Well, Thanksgiving has come and gone. We had a pretty quiet day. We were expecting to have a lot more hustle and bustle but the oldest was a no-show this year. I don't know of anything more annoying than someone saying that they are coming and then making all the preparations only to have them not show up.
We deep fried a turkey this year, and it was a lot of fun. If you ever do it, make sure that you use a turkey that is 15 pounds or less. If you have a lot of people coming over and you need a big turkey, just buy like two 12 pounders you will be able to cook them both in about an hour total. A 10 pound turkey will take about 30 minutes at 325-350 degrees. We did a 21.5 pound turkey and it took exactly 1 hour to get to 180 degs. I purchased my turkey not realizing smaller was better. You could cook a 4 pound chicken in a fryer in about 15 minutes.
The Detroit Lions let all of us Seahawk fans know what a truly crappy team looks like, which was nice. The hawks are merely pathetic. I am sooooooooooooo happy that we are getting a new coaching staff (at least, I hope Mora brings in a new Defensive and offensive coordinators). Our schemes are predictable and ineffective.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
NFL officials
The NFL needs to get rid of most of the idiots they have working for them officiating games. It is just so painful to watch these guys make bad call after bad call to bail teams out and punish others.
In the Seahawk game yesterday Santana Moss threw a closed fist punch that hit Josh Wilson in the face and the official saw it and only called a personal foul with no ejection as required by the NFL rules.
In the Charger-Colt game the officials called two pass interference penalties that were not even close to a penalty to help keep a colt drive going, and then at a critical point in the game the ref ran up and awarded a first down on a play that was very clearly too close to call and then the game was stopped and delayed so instant replay could correct this mistake. All the while the colts got about 5 minutes to think up a play and strategy, instead of having to hurry up and run a play or use up their last time out. The officials altered the outcome of this game.
And while we are talking about officiating the NCAA is even worse. In the Sooner-Tech game Saturday night tech threw a pass down the middle of the field which made it to the Tech receiver, one sooner safety barely nudged the reciever just as the second Sooner safety got there to make shoulder to shoulder contact and further dislodge the football, which all the while was on the hands of the Tech reciever. As the reciever fell to the ground the ball, which was still right there fell down and the reciever's foot actually kicked it forward as he hit the ground. It was a spectacular play by all involved. The officials turn around and call a personal foul on the second Sooner safety for hitting a defenseless receiver. This is one of the worst calls you will see this year. I guess the Sooners are supposed to let the receivers catch passes thrown over the middle, as every receiver that goes up for one of those passes will be defenseless.
In the Seahawk game yesterday Santana Moss threw a closed fist punch that hit Josh Wilson in the face and the official saw it and only called a personal foul with no ejection as required by the NFL rules.
In the Charger-Colt game the officials called two pass interference penalties that were not even close to a penalty to help keep a colt drive going, and then at a critical point in the game the ref ran up and awarded a first down on a play that was very clearly too close to call and then the game was stopped and delayed so instant replay could correct this mistake. All the while the colts got about 5 minutes to think up a play and strategy, instead of having to hurry up and run a play or use up their last time out. The officials altered the outcome of this game.
And while we are talking about officiating the NCAA is even worse. In the Sooner-Tech game Saturday night tech threw a pass down the middle of the field which made it to the Tech receiver, one sooner safety barely nudged the reciever just as the second Sooner safety got there to make shoulder to shoulder contact and further dislodge the football, which all the while was on the hands of the Tech reciever. As the reciever fell to the ground the ball, which was still right there fell down and the reciever's foot actually kicked it forward as he hit the ground. It was a spectacular play by all involved. The officials turn around and call a personal foul on the second Sooner safety for hitting a defenseless receiver. This is one of the worst calls you will see this year. I guess the Sooners are supposed to let the receivers catch passes thrown over the middle, as every receiver that goes up for one of those passes will be defenseless.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Variance, just another way of saying you are going to lose
Variance is a fancy way that gamblers explain the ups and downs of their bankrolls. Unfortunately, no matter how well you play, you still have to rely that the odds of the cards will hold up and your hand will win the percent of times it is supposed to win. This is probably the most frustrating thing about poker playing. Losing game after game to people that have made mistakes, from minor mistakes to catastrophic mistakes only to be bailed out by dumb luck, or maybe it is lady luck.
I have played a lot of SNGs the past week and I have never quite had a spell like I am having right now where no matter how well I play I am still coming up short. I can be a 97% favorite and the person will hit the two perfect cards that they need to beat me. It would be so bad, but it probably has happened 10 times, that scenario anyway. The others are not so devestating. They call them races. That is where you have maybe a 55/45 advantage in the hand or 60/40 type hands. You have the high card but no pair against your opponent. It is very annoying losing race after race as they hit card after card in an endless string of defeats when you had the best hand. What is really frustrating is when you are behind and hit the card you need, but they end up hitting a set on the flop so you are basically drawing dead.
What has got to be my favorite though is where they hit the miracle two outer on the river to beat my hand. You can't let it get to you, but as human beings we have a hard time accepting things out of our control. Where is the fairness we say. How can this happen over and over and over? Supposedly, it will all even out, so the secret is to keep playing and playing and striving to eliminate all errors and mistakes from our game so that we can cut down on the bad odds against us.
One nice thing though is relishing in the bad beats we put on others, because we can feel their pain and know they are loving it when they suck out on you. So when you beat someone with 72 and they have Aces or Jacks enjoy the moment for all it is worth.
I have played a lot of SNGs the past week and I have never quite had a spell like I am having right now where no matter how well I play I am still coming up short. I can be a 97% favorite and the person will hit the two perfect cards that they need to beat me. It would be so bad, but it probably has happened 10 times, that scenario anyway. The others are not so devestating. They call them races. That is where you have maybe a 55/45 advantage in the hand or 60/40 type hands. You have the high card but no pair against your opponent. It is very annoying losing race after race as they hit card after card in an endless string of defeats when you had the best hand. What is really frustrating is when you are behind and hit the card you need, but they end up hitting a set on the flop so you are basically drawing dead.
What has got to be my favorite though is where they hit the miracle two outer on the river to beat my hand. You can't let it get to you, but as human beings we have a hard time accepting things out of our control. Where is the fairness we say. How can this happen over and over and over? Supposedly, it will all even out, so the secret is to keep playing and playing and striving to eliminate all errors and mistakes from our game so that we can cut down on the bad odds against us.
One nice thing though is relishing in the bad beats we put on others, because we can feel their pain and know they are loving it when they suck out on you. So when you beat someone with 72 and they have Aces or Jacks enjoy the moment for all it is worth.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Ford Motor Company should get the money
Ford is the only company out of the big 3. Today after listening to the hearings it became abundantly clear that Ford is the only company that deserves any help. They are far ahead of the game, unlike GM and Chrysler.
Today GM said that they would go Chapter 7 if they didn't get the bailout money. That is liquidation, not reorganization as in Chapter 11. Why should be give them any money if they are so desperate? When Ford was asked if they had thought about bankruptcy, the answer was simple. We analyzed it and it is not an option we are looking at. Ford was retooling long before GM. Ford has lots of fuel efficient cars that are in tune to compete with Japan. GM and Chrysler can be buried in the graveyard of SUVs that they have been pumping out.
Unless the UAW agrees to implement the 2010 contract now, there is no need to bail them out. If they truly have a contract, like GM says, that cuts the excessive union costs, then put it in use now. You will be decomposed GM by 2010. What would they rather have, GM down the toilet and no jobs, or GM surviving and their paychecks continuing? hmm, hard choice. lol.
Today GM said that they would go Chapter 7 if they didn't get the bailout money. That is liquidation, not reorganization as in Chapter 11. Why should be give them any money if they are so desperate? When Ford was asked if they had thought about bankruptcy, the answer was simple. We analyzed it and it is not an option we are looking at. Ford was retooling long before GM. Ford has lots of fuel efficient cars that are in tune to compete with Japan. GM and Chrysler can be buried in the graveyard of SUVs that they have been pumping out.
Unless the UAW agrees to implement the 2010 contract now, there is no need to bail them out. If they truly have a contract, like GM says, that cuts the excessive union costs, then put it in use now. You will be decomposed GM by 2010. What would they rather have, GM down the toilet and no jobs, or GM surviving and their paychecks continuing? hmm, hard choice. lol.
Sunday, November 16, 2008
This week in poker
Well, this week was incredibly interesting and one in which I learned some very valuable lessons. I started the week with the most oustanding results that you could imagine. I can only wonder how amazing it could have been but for some unlucky cards when I was heads up. I believe I should have won about 5 more than I did when I had my opponent just crushed and they hit the miracle card to win, but that is the essence of cards.
After being way, way, way up for the week something odd started to happen. On Thursday I had an up and down kind of day and experienced a really bad run of cards, but after a lot of hard work and perserverance on my part I still ended the day up. Sadly, though, Friday was a terrible day where no matter how good of a hand I had, I ended up losing just about every race imaginable. People were hitting runner-runners to beat me, AK against KQ type hands they would hit the Q, and even AK against 36 where they would hit two pair. It was just craziness and very frustrating.
I spent my Saturday morning analyzing all 34 SNGs that I played on Friday to see if I was making any mistakes. I learned quite a bit about my game and the numbers of in-the-money play. I would say that I made 6 mistakes by the numbers, although, a couple were actually borderline decisions. I felt very good at the time I was playing that I was not tilting or making bad decisions and the analysis bore that out.
Yesterday, I didn't play as much as I wanted to really concentrate on my game and see how things went. It was more of the same for the most part, getting my money in good, or making good calls and having my opponent in a bad way, and again, they would hit and I would lose the race. AK against KQ, no good. AT against A8, domination, my opponent flops a set and turns QUADS, lol. Chip leader on the bubble to out 4th. That was about the story of the last couple days. The other SNG that I was playing at the same time was going fairly well and I ended up winning it. I ended my week there with a victory.
So, after all was said and done my BR increased 17% which is almost double the goal of 10% gain for the week. The trick to playing is to realize that there will be ups and downs and even though we play very well, we will lose. If we don't win this time, then the next game will probably be a winner, and if not, then the next game should be. We have to leave the games in the past and keep looking to the present and future for success, because if we play the numbers, we will be successful. Our hands will win the percentages they should, we just have to keep playing.
After being way, way, way up for the week something odd started to happen. On Thursday I had an up and down kind of day and experienced a really bad run of cards, but after a lot of hard work and perserverance on my part I still ended the day up. Sadly, though, Friday was a terrible day where no matter how good of a hand I had, I ended up losing just about every race imaginable. People were hitting runner-runners to beat me, AK against KQ type hands they would hit the Q, and even AK against 36 where they would hit two pair. It was just craziness and very frustrating.
I spent my Saturday morning analyzing all 34 SNGs that I played on Friday to see if I was making any mistakes. I learned quite a bit about my game and the numbers of in-the-money play. I would say that I made 6 mistakes by the numbers, although, a couple were actually borderline decisions. I felt very good at the time I was playing that I was not tilting or making bad decisions and the analysis bore that out.
Yesterday, I didn't play as much as I wanted to really concentrate on my game and see how things went. It was more of the same for the most part, getting my money in good, or making good calls and having my opponent in a bad way, and again, they would hit and I would lose the race. AK against KQ, no good. AT against A8, domination, my opponent flops a set and turns QUADS, lol. Chip leader on the bubble to out 4th. That was about the story of the last couple days. The other SNG that I was playing at the same time was going fairly well and I ended up winning it. I ended my week there with a victory.
So, after all was said and done my BR increased 17% which is almost double the goal of 10% gain for the week. The trick to playing is to realize that there will be ups and downs and even though we play very well, we will lose. If we don't win this time, then the next game will probably be a winner, and if not, then the next game should be. We have to leave the games in the past and keep looking to the present and future for success, because if we play the numbers, we will be successful. Our hands will win the percentages they should, we just have to keep playing.
Movie Review: Quantum Solace
We had been looking forward to this movie for a while. I will tell you that the opening credits of this movie, the song and the graphics, were the worst of any Bond movie yet, even worse than that Madonna piece of crap a few years back.
I can honestly say that the opening sequence physically made me nauseous. Yes, that is right. I sat down full of anticipation of watching this action movie and almost had to get up and leave during the opening credits. I remarked during them that this was the worst opening of any Bond movie. After the movie I shared with Mary that it made me sick and she told me that she also had felt ill during the opening credits. Word to the wise, you might want to skip the opening.
This movie was filled with great scenary from all over the world and the action was fabulous. Daniel Craig might be the best Bond ever. I know you Connery fans might disagree, but if anything it is a toss up.
The storyline was fine and it continued off of the Casino Royale nicely. I don't know why anyone would have a bad word to say about this movie really. It is a Bond movie, not Gone with the Wind or anything. You get exactly what you think you will get. It was very enjoyable and I look forward to adding it to my DvD collection one day.
No Q, No gadgets, just the studly Daniel Craig. Well, done.
I can honestly say that the opening sequence physically made me nauseous. Yes, that is right. I sat down full of anticipation of watching this action movie and almost had to get up and leave during the opening credits. I remarked during them that this was the worst opening of any Bond movie. After the movie I shared with Mary that it made me sick and she told me that she also had felt ill during the opening credits. Word to the wise, you might want to skip the opening.
This movie was filled with great scenary from all over the world and the action was fabulous. Daniel Craig might be the best Bond ever. I know you Connery fans might disagree, but if anything it is a toss up.
The storyline was fine and it continued off of the Casino Royale nicely. I don't know why anyone would have a bad word to say about this movie really. It is a Bond movie, not Gone with the Wind or anything. You get exactly what you think you will get. It was very enjoyable and I look forward to adding it to my DvD collection one day.
No Q, No gadgets, just the studly Daniel Craig. Well, done.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Ups and Downs of playing poker
It really is fun playing a lot of poker during the day. You get to see the ups and downs that inevitably come from playing lots of hands. Sometimes you feel as though the stars are aligned against you, and then a short while later everything is coming up roses. As poker players we have to constantly be mindful of the fact that we can play perfect poker and lose. Just play a few thousand hands in a day and you will undoubtedly lose to really bad play.
I love watching others get bad beat, because it, of course, happens to us all. We must revel in it and really make the most of it when we finally put a beat on someone. I had a guy yesterday that was totally crushed by me three times and hit a miracle flush every time. Another guy beat me with a pair of 33s twice when I had an incredible number of outs, yet, to no avail. It is great comfort to know that anything is possible in poker. I want those guys to win, because that means I can win as well in those situations.
I had a good laugh the other day because a guy was got upset that his hand didn't hold up against two others, and, of course, it had to be the poker sites fault somehow. I had a lot of fun ribbing him about it. When I was in Vegas recently and playing I watched all kinds of bad beats get put on people. I saw quad 2s twice in one tournament at my table. It happens, get over it.
I love watching others get bad beat, because it, of course, happens to us all. We must revel in it and really make the most of it when we finally put a beat on someone. I had a guy yesterday that was totally crushed by me three times and hit a miracle flush every time. Another guy beat me with a pair of 33s twice when I had an incredible number of outs, yet, to no avail. It is great comfort to know that anything is possible in poker. I want those guys to win, because that means I can win as well in those situations.
I had a good laugh the other day because a guy was got upset that his hand didn't hold up against two others, and, of course, it had to be the poker sites fault somehow. I had a lot of fun ribbing him about it. When I was in Vegas recently and playing I watched all kinds of bad beats get put on people. I saw quad 2s twice in one tournament at my table. It happens, get over it.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Investing, 401ks
I have never been more frustrated than I am right now with not knowing what to do with my 401k investments or my other investments. What is really unnerving is not being able to get information out of the 401k provider or people that I know or even family members that are in the know, but for some reason are staying mum on the whole thing.
You would think that if you emailed someone asking about what they are doing that they might be a little forthcoming with some information in these fragile economic times.
They say that nobody jumped from buildings back when the market crashed in '29, but I find it far more plausible that people did do exactly that and en masse. With Obama waiting to take control and the US on the verge of a depression of some sort it is a very very scary time to be a little person of no consequence.
You would think that if you emailed someone asking about what they are doing that they might be a little forthcoming with some information in these fragile economic times.
They say that nobody jumped from buildings back when the market crashed in '29, but I find it far more plausible that people did do exactly that and en masse. With Obama waiting to take control and the US on the verge of a depression of some sort it is a very very scary time to be a little person of no consequence.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
WSOP final table
Well, it was a shame that we left Vegas on the 7th and the final table was on the 9th. It would have been cool to be there, but as is usually the case watching it on TV is so much better because you can see their hole cards.
It always amazes me when I see the kind of "moves" people try to make. If you have over 20bbs there is no reason to make wild plays all-in with not even a semi-bluff. Phillips was so luck that he recovered to finish 3rd after really playing two hands very poorly. First off he gets involved with A9 in early to mid position and raises. okay, not terrible. He gets called and then misses the flop. Instead of just checking and saying okay, let this one go. He bets out a big chunk of chips and then has to fold by the aggressive reraise from Schwartz who barely had an over pair. Then he limps AK in EP and gets raised by Ivan who has AQs. Great, the trap is sprung. Phillips reraises and then Ivan reraises him right back. I think at this stage you either have to fold, or shove. If you push all in at this point you have represented that you had AA and set a perfect trap, or KK for that matter, but either way the value of your hand is in seeing all five cards. He calls the reraise giving up control of the hand and then throws out an incredibly weak bet on the flop. He missed but had a gutshot. Why not check instead of betting so weak. Ivan does the correct thing with his semi-bluff, and shoves all in with a double-belly buster draw and phillips folds making him a short stack. If he had raised to begin with, this hand would have played differently more than likely. I think he should have shoved when it got back to him instead lf just calling the reraise to 8 mil.
Next comes a series of moves that were totally unnecessary and ultimately very costly. Suharto comes over the top with A8o to a raise in the BB and is dominated. Next comes Ylon Schwartz who bluffs off his entire stack with A high, why, oh, why. There was zero reason for this play.
Now we are down to three and Phillips bluffs off his entire stack for no apparent reason with T9 and nothing.
It is mind-blowing to me how people play some of their hands. They are on the biggest stage in the world and are making these wild over the top plays when they are simply uncalled for, period. They might have finished exactly where they finished but at least they might have had a shot at the glory of first. Ivan Demidov and Paul Eastlake absolutely deserved to play for the title. They played beautifully and put themselves in position. Ivan owned philips twice which cost phillips dearly.
There is a time and a place for making a move, but 5 handed at the final table of the WSOP is a time for calculation and pause. If you have chips to play hands, don't throw them away on a wild bluff. Let's not forget Montgomery's wild all-in reraise agains Demidov either. 6th, 5th, 4th, 3rd place guys all bluffed off their stacks making moves and only the 6th guy had a somewhat shortstack at the time, but still chips to play with.
It always amazes me when I see the kind of "moves" people try to make. If you have over 20bbs there is no reason to make wild plays all-in with not even a semi-bluff. Phillips was so luck that he recovered to finish 3rd after really playing two hands very poorly. First off he gets involved with A9 in early to mid position and raises. okay, not terrible. He gets called and then misses the flop. Instead of just checking and saying okay, let this one go. He bets out a big chunk of chips and then has to fold by the aggressive reraise from Schwartz who barely had an over pair. Then he limps AK in EP and gets raised by Ivan who has AQs. Great, the trap is sprung. Phillips reraises and then Ivan reraises him right back. I think at this stage you either have to fold, or shove. If you push all in at this point you have represented that you had AA and set a perfect trap, or KK for that matter, but either way the value of your hand is in seeing all five cards. He calls the reraise giving up control of the hand and then throws out an incredibly weak bet on the flop. He missed but had a gutshot. Why not check instead of betting so weak. Ivan does the correct thing with his semi-bluff, and shoves all in with a double-belly buster draw and phillips folds making him a short stack. If he had raised to begin with, this hand would have played differently more than likely. I think he should have shoved when it got back to him instead lf just calling the reraise to 8 mil.
Next comes a series of moves that were totally unnecessary and ultimately very costly. Suharto comes over the top with A8o to a raise in the BB and is dominated. Next comes Ylon Schwartz who bluffs off his entire stack with A high, why, oh, why. There was zero reason for this play.
Now we are down to three and Phillips bluffs off his entire stack for no apparent reason with T9 and nothing.
It is mind-blowing to me how people play some of their hands. They are on the biggest stage in the world and are making these wild over the top plays when they are simply uncalled for, period. They might have finished exactly where they finished but at least they might have had a shot at the glory of first. Ivan Demidov and Paul Eastlake absolutely deserved to play for the title. They played beautifully and put themselves in position. Ivan owned philips twice which cost phillips dearly.
There is a time and a place for making a move, but 5 handed at the final table of the WSOP is a time for calculation and pause. If you have chips to play hands, don't throw them away on a wild bluff. Let's not forget Montgomery's wild all-in reraise agains Demidov either. 6th, 5th, 4th, 3rd place guys all bluffed off their stacks making moves and only the 6th guy had a somewhat shortstack at the time, but still chips to play with.
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Bailouts
When will it end? Doesn't the market have to adjust on its own at some point. The automakers are in the position they are in because they are run poorly. The unions have strangled the life out of the companies and now they get to reap what they have sown.
Get rid of the unions and their welfare programs and the companies might have a shot at survival. It is rediculous the amount of benefits that these people think is their God given rights to have because they worked at the plant.
"Since then, executives from GM, Ford and Chrysler LLC and officials in the United Autoworkers union have called for more than that to avert a possible collapse of one of the nation's most basic industries, including $50 million more to help cover future health care payments for about 780,000 retirees and their dependents.
GM and Ford reported last week that they spent down their cash reserves by a combined $14.6 billion in the past three months. Ford said it would slash more than 2,000 white collar jobs."
50 Million for retirees and their families, what, are you kidding me? They are sucking the life out of the entire industry.
Get rid of the unions and their welfare programs and the companies might have a shot at survival. It is rediculous the amount of benefits that these people think is their God given rights to have because they worked at the plant.
"Since then, executives from GM, Ford and Chrysler LLC and officials in the United Autoworkers union have called for more than that to avert a possible collapse of one of the nation's most basic industries, including $50 million more to help cover future health care payments for about 780,000 retirees and their dependents.
GM and Ford reported last week that they spent down their cash reserves by a combined $14.6 billion in the past three months. Ford said it would slash more than 2,000 white collar jobs."
50 Million for retirees and their families, what, are you kidding me? They are sucking the life out of the entire industry.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Post Election thoughts
Well, needless to say we were very disappointed at the lack of intelligence expressed by our election results. Not only did the US elect a totally unqualified extremist to the white house, Washington state Re-elected one of the worst governors this state has seen in quite some time.
I guess Washingtonians want to see if Gregoire can force Boeing out of the state like she did the Sonics.
I cannot believe how incredibly stupid people are in this state. Gregoire is hideous and immoral, or should we say corrupt? This woman burned through 2.5 Billion dollars and now we are in debt for 3.25 billion. Where do you think she is going to get the money to pay for that debt? Idiots, just idiots. Maybe you will be happy when she institutes the State Income tax like she wants.
Our gas lags behind the rest of the US by quite a bit, guess why? Well, of course, it is because we have one of the highest, if not the highest gas tax in the nation.
I wonder why the stock market had its single worst post election day results in history? hmm, it couldn't be that everyone is deathly afraid of Obama's idiotic ideas on stimulating the economy by raising taxes, could it?
Undoubtedly, some of you voted for Obama, and for that I can only scratch my head. Maybe it is all about winning like it usually is with Democrats, I don't know. I do not mean to insult anyone that voted for Obama. I literally cannot grasp how anyone could do that. This was the most lopsided race in history as far as qualifications go. You all deserve what you get for doing it. At least Mary and I have preserved the right to bitch about it for the next 4 years. Who are the Dems going to blame for THEIR incompetence now when things don't work? They can't blame the Republicans. Maybe America will wise up and figure out that the liberals pulled ANOTHER fast one on them and took advantage and lied to them, AGAIN.
I guess Washingtonians want to see if Gregoire can force Boeing out of the state like she did the Sonics.
I cannot believe how incredibly stupid people are in this state. Gregoire is hideous and immoral, or should we say corrupt? This woman burned through 2.5 Billion dollars and now we are in debt for 3.25 billion. Where do you think she is going to get the money to pay for that debt? Idiots, just idiots. Maybe you will be happy when she institutes the State Income tax like she wants.
Our gas lags behind the rest of the US by quite a bit, guess why? Well, of course, it is because we have one of the highest, if not the highest gas tax in the nation.
I wonder why the stock market had its single worst post election day results in history? hmm, it couldn't be that everyone is deathly afraid of Obama's idiotic ideas on stimulating the economy by raising taxes, could it?
Undoubtedly, some of you voted for Obama, and for that I can only scratch my head. Maybe it is all about winning like it usually is with Democrats, I don't know. I do not mean to insult anyone that voted for Obama. I literally cannot grasp how anyone could do that. This was the most lopsided race in history as far as qualifications go. You all deserve what you get for doing it. At least Mary and I have preserved the right to bitch about it for the next 4 years. Who are the Dems going to blame for THEIR incompetence now when things don't work? They can't blame the Republicans. Maybe America will wise up and figure out that the liberals pulled ANOTHER fast one on them and took advantage and lied to them, AGAIN.
Moving up levels
Well, I have moved up to the next higher level of SNG starting this week on Sunday, and so far I am really enjoying myself. I look forward to moving up to the next level, which I plan on doing in the very near future. The secret to building a bankroll and maximizing profits is to continually move up or down as the case may be to maximize results.
People often say don't be results oriented when playing poker, but that is not what I am talking about. If we set a guideline of moving up every time we got to 30 buy-ins at the next level and moving down when we were at 30 buy-ins for the level below the one we are at, then we should have a nice way to judge our results.
The problem with many people is they become too comfortable at a given level of play. They get used to losing the amount they lose when they don't finish in the money and moving up is uncomfortable for them because they will lose more obviously and that can tend to take bigger chunks out of the bankroll.
I did an analysis where I took 25% return on investment at the $16 level and compared it to 15% ROI at the next higher level of $27 and you actually do better at a 10% less ROI at the higher level, granted it is only .05 cents, but it emphasizes the point that even though we don't do as well we make up for it by the higher buy-in.
Now, if we were getting 10% ROI at $20 that would be $2 per game played. Now compare that to 10% at the $100 level and that is $10 a table. It does not take a math scholar to see that we want to get to the highest level of play as quickly as we can while maintaining our winning edge.
Playing 4 tables at a time averaging 10% ROI would yield $10.80 an hour playing at the $27 level, which is better than minimum wage and not bad for a part-time job from home. Now, move it up to the $38 level and it is $15.80 an hour. Now that is a nice little job on the side. And if we dreamed a little bigger the $114 level would be $45.60 an hour, which is a livable wage by anyone's standards.
We must constantly move up if we are to achieve our dreams. All the while realizing that it is the ROI% that is important to maintain. Many pros are perfectly happy with 7%, and in today's economy that is not a bad return on your money.
People often say don't be results oriented when playing poker, but that is not what I am talking about. If we set a guideline of moving up every time we got to 30 buy-ins at the next level and moving down when we were at 30 buy-ins for the level below the one we are at, then we should have a nice way to judge our results.
The problem with many people is they become too comfortable at a given level of play. They get used to losing the amount they lose when they don't finish in the money and moving up is uncomfortable for them because they will lose more obviously and that can tend to take bigger chunks out of the bankroll.
I did an analysis where I took 25% return on investment at the $16 level and compared it to 15% ROI at the next higher level of $27 and you actually do better at a 10% less ROI at the higher level, granted it is only .05 cents, but it emphasizes the point that even though we don't do as well we make up for it by the higher buy-in.
Now, if we were getting 10% ROI at $20 that would be $2 per game played. Now compare that to 10% at the $100 level and that is $10 a table. It does not take a math scholar to see that we want to get to the highest level of play as quickly as we can while maintaining our winning edge.
Playing 4 tables at a time averaging 10% ROI would yield $10.80 an hour playing at the $27 level, which is better than minimum wage and not bad for a part-time job from home. Now, move it up to the $38 level and it is $15.80 an hour. Now that is a nice little job on the side. And if we dreamed a little bigger the $114 level would be $45.60 an hour, which is a livable wage by anyone's standards.
We must constantly move up if we are to achieve our dreams. All the while realizing that it is the ROI% that is important to maintain. Many pros are perfectly happy with 7%, and in today's economy that is not a bad return on your money.
Friday, November 07, 2008
Back from Vegas
Well, Mary and I just returned from a week in Las Vegas. We were there from Halloween to this morning. This was the latest in the year that we have gone to Las Vegas and so it was very interesting. The weather was fairly nice. The first few days were warm enough to enjoy the pool and sun, and then it got a little windy and cooler. We stayed at the Marriot Grand Chateau which is fairly new. It was might be the nicest of the 4 places we have stayed at thus far, and it is basically right on the strip next to the Planet Hollywood which used to be the Aladdin resort.
We went to a couple shows that the Excalibur, Louie Anderson and the Tournament of Kings dinner show last night which was fun. We treated ourselves to a very nice dinner at Bradley Ogden's restaurant in Caesar's Palace. We had intended to eat at Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill but we didn't have reservations and they told us it would be 4 hours to wait. We walked across the way to the other restaurant and they were far too happy to seat us. It was an incredible meal to say the least, but not one for the faint of heart when you see the cost. Let's just say you don't eat at a place like this very often in your life if you are a commoner like us.
I played in four poker tournaments while I was there. I made the final table three out of four and made the money two out of four. I found a couple new tournaments to play in on Wednesday night and so I only got to play in it one time yesterday afternoon. This tourney was over at the Excalibur where they have electronic poker tables, no dealers. Noah tells me that some of the cruise ships use these tables. It was a lot of fun because I was mostly down during the tourney and got lucky a couple times to stay alive, but when it was all said and done I had recorded my first live tournament win. I wish I lived in Vegas so that I could play these live tourneys all the time on my days off.
We also took a lot of great pictures which I will be uploading a link to in the coming days. Mary's new 10x digital camera really does a nice job.
We went to a couple shows that the Excalibur, Louie Anderson and the Tournament of Kings dinner show last night which was fun. We treated ourselves to a very nice dinner at Bradley Ogden's restaurant in Caesar's Palace. We had intended to eat at Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill but we didn't have reservations and they told us it would be 4 hours to wait. We walked across the way to the other restaurant and they were far too happy to seat us. It was an incredible meal to say the least, but not one for the faint of heart when you see the cost. Let's just say you don't eat at a place like this very often in your life if you are a commoner like us.
I played in four poker tournaments while I was there. I made the final table three out of four and made the money two out of four. I found a couple new tournaments to play in on Wednesday night and so I only got to play in it one time yesterday afternoon. This tourney was over at the Excalibur where they have electronic poker tables, no dealers. Noah tells me that some of the cruise ships use these tables. It was a lot of fun because I was mostly down during the tourney and got lucky a couple times to stay alive, but when it was all said and done I had recorded my first live tournament win. I wish I lived in Vegas so that I could play these live tourneys all the time on my days off.
We also took a lot of great pictures which I will be uploading a link to in the coming days. Mary's new 10x digital camera really does a nice job.
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