Some Questions for your Consideration

BB's to go: 674.7 or $67.47

Here's some poker related questions that I was mulling last night. Any insight or advice you can give is appreciated:

1. I know that QQ is a good starting hand, A9sooted is a speculative hand, and 38 offsuit is poo-poo. What I want to know is, what is my pot equity (if that's the right term) when I've got K6 sooted on the button? In other words, how do I figure out what my pre-flop hand is worth so I can determine if I've got the right odds to enter the pot? Is there a formula or a chart I can use, or at least a few basic odds I can memorize?

2. Related to this, is how do I determine how much pot equity my bottom two pairs (for example) have? I always hear people talk about it, but I can't find a way to determine this. The only axiom I know is that a pair v. two overcards is about 52% to 48% ahead.

3. Last night I was two-tabling micro-limit cash games. On one table, I'm up, but on another I'm stuck, and I'm not sure if I can dig myself out on that table. When do I decide it's better to leave the table and "lock" in the loss as opposed to trying to play myself back to even?

4. Finally, I'm looking for recommendations on where to play in AC. I've heard the Tropicana is a good place to play on the boardwalk, and that the Borgata is the other highly recommended spot. Has anyone played the showboat, Wild West, Caeser's Palace, or anywhere else? I'm not looking to sit down at a table of pros fighting over the blinds while they wait for sacrificial lambs, if you know what I mean. Also, my 'roll requires low limit tables.

And now for some Aimless Stream of ConsciousnessTM:


I know why people in the Middle Ages thought young children were susceptible to demon possession. The Big Monkey has been a wild animal in the mornings. Screaming bloody murder over brushing her teeth every morning for the past week. Time outs and taking away of toys, TV, etc. hasn't had any affect at all. It's really put me in a poor mood, as you can probably tell from my last few posts.

*************************************

Someone's replaced our baby, the Little General, with a young girl. I don't know when it happened, but I'm mourning the loss of babyhood in the Russo home.

**************************************

In relation to question #3, I was stuck about two bucks in a 10-20 cent game when I decided to switch to two 5-10 cent games. Ended up about fifty cents for the evening. Flopped the nut flush twice and the nut full house, so the only skill required was slowplaying effectively.

I can't get any traction at the 10-20 cent tables. I felt pretty comfortable last night, but it just wasn't happening. I'm not sure if it's the difference in confidence at the two levels or if the average skill set is noticeably better at the higher level. All I know is, I hope Poker Stars begins to spread more of the lowest limit games again soon, at least until I can build up a suitable 'roll to move up.

I really feel like I'm finally beginning to internalize some of what Sklansky et al teach regarding protecting hands. It basically boils down to informed aggression, and I can see it pay off at the 5-10 cent tables.

*************************************

The Mistress has been grumbling about my trip to AC. The rights of husbands everywhere are under assault!

Pray for me.

*************************************

I think I'm getting weary of people who say impolite things, then complain when they get negative feedback, claiming that people just don't "get" them. I think people "get" them just fine. If you spew negativity, you're going to get it in return. Complaining about it makes it seem like you edit can dish it out but edit can't take it. That impression is reinforced when you don't allow comments to your blog or remove negative responses, yet constantly say how you're flamed.

Also, equating honesty with name calling is simply not correct. Being rude doesn't earn anyone a badge of "most honest," it just makes them rude.

Before anyone calls me a hypocrite for my flaming of the Champ, let me say what I did was just that-blatant flaming. I intended to be rude and was. Besides, he wasn't even real, just a group of people trying to stir others up, so I don't feel too bad about it.

Happy Memorial Day everyone!

Cursed by Family

I've said before that I love my job, and I do, but there are days that make me feel miserable, like I need a shower and a month long vacation.

Today was Mike's annual planning meeting, during which those people involved in his life get together to determine how we can best serve him over the next twelve months. Mike was born with Downs Syndrome and functions in the profoundly retarded range. He can't talk or process much information, and scoliosis has made it impossible for him to walk.

As if he hadn't already been kicked enough in life, he'd been institutionalized since birth. Let me be clear, the doctor attending Mike's delivery, with that great moral certitude that could only come from the 1950's, had decided that it would be too difficult for Mike's mother to behold his flawed body and had him removed to another part of the hospital, where he stayed until he could be moved to one of Maryland's institutions for people with developmental disabilities.

I've been to that institution numerous times for work: Most of it is abandoned, boarded-up buildings that look like they're waiting for the filming of Saw 3 to start. It's a notorious destination for ghost hunters. I get a lump in my throat when I think of Mike in one of those buildings, lying in a crib, yearning on some physiological level for comforting, not from a variety of nurses caring for who knows how many other children, but from two constant people who can and want to devote their time to him because they care, not because they get a paycheck for doing it. Probably because I'm a father and I couldn't imagine doing such a thing to my kids, no matter how disabled they might be.

"It was for the best, really. We were going overseas and we couldn't have cared for him."

That would be Mike's mother. She attends Mike's meetings more or less on a regular basis. She never talks to Mike, although everyone else on his treatment team does. She sometimes will drop off some presents for Mike and his housemates at Christmas, but she doesn't visit with him. Ever. I've tried to reach out to her and encourage her to visit more, take more of an interest, but she has artfully dodged every offer. It took me a year to get her to send Mike some pictures of his family. Mike's birthday is next week, and there's no question about whether his family will stop by or even send a card.

I found out today that Mike's father passed away last December. I have a sneaking suspicion his group home staff is going to tell me that they weren't told. I'm sure it's for the best that Mike not attend hid dad's funeral. How embarrassing for the rest of the family!

I dread having to make polite small talk with this woman every year, when what I want to do is grab her old lady shoulders and shake until her dentures rattle. This year, I had to listen to her talk about her other kids, who couldn't give a rat's ass about their brother either. (One of Mike's sisters came to his meeting a few years ago, and her fake sincerity made me sick. )

"I had two girls, then I had Mike...he was a big disappointment."

I let that statement hang there, rolled it on my tongue like a mouthful of wormwood. I weighed how important my job was and how much I wish I'd hit the Power Ball last week so I could say something like:

"How unfortunate...for you."

Or:

"I'm sure Mike's oh so happy with you, you ghastly fuck."

Or some other flippant rejoinder. Instead I looked down at my papers and wondered how there could possibly be a God.

"The doctor told me to wait six months and get pregnant again as soon as possible." Presumably to get this whole inconvenient event behind her. "A year later, I had another girl, my gift from God."

Kill me. There can't possibly be justice when I, who see Mike maybe three times a year, care for him more than the woman who bore him.

And then this evil person, this soulless bitch, looks at me and asks: "Chris, do you ever get discouraged?"

"No," the responsible part of me says out loud. "In fact, I've had several success stories just this year."

But the lottery winner in my head continues to speak truth: "Only when I talk to you."

Enough Whining

BB's to go: 673.5 or $67.35.

Okay, enough bitching. This is my first serious run in with variance or consistently poor play, or whatever. Crying about it just perpetuates the tiltiness.

The 5-10 cent tables made a brief appearance again on Poker Stars. "Sitting" down at one of these tables drove the fact home that I was definitely scared money at the 10-20 cent tables. I was comfortable being aggressive and I played much better. There does seem to be a marked difference in skill level between the two limits, however.

Add bonus: Moneyed in another dollah tournament. Forty-three cents and a confidence boost.

I'm reading the section on river play in Small Stakes Hold'em and I'm finding it pretty abstract and hard to master. I don't have high expectations though. I'm not on any type of time table and I'm happy to try to absorb it passively for now. I'm still trying to become proficient with the strategies for the earlier streets.

So, these are the latest developments in the Atlantic City trip debacle. My parents said they could take the Squirtlins (I know that'll make Felicia think I'm 'retarded'- guess I'll just have to find some way to live without her approval) so I made reservations for June 24th. Then they call me and say they can't do it. Great.

The Mistress came to my rescue and is graciously allowing me to go by myself. Actually, I think she's feeling a bit guilty because she's going to visit her sister in Reno in July, and I'll be at the mercy of my kids for a week.

But, in addition to scuttling a much-needed weekend to ourselves, my parents backing out has shot down a second AC excursion I was going to make in August. We're heading back to Wildwood with my in-laws and I was going to get a furlough to spend a day losing money as a reward for my stint as a single parent. Now that I'm going alone, though, I've been informed that second trip has been cancelled.

Confused? Me too. I'm sure the plans will change again down the road.

No poker tonight! 'Lost' season finale!

Pissed

Getting screamed at by the Big Monkey all morning and dropping another big chunk of my bankroll last night has me pissed and frustrated, so I'll just bullet-point this post:

• Wildwood: Cool. Memorable trip with my family.
• Poker Skill: Terminal. I'm bleeding money. It's 2 o'clock in the afternoon, I'm at work, and I'm already on tilt. I shouldn't play tonight. I will play tonight. I realize this is the time that determines what type of poker player I'll ever get to be.
• Atlantic City: Up in the air. June trip-maybe. Second trip possible in August.

Serenity now, Serenity now.

BB's to go: 622.0 or $62.20

Something weird happened to me last night. I started playing poker, and I kept getting the cards with the pictures on them, or the one card.

Then, when the three cards appeared in the middle, the pictures would match the pictures on my cards. Or they would all be the same color.

So I kept hitting that button that says "bet" on it. Then when no more cards appeared, the money slid over to me all by itself!

Amazing.

Somebody...Stop...Me

BB's to go: 655 or $65.50

Hiatus lasted all of twenty-four hours. Went zero for five in showdowns.

Felted in an hour.

WTF?

Mistress Imposed Hiatus

BB's to go: 615 or $61.50

Okay, poker's going to be slim to non-existant for the next few weeks. The Mistress is starting her graduate work and needs the computing machine for an online class.

Probably for the best. I'm not scared money at .10-.20 limit, but I'm not ready for that level, especially during my current slump.

Played a bit and only lost about fifteen BB's. Was outclassed and juked out of my shorts several times. I guy on my right kept check-raising me and I kept falling for it. You'd think, after the second or third time, I'd make the connection and simply check after him, but it didn't even hit me until after the session was over.

At any rate, I've played every night for the past two or three months and I probably need to stop and get some perspective. Do some book learnin' and lay low until Variance decides to pick on someone else.

After writing this, I'm realizing that I'll probably be back playing poker in a few days. Who am I kidding? The Mistress is genetically unable to stay up past 9pm and I'm a night owl, so I'm sure all this talk of hiatus is a bit overblown. I'm hoping I can take at least a few days break though, it would be good for me.

*****************

Speaking of breaks, we're heading to Wildwood, New Jersey this weekend. The Little General just learned to say 'beach' last night and she was repeating it and cackling all through dinner. I can't imagine she remembers last summer's trip, but she's definitely psyched about going!

The hotel we're staying at is running a Pirate Weekend promotion which includes, among other things, free pirate hats and swords. Yay, a two and four year old with swords! What fun!

Wildwood, for all those unfamiliar with the place, is a dark carnival, a freak show, but only in the best ways. Think Sopranos meets the Beverly Hill Billies. It's probably too early for the suede bikinis, but there will be plenty of gold chains, blow-dried hair, and leopard-print clothing to go around. Especially since it's the Sons of Italy Weekend.

I'm not joking.

*******************

Atlantic City this summer is coming more and more into focus. We actually have a credit from a bus line for another trip we had to cancel, so going there will be "free." I've also fell into some money recently, which will take care of most of my live 'roll. All we need to do is agree on a weekend and trick some grandparents into watching the Squirtlins' and we'll be set.

In the last post, I said the Mistress had teased me about going to AC by myself. It was more of one of those tricksy woman-tricks that I keep falling for:

Mistress: "So I was thinking of sending you to AC on your own for Father's Day."

CL: "Cool! That's a great gift!"

Mistress: "Oh..."

CL: "What?"

Mistress: "You don't have to seem so...happy about it."

CL: "It's just that I'm excited about going. Maybe I'll ask Mark to go, you know he offered to split a room with me."

Mistress: "What? Who said anything about Mark going?"

CL: "Well, I just thought..."

Mistress: "You don't even want to go with me!"

CL: "Now hold on, you were the one who said I should go alone."

Mistress: "But we never spend any time together."

CL: "Again, I have to remind you that you were the one who offered to send me there alone."

Mistress: "Well, maybe you should just go and stay there then."

The Mistress goes into the tank for awhile and I know two things: My AC trip is in jeopardy and I know nothing about women. Clearly, I should have declined to go alone at first. Secondly, I shouldn't have brought up going with a friend until the last minute.

CL: "Honey, I think you should come with me."

Mistress: "I wouldn't want to take away from your fun." There were some other comments about Mark (who is both of our friend) and how the trip might be more of a romantic one for us, and how she didn't want to come between us. I won't repeat them, but the terms "butt buddies" and "turd burglars" was bandied about.

CL: "No, I'm insisting that you come with me."

Mistress: "Well, okay, if you insist."

Gave it all Back

BB's to go: 595.6 or $59.60.

Yes, undid a month or so of work in three hours. Seven dollars pissed away. How? Well, playing at a higher level when I'm on a losing jag.

Not by choice. Stars has closed all the five - ten cent tables and lower for their 5 billionth hand celebration. So I'm going to have to stay away from limits for the next couple of days. I can't sustain another loss like that or I'll be back at the two and four cent tables.

"Moneyed" in another dollah MTT. That dollar I won is going to open all sorts of doors for me, I'm sure.

Some good news though: I'm hearing rumblings that I'll be going to AC as a Father's Day gift. The Mistress will be accompanying, after teasing me by saying she was going to send me all by myself. I love spending time with my wife, we really don't get any time to ourselves, but the point is that I probably won't be with her all that much. I'll be at the poker tables as much as possible, which is anathema to her. I've told her repeatedly what my plan is, and she's not that happy about it. God I hope this doesn't turn into a disaster.

(Edit: The grammar sucked on this post, so I cleaned some of it up. I usually just write on the fly anyway, with little or no proofreading, but this was beyond the pale.)

Even-Up Weekend

Forgot to bring my BB count to work...it's quite a bit higher though...I'll get to that in a minute.

Bad poker weekend.

"Played" at the Hardware Bar this weekend. Couldn't get anything going, as there were several aggressive players doing there thing at my table and I was getting zero cards. There's no upside to bluffing, as no pot goes uncontested. One handed ended with four to a flush on the board. The winner shows his flush, the loser flips over his pair of queens. "I had outs!" he said.

This was the make-up of my table: three Type A players, two Type D (dumb) players, who literally had borderline intelligence, two average guys (including me) and a guy dressed like a biker whose nickname was "Toe."

The last player was tall, tattoed blonde chick. You know the type: hot, knows she's hot, her schtick is that she's a crazy party girl, woo hoo. A dick tease, in simpler terms. She was loud and obnoxious, and you could tell everyone else at the table (all guys) thought she was a joke and just wanted her to shut up. She was sitting next to me and rubbed her boobies all over me, though. At one point, she folded, then leaned in and breathed in my ear: "I had deuces, what did you have?"

Please.

Soon, we learn that her boyfriend is seated at the table. Blonde starts making comments about her sexual prowess. "You guys are so quiet! I'm always loud-especially in bed."

I turned to her. "Do you snore?"

*******************

After my weak showing, I headed home and played some tilt-a-poker. Got crushed at the limit tables to the tune of over three dollars (30BB's.) Busted in about fifteen minutes in a dollah tournament, then bubbled in another one. Whatever connection I had to the "rythym" of tournaments has disappeared again. Just another donkey fumbling in the dark.

The carnage continued on Saturday. You know you're having a bad day when you're happy to win back half of what you lost. Ended down another 15-20 BB's.

Sunday, more of the same. Played an SNG, which I said I'd never do again, finished way out of the money. Lost another dollar or two in cash games.

The tournament play doesn't bother me, I'm back to my normal results.

I'm not used to these results at limit though. Not that I shouldn't expect it, I've been playing for less than a year and I've had a good run so far. I'm not sure what the cause was for my losses. It didn't seem like I was hitting a lot of flops. I had my set cracked by a larger set, I was killed by the river several times.

I feel like I'm getting sloppy. I misread some boards and was surprised to find myself up against larger hands. One of my strengths, I thought, was reading boards and having a pretty good idea where my hand stood.

Oh well. Can't win them all. I've been on a good run and you've got even up the books sometime. Today's a new day. (Insert your own cliches here.)

In the Black

BB's to go: 464.3 or $46.43

Reached a milestone this week- for the first time, my total 'roll is over $100, which was my initial deposit on Stars. I split my money into two categories for tourneys and cash games. The big leak is from tourneys. Had I never played them and stuck to ring games, I'd be up forty-three odd bucks.

I'll reach that promised land of OPM (other people's money) once I pass $123, which takes into account the wire transfer and ATM fees. A few weeks, if my pace at the limit tables continues.

Bubbled out of a Stars dollah tourney. Very frustrating, as I'd built up a respectable stack and was really anticipating going deep. Again, flopped two pairs and ran head long into a flopped straight. Two hours of work undone in an instant!

I'm avoiding SNG's and anything with "Turbo" in the title. The structure of the Stars MTT's complements my greatest assets- playing tight and being patient. I'm getting a feel for these games- I wonder how I'd do if i put a little effort into studying strategy?

Speaking of leaks- and I was, trust me-I think I found another one in my limit game. It's a Leak of Comission, i.e., an action I'm taking that is incorrect, as opposed to a Leak of Omission, a failure to act in a correct way.

Specifically, I haven't been paying attention to how aggressive tables have been pre-flop. As a result, I'm often playing speculative hands for two bets that are not worth more than one. For example, I'll play 97 sooted on the button, eventhough the BB makes it a habit of raising in that position. Sklansky suggests this play is correct for one bet, but won't hit often enough to play for two.

In addition, I would play such a hand in late position regardless of how many players were already in the pot. Instead, I need to be conscious of what pre-flop equity my hand is getting. Speculative hands that are not pocket pairs are more competitive in multi-way pots.

So, instead of simply calling/raising because the chart in Small Stakes Hold'em says so, I'm going to have to actually start THINKING.

Damn, this is starting to sound like work.

Possible Promotion?

BB's to go: 473.7 or $47.37

I'm a social worker for a non-profit organization in Baltimore. I advocate for people with developmental disabilities (mental retardation, cerebral palsy, etc.) In general, I help them get services, get them involved in their communities, and make friends. Essentially, whatever is important to them is what I help them with.

This is a great job. I used to work for Children and Youth Services in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Everyone hated me- parents, kids, police, even the county judge. It was demoralizing to keep pulling people out of the shit they were wallowing in (figuratively) only to have them fight me tooth and nail to get back there.

When you need to have numerous arguments with Mom about how she shouldn't still be dating the man that raped her daughter and impregnated her, you know you're fighting a losing battle.

Now, there is very little strife and contention in my present job. Basically, I'm given my marching orders by the people I serve, and they're happy with me when I help them achieve things.

And I am making differences in people's lives. I've helped people get off the streets and into stable housing, I've set up people coming out of school with job services. I've worked with many of the same people for five years and I've developed some pretty deep relationships.

So, it was with some trepidation that I made a move to give up a lot of that and apply for a supervisory position in my agency. Surely, it's more pay and more work of a different nature, but I will have to transfer most of the people I serve to other co-workers.

On the other hand, I'm ready. Intellectually, I'm bored with what I'm doing. Frankly, it's just not that hard to do. I want to do other things, learn new skills. Also, opportunities for advancement are few and far between in my agency, and I feel the need to take my chances now or risk being where I'm at for at least a few more years.

I'm hoping to know by the middle of next week. I think I have a pretty good chance, as I'm on a self-directed team, which was originally sold to me as a sort of a "supervisors-in-training" gig. Also, I've gotten the highest rating possible on my performance evals two years straight. I need to prepare to be disappointed, though, so I don't go into a funk and become unproductive.

Wish me luck!

WWdN Profit

BB's to go: 502.1 or $50.21

Finished in the money at the WWdN! Went out ninth on a stupid move (more on that in a minute.) I was disappointed that I'd bubbled out after playing so strong, then I heard my e-mail ping.

What? Oh shit, nine places paid!

I'm so happy about how I've played in the blogger tourneys lately that I don't want to over analyze it, just want to enjoy it. I will say that they suit my comfort zone.

I learned a valuable lesson about level headedness and concentration during my brief stint at the final table. I'm dealt pocket 10's and the flop is 8K8. I fall into what I'll term "flop madness."

"Two-pair, two-pair, two-pair, I'VE GOT TWO PAIR! There's no way anyone could have a king! Who would dare have a king when I've got two pair? I'll just go over the top all-in...DOH!"

If this hand had happened an hour earlier, I'd probably have laid it down. Losing my head in one hand did me in. Oh well, lesson learned.

Finally, there is a world of difference between playing with a bunch of people who you have some connection to and playing with anonymous icons from Bad Munchenhausen. I'd have had a great time if I'd busted out early, and I can't wait to play again.

Grinding

BB's to go: 502.9 or $50.29

First, go give Surflexus your best wishes- his son comes home from Iraq today. Wouldn't hurt to pass along your thanks for his service as well.

I'm slowly coming closer to poker reality. No more twenty or thirty BB nights. Lately, I've been dropping between ten and twenty big bets early, then scrabbling back to a one or two big bet night.

I've been tired lately. I find a little tiredness makes me more patient, less prone to stupid aggressiveness. Fatigue, though, makes me chase and hold onto losing hands.

Skill-wise, I've gotten to a point where I'm successful at the limits I'm playing, but it's making me lazy. I prefer playing to reading, which isn't bad by itself, but I really need to keep up the book work- I need to brush-up on my preflop skills, and I haven't mastered all of the basic post-flop concepts yet.

Also, I really need to adjust my game to the table. To a point, I'm disciplined. I'm following the recommendations for loose tables set out in Small Stakes Hold'Em. But, when I come across tight/overly aggressive tables or players, I don't change my game. I can get away with it now, but will I be able to do that when I'm at the 5/10 tables? Doubt it.

I'm going to try to put up a more instructive post this week. I need to master what Sklansky says about playing draws. I also want to review what he says in SSHE about playing small and mid pocket pairs.

I think I'll be playing in the WWdN tonight. (OOO, Chris, you're so cool) That money I won in the Blue Veiner has been such a hassle, I want to give it back tonight.

Finally, I've got the go ahead to play at the Hardware Bar this Friday. Mmm...Hardware Bar waitresses.

A Good Day

BB's to go: 516.4 or $51.64

Today was like one of those fly dreams,
Didn't even see a berry flashin those high beams
No helicopter looking for a murder
Two in the mornin got the Fatburger
Even saw the lights of the Goodyear Blimp
And it read, "Ice Cube's a pimp"
Drunk as hell but no throwin up
Half way home and my pager still blowin up
Today I didn't even have to use my A.K.
I got to say it was a good day.

-Ice Cube, "It was a Good Day"









Punked out of work yesterday. Fell asleep in front of the compu-master and decided I needed some R and R. Headed home and fell asleep to the soft sounds of Spring, and a cool breeze blowing in my bedroom window. Woke up about three hours later (Ahh, rejuevenation!) and won a modest 8BB's at the limit tables.

It seems like the 5-10 cent competition is only slightly better than the 2-4 cent donkeys, but I've noticed that the winnings are much more modest. I've had one monster day where I won fifty-one BB's, but a usual day is under ten.

My kids were in joyous moods this evening, even if the Mistress wasn't. She's a crab in the evening anyway, so it's somewhat easy to not let it bother me. Sort of like a light fog in the AM- somewhat annoying, but nothing that's going to cripple the whole day.

Then, I sat down to what I thought would be another humiliation at the NL tourney table. Especially since I'd be playing the likes of TripJax, Katitude, and Mookie.

That's right, I'm talking about the Big Blue Veiner, The Champ Memorial Tourney. Only thirteen playas, but it was a great time. Everyone was nice and interesting. It's much more fun to play with a group of people who have a connection than a bunch of anonymous donkeys.

And, I took THIRD for twenty-six bucks! Truly shocked, since my NL tourney skillz=poo poo. I'm not sure if it was because I wasn't as tired as usual, or because I wasn't playing any other games, or I was just in touch with my inner Brunson, but I was calm, comfortable, and I could feel the rythym of the table. In general, the two tables I played on were tight and somewhat weak. Aggression paid off and, when I realized this I capitalized. I only won four or five pots at showdowns, but thirty without.

Things got cooking when I trapped Miami Don with the nut flush against his second-nut flush. I was more patient than usual, slow-playing and setting him up. Later on I did the same with a full house, although I can't remember who that was against.

Finally, it was down to me, Mookie, and SniperGuy, who had a commanding chip lead. I went out to him, I think, missing my nut flush draw. And happily so. This is my largest tourney finish, money wise, and it's a HUGE boost to the 'mad money' portion of my 'roll. Plus, it was ironic that I won back my prop bet with the Champ plus fifty percent in his memorial tournament.

Congrats to Sniper and Mookie, who took first and second respectively. Also, Bloody P needs to be commended for making a valiant stand with his short stack.

So the tournament was over and...just in time for UFC! Could the day be any better?

A Quote in Need of a Visual

BB's to go: 514.7 or $51.47

I read this in an article about changes Frito-Lay is making to make their chips more "healthy."

"The result of the latest change: Saturated fat in the flagship Lay's Classic chips, for example, will drop by 66%, from 3 grams per 1-ounce serving to a single gram. Based on Lay's total sales, the switch will cut 60 million pounds of saturated fat a year from the nation's diet, says Rocco Papalia, senior vice president of R&D."

Did anyone else just throw up in their mouths a bit?

Here's the whole article.

Explanation of Benefits

Okay, if you're not interested in a political rant go someplace else.

As an illegal alien in this country, you are NOT entitled to demand the following:

1. Citizenship
2. Days off
3. The right to protest
4. Welfare
5. Tax free livin'
6. Education
7. Driver's license

This is what you ARE entitled to:

1. A free ride back to your country of origin.

Look, I'm not against anyone from Africa, Asia, Mexico or anywhere else coming into this country LEGALLY. Got a visa? Get the hell in here, we need you. What you can offer us is everything that immigrants have done for the past two hundred years: vitality, culture, even new DNA to keep the gene pool viable.

I work with people from other countries. The criteria for marrying my daughters doesn't vary by race:

• Not a bum, lazy, or a cheat
• Not psychotic or an addict
• Not a wife beater (sorry Champ)

What really gets me hot are the people who come to the US uninvited, then demand that we not only owe them, but that American citizenship is basically their right. Excuse me? The fact that what you did to get here is termed illegal should probably give you an idea that you don't have a right to be here.

No one is disputing that many illegal aliens work hard. But their willingness to work at below normal wages depresses the job market, killing whatever leverage unskilled American workers have to demand a liveable wage. As a result, they are priced out of the labor market and we're stuck paying more out in welfare and unemployment insurance.

In addition, I'm tired of paying the way for illegal aliens. Higher taxes to pay for swollen welfare rolls and education costs (not to mention the hidden costs of the unpaid payroll taxes that are lost as people are paid under the table) higher insurance costs to make up for uninsured illegals getting health care through the most expensive means possible- emergency rooms, higher car insurance bills to pay for accidents caused by uninsured illegals. The list goes on and on and ON.

If Congress decides on any sort of amnesty or guest worker program, I think the fight to control immigration in this country will be over. The Mexican government has encouraged its citizens to enter the US illegally for years. This will be a message to them to ramp up their efforts. They will be able to tell people wanting to emigrate "Go on and be a squatter, if you have to. It will pay off in the long run."

And, finally, do we really want millions of people who will break the law, then be bold enough to demand special treatment? I think there's enough of those people here already.

Ouch!

BB'S to go: 526.8, or $52.68

John Daly=Donkey