Bus Depot Poker
Monday, November 27, 2006
The Wednesday before Thanksgiving Day, Roose decided to throw a poker game. It's the biggest partyin night of the year, but somewhere between college and marriage, the bars have lost their thrill on me. My drug of choice is poker, damnit, and since we also had a bachelor party to plan for Roose, poker won out.
I left the wife at home, expecting to have a night out with the boys, playing poker, drinking beer, and taking my migraine medication. When I arrive in the Queens apartment, it was more like a busy bus depot. Besides the regular poker crew, several girlfriends and fiance mulled about, some willing to play, others just hanging around. I arrived early and tried to start a cash game. Players came and went, distracted by the TV, ladies, and copious booze. I mostly tried to keep the game moving. Wifey Kim was at home and I wouldn't have it any other way. It's not that I don't love wifey Kim's company. I'd choose her over anyone at the game, including Mistress Poker. It's just that when I play, I like to emmerse myself in the game, like an alcoholic to his bottle. In other words, to a non-player I'd be a complete bore, and likely to ignore everyone around me without chips in their hands. I'd never do that to wifey Kim though.
We made some perfunctory plans for the bachelor party. We'll be in Vegas in the middle of May, staying at the Excalibur, something I was very excited about until I heard of their new, in-the-middle-of-the-casino-floor poker room. Even so, their prices were unbeatable, and that was most of what mattered. We are awaiting airfare prices from Jet Blue, now selling tickets through April (as they have been doing now for three months), so our flights aren't definite, although I'm guessing we'll be flying for about $360 round trip. So, we really got nothing new done, but we did re-up our commitment to making this trip happen.
Finally, when enough players had settled down, we got started on our first $20 tournament. I lobbied for 20 minute blinds, but lost to people who insisted on 15 minute levels. I guess their goal was to get two games in. I'd rather get one good game though.
The first tournament was fairly uneventful. I stayed afloat until the final table and went out with 6 people left. There were about 15-16 people. The second tournament played a lot better. I got lucky with QQ vs. AK and 66, tripling up as we got into the final table. I kept the pressure on, dominating the players until we were down to 2. By then Greg had caught up with my stack by sheer will. He's one of the other poker aficionados in the group, a dealer from an underground club on LI. Heads up, we considered chopping for 5 seconds before we decided to play it out. The final hand saw Greg slowplaying me into pushing with my turned pair of 2s. He had flopped a set. I take home 2nd place money, $80, enough to book my 6th or so consecutive win at the Roose Home Game. It is also probably my 9th or 10th consecutive live session win as well.
The only problems with the game at Roose's is the distance (trains suck, if only there were an actual nearby subway), and the distractions. The booze and other distractions can make for a difficult game, where players are constantly getting up for another drink or some food. For a serious player, it can make the game a bit difficult, but fortunately it is not a place for serious play. It's more a place to cut loose.
A big thanks to Scotty as well. He was there for the game and brought Roose and I aside to discuss the WSOP Circuit event. Scotty offered to back us, and was shocked to find out that his cut amounted to $170 each only. I appreciate his support, and it gives me more confidence in my game. Now its time to deliver.
By the time the second game was done, it was just shy of 2am. I checked the train schedule, the only way to get from Roose's Queens apartment, and expected to find a nearby train. Sadly, we were officially into Thanksgiving Day, and the schedule was severely limited. The next train was at 4am. Luckily for me, Hole and his lovely girlfriend were still hanging around. I had to find a way back to wifey Kim. We had plans for the next morning, and nothing beats the comfort of one's own bed. After much planning, I found a random subway not too far from Roose's home. It wasn't in a particularly good neighborhood, and the train ride would take me probably over an hour from door to door, not including the wait time for the Holiday 2am train, but at least I'd be moving. As we drove to the train station, a cab pulled up next to us at a light. I rolled down my window to see if he'd take me to the city. He obliged and I switched vehicles. By the time I was back home, the cab cost me $40. My net win for the night: $40. Sometimes, things just work out.
Thanksgiving was great. My mother made a spectacular meal, and wifey Kim and I spent the night on LI. The next day we had brunch with her friend and her family in their new home. What assholes. The highlight of the meal was when wifey Kim's friend's father said nonchalantly, "We don't pay big firm prices at our firm, but we pay more than you" to me, during our meal. Internally, I was thinking, "And how do you know what I make, asshole?" Externally, I kept my cool. Protesting would only make me look petty. Fucker. The second highlight, when wifey Kim's friend at the table in front of everyone had a conversation with her husband that went like this one the other conversations died down: "...yeah, well he's across the table and here we are talking about him (I was the only male across the table). Do you think he knows?" "Knows what?" I stupidly took the bait. "Lauren is engaged." My ex-girlfriend from like 9 years ago. Somehow, this bitch always brings her up. What a C U Next Tuesday. I played that one off too: "Good for her."
The rest of the weekend, aside from seeing Borat, was uneventful. Yesterday, my mother and father came by to drop off their cat. They'll be heading on their 13th vacation of the year (god bless them), so we are cat sitting again. Ernie the cat, sans balls, is actually a lot calmer now. And he chose to use wifey Kim's toes as chew toys last night. NICE!
More fun poker this week, mostly via the Internet, unless I can make it to an I Had Outs homegame. I've got AC for the WSOP Circuit event the weekend after next, while many bloggers will be in Vegas for the WPBT Winter Classic. A couple of weeks later, I'm back to AC for Christmas. I'm already excited.
Until next time, make mine poker!
posted by Jordan @ 9:51 AM,
3 Comments:
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At 11:04 AM,
said...
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C U Next Tuesday.....Priceless
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At 9:04 PM,
TripJax said...
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I gotta get me some of that migraine medication.
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At 4:40 AM,
said...
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