Additional recap, my planning, and LOST

After 1/2 stacking myself because of the AQ and KQ hands; I end up in the big blind with K10os. No raise to speak of, flop comes Kd-9d-4c. I bet 2/3 pot, get raised all-in, and even the other player insta calls. Turn is another diamond...once again that squishy feeling. BUT, here's the proverbial kick in the crotch. I was behind from the get go...not even a Big Blind special for your ole pal cheer_dad. I flop top pair, with mediocre kicker, while the guy who popped it hit his set of 9's, and the other guy, who held the mighty Ace of diamonds and some other rag diamond. So, really I never stood a chance. Horrific session...and oh by the way did I mention that since it was so late when I was playing, and mass beer quantities had me JONESIN' for poker that I had to take one of the few games available to me on PokerRewards, which wasn't the lowly .10/.20 NLHE game but (gasp) the .25/.50 NLHE game. Now it all makes sense to you doesn't it. Lady Luck apparantly read my plans and disparaging remarks about her in yesterday's first post, and replied with "...oh no he di'in't...here's a lil variance love byatch! How you like me now!"

Oh yeah maybe here I should offer up that in my poker imagination that Lady Luck is actually two women. "Good Lady Luck" is Maria Bello from The Cooler (http://imdb.com/title/tt0318374/) dice tattoo and all. While "Bad Lady Luck" is this nameless black/latino little vixen with dominatrix tendencies. (The cat-o-nine-tails hurts so good though!)

Wow, now when I get off on a tangent...

ANYWAY, the whole Vegas trip in July is not necessarily a dead issue, just because of one crappy run at online poker. And I'm not blaming luck in reality, when I know I played it horribly there at last. The AQ and KQ hands hurt but didn't kill me, in fact I had the sense to table one of them when it became apparant that my opponent hit his flush. He called $3 preflop raise by me with J8 sooted, and got where he needed to be. I knew it, er felt it, and got out, while the other two idiot callers did not, which is why I got to see it ALL play out. Okay, back on track again... Big Red even mentioned going to Vegas to see the WSOP again! She really enjoyed that trip last time! And she had logged on yesterday and checked on flight costs! And she started telling everyone all about it at dinner last night. Interest was sparked!!! She says she'll have the money, from an extra Christmas Club account she set up! : ) Me...of course I'm on my own! Well there's always the plasma thing or I could just be a drug mule! Is it tough swallowing that balloon full of cash crop? Digressing again huh...

Well that's enough my minions, I've babbled on enough, and to be honest, I stayed up way too late, in my stupor and got precious little sleep. I really gotta work on that sleeping with my eyes open trick for the occaissional at work nap time. : ) Kidding boss, kidding!

OH and the big news of the day...or night...LOST is on TONIGHT!!! 8 new episodes of cliffhanger goodness tide the masses over! For all the lowdown and discussion that's fit to print and/or blog head over to: http://losteastereggs.blogspot.com/
Big Red and I are both stoked about watching LOST tonight. The kids have strict orders to pipe down, and ALL phones will be ignored for the duration of tonight's show. And we have caller ID if anyone gets any bright ideas!

Well this post is now... a wrap! I've covered enough ground here for a few days worth of posting.

Regards,

cheer_dad

Okay, okay...that was over the top

Thank you Frank for pulling me away from the edge of the abyss. When you told me over dinner that you couldn't make sense of my last post...reality set in. Well that and losing money at the Eagles... : ) and then even later on PokerRewards having AQc and KQ rammed up my ass even after flopping a queen in each instance. Big Red covered the Eagles losses. The PokerRewards -$50... eh... not so much.

Oh well there's still what like 152 days in which to friggin' regroup.

How much can I get for donating plasma?
And I can do that how often?
Next of kin?

Regards,

cheer_dad

The plot thickens...

Okay, to many of you I know the number crunching from the last post was laughable. I mean really here's some schmo lamenting about trying to raise $1,000 in the span of like 155 days to run his fool ass off to Vegas again to "watch" the start of the WSOP 2008 Main Event. The poor schmuck (sp) is so pathetic that he's questioning whether or not he could raise that kinda money...and even chops it down to daily and weekly poker winnings required to get the job done. Yeah, it was pretty sad. And yeah I'm a pathetic loser. But unfortunately for all you nay-sayers out there, now I'm dangerous. I'm a loser with a hair-brained idea! Building on the insanity of yesterday's post...and fueled by morbid curiosity, I logged onto PokerRewards last night, and fired up 2 (count 'em two) .10/.20 NLHE tables (maximum buy-in a whopping $20 each.) Considering what I still have online you'll recognize that was a sizeable chunk of it. Incidentally, I had to scratch my head a little when I saw the cute little balance. It was a tad bigger than I'd remembered, then it dawned on... while I was in Vegas, running bad live, and in a drunken stupor I fired up the laptop late one night and played a $10 SNG and finished in 3rd place, in addition to garnering a few bucks at a simultaneous ring game that I was playing. I know...what was I thinkin'. And Frank where the hell were you and why didn't you stop me! Anyway...back on track... I didn't start out so well on the 1st table (which is why I fired up the second game) when I flopped an open ended straight draw and pushed everyone out of the pot but the one guy who had a gutshot straight draw. Neither of us made it, in fact we each had at least one of the others outs! However, I was going for the King high straight and numb-nuts was going for the Ace high straight, and his hole ace (or ACE-HOLE as I called him) and his high card ace was enough to take down the pot, dropping me 6 bucks on the first hand I played. Oh well, pipe dream cheer_dad, you didn't have a prayer. Then, we change focus to the other table... I'm seeing patterns in betting emerge, stupidity and thinly veiled steals of pots actually working for a couple of guys at the table. They were running the joint. A couple of Pushy-McPushPants types. cheer_dad decides to test the waters, and repush with nothing. It works once...then I try again, and get snagged this time, but not for too much, but I end up having to show some trash that I was trying it with, and took a few heckling remarks. Now, the time is right. I wait a few hands and try pushing again, this time cards with teeth. I get reraised, I push all-in over that, and well whatdya know this time, I wasn't foolin' guys. I felt one guy, who instantly rebuys...and he begins this I got balls routine of shoving all in on nearly every hand, particularly when I'm in the blinds and he's to my right! I slink back into the felt for what seemed like an eternity. The table actually starts to break up, as others are getting frustrated. I finally pick a hand (junk) and raise, and he reraises me...I fold, and whine a little. A few hands later, he pops it again on my big blind. I pause ad nauseum...and then just re-pop him. He shoves right back, all-in. I insta call with my pocket Queens, which hold against his A3os. The software censored him... He rebought and then others began to enjoy the circle jerk that ensued. I waited and caught just a couple more pots, and then cashed out up $18.40 for my short time at the table. I know, that sounds small, but again...this is .10/.20 people. Cut me some friggin' slack. Anyway, that puts me up just under 3 days!!!

3 days? Huh cheer_dad... well I continued to crunch those numbers folks...and even worked up a spreadsheet to support the insanity, but if I can pop my meager little bankroll the $6 1/2-ish per day for the next 154 days, I could theoretically hit the $grand$ by the time the Main Event starts! Hmmm, maybe I should mention this to Big Red...nah, it'll wait! : )

To further fuel this "episode" I logged on to USAirways today, and well whatdya know flights that would put me in Vegas for the opening ceremony of the WSOP Main Event are (gasp) a mere $232!!! I know...some of you can hear the gears in my twisted little mind turning right now. I know one good run was a fluke, and it'll come crashin' down, but now it's a challenge. It's like Lady Luck just byatch slapped me and threw down the gauntlet. It's on... and cheer_dad's doin' this thang!

And if I fail miserably in the attempt, well you can all just say you were there to see the meltdown, and that it all makes sense why "...he careened his Dodge pickup off the cliff..." when someone shoves a mike in your face. You were there at the beginning of the end.

How's that for a caffeine buzzed post!?!

Regards,

cheer_dad

Jet lag... and future planning

Yesterday it was all I could do to keep the eyelids propped open, despite the fact that I went to bed very early the night before. Then, last night I went to bed early (for me) and thought I would get a good night's rest, but around 2:00am I gave up and went downstairs to "rest" and leave Teresa alone. I was doing nothing but tossing and turning. So, suffice it to say I'm still jet-laggy after the Vegas trip. Eventually it'll pass...but oh joy, I have another trip (driving this time) to contend with starting Sunday. I'm in training for two weeks in Shepherdstown, WV. Leadership Potential Seminar is the title of the class...that'll be enough chuckling there in the back!!! Yes, I mean you! I'm curious about the course, but I'll reserve judgement (at least give it a day or so to form an opinion.) : )

I was able to get back on the ole treadmill last night, for a 30 minute run/walk. Prior to the Vegas trip, I had been pretty dedicated to getting in 30 minutes of run/walk at least 5 days per week. Of course, Vegas is different. Much libation and one day merging into the next isn't exactly the time to be testing your physical limitations. Anyway, I rushed home, got it done, showered and then headed off to Whitney's basketball game.

Already I'm hearing the rumblings of a return trip to Las Vegas. June/July was brought up by JR and Vince (and me) in hopes of checking out the pros in action during the World Series of Poker. The standard October trip that we always seem to do, is on the table. Then, I've also heard interest from Frank (and me) about attending the Winter Blogger's gathering in Las Vegas. Any of these trips would be GREAT! I wish I had the ability and money to be there all the time. So, if that's ever going to happen I'm going to have to improve my poker game, and have the beginning roll to sustain my play. I would that I could sit in comfort and without fear at the table. Not reckless, but not in fear of loss, as if the loss were not a make or break thing. To treat the game as a long session. Make the best decisions in each and every situation, and finally see substantial profit from the thing. What exactly is "substantial?" I'll let you know when I see it!

I have an idea of what I would have to do in order to make the Summertime WSOP excursion a reality. I would have to realize around a $1,000 profit in the small online bankroll. No, not get it to a total of $1,000, but increase it by that much. I could then "maybe" justify a trip. What would it take to make that happen? Probably more than I'll be able to accomplish anyway, as part of this pipe dream.

Here's the math of the thing... There are 155 full days left until Day One (the first of four) of the WSOP Main Event. $1,000 divided by 155 days equals $6.46 profit per day... Hmmm... I was attempting to discourage myself by doing this simple equation, but now, I'm not so sure! We're talking just over $45 per week sustained for 22 weeks. That doesn't sound so "un-doable" now. What have I done... The caveat is the startup weeks. My online roll is paltry, just a few hundred at this point, after withdrawals, and some obvious stupidity, involving blackjack among other things. : ) I'll have to look this evening and do a complete online inventory of what dollars and cents I have out there, but this could be my new project. I'll get back to you on this one... Hmmm, can I count "live" play winnings toward this as well? Of course that would first depend on me actually friggin' "winning" in live play in the first place. Again...you there in the back...pipe down, and stop laughing at me.

Continuing to ponder...

Regards,

cheer_dad

Terry Caudill, New Binion's Front Man

Say hello to the new owner of Binion's! Check out the article from the Las Vegas Review - Journal. http://www.lvrj.com/business/14309607.html



The Nevada Commission approved Mr. Terry Caudill to run the downtown casino, and thus paved the way for him to take control as early as February. Recall that the property is currently owned and operated by the MTR Gaming Group, headquarted in Chester, WV.



According to the article, he has many plans and upgrades for the property in mind. Time will tell, but I wish him luck in the endeavour, as it would be a shame for the historic Binion's to disappear from the Las Vegas landscape!



You'll probably catch a few glimpses of Binion's on the right hand side of the blog slideshow, since this was one of our many destinations on our Vegas trip.



Frank and I both commented that we wouldn't mind at all staying downtown on a future trip to Las Vegas. Downtown and The Fremont Street Experience offered a party atmosphere and cheaper prices. : ) We liked the smaller, homier feel to the casinos of Fremont Street. From the sound of the article this is exactly what Mr. Caudill has in mind, and wants to build upon to save the struggling casino. For what it's worth...we'll be back!



Regards,



cheer_dad

Monte Carlo is on fire

Just back from Vegas late last night...on little sleep I took the kids to school, then came back and crashed hard. Got up later, and unpacked and began the daunting laundry tasks. Then, it was time to go pick Cole from school, but just before that Teresa yells for me to come look at the TV. I head upstairs and see the images of the Monte Carlo Casino in Las Vegas in flames. Check out the story over at CNN.com:

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/01/25/vegas.fire/index.html?eref=rss_topstories.

I'll gladly accept my paltry losses in Vegas if Lady Luck opted to be with those who were guests at the Monte Carlo and everyone got out safely. Hopefully, there will be no fatalities or serious injuries.

I'm going to try to upload the pictures from Vegas, in somewhat of a slide show montage via Picassa, with a yet untried Blogger plug-in. We'll see how that goes very soon.

Time to go hang out with my son!

Regards,

cheer_dad

Sitting at the airport

Well folks it's about time to wrap up this Las Vegas trip. I'm sitting here at McCarran Airport in Las Vegas and honestly I feel tired. It's been a long week. Big Red played today at Blackjack and Let It Ride and climbed a little out of the hole for us. No we still didn't finish up but it was a great time.

This time at Frank's urging we headed downtown to "old" Vegas. I was pleasantly surprised. The casinos were older, but nearly all of them had been updated and looked just as good as the others. Granted there was no Wynn or Bellagio down there to rival the strip but compared to Imperial Palace and Harrah's type properties, which is more "my" class they were just fine. Table games were alot cheaper. We even found a $3 table at the Golden Gate, and it wasn't a free-for-all, either. We signed up for lots of player's cards for the innocuous crap that they were handing out. Well undoubtedly receive lots of mailers as a result. It was funny on the 22nd to stick a card in a slot machine and have it tell me Happy Birthday Brian!!! I did note already receiving a number of emails from the casinos wishing me well on my big day, although none included any money savings.

Talked over lunch today with Frank and told him it just wasn't one of those "lucky" feeling trips to Vegas. So rather than throwing additional money out I opted to wander around sight see and drink mass quantities. Don't anyone go reading anything into it. Nothin's wrong, I'm not depressed, just goin' with the gut from time to time.

Frank says the only was he won this trip was losing. From 8 to 11am each morning when he played and got Aces and/or Kings cracked he of course lost, BUT made the bonus dollars from the casino at $100 and $50 respectively. He generally hit both, so those were winning sessions.

He also talked to the Imperial Palace Poker Room Manager and told him that he and I were bloggers from WV, and he comped him on the spot for some buffet tickets, which wasn't what Frank was looking for, he was just making small talk. He also mentioned that he had friends who used to work here in Vegas who went back "home" to WV to manage the poker room and blackjack pit area at none other than Chester, WV's Mountaineer Casino. Small world, isn't it.

Of all the casinos we visited, I'd have to say that drink service was best at the Palazzo. When you're sitting at a bank of penny slots, drinking double fisted already and the waitress hands you another and asks if you want another on her next trip, she's either made you for a serious alcoholic, or maybe we were just situated near the waitress/bar station.

We picked up several new $1 chips to add to the collection. Also stopped by the Gambler's General Store again on this trip and got some cool little trinkets, including some cut cut cards.

We've got about an hour before takeoff, and we're hoping that it'll be less than full and allow for some stretching out room. I'll sort through some of the pictures later and start getting them uploaded, and shared out to the blog.

Hope all is well back home and we'll see you all soon!

Regards,

cheer_dad

Happy Birthday To Me...

Yeah it's quite a crew isn't it... Happy Birthday to me!!! It's the BIG 40! Funny doesn't feel much different. It hasn't been the winningest time in Vegas, but hey as always we came to pay the light bill. Bring nothing you plan to take home. Live in fear and arrogance, or is that in fear in ignorance. Hmmm, I know I get that one mixed up A LOT!!!

Hope all is well back home. I've heard it's cold and we're not sorry to be missing out on it. Just remember "cuddle for warmth."

We're headed back out today, to go casino hopping. I want to check out the Palazzo...and continue grabbing up some chips for the collection. Seems to be the only way I can accumulate 'em anyway. : )

Time to go...yes another late start. Actually considering the hours we're keeping, it's kinda early to us.

Regards,

cheer_dad

ouch

After one helluva day in downtown Vegas we made it back to the Imperial Palace. At first I play a cheapie Let It Ride table. I quickly drop $80... I hit nothin'. Absolutely nothin'. Decide to hit the Poker Room. I sit at the $2/$4 Limit table for a while waiting for the list to go down. Finally the NLHE table opens. I sit...and once again look like the fuckin' tight bastard that I am. Play it straight...no bullshit...no nuthin'...the only hand I see is with a 67s when I flop the open ended straight flush draw. I missed...and show to the guy who continues to bet. I continue patience play... From the BB I look down at Q6 of hearts. No preflop raise. Flop comes 669...Lookin' good cheer_dad. I check, knowing the guy on the other end has been betting all night with nothing. I call. The turn is a Q... For those of you not payin' attention, yeah...I've got the BOAT. I check.. He bets out for $10. I make it $30 to go he calls. Regardless of the river we all know I'm going all in. Like a good little poker player. The river brings an ace, I shove. Insta call from the "guy" that was there from the start. He shows his...pocket ACES! I slink away from the room, feeling rather squishy in some very awkward areas. Ouch! Okay, friggin' ouch...no...FUCKIN' ouch! $120 down on that hand. Ouch! I find the cooler.

Oh well...that's poker. Ah bullshit...still sucks.

ANyway, very good day downtown today. We all made money on free sign up money today. Many drinks, many comps, and lotsa fun... Thank you Vince for driving us around. You rule. All of us are more than willing to stay downtown on the next trip after what we've seen there. Very nice and much cheaper. Go figure.

It's late, I'm tired...I'm drunk...time to call it a night.

Regards,

cheer_dad

time to go

Well we're getting ready to head out into the Vegas world again. I think today's the time for a traditional Denny's breakfast. A little lard is good for the soul, or something like that. After that we're heading downtown to old Las Vegas. As many times as I've been out here, I just never went dowtown. Have to visit Binions and do the Freemont Street experience. I'll try to get video and pictures to share.

Wish I could say we'd continued our winning ways yesterday, but Blackjack even live is still EVIL! I watched Frank split Aces, then again, and then again, and then the casino saying that was a max split...and then his next card was another Ace. He didn't even break even on that one.

Big Red says it's time to go NOW...so I gotta run.

Regards,

cheer_dad

Greetings from Vegas

The adventure continues... we were checked in before 10:30pm PST last night, flying in on a Saturday night is different. Our plane was just over 1/2 full, so there was room to move and breath. Oddly enough, we were chastised when we boarded because they insisted that we should have checked in 15 minutes prior. They were actually calling for the Wolfe's and Murray's over the airport intercom. Hey we were just next door at the bar. Anyway, no one was left behind.

The shuttle from the airport to the Imperial Palace was quick and painless. After checking in and stowing luggage, we grabbed a quick bite and then headed for the casino floor. Frank and I headed for the Poker Room while the Snappers headed for table games over at O'Sheas for some reason.

The Imperial was VERY busy last night. VERY!!! It took a while to get a seat at a table, and when that happened it was a $2/$4 Limit table. I heard later that it took nearly 2 hours for the guy that signed up at the same time as I did to get seated at a $1/$2 NLHE table. Like I said it was busy. Frank just reminded me that the poker room actually RAN OUT of $1 chips and was actually putting the orange-ish $4 chips in common play. Folks were showing up with those exclusively in their racks, when first getting seated. The dealers and poker room manager all said that THIS had never happened. One dealer who was just starting his shift, asked "What the hell are all the $4 chips doing on the friggin' table?!" Yeah I think he actually said friggin'.

I was pleased to find that the IP had gone hi-tech. For those of us who have played at Wheeling Island, you'll feel right at home. The electronic tables, with the auto shufflers, and dealers LED display, and card swiper are all identical. I talked to some of the dealers last night about them, and they said they really like them, and are a vast improvement over the old ones. Everything is tied in to the computer system and they have a flat panel display to let you know where you are on the waiting list, and what games are currently being spread. They've also expanded the bad beat and high hand bonuses. Between 8 and 11 AM each day, if you get Aces cracked you'll get the $100 bad beat money, or $50 for Kings. There are progressive payouts for high hands as well, such as quads, straight flushes and royals. The highest one currently on the board is the Club Royal Flush, which when I last saw it last night in the WEE HOURS was at $2,987. Frank, got up this morning before the rest of us, since he wussed out early : ) and headed for bed. He got his Aces cracked and took down the $100. That'll work.

Last night, I played $2/$4 and drank, alot, and decided the drunk was more important than the poker and decided the cards were just something to do. From 11:00pm to around 5:00am I was in the poker room. I was up for a while, a modest 40-50 bucks but I was tippin' and drinkin' and havin' a great time. There was a preponderance of eye candy to behold. How do they get such little tiny Asian girls, with big boobs. Must be in the water... Anyway around 4:00am Big Red stopped by to tell me she was still on the casino floor, playing and was UP, but didn't wanna jinx it by counting yet, she said not to leave without her, and she flitted off again. Shortly after that I got my Kings cracked (sadly no bonus) by a guy with a pair of Jacks. Then I proceeded to have Big Slick busted twice, once by a J-3os, ick... I would win with crap like Q2s, and lose with the biguns. I missed hitting open enders about 7 times in under an hour, and watched the stack begin to dwindle. So around 5:00am I decided to cash out down $68. Not bitter, just getting bored. I found Big Red at the 3-card-poker table, still continuing her winnin' ways. I sat down and played too. Had a few Jack and Cokes each and just enjoyed the table and some really great dealers. I sat with $100, cashed out for $200, even after dropping some RED tips to the dealers, who continued to hand me 6 to 1 straights! Around 6:45am we decided a few hours in bed would be a good idea.

Oh, and Big Red finally decided to let me in on her winning streak. Between Let It Ride, BlackJack, Crazy 4 Poker, and 3 Card poker all night, she was up a whopping $500! Hell yeah!!! Lady Luck is a fickle little bitch though so she's not gonna do anything stupid and blow it all. Yeah we'll see.

Won't be long til we head down to NYNY. Yeah I know, we're behind schedule, so bite me, I'm on Vegas time baby! We're just about ready to go though, so I'll wrap up now. I've gotta call a few of you, to put you at ease. We did make it, we're not in jail, and so far will not need a shot of penicillin to take care of any anomalies.

Stay tuned.

Regards,

cheer_dad

And away we go

Working on second 20oz Ohio Wheat beer at the Columbus Airport. Bar just happened to be right next to Gate B23. How convenient! In 25 minutes we'll be on the plane and heading WEST. Big Red finally got around to reading THIS blog...she hadn't seen any of the itinerary that I worked on. All through the airport Julie's been giggling and Teresa just wasn't understanding why. Finally, she gets it now. I can tell she's beginning to relax and is ready for the vacation to come. Of course she's a double shot of Jack Daniel's to the good now, so life is good.

We're already discussing whether or not we're going to bother checking in at all in the hotel for day one. In the immortal words of JR, "I'll sleep when I'm dead." Then again...we all know how that ended.

Frank just asked if I had remembered to put my belt back on after coming through airport security, and being violated. I told him no, this way it'll be easier to join the Mile High Club in a little while. Wow-chicka-wow-wow!

Well time to wrap this up. You'll be hearing from me...

Regards,

cheer_dad

tick...tock...

It won't be long now. We are now SUB-FIVE HOURS from taxiing down the runway headed for Las Vegas!!! Just killing time, waiting for the Wolfe's to get here, and then it's off to the airport. Palms are sweaty, heart is racing, generally jittery. I'm ready. We're all ready! This is going to be a great trip, I can "feel" it. If I can get the Red Snappers in that "I can 'feel' it" zone of thinking, you just know it's gonna happen. How many of you have been busted out of an NDPT tournament by one of them when they called you on a friggin' FEELING! I rest my case.

Can't wait to visit the new Palazzo Casino, which I mis-understood/reported earlier in the blog. This is the latest/greatest addition to the strip. Another one of the uber decadent destinations that you just have to see. Today is the last day of their Grand Opening Event. So, I'm sure we're going to miss some of the beautiful people, but you never know who might be out and about.

Big Red's been scurrying around here, with more cleaning power than Mr. Clean! But I had sense enough to stay out of her way. I stuck to laundry...I was lucky that she didn't have me washing the curtains. But this is her vacation prep. It's all part of the system. We'll get her good and liquored up soon!

Like I said before, keep an eye on the blogs, I'll try to keep it up to date with commentary, pictures and video.

...tick tock...

Regards,

cheer_dad

Video clip from 1st tourney of the year

In my efforts to prepare for the Vegas trip I've been cleaning up the pictures on the camera (translate deleting the 433 pix that my daughter took of herself) and freeing up space on Big Red's Flip Video recorder. It was on the recorder that I found this "crowd shot" video from our first Tournament of the new year that was held at the Wolfe's. Enjoy:

Oh and did I mention that it's almost time for VEGAS BABY!!!

It won't be long now! Watch the blogs, we'll be posting commentary and all the incriminating pictures.

Regards,

cheer_dad

Proposed Vegas Itinerary...

Itinerary for Viva Las Vegas 2008
a.k.a…Birthday Debauchery Vegas Style!
Includes “affordable” tournament listings

January 19th Saturday

3:00pm Get in, sit down, shut up…this vehicle’s heading for the airport in Columbus, OH! The Wolfes and Murrays pile in with a few of our worldly possessions, and every last dime we’ve got to start the 1st journey to Las Vegas by the crew for 2008.

5:00pm Arrival CMH airport. NDPT 1st Wave arrives Las Vegas Airport, baggage claim and then shuttle to the strip

5:45pm Shuttle ride over, baggage checked, shoes retied, KY jelly squishing in my nether regions following airport security anal probe. I rejoin Frank and the Snappers and head immediately to the closest bar. Pound drinks to sufficiently numb for the 4 hour jaunt across the country.

7:05pm Stagger to gate to board plane.

7:06pm Big Red now more than a bit tipsy begins to "worry" about flying on the same plane again. She-Wolfe assists by distracting her whilst I slip her a Mickey!

7:10pm Plane begins its assent, Teresa slides into her comma, Frank settles in for a power nap, Brian begins sawing logs (loudly), Julie screams for the frackin' drink cart!

8:40pm (now on VEGAS time) Plane touches down at McCarran International Airport. Instantly wide-eyed we begin the long sprint to baggage claim, pausing only long enough to dial JJ's number back home so he can hear the beautiful Vegas medley of slot machines. He mutters something in Kowean, and slams the phone down. We claim our bags and then barter for shuttle service to the strip. Consider posing as the "Smith" party when we see a "not-too-bright" limo driver holding his sign upside down at the bottom of the escalator.

9:30pm Packed like sardines into the shiny metal box which they call a shuttle, we head for the bright lights of the strip.

11:00pm Arrival and check in process at the Imperial Palace. Big Red's already cramming her second $20 into a Wheel-of-Fortune machine. Julie's already making small talk with the Let It Ride dealer. Frank and Brian already drinking double fisted are talking amongst themselves at the Geisha Bar. Phrases such as "...I guess the bloggers were right..." and "...ya think those're real..." dominate the conversation.

11:30pm Bags stowed successfully in room, we return to the casino floor.

11:31pm Firmly entrenched at a low limit hold 'em table for the remainder of the night, the beer flows like rain, chips somehow climb to the ceiling.

January 20th, Sunday

3:00am We consider the possibility of the need to eat, when we hear a voice from a walkie-talkie proclaim, "...SNAPPERS DOWN!"

?:??am Recalling the lesson learned from JR's example we call it a night...or morning, and stumble off to bed.

8:00am (EST) Back east Vince and Theresa (sadly minus JR) are taxiing down the runway following their arrival at CMH. Vince informs flight attendant he has no need of her $5.00 bag of honey roasted nuts!!!

8:01am Theresa pretends not to know him, and wishes flight was over!

10:00am (PST) plane touches down in Burbank, CA, and this second wave of gambling warriors, get their rental vehicle and embark on their drive to Vegas.

?:??am Meanwhile back at the Imperial, Wave One stirs from their drunken slumber, does a quick 3 S's and heads for the strip.

11:00am The Snappers have their first Hurricane of the morning, and smuggle them into Denny's for a grease laden brunch. Bally’s $80/15, Harrah’s $60/15, Mandalay $50/10, Sahara $42/14, TI $65/15

NOON Imperial Palace $60/15, Luxor $35/10, Rio $60/20, Strat $60/15

12:30pm Harrah’s $60/15

1:00pm Excalibur $35/10, Riviera $47/7

1:30pm Head off toward NYNY, looking for the crazy, little Asian Sensation Frank! Brian finds his favorite “gay-ass-unicorn” machine. Paris $65/15

1:35pm Snappers are in line at Coyote Ugly, offering to dance on top of the bar, for the extra shot! Frank gets lotsa good footage of the scene, for the blogs.

2:00pm PlanetH $60/17, Trop $60/20

3:00pm Caesars $65/15

3:30pm Harrah’s $60/15

4:00pm Monte Carlo $60/11, Strat $60/15

5:00pm Wave #2 gamblers take Las Vegas by storm, well okay they begin their check in at the front desk anyway. Call JR to tell him what he’s missing. Caesars $65/15

6:00pm Flamingo $60/15, Monte Carlo $60/11

7:00pm Wave’s 1 and 2 finally hook up, somehow, still in NYNY, at same blackjack table… PlanetH $60/17, Sahara $42/14, TI $65/15, Trop $60/20

7:30pm Paris $65/15

8:00pm Leaving NYNY, Frank bumps into a stranger…and an empty money clip that looks “oddly familiar” falls to the floor, as the startled stranger makes a break for the door. Harrah’s $60/15, Imperial Palace $80/15, Riviera $47/7, Strat $60/15, Venetian $125/20

8:30pm Luxor $35/10

10:00pm By now, far beyond drunk and disorderly…we decide to give Pai Gow a try! TI $65/15

10:05pm That’s enough of that shit!

MIDNIGHT Strat $60/15

January 21st, Monday

?:??am Stumble off to bed

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

1:00pm Head to downtown Vegas

2:00pm Binions $70/20

3:00pm+ Enjoy Freemont Experience…visit Golden Nugget and Lady Luck etc… do the Japanese tourist thing. Visit Gambler’s General Store. Try not to go broke.

8:00pm Binions $70/20

8:01pm Frank tries to explain the dead button rule, from Wheeling Island, to the locals. Security is summoned!

10:00pm Return to the strip, find comfortable chair at a lowly $2/$4 Limit table and commence heavy drinking. If luck running terribly bad, opt for the Deal or No Deal Penny Slots near the entrance.

11:00pm Sahara $42/14

11:30pm Beer Pong Anyone!!!

January 22nd, Tuesday

Midnight Happy 40th Birthday Brian!!!

10:00am Visit and perhaps play at the newly opened/renovated Venetian Poker room “Palazzo”

1:00pm Head down toward Mandalay Bay and Luxor areas, gotta see ‘em all. Excalibur $35/10

4:00pm Luxor $50/11

4:05pm Someone needs to begin taking pictures and videos, since Brian will likely begin losing “time” at this point.

5:00pm Julie does her pickle trick in Jimmy Buffet’s again, someone at the bar sends offers to buy her a drink.

8:30pm Evening at the Improv, Stop in a Toby Keith’s bar…

11:00pm Spearmint Rhino, yeah right. I’m tellin’ you folks it’ll never happen.

January 23, Wednesday

10:00am Go to Stratosphere

10:01am Get player’s card this time!

NOON Call for tomorrow’s departure shuttle and time. Strat $60/15

1:00pm Snappers feel the need to ride the Stratosphere elevator…’cause they like it on TOP!

4:00pm Strat $60/15

7:00pm Strike up conversation with Mexican’s handing out fliers on the strip. Scream INS when the crowd draws in.

10:00pm Legend’s show at the IP?

January 24, Thursday

?:?? Sleep wherever, whenever…

9:00am Count $$$, see if enough remains to get home

11:00am Check out

11:01am Drink, Play, Spin…etc… await shuttle

?:??pm WeeWeeWee, all the way home!

Are we there yet..are we there yet...are we there yet!!!?

Regards,

cheer_dad

DUDE...it's gettin' close!!!

I don't know if I've mentioned it lately (oh ya know darn well ya have) but it's almost time for VEGAS baby!!! Let me fire up the ole iGoogle countdown gadget and...

Hehe that'll put a smile on your face. Well at least on mine anyway. : ) I'm excited! So, is Big Red, she just doesn't know it yet. She's lucky to have me to prod her along.


I'm putting the finishing touches on our itinerary for the trip, which honestly has little bearing on what will actually happen, but it's always good for a few laughs, and maybe it'll give us a few ideas too. I do try to make it useful and include the times for a large number of daily tournaments that are taking place. I'll try to get it uploaded to the blog tomorrow, I promise. Stay tuned.


Still no absolute definitive answer on whether JR will be coming along for the trip though. "Uncle June" it won't be the same without you, but if you opt out of the trip, I do understand. And let me clear it up for all of you, it's got nothing to do with the lady in his life! Nikki's great and we all really like her. So put that idea out of your mind. Still buddy I gotta say it... hangin' drywall, playin' cards for 5 days straight. One more time, hangin' drywall...playin' cards. Yeah, hmmmm, that's a toughie! Seriously though, I get it and I admire the work ethic and the thinking ahead. Still, it's Vegas... and our BIRTHDAYS!!! : ) Okay, beating a dead horse.

"I kidding, I kidding why you not know joke!?!"


I've been grinding it out in a much different and less enjoyable way lately. I find myself not at the poker table but in CLASS. Argh! Earned Value Management, Project Management. It gives you that feeling in the pit of your stomach like watching your opponent hit his One-Outer on the friggin' river. Yeah, it's exactly like that. I hear long dormant brain cells screaming out in anguish, "DUDE, wtf, you're almost 40 what the hell are you trying to learn? For all you know these could be your twilight years." Hmmm, trying to be funny, and present myself with a cold hard reality. : ( Ouch, but it's okay, the dementia will soon take care of it for me.) Now where was I...


I've got to head out now to pick up my daughter from basketball, and taxi her to her next appointment. Big Red can she start drivin' YET!!!


Regards,


cheer_dad


P.S. pssssst JR ya hear that? it's VEGAS callin'!!!

MTR closes another sale in Vegas

According to the Associated Press, in a story picked up by the Houston Chronicle, http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/5452536.html. MTR Gaming has closed the sale of yet another of their Las Vegas properties.

This time the Chester, WV based company has sold the property "...owned by its Speakeasy Casino in North Las Vegas for about $11 million..." to Ganaste LLC . Oddly enough the gambling operations have been sold separately to Lucky Lady D LLC for nearly $7 million, while Speakeasy Gaming Inc, will continue to operate the gaming operations onsite under the terms of a short term lease. Of course all of this is contingent upon approval by the Nevada Gaming Commission.

As has been reported previously MTR, is selling off it's other properties in order to focus on newer, growing markets, particularly on its touted "flagship property" in Chester, WV Mountaineer Racetrack & Gaming Resort.

Regards,

cheer_dad

Absolute Poker response to Kahnawake Gaming Commission

The following article details the response of Absolute Poker, to the findings presented by the report of the Kahnawake Gaming Commission:
http://www.pokerpages.com/poker-news/news/absolute-poker-responds-to-kgc-report-30279.htm

The Absolute Poker scandal was first brought to light by players (on Absolute Poker in October) who alleged that other players "were demonstrating the...'super-user' ability to see opponent's hole cards." This final report by the Commission comes more than two months after the incidents were perpetrated.

The statement from Absolute Poker seems very happy to put the matter behind it finally, and get on with business. They refer to the conditions (penalties) including audits and the $500,000 fine as a "severe penalty," however I'm not sure the online community of poker players and bloggers will be so quick to forgive and forget. I'm not sure that everyone would agree that this penalty was "severe" enough.

STILL, players do continue to play at Absolute Poker, despite this controversy. Perhaps now that Absolute finds itself under a microscope and a seemingly ever watchful eye, players may feel safer playing at this online poker room than at any other.

I'm reminded of the scene with Robin Williams in "The World According to Garp" when the plane crashes into the house that he and his wife have just been shown by the realtor. Garp consoles his wife who is obviously in shock at the incident, and tells the realtor that of course they'll take it, then tells his wife, "Honey, the chances of another plane hitting this house are astronomical. See? It's been pre-disastered. We're going to be safe here."

We shall see.

Regards,

cheer_dad

Analytics, Work, Vegas, Cowboys

In my efforts to provide for a method of subscription to this blog, I monkeyed with my blog template and inadvertently deleted the code necessary for Google Analytics to do its job of tracking visitors. Not that I have a large readership but seeing the number drop to a big fat ZERO on my reports page was a little disconcerting. Hurt my feelings a little too. I'll live. Anyway that should be fixed now, so click away and tell all your friends.

I've also started trying to post about current poker, casino, and gaming issues in hopes of expanding my writing, having interesting topics to write about, and ultimately increase the blog's readership. Look, it's likely I'll never find myself seated at a table in Main Event of the World Series of Poker, but I honestly wouldn't mind writing and blogging about it for any of the numerous poker related outlets. I recognize that a job's a job, and what sounds like a great gig now, might not be all that it's cracked up to be, but then again my current day job's no day at the park. I know it sounds all glamour filled but editing and writing DOS (Descriptions of Services) for our various external customers for next year's FY'09, in addition to caring for and supporting those same customers, every day, come hell or high water! After a while the mind goes numb. The few remaining brain cells cry out in protest!

I'm also going to start posting some book and movie reviews. Forgive me if all of these are not necessarily poker and gaming related. I'll be picky, and give you my honest take on it. Maybe I'll even put on the thinking cap and start writing short stories again. Who knows, maybe a story will strike me on the upcoming Las Vegas trip, which would be worthy of "Truckin'." Dare to dream now.

Speaking of Las Vegas, the ole countdown timer on my iGoogle page shows me that there's a mere:

left until my flight lifts off from Columbus to take me to the bright lights in the middle of the friggin' desert.

In closing I wanted to thank the Yanok's and the Wolfe's for some fine poker goodness over the weekend. Good times, good friends!

Oh and Big Red reminds that I'm not to mention the Dallas Cowboys and their playoff hopes being shattered yesterday by the New York Giants with a gut wrenching loss 21-17. Oops. : )

Regards,

cheer_dad

Tournament weekend whirlwind

I wasted a great deal of the day. Sleeping in, then trying to tackle an issue with this laptop I'm typing on now. This evening I get another clue... when my daughter tells me her iTouch isn't connecting to the internet either. Which for the first time makes me think there might be a problem elsewhere, other than my wireless card. Hummmmm, maybe the frackin' ROUTER!!! Power off and on and POOF, all is well with the wireless world again. As much a part of my life and work is technology, sometimes I just hate it!

The weekend, as the title of this post implies has been a real whirlwind. Friday, I had time to get home from work, do a quick 30 minute run on the treadmill...shower, eat, and then it was off to Yanok's for their first tournament of the year. Actually we usually play two games, and in this case the second game was the monthly qualifier. I did well "early on" in the first game, and headed into the final table. Thinking things were going my way. There in was my demise. I bubbled! FRACK! Strange hands and oddities, through the night. I pushed with AKos, from late position, and ran into Shelley's pocket rockets...but I bounced back from that one. When we got down to the last four players (three getting paid) I had to drop a hand when the board rivered four cards to a straight, and all I had was top pair, and I got pushed. Some questioned why I folded, that I had the right "odds" to call, but when I KNOW I'm dead...I know it. I was. I mucked it. Then, there was the hand where I was the small blind and still stacking chips from the previous hand, and I hadn't even got or seen my cards and it was folded around to me, I reached down for my cards, which weren't there. Turns out that everyone had tossed their cards to the center, where I had never retrieved my cards in the first place. I didn't argue, and the big blind Robert offered to hand my $25 back to me...but I technically had failed to protect my hand. No sense whining or bitchin'. Moved on. Then, I saw the Big Blind fold to the Small Blind when the blinds were at $50/$100, by mucking, when no one else was in the hand. That's a good return on your money if you ask me. Finally, my last hand. I'm in the BB, look down at 10-8os...wahoo... but I get one caller the small blind. I flop top pair, SB bets out minimum, I raise all in, get insta called, Shelly gives me the sheepish grin and turns over her pocket kings. Cheer_dad's run comes to an end. She went on to win it. Congrats Shell!

Tourney #2 was a write off for me, I went nowhere fast, and my horrific play was punctuated by my "failed" attempt to bluff Jerry off his hand on the river. Of course, his friggin' BOAT 10's full of 3's was plenty to call my idiot ass. Oops! On a positive note. The lovely Big Red took down the TOP SPOT in the 2nd tournament thereby turning our losing night into a winning one. And don't forget this tourney got here qualified for the year end tourney. All the rest is GRAVY! Go Big Red!!!

Next day had the whole family hoppin'. Whitney and Cole both had basketball games at conflicting times. So we divided to conquer. Then, later Cole had hockey from 4:30-5:15, and Teresa and Whit had several errands to take care of. Cole and the rest of the kids had a ball playing, as usual. I'm glad to see them out there and active. I'm hopeful that the lessons of sports and fitness eventually take root, and never allows either of them to become the over-weight sloth I've become. Okay, that's harsh. Anyway, we finish hockey and rush back to the house, pick up Whit and Teresa and head over to the Wolfe's. Tournament #1 for the NDPT, River's Edge, and SmartAss Poker combines crews. (We really need a new nickname, since we consolidated.) I had a lackluster start, and miraculously made it to the final table, with a tiny stack. I began to loosen up as I saw everyone else ratcheting down TIGHT! I began to rebuild the stack. I got sucked out on once, which hurt, but soon after got it all in again, but found myself behind and returned the suckout favor! : ) Give some, get some. In the end I found myself at the final table with only two others! I was still the short stack, but hey I was getting paid back and then some for the night of fun. I finished third...and shortly thereafter JR and Jamie opted to chop the 1st and 2nd place. Jamie had a slight lead and therefore got the 1st place finish points in the first qualifying tournament of the night.

We all headed home, I stayed up for a while and sat at a cash game on Poker Rewards for about an hour. I was doing very well, until I was faced with holding AQspades, and the flop came 8s 9c Js... I had raised it to $4.25 preflop by the way. My lonely caller to the right, shoved... I'm looking at straight draw, nut flush draw and big overs. Yeah I make the call, he shows two pair Jacks and Nines. The river brings me SPADE!!! Unfortunately the NINE of SPADES. You do the math, I'll sulk about my lost $28. Another "frack-worthy" moment!

Time to call it a night, hope all is well with each of you.

Regards,

cheer_dad

Kahnawake Gaming investigation report released

Following completion of it's investigation into cheating and impropriety by Absolute Poker, the Kahnawake Gaming Commission has released its report into the incidents and made it's rulings in the matter, which includes:

• Removal of all those involved with the cheating incident(s)
• Provision for continued reporting of business functions
• Random audits provided for, and to be paid by Absolute Poker
• Fine in the amount of $500,000

For the full text of the Commission's findings and report, please visit:

http://www.kahnawake.com/gamingcommission/KGC-AP-0111.pdf

The following user names were specifically included in the report as having been involved in the impugned activites and the Kahnawake Gaming Commision mandated their removal from involvement with Absolute Poker:

• GRAYCAT
• PAYUP
• STEAMROLLER
• POTRIPPER
• XXCASHMONEYXX also known as SUPERCARDM55
• DOUBLEDRAG
• RONFALDOXXB also known as ROMNALDO

This story received a great deal of coverage in the news, a number of blogs and forums, and the online poker community as a whole. The allegations and subsequent investigation put a black eye on the face of online poker and only served to tarnish the image of poker, and fueled efforts to ban US citizens from playing online poker. I am glad to see that the Commission has acted upon this incident, and perhaps this will disuade others from engaging in these types of activities in the future.

Probably the best coverage of this incident that I have viewed has been by Lou Kreiger, and I urge you to visit his blog at http://loukrieger.blogspot.com/ and read back through his coverage of the Absolute Poker debacle.

Regards,

cheer_dad

Declining profits for Atlantic City casinos

The New York Times is running the following article from the Associated Press regarding Atlantic City casino yearly profit reports. According to the released report although revenues taken down were a staggering $4.92 billion that this is actually cause for concern for the Eastern gambling Mecca. Since 1978, profits for the casino city have steadily increased, but not so for 2007. Profits in 2006 were listed as $5.21 billion.

Blame is being zeroed in on competition from outside Atlantic City, primarily slot parlors which have opened in Pennsylvania and New York. A partial smoking ban is also a contributing factor.

What this brings to my mind, is what sort of affect will the opening of casino gaming in West Virginia (Wheeling Island and Mountaineer Casinos) do to the Pennsylvania market? Obviously there will be a huge impact. By the same token thinking further down the line, will these future losses fuel efforts to push for casino gaming in Pennsylvania, and elsewhere including Kentucky, when slot parlor visitors make their exodus from their own home states and cross the West Virgina borders, in search of something other than the slot machines being offered?

If approved elsewhere, what will ultimately be the saturation point for new casinos. Exactly how many is too many, and what can revenues actually support in the long term? Which casinos or better yet which state(s) will emerge as the winners in the Gaming Wars?

The answers to these and many other questions will provide a wealth of topics of discussion from now until well into the next decade and beyond I'm sure. I'll continue to throw my two cents worth into the mix for what it's worth, and keep my blog minions apprised of the situation. Stay tuned!

Regards,

cheer_dad

Status on proposed sale of Binion's by MTR Gaming Group

From the article on The Times West Virginian courtesy of the Associated Press:

"CHESTER — The Nevada Gaming Control Board has approved MTR Gaming Group’s plan to sell its Binion’s Gambling Hall & Hotel in Las Vegas.

The plan unanimously approved Wednesday now goes before the Nevada Gaming Commission for consideration.

If approved, the $32 million cash deal with TLC Casino Enterprises should be completed by February.

MTR also has a North Las Vegas property under contract for sale.

The company decided to sell its Nevada properties so it could concentrate on holdings in West Virginia, Pennsylvania and the Midwest.

Last month MTR launched casino-style table games at its flagship property, Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack & Resort in Chester.

The company also has interests in Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania and Ohio."

Note that the Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack and Resort in Chester, WV is identified as the "flagship property," and that the sale of Binion's would allow MTR to further concentrate on holdings in WV, and PA, and the Midwest.

We've made it north to Wheeling Island, gang, but we're yet to drive the additional 45 minutes to behold the Mountaineer and all it's gambling goodness. If the casino and its ownership continues to receive newswire nods, I think it's our duty to make the trip...and soon. Okay, maybe after next weeks trip to Las Vegas!!!

Regards,

cheer_dad

Trailer Station Grand Opening!!!

Props to the folks over at PokerListings.com for posting and bringing this story to my attention. This is the kind of quirky Vegas story that I enjoy. PokerListings picked up on the story of a casino opening that was covered by various reporters, but was covered here by the New York Times! Sad to say it was a lackluster grand opening...and subsequent closing of a Station Casinos property aptly dubbed "Trailer Station." If you're too busy to visit either the PokerListings.com article or the NYTimes article, allow me to recap.

Station Casinos had a grand opening of sorts of their latest casino dubbed by locals as "Trailer Station," on January 9th, 2008. On the property of the former Showboat and the Castaways casinos, a tiny trailer was hauled in holding a mere 16 slot machines, for a single 8-hour shift!

Yes, there was a reason for this seeming madness. Zoning Regulations! In 2005 Station Casinos acquired the aforementioned properties and had the aging casinos demolished. Currently Station Casinos has not come up with any particular plans for the 26-acre property, a few miles east of the Strip, in a rundown section of town. However, the future value of this property is in it's existing Zoning Designation which permits casino gaming on the property, as an "existing occupancy." The caveat to this is the "existing" definition. As per Las Vegas City Codes and Nevada State Law public gambling must occur on the property at a minimum of one shift every two years, in order for the property to maintain its "valuable zoning designation needed to conduct wagering." It didn't have to be advertised or promoted, or even garner any business, but the "option" had to exist. According to reports the biggest payout on the machines was a "whopping" $2.50!

To pull off this grand opening, a trailer was brought in for one day, a porta-pot, and an ADA compliant wheelchair ramp. A casino floor manager stood ready to make payouts, and a security guard made his appointed rounds. No less than 7 permits, approval from City Council and Gaming Control, and a certificate of occupancy were all necessary as well.

According to the NYTimes article Lori Nelson (Station Casinos properties spokesperson) said that the facility may very well return in two years if no groundbreaking takes place on the construction of a new facility.

Now this is a place that I would have visited, just for the novelty of it all! Too bad it occurred a week and a half prior to our planned trip to Las Vegas. Otherwise, you would have seen my backside firmly planted in a seat in front of one of the video poker machines, likely making it a profitable day for Trailer Station!!! Hmmm, no mention of drink service, I wonder if they'd have minded me bringing along a six pack and a flask of Jack Daniels?

Regards,

cheer_dad

So, what brings 'em in?

I've been paying a lot more attention to my stats lately, no not my height, weight, and age (although I really should) no what I'm talking about is what attracts ye "surfers of the web" to the NPDT...n debt poker tour blog. I've been using Google Analytics to get a better picture of who is visiting my blog, and where they're from, as I've previously mentioned. But I've also been looking into the reason for your visit, how you found me, and how long you stick around when you get here. Granted I'm not packing them in by any means, but there are some things which seem to have attracted more traffic than others. So, with that opener, here are the "search terms" that landed folks on the ole blog and my accompanying comments:

Keyword:

1. wheeling island - Well this one's pretty obvious, the huddling masses wanted to know where to get their poker on!

2. carpe viam - This one caught me off guard. I only used the Latin phrase once on my blog, but I forgot about the oh so large Dead Runner's Society contingent out there in the world. I used to subscribe/belong to both the Dead Runner's Society and the Penguin Brigade, back in my full tilt running days, and "Seize the Road" is a true battle cry of both! It is fitting that I'm trying to reclaim my running roots, and shed the excess tonnage that this tie-in presents itself.

3. mountaineer "poker tournament" - Yet, again, rather obvious, poker freaks (such as I) jonesin' for a game.

4. wheeling island commercials - Similar, but this time folks looking for word of the commercials that started hitting the airwaves shortly after casino gaming opened in West Virginia.

5. wheeling island poker - I'm seeing a trend here...

6. "kwazy kowean" - This one FLOORS me!!! So much so that I did a search on it myself from Google.com and found that only two pages match the criteria! Of which I was #1! I guess I have to give credit to my buddy JJ on this. After all he is the one, and original Kwazy Kowean!!!

7. "phil ivey" debt - hmmm talk of "good" poker pros gets me found. I'll not be confused and start mentioning Jamie Gold. : ) Sorry Jamie, if you're reading this, I'm just kiddin'!

8. "poker room" + tri-state - Those of you searching for Tri-State (Cross Lanes, WV) poker are for the time being S.O.L. BUT take heart they'll be dealing out the first bad beat in the coming months!

9. "wheeling island" - uhmm users of Boolean operators...with such a simple search terms, I wouldn't have thought you would have narrowed your results much. But, I thought wrong. wheeling island without the quotes on Google, yields you 230,000 results, while using the quotes brings in a paltry 39,900!

10. "wheeling island" "minimum" "blackjack" $5 - this Boolean string yields only 104 results, or which the NDPT blog comes up as #5 thank you very much! Oh and the fact that the ACCURSED frackin' BLACKJACK is mentioned so very often in my more whiny posts, it's appropriate as all hell isn't it!?!

Anyway, in a nutshell that's what's bringin' you in, day in and day out. Now if only there were a few more of you and maybe I'd really feel like I was accomplishing something! Ah what does it matter, I'd still be out here yakkin' it up like a Chatty Cathy Doll. Remember the blog is cheaper than the much needed therapist!!!

I'll be seeing some of you Friday night at the Yanok's for the first tournament of the year 2008! And then on Saturday I'll be seeing even more of you at the first tournament of the year 2008 for the combined poker groups NDPT, River's Edge and SmartAss Poker (a.k.a Murray's, Wolfe's, and Ruble's respectively.) I'm looking forward to it ALL!

Oh and did I mention lately that the "Countdown to Vegas 2008" is getting SHORT!!! : )

Regards,

cheer_dad

Casino gaming articles from The Intelligencer, Wheeling News-Register

A couple of articles in The Intelligencer/Wheeling News-Register that I missed regarding table gaming and associated tourism. The first: http://theintelligencer.net/page/content.detail/id/503740.html discusses the award of grant money to "local tourism hot spots" including Wheeling Island Hotel-Casino-Racetrack, in addition to Oglebay Park and the Wheeling Convention and Visitors Bureau. Of the $766,073 being awarded in Wheeling, the Wheeling Island casino will receive $145,587. This grant package in Wheeling is part of a larger $5.1 million funding being handed out by the West Virginia Tourism Commission. The goal is to target more tourism to the various destinations within the state. Trying to turn "day-trippers into overnight visitors," is one of the major goals of floating money into this advertising effort. In any case, the grants awarded are matching funds, so it is clear that double the capital will be utilized in attracting tourism.

The second article: http://theintelligencer.net/page/content.detail/id/503958.html discusses West Virginia tracks getting table gaming...well yeah, we know. However it does further outline, that one of the cornerstone arguments employed by officials to bring casino gaming to the Mountain State (at least in the Northern Panhandle was the creation of jobs and battling the competition presented to video lottery gambling, as the Pennsylvania General Assembly moved to allow the machines in Pennsylvania as well, cutting into that WV market. Well the argument did in fact work, and Chester and Wheeling have both enjoyed an incredible shot in the arm as far as increased revenues AND new jobs. Wheeling Island, according to the article, has created 500 new jobs and Mountaineer has added 725 new jobs, following the opening of casino style table games at each of the locations.

Check out the articles for yourself...I don't want to steal the thunder of the original writers Shelley Hanson and Joselyn King. They did all the leg work and deserve the credit. I think it's even more interesting to read through the list of comments following each of the articles. Not everyone supports the state's "gambling ways, and are letting their voices be heard. Regardless of the opinions the state is beneficiary to the gambling revenues to the tune of 35% of the profits. Not to mention, the initial $1.5 Million table game licensing fee, which when renewed the following year will increase its price tag to $2.5 Million.

Dollars and cents of this magnitude cannot be ignored!
The boost to a struggling West Virginia economy is much needed!

Regards,

cheer_dad

A day at PokerRewards

Today was a lost day... It was my AWS, and I had only a few errands/tasks to accomplish, including trip to the dentist, and going to the DMV. Dental went off without a hitch, the DMV as is usually the case was a disaster, but at least I didn't waste much time. I went to renew my license. I got one of the "take a number" numbers and waited for my turn. When I was called and headed to the window, I handed over my paperwork and dug out my money. She typed in my information and ...waited...ad nauseum! "Oh no...well our computer system has been down all morning but we've been trying it everytime..." Information I could have used when I walked in, but whatever. To her credit she told me the system was down statewide, and I could call in first before wasting a trip (you know in addition to the one I'd already made.) C'est la vie... So, I head back home and get started on the mound of laundry and then fire up PokerRewards. I sit down at a couple of .05/.10 NLHE tables and just feel the life and chips being sucked out of me. I think I lost time there somehow. I know a few IQ points went down the drain. No cards, no wins, no opps to steal even a couple of paltry blinds. Just frackin' dismal. I join a $5 SNG, realizing only too late that it's an Ultra-Turbo. Oh the donkey parade. Ugh...it was horrid, and I of course got sucked out on, blahblahblah... no one really cares about that one hand I had the one time (I know Frank.) Frustration enters, not quite tilt, but close enough. So close in fact that I fire up the accursed BLACKJACK. Yes, JJ it is fuckin' evil. Yes the F-Bomb boys and girls. In matters of the BLACKJACK, the terms of my self-censorship do not apply. Deal with it! Anyway that wretched game sucks about $30 out of me, and leaves me with very little dignity. With the paltry remainder of my PokerRewards bankroll, I throw caution and my mind to the wind. Fire up a .50/1.00 NLHE table, and seat my dumb self with my last $80. Stupid...I know. Early on I make a call based more on a feeling than analysis. It really felt like my opponent was buying it after the flop came up. In his defense he was on a flush draw with his K-10 of diamonds...but my AQos had connected with the Queen on the flop as well. He had made it $4.50 to go preflop and I went along for the ride, He INSTA-POPPED it for all his chips...which I had covered. I called after some deliberation. I at first thought he wanted to prevent ME from hitting the flush, not the other way around. I need to remember this in my other games. Sometimes they put too much stock in that potential flush draw. Learn it...use it... That win, put me up around $130-ish. Now there were some additional ups and downs, but none of them were the evil BLACKJACK induced! I lost $20 on a hand with my AQ0s (as luck would have it) when my opponent turned over his AKos for the win. Say it with me...ACTION DRIVEN ALGORITHM! I saw more pocket pairs run into other pocket pairs than I care to remember. Luckily I wasn't normally involved, since pocket pairs were something that just weren't comin' my way. BUT I saw 3 pocket pairs go at it for all the marbles once... AA vs KK vs JJ...and the JACKS laughed all the way to the bank! Ooof, that'll leave a mark. But since I was logged on and playin' I saw a couple of freerolls firing up. The first was NLHE, semi turbo-ish, and like 10,000+ players to start. I finished in the low level money, for a buck, or so, which was pretty impressive, considering the donk field...and the idiocy that ensued...and generally so many people playing for so little actual money. It was fun nonetheless and gave me another table to watch. But then I got involved with the 5-card-draw PL game. I've played draw before, I guess, but I can say that PokerRewards does offer up some oddball tournaments to wet your whistle on. I did, and had a ball with it. As you can see I finished 29th out of the initial 892 players. Sounds cool...and profitable doesn't it. Well cool...but profit ehhh, not so much. They don't get as many fools to play these lesser games, and so the prize pool is diminished. But I'll be back. All in all, despite the BLACKJACK losses, and a few of my bad calls, I managed to move up a few dollars on the site, while increasing my number of raked hands considerably today. I started with $126. Now, I'm at $141.02. I know tiny baby steppin' cheer_dad. But let's remember that I was down to my last $80, and the poker gods did look down, and for once took pity on my miserable existence. They threw me a bone of sorts the first time with the AQos. They simply reminded me who was boss when they didn't let me win with it the second time. : )

I believe the Yanok's are hosting on Friday night...and Big Red and I will be there for sure! And then on Saturday it's off to do battle with the whole crew courtesy of the Wolfe's...and again Big Red and I will be there. Man we've got issues. But you gotta have a hobby right?! : )

Time to go watch the rest of the OSU vs LSU game. Big Red is getting much too much enjoyment out of watching bad things happen to the Buckeyes. : P See you all soon!

Regards,

cheer_dad

Donk da donk donk donk

How's it goin' out there? I've been a little lax in posting but hey lots of things to do, so little time. I have managed to play a little poker lately, teeny-tiny stakes and a couple of promising freerolls. The small stakes game over at JR's, with some of his family and their friends. I remember now what it was like when I FIRST started playing. Horrid...but action driven. Frank and I both went, and lasted only briefly. Frank was knocked out when his pocket Kings were bested by pocket 9's, when the 9's flopped a set. It was all over then. I had to let go of a hand at one point, when the board had obviously out done me, but that cost me a bit of the stack. Then, I went out when I had pocket 8's pushed from late position, and got one caller, after the flop of 6 high, rainbow, I auto shoved, wanting to avoid any more action. My opponent told me that he "had nothing, but I'm gonna call." He was truthful, and had nothing but a good starting hand. But Big Slick treated him well that evening...and he hit his King on the River. Bye Bye cheer_dad. No sour grapes though, I actually kind of enjoyed it, it was relaxing. And it gave me time to observe players I don't always play with. I was getting some VERY GOOD reads on people and I hope that I am honing this skill. The freerolls I played...yesterday on Bodog a WildCard set up in conjunction with CardPlayer.com. 540 players total. Top 27 were going to be paid $109 each, which is like a tournament entry chip. I made it through the first break, with it middlin' chipstack, although I'd been playing well early on, blind escalation was at a premium, and no cards to speak of. I went out in 140th position, when I made the "incorrect" assumption that the late position raise from my opponent was a move on me. I pushed it all in to fight back at a table bully. Unfortunately, his pocket 9's were good. Now, I went out, and made a bad move there, BUT I learned a lot in this game. I was able to run my table for quite some time early on. I wasn't catching cards (except for one big hand) but I was playing position. That and the table composition was a lot of meek players. The big hand was my pocket 2's, turning into Huey, Dewey, and Louie on the flop and absolutely rockin' the world of the guy who limped with his pocket ACES!!! That'll learn him. Today, at Frank's urging I played the Pokerspace.com UB Weekly Freeroll. I got crippled early on with AKs vs KQos. The flop gave me the nut flush draw, which never materialized. The River brought me a King (giving me Kings and 6's, Ace kicker) but cost me, since his King's and QUEEN'S were better. Friggin' Big Slick! : ) I finally went out against that same guy, since there were so few players at the table. My pocket 6's were no match for his pocket Q's, especially when he flopped another lovely lady! But this game at my table anyway was an all-in-a-fest from the get go. I was foolishly hopeful that the Pokerspace.com games wouldn't necessarily be a testament to the donk players of the world. As usual, I was wrong. Sigh...

Regards,

cheer_dad

Midnight oil burning again...

Work has a way of just flaring up when you least expect it. I'm still here. Since 6:30am this morning, I've been here. It was a light/boring day, until we learned there was a server down. Even then, it didn't directly involve me, but near the end of the day, it became my problem to share in. About an hour and a half ago, we just got a restore job kicked off to get things back up and running. Ancient unsupported hardware, running a decrepit excuse for an operating system being backed up by over-the-hill backup software that's buggy in the first place, couple that with the fact that recent security settings rendered two "like servers" into total friggin' strangers. We are just now only 55% of the way along on the FULL restore. Following this...there are DIFFS to be done. Whenever that finally completes, and the last hoorah of a reboot is done, will we know if any of this even worked, or was worth the effort. Either way, the fallout will not be pretty. For all our best efforts, it will still fall short of expectations.

On a bright side, the OT will help pave the way to Vegas... Right now, though, I'm not feeling very lucky.

Regards,

cheer_dad

Anti-resolution list

So many of the blogs to which I subscribe and regularly peruse are covering the resolutions for a new year of their author's, or looking back on the year that was 2007, at least from their personal perspectives. So for a couple of days now, I've toyed with the idea of doing one or the other myself. But the more I pondered...the less interested I became. I mean who out there among you really cares about my impression of 2007, and following that logic would you really care what I have to say about the year 2008. What are my hopes and dreams, resolutions if you will? Do you really want to know? Well let's cover my resolutions in a different manner. Here's some of the things I DON'T want to repeat this year.

"I DON'T WANT TO..." List:

...raise my voice in anger.
...lose my temper.
...leave behind a legacy of my life that I would not be proud of.
...rest on whatever perceived laurels that I have.
...just settle for anything.
...live without JOY in my life.
...remain as heavy (translation FAT) as I am today.
...have a negative effect on anyone I come in contact with.
...make excuses.
...be a victim.
...waste.
...find fault in others to explain my own shortcomings.
...offend.
...regret.

This list could be related to life in general, or poker specifically if you feel I need to keep this blog poker-centric. BUT from a "poker" perspective... I would include the following to the "I Don't Want To..." list:

...repeat my mistakes.
...whine.
...continue being a "break-even" player.
...let losses affect me so much.
...play above my means.
...play scared.
...remain so one-dimensional at the table.
...play, if I'm not having fun.

What do those things say about me? It's rhetorical...even to me. No answer here! Sorry to let you down.

Big Red and I watched The Bucket List last night. It was one of the best movies I have seen in a very long time. Granted, it's difficult to have a bad movie when you've got both Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman in the cast. How bad of a hack writer would you have to be to make something come out badly with the two of them on the payroll? Anyway...the movie was well worth watching and I highly recommend it to any of you. I think it was billed somewhat by the previews as a comedy. Yes, it was funny in places. But the theme was the thing. The reflection and looking back on a life lived that made it for me. It was profound, intellectual, happy, sad, and funny all at the same time. They covered the bases on this one.

Our favorite quote from Jack in the movie was: "Never pass up a bathroom, never waste a hard-on, and never trust a fart!" If those aren't words to live by, then I guess I just don't get it all, do I...?

I hope this new year finds you well, safe, and happy.
May you find JOY, and in so doing, may others find JOY in having known you.

Regards,

cheer_dad