"Aimlessly Chasing" Amy

Moving Day

2006-07-01T07:38:00.000-07:00

Well it's moving day here at chez ACA. For my new blog home please go to Aimlessly Chasing Amy. It's still a little rough around the edges and I'm still a Wordpress neophite. But I already am getting used to my new digs and hopefully you will too.

Wonder Woman, the WSOP and JJ Liu

2006-06-29T12:50:00.000-07:00

I'm still on vacation at the Outer Banks. A lot of the rain has missed me here. Maybe it's the powerful force associated with the house I'm staying at; it apparently belongs to Lynda Carter aka Wonder Woman. I looked through all the closets, but there are no spare costumes lying around. Too bad, because I'm pretty sure we share the same cleavage.

I booked vacation during the start of the WSOP on purpose. I didn't want to be tempted to stay in Vegas for the whole thing again. I was totally wasted last year. But of course now I'm completely Jonesing about not being there. I have at least three people calling me every day to give me the skinny - and of course I'm pouring over Pauly's blog for updates. And I'm so totally jealous every time I hear how Pauly and Otis are pourin' 'em back at the Hooker Bar. Save a few for me boyz.

I heard it from a reliable source that JJ Liu, 4th place finisher at the Bellagio 5 Diamond WPT Event has not been contacted for the WPT's Ladies Night IV. I truly don't understand this invitational. JJ has a great track record, credibility, is totally cool, and always wears a great hat. They couldn't buy what she could give 'em. I took this picture of JJ at the Venetian poker room opening. I have never had a chance to talk with her, so I'm hoping the WSOP gives me that opportunity. Damn...I'm not there yet.

Blondes and Brunettes

2006-06-27T11:48:00.000-07:00

Clonie Gowen has thrown down the gauntlet. She has challenged that well-reputed poker ace, Paris Hilton, to a $100,000 match. Yawn. I'm guessing that's as cheap as you can buy Hilton publicity. The money will go to charity (if this stunt ever gets off the ground) which might be the only thing considered worthy in play. And yes, I realize you boyz might have high hopes here. But trust me, this won't end in a pj ripping girly pillow fight.

There is of course better news on the brunette front. First of all, Jen Leo has won a televised seat at the Poker Dome. Of course I'm still bristling about Jen taking my stack at the Blogger's Winter Classic; my QQ vs her K-Jo yada yada yada. So she better vindicate us by bringing home the big bucks on July 9th. [picture of Jen and Al Can't Hang]

Jen and I also have fantasized about doing our own wacky gossipy coverage of the WSOP. And well...we just went ahead and did it. Look for our "unusual" coverage (and I can't even predict what it might entail) at Breakfast Club Poker

Initially I thought I would like taking a week off of the WSOP. Last year I was so totally burned out by the end. But I'm really struggling here at the Outer Banks - even with this view from my house - about not being there.

I have a double edge sword issue for the radio show this week. Tom McEvoy has agreed to be our guest, provided he doesn't make it deep into the previous day's tournament. I really like Tom and I feel he has an unique perspective about the WSOP and the change and growth of poker over the past years. But surely I want him to make the money? I hate these ethical dilemmas.

I See Dead People and Big Stack Play

2006-06-24T06:03:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday I went to the National Military Park in Vicksburg and meandered through the battlefield. Thursday was a driving day and Friday I spent on Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga. Like every poker junkie, I looked for poker lessons every where I went. This trip has had me thinking about big stack play.

Vicksburg sits high on a bluff, overlooking the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers. The Confederates held the high ground. In Chattanooga, the Confederates held Lookout Mountain and later Missionary Ridge - again the high ground in the battles that would ensue. High ground is a huge advantage, much as having the big stack at your table. As a short stack, or holding the short stack, you know you're in for a protracted battle if you have a shot at winning. And both civil war battles were long sieges, where the Union eventually prevailed. Having a big stack is an advantage, but it's not a panacea. While Lookout Mountain was never taken by the Union army, the Confederate eventually abandoned it. There was little that they could do with the position. Because of the sheer cliff at the top, the conferred had to expose themselves any time they tried to pick off the Union below - just as a big stack exposes themselves every time they try to sheriff a small stack. Having a big stack and knowing how to play it are two different things.

Not that this has too much relevance for me, the consummate small stack player. One of the things I hope to work on in Vegas is getting and playing a big stack.

Today is another travel day as I continue to make my way eastward for the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Dead Money and On the Road

2006-06-21T06:26:00.000-07:00

Well I played my best dead money game for the PokerStars Blogger tournament on Sunday. I think I finished 396th and never was a contender. My NLHE game has been unimaginative and lackluster as of late. I'm hoping that hanging out with my poker road trip buddies (the 2 bills, mike, and tim) will get me back on track. With them calling me a wuss everyday, I should be able to kick it up a notch. Of course zippy will be the biggest wuss, because he's a no-show.

If you haven't checked out Maudie's new look, give her a peak. Maudie's like me. Before taking on a new direction or project, she cleans house - in this case her blog. Before I work on my dissertation, my bathrooms sparkle.

I'm actually on the road this week. Like BJ, sometimes I just need an ubber road trip. I drove from Austin to Vicksburg yesterday and I will leave for Chattanooga tomorrow. The plan is to hit the Outer Banks in North Carolina by Sunday where I will watch the ocean for a week. I figure if I'm going to spend over a month in the hot dry desert, I want a fresh memory of water to take with me. If all goes according to plan, I should be internet enabled the whole way. It's funny how my needs have changed over the last few years. I don't need running water, but internet is a must. Luckily at my b&b they have both. I guess that's why FEMA lived here for the duration.

Tomorrow I will be posting with my impressions of Vicksburg - another post river economy, current casino economy town.

Father's Day

2006-06-17T17:14:00.000-07:00

My father has been dead for many years now, but I think of him often. He was second generation Armenian. His parents came to this country to escape the 1915 Armenian genocide. If I inherited my gambling genes, he was undoubtedly the source. I don't remember him playing poker, but he loved craps, gin, bridge and backgammon. He spent probably too many of his high school years shooting pool in East Cambridge where he grew up. He described himself as the typical high school kid of his day, more concerned with the jitterbug than world affairs. That changed with WW II.

My father was a co-pilot in the 450th Bombardment Group stationed in Manduria Italy. In the picture above, he is the one on the right. He flew the B-24, nicknamed the Liberator. So much of what he became and how he defined himself grew out of his involvement in WW II. Like many of the people who fought in WW II, he was very proud of his historical contribution. Also like many of his peers who spent their youth witnessing the realities of war, he harbored few illusions about its toll. Marvin Stock, the flight engineer for my father's plane, dedicated his website about the 450th with these words: "Dedicated to my children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. I hope you will understand the horrors of war from these few pages. May you never have to participate in any future war." In the last few years, I've listened to a lot crap about what makes people patriotic. These men were patriots. They fought the good fight. They were not pro war. They knew war.

My father taught me many things. He taught me to play cards. He taught me to swear. He taught me to dance. He taught me to golf. But most of all, he taught me the importance of defending civil rights and preserving human life, no matter how dangerous, unpopular to the majority, or politically inconvenient that stand might be. Of everything he taught me, that's the lesson I hope I got right...or left as it is often perceived.

To George Garoian, my father, who I loved very much.

Bloggers, The WSOP, and the IRS

2006-06-15T20:13:00.000-07:00

I'm finally spiritually ready for Vegas. My plans and logistics have changed daily over the last weeks, but I'm ready to lock and load. Today I will seal the deal on a nice sublet. It is apparently not frequented by crack whores, so I think we're all going to have to defer to Pauly's blog during the WSOP for coverage of that hallowed Vegas action.

I'm looking forward to kicking off my trip right with the WPBT Summer Classic. I had such a blast at the Winter Classic, although there were some things I missed out on. I never got the hammer during the tournament; not once. I never had my picture taken with Al Can't Hang. (I see my secret is out - I do have a crush on the big guy - who doesn't?) And I didn't make the money. I'm looking forward to addressing all those issues this year. In anticipation of the Classic, all my blog pictures today are from the Winter Classic, starting out with Whiskeytown. Whiskytown needs some help getting back his poker mojo. I think the Summer Classic is up to the job.

While I liked Whiskey's T-Shirt, this was another that I liked. If you have trouble reading it, it says, "If poker was easy, it would be called your mom." How sweet.

I noticed that the Gold Coast is having a supersat for the WSOP ladies event on the 7th; maybe jet lag will give me the edge. They are going to cap it at 200 players and I'm guessing it will be jammed. Last year I got almost no poker in at the WSOP. I think my bubble performance in the media event was the only time I touched cards in 47 days. It was painful. This year, I will be working the other side of the work/play equation.

Last night Lou Krieger and I had an interesting guest on Hold'em radio. Randi Levenbaum is a financial planner, a poker player, and a devout participant of the Wednesday Poker Discussion Group in Las Vegas. She had great financial planning advice for poker players. She is also a kindred spirit relative to living life on the cheap. I think I've met my match in comp whoring. I'm definitely going to pick Randi's brain in Vegas for scoring deals. She also talked about taxes and backing. So many people go into backing and sharing deals during the WSOP - and inevitably someone gets the short end of the IRS stick. Guys - if you're exchanging action or backing, you need this IRS form filled out when you get your payout.

Well I better get off my ass and start executing on my WSOP plans. I leave you with this picture of Pauly, showing blogger love.

Blog Therapy and Movin' Blues

2006-06-13T08:48:00.000-07:00

It's 4:30am and I've exhausted my capacity to sleep for the night. I've been wound like a clock lately. I'm usually laid back and even keeled, but I'm starting to stress with the vision of what my next few weeks and months are really going to entail. As therapy, I decided to visit Felicia's blog as she is one woman that is unapologetically and unabashedly wound. It was just what I needed.

The blogs I gravitate to most are those that give me a strong sense of the writer. There are now plenty of non-blog sources of poker information. If I want hand histories and bad beats, any forum will do. I read poker blogs, for the most part, to learn more about other people who have been drawn to this game; their motivation, their learning process, their background, and what point in the fulcrum they've chosen to balance life and poker. I'm a blog voyeur which means you really have to expose yourself in your blog to float my boat. Felicia kicks ass in this regard.

Although I had been a long time reader of Felicia's blog, I hadn't met her until the 2005 WSOP. Within the first two minutes of conversation, I could feel a smile creep over my face. I think I actually blurted out, "Oh my god. You're just like your blog." In retrospect, I think that is probably the highest compliment you can pay a blogger. I hope she took it that way.

I've thought a lot about this as I rebirth my blog and luckily there's been some nice guidance recently about what makes a good blog from some of my favorite bloggers; High on Poker kicked off a good discussion, Bill Rini had a nice part one and two, and Felicia weighed in with who she likes and why.

As further therapy today I took Sammy to the vet, cleaned the bathrooms,went for my daily walk before the sun scorched the earth, and closed with quality time in the jacuzzi. I feel a little better now.

Part of my angst is finally coming to terms with the fact that my blog home is just temporary. I really have to move it to my own domain, something I've been in denial about since it's rebirth. And if I'm moving domains, I might as well bite the bullet on transitioning to a new software platform. I know all of this will drive me nuts (short drive) and be an inconvenience for y'all. I promise to contact linkers and leave my new home address here when the time comes - which could be very soon.

Another part of my angst is obsessing about the WSOP. Last year I worked fourteen hours a day for forty-seven straight days. Lou Krieger still likes to tease me about how bad I looked towards the end. If it wasn't for Cyndy Violette and her chef Sassy nourishing me every day, I would have collapsed. And if it weren't for Otis, Pauly, BJ, Jen, John, Jay Greenspan, Steve Hall, Dan, and my family away from home, LasVegasVegas, I would have gone insane. I'm not working as many hours nor as many days this year, so that should help. And just reading Pauly's post about the 2005 WSOP was even more therapy. I went from stressed to stoked in just one blog read; I can't wait for the group grope.

Oh and btw, Wicked Chops featured Jen in their BlogFiles this week. It's superb. There are so many great lines but my favorite was when they asked Jen what would indicate that poker had jumped the shark and she responded, "When Mike Paulle replaces Phil Hellmuth Jr. as the analyst on Celebrity Poker Showdown." She's a peach. But I can't believe they didn't tell the story about Jen, this guy, the go-go dancer and the best $10 I ever spent in Vegas.

As Scarlett said,"Tomorrow is another day." And thanks to some great blog reads today, I'll be ready.

Burning and Churning

2006-06-09T19:04:00.000-07:00

Man it's a hot one
Like seven inches from the midday sun - Santana

The heat is on. If I need to do anything that requires leaving the house it has to be before 9:30am or after 7:00pm unless it's a trip to the pool. While most Texans are planning their escape to cooler climates, I am finalizing my plans to spend the summer in the only place hotter than the Lone Star state.

I have attended at least part of the WSOP for the last five years; as an observer, a freelancer or under contract. While I knew I was not going miss going out this year, I had no firm idea of the whats and whens. And with the current changes in the media restrictions, many of the media players had no idea either.

I had been keeping my options open and had thrown out a few proposals to a number of outlets - but I was actually leaning toward making this year's Vegas venture a combination of personal schmooze-fest, dissertation writing escape, with a little satellite action on the side.

Thursday my planets aligned. It seemed like every idea or seed I planted in the last couple of months, WSOP or otherwise, came to fruition. The phone kept ringing off the wall. If I played the lottery, my numbers would have hit. I'm sure that some of these will die on the vine, but it was sure nice to get washed over by a positive wave for a change.

My needs are pretty simple. I'm definitely low maintenance on the financial front. But in life's exercise of feast and famine, dealing with feast beats the shit out of managing famine. But just in case I wasn't paying attention to the cosmic challenge, I had a dream Thursday night. The recently deceased John Kenneth Galbraith spoke to me as I slept. He whispered, "It is a shame that you didn't use your last hours wisely." The message that my dissertation chair's father came from his ultimate slumber to disturb mine was not lost on me.

I didn't get much play in this week, but I did manage to play and money in an online Omaha hi/lo MTT. I'm three for three in my last Omaha hi/lo MTTs; two online and one live. It had been awhile since I had gone back to my Omaha roots as the NLHE action is often too hard to pass up. It feels good. I think a lot my malaise with poker had to do with drifting too far afield from my personal poker zone. I think I'll put my playing energy more solidly in Omaha until the WSOP. If my head stays in the game, I may take a shot at a couple of satellites for the $3000 buy-in. (picture of Kathy Liebert's hands)

On a lighter note (and another sure way to escape the dissertation anvil precariously hanging overhead) I was looking (obsessing) at my blog stats. Some of the more interesting ways people searched their way to the blog:

more ass
liz lieu cleavage
pimping radio
Sabina ass
Amy cleavage
Athens whorehouse
groping
dd pizza poughkeepsie

On the international reader front, the following additional countries have navigated their way here: The Netherlands, Chile, Faroe Islands, Malaysia, The Russian Federation, Libya, Slovenia, Bermuda, and Cyprus.

Betting To My Balls

2006-06-05T13:44:00.000-07:00

I like poker for a lot of the same reasons I like investing; if you make wise risk vs. return decisions, you are paid off in the long run. If you are the first one to notice a good opportunity in the stock market, there is minimal risk to being early; it's like betting a great draw on the flop. But you do have to look at it over the long haul.

My dalliance with sports betting is obviously short-term, relegated to the occasional cheap bet when I'm in Vegas. This week I suffered a slight case of short-term remorse. My bet in Vegas last week was on Matt Kenseth to win the Coca Cola 600. This week Kenseth prevailed at Dover. I'm not exactly prophetic as Kenseth is having a great year. I just suspected that he was better than his odds, which will undoubtedly and unfortunately start reflecting what I knew last week.

I say I only had a slight case of short term remorse. It's because I just finished reading The Odds: One Season, Three Gamblers and the Death of Their Las Vegas. This is a great book that chronicles a sports betting season from three perspectives: the guys setting the line at the Stardust, a newbie, and a professional. The reason why I got it in the first place is that the professional is poker player Alan Boston.

I remember the first time I noticed Alan Boston. I was walking through the crowded tournament room during the 2005 WSOP when I heard someone say, "This is going to be hard for me. I'm doing this without Percocet and Red Bull today." When I turned around to see who said it, there was Alan Boston, shooting me a mischievous grin. For the remainder of the WSOP, I usually got a song from Boston when I passed.

I actually was stressed reading the book. As Boston would lay out upwards of 70K on a day's worth of games day after day, I started to sweat. I laughed at myself. I was worried about the outcome of bets placed more than five years ago.

I like making risky bets with a good probability of high returns. I can back my research with money. I have that passion. But my frugal nature prevents me from betting to my balls; that and the lack of balls. I wonder sometimes how my fiscal conservatism impacts my ability as a poker player. On the professional circuit I have certainly seen a prevalence for betting to the balls among top players; whether on a poker felt, the craps and black jack tables, or the sports book. Reading Otis' post reminded me of that this week. It is a common enough trait among players that I wonder sometimes if it is a necessary trait. You must play without fear. I get that. I rationalize that playing without fear of losing your buy-in is different than playing without the fear of losing your entire bankroll. I can't do the latter...and maybe that means I'm really fooling myself about the former. Or maybe the pros do the former so well that the latter becomes meaningless. There are a few nits like me among the pros, but admittedly few. Although I'm fairly certain the Chris Ferguson has never put so much as a nickel in a slot machine or a dime on a game. I suspect he maintains tighter controls on his bankroll than the Federal Reserve.

I am cheap. One of my first articles for Woman Poker Player Magazine was entitled, "I'm Cheap and I'm Proud." In it I claimed that when I died, my tombstone would read "She Got Good Value." My recent underwear purchase will serve as a good example. I normally buy underwear twice a year in quantity at an outlet mall forty-five miles from my house. A few weeks ago, my jockeys were telling me it was time. But things had changed since my last visit; gas prices. I actually worked out on a spreadsheet that for the quantity of underwear I was purchasing, factoring in the gas, it was cheaper for me to drive ten miles to the mall to a department store offering a 25% sale than driving the forty-five miles for the outlet's standard 35% off. The fact that I also found a clearance rack with a few pairs my size for an additional 15% off was icing on the cake. I would go through the same exercise when I was making six figures in high tech. It's almost more philosophical than financial.

I relish betting in poker when I'm getting good value, but I don't think I'll ever be able to bet to my balls. Is this just practical, a leak, or both?

I have registered to play in the PokerStars World Blogger Championship of Online Poker!

This Online Poker Tournament is a No Limit Texas Holdem event exclusive to Bloggers.

Registration code: 6841054

Flashbacks, Escorts, and Seats. Oh My.

2006-06-04T08:15:00.000-07:00

I see from the comments that my OZ reference triggered a dream flashback for bill. Wildbill is one of my trusted poker road buddies. While I never want him at my poker table, he is coveted company for drunken pai gow (dealers and pit bosses have formed an "I had bill at my table" support group), blackjack and baccarat. It seems bill had a disturbing dream where he was sweating me during an Omaha session. I was apparently garbed in blue gingham with requisite pigtails. I also had very very hairy legs, triggering another bill flashback to a past encounter with a pair of Swedish sisters. I'll let the pokershrink sort out the psychological implications.

But bill has bigger fish to fry this week as he is one of those unlucky Washington State online players. He has made a tidy little bankroll for himself over the years. And as bill is a solid citizen, the IRS has been a beneficiary of his online activities. Bill has now ceased online play per the new state law banning most online gaming.

I've never accused lawmakers of consistency, and apparently those in Washington State dodge that bullet with aplomb. Washington State has legal card rooms. Washington State will also continue to allow online horse wagering.

According to the Seattlepi, Washington State Gambling Commission Director Rick Day says they aren't targeting the online players, who now face felony charges, up to five years in prison and a $10,000 fine. (Imagine the penalties if they were going after online players) "Day said his priorities are to go after national and international promoters or operators based in Washington state -- and increasingly, to warn gamblers about the risks and illegality of the activity." Gosh. How many online sites are located in Washington State? Zero? And what's the probability that Washington State will either seek or successfully prosecute offshore online gaming establishments? Zero?

Frankly, I think the first state to legalize it, tax it, and regulate will be the biggest winner. Imagine the tax revenue, unique protection to its participating citizens, and the high tech jobs it would represent. Legalizing online would also level the playing field for B&M competitors, holding online enterprises to the same standards and tax liability.

As for bill, he has shown great imagination when it comes to vice. I'm sure he will survive.

My brother is a man of ritual; he has many in Vegas. One of them is collecting the escort cards handed out on the streets. He feels he is helping the local economy this way. He suspects that the mostly immigrant population gets paid by the card. These, after all, must be the "valuable jobs that many Americans won't perform" mentioned in the great immigration debate. Helping them achieve must be of value also.

Like the kids with their baseball cards in the movie Big, he walks down the street announcing, "Got it. Got it. Need it. Got it. Need it." At the end of the trip, he declares a winner, based on quantity. This year he had a conundrum. It seems one talented lass had eight cards; four cards under the name of Jenna and four under the name of Jenny. Samantha, at seven, was the next most prevalent. He wasn't sure of the scoring technicalities. The issue remains unresolved.

I got an email from Michael Craig last night to say he scored his $10,000 seat for the WSOP Championship event last night on Full Tilt. Right behind it was an email from Oliver Tse. Oliver had already won his main event seat, along with two preliminary event seats. Last night's note was to inform me that he made the televised final table at the National Poker League Tournament at Caesars. The final is played today and Oliver will start out second in chips. I understand that Tse will be wearing Full Tilt garb for the event. Good luck Oliver. And congrats Michael.

I am fast realizing that I should have spent less time looking for a WSOP writing gig and instead should have invested in a little qualification time. Although that would be yet another case of poker defeating the work ethic I suppose.

Vegas' OZ and NASCAR Odds

2006-06-02T13:19:00.000-07:00

The Bellagio courtyard was strange, reminding me of the scene where Dorothy battles the evil orchard in the Wizard of Oz. Most of it was a dark sinister forest with red, white and blue kites and American flags flying from the gnarled trees. The other part was electric trains running through the constructed wilderness. It would have been totally creepy had there not been hoards of giggling Japanese school girls taking each other's picture against a backdrop of twisted tree trunks.

Usually I get in a number of Bellagio fountain views; this visit yielded none. High winds and technical problems thwarted each attempt. I did manage three different MGM lion encounters. Last weeks lions included Dusty, Bijou, Samantha, Peaches and Tara. Sasha was the last lioness we encountered. I initially thought it strange that she was by herself. Then I saw her completely, and repeatedly, decimate a large plastic ball with her large jaws and thought her isolation was all for the best.

cc asked in an earlier comment whether my brother was feeling up the statue. In this picture he was indeed doing just that. I'm sorry to report that this was about as close to "lucky" as he got in Vegas. I am happy to report, however, that the pressure of the blog and Jen Leo was too much for Matt to endure. His facial hair was gone by mid-visit.

I had hoped to display Matt's impressive escort card collection in this post, but Blogger hasn't fixed their photo upload issues yet. I've been using a workaround, by uploading to Flickr and manipulating the code. But Flickr's guidelines frown on frontal nudity, so the collection will have to wait. And with the few pictures that I've loaded, I have already made a huge dent in the free monthly allowance. As cheap as I am, I'm desperately hoping that Blogger gets back on track by Monday.

I am not a regular sports bettor. Every once in awhile I get a wild hair to develop my own statistical analysis for a sport, running regressions on any number of factors. But I know it's all been done before and anything I developed would be unlikely to change the sports betting universe. Still someday I'd like to play around with it.

When I'm in Vegas, I sometimes throw down a cheap sports bet. Sunday I bet on the Coca Cola 600 at Lowe's Speedway. I had been watching the line all week on Jimmie Johnson,the field favorite. He started the week at 5-to-1, which probably wasn't bad odds for Johnson. He practically owns the track, winning something like seven times there. By Sunday, the odds closed in at 5-to-2 on Johnson, which I just didn't feel comfortable with. There are too many factors that a driver can't control. When I was here a year ago, I watched the AAron's 499 at Talledaga from the Mirage sports book. On lap 132, a 25 car pile up took out most of the field. Instead I decided to go with Matt Kenseth at 8-1. Kenseth had won this race as a rookie and finished 3rd here in 2004. The picture is from his website. Kenseth qualified in 6th. He was running well but had a problem in the pits around the 70 lap mark, dropping him from about sixth place to 35th. He fought his way back to third place, but ultimately finished in 5th place. Jimmie Johnson came in second behind the winner, Kasey Kahne.

Well hopefully Blogger will fix their picture uplaod issues soom, enabling escort photos and possibly a post Vegas bathing suit shot.

Vegas Highs and Hi/Lo's

2006-06-01T07:42:00.000-07:00

Vegas was everything I needed to get past my poker malaise. The city was jammed for the holiday weekend. People were drunk by 10:00 am. The tables were brimming with tourists. Even my brother was able to find a low-limit stud game whenever he wanted. Granted, his tables were brimming with retirees.

We invested our cash game dollars at the Mirage. While I wanted to get in a little Omaha hi/lo, I didn't love the one table that was in play. The 5/10 with a full kill looked like it was populated with people that actually knew what to do with four cards. If I was looking for fun and ignorance, I figured my best chance was the 3/6 hold'em game.

There are times when I just can't resist a low-limit hold'em game. The amusement factor is just too good to pass up. The first night I played I found an entertaining table with a mix of about 50% regulars and 50% tourists. I had a rounders moment when I realized that the regulars and I were parked for the night as we took turns relieving the tourists of their money. The regulars told me that the week before, a woman had passed out drunk on her chips. They literally played around her until the EMS got there. They actually called the floor over to ask if they could blind her off. I put in less than three hours at the table and made $68 dollars and three screwdrivers. The only real surprise of the evening was when my pocket aces held up.

I played a few more sessions in the 3/6 game, all with good financial and entertainment payback. I think my favorite moment came at a table with two locals to my left - the rest were totally clueless. At one point two buddies sat down at the table. Our brash new companions figured themselves as the sharks. In the first hand they played, one of them raised UTG. Raising does little in these games. Preceded by three callers, I called from the small blind with 8-5 soooted. The flop brought two of my suit. I called the flop and turn bets from the kid. By the river, it was just us. The river brought a perfect card, the ace of my suit. I figured the kid for an ace. When I bet out, he called saying, "I think you have me outkicked." Before I even turned over my cards, the two locals said in unison, "She has the flush, you idiot." The kid showed the A-9o. And so it went.

As fun as this was, I still needed my Omaha hi/lo fix. I decided my best bet was the Orleans rebuy tourney. It had a pretty decent showing for Omaha hi/lo with 77 players, with payouts starting at 10th. It was the typical Orleans crowd; mostly locals. I bought in for $40 with another $5 for the dealer pool 25% chip adder. I rebought for $20 as soon as I sat down. At the end of the rebuy period I bought the double add on for another $20.

I played pretty tight during the rebuy period, but still added to my stack. The guy to my left was ubber aggressive and had to rebuy twice. In the rebuy period, he also did four shots of Jager, accompanied by four bud lites. The tables played down pretty fast, and unfortunately so did my stack. When the TD announced there were 12 players, I had less than the blinds. I thought it was going to be another bubble finish. As I'm deciding my strategy, the TD announced that there were two all-ins at the other table. They both busted, and I was in the money.

When final table play started, I was the short stack with 1800; the blinds were 700/1500. I suggested a ten-way chop to a chorus of nine laughers. Mr. Jager was on his 9th shot. The guy to my right had a decent stack and joked, "I bet I'm the one to go out tenth." Before the blinds got to me, two people busted, one of them my prophetic friend. I joked that I was going to fold my way to victory. When the blinds got to me, Mr. Jager raised the button. I announced I was calling in the dark. My 4-6-6-T looked pretty ugly next to his A-2-6-Q double suited, but the case 6 fell and we chopped the pot. I folded my sb and waited. This is primarily how it went, me folding the round and hitting on my bb. At no time did I have chips to make it through the blind. By the time it got down to five, the table was totally pissed at me - except Mr Jager, who was happily on his 12th shot. My luck ran out in third place with a payout of $550. Mr Jager went on to win.

With poker content out of the way, my next post will be the "other" side of Vegas.

(and for some reason I'm having picture upload issues, so I'll try to add more later in the day)

Vegas Quickie

2006-05-26T18:49:00.000-07:00

This will be a quick update as I'm writing while my brother takes a short nap. He still hasn't figured out how to sleep in Vegas, which admittedly takes a lot of practice. This is my brother, making sure I have a safe photograph for blog viewing. The fu manchu with the "soul patch" is recent facial attire. Jen (and most women) are voting no. Even he calls it the "barbed wire fence for women." I think the goal was something Hachem-esque and it does seem to be helping his table image. He specifically added the "soul patch" to try to get some distance from the look of Vito's lover in the Sopranos. I think it's still too close for comfort.

Wednesday night, we headed over to the Venetian to meet up with Jen, John and Jen's uncle John. We stopped by the poker room because my brother hadn't seen it yet. He was encouraged to see they were spreading some stud (with a lower rake than the Mirage). I was pleased on a different front; Tom McEvoy was there. I saw Tom just briefly when the room opened and really haven't spent any quality time with him since the WSOP last year.

I've been in Vegas about six times in the last five months. I'm constantly surprised at how fast this city changes. Michael Craig stayed at the Boardwalk in December. Today, this is all that is left; a clown facade, awaiting execution.

Every time we walk by the Aladdin, another piece is gone.

I accept change. But I also know that I am a person that needs a sense of history. Vegas should have gotten the lead in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

I promise more updates soon. I will also try to get a picture of my brother's current collection of "escort" cards.

Back to Vegas

2006-05-24T06:30:00.000-07:00

Every year my brother and I carve out a week in Vegas to participate in that futile, but oh so invigorating, exercise of low-limit poker. And today is launch day.

We'll be staying at the Monte Carlo, which is one of our mainstays; not too much tourist flow, decent pool (bathing suit photo op?), and centrally located to where my brother will be trying to scare up low limit stud action. Perhaps "action" isn't the right word for Vegas stud games. My brother will come to the same conclusion he comes to every trip to vegas lately; the people left playing stud have been playing it longer than he's been alive. But that realization will be part of our annual ritual.

Our other rituals are drinking bellinis at Bertolini's at Caesar's Forum, checking out the lion action at the MGM, obligatory Bellagio fountain stops, and scoring enough comps for the Monte Carlo breakfast buffet (there is something oddly special about their bacon).

I stayed at the Palms during one of my Magical Mystery Tour stops with Michael Craig, but my brother has never been. So we'll probably spend one day doing the Palms. I suspect we won't play much poker over there, but we will be exploring drunken pai gow and video poker.

There are some people we hope to see out in Vegas. Jen and John will be there for a couple of days - but I know they have a packed schedule. We are planning to kidnap BJ for a photo journalist's tour of downtown and possibly Red Rock Canyon. And I know that the LasVegasVegas folks have had a tough week this week. My thoughts are with you guys. But I'm hoping that I'll we'll be able to work out a visit while I'm there.

I just downloaded skype and bought a headset. Technology permitting I'll be skyping in for the radio show on Thursday night. I don't want to miss this as Nolan Dalla will be our guest. His book about Stu Ungar is a must read. But besides that, Nolan has one of the best insights on the changing landscape of poker. He's also a longhorn.

So the next post will be from that city of sin. Stay tuned.

Snap Out of It! and Bubble Aid

2006-05-23T08:53:00.000-07:00

Loretta Castorini: Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been two months since my last confession.

Priest: What sins have you to confess?

Loretta Castorini: Twice I took the name of the Lord in vain, once I slept with the brother of my fiancee, and once I bounced a check at the liquor store, but that was really an accident.

Priest: Then it's not a sin. But... what was that second thing you said, Loretta?

I was getting my Iggy ubber post fix yesterday, when I came across the thread he found about yet another multiple account incident. Following the thread I couldn't help thinking of Moonstruck. The poster's argument went something like this:

Poster: The online site has wonderful customer support because they investigated my suspicion that I had been cheated.

Poster: The online site verified that I was indeed cheated and also discovered that the players had been using multiple accounts to cheat me.

Poster: They paid me the money I was cheated out of and I'm happy.

What was that second thing, Loretta?

Snap out of it! You were cheated. The multi-billion dollar site only detected it after you suffered a three digit loss, were savvy enough to suspect it, and were motivated enough to report it. I know that multiple accounts are hard to detect. I know that sites have collusion algorithms. And I appreciate that this site investigated the allegation of cheating and made good on it. But that doesn't cut it for me. It seems to me that the sites are still dependent on the cheated for the bulk of their detection. It seems to me that we are doing all the work to try to win money and pay the rake. Am I the only one who doesn't think it's also my job to protect online poker's integrity? When are there going to be industry-wide blacklists? Can't this industry do more to protect me? Our gracious poster may settle for being cheated. I'm not that gracious.

I know we all are having this online love affair with online poker. But it should be like any other relationship. If you find yourself constantly being cheated on, it doesn't really matter how many times the other person apologizes. Even if the sex is great, they are still a cheater. Eventually you're going to opt out. Today's rant is officially over.

I was listening to my new Pandora station last night while playing the $10 Omaha hi/lo MTT on PokerStars. (OK. Yeah. I still haven't bitch slapped myself out of playing online) With a short stack and still 15 to go for the money, LA Carpool's latin influenced remake of Steely Dan's "Do it Again" popped up. Coincidently, the original rendition inspired my article about my bubble finish in the Omaha hi/lo at the Mid-America Poker Classic back in 2004. I am the consummate bubble girl. I even bubbled in the WSOP media event last year. Was I going to "Go back, Jack, do it again?"

It certainly seemed that way. When we went hand-for-hand, I was UTG with less than half a BB. I couldn't help bemoaning my fate. I chatted, "I sense a bubble finish pending." The SB limped? to face the BB heads-up. It left the SB with less than a bet left. The BB came to my rescue and reraised the SB. The SB called and lost and I made the money. The BB said, "You can thank me now." And I did.

50 Things Redux

2006-05-21T08:05:00.000-07:00

I have been working on the second 50 things about me lately, but for continuity I thought I'd repost the first 50. This will also buy me a little time while I work on the poker blogger questionnaire developed by tripjax, which has made for some thoughtful and humorous posts across the poker blogisphere.

The first "about me" post I came across was on Boy Genius' blog. And I noticed that Pauly had also logged in with one. In an effort to prove that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, while also demonstrating that I have no original ideas of my own, I made a similar post in my old blog. Many bloggers do a list of 100 things. This was my first 50. I suspect the next 50 will be more uninteresting, more damning, or both.

1. I have one tattoo.

2. I managed both the men's swimming and wrestling teams in college. George Stephanopoulos was on the wrestling team that I managed. He spent the better part of the year on the bench.

3. I have a chapter published in a book entitled Inequality and Industrial Change: A Global View.

4. I am eligible for Irish citizenship, although I wasn't born there.

5. I have three piercings; all relegated to the ears, as anything else seemed like a really bad accident waiting to happen.

6. Yes. They are real.

7. I got my undergraduate degree in engineering, motivated in part by the fact it only required one English course.

8. I have been an "unnamed source" in Barron's

9. I was part of an expert witness team that secured over $100 million settlement for a telecommunications patent holder.

10. I used to play keyboards in bands named "Guido and the Scum Puppies" and "Rosetta Stone: A Legend Written in Rock."

11. I once spent a night in an Athens whorehouse.

12. I am obsessed with titles. I can't write an article without spending an inordinately long time coming up with a title first. If I ever write a book, it will be a book of just titles.

13. The title for my memoirs (which I will never write) is currently, Poker Dreams and ARIMA Nightmares. The focus of the work would be how I used my poker obsession to forestall completing my Ph.D. dissertation. I am still not wholly satisfied with the title and may spend the next year coming up with a new one.

14. On a really humid day, I can get my hair to look like a brunette Marge Simpson.

15. I once had a decent ass. But after spending a month writing in the mountains of New Mexico, I came home without it, and haven't seen it since.

16. I am mildly dyslexic and can not spell.

17. I am not supposed to drink beer anymore, as apparently Celiac disease was the underlying cause of my asslessness. When I cheat, I am an amber girl.

18. I have really small hands. My ring finger is just under a size 3.75.

19. I have really small feet. I had to buy my last pair of hiking boots in the kid's section.

20. I buy most of my clothes at second hand stores.

21. A google search for me can sometimes identify links to fetish sites because I once wrote an article called Poker Voyeurism and wrote another article where I mentioned golden showers.

22. I once sold a car to an illegal immigrant from Venezuela named Ivan for $1. It was the best offer I could get. The car I drive now is 12 years old and I think it has a few good years left.

23. The drummer from Tesla once peed at my house.

24. I wrote and instructed investment courses for online investment sites. The singer for the band Spoon was one of my editors.

25. I once told a guy he looked familiar. He was the mayor of Austin. His staff nearly peed themselves laughing.

26. I was a road manager for a band for two weeks once, just to get a free trip to Paris.

27. I got my high school letter in golf, and haven't golfed since.

28. I was once interviewed by FOX Memphis after I had consumed 7 cranberry and vodkas.

29. I can call the bubble before a tournament and deliver like Babe Ruth pointing to the outfield.

30. I am quoted in Tales from the Tiltboys.

31. Diane Swonk, the former chief economist for Bank One and financial talking head, publicly called me an idiot for investing in gold. I made 45% on my investment. At the same meeting, Swonk claimed the US economy wasn't in a recession, with the catchy phrase, "I've seen a recession, baby, and this ain't it." It turns out that at the moment she uttered that phrase, the economy was in recession.

32. I once had a job evaluation where under "strengths" my boss had written "Amy is willing to call napalm in on her own location if it means taking out the enemy." He told me later that it was the highest compliment he ever paid anyone.

33. I have served on the Board of Directors of the SIMS Foundation, a non-profit organization providing low-cost mental health services to Austin musicians.

34. I have served on the Board of Trustees of the Society of Women Engineers, entrusted with managing over $5 million of their trust fund investments.

35. I had one internet stalker with a confirmed psychiatric history.

36. I don't believe in the natural rate of unemployment.

37. I forget to eat during poker tournaments, sometimes for days at a time.

38. My father's golf foursome had at least two members that belonged to the communist party.

39. My maternal grandfather was a member of the Sinn Fein

40. I am not a social conservative. This would have been a near genetic impossibility as no recessive gene for it has been seen in my family for generations.

41. I tend to be a fiscal conservative. This translates to both economic policy and personal practice.

42. I think that The Simpsons and South Park are brilliant commentaries on American culture.

43. I smoke, drink and cuss (I quit smoking once for 10 years). I told my kindergarten teacher to put her ass in a sling. I had no idea what that meant, but it got the desired effect. I was hooked after that.

44. For the first two years I played poker, I had a reoccurring dream. It was nothing but poker hands. No plot. No opponents. Just hands and boards. Hundreds of them each night.

45. My favorite place to hang out in Austin is Chuy's on North Lamar. Good cheap tex-mex and frozen margs with salt to die for. (The Chuy's downtown was where the Bush twins were busted for underage drinking)

46. I was once stopped by four policemen on bicycles. It was St Patty's day at 2:00am. I was wearing a green felt hat with a feather. I was also driving the wrong way down a one way street (I was aware of this, but I thought no one was looking). When they pulled me over, I thought I was toast. But they just wanted to remove the barricade I was dragging from my car.oops. Once disengaged they let me on my way. Austin is my kind of town.

47. My favorite pizza is from D D's in Poughkeepsie NY where I once lived. Years after I moved, I saw a guy at an IBM location in Austin who looked familiar. It turned out it was my D D's pizza delivery guy.

48. A sausage egg McMuffin is about the only fast food I will eat. And to me it is as close to perfection as breakfast gets.

49. I read a wide range of books. But I have had to limit my fiction reading as some books, while brilliantly written, haunt me for long periods of time. Three books that still haunt me are Kamala Markadaya's Nectar in a Sieve, Tim O'Brien's In the Lake of the Woods, and Keri Hume's The Bone People.

50. I don't care if something is good or bad as much as I care that it is fair.

Navigation, Cheerleaders, and Pandora's Box

2006-05-18T07:50:00.000-07:00

I'm still obsessing somewhat with my blog stats. This week's obsession is keyword searches. For those that searched rather than linked, most found the blog with "Sabina Gadecki." And less found it with variations of "Aimlessly Chasing Amy." One enterprising searcher found it with "Amy's Cleavage." And the one that still confounds me is the person who came here looking for "fondling breasts with implants." Hey buddy, I'm working with original factory equipment here! Maybe a repost from my old blog about the 50 things about me is in order. (no cross-link provided to the mothership out of principle. I promise a repost over the weekend)

And while we're still on navigation, both Mexico and Poland have now made their appearance on the international stats front.

Some great comments on the game show rant. I was especially glad to see BJ Nemeth weigh in. BJ practically invented online poker tournament reporting and set a benchmark that few can match, but all should aspire. You should read his entire comment but I'll pick out a few gems:

"I think the WPT hostess serves an important role, that of the cheerleader. Perhaps this is why Shana was more successful; she came across as someone who was rooting for the players, while Courtney wanted to be a pretty journalist.

I disagree that the idea of a hostess is holding poker back from other mainstream sports. If poker has any problem in this area, it's the "poker media," which has yet to fully mature. (It's not even close.) As big as poker is right now, the poker media is lagging far behind. And you can't blame Shana/Courtney/Sabina for that. "

(Btw - BJ scored a great interview and pics of Sabina)

and cj noted:

"Interesting that you compare the WPT "sideline" reporter with other sports. Two years ago, Playboy model Lisa Guerrero was the MNF sideline reporter."

OK. I confess that my gender and sexual preference put me at somewhat of a disadvantage. I acknowledge that the cheerleader/hostess plays a marketing role for the important sports demographic that I am not. To me they are peripheral diversions from the event I want to watch. Perhaps there are those out there that live for the occasional cheerleader crotch shot. I tend to focus on play.

I don't "blame" the hostesses. I welcome anyone's dedication to our game. But I do find fault with media outlets that focus more on marketing than content. And this isn't a WPT bash by any means. I wish that everyone that covers poker (industry print media, televised media, online sites, and the conventional mainstream press) would give some thought on raising the bar for content and coverage. And so this isn't all bash and no praise, I do think there has been some quality programming of our game. I, like BJ, particularly like the job being done on "High Stakes Poker." And I also really enjoy "Learn From the Pros."

I see that LasVegasVegas.com has challenged me to "New Rules" for poker media. I love that idea and hope that BJ will agree to partner up on that effort. He and I have had a running discussion about this for the better part of the last year. We could have a blast - and maybe make a point or two along the way.

I've been playing around with the software on Pandora (see also the Music Genome Project) lately. I like playing poker with music in the background, but I like to pick my music based on the table dynamics and my mood. So I'm trying to set up music stations that have particular table dynamics as their theme. This may suck up more time than it's worth (hence the image of Pandora and her box), but I will share my experimental findings as I progress.

Game Show Rant, WWdN, and Andy Bloch

2006-05-16T21:30:00.000-07:00

The WPT's replacement of Courtney Friel for Sabina Gadecki has me wondering why. Not why one or the other. But why either. Why must we continue with this game show paradigm rather than the sports paradigm? Why do we continue with Vanna White instead of a knowledgeable sideline interviewer?

In football you have your play-by-play and color commentators. You also have an aspiring sports reporter covering the sidelines. The "sideliners" are knowledgeable about the game and are obviously working the fluff beat to sharpen their chops and resume until they can break into one of the top spots...not trying to parlay it into a Playboy spread.

If we want to have poker treated like a major sport, we have to cover it like a major sport - instead of covering like the Wheel of Fortune with cards.

I actually thought Shana Hiatt did as good a job as one could do with the game show model. She bonded with the players and came to understand the tournament environment - that connection came across in her interviews. But in this game show paradigm, I think Shana will stand out as an anomaly and not the norm. I wish Sabina the best and hope she comes to love and respect this game as much as we do. But the real problem is not with the spokesmodel, it's with the model itself. That concludes today's rant.

Taking up Hoyaza's suggestion, I played the WWdN (Wil Wheaton dot Net) tourney on PokerStars last night. I didn't bubble. I finished one off the bubble (ha!). But it was good advice none the less. I got to bond with some of my favorite bloggers - some who I have bonded with over drinks in person and some that I have only come to know from their blogs. Players either at my table or lurking the table were Maudie, Gracie, Mookie, Derek, Pauly, G-Rob and Hoyaza. I had a great time and will definitely play more WWdNs in the future. I think this is one more way to meet bloggers - and give them my money.

I've also decided to take my brother's advice and join him for a little low-limit Vegas action next week. I've been to Vegas a lot this year, but really haven't played much. So I think I'll do as my wise brother suggests - get into some cash games and low buy-in tournaments. If the look, feel, and sound of white chips can't dash my malaise, I don't know what will.

Andy Bloch will be joining Lou Krieger and I (er...me) on Hold'em Radio tomorrow night. He's got a new blackjack DVD coming out, so of course we're going to pimp...er...discuss that. As Andy was one of the early participants of rgp and now hangs with his Full Tilt buds, I'm curious about how important he feels exchanging ideas with others is to one's game. For a brutally independent game, this one seems to thrive (like most things) with collaborative knowledge. I'm also looking forward to his discussion of the WPT waiver situation. So I think it will be pretty cool.

P.S. Poland and South Africa have joined the international blog viewers.

New WPT Beauty and Fatalism

2006-05-15T16:58:00.000-07:00

I see that PokerNews.com broke the story that Sabina Gadecki, actress, model, former Miss Polonia and former Miss Western Massachusetts, will be replacing Courtney Friel as the hostess for the WPT. I swear, one day we will have a brunette. Pictures of Sabina's 2002 pageant win and Courtney empty handed.

I was reading Felicia's post about her recent ambivalence about winning. If Felicia is in the middle of the "outcome belief" spectrum, I have definitely slipped into the dark side. Lately I have been experiencing an almost out of body fatalism about my game. It's not tilt. It's not frustration. But appears to be as costly. Even as I go through the motions to register, I mentally anticipate with detached resignation that it will all end with a near-bubble bad beat. And it does.

When it happens, I feel nothing. Well, not completely nothing. Somewhere deep inside, satisfaction lurks. Apparently if I can't have the satisfaction of winning, I have the satisfaction of being right about losing. I don't hold much cotton with superstition. I don't think I'm cursing myself. But I am more than willing to believe that I am not playing as I would without my new fatal attraction.

My losing hand yesterday (20 from the money in a 1000 player MTT) was pocket kings. I pushed all-in with limpers already in the pot. A player behind me reraised all-in with a bigger stack. Even with that protection the BB thought and called us both. It was my KK to the reraiser's TT. The BB's AJo took us both when he flopped two jacks. And I'm OK with all that. The thing that bothered me was that I actually almost balked at pushing in with the kings to begin with. And I thought to myself, if I was reluctant to commit with kings here, where else might I have held back.

I think I need to rekindle the passion. Maybe a work-free Vegas trip with my brother Matt is in order.

On the international front, new countries weighing into the blog: Aruba, Hong Kong, Ukraine, Lithuania, Norway, Dominican Republic, Portugal, and the Philippines.

Going to the Dogs, WSOP Media, and Blogjoy

2006-05-13T05:24:00.000-07:00

The last couple of days, I've been sick as a dog. I woke up yesterday with a sore gut and a cat coup on my hands. It seems I had run out of cat food and a feline uprising was in full swing. I grabbed my keys and ran a serpentine pattern for the door. Once safely at the store, I ended up buying a 40 lb bag of food as it offered the best price point. In my weakened condition, I felt like the bag outweighed me by 10 lbs. I dragged the bag through the front door with twelve paws at my heels. I quickly opened it to the din of expectant meows, only to realize...wait for it...that I had bought dog food. You know you're in for a bad day when you buy food for a pet that you don't own. Another round trip to the store and the coup was finally contained. The picture is of Seven-Toed Sammy, finally at rest.

I probably could have saved some keystrokes on my last entry if I had waited a few hours. Harrah's released its long awaited Media Guidelines for the 2006 WSOP. It looks like I had it pretty close to the mark thanks to the well functioning rumor mill.

Freelancers and bloggers are going to have to get pretty creative to get access. And anyone that is not one of the "Official Media Providers" will be contending with a lot of restrictions.

I see that I made the same argument as Harrah's - this model is very similar to other major sports media coverage models. But there is a problem with that line of reasoning. The poker media, itself, does not yet mirror major sports media. When the major newspapers came in for the final event last year, most of the reporters knew nothing about poker. They had to ask the bloggers who the major players were. I literally got asked who Johnny Chan was more than once. And yet these are the outlets that will easily score credentials. Some of the best real-time tournament reports in 2005 were filed by Pauly, Otis, and BJ Nemeth. To my knowledge, none of these reporters are working for the "Official Provider" of real time tournament reports.

So while the coverage and credentialing model is one that is consistent with major sports, the current state of poker journalism isn't. That's a problem.

I'm experiencing real blogjoy in my new unfettered blog. First of all, comments rock! Having a comments section in my old blog was also a no-no. So I'm totally loving that. And cc, I'm working up the courage for your suggestion. Nice rack btw.

And with the world in turmoil, it seems that poker may be the international language of peace. I know I will eventually tire of checking out my blog stats, but for now it is a source of wonderment. Thanks to all you bloggers out there, the following countries have found their way to this blog: US, Canada, England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, France, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, Costa Rica, India, Pakistan, Argentina, Venezuela, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Estonia, Gibraltar, Mauritius, and the Czech Republic. I've probably left someone out. Hopefully an international incident won't ensue.

Groping, Hoping, and Pimping

2006-05-11T10:43:00.000-07:00

Well I've been outted. It's true. I did allow, and enjoy, the occasional grope by Pauly during last year's WSOP. There is even pictorial evidence. But I knew it was never serious. For one thing, Pauly is totally into blonds. During the WSOP he left his laptop unattended on media row and I found quite a few blond soft porn sites in his favorites. There wasn't a brunette to be found. Thanks for the shout out, darlin'. I'm sincerely hoping for more groping this year should we both end up at the big dance.

Media coverage for the WSOP is going to be different this year. There were some media issues last year that only stood to worsen if left unaddressed this year. For one thing, the WSOP issued a gagjillion media passes last year. For the preliminary events, there were few problems as only a core of twenty or so reporters and bloggers dedicated themselves to the 14 hours a day required to handle the early events. We all shared the limited space at the final table and small media room with ease and grace. When the media hoards came in for the final event, it bordered on inane. The small media room looked like an overbooked student hostel. People littered the floor, sleeping head to foot. One corner took on the unmistakable smell of urine. If you turned your back, you likely had your lunch, internet feed and chair swiped. The media newcomers clogged the aisles on the tournament floor. Players from broken tables couldn't get to their new tables as the poker media neophytes wouldn't let them pass. And at least one ESPN crew member considered sticking his boom up reporters' backsides to get them to move. Media with no need to be inside the rope, as they were not reporting hands or chip counts, felt the only way to demonstrate their importance was to strut their stuff between the tables. So needless to say, change was warranted.

This year Harrah's has decided to sell exclusive media rights to a few media outlets. Bluff Magazine will get the exclusive radio broadcast rights. Card Player apparently will get the exclusive real time internet reporting rights. Image Masters will get an exclusive for still photography. It is believed that few people outside of these outlets will have "inside the rope" privileges. Harrah's will likely be allowing other media outlets access to the WSOP media room where it is believed that monitors will be available for final table viewing. The problem is, what can the other media do with that? Apparently they can't provide any real time coverage as that would breach the exclusive contracts in place. Even Bluff allegedly can't provide a streaming radio feed over the internet as that infringes on CardPlayer's turf. In turn, I have heard CardPlayer can't post the real time tournament coverage on their own website, as that would infringe on an agreement between Harrah's and AOL.

In general, the concept for this year's WSOP is not unlike other major sports events. There are usually exclusive rights for radio and television, with a more open credentialing system for print media. But even so, I'm hoping that Harrah's and the exclusive rights holders allow some flexibility and creativity of interpretation. I'd like to think that other media outlets can request and receive specific photos, chip counts, etc. from the exclusive rights holders. I'd also like to think that the many online sites that send qualifiers (which have become the WSOP's bread and butter) will have some opportunities to provide real time updates about their qualifiers. And the whole issue of what bloggers can and can't do needs to be flushed out. If I want to offer readers a play by play of a final table, at what point am I safely past the "real time" exclusive; five minutes, an hour, or only after an event has completed. If I just want to report on a specific hand, story or issue during event, can I do that while the event is in play? What about podcasts?

I like the idea that no one will be peeing on my laptop at this year's WSOP. And the media credentialing last year was clearly problematic during the final event. I understand why Harrah's has chosen this model. But all that being said, I loved the choices people had when they wanted to follow the WSOP last year. Any time you take competition out of an equation, quality and options generally suffer. There were a lot of hard working and experienced bloggers, internet reporters, photographers, video teams, and radio folk that successfully helped promote Harrah's and the WSOP last year. I'm hoping that doesn't get lost on those exclusive rights holders that are hiring this year. And I'm hoping that doesn't get lost on Harrah's, either, as they navigate these new media waters.

I also wanted to pimp tonight's show on Hold'em Radio. Our guest tonight will be Michael Craig, author of The Professor, The Banker, and The Suicide King. Michael was one of the speakers at the blogger's convention in December. And I think quite a few of you stuck it to Michael in the 2/4 game at the Imperial Palace. We'll be discussing all things Beal and more. The show airs at 8:00pm CST.

Carson, the Blog Labyrinth, and Water

2006-05-10T07:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I had a pleasant surprise. I noticed that Gary Carson has re-entered the blogisphere. Many will know Gary from his books, The Complete Book of Hold'em Poker and The Complete Book of Casino Poker. Others may know Gary for his famously informative and caustically witty posts on rgp. There are so many Carson posts that I treasure, this is just one that I picked out of the archives:

"Go back in the archives a few years and look up a debate about a call on the flop with pocket fours and a board of 893 (or something like that) and a family pot. Me, Sklansky, Mason, Abdul, were among those on the right side of the debate, Danny Boy and Badger on the wrong side. It's the 44 thread but covered more than one thread. Mason also made an article out of it for either CardPlayer or Poker Digest and I made a chapter in my hold'em book from it, and it was also a long thread on 2+2.

It's a historic thread because it's the one where Danny got all insulted by me asking him if he actually played poker (he'd had his picture in cardplayer and I didn't know it, so he was pretty insulted) and started challenging me to a duel.

Of course it's also historic because Mason and I actually agreed about something.

But, it's an example of where you're just flat out wrong.

Gary Carson"

Welcome back Gary!

The Labyrinth Over the Herd
Many diehard rgpers are looking for other alternatives. While the popularization of poker was good for many things, it has taken its toll on the rgp usenet group. Once the non-stop poker shop for thoughtful, and sometimes flaming, debate, it is awash with spam, site and affiliate pimps, and the clueless. There are still some gems in there, but it is getting harder and harder to sort through the rubble to find them. Instead of having a killfile option (which is harder to keep current than the Bush administration) they should have a livefile option. At this point, it would be a much shorter list.

I think that's one of the benefits of the poker blogging community. While we occupy separate internet space, we are figuratively and literally linked. Debate and discussion occurs like a progressive dinner party; a different course at a different house. On the surface, it seems like a fragmented approach, but it works as a collaborative labyrinth of thought. Poker bloggers share some cultural biases, but since one of them is independent freedom of expression, we are moderately protected from group think and herd mentality. After all, can you imagine Felicia Lee going along with the crowd if she suspected they were wrong? It would never happen. And since there is a developed sense of community, most flame throwers are kept in check.

Substituting Texas Springs for the Carribean
I never did make it to the Bahamas. By the time Paradise cooked up the plan, we had very few days of lead time to pull it off. But I appreciated the thought and we're working with some alternate plans for our little meet and greet. Of course the silver lining is that the dreaded bathing suit shop is behind me for the season. And since I now have the suit, I can hit some of my favorite Texas water holes. I know most of you think of Texas as some dry dustbowl, but there are just some beautiful spots for a dip.

Hamilton Pool was formed when a dome collapsed over an underground river, leaving this lovely pool and grotto. It's about 30 miles from Austin, but definitely worth the drive.

And if I want to dip in town, Barton Springs is a city favorite. It is located Within Zilker Park and the "pool" is about three acres in size and is fed from underground springs. It's an average 68 degrees year round, which makes it icily refreshing on those 100 degree summer days, and seemingly toasty warm in the winter.

Postscrpit: Gracie and I Both Learn about Boobs
Gracie at sheverb had a revelation this week; she realized that boobs were big blog sellers. She noted that her post on manatees got far fewer comments than her post on boobs. But my latest boob experiment was a veritable failure. Apparently they have to be women's boobs. Live and learn.

Vegas Birthday and Book Learnin'

2006-05-08T07:27:00.000-07:00

A lot has happened between my old and new blogs. And some of my posts will be to recreate my blogging void.

One of the things that allowed me to leave the mothership was an offer from Michael Craig to help him out with a book project. Along with interesting work and better pay, Michael promised me adventure - or what we started calling the Magical Mystery Tour(MMT). Every book related trip was sprinkled with surreal encounters, side trips, and wonderment. Usually I got no more than six hours notice that an MMT was in play. Working for Michael, I always had a bag packed and enough gas in the green monster to get me to the airport. And except for this particular trip, I always booked one way to Vegas. I never knew how long I was staying or what city I would be returning from.

This trip was a little bit of an anomaly. I had booked the trip a whopping week in advance in hopes that an MMT would materialize. It was the middle of April, my favorite month in Vegas. It was also during the WPT Championship at the Bellagio. And it was my birthday.

This was a nostalgia fueled trip for me. I was at the filming of the very first WPT Championship, back when the WSOP was also in Spring. I had stayed at the Golden Nugget downtown and spent my mornings writing from the Starbucks patio. I hadn't been published in poker at that point, it was still a couple of months before my first article would appear in Canadian Poker Player. But all the seeds were sown for my poker writing "career" on that trip. And this year, for many reasons, I needed to relive that experience; go back to where it all started.

My favorite couple, Jen Leo and John Caufield (OK - yeah it's Caldwell. Note to self:no blogging before first coffee), were going to be in Vegas. When I heard they were staying at the Nugget, I knew this trip was meant to be. Michael Craig realized he couldn't fight fate and declared an official MMT stop. Game on. I didn't tell anyone it was my birthday. I had already gotten what I wanted; a springtime trip to Vegas with some of my favorite peeps and the promise of magic and mystery. (pictures of Jen at the blogger convention in December 2005)

On the morning of my birthday, I met up with John and Jen for breakfast at the Carson Street Cafe. It was at the Carson Street Cafe, now years ago, where Lou Krieger first encouraged me to try to publish. So the nostalgia vibe was already in full swing. As breakfast with Jen and John was coming to a close, the waitress brought out a huge blueberry muffin with a candle stuck in the middle. Wtf? John tried to convince me that he figured out it was my birthday because I picked 4 and 17 as my keno numbers. He has a good poker face and I almost believed him, but Jen had too much mischief in her eyes. Apparently my brother had emailed Jen that morning. Squealer:)

I headed over to the Wynn to meet up with Michael. Ever since the Beal games in February, Michael's main hang was the Wynn. When I walked in, he already had "the office" set up; a printer, two laptops, files, and his working snacks (Cheezits and Rolos). After a bit, Chris Ferguson stopped by to review part of the book draft. Like all trips with Michael, this wasn't all work and no play. Chris stayed around for hours, talking about the NBC Heads-up, the start of Full Tilt, the WPT waiver situation, and the art of building chip castles.

Michael had Chris sign one of his BARGE poker chips (the one with his winning chip castle on it) for a friend's baby that had been born that day. OK. I played the birthday card. I couldn't help myself;it is the coolest chip castle. So Chris signed a chip for me. He also grabbed the first papers he could put his hands on, which apparently was a draft of his article for All-In Magazine about heads-up play he happened to have with him, and inscribed, "Happy Birthday Amy, Chris Ferguson. P.S. "Jesus Loves ya." For all my time in the field, I have no player autographs. I have very few pictures of me with pros. I'm generally not into that. But these cool mementos will remind me of that lazy afternoon with Chris' big frame sprawled out on the loveseat, Michael at the desk, me at the table - shootin' the shit about poker.

After Chris left, Michael decided that it had been too long since his last trip to the Gamblers Book Club. Again a blast from the past. The first time I went to GBC, arguably the best bookstore for poker players and gamblers alike, was with Lou Krieger on my original adventure. I have of course been back there since, as chatting with manager Howard Schwartz alone is worth the journey. He knows what's coming and going on the poker book front and he can, and will, tell a thousand stories. The store is moving from its old haunt in a few months, so I'm glad I got this last opportunity to walk the floor of the old location. For my birthday. Michael took me past the brimming shelves. Every book that he recommended that I didn't own, he bought for me.

Not bad for a "work day"...

Of the books that Michael gave me, so far I have read Poker Face: A Girlhood Among Gamblers by Katy Lederer, The Man with the $100,000 Breasts by Michael Klonik, and I'm almost done with Fast Company by Jon Bradshaw. Each book brought something to the table as far as my own introspective assessment about writing in general and poker specifically. Poker Face was Katy Lederer's own journey; exploring, living, and then leaving, poker. A lot of food for thought in that book. $100,000 Breasts served to remind me of all the strange and interesting characters in this gambling world; funny, disturbing, brilliant, degenerate and surreal. When the author first meets Brian Zembic, the man who got breast implants on a $100,000 bet, he was living in someone's bathroom. He was going to collect $14,000 if he could live in the bathroom for 30 days:

Rows of $100 bills are taped to the mirror to remind Brian what he's earning each day he serves his self-imposed sentence but he confesses his resolve is weakening. "Joey, one of the guys who made the wager with me, he owns the apartment and he's been sending people over here to take a dump," Brian tells me, reclining on the floor. "It's brutal."

While Fast Company offers great profiles of some of the world's most famous and infamous gamblers, it is the writing that is blowing me away. Unfortunately the popularity of poker has yet to set particularly high benchmarks for writing. When Canadian Poker Player lost Dave Scharf as editor, I felt that poker lost one of its only advocates for improving the quality of poker journalism. Fast Company reminds me that I need to read more outside of poker. And if I continue to write, I need to set better benchmarks and standards for myself.

WPT, WMDs, I Dream of Liz, and Angst

2006-05-05T07:08:00.000-07:00

Whoever you are, I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.

And I am overwhelmed by the kindness of my friends.

Thanks to Up For Poker for the shout out and link up. UFP bloggers, CJ, G-Rob and Otis, make for consistently great reads; covering the spectrum from thought provoking to pants peeing material. I had the distinct pleasure of bonding with Otis during last year's WSOP. At my age, anyone I'm inclined to meet reminds me of someone I've met in the past. Otis defies categorization. Pauly and I spent one entire WSOP cocktail hour discussing and trying to dissect "the Otis factor." When you first meet Otis, you think he's straight as an arrow. And then all of a sudden you come across something delightfully twisted and warmly warped. In old television terms, he's sort of a cross between Ward Cleaver and Dennis the Menace; decidedly responsible and knowing with an overriding bent for eye twinkling mischief.

And ditto for LasVegasVegas. First, I love that picture you took of me at the WSOP last year. It definitely looks like you caught me in the act. I look guilty as hell and I'm holding my digital voice recorder. My guess is that I was trying to pick up a conversation at the next table. I met Joe and Joe in Las Vegas last February. I was a big fan of their blog and used the excuse of filming Vegas Virgins to meet up with the boyz. I don't know if they remember it, but one of the things we talked about was the difficulties I might encounter being a "corporate" blogger. Hmmm. The LasVegasVegas family became my family away from home during the WSOP. I couldn't have survived it without them; just great people.

And a bunch of additional link-ups noted and greatly appreciated.

Not particularly great news for the World Poker Tour this week. They reported earning a profit of $0.17 a diluted share. However this also included a realized gain from their investment in the company PokerTek. If you look at their earnings from operations, they lost $0.053 a diluted share (at least by my calculations). Most analysts were projecting a loss in the range of $0.02 - $0.04. In the investment world, they missed their mark. They also announced that the Travel Channel would not be picking up their option for airing the second season of the Professional Poker Tour, putting that future revenue at risk. On top of that, Steve Lipscomb announced that WPTOnline is going to have to transition to a new platform which may take a few months just to identify, let alone implement. But the company is debt free. And if they are lucky, the potential revenue effects related to the WPTOnline transition could be a temporary delay and not a loss in the aggregate.

I know the government was unable to turn up any WMDs in Iraq. But if they are seriously interested in purging the world of WMDs they can start at US retail stores. I was at Victoria's Secret yesterday, on the bathing suit mission from hell. I was the only customer with three sales people, but wasn't able to be waited on. It seems that one person was the underwear fluffer. Her job was to excite people by fondling panties; she was not actually allowed to interact with customers. A second person was crouched down, hiding behind the cash register. If she had a smaller ass, I wouldn't have noticed her. The third "salesperson" was walking around the store spraying a cloying, sickly sweet fragrance into the air. This stuff is worse than poison gas. I stumbled out of there gagging, with tears streaming down my face. Two more retail outlets I hit were similarly gassed.

Alert the media. I paid retail! I know it's shocking, but on the bathing suit front, you have few options. By the time you've invested any time in this exercise of humiliation, you're willing to drain your bank account for any suit that doesn't either look like it could take you through a full pregnancy term or one that works like a Playdough Fun Factory, extruding your extremities in places and shapes you didn't know possible. I ended up with one that made me look like pre-menopausal Monroe; halter top, boobs, and cellulite. And with my "mission accomplished" moment behind me, the Bahamas trip is still not a "go." I will probably know one way or another today.

I suspect that Liz Lieu doesn't break down crying in too many fitting rooms. This is a picture of Liz taken at the Venetian poker room opening. All I can think of is "I Dream of Jeanie." The rumor is that Liz will be heading back to the Venetian for a series of three $200,000 heads-up matches against online player Erik123.

On a closing note, I've been thinking a lot about all the poker writers out there; the tournament reporters, magazine writers, and bloggers. It seems that many are going through a period of introspective assessment and, in some cases, angst. Like the general public, most poker writers and bloggers didn't predict poker's mainstream explosion. Few writers predicted that their lives and livelihood would become so intertwined in the game. I suspect this collective identity crisis was long overdue. This is something I'd like to explore in the near future. If any bloggers out there have thoughts on the issue - blog away and leave a link in the comments.