Thanksgiving

Been a week since I posted, shows how exiting my life has been lately. Not that it has been all that action packed to begin with but the last week has been total bore. Not much poker, what little I have played I have sucked at. Bit of therapy and that is becoming routine. Bit of good news in that next week may write Fini to the leg work leaving only the arm to keep pushing on. Plants are all in the ground waiting for the spring to see if I was just jerking off rushing around to get them in. Still waiting on the trees to be delivered. Thought they might have shown this week with the recent cold snap but they haven’t made it yet. Just a damned slow week

Thanksgiving evening and just woke up from post dinner nap. The stroke has curtailed my alcohol intake over the last few months and it shows. Couple of glasses of wine and I went down like a baby. Way out of shape for any blogger gatherings right now, would be perceived as a lightweight. Slept thru the first half of the Eagles game. Eagles slaughtering the Cards. I start watching the game and all of a sudden the Cards are kicking Philly butt. Cards pinned on their own 10. They score here and I am turning it off. Will confirm that I am a total jinx when it comes to sports. Every time I watch things go to hell for the locals. Maybe not. Warner gets hammered but completes the pass for a first down but Boldin just fumbled with nothing but green shirts around. They might hang on here..

Overslept any poker games also. Oh well. Now wide awake and nothing to do. What a bite. Hopefully get out to a live game this Sat. Will be a nice change of pace. Heard the possibility the game may be on, just haven’t had it confirmed. Need to see if I can get a ride home if it’s on. Not driving is still a bitch.

Got my daughter’s school pictures this week. I am getting old. The pictures this year were not of my little girl child, they were of a young lady I hardly recognized. Another year I’m going to have to load up the shotgun and give my ex some rules to post to keep the boys in line. Know where her brains come from but have no idea where she gets her looks.

Got some early Christmas shopping done this week. Finally found a Wii for my daughter. She’ll be happy as a clam come Christmas. Only been hinting, no outright begging, for over a year now. Also did some of my booze shopping for the holidays. Usually get a few bottles of good blendeds for Christmas gifts at work which usually handles the visitors but since I’m not at work who knows if they will be there so needed to get them in addition to the bourbon, rum and rye I prefer. Someone went marching thru my supply over the course of the last couple of months. Outside the scotch which I keep on hand for some good friends, and my Irish, of which I occasionally partake my cupboard is bare. Needs some serious replenishment. That doesn’t even count the wines either. My stock of bubbles is getting seriously low and Bollinger is a bitch to find in PA. Don’t even think of Krug or Pol Roger. Outside the domestic bubbles it seems Mumms and Moet are the kings of the shelf around here. Moet isn’t bad in a pinch but as far as I’m concerned Mumms is the Andre of French bubbles. Seems when it comes to champagne my tastes run more towards Ay and Epernay rather than Reims tho I make an exception for Krug. As for American bubbles they have improved immensely since the French houses have started producing in the states but Iron Horse and Schramsberg are still the bubbles of choice for me, when I can afford them. Bubbles are not a cheap addiction.

OK, it’s still Thanksgiving and I guess I do have a lot to be thankful for. A beautiful daughter, a great family who have given me great support during these times. Tho still impeded a bit by the stroke I’m thankful that it wasn’t a lot worse than it was. I could have been spending this time in a hospital somewhere. And loads of thanks to this community for the friendship they have shown.

OK, family just arrived from the slots parlor so it’s getting a bit hectic hectic here. Enough of this journey into the land of boredom. I shall open the door and allow you to leave. Thanks for the visit.

Ramblings about poker, strokes and reading

Playing the Mookie tonight. Had a ride to a live RPT game but didn’t feel like getting dressed. Game started off fast and went downhill. Opened with A-Q in MP but had a raise and reraise in front so gave it up. So far I got nothing else. Hanging around with half a stack or less for most of the game. Seem to catch a hand at just the right time to stay alive. Other than that, nada. Few times I did catch something no one else did and I got some blinds or min pots. Ah well, such is the game. Should have gone to bed, therapy in the am.

Speaking of therapy got some good news, bad news the other day while there. First, the therapist says that she thinks my progress is faster than she usually sees. Altho it’s hard to believe, at least in my mind, I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt and believe her. Bad news, it seems that total recovery, including all the internal damage could take up to a year after I think I’ve recovered fully. I do notice that certain small things are just coming back in my leg even tho the strength and balance have seemed almost totally back for a week or so. More like muscle control issues rather than strength, ones like being able to clench certain muscles.

Was going to play the Dookie also but decided not to. Too tired. Finally got the rest of the plants in the ground today. Place was a sea of mud and it was cold and windy but it got done. Me on shovel, nephew on post hole digger and father on hoe backfilling and we knocked it out. Thought we were finished at 2 dozen holes but got a bargain. Seems the nursery sent 4 extra plants. Today that was a bargain I really didn’t need, hands were cold. Big cup of hot chocolate spiked with some coconut rum helped afterwards. Some of the bushes had some live growth on them even tho the leaves had finally fallen off them so hopefully they will survive.

Time to start on a new subject, one of my favorite ones, books. Decided to start on this for a couple of reasons. One, I’m a voracious reader and book collector and hope to be again. Right now it’s tough to read since holding a newspaper and books one handed is a bitch.

Two, just before the stroke happened I had just ordered a number of books, some of them just collector’s editions of books I already have or have read in paperback. Others were new material I haven’t had the chance to read. Added to them are two graphic novels I just ordered. Except for certain special editions of these concerning certain series I collected in my youth I hadn’t really been a purchaser of graphic novels before. Not a snob, I got my start reading comics in the mid 60s and my daughter has discovered the joy of manga and while I buy them for her I take advantage of the fact they are lying around the house and read them myself. It’s just that I always enjoyed comics for the stories more so than for the art and when they went to a quarter from twelve cents and I realized that I could buy paperbacks like Conan for 50 cents and get a lot more story comics fell by the wayside in favor of books. I have however, been reintroduced to the love of comics. This week I got, as I said, two graphic novels. One was basically a compendium of some of the comics of my youth, a volume which is basically nothing more than reprints of Dr. Strange comics from back in the day. I loved Dr. Strange. Only regret is that the prints are in B&W. One of the things about the Doc were the psychedelic colors use to represent the spirit world in those comics. If I find the stories as enjoyable as I remember I may have to search out the hardbound versions that are out there. They aren’t cheap but they are in color and on better paper. The other book is Watchman. I have heard a lot about this series but never read it but while looking at something else I noticed the series has been compiled into a hardbound edition. So I thought I would check it out. This book is not a child’s comic with a lot of issues that were very relevant when it was written back in the 80’s. Started reading it earlier tonight. May write more about it when I am finished. May write about other books when I start buying and reading again. As I said, reading is a passion.

Third, I was reading Astin’s blog earlier and he mentioned he should read more, that he enjoyed it but that he just didn’t do it enough. I left a comment urging him to do it. Reading is something I will encourage in anyone, no matter what they read. Massaging words in your mind only improves your mental abilities. It’s one of the reasons I buy my daughter the manga. It may not be the classics but it encourages her to read. As I said, I started on comic books myself and graduated to heavier things. Another thing is that he said he enjoyed it. I also enjoy it and temporarily am not really able to enjoy it. It bothers me that I can’t but at least my problem is only temporary, this time. While in rehab I met a woman who seemed no worse off than I physically. While I was killing some time reading, before I realized how frustrating it was one armed, she told me I was lucky to be able to use my time reading. Her stroke had damaged a portion of her brain that left her unable to read. While the effect could be temporary she can’t be sure and even if so there is no telling how long it will be before the ability returns. What I am trying to say is, if you enjoy something, make time to do it. You never know when the ability to do so may vanish. And if you don’t already do so, read. It’s good for the mind and the soul.

OK, somewhere amidst the 4th or 5th paragraph I got knocked out and should have gone to bed but I was up on my reading soapbox and decided to try and finish. So enough boredom for tonight so I’ll step down from it and say thanks for tuning in.

Just cruisin

Couldn’t play my live game last night so decided to sit in on the TuckFard. (and no Bam I wasn’t researching it, or TuckFards in general, or even recliners. Was trying to find out why none of my Disney DVDs will not auto play unless they are the first disc in my changer. First disc and they play OK, in any other part of the rotation it skips them. This is my second changer and it did the same in both of them so have a feeling it’s something in the disc coding. Anyone else have a similar problem?) After my last couple of blogger games this one was a pleasant surprise. No rebuy madness and contrary to what the name would lead you to expect so tight well played poker. Three handed it seemed to go on forever. Collected a couple of bounties and made it to second place. Seemed to make a habit of slowly building a stack and then handing it off to WS, the eventual winner, in one fell swoop. Three times I had him going in and he wound up passing me. Not to say he played donk hands, his hands were good, mine just better.(except for that frikkin J-4 suited he made a move with and I decided to call with J-9 suited. Neither hand anything to be proud of but that 4 on the flop really pissed me off.) Kudos to both him and SuzyQ for a testing final and thanks to all participants for a fun game.

Felt really good this morning but that feeling lasted only as long as therapy. Damned sadists there noticed things were going a lot easier today so decided that they were going to add some weights or resistance bands to my arm and legs as I went thru the routines. Bitches. Feeling dog tired now. Day is nice here today. Sunny but windy. If the rain holds off till late tomorrow I might finally get the last of the berry canes in the ground. That I will consider an accomplishment.

Right now playing some cash games but not doing so well. Good just ain’t good enough and the RNG favoring the chase artists. Plus have two characters at table that are afraid to bet their hands. I hate it when I’m in position and decide to bet out second pair since it checked around to me and get check called all the way down only to have some asshole turn over flopped top pair and never even bet it. Why the hell are you playing in the first frikkin place? And if you are afraid of your kicker then why cal? Bet your damned cards will you. Slow playing a pair of Js with a 7 kicker is not a good idea! May just shut it down for awhile and nap. League game tonight so will be playing that and anything else I might find. Been playing the $1 PLOs at 10:20 on both AP and UB but haven’t been able to catch a playable hand for 3 nights now. ‘bout ready to give up on it for awhile.

OK, starting to rant. Time to shut it down for a bit. More boredom later. Thanks for the visit.

Coming along, coming along

Bit of a busy day today. Weather let up and bit of cold spell coming in so took advantage, grabbed a shovel and some help and dug some holes. Got 15 blueberries in the ground today with help from Dad and my nephew. Still a dozen blackberries and a dozen raspberries left to go. Was able to do the blueberries because they are going into a grass verge on edge of property so even though ground was pretty wet we were able to dig because of the grass. The old garden area where I’m putting the others is tilled so is still a sea of mud, no way to dig. Seems like they are calling for either rain or snow tomorrow so have a feeling that those other berry plants may be goners. Snow I can live with but rain going to hold things up a few more days.

Again the exercise felt good but paying for it now. Muscles still not used to it so I’m starting to tighten up. Part of the problem is the furniture. Never before realized how bad common household furniture is for handicapped people. Sitting on the couch or chair and there isn’t really enough support to feel comfortable and the edge of the seat winds up cutting circulation to the legs so that they start to fall asleep. Add in the fact that you sink into a gravity well when you sit on most furniture and without two arms that work you can’t lever yourself up or you have trouble sliding up to the edge to be able to be able to use your legs to lift. Need to go shopping to find my self a recliner that provides support, I can get out of easily and can take the pressure I’m going to wind up exerting on it without falling apart. I ain’t a small guy to begin with and using only one arm I can apply some heavy pressure in uneven directions that a normal person wouldn’t naturally do. Any suggestions, I’m all ears. Might even go looking for a futon or a daybed as I’m also spending a lot of time sitting on the edge of the bed and that’s a bitch since there is no support at all for the back. Something that converts from bed to seat and back may help.

Missing my live poker game tonight. No ride as my nephew is working. Maybe I’ll make the TuckFard. We’ll see. Played a Buy in league game last night and bubbled. Cards were good early and a 3 way all in at final table plus one sent me into the final table as second stack when I spiked set of 4s vs set of 3s and ppKs. Hands went cold after that and I got injured when I caught A-J with a J on the flop for top-top but one of the callers to the preflop raise had ppQs. Been in a bit of tourney funk lately. Close but no WEO. Hopefully I snap out soon.

Well we have been boring long enough. Need to do some research before I do any playing tonight so I’ll just say thanks for tuning in.

Ranting, even tho I'm doing well

The tables were not kind to me yesterday and I can’t even blame the donkeys. It was a day where you get good hand after good hand only to keep winding up second best, usually on the river. Hi pocket pairs got no callers. Flopped two pairs would get overridden by a set or by the board pairing to give the other guy’s pp a better two. Mid aces that paired would wind up losing to an unsuspected A-paint that wasn’t raised pre. Or bet post. Even bubbled two SnGs, one because of big stack calling my all in with crap and catching a straight to my flopped top-top. Then I get top pair, good kicker called down by bottom pair that turns to a back door straight. As they say, only thing worse than bad cards are good cards that aren’t quite good enough.

Today another miserable day. Not raining hard, just occasional spritzs but ground too muddy to do any digging. Tomorrow predicted to be even worse. I ordered these damn plants for the fall so I didn’t hit the spring rains and now I’m getting screwed again. Damn arms and shoulders feel like digging again too. Someone up there hates me.

Speaking of hate I’m beginning to have a few too. First and foremost right now is the touchpad on this laptop. Damn thing a major pain in my butt. Half the time the tap click doesn’t work at all and the other half the cursor seems to slide all over the screen with a mind of its own. I spend an hour at the nickel and dime table on UB and double my money and then give almost all of it away when I move the cursor to fold and it slides back to call. when some peckerwood goes all in. The reason I say peckerwood is because, after sitting there for at least a half hour and watching me turn over good hands when I lead out betting, and watching him do nothing out throw out reraise after reraise, and showing nothing when called, he still kept trying to force me out of hands I had already led out a pot sized bet on. This time he actually had decent hole cards and they stood up. Thankfully, being the peckerwood that he was he returned the money, and then some, within the next orbit. Gotta love those donkeys who are betting without even a chance to suck out on ya.

Speaking of hate, donkeys and suckouts bring me to my next rant. What the hell is it with these people that refuse to release an A, no matter how weak and what the board and/or betting tells them? Got caught by two of these assholes tonight, one in ring, and one on a $5 SnG. In the SnG we had both taken out 2 people and were the big stacks., everyone else under the starting stacks. I catch A-J suited OTB and raise 3xs and he calls from MP. Flop brings 3 unders and the flush draw so I go pot. He tanks then calls. Turn brings me the A and still have nut flush redraw so I push figuring even if he has the A he’s outkicked plus I have outs. He again tanks then calls. River a 3 and it shows him with A-3 and I’m gone. WTF? Nothing on the flop and piss poor kicker on his A at the turn after I have already raised pre, potted flop and pushed on the A. How he even got to the turn outside of being brain dead I’ll never frikkin know? Same thing in the cash game, I raise pre, pot flop and put the guy all in on the turn when I pair the A to my A-K on the turn. Of course the A-5 calls all the way and catches the river 5. Again however he eventually gave me my funds back. One of these days I’m going to build a temple dedicated to the cult of the almighty, invincible Ace. The way some people worship it I should make a killing on the collections.

Third rant, again dealing with peckerwoods and lo stakes poker. I am really beginning to hate these folks that sit down at the table with the minimum stake just so they can go all in when they decide to play a hand. While they are doing a bit of fattening my accounts it’s not a fun way to play Not only that I have a feeling that they are actually costing me money. Too many times I have a good hand and actually improve it but it is only me and the idiot in the pot because his all in pre scared out other potential players. Considering what some people at lo stakes will call a 3xs raise with if that guy hadn’t pushed I might have had a few more fish on the line. Oh well, as long as the RNG doesn’t go nuts on me I’m still coming out ahead. BTW, I got back what I lost yesterday plus a few extra thanks to the peckerwoods today. Should have een even more.

OK ranting is boring so enough of it. Thanks for allowing me to rant.

A new low, even for me

Played the Bad Beat on Kidney Failure charity game on Tilt. Started off with about 80 players including 4 Tilt pros Have no idea what I’m doing here as the way I feel I should just turn out the light, turn on the tube and just lay my ass flat on the bed. Under normal circumstances I would actually be playing the game that way but being one armed for the time being manipulating the laptop in that position is a no go. As it’s for charity I decide to forego my comfort. Game starts and I find myself at a table with Andy Bloch. After the first hand I find myself leaving the table with Andy Bloch. What a time for me to go uber aggressive. Battle of the blinds first hand with me in the BB with Q-J. SB min raises so I call. Flop comes 3 under cards giving me a gut shot so when SB checks I pot it figuring he didn’t hit. He calls. Turn brings a Q and again he checks so I pot, he pushes and I don’t have enough left to bother folding top pair so I call. Seems that Q gave him his straight and sent me to the rail. Oh well, my reputation as a donk is preserved. Even worse I didn’t even get gigli honors, or is that dishonors, as 3 others found a way to beat me out. Since I had already decided to say to hell with hitting the sack I decided to hang around and rail Bam, who I am happy to say made it to the final table before he ran into a card rack, nay a card tank, by the name of Andy Bloch. Bad enough the man has the skills we all wish we had, last night he also had the devil’s own luck as well. As they say, them that has, gets. Have to say Mr. Bloch was a perfect gentleman, interacting with the players and laughing at the jokes, some at his expense, because f his luck, and bidding defeated players farewell with the standard GG. Thank you sir for helping out a worthy cause and folks, if you see him signed up for a charity game, participate if you can. The causes are worthy and if you should get lucky enough to be seated at his table you’ll have fun. At least until he finds a way to take you out.

Since I was up and railing Bam I decided to play the PLO turbos on AP and UB. Both were major donkfests. Have never seen so many preflop raises and reraises. Any high pair or double suited hand was seen as worthy of a pot sized bet even if the double suits were led by 4s or 7s. This was followed by all ins on any flush draw. On AP I stayed card dead and went down early. On UB I hung around to get close to the cash when a couple of my top 2s on the flop converted to boats against those optimistic flush chasers. However I ran into one too many chasers around the bubble and so went into the night and finally to bed. Another day, another game.

Today is a miserable day here. Cold, wet and neither helping my sore muscles or arthritis. Had to cancel today’s therapy session as I’m just too stiff and sore from yesterday. Just going to be lazy the rest of the day, probably play some poker and hope it clears up for tomorrow. In the meantime will find new ways to bore you. Thanks for allowing me to.

Pay it forward

For the help this community gave me getting thru some tough times hope this helps someone else. It's late but just ran accross it. Hope Dr. Pauly forgives me for lifting this from his post.

You can help out this Wednesday, Nov 12th.
Here's the details:
When: 9pm ET on 11/12
Where: Full Tilt - Tournament #67971755
Buy in: $10+$10
NLName: Bad Beat on Kidney Failure
Password: CailtyssRulien

Hope to see you there. So much for my early night.

Addendum: Well early night anyway, out on the first hand.