Poker and Life in Australia: 2011

Hello everyone, for the next couple months I'll be living it up in Perth, Australia taking some classes and playing poker. I think I'll also try and do an Iron Man race while I'm here, so there will be lots of fitness going on. I plan to make the most of my time here, though I have few specific goals. Mostly just want to get in the best shape of my life, maintain my progress in poker, and meet some new people! So far I've been making good headway on all three goals

This blog will include just about everything related to my time here. I hope it's a good read!

The Odyssey to Perth, Part 1

It’s summer here! It is very hot but right now I’m too happy to be bothered. I have a bunch of Australian coins I’ve gotten as change that I don’t exactly know the value of. I’m pretty sure one of them is worth $2AU. I’ve seen a hundred brand names I’m familiar with (I’ve already seen a Target, a Subway, and ‘Hungry Jack’ (a.k.a. Burger King), but twice as many brands that I’ve never heard of. Right now I’m eating some Honey Weets, a breakfast cereal by Sanitarium™ that touts its ‘High Carbohydrates’ as though it were a good thing. This country is different than anything I’ve experienced; I can’t wait to get to Perth and get settled here!


My journey to Sydney took 30 hours from being dropped off at the Minneapolis airport to clearing customs. The ordeal was made much more pleasant as I met some Australians along the way. I love their accent, and most everyone I’ve talked to has been visibly enthusiastic in our conversations.



My first impression of Australia and its people is very positive! Examples:


I meet Mark, an Australian businessman, on the flight from MSP to Los Angeles. By amazing coincidence we are both headed to Perth from Minneapolis and get seated next to each other. I tell him I didn’t get my ticket to Sydney when I was checked in, and he helps me get a ticket and confirm my luggage is also headed to Sydney once we land in L.A. We spend much of the layover chatting about Australia, and hear stories of some of his experiences with deadly snakes and spiders. Somewhat cliché, yet highly amusing.



On the flight from L.A. to Sydney I was seated next to a young Australian family and had pleasant small talk about Australia. Learned about the AFL, cricket, things to do in Sydney etc.


After checking in to my hotel in Sydney I walk over to a nearby mall in search of equipment to make my laptop work. Australia uses a different style of outlet than we use in the U.S., and the flow of electricity (a.k.a. voltage) is somehow also different. Basically I’d damage my computer if I just threw an adapter on the end of my power cord and tried to use it here. I wander over to the first area that is selling computers and ask if they have what I need. They do not. As I’m riding the elevator to the mall exit, feeling slightly saddened by my failure, I ask an elderly woman if she knows of any nearby electronics stores. ‘Sorry, I’m not into computers.’ She says. ‘But my son is, and I know I’ve heard him say something about Dick Smith’s.’ I ask her if it’s nearby and she tells me it’s in the mall. Great news!


I wander around for a while and end up at Dick Smith’s to look for the inverter and adapter I need to use my laptop. As I’m deciding between $110AU and $150AU inverters, a guy walks up to me and asks if he can help. After he looks at my laptop he says, ‘you don’t need this man! You just need a different power cord, like $20.’ He finds the proper cord for me and takes it out of the packaging so we can test it and make sure it works on my laptop. Success! I thank him profusely.

I grabbed a sandwich at a place called RJ’s, dinner at Oporto’s, and bought groceries for my upcoming train ride at Woolworth’s. As you might expect I saw, heard, and did so many new things on my first day here I can't write everything down.



Poker: 500 hands 100nl, +2BI. Played lights out and ran well. Good first session obv

nice posts!! really interesting. I hope you have an AWESOME time while there!

awesome man, great read. keep us updated on the regular!

This is awesome, I'll be following along. GL!

have fun in oz dude!

I'll be following, have fun!

don t get too spooked by the water flushing backwards

thanks everyone, good to know I've still got you guys

Originally Posted by Genitruc

don t get too spooked by the water flushing backwards

I've been paying close attention to the flushing, but actually all the toilets I've used so far, including the one in my apartment, uses a flushing style where it sucks all the water down at once, so no counterclockwise. lol

Finally got internet in my room today, and unlike in America I cannot get unlimited internet; I have to pay for a certain amount of bandwidth. 25GB = $60/month. For the Aussie poker players out there, how much time do you think that'll give me on the poker tables?

Fresh Perspective/4500km Train Ride from Sydney to Perth


Day two of my time in Australia was mostly about me getting to the train station in downtown Sydney to catch a ride to Perth. Besides dealing with fatigue from enormous jetlag (17 hour difference b/w Sydney and Duluth, MN) I was definitely suffering from caffeine and cigarette deprivation. I had beer and conversation with a Pakistani gentleman named Ivan, and later chatted with an elderly couple on a bench at the train station. These encounters fit my developing Australian ethos (‘these people are really nice!) and helped me forget how lousy I was feeling. Eventually I got on the train, took some powerful medication, and fell asleep.

I woke up later in the afternoon to wonderful music playing over the train intercom as we rolled through the lush New South Wales countryside. I only remember the chorus of the song: ‘On my way to San Joe’. Anyways it fit the moment perfectly. The rest of day two was spent daydreaming out the window, marveling at the unfamiliar landscapes and vegetation. I met three backpacking American girls who were on their way to Indonesia when they came up and sat next to me. We talked a little on the train and more when we got to Adelaide, but I was too scared to ask them to hang out. Which I know is stupid when I look at myself, a 22 year old in good physical shape who’s relatively smart and well intentioned. But I digress…

During the night we learned flooding had washed away part of the train tracks further ahead, which made it necessary for our train to make an unexpectedly long stop in Adelaide. Adelaide is the biggest city in South Australia, one of the six Australian states. The repairs the train tracks needed were expected to take several hours so all passengers were given a room in a nearby hotel to stay overnight. I couldn’t have been happier with how things worked out; Adelaide is the coolest city I’ve ever been to. An overview:

Almost the entire city is contained within a grid, with four main streets around the perimeter (West Terrace, North Terrace, etc.). Adelaide utilizes tram and bus systems, and due to the warm climate there is a lot of pedestrian traffic. The entire southern perimeter of the city is bordered by a well maintained park that stretches nearly 2km. There are numerous ‘green spaces’ within the downtown area, one of which I used to take a short nap in the sun. I caught the second half of the Super Bowl at Adelaide’s casino; unfortunately no poker games were running on a Monday afternoon so the only money they got from me was for a sandwich and a beer.

My room was on the top floor of the hotel so I was treated to a fabulous view of the city via the balcony (a great hotel, particularly as the internet was FREE). While I was surveying the city the guy next door came out onto his balcony, and explained to me how to navigate the streets as well as locate the casino.

The only other significant happening in Adelaide was that I got pretty badly sunburned, which made sleeping on the train difficult. Also the guy I’m sitting next to was perpetually moaning in his sleep, and therefore I barely slept the first night back on the train.

The second day we travelled across the Nullarbor Plains, aptly named (null = no, arbor = trees) as the terrain was completely flat for several hours in all directions. It’s strange to be able to see something on the horizon that you doubt you could run to in an hour. We briefly stopped in Cook, the smallest town I’ve ever been to, and had a cigarette with an airplane pilot who was taking the train to Perth for his next flying gig (I did tell him how funny I thought this was). I got a better nights’ sleep mostly due to how tired I was from the night before. My first mostly uneventful day since I got here.

Australians seem to intrinsically understand the concept of ‘looking after the least’ in their society. There is a man on the train who is mentally disabled, and many passengers have greeted him and generally treated him well. I’m ashamed to say I can’t remember having done such a thing when I was in the States, shown kindness in a similar situation.

Poker: I did get in 1k hands online during my time in Adelaide, I think I finished breakeven. Played well; my losses can be explained by my 3bets getting 4bet and getting coolered postflop. I’ve been studying up on the regs and now have 4 pages of notes on roughly 20 regs. I’m glad I’ve finally started studying my opponents away from the tables; it’s been a part of my player development that has been lacking.

Day 1 in Perth: Getting Settled


Why did I decide to leave my comfortable life in America and come to Australia? My personality is pretty introverted, so meeting cool new people is not the biggest driver for me. I’m not a highly motivated person, so the challenge of thriving in a new environment isn’t exactly why I’m here. I think the biggest reason I’m here is because this situation is certain to help me grow into a stronger and even more confident person. I am interested in self improvement, and I think that’s the biggest reason why I’m here. I stopped smoking pot, something six months ago I doubted I would’ve ever wanted to do, in preparation for this semester. An extended break from smoking weed is clearly a positive life development.


The train rolled in to Perth around 9am. Favorable transport and friendly staff helped me get my bags in the door of my new living space before 10am. I called Lyn Hill, my on site counselor, and had my first walk around the Curtin University campus. I met some other American students who are studying in Perth: Matt (Environmental Studies Major as well), Chelsea, and Muriel. I’m really glad I got to meet them almost as soon as I got here as it helped postpone feelings of loneliness until I had somewhat gotten my bearings in this new place. They did set in during the slow moments of the afternoon, which is natural I think so I just try to accept it and move along.



I picked up some basic groceries and cooking supplies, did laundry, and meditated for the first time in a while. When the sun started to set I figured it was finally cool enough to go for a run. I ran around the golf course that’s right next to the student housing, I’d guess about 5km (in Sydney and Adelaide I put in 7km runs on the treadmill). And after all that I did some crunches and pushups. It’s clear in my mind that the best approach to lessen/avoid feelings of incompetence, anxiety, and stress in this unfamiliar environment is to do the best I can at living.



There are going to be six students living in my apartment, 3 male and 3 female, but so far only two other people have moved in (Emma and Maurice) and I haven’t really met them yet. And I won’t have internet until tomorrow! I am really looking forward to Skyping with my family and wishing my younger brother a happy 19th birthday, as well as getting caught up with what’s going on in the online poker world. And putting in some hands!


Running does wonders for my mood; I’m excited for tomorrow!

Sounds like a good start, and +1 on taking care of yourself when you're in a new/foreign environment. If your social life isn't exactly on fire, you can always use that time to get in shape/feel better about yourself.

GL!

dude, you're an exchange student in oz - you'll be fine. Just make sure you have a local cell phone number and remember that all those other foreigners you're meeting don't know anyone either. Find the local weekly entertainment/gig guide thing and people will be keen for sure. Go running. Head down to Margaret river. etc. Almost jealous

Originally Posted by Vi-Zer0Skill

I have to pay for a certain amount of bandwidth. 25GB = $60/month. For the Aussie poker players out there, how much time do you think that'll give me on the poker tables?

I have a 10gb plan. Poker doesn't even come close to tapping it out.
Poker uses close to zero.
choose your plan based on how much downloading/you tube/porn you indulge in

Mmmm Australia sounds like fun, fkin loved that place you'll have a blast!!!

Yeah 25 GB is plenty for poker, porn, just prolly not dl movies.

hah thanks guys, I'll go with the 10GB package next month.

I think I'll be getting a phone tomorrow, and going down to Margaret River as soon as I find out where it is. Cheers daven!

My Kind of People

I spent today hanging out with other international students in a barbecue style setting. I played cricket for the first time. I won't explain the game here but I was a much better bowler than a batsman!

The time I spent with non American students was by far more enjoyable, which got me thinking why that is. I truly dislike the way the majority of Americans my age and demographic act. Although humility is a virtue generally uncharacteristic of youth, I still feel even amongst our global peers Americans are way overly confident and self absorbed. I think part of my dislike for my own culture comes from other cultures being new to me, which naturally makes them more interesting. Bottom line: this afternoon wasn't my idea of a good time, but I did make some friends and talked to more women than I usually talk to on my own in a month! So I'll call it a success.

A frightening paradigm returned to the forefront of my consciousness today: It's usually not the people I meet that are weird, many awkward moments are more often a result of my own weirdness. lol and upon accepting this truth I guess that reality is okay. I want to say that Buddhism has been incredibly helpful for organzing and understanding the thoughts that flash through my brain. Life would be a lot more confusing/stressful if I allowed my mind even greater reign in its construction of illusions and barriers to truth.

Moving away from philosophy, I really like my roommates: Maurice, Emma, and Sara. They all find my lack of culinary experience amusing; Maurice and Emma promise me cooking lessons. Sara is 24 years old and from London, and seems pretty chill. As long as the last two people who are supposed to be living here aren't horrible I'm going to be happy living here. I've explained to my roommates I don't plan on doing much drinking/partying while I'm here and they don't seem to think that's a terrible thing or hold it against me [much].

Maurice and Sara think my poker playing is cool, while Emma seems neutral at best about it. I will at some point take time to write about my moral dilemmas with poker, but for now all I'll say is my feelings about allocating so much energy towards it are very ambiguous.

It's good to know I shouldn't have problems getting along with the people I'm going to be living with for... the next 5 months.

Poker: since I got internet on Thursday I have put in 16k hands, 10k at 100nl and 6k at 200nl. It's been a roller coaster but I'm up ~5BI at 200nl and BE at 100nl. My quality of play has been not the best at times, i.e. playing frustrated/stressed. My latest session went incredibly well; I was well focused for 99% of my decisions. Playing 200nl did motivate me to concentrate!

lol I didn't even know it was Valentine's day until I got back from the barbeque. I hope I didn't leave any ladies hanging!

Pretty fitting song I just scrolled across:

YouTube - Japanese Girls - Robbers on High Street w/ lyrics

Australia sounds very chill, it's on my list of places to visit. Sounds like you mostly lucked out with the roommates, that is a pretty huge flip you've already won.

Enjoy man!

Originally Posted by Vi-Zer0Skill

I spent today hanging out with other international students in a barbecue style setting. I played cricket for the first time.

woot!!!

Originally Posted by Vi-Zer0Skill

Tbut I did make some friends and talked to more women than I usually talk to on my own in a month! So I'll call it a success.

fuck yeah

Originally Posted by Vi-Zer0Skill

Moving away from philosophy, I really like my roommates: Maurice, Emma, and Sara. They all find my lack of culinary experience amusing; Maurice and Emma promise me cooking lessons. Sara is 24 years old and from London, and seems pretty chill.

nh. Cooking is easy. Start by following recipes, kinda like using a starting hand chart. Curry pastes will let you make tasty curries without even learning to cook. Wrapping a fish in tinfoil after stuffing it's gut cavity with some salt, pepper, butter, fresh coriander etc then baking it for fifteen minutes (vary by size) is tasty, eat it messy and shared. Peel the spine out after you've finished the first side, don't flip the fish cos luck. etc.

have fun dude!

Thanks Dylan, I hadn't thought of getting good roommates or not as a 'flip' situation but I suppose it is! True poker mentality right there

@daven

I looked it up and was surprised to see the Margaret River is ~300km from campus. But I talked to someone yesterday who wants to go there too so that trip is in the works. He was talking about doing some surfing while there -- obviously a spectacular river!

And thanks for the free recipe and the well wishes! I'm sure I can pick up a frozen fish from Coles; any recommendations for what type of fish?

Pics are needed ITT. We don't want to see your ugly mug, but pics of hot crocodile wrasslin chicks and of the outback landscapes. Sounds like a blast tho.

living the dream! =)

Originally Posted by Vi-Zer0Skill

My Kind of People


The time I spent with non American students was by far more enjoyable, which got me thinking why that is. I truly dislike the way the majority of Americans my age and demographic act. Although humility is a virtue generally uncharacteristic of youth, I still feel even amongst our global peers Americans are way overly confident and self absorbed. I think part of my dislike for my own culture comes from other cultures being new to me, which naturally makes them more interesting.

This is what I love most about getting out of the States for a while.

Where do you go to school? I'm an ENVS major too!

can u point me to a tutorial showing me how to upload pics onto FTR? I played around Imageshack once but couldn't get it to work. I'm technologically stupid.

Yes getting outside the U.S. has been a completely excellent experience. My own American ignorance has shown itself a couple times since I got here, but people have been forgiving.

I'm going to Curtin University in Perth, WA.

Down 1.7k over 5k hands since my last update. BR 7500. Nothing too spewtacular just marginal calldowns + running into sets/AA everywhere. Sadly all the losses have been at 100nl which makes this an epic 16BI downswing in 36 hours! I've had to step away from the tables three times today because I could feel the tilt beast raging.

I recommend imgur.com - You literally just have to drag and drop the picture files onto the webpage and then it uploads them for you and gives you a nice list of links to copy/paste, you can grab the one for forums and it's already formatted etc.

cheers Kiwi!

Here's some photos of my apartment and one photo I took of Adelaide. Love that city!

Photo Album - Imgur

splash out a few hundred bucks on a 22" monitor to jack into your laptop imo
nice boulders/rocks, surf, wine, and sharks down margaret
have fun
got laid yet?

nice place

keep us updated with pics!

Originally Posted by daven

splash out a few hundred bucks on a 22" monitor to jack into your laptop imo
nice boulders/rocks, surf, wine, and sharks down margaret
have fun
got laid yet?

no
sweet river sharks
thanks
no, but one of my lady roommates has been watching me play poker the last two nights. not sure where that's going..


I'll get someone to take a photo of me for my debut mugshot on FTR. thanks again Kiwi!

Place looks nice, gross about the downswing, we're in the same boat.

down 750 today after 2k hands, BR still 7500. Despite dropping 5BI at 100nl this AM I was on the verge of a comeback, then losing a $500 pot with 75% equity + KK<AA at 200nl sent me into quit mode. next session at 100nl obv

I played really well today which makes the losing a lot easier to take. my best played hand:

I only got maximum value because my opponent made a big mistake calling the river shove, but I bet small on the riv to induce a raise from flushes/call from A4/A5

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $2.00 BB (6 handed) - PokerStars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

UTG ($214.20)
MP ($250.80)
Hero (CO) ($245.55)
Button ($271.55)
SB ($154.95)
BB ($493.70)

Preflop: Hero is CO with 5, 5
2 folds, Hero bets $6, Button raises to $18, 1 fold, BB calls $16, Hero calls $12

Flop: ($55) 2, 4, 2 (3 players)
BB checks, Hero checks, Button checks

Turn: ($55) 5 (3 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $32, Button calls $32, BB calls $32

River: ($151) A (3 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $52, Button raises to $104, 1 fold, Hero raises to $195.55 (All-In), Button calls $91.55

Total pot: $542.10 | Rake: $3

Results:
Button had 9, 10 (flush, Ace high).
Hero had 5, 5 (full house, fives over twos).
Outcome: Hero won $539.10

quick life update: wow [shocker] I went to a party tonight after Sara dragged me out. Got some more face time with this cute girl I met on Monday.

played 2 $118 2 table turbos and bubbled both (5th and 7th, 4th place pays)!! Also busted out of a $75 turbo tourney, but I played pretty poorly imo in that one so the result was less surprising. those $118 are stupid soft, so I'll definitely be mixing those in when grinding cash gets stale.

dominated 100nl in my evening session, mostly due to sick run good, so actually finished up a little despite the failed SNG's etc. I also wanna say thank God for euro tables because I've been crushing them and experiencing most of my negative variance in USD. My attitude about losing has shifted towards more positive; it's greater motivation to improve. I've done hours of studying, video watching, and note taking since the variance train headed south.

13k VPPs in Feb, 26k on the year. I'd guess I'm still slightly behind pace for 200k VPP's but considering I basically lost almost 2 weeks to travel I'm happy with my progress. So glad I got that 4k bonus too which means my worries about being rolled are greatly eased.

lol also total beat: I can't view PTR here for some reason! I've worked extensively on configuring my firewalls to allow me to view PTR but nothing has worked.

lol and a HH gem. couldn't believe it when he mucked on the river

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1.00 BB (6 handed) - PokerStars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

Button ($108.25)
SB ($100.50)
BB ($137.15)
UTG ($103.20)
Hero (MP) ($122.15)
CO ($142.10)

Preflop: Hero is MP with 6, 8
1 fold, Hero bets $3.50, CO raises to $10.50, 2 folds, BB calls $9.50, Hero calls $7

Flop: ($32) 5, 7, 10 (3 players)
BB checks, Hero bets $19, CO calls $19, 1 fold

Turn: ($70) 2 (2 players)
Hero checks, CO checks

River: ($70) Q (2 players)
Hero checks, CO checks

Total pot: $70 | Rake: $3

Results:
Hero had 6, 8 (high card, Queen).
CO mucked 4, 8 (high card, Queen).
Outcome: Hero won $67

What a great op I must say. I have just read through the entire thing and really enjoyed it. Sounds like such an amazing oportunity for you at your age. Take advantage of every bit of it and make sure when your time is over you have exactly ZERO regrets. That means you've tried every new dish offered to you, you've spoken to EVERY hot young lady who you thought may be interested, you've traveled to the oddest places because somebody told you it would be fun, and you've just done the right thing in life becuase it was the right thing!

I'll be reading every bit of this op for sure. Post lots of pics please!~

Thanks for the well wishes Harleyguy. Your words are the writing on the wall that I hopefully look back on with pride rather than regret.
I'm glad my blog made for an entertaining read

Mellow Mood

My poker escapades over the last week have already been pretty well documented; as of this writing my BR is still hovering around 7500. Altogether I've spent $880 on tourney entries for exactly $0 ROI. I tried my luck in a satellite to a $2k buy in tourney that's running in Perth, but no dice. I'll stick to $50 and $60 tourneys for the near future, rather than $100's (even tho they're a lot more fun!). The drama of tournaments is too much for me to wanna grind them over cash, that's for sure. Thankfully my standard run good in cash games has returned and it's nearly covered expenses for my tourney adventures.

*Since Feb 10th I've put in 32k hands, which is awesome. If nothing else I'm very pleased with my work ethic!

My final roommate moved in today, his name is also Sam. He's 17 and from Australia and seems like one of those guys who can be hilarious once you 'get' his sense of humor. It looks like I've got a good cast of roommates, who collectively really span the personality spectrum. Hopefully they can all get along with each other.

I've been running every day since I got to my apartment, and today probably went 7km (I don't have a watch or have any concept of distance here). I also did some research on upcoming Iron Man events, and it turns out there won't be any official races that run while I'm in Perth. I'll certainly get a chance to do one in the summer when I get back to the States, so the training continues. Today I remembered that I paid for a gym membership when I signed up for housing, so tomorrow I'll be working my guns etc lol

Life here is pretty good overall, particularly in the sense that I've kept my good routines and shed the bad ones -- without picking up new bad ones. Over the last couple days I've become quite comfortable with the idea of being here, and haven't missed being away from home much. I don't know why this results in me feeling mellow rather than excited; perhaps my feelings are more complicated than I realize... or maybe feeling mellow is just how I like to roll.

YouTube - Modest Mouse - Breakthrough

Alright, here's the video I made of me playing 4 tables of 100nl. Select 'Regular Download' you have to wait ~30 seconds before the link appears below 'Premium Download'

MEGAUPLOAD - The leading online storage and file delivery service

down 2.5BI at 200nl this morning over 650 hands, yet I played well and there were only two hands I would have played differently. I despaired for a few moments, then took care of real life stuff, exercised, and reviewed my DB. I am very motivated to become a better than mediocre online grinder today. if nothing else it will lessen my variance!

Sam enjoyed the video for sure. I need to find me one of those set magnets! One thing I picked up that will help me for sure is watching how often you are checking your hud stats. I glance at the basic display of course and tell meself "Oh he's tight blah blah blah" but I don't use the damn thing like I should. Hope you'll post more of them as you make them.

Cheers Harley, thanks for the praise and I'm glad you got something out of my run good video! I know really good players often say 'don't overvalue your HUD' for making decisions; however at SSNL it's my primary resource -- until I have specific history with a villain.

I'll probably make my second video tomorrow, regardless of how I run. The only thing that has stopped me from releasing other recorded sessions is that my commentary was terrible!

Cool looking forward to it!

Hey, I watched first 20 mins of your vid, really good stuff, also pretty sick video heater, I need to start making some vids obviously.

You seem to be a really solid player, you could definitely crush nl 200 on euro sites.

yes u should definitely make some vids, it would probably do you as well as anyone watching plenty of good

thanks for the vote of confidence

... Anyways dropped 2 more BI at 200nl today after starting the morning +2BI at 100nl! I dropped another BI at 100nl this evening, but also played 2 $60 2tbl turbos, ran ridiculously well, and got 1st and 2nd. Fell short in another Perth satellite tourney, but no worries.

Poker volume has been definitely lacking the last couple days, but I haven't felt as motivated to play as to study and hang out with my roommates.

I'm sitting at 30k VPPs on the year, which is almost at pace for 200k this year. If I played exclusively 100nl I think I'd need to play 450k more hands this year, which is ~1.5k hands/day. not too unreasonable considering I will also be playing some 200nl/SNG grinding along the way. Basically my long term goal looks pretty doable. On a related note, my endurance while running has noticeably increased in the two weeks I've been in Perth. Today I ran easily 6km in 33 Celsius heat (90 Fahrenheit) at midday without needing a break and still had gas left at the end. My pace is noticeably slower than when I'm running during the winter, but I did some reading and unsurprisingly the warmer temps significantly impact what pace can be maintained. At this point I'm mostly concerned about adding distance anyways. My plan is to add 1km every three runs until that becomes too difficult, then 1km/week until 15km.

1k hands of 100nl coming up. I'm going to record part of this session for my second video!

YouTube - Valleys of Neptune - Jimi Hendrix

ARGH I recorded my last session and had great commentary, only the audio didn't get onto the recording!!

I'll try again tomorrow

dropped 1.5BI 100nl over 500 hands. kind of got owned by a donk reg who was c/r me all day and I never played back/adjusted properly. meh

Played 6 SNGs, busted in the 5 $60 ones. meh

I did get 2nd in a $38 turbo, and it was a 20 table so +$1150. ballin

The rest of yesterday was spent mostly grinding 200nl, and though I played my B+ game my run good was strong.

Played 6-8 $60 SNGs and cashed in none, but I played well so w/e variance. Went for the Perth satellite again and had the top stack for a while, but the run good didn't hold. I'll keep trying (so far I've invested $126 on these satellites)

I played 100nl in the morning and afternoon, then, feeling inspired, I started the evening at 200nl. And I gotta say wow, the games were amazing tonight. I got it in vs QTs, A4s, and JTo for stacks preflop (went 2 for 3)! One guy was playing 8 tables and open raising for 10.5x preflop, and playing 39/37 VPIP/PFR. I ended up losing a ton to him since he ran really well versus me, but what a privilege it was to have him on my tables.

I misplayed one hand for stacks, but I had ~20% equity + some FE so it wasn't super terrible. I failed to realize my range was quite strong after calling the flop so I should have given his turn barrel more credit. Live and learn

The session lasted 1k hands and I managed to finish slightly ahead. Friday 6-9pm Western Australian time may be optimal for grinding, seemingly because American grinders start playing really spewy at these hours of the morning. I felted for stacks a dozen times over that session, and 3 times in the last 5 minutes. The very best part about tonight was when I started to feel mentally drained I quit my session, even though the games were really good. If I must return a portion of my bankroll back to the poker economy it's going to be when I'm playing well.

YouTube - golden boy (mountain goats)

Vi-Zero sounds like a decent session for ya. Thanks for stopping by my op. I should have the correct link on board shortly. Hope you're still willing to take a peek? Thanks again for stopping by!

Giraffes, Gaffes, and Awkward Staff

I was invited to go to the zoo only I was playing poker and forgot to follow up. I actually wanted to go to the zoo too! I have no idea if there are actually giraffes in the Perth zoo.

Today I spent the first part of the morning grinding and finished down a bit over only 500 hands. The four $100 SNGs didn’t go well today, but at least I played well. I wasn’t really feeling up to the grind today, and since I’ve put in so many hours already this month I didn’t feel guilty about throwing in the towel while my losses were still easy to bear. Some of the losing days this month have been pretty rough on my mood away from the tables, which indicates my mental discipline needs to improve and the need to apply a stop loss. I’ve decided on a 3BI stop loss for the days I play 200nl and 4BI for days at 100nl, or $600 total stop loss -- whichever comes first. This way I’m never risking more than a small % of my BR on any given day.

I spent the entire afternoon and evening watching movies with Sara. It’s too bad she isn’t single because, besides having ridiculously good looks, she’s travelled everywhere and her life experiences share some common ground with mine. We both flunked out of school the first time around, then worked and learned something about ‘real life’ before coming back with a different attitude. Her presence has helped me to meet several other girls, which is obviously a plus.

I have nice things to say about pretty much all my roommates. Maurice has a really laid back personality and that alone makes him a great roommate. My roommate Emma is sweet, kind, and also gorgeous (also not single; none of the girls are), and though she was more shy at first we’ve both warmed up to each other. These days I usually share meals with my roommates, and taking a few minutes to catch up on the events of our days feels natural. House life is really good! There is mutual respect and the desire to do well for each other, and everyone seems willing to reciprocate. It’s game theory at its best.

Like 99% of the weeks of my life, I don’t have a lot of crazy stories from this week. Last night the fire alarm went off in one of the other apartments at 1am, so we spent part of the night hanging out on our porch (we’re on the ground floor) chatting with other confused students. On Wednesday I went for a run with Maurice, and being the baller I am I managed to keep up with him even though he’s in much better shape than me. However there were some life fails, which include missing my daily run twice this week, not doing much crunches/pushups, and not following up with the girls I’ve met. Also I got into a hilariously awkward conversation about hillbillies with one of the residential staff after I mentioned my mom’s side of the family is from Appalachia. Some people don’t like the staff here but I think they’re great, and I know the only difference is my attitude/approach when dealing with them is just better than theirs.

I also haven’t heard back from my counselor whether the chemistry class I’m taking here will fulfill my graduation requirements, which might actually be good news – at least they didn’t say no outright! Class starts on Monday, also a fail since hanging out here has been a lot of fun. I only have 13 hours a week of class and no job so honestly it’s still basically a vacation.

I love Australian accents, their unique phrases and unfamiliar way of spelling words, their sense of humor… basically all things Aussie vibe well with me. I experienced a paradigm shift today regarding my political perspective. When I was in America and would watch world news, there were two actors; America and the ‘International Community’. Being in Australia has made me realize there are three parties involved in world politics; the home country, the ‘International Community’, and America. While it’s undoubtedly true that America is an egocentric nation (I can say that because I’ve lived there), but on the other hand America is so powerful and therefore involved in most global issues that they frequently require being uniquely distinguished from other countries. We Americans are egocentric because we think we’re so important to the rest of the world, and because the actions of our nation are so numerous and potent America actually is uniquely important in world politics, which feeds the egocentrism. That America was the immigration destination for so many people from numerous countries, as well as being the first colony to become a democracy and the frontier method of expansion likely contribute to that feeling of 'specialness'. Experiencing the Australian perspective is a somewhat refreshing escape from that attitude.

I’ll have some proper pictures of the roommates next week, as well as some photos of the Curtin campus.

YouTube - Red Hot Chili Peppers- Around the World

Originally Posted by Vi-Zer0Skill

I have nice things to say about pretty much all my roommates...............


I love Australian accents, their unique phrases and unfamiliar way of spelling words, their sense of humor… basically all things Aussie vibe well with me.

I'm so envious. Dude how would you like to switch lives for awhile. I'll give you a hot wife, nice home, decent job, new cars all in exchange for your simple life right now!

sweet blog man. i'm tuned in.

Originally Posted by HarleyGuy13

I'm so envious. Dude how would you like to switch lives for awhile. I'll give you a hot wife, nice home, decent job, new cars all in exchange for your simple life right now!

Post pics of the hot wife IYT or GTFO.

Originally Posted by StarGrinder

Post pics of the hot wife IYT or GTFO.

Ok so I just figured out what you meant by IYT I think? In My Thread?

Posting now

thanks rpm

harley you used my favorite word to describe my life; 'simple'. the loss of a simple life is one of my greatest fears about getting older.

and while the things you offer in exchange for my situation are nice, i know they took work to get and work to maintain. so I'll stand pat

Feb Graph:

imgur: the simple image sharer

I might play a couple hundred hands later this evening, but as far as I'm concerned February is in the books. In cash games I made a strong comeback at 200nl to finish the month ahead. In SNG's/tourneys I'm probably down 500 this month despite a 1.2k second place finish in a 20tbl turbo, which is somewhat depressing. Actually I just need to watch some SNG vids and do more studying! I earned 20k VPPs this month, which I think is the second most I've ever cleared, behind August 2010. The forecast for poker in March looks very sunny indeed. As usual, my work ethic will be my greatest asset.

I'd say considering all the drastic changes you experienced this month poker was pretty good for you as I am sure March will be as well. How about posting more pics this month plz!!!

Moral and Practical Dilemmas to Full Time Grinding

I had a serious conversation the other night with Sara about online poker, which reminded me I had meant to write about my hang ups with playing so much online poker. If I had had the success of Danny/Max/Sauce I can’t imagine I’d have any second thoughts about spending a significant amount of time playing poker. With the financial success that comes with being the best of the best, all doors of opportunity effectively remain open. The utility of my time spent over my poker career (2006-present) weighs in at about $4/hour. In economics they use a concept called opportunity cost, which means the cost of doing something can be measured by the ‘value’ of the opportunity you pass up. In a strictly fiscal sense, I would have been better off putting on the McDonald’s cap and taking orders from stoned/wasted college kids on the graveyard shift. If, as I get older, I continue to spend so much time on my present craft, will I be forgoing better opportunities? How great is the opportunity cost of playing online poker?

I’m not sure anymore whether the addiction came first, but in the beginning I truly loved poker. The potential to get rich, as well as the autonomy that comes with being a professional poker player were greatly appealing to my teenage self. Now that I’m a little older, wiser, and experienced from my numerous failures, the freedom to do what I want when I want is my greatest driver to continue studying and playing poker.

My mom in particular really hated online poker as it contributed to me dropping out my first semester of college in 2006. My dad has always been one to let me make my own mistakes, but even he was noticeably frustrated with my addiction to online poker as it caused me to badly manage my time. In 2007 I got a full time job, took some night classes, and used basically all my remaining time to work on improving at poker. This was the time of my life I was most obsessed and fascinated with poker, if I was in the same circumstances today I wouldn’t have dedicated half the time I did then to poker. By the end of 2007 I had a 10k bankroll and my parents had softened their opposition to me playing online poker, mostly due to me doing a better job reconciling real life responsibilities with my favorite activity. In 2008 I made my first attempt at making poker my sole source of income; looking back it’s easy to see why I failed. The greatest reason was poor bankroll management, but there was also a lack of discipline and not a strong enough work ethic to succeed. I remember Fnord telling me to shoot for 1500 hands/day. I could not muster 3 hours of grinding/day, and I’m not sure I’d be any more successful today despite having greater discipline and awareness of what it takes to make it as an online pro.

The zero sum aspect of full time poker – your financial gain means someone’s financial loss – is the classic explanation for why poker is a bad way to spend one’s time. I remember Pokerroomace, a former poster on FTR, had moved up to 1kNL before this moral argument became too powerful for him and he [mostly] stopped playing. These days I think this is a weak justification for not playing poker. Here’s an excerpt from former Leggo poster Somnius that debunks it nicely:

Another common mindset held by poker players and others alike, is that taking other people’s money while contributing nothing tangible in the direct exchange is a vice. An understandable grievance, it’s hard not to feel that way even a little bit sometimes. But to cast such an opinion is almost to say the value of the exchange is only realized in the exchange itself, the direct transaction the end in itself. This is simply not true. Sure, many capitalist transactions allow all parties material gain, but many don’t. When they don’t, another instrument of justification is usually applied, i.e. entertainment value. I’ve seen that used in this poker debate, definitely applicable. Nevertheless, my main submission is that it doesn’t even matter, the exchange is not the end.

To paraphrase, not all market exchanges produce winners on both sides. Poker is not unique in that sense. He goes on to remind us that the fish are playing poker to have a good time, and so long as you haven’t been a jerk you have contributed to their enjoyment of playing. The end result of the exchange does not represent the entire value of the exchange.

The zero sum nature of poker isn’t my greatest concern. Whether or not I should be contributing more to my friends, and more generally to society, is what bothers me the most. When I look back on how I spent my time in my 20’s, will I be satisfied that so much of it was spent in such a self serving way? Yet I struggle to think of an alternative to poker that is attractive as well as viable. Besides the lolmilitary, I’ve never heard of an ‘exciting, well paying and fulfilling’ job that was hiring young adults without a college degree. I don’t want to join a monastery or move to Africa to deal with the overwhelming poverty and hunger either. I’m not so selfless as to leave my blessings untapped. I do volunteer in my home community, which in the past has helped alleviate moral guilt that stemmed from being a serious poker player.

In the day to day sense I’d say online poker has proven over time to be a practical way to spend my time, since I make a little money and – in the best moments – challenge my brain to think creatively and under pressure. These are unquestionably good things. I just don’t know what I might be missing in the long term.

YouTube - Jesus Christ Was An Only Child - Modest Mouse

Nice post Vi.

you mention that there are limited opportunities for ‘exciting, well paying and fulfilling’ job that was hiring young adults without a college degree.

So has the notion of going to school for anything crossed your mind? In general, I've had quite a few ppl ask me if they should drop out/quit school in favour of poker. I'm pretty biased, and have endured way too much school, but regardless I think its valuable. If for nothing else than leaving your doors open in the future. Though, at the end of the day, I'm pretty sure none of any advice I can give will be able to convince someone in their early 20's coming off a $20k month to spend their time reading a text book they aren't interested in.

Vi, your post has highlighted some of the things that I have pondered about in the past. Very interesting.

In the interests of full aussification have you started watching Aussie Rules or cricket yet?

griff - I'm 3 semesters away from getting my bachelor's in Environmental Studies. I have aspirations of attending grad school mostly because I think doing so will offer me the most stimulating/lucrative job opportunities.

nakamura - I've got caught highlights of Aussie rules football but haven't been to a game or anything. I played cricket once and caught it on TV several times. The first time I saw it I had no idea wtf was going on so I've come a long ways I also saw an unfamiliar version of women's basketball where they don't dribble and can't take steps when they're holding the ball.

Poker wise, the first two days of March have sucked. I have at least stuck to my plan of stopping after losing $600. My BR is back down to 8k, so no more 200nl for a while. I've mostly been running bad, and of course made a couple minor errors while playing. I take some comfort in the fact I would be a lot more pissed off if I had continued to play and kept running bad, as that probably would've made me play worse and hurt the bankroll even more.

griff - I'm 3 semesters away from getting my bachelor's in Environmental Studies. I have aspirations of attending grad school mostly because I think doing so will offer me the most stimulating/lucrative job opportunities.

I've got an environmental science degree under my belt as well as a botany 4th year hons. Good stuff, but not a lot of money in the environmental side.

I also saw an unfamiliar version of women's basketball where they don't dribble and can't take steps when they're holding the ball.

You are referring to netball, it's a womans only sport. It's pretty lame if you ask me. I used to be basketballer though. I think I lost all my skillz though as it's been a while since I picked up a basketball.

Great great post Vi-Zero. Tons of good honest stuff in there.

Originally Posted by Nakamura

I've got an environmental science degree under my belt as well as a botany 4th year hons. Good stuff, but not a lot of money in the environmental side. .

unless you get into the environmental planning side of mining etc? or heaps of other stuff.

Originally Posted by daven

unless you get into the environmental planning side of mining etc?

Perhaps, but this isn't an industry I would want to work in. I think the environment is an afterthought in a lot of mining operations. Plus where I come from people are paid meager salaries to work in extremely hazardous conditions. We mine a lot of diamonds and gold, but there are also a lot of mining accidents every year. From my point of view, I don't agree with a lot of the ethics, especially when we can accurately replicate some of the minerals with a high degree of skill.

I'm actually going to get to the gym tomorrow. I also need to stop eating so much pizza. On the culinary upside I actually cooked a steak yesterday.

After an ugly start, I'm resolved to get March back on the right track. It's time for a sub operation; grind 100nl exclusively for at least the next 10k hands. After evaluating how that went, possibly extend the grind to 30k hands. My database confirms 2011 has so far been swingy, and it has a lot to do with my winrate -- 0.33BB/100 at 100/200nl over 66k hands. The variance and mental anguish that came with it inspired me to definitively prove I'm a solid winning player at 100nl.

Day 1
Volume: 2528 hands
Profit: +228.85
Grand Total: +228.85

I had a pretty uneventful day away from poker so I'll spare you the details. However I have been reading an excellent book called Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintanence so I'll dedicate some space to that instead!

Here is an excerpt from the book I found especially applicable to dedicated online poker players:

'The internal gumption trap of ego. Ego isn't entirely separate from value rigidity but one of the many causes of it.

If you have a high evaluation of yourself then your ability to recognize new facts is weakened. Your ego isolates you from the Quality reality. When the facts show that you've just goofed, you're not as likely to admit it. When false information makes you look good, you're likely to believe it. On any mechanical repair job ego comes in for rough treatment. You're always being fooled, you're always making mistakes, and a mechanic who has a big ego to defend is at a terrific disadvantage.'

'... Boredom is the next gumption trap that comes to mind. This is the opposite of anxiety and commonly goes with ego problems. Boredom means you're off the Quality track, you're not seeing things freshly, you've lost your "beginner's mind" and your motorcycle [bankroll] is in great danger. Boredom means your gumption supply is low and must be replenished before anything else is done.

When you're bored, stop! Go to a show. Turn on the TV. Call it a day. Do anything but work on that machine. If you don't stop, the next thing that happens is the Big Mistake, and then all the boredom plus the Big Mistake combine together in one Sunday punch to knock all the gumption out of you and you are really stopped.'


Poker Maths, 2011

Last month I cleared 20k VPPs over ~100 hours. If I clear 200 VPP an hour and am aiming for 200k VPP this year, I should plan to play ~1000 total hours of poker this year or about 3 hours/day. That hourly VPP rate is a conservative estimate and may be closer to 250 VPP/hr, meaning I might not need to play 1000 hours this year to meet my goal.

I already received one 4k bonus this year, but it doesn't really count on this years profits since I earned 90% of the FPPs needed in 2010. However I expect to earn two more 4k bonuses in 2011, and ~3.5k in Stellar Rewards. This comes out to ~11.5k in projected bonus money. This is also a conservative estimate since I will earn FPPs in 2011 that I don't apply towards a bonus this year.

In summary, a conservative estimate of the value of my time grinding in 2011 -- assuming I at least break even over the course of the year -- is $11.50/hour. I'm hoping through improving my game/permanently moving up to 200nl I can substantially add to this hourly rate.


Day 2
Volume: 2519 hands
Profit: +002.90
Grand Total: +231.75

ugh, was up 4.5BI at two separate points during this 4 hour session. I badly misplayed two hands which makes it even worse, the worst one being AK<AA when I foolishly 4bet a fish. There were loads of reg-fish and full on donks at the tables tonight and I returned all my profits... and that's a shame. Back at it tomorrow!

Here's one of my favorite songs by one of my favorite bands:

YouTube - Dr. Dog - Ain't It Strange

nice post

yes! zen the art of motorcycle maintenance!

I just watched your video Vi. You put together some quality stuff on there when you talked through a few hands. But the whole thing was very distracting for me and I had to go back a few times to listen to what you were saying. Your table skin, and settings would drive me to drink if I had to play poker on that.

Can I ask you a couple things, because maybe you do them for a reason I have never thought about.

-Why not a 4 colour deck?
-Why such an ugly table and background, they are too busy and distracting to the eye?
-Why do you have some image blocking the pot size, and not have the bet amounts placed under the chips to make things easier to see instead of always having to mouse over pots?
-Also, so much overlap, do you always play with the tables that big and that much overlap? I think you missed the fact that at about 34 1/2 mins, you had a double gutter vs fish charly with 96o on a 753 rainbow. He bet $3 into $2.50 limped pot on the flop with 40BB's behind and you snap folded??
-and lastly, why do you have the tourney announcements still turned on, having Stars non-stop popups over the board cards and further cluttering up the table would drive me insane.

I may be just getting old and can't focus as well as I used to, but even reading this post here

http://www.flopturnriver.com/pokerfo...ml#post2013070

Bikes agrees with me that it's all about comfort and ease of use.

thanks for the suggestions jyms, I'm looking to make any changes that make grinding more comfortable. I played around with the stars software this morning and made several modifications that should make the viewing experience easier on the eyes/mind. As for the deck/table skin I switch them whenever I get bored of the one I'm using -- I like the classic stars table skin best but the one I used during the video is my second favorite.

I also went back and watched that part of the video. Because his bet size wasn't displayed beneath I had to watch it twice to make sure he actually bet $3. I don't think I realized I had a double gutshot and should have led out on the flop. as played c/c would also have been fine.

how do I turn off the pop up/tourney announcements?

I ate a kangaroo sandwich today. delicious!

Day 3
Volume: 1831 hands
Profit: +144.35
Grand Total: +376.1

YOU ATE OUR NATIONAL EMBLEM? nh.

lol does emu taste any good?

To Harley and everyone else I'm sorry I haven't updated with new photos. I am going on a daytrip to Rottnest Island next Saturday so I'll def have a photo update soon. I can't get my roommates to let me take a picture of them either which has complicated the whole 'get pics for FTR blog' thing.

btw I found out how to turn off tourney announcements so now my setup is full on legit. As soon as I have lunch I'm gonna record a session. Cheers!

i've never eaten an emu, personally.

well I'll keep an eye out for the opportunity

Day 4
Volume: 801 hands
Profit: -442.60
Grand Total: -66.5

Not as bad a session as it might appear. Granted I made some small mistakes due to lack of concentration, but no big pot blunders today. Mostly I'm disappointed because I would have liked to put in more volume today. On the plus side I stopped playing when I started to get frustrated and in doing so stuck to my stop loss goal. There may be a small SNG session in the works for later tonight since I have a little breathing room before I reach -600 on the day. I also recorded another video today and think the commentary was even better than the first one.

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It looks like I'll extend my 100nl grind operation to 30k hands since I've caught myself auto piloting and making fairly obvious mistakes in big pots.

Right now I'm enjoying some solitude and listening to Norah Jones after a great day. I railed part of the Sunday Million and it was a blast; just imagining what it would be like to have been playing was a thrill. Unfortunately in Western Australia the tourney starts at 5:30am on monday and I have a morning class that day, so I'll only be experiencing the tournament vicariously for the foreseeable future.

I played one $20 tourney today while I was railing and that was it for poker. I finally got to the gym today and that helped rekindle my motivation to continue my conditioning. They've got loads of exercise bikes, and my tentative goal is to bike 100km in a single session by the end of the month. today I biked 16km in 32 mins and did some lifting, 130x5.

I spent the night out in the lounge talking with my roommates and listening to jazz. It was very chill.

This album is finished and so am I. More poker tomorrow.

Day 5
Volume: 1182 hands
Profit: +86.35
Grand Total: +19.85

I played pretty well today, mostly in the sense I didn't spew in any sizable pots. I was on my A game as far as hand reading goes, and when I'm reading ranges well logging hands is far more enjoyable.

Although it's pretty maddening when this happens:

PokerStars Game #58860508252: Hold'em No Limit ($0.50/$1.00 USD) - 2011/03/08 8:39:13 CT [2011/03/08 9:39:13 ET]
Table 'Balaton VIII' 6-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: VI-Popsmak ($100.50 in chips)
Seat 2: KASPAROV77 ($185.50 in chips)
Seat 3: sansibar31 ($49.60 in chips)
Seat 4: felipecv ($196.85 in chips)
Seat 5: MoTakTeng ($125.55 in chips)
Seat 6: money=honeyy ($33.15 in chips)
sansibar31: posts small blind $0.50
felipecv: posts big blind $1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to VI-Popsmak [Kh Ah]
MoTakTeng: folds
money=honeyy: raises $1.50 to $2.50
VI-Popsmak: calls $2.50
KASPAROV77: folds
sansibar31: calls $2
felipecv: folds
*** FLOP *** [Ad 6s 2s]
sansibar31: checks
money=honeyy: checks
VI-Popsmak: bets $5.50
sansibar31: calls $5.50
money=honeyy: folds
*** TURN *** [Ad 6s 2s] [4h]
sansibar31: checks
VI-Popsmak: bets $12.50
sansibar31: raises $29.10 to $41.60 and is all-in
VI-Popsmak is disconnected
VI-Popsmak has timed out while disconnected
[Vi-Popsmak frantically pages moderators because his other tables are running again but this one isn't]
VI-Popsmak: folds
[Vi-Popsmak ]
Uncalled bet ($29.10) returned to sansibar31
sansibar31 collected $42.35 from pot

I emailed support. As it was their software that created the problem, not my internet connection -- and knowing stars support is the nuts -- I'm optimistic this will get resolved favorably and in a timely fashion.

Brag/Teachable Moment: Here's a hand I think I played really well. Flatting the turn is better than raising because if I raise villain will only go all in with AA/sets/A3/78, which is 25% of his turn barreling range at the most. Note that by flatting the turn my range becomes heavily weighted towards 99-JJ/pair+draw. By just calling the turn villain can value bet most rivers with overpairs OR river TP and mistakenly bet it for value OR bluff with a missed draw.

PokerStars No-Limit Hold'em, $1.00 BB (6 handed) - PokerStars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

saw flop | saw showdown

BB ($100)
UTG ($208.80)
MP ($118.10)
Hero (CO) ($102.80)
Button ($108.30)
SB ($101.65)

Preflop: Hero is CO with A, 3
1 fold, MP bets $3, Hero calls $3, 3 folds

Flop: ($7.50) 4, 6, 5 (2 players)
MP bets $5, Hero calls $5

Turn: ($17.50) 2 (2 players)
MP bets $12, Hero calls $12

River: ($41.50) K (2 players)
MP bets $31, Hero raises to $82.80 (All-In), MP calls $51.80

Total pot: $207.10 | Rake: $3

Results:
MP had K, 8 (one pair, Kings).
Hero had A, 3 (straight, six high).
Outcome: Hero won $204.10


I watched a documentary on Liberian women and how they organized to help heal their country from the raping and pillaging committed by the country's men in the early 2000's. I followed up that happy film by catching the news, which was featuring Libya and its refugees. Thanks television, I've returned to feeling mellow.

DISCLAIMER: I love Allison Krauss and Union Station, so don't click on this link if you aren't into bluegrass. I grew up listening to them which makes the music all the more appealing . Anyways this song has cheered me up greatly more than once and so it must be chronicled in the blog.

(Song was played at a 'Poker Party' in the early nineties. I wonder what the rest of the show was like?)

YouTube - Allison Krauss & Union Station - Heaven's Bright Shore

Yeah nh. Raising the turn there would be real amateurish considering you have the NFD and villain folds everything but made hands.

No poker yesterday and probably none tonight. Yesterday I was sick and today was mostly about real life business, all of which went very smoothly. I'm not really in the mood to play today anyways, and with 37k VPPs I'm not way off pace for 200k VPPs on the year. Grinding so much the last couple weeks of February and the first days of March has given me a slight case of burnout. This weekend I'll put in ~10k hands at 100nl and do some catching up.

I'm finalizing a staking agreement with my most promising RL poker friend so he can play 25nl. I'm confident it's going to be a big win for both of us, so long as he doesn't have a death run over the next 50k hands!

I biked 30km and ran 9km tonight at the gym in just over two hours, which is better than I had expected. My goal is by the end of March to be able to sustain 3.5 hours of moderate physical activity in a combination of biking/running (45km/15km imo). If I can add 1.5 hours per month I'll be up to 9 hours by the end of June, and reasonably prepared to complete an Iron Man. The bulk of my swimming training may have to wait until I get back to the States, but if I have worked on the other two portions it won't be too difficult to get into good swimming shape in a month's time. We'll see how that plays out.

School is done until Monday, the weather is perfect, my responsibilities are taken care of... sick life I owe it all to my parents and to the random nature of the universe which has strangely given me everything I need and more.

YouTube - the flaming lips its summertime