Lots of Changes

Been a while since the last post. Since that time, I think I've had a second child and now we're in the process of moving out of the condo into the new house. Lots has changed in life. Love seeing the kids growing up. Very exciting, scary, and also sad (in a nostalgic way).

I remember the old days at the condo when it was just me and the wife. Doors wide open on spring/summer days, music on the radio, baseball on the TV. Poker in the office in the back, which is now the baby's room. Fired up the foreman for lunch. Things were simpler.

Poker's also kid of changed. I don't play nearly as much. It's basically reserved for Friday and Saturday nights, but I'll sneak in a game here and there. I'm much more emotionally detached from the game, which is GREAT, and it may be due to the fact that my BR is also about double what it was back when I was "on the grind", and I'm still playing the same stakes. In fact, I play lower stakes now then when I first started out. The sites have added a lot more options in terms of different kinds of games, and I think that's affected the quality of competition at the stakes I play.

When I have a few hours late at night, I like to play the cheap MTTs. Lotsa bang for the buck, and still the excitement of the final table every now and then. It's still competitive. I feel like I've gotten a little better at managing the later stages of the MTT, moving up the money ladder. I was lucky enough recently to chop three ways on an MTT (on Super Bowl Sunday, no less), then follow that up with an outright win out of a field of 170 or so.

My attitude towards the game is probably the best it's ever been. Even on the bad nights (blowing 30-40 bucks) it's not that huge of a hit relative to my BR, and I feel as long as I'm making correct decisions, there's nothing else I can do. I also feel like I've earned the money to play a little reckless at times to try and score big. All that grinding I've done over the years has made playing the game much more comfortable now. Also, I've taken big hits before, and come back.

That, and there are much more important things going on in the world than poker. I always said I'd move up in stakes. Never did. The other day I took a shot at a $10 when I had some time to spend. I think that's probably what I'll try and do, is just take a shot every now and then. I'm still playing the $2 MTTs, and there just aren't a lot of $4 or $5 non-rush, single buy-in MTTs when I'm playing.

It's happening again

Full Tilt Poker Game #22791310526: $2 + $0.25 Sit & Go (176050326), Table 1 - 80/160 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:33:03 ET - 2010/08/02
Seat 1: actzeng (2,495)
Seat 3: Wapiti96 (2,988), is sitting out
Seat 4: permit4u (2,837)
Seat 6: 223506 (5,180)
actzeng posts the small blind of 80
Wapiti96 posts the big blind of 160
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to actzeng [Kc Kh]
permit4u raises to 480
223506 folds
actzeng raises to 1,040
Wapiti96 folds
permit4u has 15 seconds left to act
permit4u raises to 2,837, and is all in
actzeng calls 1,455, and is all in
permit4u shows [9d 9c]
actzeng shows [Kc Kh]
Uncalled bet of 342 returned to permit4u
*** FLOP *** [Ac 6d Qs]
*** TURN *** [Ac 6d Qs] [9s]
*** RIVER *** [Ac 6d Qs 9s] [3s]
permit4u shows three of a kind, Nines
actzeng shows a pair of Kings
permit4u wins the pot (5,150) with three of a kind, Nines


Full Tilt Poker Game #22817320787: $2 + $0.25 Sit & Go (176263827), Table 1 - 60/120 - No Limit Hold'em - 00:20:55 ET - 2010/08/04
Seat 3: el cisne negro (2,180)
Seat 4: actzeng (1,785)
Seat 6: jpeje (3,505)
Seat 8: Aless405 (6,030)
el cisne negro posts the small blind of 60
actzeng posts the big blind of 120
The button is in seat #8
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to actzeng [Kd Ah]
jpeje calls 120
Aless405 has 15 seconds left to act
Aless405 has timed out
Aless405 folds
Aless405 is sitting out
el cisne negro folds
actzeng has 15 seconds left to act
actzeng raises to 1,785, and is all in
Aless405 has returned
jpeje calls 1,665
actzeng shows [Kd Ah]
jpeje shows [Js Ac]
*** FLOP *** [Qd Kh 2d]
*** TURN *** [Qd Kh 2d] [5h]
*** RIVER *** [Qd Kh 2d 5h] [Ts]
actzeng shows a pair of Kings
jpeje shows a straight, Ace high
jpeje wins the pot (3,630) with a straight, Ace high

Oh man

This was for the overall chiplead with 18 left in the tourney.

Full Tilt Poker Game #21926780241: $2 + $0.20 Tournament (169088270), Table 29 - 600/1200 Ante 150 - No Limit Hold'em - 22:18:05 ET - 2010/06/27
Seat 2: Willow 203 (4,414)
Seat 3: Gr8Gatsby (33,088)
Seat 4: josephmurf23 (14,020)
Seat 5: actzeng (32,730)
Seat 6: iluvyourmoney (28,098)
Willow 203 antes 150
Gr8Gatsby antes 150
josephmurf23 antes 150
actzeng antes 150
iluvyourmoney antes 150
josephmurf23 posts the small blind of 600
actzeng posts the big blind of 1,200
The button is in seat #3
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to actzeng [Ac 3c]
iluvyourmoney calls 1,200
Willow 203 raises to 4,264, and is all in
Gr8Gatsby calls 4,264
josephmurf23 folds
actzeng calls 3,064
iluvyourmoney folds
*** FLOP *** [2h 5h 4c]
actzeng bets 1,200
Gr8Gatsby raises to 18,942
actzeng raises to 28,316, and is all in
Gr8Gatsby calls 9,374
actzeng shows [Ac 3c]
Willow 203 shows [Ts Kh]
Gr8Gatsby shows [Ad Ah]
*** TURN *** [2h 5h 4c] [3h]
*** RIVER *** [2h 5h 4c 3h] [7h]
actzeng shows a straight, Five high
Gr8Gatsby shows a flush, Ace high
Gr8Gatsby wins the side pot (56,632) with a flush, Ace high
Willow 203 shows a flush, King high
Gr8Gatsby wins the main pot (15,342) with a flush, Ace high
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot 71,974 Main pot 15,342. Side pot 56,632. | Rake 0
Board: [2h 5h 4c 3h 7h]
Seat 2: Willow 203 showed [Ts Kh] and lost with a flush, King high
Seat 3: Gr8Gatsby (button) showed [Ad Ah] and won (71,974) with a flush, Ace high
Seat 4: josephmurf23 (small blind) folded before the Flop
Seat 5: actzeng (big blind) showed [Ac 3c] and lost with a straight, Five high
Seat 6: iluvyourmoney folded before the Flop

Coming back

Ok, now that I'm posting this, I'm sure the downswing is coming...

But I've completely recovered from the worst downswing of my poker career. It took a while and basically one third place score in a $2 MTT worth about $130 or so, and just grinding. I'm still playing the $2s. I finally broke through, got to the final two tables, and then the final table, and got it all in with the best hand three handed.

It is amazing to look back at how down on things I was. I think that during the downswing, I was making bad decisions here and there, but I don't really feel like overall I was playing much differently than I am right now. Sure, an ill-advised $30 heads up game went wrong, BUT even without that, it was still probably my worst downswing ever. My mindset was so negative. Especially playing $2 games, I honestly thought I'd never come back.

Feels nice to get back on top of things. I cashed out about a quarter of my BR (still haven't done anything "specific" with my poker winnings yet) at the end of the downswing, so it's a steady grind back up.

I'd like to try and play more MTTs, but I simply do not have the time. It's nice to have a little confidence back in my game though.

SNG Madness FAIL

to make matters worse, I whiffed the SNG madness raffle, I qualified for a freeroll on Saturday that I can't play in because I'm going with the in-laws to sunny Syracuse, and when I cashed out, I was like $2 shy of $50 on my rakeback, so I got penalized like $10. EPIC FAIL.

Worst Month Ever

So we're 8 days into March and it's already my worst month ever. It's a combination of a few things. One, it was SNG madness this weekend, and I went overboard. Just simply played too many tables. In the entire weekend, I only won two SNGs. Probably out of like 30. That's pretty bad. The HU superturbos went bad and got out of control.

The results on Shark are worse than what my BR actually is. In the midst of all this, I cashed out a third of my BR. I feel ok about doing that. I was really just not caring about the money loss. I did lose a $28 superturbo HU game. Why did I play it? Just super tilted. I won about $30 playing PLO - at the highest stakes I've ever sat. Why did I do that? Just super tilted. I was playing bigger and playing worse.

I will just go back to the normal grind. I feel good that I have a check coming. Something to show that this is all actually worth something. I still feel like I should do something specific with it so that I have something that's actually tangible from my poker playing. I never know what to get though.

the $2.20 MTTs

These are becoming my nemisis. When I have time, there are two that run every night. One at 10pm and one at 11pm. They are exactly the same - usually the first one has a few more entrants. They are regular, 9-person games, standard 1500 stacks, and standard blinds.

In the past 2 or three weeks, I have finished 19, 20, 21, 21 for like (almost) no money. The last one I busted, I should post the hand, but basically the SB raised me and I had ATss in the BB and shoved way over. I was covered, and the guy fucking called with A7. Hit the 7 on the flop, and added another 7 on the river to kick me in the balls.

One of these days, I will run deep. Nice to get there consistently though. I feel like I'm learning to navigate the fields better. They are usually just rollercoasters though. Just a constant up and down.

February was a good month. One of the most profitable ones that I've had in a while. Basically won a couple $5 SNGs and that was the difference. Just signed up for an upto $50 cash bonus (Depending on how many points I get), but hopefully, I can maximize that and stay on the good run I've been on. If all goes well, I think I might be able to eek out $10 of the possible $50.

Rakeback - status

So it's been just over a half a year since I've gotten rakeback. Going into it, I thought if I got $50 a year, that would be a nice little uptick. So far, I've gotten $43, so I'm pretty far ahead of my admittedly conservative estimate. A couple observations:

1. I'm not using FTP points anymore to get tournament dollars. In the course of a given year, I'd probably use my points to get somewhere between $25-$35 worth of tournament buy ins through satellites. That's gone now.

2. The little deposits into my account probably mask some mediocre play. It probably suggests to me in my brain that I am playing better than I actually am. My sharkscope graph has been almost completely level for quite some time, but if you factor in the $30 or so dollars I've made in rakeback over that time, it's probably consistent with my career arc.

3. FTP has some really cool stuff that I'd like to purchase if I ever got the points to do it. I've never had this many points before (I have just over 2000), but with rakeback, I'm probably never going to use them.

Rakeback

Stats

Lifetime rakeback for actzeng: $43.23

Late Update

Avenged Sevenfold put together a great video tribute to Jimmy Chamberlain on their website.

Poker has been ok recently. Went deep in a $1 turbo only to needlessly flame out with T8ss and bust in 68th place.

I'm starting to play more superturbo heads up. Heads up, as it is, is pretty much gambling. This kind of stuff gives me a low-stakes gambling-type fix, although I think I'm turning a profit in these babies.

Just wrapped up a murder trial. The jury's still out. That's the reason I haven't played much in January. Perhaps some more play this month.

The Rev is dead

Jimmy Sullivan, also known as the Revered Tholomew Plague, is dead. So disappointing.

I have always maintained that the Rev was an alien that came here from outer space. And having other-worldly talents, he could have done whatever he wanted to in this world, so he chose a life that would be the most fun - being a drummer in a rock band.

In all seriousness, the Rev - a person whose existence I had no knowledge of just two and a half years ago and have never met or seen in person - has had an impact on my life. He got me inspired to play the drums again. A7x is the first band that I've liked as much as the bands that I used to listen to since...the back when I used to listen to those bands. Jimmy was a huge part of that band - more than just a drummer in a rock band - he wrote entire songs, brought concepts to the table, and did some singing.

What an incredibly creative and talented person. His approach to rock drumming just blew my mind. The concepts that he would come up with were just different, and everything he did was just interesting. It was interesting to listen to. It was interesting to figure out. It was interesting to try and figure out how and why he was doing certain things. Nothing was haphazard. Everything was well thought out, but not with rigid calculus. It was inspiring.

Except for Strength of the World, which is just a bad song.

When I talk about "his approach", I'm talking about a lot of things. One of the most creative guys on the double bass without a doubt. Not just machine-gunning 16ths or triplets, but breaking it up and making it groove and making the songs "crackle". He could also machine gun them with the best of them. Songs 2, 3, and 5 on City of Evil are quintessential Rev. The other thing he was good at was incorporating interesting sticking patterns. Some of the double ride/hi-hat stuff was pretty intricate. I wonder how he picked up that stuff. Some of that stuff I know how to do from doing marching band and some of the rudimentary stuff that I used to work on for drum lessons. I wonder how he picked up on that stuff.

I honestly wonder what the Rev did in his youth to get that good. What bands did he used to listen to? What approach did he take to their songs? What did he used to work on when he sat down at the kit? From the videos on the band, it just seemed like Jimmy was homeless from middle school on. He was a weird dude who wore kimonos and shit to school. Lived in vans or in buildings that were under construction - wherever he could find a home. And in all this, he became an incredible musician - truly original in so many aspects of his life, and music.

When I hear him play now, there is a tinge of sadness. The most disappointing part about it is that we will never be able to hear what he was going to do next. That is what I was looking forward to the most. It's like a beautiful, gifted light in the world has just suddenly been switched off.

I wish for good things for the band, although I think they're done and I think they think they're done. The band was all good friends through high school. You don't make those type of connections later in life. If they get a new drummer, it will sound mechanical. It will just be a guy playing drum parts. Jimmy helped mold the A7x sound.

Ideally, I'd like to see a guy like Vinnie Paul step in and take over. I think the bands had/have a lot in common, and musically, they're good fits. Each entity is missing what the other has. I think there'd be a mutual respect. But the generation gap I think is just far too wide. And I'm not sure Vinnie would have the motivation to learn all the A7x stuff (that is, if he doesn't know it already). Vinnie could always play crushing metal-grooves and has sick double bass skills.

Ahhh...we call can dream I guess. It was nice to be able to enjoy music, especially metal music, the way I used to enjoy music. There had been a sonic void in my life for such a long time. Unfortunately, it's here again. RIP REV.

Sick Hand

Full Tilt Poker Game #17090328461: Table Bomber (6 max) - $0.01/$0.02 - Pot Limit Omaha Hi - 23:48:54 ET - 2009/12/25
Seat 1: actzeng ($2.23)
Seat 2: Honda KnN ($0.89)
Seat 3: maktheknight ($2)
Seat 4: laaked in ($4.27)
Seat 5: M8KUPAY ($2.82)
Seat 6: oOoztoneoOo ($1.96)
Honda KnN posts the small blind of $0.01
maktheknight posts the big blind of $0.02
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to actzeng [Ac 7s Th Kc]
M8KUPAY folds
oOoztoneoOo calls $0.02
actzeng calls $0.02
Honda KnN calls $0.01
maktheknight checks
*** FLOP *** [9c 6s Qc]
Honda KnN checks
maktheknight bets $0.08
oOoztoneoOo folds
actzeng calls $0.08
Honda KnN folds
*** TURN *** [9c 6s Qc] [Tc]
maktheknight bets $0.24
actzeng calls $0.24
*** RIVER *** [9c 6s Qc Tc] [Jc]
maktheknight has 15 seconds left to act
maktheknight bets $0.72
actzeng has 15 seconds left to act
actzeng raises to $1.44
maktheknight has 15 seconds left to act
maktheknight raises to $1.66, and is all in
actzeng calls $0.22
*** SHOW DOWN ***
maktheknight shows [8c 3d 2c 7c] a straight flush, Jack high
actzeng shows [Ac 7s Th Kc] a Royal Flush
actzeng wins the pot ($3.78) with a Royal Flush
maktheknight is sitting out
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $4.04 | Rake $0.26
Board: [9c 6s Qc Tc Jc]
Seat 1: actzeng (button) showed [Ac 7s Th Kc] and won ($3.78) with a Royal Flush
Seat 2: Honda KnN (small blind) folded on the Flop
Seat 3: maktheknight (big blind) showed [8c 3d 2c 7c] and lost with a straight flush, Jack high
Seat 4: laaked in is sitting out
Seat 5: M8KUPAY didn't bet (folded)
Seat 6: oOoztoneoOo folded on the Flop

Still not making progress

Ok, so my $10 bonus got paid out, but it coincided with a pretty big SNG down swing. I lost a whole bunch in a row and then started playing HU PLO and then losing there too. In the end, I'm about even after last night.

I made $11 last night for finishing 7th in a 180-man tourney. Pretty disappointing, although I was probably lucky all in all to have even gotten that far. I won a couple flips late for my tournament life. Midway through the tourney I lost two huge pots with QQ to another guy's AA AIPF, and then a couple hands later I called an all in with A9 and the other guy had AQ, but I had him covered by a bunch. I was able to come back from those and make a late surge up the money ladder. I eventually busted out with AK to QQ. I was close to some real money, but even if I had won that flip, I still would have been a long shot.

I thought I played pretty focused poker. My laptop has shit out on me, so that I pretty much can't do anything on it but play poker. Instant messaging doesn't work, the internet locks up. Even the sound comes and goes. Given that, I have to pay a little more attention to what's going on. Definitely not good to play this way when trying to do other things, but if I'm just sitting down to play poker, it's not a bad way to go about it.

I've got a taste for the MTT now. Hope I have time to take one down this weekend.

A little better

Pokerwise, things have gone a little better. Started to gain momentum in some SNGs and then even when that started to tank, I made up for it with PLO cash winnings (for once). I ended up just having one of those sessions where I flopped a set every time and hit all of my flush draws. I guess it's bound to happen if you're just used to getting beaten over the head.

The SNGs this weekend were pretty soft, at least softer than usual, due to SNG madness. I think people end up playing more tables than they're used to, so on any given table, there are at least a couple pushbots who either soar or implode within the first 20 hands or so. I won a couple, but it should have been more. There was at least a $5 that I should have won, but ended up in second because of less than optimal play on my part. I didn't win anything in the raffle, but I did win an entry into a freeroll that takes place late Saturday afternoon. It's open to people who won two SNGs over SNG madness. First place is a little less than $5k, and there are about 16,000 entrants, with 3000 or so getting paid. I will just be happy to cash of course. We'll see how it goes. Tough to say I'm due.

The MTTs have not been going as well lately, but I don't think I've played as many. I'm trying to get the FTP holiday bonus. FTP's first deposit bonus is really the best because they give you a lot of time to generate money to get paid back some bonus money. These current offers only give you 30 days, which, at the stakes I play, pretty much gives me a chance to win the first incremental payout, which is $10. I'm at about $8.60 or so with 10 days left, so I'll hit it. Probably this weekend.

Then, it will take a portion off my rakeback, I know. I feel like I should do something with the bonus money though - like put it into a satellite, or even just roll it into an SNG. I rarely take those shots though, and when I do, I've usually been drinking and the results are disastrous. For whatever reason $10 SNGs hate me. I've won a $20 before, but never a $10, I don't think.

Disappointing Thoughts

Well, let me start by saying that I won the case on Wednesday, but not the way I thought. When I got in, a lot of things took place that I didn't think were going to take place, and once everything got sorted out, we made the right decisions and got the victory. It wasn't as satisfying for me to do it this way, on a personal level, but getting the victory is always nice. Kind of like playing heads up for massive money, and hitting a couple two outers to win it. Kind of. Not really though. Because when I hit the 2 outer, I feel like it's owed to me for all the bad beats.

But the disappointing thoughts lately really stem from that run in the daily dollar. I reviewed the hand again and it's clear that I flat made the wrong decision. for the amount of chips it was worth, I had clearly just made a snap decision while being really tired and after having a couple cocktails. A friend was over and we agreed to split half our winnings with each other, and it's clear to me that my play probably disappointed him more than me, since he was eager to get his hands on his $5 share of the amount I actually won.

I should post the hand, although it's like if someone pissed in your coffee, recorded you drinking it, and then put the video of it on youtube. Basically, I had 500k chips at 600/1200. Reeeediculous for me call an all in on the flop - or any flop - without the absolute mutha f'n nuts.

I think to myself if I was in the main event of the WSOP (which had a smaller field size than the tourney I was in) would I make the same play? I say no. Because you actually have to physically move the chips in, which takes much more deliberate action than just button clicking.

Even if I had simply walked away from the keyboard and just played aces, I probably could have finished in the teens.

I think about the moments in retrospect all the time, but of course for whatever reason, I keep doing it when I get into the moment. Just not able to find the fold button. Something is wrong with me, I think. I get into a moment where I get impulsive and do not act totally rationally. I need to work on this.

More MTTS

My bankroll has been slowly dwindling, but mostly because of some bad luck combined with the fact that I'm playing more MTTs. I went really deep in the daily dollar on Saturday into Sunday and finished a disappointing 73rd out of over 10k participants. I was put to a decision for all my chips holding top pair top kicker with AQ on a Q high flop. I could have and ultimately should have folded it to his AA. I did not sit out and really think about it, which is my biggest problem playing online. I saw Hachem talk about a hand almost exactly like this that he laid down back in the 2005 main event. I just focused on whether he'd make that move with KQ and how many chips I would have had if I was able to hit. It was a long grind. I feel like if I do it enough, I can make it back there.

The next day, I signed up for a $2.25 MTT and also cashed finishing 40th or so out of 700 people for basically a min cash. The bustout hand was my 99 shoved into AQ and I was good until he rivered an inside straight. The Q would actually not have helped him since it would have given me a straight. So he hit a 7 outer, which was disappointing. I did not think I did anything wrong in the hand - possibly the only thing I would have done different was call and shove any flop, but there were lots of people to act behind me, that I didn't feel safe just calling his raise. It is encouraging though to see some results out of it.

I pleaded a kid out in court today for whom I had beaten all of his previous cases. I have very mixed feelings about this for a lot of reasons. One being that what started off as a really good deal turned into a meh deal, and that he will likely find a way to end up doing a sentence. The kid is personally at a pretty volatile stage in his life and I hope him the best. The other reason I feel bad about pleading him is the fact that I felt like I could beat the case, but the kid wanted it all over and done with so he could walk. But for how long is the real question?

Pats lost yesterday. Whatever. I trust Belichick, even though he's getting skewered. He's seen his defense let him down so many times. I really can't fault him for making the call, even if it turned out to be wrong.

All of these things are really tough decisions. You have to weigh unknowns, probabilities that cannot be determined with 100% certainty. I think it is always interesting to be in those types of situations, although it is not always an enviable position to be in. Ultimately, those are the things that make life interesting I think. A bit scary at times depending on what's at stake, but interesting nonetheless.

Anyways - trial Wednesday. At least I get a chance to stand up and fight. Winning (at least SOMETHING for ONCE) is always nice though.

Old news

So I won $90 in a $2 tourney for finishing in 5th. So ridiculously disappointing. I was in control and blew it when I couldn't lay down KK to an A high flop. No question I should have folded. Weird because I was laying hands like that down the entire way, and just fucked it up when we got to the final table - when it really matters. When moving up in the money actually means something to my bankroll. OOOOOOHHHH WELLL, right? Since I make it to final tables all the time, then no regrets!!! Get 'em next time! (SARCASM)

So I decided to try and see if I could run the money up. WTF, right? At the stakes I play, I'm sitting on a pile of dough. My recent cashout made almost no difference in my bankroll compared to the stakes I play. So I played a $5, lost. A $10, lost, and a $30 HU game and lost when I was all in pre-flop with a hand that was dominated. Oh well.

Been reading Dan Brown's new book lately, so I haven't been playing a lot of poker. Brown's books are always very fast paced, interesting, and easy to sink into. It's a mix of real science and a frantic, significant, fictional story. Funny that during the most suspenseful parts - much like a person shielding their eyes from a horror movie - I find myself reading over the words faster just to get the gist of it. I don't think any of his books will be as good as Da Vinci Code, only because of its subject matter, but this one's REALLY good so far, and I'm about half way through it. I find it interesting that the subject matter of this book is an extension of the the most interesting non-Holy Grail topic of Da Vinci Code.

Reading his books always makes me wonder about how great pieces of artwork from the past "become" great works. A painting, is a painting, right? Paint on canvas. But we give it significance. It's one thing to say that a picture "looks" good. We have photos now that are everywhere that almost universally, people can look at a picture and say it "looks" good. But the truly great pieces of art are held in such reverence, and why? I can't figure it out. I just chalk it up to the fact that I don't know enough about the subject matter, which is probably true to a certain extent.

Shakespeare, Mozart, Da Vinci - we have held on to these works, and hold their works in the highest esteem. Dan Brown would suggest we do this for a reason other than that it "looks good". Anyways, some meta-relfection here - How will the future look at Dan Brown's books?

Obviously, it's not a historical document. It's basically fiction. Will history pass it off as a sign of the times? Or is his work something that will endure, and if it does, for what reason? His books are enormously popular, but popularity does not necessarily mean they will be timeless.

Anyways, I enjoy them.

Nice way to top off the Sunday

Full Tilt Poker Game #15279927255: Daily Dollar (110926523), Table 380 - 300/600 Ante 75 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:03:06 ET - 2009/10/11Seat 1: ander-vichiato (10,447)Seat 2: actzeng (7,320)Seat 3: 2 Hot Coconuts (74,627)Seat 4: BAD BOY BYFIELD (9,270)Seat 5: Byawer (20,776)Seat 6: nzvamp1 (2,640)Seat 7: alfredohys (22,525)Seat 8: okayme2 (11,647)Seat 9: Jassio (42,092)ander-vichiato antes 75actzeng antes 752 Hot Coconuts antes 75BAD BOY BYFIELD antes 75Byawer antes 75nzvamp1 antes 75alfredohys antes 75okayme2 antes 75Jassio antes 75Byawer posts the small blind of 300nzvamp1 posts the big blind of 600The button is in seat #4*** HOLE CARDS ***Dealt to actzeng [Ah Ad]alfredohys foldsokayme2 raises to 5,400Jassio foldsander-vichiato foldsactzeng raises to 7,245, and is all in2 Hot Coconuts foldsBAD BOY BYFIELD foldsByawer foldsnzvamp1 calls 1,965, and is all inokayme2 calls 1,845actzeng shows [Ah Ad]nzvamp1 shows [Qc Td]okayme2 shows [9h 9c]*** FLOP *** [9s Jc Kd]*** TURN *** [9s Jc Kd] [6c]*** RIVER *** [9s Jc Kd 6c] [8h]actzeng shows a pair of Acesokayme2 shows three of a kind, Ninesokayme2 wins the side pot (9,360) with three of a kind, Ninesnzvamp1 shows a straight, King highnzvamp1 wins the main pot (8,670) with a straight, King high*** SUMMARY ***

Again - No Reaction

Full Tilt Poker Game #15276525872: $2 + $0.25 Sit & Go (112017619), Table 1 - 20/40 - No Limit Hold'em - 20:10:20 ET - 2009/10/11Seat 1: ufajr (1,485)Seat 2: Goldengirl434 (1,455)Seat 3: arnoldstarnold (1,545)Seat 4: actzeng (1,545)Seat 5: tha milkman (2,430)Seat 6: Leo Fitzgerald (1,470)Seat 7: abwil2 (1,455)Seat 8: vexem (985)Seat 9: prettypokerbabe (1,130)prettypokerbabe posts the small blind of 20ufajr posts the big blind of 40The button is in seat #8*** HOLE CARDS ***Dealt to actzeng [Ac Ad]Goldengirl434 foldsarnoldstarnold foldsactzeng raises to 120tha milkman foldsLeo Fitzgerald foldsabwil2 foldsvexem foldsprettypokerbabe calls 100ufajr folds*** FLOP *** [2s Td 8s]prettypokerbabe bets 160actzeng has 15 seconds left to actactzeng raises to 400prettypokerbabe raises to 1,010, and is all inactzeng calls 610prettypokerbabe shows [Th Qs]actzeng shows [Ac Ad]*** TURN *** [2s Td 8s] [Ts]*** RIVER *** [2s Td 8s Ts] [4c]prettypokerbabe shows three of a kind, Tensactzeng shows two pair, Aces and Tensprettypokerbabe wins the pot (2,300) with three of a kind, Tens

I didn't even flinch

Full Tilt Poker Game #15264983192: $2 + $0.25 Sit & Go (111937901), Table 1 - 20/40 - No Limit Hold'em - 10:11:27 ET - 2009/10/11Seat 1: maydiego (1,910)Seat 2: Mr K Mo (855)Seat 3: tyboter (1,455)Seat 4: palychkazan (1,470)Seat 5: n33lix69 (1,455)Seat 6: ShortNails (1,335)Seat 7: actzeng (1,455)Seat 8: justJB (2,065)Seat 9: Malefoy (1,500)maydiego posts the small blind of 20Mr K Mo posts the big blind of 40The button is in seat #9
*** HOLE CARDS ***Dealt to actzeng [As Ad]tyboter has 15 seconds left to acttyboter foldspalychkazan foldsn33lix69 foldsShortNails foldsactzeng raises to 120justJB foldsMalefoy foldsmaydiego foldsMr K Mo calls 80
*** FLOP *** [6s Qs 3h]
Mr K Mo has 15 seconds left to act
Mr K Mo bets 260
actzeng raises to 1,335, and is all in
Mr K Mo calls 475, and is all in
ShortNails has been disconnected
actzeng shows [As Ad]
Mr K Mo shows [Qh Kd]
Uncalled bet of 600 returned to actzeng
*** TURN *** [6s Qs 3h] [Tc]
*** RIVER *** [6s Qs 3h Tc] [Kh]
actzeng shows a pair of Aces
Mr K Mo shows two pair, Kings and QueensMr K Mo wins the pot (1,730) with two pair, Kings and Queens

Things have been going badly. They were going well, and then I took a shot at a $5 and bubbled, and took a shot at a $10 and bubbled. Both bustouts were just brutal. I haven't cashed since then. Bubble bubble bubble.