I can't believe I have let this blog go for a week without updates. So much has been happening....
I'll start with an update on the Heads Up front since soooooooo many bloggers have been kicking my butt. Just don't want you thinking that I only share my success!
Yes, I have a new banner for a week compliments of Biggestron who beat me in a best of 3 HU series last night. (Byron..feel free to make this banner BIGGER!) I went into the chat saying I was drinking and feeling good. Without hesitation, he offered me a match of HU. Hmmm....not like he needed some sort of advantage...right? I was willing and ready. While we tried to hook up for our matches, we ended up playing a few random players. I won 2 of the 3 random player matches. I believe Biggestron won both of his. If I would just listen to my own advise and play more random people instead of bloggers, I might be winning in my HU challenges.
Also, Biggestron couldn't help but whine a little. So I have added a new stat chart just for him. He likes to point out that he beat me in two HORSE HU matches that are not included in the regular HU chart. The main chart is just for NL Hold'em.
Next..the continuing battle with CJ...
We had a few more games before he left for Vegas and WSOP coverage. Is anyone else jealous of the fact that he gets to call what he does work? Okay..perhaps it is just me...
Anyway, for our first match it was a long battle that required much patience on my part. I was willing to go the distance in order to win this contest. And finally after over 100 hands, I was successful. That got us even at 2 and 2. I thought I identifed a weakness in his game. Play him in the wee hours of the morning..lol
So a few nights later, I invited him for another late night match. He had to finish his packing for Vegas and other stuff first which was fine for me. I was thinking the later the better...
When he finally was ready, I told him I didn't think he would last long this time. My exact words were, "I think this will be a quickie". Little did I know how true that statement was. He had AK on the first hand vs my 95o. The flop came with 99x and before you know it we were all in. And the Luckbox goes out in one hand! GROOOOVY, BABY!!!!!!!!
He wins the next match and we are tie again 3 and 3.
Other matches...
Lost to TrumpJosh...he continues to own me...blah!!!! I will win a CD and he will win daily links and praise on my blog if he wins.
Lost to BoobieLover..we are gonna play best of 3 for blog rights again.
**Lost to DonkeyPuncher..he plays best when he drinks...(added after DP pointed out my ommission..sorry DP)
A PRESENT FOR ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I got a new laptop...wooo hoo...I love it...A Toshiba..Satellite P105..It is awesome!!! I love the widescreen. It has built in wireless card, so maybe I will have the ability to play some of the earlier games. I might be able to go to a cafe or something...lol..Anyway, I'm loving my new equipment!
I've been having a great time playing the home games hosted by HighPlainsDrifter. He is a really great guy. And I have a good time with the mix of people at his game. Doesn't hurt that I am the only female playing..lol..This week the Thursday night game was HORSE. I came out $3 ahead which is cool with me.
On friday night, he invited me to join a few bloggers at the Hustler casino. Since I was with the kiddos, I couldn't join until about 1 a.m. I left my house about 12:30 p.m. thinking "What am I doing? But still I thought it would be cool to meet a few bloggers I hadn't met before. So I headed on over.
When I arrived, they were playing in the enclosed tournament room. The table was full. There was HighPlains, TheBloggerChampion, PokerGeek, Penner42, and Speaker. I asked the guys to let me know when a spot opened. FTrain was kind enough to greet me with a nice big hug. He encouraged me to just kick one of the non-bloggers off the table, but I decided to wait and play some Pai-gow. Shortly after, I was able to join the table sitting to the left of Speaker. I prefer to have position on him, since he is unpredictible..lol
The highlight was when we played a game of Indian Poker. Another first for me. Speaker does a good job of telling the story, so check his blog for a recap. I will just add that I was not gonna fold my hand. That pot was sooo juicy and the guys still in were showing crap. Not even a pair. PokerGeek with his 89 and FTrain with his J high. Despite their raising, I held my ground. And what is hilarious is they knew I was paired. They definitely tried to get me out. But I was in it till the end. Winning that hand was GLORIOUS! And made the whole trip worthwhile.
I took a few other pots and ended up making about $130, in under 2 hours, playing limit against bloggers. Pretty amazing for me! So I was really happy that I went.
Pretty sweet to play with Ftrain. Definitely earned my respect. Meeting the PokerGeek was cool. After taking a pot down with a full boat against him, he asked if he could just have one of my racks. I said, "What do you have to offer?". He was quick to respond, "I am married"..not to let him have the last word, I quickly came back with, "Oh, I don't want any of that" the table chuckled..lol..good times! And I don't think I could ever be bored playing a live game where Speaker is present.
So my next planned adventure...THE BASH!!!!!!!!! That's right. I'm going. Looking forward to a great weekend with a fabulous bunch of people.
Aside from that, I am just counting the days till I move to my new place...August 24th!
Laters all...
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Friday, July 21, 2006
For the Record
I rarely remember the details of a match, so I was glad for CJ's recap of the HU match as stated below:
For the record CJ, I was impressed with your play. The ONLY reason I moved my chips in on that hand was because of your remark. You outplayed me! You definitely earned this victory. So I learned an important lesson about your play. You will use the voice feature to your advantage and you are playing to WIN. That just makes the battle all the more interesting.
And as for what cards you play CJ, I don't think I will be ruling out a 95o. I'm sure I will BEAT you again, and again, and again!
Looking forward to our next match...
For the record... I flopped two pair and said I was on a draw. It's true, I was on runner-runner flush draw or runner-runner straight draw. However, I turned the nuts when my boat filled up. I did say, "I missed," but it's true! I missed my flush or straight!!
And really, if you couldn't see me playing 95o in that position, you'll never beat me again! ;-P
For the record CJ, I was impressed with your play. The ONLY reason I moved my chips in on that hand was because of your remark. You outplayed me! You definitely earned this victory. So I learned an important lesson about your play. You will use the voice feature to your advantage and you are playing to WIN. That just makes the battle all the more interesting.
And as for what cards you play CJ, I don't think I will be ruling out a 95o. I'm sure I will BEAT you again, and again, and again!
Looking forward to our next match...
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
The Luckbox Lies
It's true...We had our next HU match tonight and the Luckbox had to resort to telling a fib in order to take the victory. So now he has the lead by one in our first to 5 series.
Well, I can really blame him for using any means...lol
Well, I can really blame him for using any means...lol
Surly PokerGnome Meets the Poison
After many delays...the PokerGnome finally got his day to play with the Poison. I'm too tired for a full account. But I did win our best of 3 series 2 to 1.
Look for a new title on PokerGnomes blog! I'm working on a franchise of blogs..lol..one at a time.
I do remember him almost taking me out on the first game until I sucked out on the river to make my straight.
Good night all...
Look for a new title on PokerGnomes blog! I'm working on a franchise of blogs..lol..one at a time.
I do remember him almost taking me out on the first game until I sucked out on the river to make my straight.
Good night all...
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
New Beginnings
I found my next home, well apartment to be exact. I'm pretty excited. This will be the first time that I have had a place of MY OWN. It is gonna be the "girl's pad" (as in me and my two girls). When I have the girls, it will be slumber parties and playtime. And when they are not with me...hmmm...I can only imagine..lol. My girls went with me this last weekend to give their input and vote on our next dwelling. We went to a few apartments before visiting this one. Once we saw this place, we knew it was right. So even though I will be paying a small fortune, it is gonna be worth it.
It is a 2 bedroom and 2 bath apartment about 900 square feet. The kitchen is all white cabinets and has a wrap around bar that opens into the living room. Off the living room is a sliding window that leads to the patio. The patio is all enclosed with a high wood fence. The bedrooms are fair size. One with a walk in closet and the other with wall to wall mirrored closet.
In addition to the nice apartment, there are amenities too. Starting with 2 pools, Jacuzzi, BBQs, Tennis courts, Club House with a library, Cardio workout room and separate weight room including a punching bag that my oldest daughter immediately warmed up on, sauna, and playground. Lots of grassy areas. The Club House serves up fresh coffee and juice every morning.
My patio back gate will open up to the pool and BBQ area and is adjacent to the Club house. I couldn't have planned for a better spot.
I wanted to have a downstairs place, so when the called me yesterday to say that a downstairs 2 bedroom was now available, I made sure to go straight there after work. Today I got the call that all was approved and I can move in on August 24th.
My house never even went on the market. EM had called a company that has investment buyers in our area. There were 2 people that came to see the house just before I left for Vegas. They made offers right away. And when I returned from my trip all the paperwork was ready to sign. Escrow is estimated to close sometime this week.
He has repeatedly called me cold. I don't want to hug him, give him back rubs, or shave his back. These are all things that he still thinks I should provide. And of course I have to continually say emphatically NO, NO, NO!!!! If he would listen to the first "no", I would not have to go to such lengths to make it clear. I think he just likes to torture me. His common line is "Why don't you want to do these things? We are still friends". I could go on and on...but I have tried not to publish all of our dirty laundry in a public way. Suffice to say, "I am absolutely DONE!"
So while I did get a little sad at the thought of leaving my first home, I'm ready and excited to move on to the next phase of my life. It will be a big relief to live apart from EM. Living together for these last few months has been uncomfortable to say the least.
I have many other things to blog about including an awesome night at High Plains home game (actually click on his link he has a nice recap already), HU match with JVC, the bowling night in Vegas vs the Penner42, but that will do it for tonight.
Laters all...
It is a 2 bedroom and 2 bath apartment about 900 square feet. The kitchen is all white cabinets and has a wrap around bar that opens into the living room. Off the living room is a sliding window that leads to the patio. The patio is all enclosed with a high wood fence. The bedrooms are fair size. One with a walk in closet and the other with wall to wall mirrored closet.
In addition to the nice apartment, there are amenities too. Starting with 2 pools, Jacuzzi, BBQs, Tennis courts, Club House with a library, Cardio workout room and separate weight room including a punching bag that my oldest daughter immediately warmed up on, sauna, and playground. Lots of grassy areas. The Club House serves up fresh coffee and juice every morning.
My patio back gate will open up to the pool and BBQ area and is adjacent to the Club house. I couldn't have planned for a better spot.
I wanted to have a downstairs place, so when the called me yesterday to say that a downstairs 2 bedroom was now available, I made sure to go straight there after work. Today I got the call that all was approved and I can move in on August 24th.
My house never even went on the market. EM had called a company that has investment buyers in our area. There were 2 people that came to see the house just before I left for Vegas. They made offers right away. And when I returned from my trip all the paperwork was ready to sign. Escrow is estimated to close sometime this week.
He has repeatedly called me cold. I don't want to hug him, give him back rubs, or shave his back. These are all things that he still thinks I should provide. And of course I have to continually say emphatically NO, NO, NO!!!! If he would listen to the first "no", I would not have to go to such lengths to make it clear. I think he just likes to torture me. His common line is "Why don't you want to do these things? We are still friends". I could go on and on...but I have tried not to publish all of our dirty laundry in a public way. Suffice to say, "I am absolutely DONE!"
So while I did get a little sad at the thought of leaving my first home, I'm ready and excited to move on to the next phase of my life. It will be a big relief to live apart from EM. Living together for these last few months has been uncomfortable to say the least.
I have many other things to blog about including an awesome night at High Plains home game (actually click on his link he has a nice recap already), HU match with JVC, the bowling night in Vegas vs the Penner42, but that will do it for tonight.
Laters all...
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Veneno Takes on the Luckbox
While some of you may fear the man with a reputation for good luck, I on the other hand see it as the ultimate challenge. What could be better than matching one suckout artist against another?
So me and the Luckbox laid out the terms for our first HU encounter. Bounties have been established. If I win, he will be kind enough to reward me with a plant. Since I will be moving into a place of my own soon, for the first time in my life, I thought something alive and growing would be perfect for my new pad. Of course, Luckbox has all the confidence that he will never pay me with such a reward. Now on the slim chance that he wins this challenge, I will write an "Ode to the Luckbox".
Yesterday, we started our battle. In the first match, he was introduced to my aggressive style. I like to be on top, so this match was working for me. From the beginning I took a lead. He would gain chips and get almost even a few times, but for the most part, I remained on top. This was no quickie. I had to relax and stay patient. This guys is very tight. Knowing his advantage is sucking out, may plan was to get him out before the river. Afterall, you can only suckout if you stay to the river..Haha..Fortunately for me, he didn't get there often. So I won this first match after over 100 hands.
For match #2, he was better prepared. I didn't get my early lead and was not comfortable with him on top. Despite my squirmming and wiggling, I could not extract the chips I needed. Finally, he moved in with the better hand, I called, and game 2 was over.
So the score is 1 and 1.
But I am soo looking forward to more....
Now on another subject, I have yet to post about my last night in Vegas. Let me share that Penner42 learned not to mess with the Poison. He is a very skilled bowler with an average of 194. But he couldn't perform when it came to taking on the Poison. Watch for his new blog title on Monday...."Veneno's Proud Little Bowling Geek"...lol
So me and the Luckbox laid out the terms for our first HU encounter. Bounties have been established. If I win, he will be kind enough to reward me with a plant. Since I will be moving into a place of my own soon, for the first time in my life, I thought something alive and growing would be perfect for my new pad. Of course, Luckbox has all the confidence that he will never pay me with such a reward. Now on the slim chance that he wins this challenge, I will write an "Ode to the Luckbox".
Yesterday, we started our battle. In the first match, he was introduced to my aggressive style. I like to be on top, so this match was working for me. From the beginning I took a lead. He would gain chips and get almost even a few times, but for the most part, I remained on top. This was no quickie. I had to relax and stay patient. This guys is very tight. Knowing his advantage is sucking out, may plan was to get him out before the river. Afterall, you can only suckout if you stay to the river..Haha..Fortunately for me, he didn't get there often. So I won this first match after over 100 hands.
For match #2, he was better prepared. I didn't get my early lead and was not comfortable with him on top. Despite my squirmming and wiggling, I could not extract the chips I needed. Finally, he moved in with the better hand, I called, and game 2 was over.
So the score is 1 and 1.
But I am soo looking forward to more....
Now on another subject, I have yet to post about my last night in Vegas. Let me share that Penner42 learned not to mess with the Poison. He is a very skilled bowler with an average of 194. But he couldn't perform when it came to taking on the Poison. Watch for his new blog title on Monday...."Veneno's Proud Little Bowling Geek"...lol
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Felicia Recognizes the Weapon
I was pleasantly surprised today to see a "thank you" from Felicia.
After spending the time to set-up a journal account, I still was not able to leave a comment. So Felicia, if you do stop by my blog....
Hey Felicia,
I had an absolute blast playing with the bloggers. Glad I was able to play with you and Glenn along with so many others. As for the voice..lol..wow..I didn't even realize that was a weapon..thanks for the tip! As for fitting in...you belong just as much as anyone..I for one was pleased to meet you in person. I have always admired your honesty, forthrightness, and opinions on poker, blogging, and life. I'm just thrilled that you even noticed me.
It is true that I was a totally donkey at the game..I'm not that fabulous when sober..but mix Veneno with alcohol and it is just pure madness. For me it was about having a good time and meeting some pretty fabulous people.
Hope you some fun too! (or is that possible for you?)
I actually knew my voice was a weapon already. Why do you think I try to get the guys on voice when we play HU? Ask Waffles, I have a real knack for tilting him on the girlie chat..haha...
Laters...
I do just want to say "thank you" to a few people who were there and tried to treat me like one of them, which I'm clearly not:
**Veneno (I think) introduced herself. Wow, what a voice! That could tilt just about any poker player. If I had that voice, I'd try to irritate everyone at my table and use it to an advantage, lol ;).....
After spending the time to set-up a journal account, I still was not able to leave a comment. So Felicia, if you do stop by my blog....
Hey Felicia,
I had an absolute blast playing with the bloggers. Glad I was able to play with you and Glenn along with so many others. As for the voice..lol..wow..I didn't even realize that was a weapon..thanks for the tip! As for fitting in...you belong just as much as anyone..I for one was pleased to meet you in person. I have always admired your honesty, forthrightness, and opinions on poker, blogging, and life. I'm just thrilled that you even noticed me.
It is true that I was a totally donkey at the game..I'm not that fabulous when sober..but mix Veneno with alcohol and it is just pure madness. For me it was about having a good time and meeting some pretty fabulous people.
Hope you some fun too! (or is that possible for you?)
I actually knew my voice was a weapon already. Why do you think I try to get the guys on voice when we play HU? Ask Waffles, I have a real knack for tilting him on the girlie chat..haha...
Laters...
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Pictures from Vegas....Yeah Baby!
Okay..I know you wanna see these...
Last night was Poker at the Excalibur. I joined the NL cash game with a few bloggers at about 10:30 p.m. Believe it or not, I lasted on one $100 buy-in until about 4 a.m. But I made up for it by losing my second buy-in on the first hand...(more on that later)..
Some of the players to cycle through our table include DoubleAs, Zeem, Falstaff, JoeSpeaker, Blinders, Shane, Penner42, Biggestron, Garth, Smokkee and Iggy (although I didn't play against him).
Here are some pictures..sorry for the quality..these were taken with my cell camera..
Biggestron - "Not a huggy person"
Zeem - Really friendly and likable
Shane & Garth - Shane was an awesome drinking buddy. I tried to avoid confrontations with this player. Garth sounds as good in person as he does on the girlie chat.
Some of the highlights from the cash game:
First Flagstaff was quick to identify one of the major flaws in my game. DISTRACTION. Even playing live..I managed to out chat and socialize more than any other blogger..lol..He tried to encourage me to focus..but I just couldn't bring myself to do THAT...lol..In fact, the night before, when I met Felicia, she made the comment, "You talk as much as I do, except you are happy".
I was able to win a pot against DoubleAs. He had pocket 8s in late position and raised it up pre-flop. I just got the "impulse" to put his late position raise to the test with my KJo. So I pushed with about $60. He called my bet and lost when I hit a J.
I actually bought my copy of his book on this trip. He was kind enough to add a personalized autograph stating "Heads-up with the Roshambo Queen (and NLHE HU Queen)"....Oh yeah! I got a new title to add to my list. That has a nice ring to it eh? Roshambo Queen..
Then Iggy, who had been watching our table on the sidelines, got a craving to join our game. He calls out to me, "Yoyo, can I play your chips?". Without hesitation, I replied, "yes". So, he came to the table, and then took a look at my meager stack of about $80 versus the others ranging from $200 plus and asked, "Is this all you have?". Then he sat down and I asked for my drink. He was gonna take the drink too, but was quickly turned off by my glass filled with Amaretto and a cherry. So I offered to make a trip to the bar and get him a more accceptable drink, Budweiser was his choice.
Since I was making a trip to the bar anyway, I decided it was the perfect time to get my shots. Shots of tequila of course! And the best way to do shots is with a friend. So I made my way to the bar and ordered a couple of shots of 1800 along with Iggy's beer.
With the drinks in hand, I returned to the table. Then I announced, "I need a volunteer". The bloggers looked at the shots in my hand and Shane and Speaker instantly raised up their hands to offer their help. Woo hooo..We needed another shot. I told the guys to wait for me while I got one for myself. So while I worked on my alcohol comsumption, Iggy was building my stack.
At the bar, I found the other group of bloggers including Spaceman, Pauly, MiamiDon, Change100, Gracie, Human Head, Hoyazo, Iamoff, and Derek.
By the time I rejoined the game, Iggy had more than doubled my stack and I was feeling goooooooooooooood!
I was able to avoid getting hammered by Speaker. He min raised and min bet on all streets and I don't even remember what I had, but was pleasantly surprised that it held. Speaker is hands down the best looking blogger. I had no problem looking at him all evening while we played! At one point in the game he stood up and was rambling and then blurted out something about whether anyone could massage his junk. I literally dropped my chips in my drink. And held back the urge to shout..."I'll do it"....
After a few hours, our table was the "hot" spot. This was the table with pure blogger goodness. One by one we were filling up our table with bloggers until finally only one non-blogger remained. Some of the bloggers who stopped by to watch on the sidelines included our champ Ftrain, Maudie, Helixx, TrumpJosh, and PokerGnome (I think I got the right Mark) to name a few.
Katkin finally gave up on the one of the other cash tables and came over to watch our table. I was chatting with him encouraging him to join our game. We were discussing how I should make the best of my private lesson with Phil. And he said to me that Phil will tell me not to play the hammer. Just then, I got the hammer. I showed him and laughed. He then said that I don't need to follow ALL of Phil's advise. Me let go of the hammer? On a table full of bloggers? Is that possible? So here is where Speaker got his revenge on me. I'm not sure what position I was in or how the pre-flop betting went. What I know is that I was trying to drop the hammer on Speaker. The flop came with AAx. We checked. Then a 7 came on the turn. I bet and he called. I checked the river and he made a nice sized bet....then I did the unthinkable...I folded the hammer...really, really, really lame..I know. Worst part, I would have won!
One of the other subjects discussed was the old games at Murder's Row. I of course never had the pleasure of joining these games. But there is talk of a fairwell game since a number of the FT gang will be relocating to the UK. Katkin promised that I will be on the invite list. Woo hoo..more ways for me to lose my $$$.
In case you didn't see it somewhere else, FTrain won the Blogger event. DoubleAs came in 3rd. That is all I know about the final table.
I must thank the Spaceman for busting out before me in the Blogger event. Although there was a prize for the first one out, I just hate to be last.
There is a little theory that I had an unfair advantage on the Roshambo game since it was a one on one event..lol..hmmm..I did get a chance to test my skills again last night and won $10 from a tall good-looking blogger whose name is totally lost on me (**I was Tommy-see comments). If you read this post, can you tell me your name/link again? He actually pretended to know who I was...lol...then made it worse when he said, "I read your blog, you didn't post today"..I started laughing..and said "actually, I did". We got a nice laugh out of him getting caught in this lie.
Amazingly, there were quite a few people who knew of me and my blog. Apparently, I have quite the reputation for my Heads Up specialty. I still find it amazing that people read my postings...perhaps more so because I don't read blogs..ooops..didn't intend to admit that to everyone..lol...I do read on occassion, but I certainly cannot keep up with many of you who read a number of blogs on a daily basis. I actually have to WORK at WORK. Sad I know..but true.
Iamoff was very sweet and bought me a shot of tequila. He reminded me that he was available if I need any knees broken or something...lol..somehow with all the tequila shots that I had last night..I managed to avoid doing body shots...What was wrong with me?
Miami Don and Chris were chatting at the bar and pointed out that Kid Rock was sitting just a few feet from us. I am a Kid Rock fan for sure. They told me to go say hello cause he is a friendly guy. But I had a problem..not enough alcohol...yes..this may surprise you to know..but I have my moments of shyness..Usually occurring when I am in the presence of someone I admire. So I missed my chance to talk with Kid Rock. Yikes! By the time I did have enough alcholic courage, he was gone.
At about 4 a.m., I finally busted on my first buy-in. I was planning to leave, but somehow I was not satisfied with leaving just yet. So I bought in for another $100. My first hand was AJ off. Someone raised it up to 15 in early position, and then I got one of my "impulses" AGAIN! Push! When Penner called me, I knew I was in trouble. He was playing a solid game wanting to hang on to his chips. How dare him! We turned our cards and I was facing AK...doh! He apologized a couple of times for taking my money. So I busted out on my second buy-in on the first hand.
Before I left the table, the most exciting hand was played. I didn't get to see how it all began. But when I looked, Speaker was all in with the Hammer vs Katkin. Then the flop came giving him an OESD and he started chanting "just one time". And then the miracle card came giving him a straight. Bam! Cheers went up! And we all congratulated him on showing us all exactly how a hammer must be played.
My evening ended about 5 a.m. when I finally got back to my room. Today I will pay the price. This day is reserved for my girls and a trip to the Circus Circus amuzement park. They just love when mom gets on a roller coaster with them. And yes I will be screaming loudly. They will be laughing at how "scared" mom is to go on the ride.
I have met sooooo many wonderful people here I cannot begin to list them all. This event has truly been an experience of a lifetime...many good times..with an incredible group of poker bloggers...
Last night was Poker at the Excalibur. I joined the NL cash game with a few bloggers at about 10:30 p.m. Believe it or not, I lasted on one $100 buy-in until about 4 a.m. But I made up for it by losing my second buy-in on the first hand...(more on that later)..
Some of the players to cycle through our table include DoubleAs, Zeem, Falstaff, JoeSpeaker, Blinders, Shane, Penner42, Biggestron, Garth, Smokkee and Iggy (although I didn't play against him).
Here are some pictures..sorry for the quality..these were taken with my cell camera..
Biggestron - "Not a huggy person"
Zeem - Really friendly and likable
Shane & Garth - Shane was an awesome drinking buddy. I tried to avoid confrontations with this player. Garth sounds as good in person as he does on the girlie chat.Some of the highlights from the cash game:
First Flagstaff was quick to identify one of the major flaws in my game. DISTRACTION. Even playing live..I managed to out chat and socialize more than any other blogger..lol..He tried to encourage me to focus..but I just couldn't bring myself to do THAT...lol..In fact, the night before, when I met Felicia, she made the comment, "You talk as much as I do, except you are happy".
I was able to win a pot against DoubleAs. He had pocket 8s in late position and raised it up pre-flop. I just got the "impulse" to put his late position raise to the test with my KJo. So I pushed with about $60. He called my bet and lost when I hit a J.
I actually bought my copy of his book on this trip. He was kind enough to add a personalized autograph stating "Heads-up with the Roshambo Queen (and NLHE HU Queen)"....Oh yeah! I got a new title to add to my list. That has a nice ring to it eh? Roshambo Queen..
Then Iggy, who had been watching our table on the sidelines, got a craving to join our game. He calls out to me, "Yoyo, can I play your chips?". Without hesitation, I replied, "yes". So, he came to the table, and then took a look at my meager stack of about $80 versus the others ranging from $200 plus and asked, "Is this all you have?". Then he sat down and I asked for my drink. He was gonna take the drink too, but was quickly turned off by my glass filled with Amaretto and a cherry. So I offered to make a trip to the bar and get him a more accceptable drink, Budweiser was his choice.
Since I was making a trip to the bar anyway, I decided it was the perfect time to get my shots. Shots of tequila of course! And the best way to do shots is with a friend. So I made my way to the bar and ordered a couple of shots of 1800 along with Iggy's beer.
With the drinks in hand, I returned to the table. Then I announced, "I need a volunteer". The bloggers looked at the shots in my hand and Shane and Speaker instantly raised up their hands to offer their help. Woo hooo..We needed another shot. I told the guys to wait for me while I got one for myself. So while I worked on my alcohol comsumption, Iggy was building my stack.
At the bar, I found the other group of bloggers including Spaceman, Pauly, MiamiDon, Change100, Gracie, Human Head, Hoyazo, Iamoff, and Derek.
By the time I rejoined the game, Iggy had more than doubled my stack and I was feeling goooooooooooooood!
I was able to avoid getting hammered by Speaker. He min raised and min bet on all streets and I don't even remember what I had, but was pleasantly surprised that it held. Speaker is hands down the best looking blogger. I had no problem looking at him all evening while we played! At one point in the game he stood up and was rambling and then blurted out something about whether anyone could massage his junk. I literally dropped my chips in my drink. And held back the urge to shout..."I'll do it"....
After a few hours, our table was the "hot" spot. This was the table with pure blogger goodness. One by one we were filling up our table with bloggers until finally only one non-blogger remained. Some of the bloggers who stopped by to watch on the sidelines included our champ Ftrain, Maudie, Helixx, TrumpJosh, and PokerGnome (I think I got the right Mark) to name a few.
Katkin finally gave up on the one of the other cash tables and came over to watch our table. I was chatting with him encouraging him to join our game. We were discussing how I should make the best of my private lesson with Phil. And he said to me that Phil will tell me not to play the hammer. Just then, I got the hammer. I showed him and laughed. He then said that I don't need to follow ALL of Phil's advise. Me let go of the hammer? On a table full of bloggers? Is that possible? So here is where Speaker got his revenge on me. I'm not sure what position I was in or how the pre-flop betting went. What I know is that I was trying to drop the hammer on Speaker. The flop came with AAx. We checked. Then a 7 came on the turn. I bet and he called. I checked the river and he made a nice sized bet....then I did the unthinkable...I folded the hammer...really, really, really lame..I know. Worst part, I would have won!
One of the other subjects discussed was the old games at Murder's Row. I of course never had the pleasure of joining these games. But there is talk of a fairwell game since a number of the FT gang will be relocating to the UK. Katkin promised that I will be on the invite list. Woo hoo..more ways for me to lose my $$$.
In case you didn't see it somewhere else, FTrain won the Blogger event. DoubleAs came in 3rd. That is all I know about the final table.
I must thank the Spaceman for busting out before me in the Blogger event. Although there was a prize for the first one out, I just hate to be last.
There is a little theory that I had an unfair advantage on the Roshambo game since it was a one on one event..lol..hmmm..I did get a chance to test my skills again last night and won $10 from a tall good-looking blogger whose name is totally lost on me (**I was Tommy-see comments). If you read this post, can you tell me your name/link again? He actually pretended to know who I was...lol...then made it worse when he said, "I read your blog, you didn't post today"..I started laughing..and said "actually, I did". We got a nice laugh out of him getting caught in this lie.
Amazingly, there were quite a few people who knew of me and my blog. Apparently, I have quite the reputation for my Heads Up specialty. I still find it amazing that people read my postings...perhaps more so because I don't read blogs..ooops..didn't intend to admit that to everyone..lol...I do read on occassion, but I certainly cannot keep up with many of you who read a number of blogs on a daily basis. I actually have to WORK at WORK. Sad I know..but true.
Iamoff was very sweet and bought me a shot of tequila. He reminded me that he was available if I need any knees broken or something...lol..somehow with all the tequila shots that I had last night..I managed to avoid doing body shots...What was wrong with me?
Miami Don and Chris were chatting at the bar and pointed out that Kid Rock was sitting just a few feet from us. I am a Kid Rock fan for sure. They told me to go say hello cause he is a friendly guy. But I had a problem..not enough alcohol...yes..this may surprise you to know..but I have my moments of shyness..Usually occurring when I am in the presence of someone I admire. So I missed my chance to talk with Kid Rock. Yikes! By the time I did have enough alcholic courage, he was gone.
At about 4 a.m., I finally busted on my first buy-in. I was planning to leave, but somehow I was not satisfied with leaving just yet. So I bought in for another $100. My first hand was AJ off. Someone raised it up to 15 in early position, and then I got one of my "impulses" AGAIN! Push! When Penner called me, I knew I was in trouble. He was playing a solid game wanting to hang on to his chips. How dare him! We turned our cards and I was facing AK...doh! He apologized a couple of times for taking my money. So I busted out on my second buy-in on the first hand.
Before I left the table, the most exciting hand was played. I didn't get to see how it all began. But when I looked, Speaker was all in with the Hammer vs Katkin. Then the flop came giving him an OESD and he started chanting "just one time". And then the miracle card came giving him a straight. Bam! Cheers went up! And we all congratulated him on showing us all exactly how a hammer must be played.
My evening ended about 5 a.m. when I finally got back to my room. Today I will pay the price. This day is reserved for my girls and a trip to the Circus Circus amuzement park. They just love when mom gets on a roller coaster with them. And yes I will be screaming loudly. They will be laughing at how "scared" mom is to go on the ride.
I have met sooooo many wonderful people here I cannot begin to list them all. This event has truly been an experience of a lifetime...many good times..with an incredible group of poker bloggers...
Saturday, July 08, 2006
Times to Remember...
On July 4th, my children returned from their 5 day Mammoth trip with EM and his "friends". During the weekend, I couldn't help but think that this should have been MY family trip. But instead, we are a family no more. Although I have been able to accept my fate, these are the kinda things that hurt the most.
EM had promised to have my girls home by early afternoon, so that I could celebrate the holiday with them. My plan had been to take them to the Queen Mary for an enjoyable afternoon. But when they arrived home, it was soon apparent that they were not up for this plan. My oldest daughter was acting out and expressing frustration with the family. Something was terribly wrong. She is high strung and a challenge at times, but this was different. So I took her in a room to talk. She shared that her daddy was making new "friends" and she didn't like it. My heart was breaking for her. As much as I tried, I could not stop the tears from falling. Yet another of many roads to travel in the journey of dissolution. This one would be the hardest by far. I know I can get over my own suffering, but to see my girls suffer is sooo much worse.
After a bit of consoling, I finally got the kids to agree to go to my sister's house for a BBQ. Intially, my daughter wanted to isolate herself in a room. But I could not let that happen. I got her outside and then asked if she would like to play some poker. Immediately a smile came to her face. Usually just the adults get to play. So this was a treat. She started talking to one of the adults at the party explaining her knowledge of the game. He was impressed. She actually knew about Poker! Receiving praise for this knowledge was just the thing to break her out of her mood. So we started a game of poker with 3 adults and 5 children (including my girls). I couldn't help but be proud when the final 3 left in the game were me and my girls...lol...And mom does not take it easy on these girls, so of course I took them out next.
By the end of the evening, neither of my girls wanted to leave. They had a great time and so did I. I was surrounded by my family and people that cared about me. My sister told me that she was so proud of me. That I was a strong woman. I didn't feel strong, but I knew I was making my way.
After this event, there was no way I could think of leaving my girls for a 4 day trip to Vegas. And I so did not want to miss the blogger event. So I came up with the perfect compromise. I would bring them with me and invite the grandparents to help watch.
Friday morning my day started with a trip to the court house for a mediation session covering the terms for child custody. For once, things went smoothly. If nothing else EM loves his girls more than anything else. For them, he would do the right thing. We both want the best for them. So we had easily come to aggreement on a schedule and terms for join custody of the children.
My trip started on Friday at noon. We were off to Las Vegas!
I have lots to write about already, but let me just give you a few highlights to start..I will fill in the details later.
* Getting hammered by Iggy
* Lost a $20 Roshambo(rock/paper/scissors) game with Iggy
* Getting SoCo'd by Al (yes AlCantHang made it to Vegas!)
* Dealer screwed up my suckout and allowed Penner42 to beat me in a nice pot on the HORSE game
* Joined Katitude and Jules in touching Waffles head (and I did forget to wash my hands..oops)
* Hit a Royal Flush on first hand of three card poker (pays 40 to 1 = $400)
* Suckout on Weakplayer
* Grabbed Derek's and Garths xxxxxxx (blaming Al cause I fell in love with SoCo)
* 2nd person to bust in the blogger tournament when Ryan (I think his link is absinthesparks) hit his Royal Flush. I had KTs and raised to 200 in EP. He called preflop with Kh Jh. The flop came K Qh Th giving me 2 pair and him top pair with a royal flush draw. I bet 500..he raised to 1500..and I pushed. He thought for a while and finally called. The turn was Ah..I was DONE! He also won the box of See's candies I brought as a bounty.
* Hearing the incredible welcoming speeches by Howard Lederer, Phil Gordan, Jay Greenspan and Michael Craig.
NOW for the best highlight of my trip....***corrections made to this section***
Before the blogger tournament started, there was a Charity Roshambo Tourney. The prize being a one-hour private lesson with Phil Gordan. April stated, "I do believe he intended that to be a poker lesson, but perhaps one of you girls could convince him otherwise". I was matched up first the a blogger named Amy, then with Weakplayer's wife Amy, another person who I can't remember, a guy from FT, Doubleas (**for the semi-final)and then finally it was down to the final two. Veneno vs the "Mark". I WON!!!! Now the only thing to decide...what kinda lesson..hmmmm...I seriously doubt I can learn anything about poker while staring at Phil ...He is just sizzzlinnnngggg!!!! He also offerred to send me an autographed copy of his two books, "The Little Green Book" and his newest, "The Little Blue Book".
So, for those not in Vegas let me just say, YOU ARE MISSING OUT BIG TIME! I will never forget this experience.
Laters...
EM had promised to have my girls home by early afternoon, so that I could celebrate the holiday with them. My plan had been to take them to the Queen Mary for an enjoyable afternoon. But when they arrived home, it was soon apparent that they were not up for this plan. My oldest daughter was acting out and expressing frustration with the family. Something was terribly wrong. She is high strung and a challenge at times, but this was different. So I took her in a room to talk. She shared that her daddy was making new "friends" and she didn't like it. My heart was breaking for her. As much as I tried, I could not stop the tears from falling. Yet another of many roads to travel in the journey of dissolution. This one would be the hardest by far. I know I can get over my own suffering, but to see my girls suffer is sooo much worse.
After a bit of consoling, I finally got the kids to agree to go to my sister's house for a BBQ. Intially, my daughter wanted to isolate herself in a room. But I could not let that happen. I got her outside and then asked if she would like to play some poker. Immediately a smile came to her face. Usually just the adults get to play. So this was a treat. She started talking to one of the adults at the party explaining her knowledge of the game. He was impressed. She actually knew about Poker! Receiving praise for this knowledge was just the thing to break her out of her mood. So we started a game of poker with 3 adults and 5 children (including my girls). I couldn't help but be proud when the final 3 left in the game were me and my girls...lol...And mom does not take it easy on these girls, so of course I took them out next.
By the end of the evening, neither of my girls wanted to leave. They had a great time and so did I. I was surrounded by my family and people that cared about me. My sister told me that she was so proud of me. That I was a strong woman. I didn't feel strong, but I knew I was making my way.
After this event, there was no way I could think of leaving my girls for a 4 day trip to Vegas. And I so did not want to miss the blogger event. So I came up with the perfect compromise. I would bring them with me and invite the grandparents to help watch.
Friday morning my day started with a trip to the court house for a mediation session covering the terms for child custody. For once, things went smoothly. If nothing else EM loves his girls more than anything else. For them, he would do the right thing. We both want the best for them. So we had easily come to aggreement on a schedule and terms for join custody of the children.
My trip started on Friday at noon. We were off to Las Vegas!
I have lots to write about already, but let me just give you a few highlights to start..I will fill in the details later.
* Getting hammered by Iggy
* Lost a $20 Roshambo(rock/paper/scissors) game with Iggy
* Getting SoCo'd by Al (yes AlCantHang made it to Vegas!)
* Dealer screwed up my suckout and allowed Penner42 to beat me in a nice pot on the HORSE game
* Joined Katitude and Jules in touching Waffles head (and I did forget to wash my hands..oops)
* Hit a Royal Flush on first hand of three card poker (pays 40 to 1 = $400)
* Suckout on Weakplayer
* Grabbed Derek's and Garths xxxxxxx (blaming Al cause I fell in love with SoCo)
* 2nd person to bust in the blogger tournament when Ryan (I think his link is absinthesparks) hit his Royal Flush. I had KTs and raised to 200 in EP. He called preflop with Kh Jh. The flop came K Qh Th giving me 2 pair and him top pair with a royal flush draw. I bet 500..he raised to 1500..and I pushed. He thought for a while and finally called. The turn was Ah..I was DONE! He also won the box of See's candies I brought as a bounty.
* Hearing the incredible welcoming speeches by Howard Lederer, Phil Gordan, Jay Greenspan and Michael Craig.
NOW for the best highlight of my trip....***corrections made to this section***
Before the blogger tournament started, there was a Charity Roshambo Tourney. The prize being a one-hour private lesson with Phil Gordan. April stated, "I do believe he intended that to be a poker lesson, but perhaps one of you girls could convince him otherwise". I was matched up first the a blogger named Amy, then with Weakplayer's wife Amy, another person who I can't remember, a guy from FT, Doubleas (**for the semi-final)and then finally it was down to the final two. Veneno vs the "Mark". I WON!!!! Now the only thing to decide...what kinda lesson..hmmmm...I seriously doubt I can learn anything about poker while staring at Phil ...He is just sizzzlinnnngggg!!!! He also offerred to send me an autographed copy of his two books, "The Little Green Book" and his newest, "The Little Blue Book".
So, for those not in Vegas let me just say, YOU ARE MISSING OUT BIG TIME! I will never forget this experience.
Laters...
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Life is Like Poker
I really enjoyed the recent article in the July Card Player magazine where Justin Marchand interviews the man himself, Doyle Brunson. Here is a little excerpt:
So true...
If you haven't heard the news already, there is a new poker book available written by one of our community of bloggers, Mr. Doubleas. There have been many times when I tried to entice Doubleas into taking a break and having some fun with the blogger crowd. But most times, he stayed focused and was determined to complete this book. Now that he is finished, not only can we benefit from his efforts and expert advise, but we can enjoy his company on the virtual felt. Go check his blog for a link to order your own copy.
Only a few days till Vegas...woo hoo!
Life is like poker. You don't get the hand that you want dealt to you all the time, and you just have to play the hand that you are dealt and play it to the best of your abilities. That's what I tried to do then and what I try to do now. When you get some tough hands to play, you just do it the best you can.
So true...
If you haven't heard the news already, there is a new poker book available written by one of our community of bloggers, Mr. Doubleas. There have been many times when I tried to entice Doubleas into taking a break and having some fun with the blogger crowd. But most times, he stayed focused and was determined to complete this book. Now that he is finished, not only can we benefit from his efforts and expert advise, but we can enjoy his company on the virtual felt. Go check his blog for a link to order your own copy.
Only a few days till Vegas...woo hoo!
Blogger Goodness....
My first night on the Blogger cash table was a fluke cause I made money. That was completely out of the normal. But I was back to giving it away in subsequent games. Making donations to the tune of about $150. So I must avoid the temptation for now.
Last night, first hand I get was the HAMMER. I lost half my buy-in on that one. Then finished off my buy-in shortly after with KK. Someone hit their A hand of course.
Despite the losses, I have had a blast. And truth be told, if Iggy IM's me for another game...I doubt I will be able to resist. Plus I have had a chance to meet some more bloggers including the infamous CJ. And I'm getting more offers for HU matches..yum..yum...upcoming battles will include RiverRun, PokerJones, and SurlyPokerGnome. (sorry I don't have the links handy).
In the meantime, it's back to my most profitable game....SnG's on Party!
We all dream of playing in the WSOP and I'm no different. My many attempts to win a seat have so far failed. This week I had two just missed chances. I played the WSOP qualifer for the 200/15 satillite twice. First time finished 5th - one out of the seat and the second time 2 out of a seat. Drats!
And I won another token on FT..maybe.just maybe..I can't make some money with it this time!
Okay..until Vegas....
Last night, first hand I get was the HAMMER. I lost half my buy-in on that one. Then finished off my buy-in shortly after with KK. Someone hit their A hand of course.
Despite the losses, I have had a blast. And truth be told, if Iggy IM's me for another game...I doubt I will be able to resist. Plus I have had a chance to meet some more bloggers including the infamous CJ. And I'm getting more offers for HU matches..yum..yum...upcoming battles will include RiverRun, PokerJones, and SurlyPokerGnome. (sorry I don't have the links handy).
In the meantime, it's back to my most profitable game....SnG's on Party!
We all dream of playing in the WSOP and I'm no different. My many attempts to win a seat have so far failed. This week I had two just missed chances. I played the WSOP qualifer for the 200/15 satillite twice. First time finished 5th - one out of the seat and the second time 2 out of a seat. Drats!
And I won another token on FT..maybe.just maybe..I can't make some money with it this time!
Okay..until Vegas....
Saturday, July 01, 2006
Slb gets Spanked
Sometimes we bloggers need to look out for each other. And in some cases that means telling people when they are annoying.
Our newest blogger needed to be scolded. So I volunteered for the task. I mean, who else can get away with spanking another blogger?..lol..Anyway, I decided to tell him he was being an Ass.
We were all having a great time last night at the blogger game when he got carried away with his smack talk. Now I'm all about talking smack, but there is fun, cool, teasing, smack and then there is the annoying you are being a jerk smack. Slb was falling into the later category.
So when he hit me up in the IM chat. I told him what I thought. His intial response was that he warned us all not to take him seriously. My response was "saying you are an ass, doesn't make it right". Then said, if he wanted to be an Ass that was fine, but he is not gonna get respect from other bloggers.
I think he learned a valuable lesson. What is more important? To win $$ at a single session of poker with bloggers by being annoying or to earn the repect and friendship of some of the most amazing and wonderful people in the world, Poker bloggers!
Okay..now for important business...
Al has promised to give me a dial-a-shot when I'm in Vegas. He was in the mood to tease today. He made the comment, "maybe you'll get a call from me standing at the poker rail at MGM"..then proceeded to tell me..."i'm a tease"...That is sooo mean! He is one blogger I would have loved to meet in Vegas. Oh well..guess I'm gonna have to try to find a way to make it to the boat.
Counting the days to Vegas...
Laters all!
Our newest blogger needed to be scolded. So I volunteered for the task. I mean, who else can get away with spanking another blogger?..lol..Anyway, I decided to tell him he was being an Ass.
We were all having a great time last night at the blogger game when he got carried away with his smack talk. Now I'm all about talking smack, but there is fun, cool, teasing, smack and then there is the annoying you are being a jerk smack. Slb was falling into the later category.
So when he hit me up in the IM chat. I told him what I thought. His intial response was that he warned us all not to take him seriously. My response was "saying you are an ass, doesn't make it right". Then said, if he wanted to be an Ass that was fine, but he is not gonna get respect from other bloggers.
I think he learned a valuable lesson. What is more important? To win $$ at a single session of poker with bloggers by being annoying or to earn the repect and friendship of some of the most amazing and wonderful people in the world, Poker bloggers!
Okay..now for important business...
Al has promised to give me a dial-a-shot when I'm in Vegas. He was in the mood to tease today. He made the comment, "maybe you'll get a call from me standing at the poker rail at MGM"..then proceeded to tell me..."i'm a tease"...That is sooo mean! He is one blogger I would have loved to meet in Vegas. Oh well..guess I'm gonna have to try to find a way to make it to the boat.
Counting the days to Vegas...
Laters all!
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