the button. Hit the ten for top pair. Check by the BB.. Pot size bet. Call.. I river two pair but his K8os hits runner runner for the str8. UGH again...

Last nite I played like such an impatient donkey I wanted to take a few days off. Plus Im completely stressed out by the Neteller situation now.

So for all you who are registered with your political party and donate... Next time they call you up for money for the next campaign. Tell them what Im gonna tell them. NO!! Im not giving you a freaking dime until you change your position on online gambling, ewallets etc. And Im voting Liberterian. Check out www.reason.com for some recent articles on the Neteller fiasco.

Oh Im finally working from home as of today. Although I couldnt wait to go I was a little apprehensive about it going smoothly. A few minor glitches on the set-up of the router and cable modem but other then that I only lost one call I tried to transfer. OOPS.

Im heading up to Ft Edward to watch the TOC and rail Snake and hopefully have a SNG start for those of us who show up and want to play a tourney. I hate the cash games there as its cappped negating any aggression I have since everyone calls you down when the betting is capped at $3. Never seen so many people chase straight flush draws in my entire life.