SplitSuit - "GrindCore"

May 10 - I'm moving...

2009-05-10T05:58:00.002-04:00

...to another blog place =) I finally put wordpress on my splitsuit.com website, so I will be moving this blog over there so I can consolidate info+blog. So I will be done posting here, and you can follow me right over to www.splitsuit.com and enjoy the new site with me =)

And for those that read me through RSS, I have a new feed address:

http://feeds2.feedburner.com/SplitSuit

See ya'll on the flip!

*SS*

May 7 - In Vegas!

2009-05-07T16:53:00.002-04:00

So I finally got to Vegas a day ago. I did 13 hours of driving on the Monday, and then finished up the last 12 hours of driving on the Tuesday. The drive wasn't that bad actually. Most of the trucks minded their lane, and my car has no real issues. I still had to putter through Colorado and parts of Utah because my car doesn't agree with the altitude there, but it managed. I did just about all my driving during the day while listening to the greatest playlist so I got some really good views of Utah, Arizona, and Colorado. It's not really stuff that you can take pictures of, it's something you really have to experience. So I suggest it for anyone who likes scenery like that...

So got set up yesterday, and started working as well. I am such a workaholic sometimes. I actually had lots of time to think about business stuff while I was driving, so I've been working at getting some of my ideas on paper and doing some deeper research. We have a few good ones to roll with, so we'll see what comes of it.

Other things...I plan on redo-ing the splitsuit.com website. I want it to be easier to do on the backend (although you probably think not many things happen because it only changes a few times a month, it's a pain to do). So I will probably get started on that sometime soon, so if you notice the site is down, that is why and I appologize in advance. Also related to my site, I finally had my 5,000th unique visitor. Now, this is a very small site so having 5K unique people visit it is really cool to me. So hopefully you all are enjoying it =)

Oh, an odd story before I wrap this up. I was in Colorado after having driven straight through from Chicago (about 13 hours or so) and it was getting dark so I decided to pull off at a stop and get a nap in. So this was at about 11p, and when I got set up in my area, there was only a semi-truck with me. So I woke up at 2a, and I should note that my car is facing the curb which is overlooking a forest full of trees. It was also about 30*F, so I turned my car on to get some heat before figuring out if I wanted to drive more or nap more. About 3 minutes later a car comes into the rest stop (the headlights do not look like a cop car) and pulls directly behind me, trapping me in. I get fucking paranoid (rightfully so in the middle of no where, just waking up, and by myself right?) and immediately grab my knife. I thought for sure I was getting robbed. About 4 minutes later (I've been trapped in this whole time and debating whether or not I want to ram this car and gtfo) this cop comes up to my window and we have a 2 minute conversation before he leaves (and I never did anything more than open my window about an inch). Scary shit when you are still groggy and paranoid as hell. For anyone that ever gets in this situation, make sure you don't open your door and keep your car running.

So that was my excitement on the road. And on that note, I'm going back to work. Hope all is well with everyone!

*SS*

May 3 - Goal Recap and Travel Update

2009-05-03T12:28:00.000-04:00

Ok, so because I have been traveling I have been lazy on the blog thing. Lo siento. So here is my goals/recap and also what is going on post.

Goals for April:

[x] 2 new students
[x] 80 hours of work (I will be on vacation for about a week this month)
[_] Write more of my book
[_] 1 new video for my site
[x] Produce 1 new song
[/] Launch this website and maybe the next one
[_] Get up to 175 push-ups/day

So did some of my goals for April. Though I will admit that I was pretty lazy the last half because of packing and prepping for my trip. I got in my car on Friday afternoon and started my trip. Went to Syracuse for dinner, which turned into a 4 hour dinner at Fuji (the best/worst Chinese/Japanese buffet ever), and then got back on the road. My ability to drive long distances has seemingly disappeared sadly. I almost wanted to take a nap about 3 hours into my trip (lol). So did Cuse, then drove out...didn't even get through NY before taking a nap. Though to my defense it was terrible rain and construction and I was having a hard time seeing, so I figured sleeping through that would be beneficial.

Did that, slept for 2hrs, jumped back on the road, and then feel asleep another hour later (night driving is not my thing at all). Did a 2hr nap, woke up when the sun was out, and then did a straight push out to Chicago (about 9 hours). Did dinner with my friend, slept at her place, and then got a shower. Have plans for lunch with some highschool friends and then i'll get going again and hopefully get to Nebraska before night. I am about ½ way to Vegas right now, and excited to be done driving. Almost there!

Other than driving, I have been getting some action on my stake. Have about 4 offers right now, and will hopefully be able to make a decision by Friday. Feels good to know that I can get staked if need be just in case anything ever goes wrong in the future. So hopefully you will all see me playing some bigger live games in Vegas in the near future =)

Alright, on that note, I need to get some food and then start doing things. Hope all is well!

*SS*

April 28 - Almost time for Vegas!

2009-04-28T21:05:00.002-04:00

So for some odd reason I decided to pile a bunch of stuff on my plate before I left, so I have been pretty busy since I got back. I scheduled a bunch of students this week so I have been very busy coaching. Feels pretty good actually since I didn't do any coaching while I was on vacation, so no complaints really. Have 5 more sessions booked and then I'm packing and leaving for Vegas. I will try to pack a bit lighter than I did for my trip last year, but when I am moving I tend to pack pretty heavy. O well...I'm a life nit.

Actually have gotten some really good poker theory stuff done lately. I wrote my paper for 2p2 and posted it. It seemed to get pretty good results, though it seemed people wanted to bicker about a point that was made as an example, lol. O well, if it even helps just 3% of people who read it I will be happy with it. Also had a coaching session today that was just an hour of poker theory and situations, which was a lot of fun. I like being able to add in that session along with sweats, classroom, etc, so my brain has been in overload lately with poker theory, not that that is the worst of things.

So being my brain has been on fullblast lately I am trying to come up with some new business ideas. I have a few though they are following a model that isn't well equipped to make $1M in 2 years...so I am looking at some other things. I may take advantage of some smaller projects that can do residual income of like $2-$5K/mo, require minimal work, and give me lots of time to focus on a cornerstone project. I really just need cost of living taken care of so I can work on something big. I know a ton of people my age say they don't want to work past 30, but I really think I have the capacity for it...so fingers crossed.

On a very unrelated note...I am looking for a live stake in Vegas for the 'series. I am very flexible to contracts, meetings, deals, etc...but I would like a 2/5nl or 5/10nl stake if possible. Feel free to email at splitsuit@gmail.com. I can provide all the references and stat sheets you'd like.

Hope all is well everyone!

*SS*

April 24 - Vacation recap

2009-04-24T15:07:00.000-04:00

Well I really wanted to get a blog post done every day I was on vacation, I however failed miserably, lol. So let's recap by day:

Tuesday:

Woke up at an unGodly 6:30a...snoozed it until about 7a, and then went into rush-mode to ensure I had everything together. Put on massive amounts of sunscreen, smashed a bagel in my mouth, and ran down to the dock to ensure I got on the 7:30a catamaran. Ended up being myself, my sister, her friend, my mom and Ray. We boarded, went over to customs (the catamaran went from the US to the British side of the Virgin Islands, so we had to declare that), loaded up another 25 people, and then headed out.

The catamaran was pretty cool actually. For those that don't know (and I didn't either before getting on one) a catamaran is a two hull ship (see the pix). So we drove out for about 45 minutes and then anchored up for about an hour for some snorkeling. The water was pretty rough going against current (which of course you had to do to see things that were worthwhile)...but I managed. Saw some more awesome fish, another jellyfish (though no stings this time!) and another turtle. However this turtle did not seem very happy, so I left him alone. Boarded the boat again and started over to Foxy's (some bar/shop place). (I got lost looking for a bathroom and ended up behind a restaurant, and randomly ran into a donkey. I laughed so hard when I saw it (given the picture from the previous post) that I had to take some pix...donkeys are funny)

Did that for a half hour, re-loaded, and then took another 45min ride to a place called “The Soggy Dollar Bar”...well named actually because there are no docks so you have to park your boat and then swim about 30 yards to get to it...so your money is quite wet when you get in. I am very fortunate that I have learned to swim over the last year a bit better and I didn't struggle too badly getting in. It would have sucked if I couldn't swim in, lol

Grabbed a quick lunch (flying fish sandwich ftw), took an hour swim, and got back on the boat to head home. When stopping through customs I was actually embarrassed. The US customs agents there are just compete assholes. To think that that is the first thing someone entering the US might encounter is just disgraceful. So got back in, have some new stamps on my passport, and got a nice buzz from the all day open-bar on the trip.

Got back to the hotel, did dinner, and passed out pretty quickly. Now, I'm not sure if I have mentioned this before, but I often times wear a write brace for my carpal tunnel symptoms. So I put it on before I went to bed not even thinking that this could be bad.

Wednesday:

Wake up nice and late (10a), get a quick shower, and realize that my hand has turned a funny color (and I'm colorblind, so being able to see this color is impressive). Turns out when you mix mild sun-burn, salt water, and a hand brace, that your skin hates you. So my hand was in hellish pain and is like this bright purple while being swollen as hell. Damn skin!

So get some sunscreen on, get the family ready, and jump down to the dock to catch a boat over to St. Thomas (the “main” island from what I could tell) for shopping and lunch (the shopping is pretty cheap because of the duty-free stuff). So got to St. Thomas about 45min later, took a quick taxi over to the shopping center, and went nuts.

They have this huge section under a tent that has a whole bunch of local artists' work and crap like T-shirts. I ended up buying a picture I liked (I like supporting local art when given the chance to do so), some T-shirts, and then realized there were a ton of jewelry stores. So I spent the next 2 hours practicing my negotiation techniques (the best I got was 60% off a decent watch, but I didn't want it...I just wanted to negotiate, lol). Finally found a Rado dealer, and ended up buying a 20BI watch because I feel I can either flip it for a 10+BI profit, or enjoy the crap out of it. I'm an absolute watch whore, so I was very smitten with my purchase.

Did lunch (swordfish sandwich ftw) with my sister's friend's family who were down there for the day on a cruise. Then walked around a bit longer, the girls got their hair beaded, and we went back to the hotel on the 5:15p boat.

It was the 22nd, which is my brother's birthday, so we celebrated that (awkward to celebrate a passed sibling's birthday) with a dinner of his favorite foods and birthday cake. Everyone passed out pretty quickly afterwards and being that it was 10:30p I watched Oceans 12 and then the Jimmy Fallon show before passing out. Btw, I was amazed that Jimmy Fallon has a show. His opening monologue, besides being about 1/3rd the time of Jay Leno's, was horrendous. It reminded me of watching an awkward moments reel of The Office or something...minimal applause, and a whole lot of forced smiling just trying to get through it. I never liked him on SNL that much, and really just felt bad for his show.

Thursday:

Get up at 7:30a to go jet-skiing. Accidentally hit the snooze and sleep through it, and then get up finally at 9:30a. Get some breakfast in me, get a few screw drivers as well, and get to the airport at 11:30a for my 3p flight (the boat system isn't very convenient like that). So ended up finishing the paper I wanted to write for 2p2, read some more of my SEO book, and just relaxed. Get to Philly after a 4hr flight, grab a quick bite and wait for my 8:50p flight to Providence, RI. My stupid ass thought my ticket said gate A2, and I was very confused when at 8:20p there was no one sitting in that section. Turns out my lazy ass didn't see that it was A22...and I had to high-tail it across the airport to board just as it was finishing boarding. Uneventful flight to Providence, and all is well.

Went to my friend's that night, relaxed, and got back home this morning (now Friday). Just got a shower and shave, got my office set up again, and it feels good to be back. I did realize how badly I need to start traveling more. I am traveling cross country again next week, so maybe I can make better use of that...but I certainly want to do Europe in the next year for sure. I have actually gotten some offers from students who would be happy to put me up in various locations in Europe, so maybe I will take a Europe trip and spend a few days with each student...that could be dope =)

Alright, I'm off to proof-read my paper and maybe post it today. Hope all is well with everyone!

*SS*

April 20 - St. John thus far...

2009-04-20T23:39:00.001-04:00

So in my effort to be a better blogger, I decided I would write up a quick post about vacation thus far. Got to the airport at 3:45a the other day. Waited until 4a for the ticket place to open up, then waited 30min for them to finally find my reservation. Got through security around 4:40a and then waited till 6a for my flight. Slept for the hour it took to get to DC, grabbed a quick bite, and then boarded my plane to Charlotte. Slept the 1.5h hours to get there. Waited another 1.5hrs for my flight to St. Thomas, and slept the 2 hour sleep. Sleeping through flights is awesome!

Got to St. Thomas and waited about an hour for my taxi to take me to the boat to take me to St. John. They dropped us off at the boat dock which had a bar so I grabbed a few beers before getting on the St. John boat. I'm pretty sure that I am an idiot as I broke the seal right before I jumped on the 45 minute boat ride and regretted that very much. I waddled as fast as I could off the boat and had never felt so relieved. And as soon as I was done with that I was finally able to see the awesome view that is this place. It really is something else.

Woke up early today and took a taxi down to the beach. It's pretty cool, they cut the back off of a truck and install seats and a roof. I forget the word they use for them, but they are an adventure by themselves. So drove through downtown St. John (quite a slummy place imo), around a whole bunch of hills, past some awesome views, and then finally got the beach. You know the Corona commercials with the really blue water that is see-through? Yea, that was this. Fucking gorgeous.

So swam most of the day, got a nice sun tan, and did some snorkeling. I had never snorkeled before and it was a pretty cool experience. Ended up seeing a ton of fish, got stung by baby jellyfish (which burned like hell, but at least it wasn't a big jellyfish), and saw a huge ass turtle. Did the beach until about 3p, then went down to “Woody's” (apparently a very well known restaurant) and grabbed some beer and lunch ($1 beer FTW). Got back home, and just relaxed for the rest of the day with my younger cousins (8 and 4). Took some pictures around the day that I will attach for your enjoyment. I'm waking up insanely early tomorrow (6:30a) for some boating and more snorkeling...so off to bed I go.

Hope all is well with everyone!

(also, random side note...I ordered flowers for my friend so they would be there when she finished her marathon (she ran the Boston today). I woke up to a phone call from the flower place telling me they can't deliver them because of the marathon. The woman on the phone didn't see to understand why that might be ironic)

*SS*

April 18 - Catching My Plane Soon...

2009-04-18T21:58:00.000-04:00

So I figured I would write up a quick blog post before I pack up and get out of here. I am going to St. John in a few hours and will be on a beach by tomorrow afternoon. I spent just about all day reading and prepping my iPhone (sifted through the music on my computer to pick my “best” 10GB) so I need to get to packing. But being I'm just bringing a backpack full of clothes and books and my laptop bag, there isn't too much to do.

I'm not 100% sure where my head is at recently. I've been having a hard time with the “practice” side of things. To counter-balance that I'm trying my ass off to solidify my “theory” side to ensure that I am at least doing something right. I blame this all on it being April...so hopefully I can sweat this out of my system and get my 100%grind back ASAP.

I realized I wanted to watch something on the plane when I'm traveling so I decided to DL my favorite show from Adult Swim. In case you haven't seen it before, “Perfect Hair Forever” is amazing. It's a cartoon made to completely mock anime and is hilarious in doing that. They only managed to get 6 episodes off before it got cut, but it really is 6 episodes of pure genius. Each episode is like 11 minutes, so if you get bored and want to rot your brain, YouTube it and have a blast =)

Also, I have it planned to write something for 2p2 soon. The working title is “what makes me different from you” and it will be a run down of some of the things (both tangible and intangible) that one needs in order to be LR successful at this game. It will be pretty long I would imagine, but we'll see how it flows out. If it doesn't come out natural I will scrap it, but I've been jotting down some notes all week because lots of 2p2 posts are giving me good ideas to run with.

Alright, I'm out to pack and then off to the airport. Hope all is well everyone =)

*SS*

April 15 - I am green!

2009-04-15T17:05:00.003-04:00

I am feeling much better this week. Started getting caught up on my sleep which feels amazing. I am still getting to bed way too late imo (averaging like 5am), but I am sleeping until 1p on average, so at least I am getting a decent amount of sleep. I'm also eating a bit better...I got on a really bad stint of eating fast food like 4 days a week, which is gross. So actually started eating some fruit/veggies and my body is happy about that.

For those that don't know, I became green a few days ago. Very cool to be a mod on 2p2 as I have been heavily involved in that community for the last few years (since by Sophomore year in college now that I think about it). This probably seems super nerdy to those reading that aren't 2p2r's (and hell, probably seems nerdy to even some of you =) )...but this is a really good thing for marketability. Now I am a coach on a top 3 coaching site and also a mod on the biggest poker forum. This will be big (I hope!) when I get my book finished =)

Also did about 12hrs of business work yesterday which felt sick good. We got a lot of coding and stuff done (trying to build a website from absolute scratch...which isn't easy at all for those interested) and also some more direction. I will probably have a new website off the ground by Friday so we can start testing some ad campaigns. So much to do...so much market share to capture...so good to be grinding.

I also found this artist last night, and I for some reason am going apeshit over how good he is. The first song is my favorite and the others are pretty damn good as well. Enjoy my new songs to session to =)

Alright, back to work for me. Hope all is well with everyone!

*SS*

April 12 - Happy Easter

2009-04-12T01:48:00.001-04:00

My God am I tired as hell. Got 2 hours of sleep on Thursday night, went to a poker game last night that ran until about 9am...and then only got a 2hr nap before coaching sessions. My body hates me, my brain is mush, but my damn eyes won't shut...grrrr

Went to the same game I went to last week, and went with ForGlory again. Yet another good game with a couple of massive spewtanks. And yet again I got my image ridiculously wet within 20 minutes. Ended up making a profit this time which was nice...and I think my hourly equaled out to something like $3.5/hr. Where the hell is RB when you really need it?!

Some fun hands:

I minR to $4 with AhKh, get 4 callers. Flop As 8s 4s. Checks to me and I fire $11. Get one caller (pretty much the worst aggrotard ever who plays so OMGpredictable) who covers me at $400. turn a brick 2x, he check/calls $23. I snap his river $50 on a 9x and he berates me for the next 2 hours (and I wish I were exaggerating) for calling like an idiot.

Folds around, button (villain from hand1) opens to $8 with $300. I cover and 3b to $42 with QQ, BB folds, and villain raises to $110, I snap shove and he stall calls with AK. We run it out twice, and I lose both cuz ldo. He berates me for being a fish again.

(this hand may be surprising in that the villain is yet again the same person...notice a theme here?). Folds around and button opens to $12 with $300. I cover and flat ATo from the SB. Flop is T86r. I check, he fires $20, I CR to $98 and show my A. He goes bananas and shoves after some deliberation. I snap call ldo. He shows K9 and we run it out twice. He hits his K on the first run out, and and I hold on the second. He then berates me...and claims HE is now a fish because he ran it twice and had he ran it once...he wins all the mobnies!

(same villain...I swear this was 10handed...I just had his left so I got involved in as many pots as possible with him). Folds around and he opens the CO to $7 with $200 back. I cover and call OTB with T9ss. We go HU on a J87r flop. He fires $20, I raise to $55 cuz LOLretardswitch, he calls. Turn is a 7x and we commit. I somehow hold against 73. Your shock is a fraction of my shock.

Lots of little $60 pots coming and going...but never being able to amass a large profit. I swung from down $400 to up $150 the whole night. O well...lots of fun. I did laugh because ForGlory and I were talking (we sat with the fish in between us) and I wasn't even thinking when I started talking about some coaching sessions I had lined up. Fish asks what I coach and I managed to save myself by quickly saying that I coach soccer on the side. Don't ask me why soccer was my first thought...but hey...it works =) (and for the curious parties...fish drained through about $1.5K in this game. And I think he may have been profit off me given how well he ran. He won 5/5 on coinflips on the night as well....*sigh*)

And on that note...Happy Easter everyone. Make it a good one!

*SS*

April 8 - April is suck

2009-04-08T23:53:00.000-04:00

So my head is all over the place. I think taxes finally hit me, along with all the other expenses at the same damn time. Really sucks to have to pay it all, but what are you going to do? I believe I am slipping into a slight depression because of it as well, which is the suck. O well, I am trying my best to get out of it, though I cannot say I am surprised...it is April. April has historically been my worst month for everything (financial, emotional, etc)...and although I am trying to not repeat it, it's not going well thus far.

Also, to include more flip-flopping in my life, I am going back to Vegas. I just need a change of scenery (even if I was staying in Boston I was going to get a new place anyway)...and I've heard so much good stuff about the 24/7 party that is Vegas during the WSOP. As of right this moment I am planning on leaving a few days after I get back from St. Johns (which is the week after next). Only another 45 hours in my car...I think by definition I am in a civil union with my car given how much time I spend in it =)

Got my Stox video done finally. I seriously have the worst work-induced ADHD ever. It comes out this Saturday and is another Critical Analysis format for those who are interested. I did about 18 hands in this one, and I think covered a lot of what I didn't end up getting to in the last one. So check it out if you get a chance!

Other than that, I put in a session tonight and realized that I need to put in a shitton more volume. I actually miss grinding for some odd reason. I think I am going to take 2 months this year and work 60hrs/week, and finish up my SuperNova (which I am super behind on given I wanted it by March (lol at me)). It should only take me about 300K hands (very doable in 2mo) and should net me around $26K if I run a little under expectation (which I should account for given massive hours that my body/brain is not used to). So I am unsure when that will be, but expect to see a lot of me then =)

Alright, a quick hand and then I'm going to play some Halo before passing out. Hope is all with everyone else.

(I WON A COINFLIP AIPF!!!!)

PokerStars Game #26883679336: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/04/08 22:31:49 ET

Table 'Helene VI' 9-max Seat #9 is the button

Seat 1: 7curse ($79.20 in chips)

Seat 2: selvamar ($62.60 in chips)

Seat 3: tufori ($45.40 in chips)

Seat 4: pocket A'sX2 ($31.95 in chips)

Seat 5: swissbankerr ($49.50 in chips)

Seat 6: XxaceshighxX ($50 in chips)

Seat 7: Al the Owl ($8.80 in chips)

Seat 8: Bgxxl69 ($25.50 in chips)

Seat 9: redacesfull ($23.50 in chips)

7curse: posts small blind $0.25

selvamar: posts big blind $0.50

*** HOLE CARDS ***

Dealt to 7curse [Ks As]

tufori: folds

pocket A'sX2: raises $0.50 to $1

swissbankerr: calls $1

XxaceshighxX: folds

Al the Owl: folds

Bgxxl69: calls $1

redacesfull: calls $1

7curse: raises $9 to $10

selvamar: folds

pocket A'sX2: folds

swissbankerr: raises $39.50 to $49.50 and is all-in

Bgxxl69: folds

redacesfull: folds

7curse: calls $39.50

*** FLOP *** [3h 7h 6h]

*** TURN *** [3h 7h 6h] [Ac]

*** RIVER *** [3h 7h 6h Ac] [7c]

*** SHOW DOWN ***

7curse: shows [Ks As] (two pair, Aces and Sevens)

swissbankerr: mucks [Ad Js] (two pair, Aces and Sevens)

7curse collected $99.50 from pot

*** SUMMARY ***

Total pot $102.50 | Rake $3

*SS*

April 6 - Live Poker LOL

2009-04-06T03:28:00.005-04:00

This weekend sucked so much. I am super stressed (I really can't tell you why, but my body is reacting the same way it does when I have like 2 papers due and a 2 finals on the same day)...and I'm hurting because of it. It probably doesn't help that I was running on about 12hours of sleep from Thursday to Saturday...but it is what it is.

On Friday I decided I would go play a lil live poker, as I hadn't played live in quite sometime. Went with ForGlory from 2p2 to a little 1/2NL game in the Allston area which was pretty nice. The poker room was actually pretty decent (had a dealer, security cam, felted tables, etc)...so no complaints there. But the rest of the house reminded me of my college place. I swear I may have caught AIDS from just entering the bathroom. O well...

The game wasn't bad. Got there at about 10p. Played Rummy for about a half hour waiting for a seat to open up (playing Rummy against kids who don't know basic strategy is funny)...and finally got in. Game was soft, my image got wet so quickly (not surprising), and then some fun hands came up. Sitting $300 effective I knock 44 in the BB with a few limpers. Flop 9d 4d 3x. I fire $10, 2 callers. Turn 5x, I fire $27, one caller. River 9x and I open shove...he snap calls with 97o, I LOL quite a bit while re-assuring him that “he could never fold trips” to me =)

Lost 98hh on a 8x Jh 7h ai on flop. Lost A6hh on 6x 4h 3h ai on flop. Lost AJhh on a Qh 5h 3x ai on flop. Lost K9 on a K935r (got slowrolled by bottom set, cuz wtf, why not?). Lost K7 on a K287A board. And a bunch of kicker issue type hands in smaller pots. Won a pot with another set of 4's, and that was mostly it. I think I ran about 40/30 and minR'd like a fiend. Just sucks that I never hit double draws to save my life. I swear, 12+ outs is the nuts for everyone else...now I just need to figure out how the hell to improve in that spot myself. Ended up leaving the game and was surprised to see the sun out. Grabbed a quick bite to eat with ForGlory, and got home to grab a quick nap before some coaching. (And obviously I didn't have a winning session, but minizing loss felt just as good I suppose)

Business direction changed a little bit, but not too much. Pretty much decided to take the general idea and split the business (to ensure a wider niche coverage, and again, to learn a lot). So I took over the more “artsy” side project and I hope to have the site fully laid out by next week. I just got started on the template a bit tonight, so there is lots to do...like always.

That's it for now. I need some sleep before I do some coaching and then get my Stox video finished up.

(Don't ask me why, but I love this song. Been jamming on it all weekend)

*SS*

April 2 - Recap/Goals

2009-04-02T21:28:00.002-04:00

Recap of March:

[x] 2 new students

[x] 111 hours of work

[x] Write more of my book

[x] 1 new video for my site

[_] 1 new article for my site

[_] Finish the book I started reading

[x] Produce 1 new song

[x] Get my passport for April trip

I actually feel pretty accomplished this month! Picked up around 3 students, did about 190 hours of work with everything included, and got more of my book done. My only responsibilities left are finish a video for Stox (will be released in about 2 weeks?) and upload a JH1 article to my site (very solid article imo).

The new website is coming along swimmingly! I had a few people check it out last night (thank you to those that did), and got some really good ideas going. So I actually decided to completely re-work the “frame” and did some graphics work to finish out the day. If any people that love music would like to help with the project (and it really is nothing more than sitting down and having a conversation with me), just let me know. I'll be on AIM the next few nights, so feel free to contact me there (AIM = itsriggiggity )...and we can talk it out.

I have also started taking care of myself physically much more. Nothing crazy, but doing about 100 push-ups per day and really cutting down the caloric intake (I was doing well with this awhile ago...but it started to dwindle a bit which I'm none too thrilled about). I've also started drinking more water...I've always been decent with this, averaging about 2PTs of water/day...but I'm bumping it up to about 4PTs/day. I feel much better so far...which is nice and I hope I can keep up with this.

Goals for April:

2 new students

80 hours of work (I will be on vacation for about a week this month)

Write more of my book

1 new video for my site

Produce 1 new song

Launch this website and maybe the next one

Get up to 175 push-ups/day

*SS*

March 30 - Logic v. Religion (pt. 1)

2009-03-30T23:00:00.002-04:00

Got a little lazy in updating...my fault. Quick update on things:

I have decided not to get to Vegas. I have no real desire to drive cross country again, a big part of the reason for moving was for warm weather, and there are some things here I want to pursue further first. So I will be in Boston for the summer, and am currently looking to get a place on the ocean for a few months and then re-eval at that point. Seems like a good idea to me, I get to enjoy the ocean, and no 45 hour drive =)

Business stuff is very interesting. I am really pissed still that my degree's only use is being a damn bookmark. I learned nothing from 4 years in school...or at least nothing useful for what I am doing now. I spend more hours per day trying to learn what I should have been taught in college. Seriously, in this day and age how have I not been taught Internet marketing? Pathetic...but that's what I've been doing a lot of...reading and learning.

The Askmeaboutanything.com site is doing OK right now. I still have some things to do to it before it fully goes launch...so I'm trying to get that stuff done sooner than later. I have also started another site which I hope to have done by the weekend. Websites are so easy to do, but so hard to do correctly. But about 20hrs later I have a site that I am 80% happy with...so when it's finished up I will drop a link to it. It's not really complex or anything, just another site to relax on, get some info you would like, and then go about your merry way. As much as I would like to create a 2p2 for another genre of people,...I just don't see that happening.

***(warning...rambling + stereotyping is ahead...proceed with caution if at all)***

Recent thoughts...logic. In writing my book I have been writing a little about logic, and thus have been doing quite a bit of reading and thinking on the subject. It is such an odd topic and I believe it is because people define logic in different ways. Some people think of logic strictly in terms of math problems...others in terms of philosophical issues...others like common sense...and some as a metric of intelligence. Well by definition, all of those are the truth. However, it never ceases to amaze me the thoughts people have about logic.

I read a very popular blog the other day that suggested that home schooled religious students should not be taught logic...rather their studies should focus on “the word of the Lord” and MAYBE teach some critical analysis (which is laughable because CA is actually a derivative of logic). And in reading this article (while admitting I am fully biased) I kept getting the feeling the reason they didn't want logic taught is because what logic would create in terms of future action. If you teach a child to be logical, they will grow up questioning. They will wonder why the sky is blue, they will want to know where babies come from, and they will inevitably question deeper thoughts like sociology, psychology, and of course religion. So why might these religious folk not want students being taught logic?

I'll take a wild stab and say because that same child will question religion. That same logical child will have the necessary skill-set to use clues, thoughts, and interpretations to get to a “logical assumption”. That same child will be confused and tainted for the rest of their lives. But here is an interesting thought...

Religious people, for one reason or another, tend to be very happy people. They tend to not over-think things....things just 'are' so long as there is belief. Belief keeps their lives stable, the knowing that said belief and certain actions guarantees a happy afterlife is a calming thing. But logical people...their brains will never stop. They will constantly question and rework thoughts, hypotheses, and arguments. Because logic is fairly useless in predicting the afterlife (rotting, floating, burning, or partying)...there is no “end-game” for them. Humans need an “end-game”. They feel comfort in knowing there is a beginning, a middle, and an end. Although any and all of those may be painful...psychologically it is imperative for all of those things to happen and be understood. So a religious person has a concept of beginning, middle, and end (god created, you lived, heaven/hell)...but what about a logical person?

Maybe more next time...just had the time to write this all down...enjoy and feel free to argue as you see fit. I would like to assume that I am logical...so I will shoot no thought down so long as there is reasoning behind it.

Enjoy!

*SS*

March 27 - Things are going!

2009-03-27T02:40:00.002-04:00

My God...if you have never run a website before, consider yourself lucky. It is insane how much work goes into this damn thing...and I can only image what happens when the site gets busier (fingers crossed on this ldo =) ). So the site is coming along and I am doing a bunch of work with Google Analytics and this click heatmap to understand what is going on. Lots of interesting data has already come up, so I look forward to seeing what things look like with a larger sample size.

Haven't really had time for many other things sadly. Have gotten some coaching done and ended up picking up a couple students, put in a session the other day to get a Stox video done (played 33/28...a grand style for FR =) ), and put in a few sessions of my own. I feel so sick good still while playing which is awesome, and the results are showing. I actually think I am going to try and teach my dad this game. He has started taking an interest in it and now seems like a good time (before I leave for Vegas again)...so we'll see how that pans out.

Other than that standard-ness...I have started hustling on my book again. (yea, the book I mentioned like a month ago that never got mentioned again) It's actually coming out quite well imo, and looks like it will be a bit longer than I had originally intended it to be. I am trying to be “concisely detailed” and it's proving to be quite difficult, but I am sure I can do it. I was a little discouraged to see that 2p2 has changed their status on pimping your own book...so I will need to be a little creative in this...but I have a few ideas planned out already =)

Also got my taxes done the other day. I normally would get very stressed about how much I need to ship back to the government (because LOL at thinking your money is your money)...but am strangely calm about it. I got them done at HnR Block because I am way too lazy and uneducated to do them well, which ended up costing me like $250...but was more than worth it imo. Ended up squeaking out a little under $10K in deductions and owe the government an amount I can handle. Though it feels odd to have to withdraw my entire FTP BR to pay for it, lol. O well...just brings my on-line roll from severely over-rolled to very over-rolled.

So the last few days have felt very silly in that I got all my bills (monthly, quarterly, and annuals all come in March for me) and paid all my bills. Feels like an insane amount of money, but I just keep reminding myself that it comes out to like $2/day per service. That's a nicer way of thinking about it, right? And on top of that I've started paying by phone because it's generally convenient...however, today was “put James on phone-tilt” day apparently. One woman yelled at me because I no longer live in the state I used to (even though my mailing address is where I currently live). Another told me “it's so nice to meet someone from Maine!” because the initials for my state are MA. I didn't have the heart to tell his woman she was retarded, but at least she wrote off some late charges for me (because I get charged when they screw up apparently). *sigh*

Well here are the site pimps:

www.askmeaboutanything.com

best story of the week:

http://www.askmeaboutanything.com/ask-trankuility-about-his-encounter-with-a-transexual

and site chat! For yet another place to talk all day and avoid work =) (I am “James (admin)” for those interested)

http://www.askmeaboutanything.com/chat

Enjoy!

*SS*

March 23 - SITE IS LAUNCHED!!!!

2009-03-23T02:18:00.000-04:00

So the site is launched! www.askmeaboutanything.com I am very excited to see how this week goes with people checking the site out and such. A ton of work went into this project (and more will go into it of course), but it feels good to have a “finished” product that people can use. So please check it out, enjoy it, and help it grow! (aka, contribute and/or go tell someone about it =) )

In other news, I am totally spent right now. Minimal sleep, lots of work, some coaching, and some time in Boston made me a very tired individual. I also have videos due (two to be exact) for Stox that need to get finished up and shipped over. I've done a lot of vids for Stox lately, so I'm assuming they are liking me as a FR coach. Always nice to have your content validated by people in powerful places. So be on the lookout for a 100% LPvpip video and also another Critical Analysis video.

Poker sessions have been very limited because of all the other activity, but I hope to pound in some sessions in the next 2 weeks. Chris (my friend and business partner) and I will be working on getting another project off the ground starting at some point this week (the work never stops, lol)...so I hope to find some time around that to get grinding. I am super motivated still, which is a great feeling and I hope it continues throughout the year.

Unrelated to poker and work I went to the doctors the other day for a physical (it had been awhile since I had one). Pretty damn healthy despite a few bumps in the road (like carpal tunnel symptoms at the grand age of 22), however I was unable to get adderall like I had hoped. Now I have to schedule an appointment with another lady, who will charge me to simply call my counselor, get the OK, and then write me a prescription. Why can't they just make my life easy and give it to me while I'm at the doctors? O well.

Alright...I'm stupid tired. Enjoy the site and if you have any suggestions or comments, just fire away either here, or send me an email (james@askmeaboutanything.com)

Hope all is well!

*SS*

March 19 - New Song!

2009-03-19T23:12:00.001-04:00

Almost the weekend! The week hasn't really even been very strenuous but it has seemed to drag on. Just one of “those weeks”. Have been very motivated but haven't been able to focus in the slightest, which sucks a ton. There is nothing worse than wanting to hustle hard but not being to able to because you have so much to do you can't get one project started. O well...it happens.

Actually decided to spend sometime last night and start a new song. I believe it was one of my goals for the month, so I figured I'd crack at least one open. Was very frustrated after the first hour and couldn't get anything working, but then I found an awesome acapella from Adam Freeland and got working. I thought a simple background with some synth mix-up would work well with it (kind of like Massive Attack's “I Against I”). It is very much a work in progress...but any suggestions are more than welcome!

Other than that, we've decided to launch the site on Monday rather than end of the month. I will drop the link on Sunday night when I post again and you can go run rampant on the new site! I am really hoping it goes pretty smoothly, but you never know until it actually goes 100% live...so fingers crossed.

Just wanted to put a quick update up...more next time =)

PokerStars Game #26045276619: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/03/16 22:39:27 ET
Table 'Merope' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: FXF1 ($67.15 in chips)
Seat 2: awtiger ($47.75 in chips)
Seat 3: 7curse ($50 in chips)
Seat 4: gaizka46 ($49.15 in chips)
Seat 6: lonerydr44 ($70 in chips)
Seat 7: amosone ($9.50 in chips)
Seat 8: dellfc019 ($38.80 in chips)
Seat 9: jameric2 ($19.50 in chips)
gaizka46: posts small blind $0.25
lonerydr44: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [4d 6d]
amosone: calls $0.50
dellfc019: folds
jameric2: folds
FXF1: folds
awtiger: folds
7curse: calls $0.50
gaizka46: folds
WyeKnott1 has returned
lonerydr44: checks
*** FLOP *** [4c 2s 8h]
lonerydr44: bets $1.50
amosone: folds
amosone is sitting out
7curse: calls $1.50
*** TURN *** [4c 2s 8h] [6c]
lonerydr44: bets $3.50
7curse: raises $5 to $8.50
lonerydr44: raises $5 to $13.50
7curse: calls $5
*** RIVER *** [4c 2s 8h 6c] [Kd]
lonerydr44: bets $14.50
7curse: calls $14.50
*** SHOW DOWN ***
lonerydr44: shows [2c 9h] (a pair of Deuces)
7curse: shows [4d 6d] (two pair, Sixes and Fours)
7curse collected $57.80 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $60.75 | Rake $2.95

*SS*

March 16 - OMGOMGOMG...I a whole session!

2009-03-16T23:31:00.000-04:00

So work is finally starting to slow down a tad. The site is pretty close to done, I just need a little more content (wink wink to anyone who can write about themselves for 20 seconds =) ), and it feels awesome. Everyone who has seen is so far seemed to like the layout and overall feel of it all, which I'm happy about since I spent so many damn hours messing with it.

I actually just got done putting in a session which felt awesome. Always helps that I had a winning one, but most sessions I'm putting in this year have been that way. I suppose this new laptop came pre-loaded with the luckbox fully engaged. But all the coaching I have been doing is very obvious when I'm sitting at the tables now. I actually talk through my decisions like a student was with me and I'm squeaking out a few extra BB per hand. My sizing feels sick right now and I feel like I'm reading frequencies much better than I was a few months ago. Or maybe I'm just getting on the right side of my frequency reads a little bit...either/or

Spent most of this weekend down in Boston which was a good time. Nice to be getting out more to mix up the monotony of grindcore. Might be going up to NH this weekend to hangout with some old friends from highschool, but we'll see how that goes. I'm tired as hell, have stuff all week, and have a doc appointment on Friday (checkup + get Adderall). Also just looked at the calendar and didn't realize tax day was coming up so soon...I might just take care of all that tomorrow. And by take care of that...I mean have someone else do it for me because mine are super confusing =)

That's it for me tonight. I'm going to play a lil Halo3 and then pass out. Hope everything is well with everyone, and fingers crossed for my Uncle.

PokerStars Game #26045379532: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/03/16 22:43:01 ET
Table 'Spica VI' 9-max Seat #5 is the button
Seat 1: Staphmaster ($50 in chips)
Seat 2: cko32007 ($37.55 in chips)
Seat 3: dsrowqf ($46.05 in chips)
Seat 4: maximStgt ($24.65 in chips)
Seat 5: Project wise ($62.35 in chips)
Seat 6: acemercer ($46.85 in chips)
Seat 7: 7curse ($54.60 in chips)
Seat 8: bblade195 ($63.30 in chips)
Seat 9: johan75a ($61.75 in chips)
acemercer: posts small blind $0.25
7curse: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Tc Qh]
bblade195: folds
johan75a: calls $0.50
Staphmaster: calls $0.50
cko32007: folds
dsrowqf: folds
maximStgt: folds
Project wise: folds
acemercer: folds
7curse: checks
*** FLOP *** [9c 2s Jc]
7curse: bets $1.50
johan75a: folds
Staphmaster: raises $3.50 to $5
7curse: calls $3.50
*** TURN *** [9c 2s Jc] [5c]
7curse: checks
Staphmaster: bets $8
7curse: raises $41.10 to $49.10 and is all-in
Staphmaster: calls $36.50 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [9c 2s Jc 5c] [8d]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
7curse: shows [Tc Qh] (a straight, Eight to Queen)
Staphmaster: mucks [2d 2h] (three of a kind, Twos)
7curse collected $97.75 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $100.75 | Rake $3

*SS*

March 12 - Site is coming along!

2009-03-12T23:29:00.001-04:00

Still grinding away on this site. Launch set for 2 weeks at an absolute maximum, and we've been hustling to get this thing done. For those that have helped me testtrack it so far, thank you very much! It has been very helpful getting feedback from various sources, and I think that will reflect nicely in the finished product. I have learned so much already from this experience that I look forward to putting this new found skill-set to work in my next project (you didn't think I was done, did you?)

So now that many people have testtracked the site, I am looking for people to help me fill the site up =) If you have any interest in writing an article about something makes you unique (a skill you have, something you've done, etc) then please let me know. This can be great marketing for those of you in music/art and also a great outlet just to tell some people about yourself. So if it interests you at all, just email me at splitsuit@gmail.com, thnk you =)

I haven't really had much time to put in sessions which has been very annoying. I am super motivated right now and using all that energy towards the site which won't show a return for some time. O well, at least I'm doing other things. Still coaching and making another video for Stox (coming out at the end of the month) and then building the ground-floor to build a nice income later. Hustle now and relax later.

I also decided I'm going to back to Vegas. Probably around May. I wanted to be out there for the series anyway, and I there are lots of positives to being back there. So back in the car and back on the road we go =) I will be back in Boston for my sister's graduation and birthday in June, and will re-eval Vegas after 3 months to see where I stand on that front.

2 things as I wrap up:

1.) Congrats to Frank Calo! I knew this kid from back at 'Cuse, and it's always nice to see another's success.

2.) In finding some new music I came across this gem.

This guy is awesome! Instantly DL'd all his albums and am really impressed. A very nice sound and even better message...I hope this brings hip hop back (note: hip hop is NOT rap).

And that's all from me...enjoy!

*SS*

March 9 - My weekend...

2009-03-09T02:16:00.004-04:00

Still busy as hell with everything, but still enjoying the hell out of it. I improved my CSS knowledge ten fold today when I learned about this “Inspect Element” in Google Chrome (nice browser for those that don't use it). So I managed to get my new site to do effectively what I want it to do (not 100% perfect, but close enough that I'm more than thrilled with it), and am going to bed happy to that I finally figured it out!

This week will be super busy. I want a test track of the site ready by Friday at the latest. I am planning on test tracking it for about a week and then taking all the feedback and making any necessary fixtures. If you have interest in walking through the site for me, and wouldn't mind giving me feedback and such on it, just email me (splitsuit@gmail.com) and I'll put you on the “beta list” =)

So this weekend was awesome. Took a break on Friday night and went into Boston to hang out with a friend. Went to some bar in Fanuiel Hall called “The Tap” which was a decent place. They had some live band that was very energetic, yet sadly had little vocal skill. I also hadn't been in that sort of atmosphere for some time and had a tough time with my claustrophobia. And to make matters worse it was hot as balls and I kept getting shoved in the back. O well, made it through, had a good time, and you can't complain about that.

I managed to mix in some coaching sessions and website work as well, so overall I feel very accomplished. It is odd, I really dislike the whole corporate concept (wake up at 6a, go to work, get paid nothing, have no ROI in anything, get home at 7p, rinse/repeat)...but this whole working 12hr days is really refreshing. I am convinced that I was needing the structure and putting in more hours per day for what is an expected high ROI is more than worthwhile imo. Plus I am surrounding myself with people that support the motivation, which is also refreshing.

And on that note...I'm going to passout so I can start the week. Hope all is well with everyone!

(hurray cooler cards for someone for a change!)

PokerStars Game #24544004956: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/02/02 22:15:26 ET
Table 'Stephano' 9-max Seat #6 is the button
Seat 1: TubbyWon ($67.20 in chips)
Seat 2: 7curse ($51.50 in chips)
Seat 3: JPasky ($34.60 in chips)
Seat 4: krendelb ($9 in chips)
Seat 5: Make_my_D ($40.70 in chips)
Seat 6: fire81147 ($10 in chips)
Seat 7: MeRunSoHot ($56.95 in chips)
Seat 8: dixiecrat88 ($50 in chips)
Seat 9: patsfan34 ($59.20 in chips)
MeRunSoHot: posts small blind $0.25
dixiecrat88: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Kh Kc]
patsfan34: folds
TubbyWon: folds
7curse: raises $1 to $1.50
JPasky: folds
krendelb: folds
Make_my_D: folds
fire81147: folds
MeRunSoHot: folds
dixiecrat88: calls $1
*** FLOP *** [9d Ks 5c]
dixiecrat88: checks
7curse: bets $2.20
dixiecrat88: calls $2.20
*** TURN *** [9d Ks 5c] [4h]
dixiecrat88: checks
7curse: bets $4.70
dixiecrat88: calls $4.70
*** RIVER *** [9d Ks 5c 4h] [Qs]
dixiecrat88: bets $7
7curse: raises $36.10 to $43.10 and is all-in
dixiecrat88: calls $34.60 and is all-in
*** SHOW DOWN ***
7curse: shows [Kh Kc] (three of a kind, Kings)
dixiecrat88: [Kd Qd] (two pair, Kings and Queens)
7curse collected $97.25 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $100.25 | Rake $3

*SS*

March 5 - Getting a business off the ground

2009-03-05T22:31:00.001-05:00

I am so damn tired it is insane. I have been working more hours per day than I am anywhere near used to...and absolutely love it. My friend and I are currently getting a business off the ground (for real this time), and it's been a very busy thus far. On a very related note, I just realized how very little a college degree helps you. I took 4 years at a top school that prides itself on preparing students for “the world of today and tomorrow”...and yet was never taught anything about CPM, SEO, or anything related as a marketing major. Very disappointing.

So I have been spending tons of time doing research on Internet marketing, advertising, monetization, and a thousand and a half other interesting topics. Fun things I've learned:

1.Customers/Viewers want to pay, even for free things. Although they will not do so using currency, they like to vote, leave comments, and gratify the seller/giver.

2.People that read blogs tend to feel odd about leaving comments because they feel that space is reserved for the blogger...(odd because it tends to conflict with #1)

3.Internet marketing has as much to do with targeting a customer base as a keyword

4.The Internet is oddly cult-ish

5.People give insane amounts of information out for free...like...INSANE

So I am in the process of making a new site, expanding upon my basic knowledge of entrepreneurship, and doing a thousand other things. All this while balancing coaching, playing, music, Halo, and whatever else I feel like doing. Feels good, yet semi-stressful to be putting in so many working hours per day.

Not too much else has been going on since this...but that's probably for the best given time constraints (seriously...24 hours in a day is nowhere near enough). I'm going into Boston to hang out with a friend this weekend, which should be fun. Other than that, just grinding away. I want to have a test-track site up within a week, and have only my domain and basic concept hammered out. And if it took me 25hrs to make my bare-basic site (www.splitsuit.com for those visiting from another spot), I can only imagine how many hours this will take all while learning a much more in depth site process. Hurray!

I'm going back to work. I will leave another song for today. Officially my new favorite song ever. I really cannot think of a mood I could be in that this song would not apply well to.

Pendulum – “Hold Your Colour”

PokerStars Game #25488617423: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/03/01 13:48:57 ET
Table 'Edasich' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 1: tradeveloper ($50.75 in chips)
Seat 2: BIG_EV1L ($25.85 in chips)
Seat 3: schieri2103 ($16.95 in chips)
Seat 4: 7curse ($49.25 in chips)
Seat 5: jeffreymb ($50 in chips)
Seat 6: KIDNIC ($44.20 in chips)
Seat 7: johan75a ($48.20 in chips)
Seat 8: MarcDeFun ($19.65 in chips)
Seat 9: chirak1982 ($50.50 in chips)
jeffreymb: posts small blind $0.25
KIDNIC: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Ad 3c]
johan75a: folds
MarcDeFun: folds
chirak1982: folds
tradeveloper: folds
BIG_EV1L: folds
schieri2103: folds
7curse: raises $0.50 to $1
jeffreymb: calls $0.75
KIDNIC: folds
*** FLOP *** [Qc 8h Qh]
jeffreymb: bets $2
7curse: raises $4.50 to $6.50
jeffreymb: calls $4.50
*** TURN *** [Qc 8h Qh] [2c]
jeffreymb: checks
7curse: checks
*** RIVER *** [Qc 8h Qh 2c] [6d]
jeffreymb: checks
7curse: bets $41.75 and is all-in
jeffreymb: folds
Uncalled bet ($41.75) returned to 7curse
7curse collected $14.75 from pot
7curse: doesn't show hand
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $15.50 | Rake $0.75

*SS*

March 2 - Goals!

2009-03-02T19:03:00.001-05:00

Recap of February:

[x]3 new students
[/]85hrs of poker related work
[/]Read a book all the way through
[x]Write something
[/]Get a new place or at least get one lined up
[.]Gym 2x/week while not on vacation
[/]1 new video for either my site or Stox
[x]No food after 11p at least 5 days per week

I did alright in my goals. Was supposed to have a place lined up (with my friend from college and also Vegas), but he ended up taking a last minute place that is working out. So I'm still figuring this part out. However, I started my book finally, improved upon my eating schedule. I was feeling really bogged down at night with all the 1a snacks. So I now do a snack at 10p and really no later unless absolutely necessary. Also got 2 vids done, one for Stox and the other was my equity exploration. So cheers to getting things done!

The last couple of days have been really good. My dog is still sick (not 100% sure what is going on, but he won't poop all day and then has diarrhea all night...very gross), but he is getting better slowly thanks to my ever growing vet tab. O well. I went to my mom's gig the other night (she is in a rock coverband that does a lot of dance-rock stuff) which was cool since I hadn't seen her perform in a few months. It was a pretty crappy place, but they still sounded good which is what matters. After that I jumped down to Boston to hang out with a friend and then came back early to take care of Kingjamen.

Also, a few of my students have wanted to sweat me during our session. So it's been a very cool experience to be able to make money while making money. I also play so sick solid because I'm playing 6 tables, thinking crystal clear, and just purely in control. So my stats have been a bit skewed because I run like 32/26 in these sessions, but I play best that way, so it works out. Also did my first shortstack coaching session today which I think went very well. We made a full chart for every position for every player-type, and I think he will be doing just fine in no time.

And lastly, I feel like the biggest nerd ever. I have suffered my second poker related injury. My wrist has been enduring the preliminary stages of carpal tunnel, so now I have to wear a damn wrist brace all day. I feel like a bowler walking around with this thing on, but it happens. So I've been doing CT exercises as well for the longevity of my body....fingers crossed it works itself out.

Goals for March:

-2 new students
-111 hours of work
-Write more of my book
-1 new video for my site
-1 new article for my site
-Finish the book I started reading
-Produce 1 new song
-Get my passport for April trip

Best of luck this month everyone!

PokerStars Game #25448850707: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/02/28 12:41:15 ET
Table 'Altair III' 9-max Seat #4 is the button
Seat 1: Bergsieger ($52.65 in chips)
Seat 2: Fish4luck ($48 in chips)
Seat 3: ToNick-SPb ($9.50 in chips)
Seat 4: Pelzzi ($57.35 in chips)
Seat 5: geoste54 ($50 in chips)
Seat 6: euphoricism ($52.10 in chips)
Seat 7: Jagerkid23 ($20.45 in chips)
Seat 8: 7curse ($54.35 in chips)
Seat 9: ironsteve ($85.05 in chips)
geoste54: posts small blind $0.25
euphoricism: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Jd Jh]
Jagerkid23: calls $0.50
7curse: raises $1.50 to $2
ironsteve: calls $2
Bergsieger: folds
Fish4luck: folds
ToNick-SPb: folds
Pelzzi: folds
geoste54: calls $1.75
euphoricism: folds
Jagerkid23: calls $1.50
*** FLOP *** [Js Qd 4d]
geoste54: checks
Jagerkid23: checks
7curse: bets $6.20
ironsteve: folds
geoste54: raises $7.80 to $14
Jagerkid23: folds
7curse: raises $38.35 to $52.35 and is all-in
geoste54: calls $34 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [Js Qd 4d] [Jc]
*** RIVER *** [Js Qd 4d Jc] [6s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
geoste54: shows [Qs Qh] (a full house, Queens full of Jacks)
7curse: shows [Jd Jh] (four of a kind, Jacks)
7curse collected $101.50 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $104.50 | Rake $3

*SS*

February 25 - OMG I'm grinding

2009-02-25T16:18:00.000-05:00

So I've been keeping pretty busy lately. Actually started grinding again which feels lovely. Only putting in an hour or three per night, but better than the zero hours I've been putting in due to complacency and being busy with other things. Today I started writing my book which also feels lovely. I have been meaning to get to this book for some time but today felt very motivated. I cannot go into details as to what the book is about (when released it will make sense why), but it should be received quite well.

I have a Stox video coming out next week that I have been prepping and well probably record and finalize on Friday. I am doing a “Critical Analysis” video in which I go through people's hands and talk about them and related variables rather than having people watch me play. This video should prove to be very helpful and be a nice follow up to the betsizing and theory video I had released a few weeks back. I am also going to try to get some more videos made for them like 100%vpip, a video focused strictly on LP play, and a few other video concepts I have. I also need to get a video or article done for my site soon...so just another thing to add to my goal sheet =)

I have been focusing on getting out of my house more. The worst thing about this job imo is that it is so solitary. It seems like an awesome thing for those that hate the people in their office (and I suppose in that respect, it is), but it is very taxing not having the socializing aspect. I did a preliminary phone call with a perspective student last night and he asked me why I wanted to get into the corporate world (when he was considering poker to get OUT of the corporate world)...and the real reason is the socializing and resume gap. Both are huge to me and set me up for a more productive future. Although, I suppose running your own business at 22 isn't bad for the resume gap, but people tend to look at it through odd eyes.

Well I'm going to get back to writing and then I have a student and then dinner plans in Boston. I will leave you with both a hand and a music video. The video is a cover of the Massive Attack song “Teardrop”. This dude is incredibly talented and the song is sick in and of itself. Enjoy!

(was really hoping he would blush the river given my gay-bet...o well)

PokerStars Game #25211771644: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/02/21 22:27:14 ET
Table 'Sirius II' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: yhavenames ($46.05 in chips)
Seat 2: En1gma 23 ($56 in chips)
Seat 3: raytusaw ($18.75 in chips)
Seat 4: bosoxx14 ($18.15 in chips)
Seat 5: sawns ($46.95 in chips)
Seat 7: 7curse ($77.40 in chips)
Seat 8: virulin ($36 in chips)
Seat 9: uglyowl ($56.65 in chips)
raytusaw: posts small blind $0.25
bosoxx14: posts big blind $0.50
ATACANTOS: sits out
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Kh Ah]
sawns: folds
7curse: raises $1 to $1.50
virulin: folds
uglyowl: calls $1.50
yhavenames: folds
En1gma 23: folds
raytusaw: folds
bosoxx14: folds
*** FLOP *** [Qd 3d 6h]
7curse: bets $2
uglyowl: raises $3.50 to $5.50
7curse: raises $8.50 to $14
uglyowl: calls $8.50
*** TURN *** [Qd 3d 6h] [Ts]
7curse: checks
uglyowl: checks
*** RIVER *** [Qd 3d 6h Ts] [Kc]
7curse: bets $1.25
uglyowl: calls $1.25
*** SHOW DOWN ***
7curse: shows [Kh Ah] (a pair of Kings)
uglyowl: mucks hand
7curse collected $32.65 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $34.25 | Rake $1.60

*SS*

February 21 - Back in Boston

2009-02-21T01:46:00.001-05:00

So this week has flown by. Got back to Boston on Wednesday and have been grinding since. Getting back was horrible as I walked right into snowfall (although minimal) while I was wearing shorts. My body gets used to warm weather very quickly, so this 30* nonsense needs to stop as it's very un-enjoyable.

The flight wasn't bad if you take away a screaming child who's parents might have been deaf, retarded, or possibly both. Seriously, if your child is screaming at the top of their lungs, on an airplane of all places...silence the damn thing. But thankfully I had enough volume left in my iPod to drown out the screamer...but I really wanted to punch those parents in the mouth.

I realized how much I love sleep while I was on vacation. I was getting like 4hrs/night as I would have to wake up at like 7a to get moving for the day. I am still trying to get back on a sleep schedule that makes up for all the hours I missed, but it's failing miserably. Hopefully I'll catch up this weekend and be back on track for next week.

So I'm back on my coaching grind. Averaging about 3hrs/day and I'm putting more playtime back on my plate as well. I've been pretty lazy this year and really want to start getting more hours in. But for now I am loving the coaching thing like usual. Since reading some more about coaching/teaching methodologies I feel I am taking an even stronger approach. I also got my first student for SS-ing, so I look forward to that as it is my first one (though I've written the lesson plan in the past, and am very prepared for it).

Also got my dog back today. I haven't seen him in almost 2 weeks (I left him with my ex while I was on vacation) and he was as excited to see me as I was to see him. So spent a lot of today just working and playing with him. Also went into Boston today to hang out with a friend from high-school that I hadn't seen in almost 3 years...was nice catching up and rekindling some old friendships.

And on that note, I'm exhausted and need to get some sleep before another 3hrs of work tomorrow. Hope all is well with everyone!

*SS*

February 17 - More Disney

2009-02-17T01:02:00.001-05:00

So the weekend flew by. Had my grandmother's party on Saturday and I found it quite funny that the average age was probably hovering around 56 (thanks to my cousin and his friend at 8 and 7 respectively). Felt pretty out of place, but still tried to do my best with the whole thing. Also realized that in social situations where I take out alcohol I really need my beta-blockers (which I of course left back home).

Sunday was very relaxing. Though sadly it was the first day since I've been down here that the weather was un-enjoyable. It was like 55* and gray the whole day...which put a huge damper on going water skiing. But my little cousin and I decided to take the kayak out and did about a mile trip through the lake. It would have been no problem had he actually done anything to help the process, rather than not paddle and try to turn the kayak for no reason, lol...but I ended up getting a huge arm workout. Also took the maiden voyage on my uncle's new boat which was quick given weather, but nice none the less.

Woke up early today and did Disney again with my lil cousin, dad, and uncle. Did some more of MGM/Hollywood and then did some of Magic Kingdom. Was very busy today thanks to 80* weather and President's Day, so the waits were pretty nutty. Favorite ride of the day was the Toy Story game where you ride around and shoot targets in this 3D environment. Very cool and, even though I sucked thanks to my colorblindness, was very fun. I also met a winner of the American Idol experience thing, so if a “Gabi” ever wins...let it be known that I met her =)

Got back just in time to get a coaching session in (finishing up a leakfinder). I am looking forward to getting back to work soon as I would like to start making money again. I was honestly expecting to do quite a bit of grinding while I was in FL, but it turns out my time was pretty well filled up. I have enjoyed my vacation very much so far and it reminds me that I want to start traveling more often. Being I can do my job from anywhere where I can get an Internet connection, I might as well take advantage of it. So that is going to be a goal in the next little bit.

My betsizing video is doing pretty well on Stox. Not many people have discussed the video but it's doing 4.9/5 in ratings so far. And I have another video coming out in early March. If people have hands they would like me to review in the video, please email me raw HH's and reads to splitsuit@gmail.com . The video will be a hand review video using software, good hands, and some variables to make the exploration that much stronger.

I need to crash out before waking up at 7a again to do Universal Studios tomorrow...hope all is well with everyone and I'll write again once I get setup back in Boston.

Some more pix:

*SS*

February 13 - Did Disney

2009-02-13T01:56:00.002-05:00

The last few days have been awesome. Just lounging down here in Florida, relaxing, and soaking up 80* weather. I love warm weather and am amazed at how quickly my body adjusts to warm temps (and conversely, how terribly my body adjusts to cold). The only thing that sucks about warm weather, and this is a small gripe if any, is that my jewelry (ring + watch) are sized for cool/mild weather, and get uncomfortably tight in heat. O well...a small price to pay.

I spent Tuesday doing yardwork for most of the day. Which seems like it would suck on vacation, but it was nice to get out in the nice weather, sweat a bit, and get some stuff accomplished. Ended up sore as all hell the next morning, and my lower back is still shot, but at least the yard looks good. I finished it up on Wednesday after a few students during the day, so my outdoor chores are done for the week!

Picked my dad up from the airport on Tuesday as well because we took separate flights down here. Turns out my GPS hates FL and it forced me to drive almost 20min out of the way before finally correcting its path to the airport. Stupid GPS. Got home, played hours of Wii bowling, and just relaxed. One thing I love about family get togethers is insane amounts of good food and also hours of Wii bowling (in which I am currently trying to perfect my “bowl from the recliner while not standing up” technique).

Woke up retardedly early on Thursday to go to Disney (I think it's the first time I've seen 6a waking up for almost 8mo). It was my grandma's birthday (turned 80, yikes!), so we went to Epcot to start the day out (with dad + aunt Kathy). Did Soaring, Test Track, and some other ride before scooting over to MGM (or more recently named “Hollywood”) Studios and doing Tower of Terror and the Aerosmith ride. Not a bad day at all, though it took us almost 2 hours to get from Epcot to MGM because we missed a few boats and never really hustled at all. O well, vacation is all about relaxing and taking your time =) Also got some pix on my iPhone because it's the only camera I wanted to bring with me...so I have some cool shots to remember the trip by (even though I'm going back to Disney next week with my little cousin)

I have a coaching session in the morning and then have to go pick up my cousin (another James) before coming back to do more cleaning (mostly inside stuff, which has a high % chance of being done before I even get home). Also, my new video comes out on Stox tomorrow (Poker University video on bet sizing and bet theory)...so be sure to check that our if you are a Stox member. Hope all is well with everyone!

(Some pix of the day):

*SS*

February 10 - In Florida!

2009-02-10T01:23:00.001-05:00

So I just got into Florida today. Was a nice and easy 2.5hr plane ride and went pretty damn quick. I sat next to a big dude that took up the entire arm rest, and if I didn't know any better, I might have guessed that he would have reached across my lap to put his fat ass arm on my OTHER armrest. And there were some crying children on the flight, but that's why God created noise-canceling headphones.

I also got some reading done. Got about 50 pages read of the book I just started on the teaching gap. Very interesting book about the differences in teaching with a heavy focus on the USA v Japan v Germany. There are some very odd things that I would never imaged to true...such as a high end testing school in the USA tends to score lower than the lower sections of Japanese schools. Also, Japanese schools tend to have almost 150% more students/class than a US school.

I am learning quite a few interesting techniques I can add to my own coaching through reading this book. One thing that stood out is that in Japanese schools it is common for the lessons to focus on complex problem solving and the teacher acts as a mediator between the students and the information. In Germany, teachers tend to dole out the information from a powerful and authoritative perch. And in the US, teachers tend to focus on the relationship with the students, while seemingly forgetting about the information. Also, in the US, the teachers tend to focus on teaching the answers and not so much the process...which is why I believe Americans tend to lack a lot of logic...because we have been taught to focus only on answers and memorization rather than learning WHY something is.

Enough of that, as I could easily go on for hours. Over the weekend I met up with ForGlory from 2p2. We grabbed a bite at Quincy Market and talked poker mostly. Nice kid, and since he sent “hello's” to me from others, I owe a “hello” to NotOnTilt and Kflip. Was nice to get downtown again, though I still don't enjoy Boston by any stretch. But I'm thinking we'll do lunch or something again, so if anyone else is in the Boston area and wants to join, just give me a HU....and same rules apply as I gave to ForGlory...no candy and no white vans =)

Hope all is well with everyone. I'm going to grab a few hours of sleep before getting up to start prepping the house for the party over the weekend. My grandma turns 80 this week, so the family is coming in for the party...and because I'm here early I get to help setup. But way worth it for the warm weather + family time!

*SS*

February 6 - My ironic name

2009-02-06T20:59:00.000-05:00

So my GF and I are broken up. Very odd since I haven't been single for over a year at this point. Doing pretty well with the whole thing right now, but not really putting in sessions because of it. Have been doing all my coaching but just relaxing afterwards and doing some introspection. At least my vacation to Florida is well timed =)

I met up with one of my students on Thursday night to grab dinner before we hit up a homegame. The game was through the back side of an Italian bar and had about 7 tables. It really felt like my freshman year games playing on non-felted tables and having to deal yourself. Was a very softgame in a pretty decent atmosphere, but alas I get action never when I have a hand and catch 2nd best like it's my job. *sigh* ...Good times and nice company...so had fun for sure.

I also need to finish my Stox video. I have it outlined, now I just need to record it, edit it, and pump it over to Stox. I am locking myself in my office until I am done. So hopefully I am done around 2a. It's an hour long video on betsizing...so fingers crossed that it's easy as pie!

Also got my new laptop from FTP a few days back. It is awesome! Decided to go buy HEM instead of PT3 for this computer because PT3 has become my new enemy. In love with it so far and was amazed that it imported ~1M hands in less than 8hrs. Haven't put in a new session on my computer yet...but I look forward to it and probably will when I'm down in Florida. Speaking of that I told a student I was going (he's from England) and he claimed a vacation to FL is better than a vacation to Europe. Where I feel the exact opposite solely because of relative location. Perspective is a funny thing.

And on that note, I'm gonna go finish my pizza and pump this video out. Hope all is well!

PokerStars Game #24544107552: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/02/02 22:19:21 ET
Table 'Beagle II' 9-max Seat #2 is the button
Seat 1: joshil3 ($50 in chips)
Seat 2: 7curse ($50 in chips)
Seat 3: gokings1 ($42.25 in chips)
Seat 4: tolmen617 ($55.70 in chips)
Seat 5: LayerCake31 ($51.65 in chips)
Seat 6: jiacstrap ($58.70 in chips)
Seat 7: DaVinci27 ($96 in chips)
Seat 8: bewrong ($15.55 in chips)
Seat 9: bethewill ($36.05 in chips)
gokings1: posts small blind $0.25
tolmen617: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [4d 4h]
LayerCake31: calls $0.50
jiacstrap: raises $1.50 to $2
DaVinci27: folds
bewrong: calls $2
bethewill: folds
joshil3: calls $2
7curse: calls $2
gokings1: folds
tolmen617: folds
LayerCake31: calls $1.50
*** FLOP *** [Qs 2s 2d]
LayerCake31: checks
jiacstrap: checks
bewrong: checks
joshil3: checks
7curse: bets $5.10
LayerCake31: calls $5.10
jiacstrap: folds
bewrong: folds
joshil3: folds
*** TURN *** [Qs 2s 2d] [7h]
LayerCake31: bets $3
7curse: calls $3
*** RIVER *** [Qs 2s 2d 7h] [Ks]
LayerCake31: bets $4
7curse: raises $35.90 to $39.90 and is all-in
LayerCake31: folds
Uncalled bet ($35.90) returned to 7curse
7curse collected $33.30 from pot
7curse: doesn't show hand
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $34.95 | Rake $1.65

*SS*

February 2 - Goals for the month

2009-02-02T19:38:00.001-05:00

January Goals:

[x]2 new students
[/]Finish my “Range Merging” article
[x]Cutout 400 calories/day
[ ]Get a new place
[x]Find at least one new reason to enjoy life
[/]Socialize more
[x]1 new video for my site
[/]1 new video for Stox
[x]33hrs/wk of job-related activity (coaching, playing, vids, etc)
[ ]Write more of my book(s)

January wasn't the worst month in the world. Did very well financially and got a lot of stuff done. Total hours came out to about 115 of total coaching + playing, and probably came out to about 160 all things totaled. I started eating better, went to the gym at least once per week, and have spent quite a bit of time reading non poker related books.

In personal news apparently my GF and I are on a break? I say this with a question mark because I am not totally sure what is going on...but I suppose time will tell. I guess space was necessary so I'll flow with that until I am updated.

I am also looking forward to my vacation next week. I'm just going to FL for a week and a half, but it should be fun...not to mention nicer weather than snow and junk. I'm going to try not to do any coaching while I'm there, which will be odd because I'm so used to scheduling my day-time around coaching sessions. And somewhat related to this is my new laptop is coming tomorrow! I cannot wait to set it up!

I guess I'll just put down my February goals now and wrap it up:

- 3 new students
- 85hrs of poker related work
- Read a book all the way through
- Write something
- Get a new place or at least get one lined up
- Gym 2x/week while not on vacation
- 1 new video for either my site or Stox
- No food after 11p at least 5 days per week

Happy February everyone!

*SS*

February 1 - Highway drivers...

2009-02-01T00:29:00.001-05:00

So FoxWoods was a terrible trip. I am sick of bitching about running bad, I know I am left side of luck and maybe someday that will change, but for now...I'm just content being there. Ended up down a few BI's and am still waiting for that session where I hit hands, hold a few times, fade a few draws, and enjoy a lovely session. I did find it funny that I played with a dude I knew from Cuse who reads the blog (thanks for not blowing up my spot =) )...but other than that...was pretty damn uneventful for over 15hrs of play.

On my way down, and then again back up, I made a list of 8 things I dislike when driving on the highway (or “motorway” for those across the sea):

1.) People that don't use blinkers:

Seriously, it really isn't that hard to flick the stick on the left side of your wheel. Does it take that much energy just to signal your intent so I, and the other people around you, can have a damn clue as to what you're doing? It is so annoying watching dumbasses cut me off at a whim and being way unprepared for it.

2.) “OMG, there is a cop pulling someone over up ahead!”:

I understand seeing a cop with his lights on makes us all slow up a bit...it's natural. But when flow traffic changes from 75mph to 45mph (on a 65mph road) because there is a cop 1mi up ahead...it's insane. If traffic is flowing...a cop will not pull people over. They don't have enough paper to give tickets to everyone going the same damn speed. Idiots.

3.) Brake riders:

Wtf is it with people that just constantly tap their brakes? We are going 70mph...you don't need to keep tapping your damn brakes...If I'm unsure if you are brake riding or have your flashers on...there is an issue with your brain and driving skills.

4.) Fast slow people:

Ok...there is a 2 lane highway and the person in the right lane is going 65mph and the left lane is flowing at 75mph. DO NOT PASS THE PERSON BECAUSE YOU WANT TO GO 66mph. It will take your dumbass about 4 minutes to complete the pass, all the while slowing shit up for no reason.

5.) Trucks:

I hate you for oh so many reasons. One being that you create a wind pressure that causes my car to slightly waver. Another is that you have a blindspot comparable to that of a 400lb dude. Another...is that you for some odd reason cannot maintain a speed that is anywhere near acceptable. Another is that you think you are supposed to be in any lane BUT the right one. Get your slow stupid ass in the right lane, stay there, and don't break #4 either

6.) Poor planners:

So if poker has taught me anything other than how to endure long periods of the worst and train your psyche to be dead to anything involving luck...it is how to plan. So when I see a 3 lane highway get congested with dumbasses trying to make a 2 lane cross to make their exit that is in a 1/4mile...I get furious. Because that cross now backs up everyone...and it's not just you doing it...it is 80 other morons like you. Seriously...know which lane you need to be in, and get there a mile or so ahead of time...don't be retarded.

7.) Women multitasking:

it amazes me that women are better multi-taskers than men...and yet when faced with the task to drive and do anything else simultaneously...they fail like a paraplegic in a hula hoop contest. Seriously...if you can't talk on your phone, do your makeup, or change the radio station without endangering other people's lives...don't do them while driving!

8.) People that merge on without looking:

Hi...if I am driving on the highway and you are trying to get onto the highway...I, not you, have the right of way. This means you do not cut me off. This means if you are going to merge on...you better be doing at least 60mph by that time. This means that if you cut me off while going 40mph and then give me the finger when you get honked at...I have the right to stomp your ass at the next reststop.

That is all. Cheers to a new month!

*SS*

January 30 - A few words

2009-01-30T14:13:00.001-05:00

I'm going to FoxWoods...back sometime on Saturday. Would write up a full post but I am content on beating traffic today. Wish me luck =)

*SS*

January 26 - Hero is confused

2009-01-26T18:11:00.001-05:00

So I'm in between coaching sessions and figured I would write up a quick blog post. This weekend was fairly good. Did a coaching session on Friday and then headed down to FoxWoods. My dumbass has to stop leaving at 4p in the afternoon...I always catch Boston traffic, and then lucky me, I catch RI traffic as well! My goal is to leave no later than 3p for now on...so that should help me not get tilty before I even start my session, lol.

Did a long session on Friday before calling it quits. I did quite a bit table jumping just trying to find a really good table. I actually got on a table where about 3-4 people were openly discussing ranging and proper extraction strategies. I was shocked and tried my best not to join in the discussion before leaving the table. Sadly, my ideal game would be one where I could have in depth strategy and theory discussion while playing with idiots...it's an impossible game to find (for obvious reasons), but it would make the time spent at the table that much more enjoyable =)

Made a little bit of money (a lil more than a BI), but lost a bigger pot at the end and decided to rack up (88 v A5hh v Q7 on a 8h Qh 4x Ax board, river 7h obviously). I really wish I could hit a draw, or fade draws...not never hit a draw and never fade a draw. I can't wait for that day! I did get to play with my fair share of idiots, and got to run some fun plays (a double float and a triple barrel)...so I enjoyed my time overall. I decided to go home after my session though because I wasn't feeling well, and ended up catching this mini-flu which I am currently working through...it's not fun.

I'm going to go take a quick nap before my next session...hope all is well with y'all

Hand 1/2NL Foxwoods

Villain $200
Hero $350

Villain is an idiot and is now upset with me. I have needled him without breaking a smile so he cannot tell if I really am insulting him or being nice. Either way he is confused which means supreme idiocy will soon ensue.

(7 handed) Villain raises to $12 from UTG, Hero raises to $34 next to act with AA, folds around and Villain calls.

Flop: ($71 – 2 players) Td 3h 6c

Villain shoves $166, Hero snap calls

Turn: ($403 – 2 players) 9c

River: ($403 – 2 players) Qh

Villain shows KT (pair of Tens)
Hero shows AA (pair of Aces)

Hero wins $399 pot

Villain says “I knew he was going to try to push me off my hand...I KNEW IT!"
Villain sits out
Hero is confused

*SS*

January 23 - Damn...

2009-01-23T02:55:00.001-05:00

Damn...so the guest lecture I was supposed to give on Monday kind of went bust. They apparently denied funding for me to come. So then I decided to do a mapquest (because I wasn't 100% sure the distance) and it turned out it was ~10hrs to get there. So I decided against doing it. I decided that I would instead fill that time up with some coaching. O well...I just always hate when something I look forward to for so long goes busto.

I did however get interviewed today which was cool. I was approached about writing in poker (in terms of forum writing, coaching, vids, etc) and was amongst a pretty solid group of other interviewees. I am generally the one asking all the questions, so it was cool to be on the other side of the table and have the questions not revolving around how to play a hand. So that took about an hour and then I fired off 3 coaching sessions.

So for the record I did make a video...but I didn't like the quality of it. I decided to do a video on PokerStove and StoxCombo. I wanted to do a tutorial of those because I think they are very useful. However, I did the vid early in the morning and my brain wasn't clicking correctly, so I ended up stumbling a lot of butchering my math, lol. So hopefully I can get a clean copy of that done tomorrow and posted this weekend. I also started on my table selection article which should be helpful. I officially give way too much info away for free.

I have a video coming out for Stox next month for those of you that are members. I am doing a PokerUniversity video focusing on betsizing...so it will be an extensive and verbal representation of my Poohbah post. I am dreading how many hours it will take, but I got a head start on it earlier in the month, so hopefully I can limit the hours needed to about 10. Fingers crossed!

I need to get some sleep. Have 1 coaching session tomorrow then I'm off to FoxWoods so I can hopefully dodge traffic and dodge running bad. =) And then right back for 4 hours of coaching on Sunday...I love my job =)

Full Tilt Poker Game #5863788422: Table Canyon Run - $2/$4 - No Limit Hold'em - 2:01:58 ET - 2008/04/01
Seat 1: bmb013 ($423.40)
Seat 2: Bajunky4life ($406)
Seat 3: Its RIGGIGGITY ($80)
Seat 4: AdmiralTwill ($427)
Seat 5: rlatjsdo ($417.80)
Seat 6: Dino21Might ($459.70)
Seat 7: ice5688 ($245)
Seat 8: MoneyOverB ($720.10)
Seat 9: LemayZing ($614.95)
ice5688 posts the small blind of $2
MoneyOverB posts the big blind of $4
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [As Qh]
LemayZing calls $4
bmb013 folds
Bajunky4life folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $20
AdmiralTwill folds
rlatjsdo folds
Dino21Might folds
ice5688 folds
MoneyOverB calls $16
LemayZing folds
*** FLOP *** [4c 9s 5h]
MoneyOverB bets $34
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $60, and is all in
MoneyOverB calls $26
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [As Qh]
MoneyOverB shows [7c 6c]
*** TURN *** [4c 9s 5h] [Qc]
*** RIVER *** [4c 9s 5h Qc] [4h]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows two pair, Queens and Fours
MoneyOverB shows a pair of Fours
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($163) with two pair, Queens and Fours
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $166 | Rake $3

*SS*

January 19 - MLK-day report

2009-01-19T19:36:00.002-05:00

Alright...the revamped site is up! WWW.SPLITSUIT.COM for those that don't check the blog through my site. Took me about 25hrs from start to finish because I suck at streamlining and it takes forever to customize a template that isn't friendly. I'm not 100% thrilled with some of the functionality...but it works enough at the moment until I decide to change it again =)

So finished that the other day and have been relaxing since. I did my first session in awhile tonight and might do another later and see if I can't make a video out of it. I desperately want to get a new vid on the site, so might just do another super LAG video (50vpip/20+pfr). We'll see what I feel like later. I took today off from coaching so I've been relaxing most of the day and just finishing up some emails. That is the odd thing with coaching, I probably spend 3x as many hours doing emails + IM's as I do actually coaching. But it makes it feel like a “real job” when you have 40+ emails to tend to daily.

Other than poker, I went to a party last night with the GF. However, the weather was atrocious. Boston got like 6-8in last night and we decided to drive through it. A 45min trip turned into 2hours in which we planned to stay there for the night and then come back in the morning. But the GF got super tired around 2a and the party wasn't going to die down for another few hours...so we decided to drive back home and stay there. Bad idea as it was snowing even worse and I was super tired (woke up at 9:30a that morning for coaching) and took another 2hrs to get home. Fun party none the less though, just sucked having to drive it out that way.

I plan on doing FoxWoods this weekend so if anyone will be there, give me a HU. And then on Monday I believe I am going to do the guest lecture at Carnegie Mellon. On that note, I realized that I have beaten the hell out of my poor car in the last year I've had it. (2 cross country trips and endless 5+hrs trips to random places) O well, it has been fun and I just hope the car last awhile longer because I love it.

I would like to finish my article this week and start one on table selection (combined should only take about 3hrs if I hustle). So fingers crossed I get that accomplished between my 14 coaching sessions and workouts. And on that note, I'm going to go setup my Xbox360 and fire up some Halo because I haven't played in almost 2 months. Enjoy the rest of your MLK day =)

PokerStars Game #24071069157: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/01/19 17:24:06 ET
Table 'Marfik' 9-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: RuBenPoCoPrO ($50.75 in chips)
Seat 2: 7curse ($52.05 in chips)
Seat 3: playaz23 ($50 in chips)
Seat 4: js198 ($9.50 in chips)
Seat 5: m4dD!n86 ($50.75 in chips)
Seat 6: LokoIvan ($69.45 in chips)
Seat 7: gertrud16 ($11.50 in chips)
Seat 8: Ahmedk ($72.45 in chips)
Seat 9: AjAxkings ($110.95 in chips)
7curse: posts small blind $0.25
playaz23: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Kc Jh]
js198: folds
m4dD!n86: folds
LokoIvan: folds
gertrud16: folds
Ahmedk: folds
AjAxkings: folds
RuBenPoCoPrO: folds
7curse: raises $1 to $1.50
playaz23: calls $1
*** FLOP *** [7d Kh 3c]
7curse: bets $1.50
playaz23: raises $2.50 to $4
7curse: calls $2.50
*** TURN *** [7d Kh 3c] [9d]
7curse: checks
playaz23: bets $7
7curse: calls $7
*** RIVER *** [7d Kh 3c 9d] [Th]
7curse: checks
playaz23: bets $12
7curse: calls $12
*** SHOW DOWN ***
playaz23: shows [6d 4c] (high card King)
7curse: shows [Kc Jh] (a pair of Kings)
7curse collected $46.65 from pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $49 | Rake $2.35

*SS*

January 17 - Revamping my site

2009-01-17T01:23:00.001-05:00

Quick update because I'm exhausted as hell and need some sleep. I have spent an insane amount of hours in the last 3 days getting my new site finished up. I decided I wanted a brighter look to the site and also wanted something that I feel is set up a bit better. At first look there will be very little difference except for page addys and color...but for me to make changes, it will be much easier.

However, for anyone that has every done a full website, they understand what a pain in the ass it is. I haven't figured out a way to streamline changing the header links + side links on all pages at the same time, so I have to manually change 30+ pages which gets insanely tiring and obnoxious...all this after spending around 20 hours digging through templates and then customizing until satisfied.

Alright, enough complaining about things I chose to do... The revamped site should be up by Monday at the latest as I hope to finish it on Saturday and test it by Sunday (so if you notice the site is acting odd...that is why). I have been coaching like a fiend the last few days (I feel I always say this, but then again, I feel I am getting more and more action right now) and did my first 4session day on Thursday. Feels good to be spending a lot of hours doing work related stuff though sadly I won't be able to do Foxwoods this weekend. I will be there next weekend though when my schedule is a tad more open.

Hope all is well with everyone, and instead of a hand I will leave you with a screen-shot of the new site:

*SS*

January 14 - Present for me

2009-01-14T01:06:00.001-05:00

Not too much happening this week. Been doing a lot of coaching sessions and finishing up some LeakFinder sessions as well, which I feel are going very well. Been averaging 2 sessions/day and have been doing a lot of other business related stuff as well. I'm trying to re-do my site (I want a brighter color scheme) but am getting super frustrated with it. I can't quite get on screen what I am envisioning which is angering. O well, I will get it eventually.

Other than work related stuff, I have been spending quite a bit of time with the GF because she starts school next week. She's just commuting, but I know she will be spending more time with that, which I fully support. So I think my grindcore hours will increase drastically starting next week sometime, which should be fun. I have been very motivated lately and am going to the gym tomorrow again. I am starting to feel really good which I am excited about because I spent so much time working with my mental to get back on the right track. I am now eating healthier (no longer eating 4-5 meals/day at 350+ cal/meal), working more, thinking better, and happy around 93% of the time...cheers to 2009 =)

Goals for the rest of the week:

= finish my coaching sessions
= make a video (tried last week but it failed thanks to software)
= work on my article
= work on my Stox slides
= buy+start a new book

Also, I have been listening to Pandora like a fiend lately. For those that don't use Pandora...I very much suggest it. I find a lot of new music from it and have recently found DJ Antoine (specifically the song “This Time”). I would classify it somewhere between downbeat electronica and trance...working with my mood really well the last few days. Anyone who enjoys that genre will probably also enjoy Booka Shade and Hexstatic quite a bit as well...

Last note...I bought myself a little present today =) I used the bulk of my FTPpoints for my new laptop (Sony Viao) which I am super excited about. I have had this piece of shit laptop for almost 2 years now and it is more than time for a change. New laptop is 2GB of RAM (2x more than this one after an upgrade) and has 320GB HD (4x the size of this one) along with a million other features that blow this one out of the water. Someone suggested earlier that my new laptop might be a huge luckbox machine for me...so cheers to that =)

Hope all is well with everyone.

PokerStars Game #23583176168: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/01/04 22:09:20 ET
Table 'Cybele IV' 9-max Seat #9 is the button
Seat 1: fantasyguy ($13 in chips)
Seat 2: twistedfende ($69.30 in chips)
Seat 4: Rbridgford ($13.25 in chips)
Seat 5: panathas333 ($62.15 in chips)
Seat 6: TracyTheNuts ($58.95 in chips)
Seat 7: ZooLLooZ ($84.90 in chips)
Seat 8: 7curse ($81.95 in chips)
Seat 9: casanueva ($22.70 in chips)
fantasyguy: posts small blind $0.25
twistedfende: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Ac Jd]
GSA00 leaves the table
Rbridgford: folds
panathas333: calls $0.50
TracyTheNuts: calls $0.50
ZooLLooZ: calls $0.50
7curse: raises $1.50 to $2 (lol misclick)
casanueva: calls $2
fantasyguy: folds
twistedfende: calls $1.50
panathas333: calls $1.50
TracyTheNuts: calls $1.50
ZooLLooZ: calls $1.50
*** FLOP *** [7c 6d Jc]
twistedfende: checks
panathas333: checks
TracyTheNuts: checks
ZooLLooZ: checks
7curse: bets $4.80
casanueva: raises $6.20 to $11
twistedfende: folds
panathas333: calls $11
TracyTheNuts: folds
ZooLLooZ: folds
7curse: raises $24 to $35
casanueva: calls $9.70 and is all-in
panathas333: calls $24
*** TURN *** [7c 6d Jc] [7h]
panathas333: checks
7curse: bets $25.50
panathas333: calls $25.15 and is all-in
*** RIVER *** [7c 6d Jc 7h] [Td]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
panathas333: shows [Kc 5c] (a pair of Sevens)
7curse: shows [Ac Jd] (two pair, Jacks and Sevens)
7curse collected $78.90 from side pot
casanueva: mucks [Qd Jh] (two pair, Jacks and Sevens)
7curse collected $71.35 from main pot
*** SUMMARY ***
Total pot $153.25 Main pot $71.35. Side pot $78.90. | Rake $3

*SS*

January 11 - FWeekend

2009-01-11T02:05:00.002-05:00

Got back from FoxWoods a little while ago and I am exhausted. Drove down after my Friday coaching sessions and put in an 8 hour session, slept for a few hours, then put in another 8 hour session on Sat morning-afternoon. I decided to cut out early and drive back to Boston to beat the snow which was a few hours behind me (and I kick myself for leaving early when the few extra hours at the table would have been very profitable). O well, better safe than sorry I suppose and I ended up making it back to Boston in about 1:25, which isn't bad time at all.

Friday's session was saucy. Opened a table at about 6p with a whole bunch of younger guys (generally my favorite type of live table is one with 30-50yr olds, younger generally means slightly better)...so I was considering a table change quickly. But the table was pretty loose from the get-go and average pot was hovering around $85 which isn't terrible at 1/2NL. Ran pretty badly (AA < QQ ai on XXX flop, AA < TT aipf) and decided to take a quick food break. Came back and a very aggro Asian had just sat.

He was quite fun, raising every pot (opening to $12, raising limpers to $35+) and just jabbering away. The table was having fits trying to adjust and finally 2 of the people left while loudly saying “what the fuck!??! you raise every hand!!! this is not poker!!!”. It was made even funnier because the Asian knew exactly what he was doing and was even commenting during hands he was in what HE would call with if he were his opponent (Asian stabs for $150 into $125 on T8342 and he says “I'd call with Khi+/any pair...maaaaaaaaaaybe QJ”) and of course always give good advice =). Of course, for the entire 2hr span he was there, I woke up with 66 as my best hand, not a single top10% hand, and no chance at all of making a dollar from him.

Saturday wasn't bad and the table was pretty solid. People thought I was a loose idiot because I would squeeze hands and show something other than KK/AA. Of course, not a single hand I could use this image for, so I just sit there doing nothing for a few hours. Finally get it aipf AQ v 84o and lose...then rack up and leave to beat the snow. Made a few bucks this trip, but very annoying to say the least. I calculated that I missed out on about $650-$900 in equity, not factoring in hitting only 1 set and 1 draw the whole time. O well...

Quick site update...MpimpjuiceM wrote a really solid article for the site and I just put it up today. check it out and feel free to give feedback in comments if you would like. I think it gives a really nice insight to the introduction of ranging and also some OOP play using the ranging skill-set. Give it a read and hopefully you get something out of it =)

Hope all is well with everyone!

Full Tilt Poker Game #9925430203: Table Westcliff - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 14:17:30 ET - 2009/01/08
Seat 1: BlowYourTop ($58.80)
Seat 2: espen49549 ($20)
Seat 3: CricriFT ($11.90)
Seat 4: jprice_123 ($17.55)
Seat 5: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50)
Seat 6: Gerrard37 ($64.20)
Seat 7: osiris369 ($48.85)
Seat 8: micah323 ($25.10)
Seat 9: Aggi21 ($10.55)
jprice_123 posts the small blind of $0.25
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Th 8h]
Gerrard37 folds
osiris369 folds
micah323 folds
Aggi21 folds
BlowYourTop raises to $1.50
jprice_123 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $1
*** FLOP *** [9s As 5h]
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
BlowYourTop bets $3
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $7.90
BlowYourTop raises to $12.80
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $48.50, and is all in
BlowYourTop has 15 seconds left to act
BlowYourTop folds
Uncalled bet of $35.70 returned to Its RIGGIGGITY
Its RIGGIGGITY mucks
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($27.45)

*SS*

January 8 - Thought process?

2009-01-08T02:06:00.001-05:00

The weeks going pretty well so far. I'm coaching like a damn machine. Picked up like 4 extra LeakFinder students and an extra 4 regular students....so I've been busy setting up initial sessions and then creating a full lesson plan for students. *phew* I have another 6 sessions left this week, and then right back to the hefty grind next week.

I think I am going down to FoxWoods again this weekend from Friday-Saturday, so if anyone wants to meet up, just give me a HU ahead of time. I have put a little bit of sessioning this week already, and hope to put in a few more hours of it before FW, but I am generally poker drained after hours of coaching. Talking + deep thinking for hours straight is tiring =)

So I have been doing some thinking about positive thinking, or better yet, ways to think NOT negatively. A big way I was noticing myself thinking negatively was comparing myself to other people, either in ways I could never be equal or to people that were just way ahead of where I am now. I used to get very angry when I would look at how well someone might run in comparison to me, or some advantage that someone luckboxed into that I felt I never would. I decided to look at this in a different way...in terms of what I call “metaPop” and “metaLife”...let me explain...

These are ways of looking at things in a very meta-sense, aka, not a small sample thing (either of people or events in your life) but rather lots of people or lots of events in your life. MetaPop is looking at you and your situation in terms of a large set of people (pop being short for population). For instance, I often feel that I run terrible at things involving luck. But, I also know many of my friends that run very well in luck scenarios often. So if I look at a normal distribution graph, I would be slightly on the left, while other people I know would fall slightly right side. This would create balance in the distribution and sample, and thus everything would be “fair”.

The other side of this is “metaLife”. This takes into account just yourself and your events. So graphing a normal distribution graph, I would put things like “family divorce” and “run bad” in the left side, but other things like “great childhood” and “healthy body” in the right side. I could plot lots of things, and generally find a balance. I think utilizing different thought frame works is a healthy way of viewing events/situations in life in a way that is easier to digest and process. Thoughts on this? It is my first time putting it on paper or really vocalizing it at all.

Enough rambling from me...but wanted to wish my GF luck with her first day back at college. Best of luck babygirl =)

Full Tilt Poker Game #9822644661: Table Crenshaw - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 19:42:08 ET - 2009/01/02
Seat 2: webfrost ($100)
Seat 3: sgtshultz ($128.75)
Seat 4: Marfrey ($153.15)
Seat 5: Its RIGGIGGITY ($107.65)
Seat 6: shaq1337 ($102.40)
Seat 7: stipey169 ($146.40)
Seat 8: JAMOZZ ($117.45)
Seat 9: STTACKEM BIG ($104.60)
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the small blind of $0.50
shaq1337 posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #4
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [8c 8d]
stipey169 raises to $3
JAMOZZ folds
STTACKEM BIG folds
sgtshultz folds
Marfrey folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $2.50
shaq1337 folds
*** FLOP *** [3d 9d 9s]
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
stipey169 bets $3.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $11
stipey169 raises to $27
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $104.65, and is all in
stipey169 has 15 seconds left to act
stipey169 has requested TIME
stipey169 folds
Uncalled bet of $77.65 returned to Its RIGGIGGITY
Its RIGGIGGITY mucks
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($58)

*SS*

January 5 - Start of the month...

2009-01-05T00:32:00.001-05:00

So 2009 is off! Sadly, I have begun running like 2008! O well, I'm sure at some point that thing called normalcy will happen! Very annoying, and made me realize that I enjoyed my effective 4 month vacation a ton. I really don't like running like this (for instance, I'm hitting a set 1/14 (as opposed to the normal 1/8.5) over my last 6.5hrs), and I am trying to alleviate the “victim's mentality” that is very common-place amongst poker players...but ack. However, unlike last year when I took a few months off, I am going to grind through this hard. Motivation is a great thing, and I have a ton of it right now.

I'm also a coaching maniac right now. I put up my coaching offer on 2p2 (re-vamped one from the one I put up about 5monts ago), and I have been getting a lot of interest. I will also be banging away with my range merging article more this week, and hopefully finishing it. It is also taking a bit longer because I am doing custom images to work with it which will help those who are visual learners (I know I am). On that same topic, I will also be making a video this week. So if you have anything you would like me to discuss in the vid, just give me a HU.

I also decided to go down to Foxwoods this weekend. I made the mistake of thinking it was a 45min drive there, and realized it was closer to an hour and a half (maintaining 80mph the whole way). I also hadn't been to Foxwoods in almost 2 years, so was surprised to see the poker room in a new place and also the size of it. Holy shit Foxwoods is huge, just huge. Got on a really soft table, but didn't run that great, and only walked with a small profit. I look forward to more live grinding to accompany my online grind...nice mix-up to say the least.

I also want to make some music this week. I haven't been making much lately and it's bothering me. I got my new headphones for a reason, so time to put them to use. I want to start at least 2 new songs, and have one finished one by the end of the month. And on that note, I'm going to crash out so I can get a good jump on this week.

PokerStars Game #23583828783: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2009/01/04 22:32:41 ET
Table 'Megaira X' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: paulc2403 ($75.70 in chips)
Seat 2: sunny8124657 ($26.90 in chips)
Seat 3: rhjh ($37.70 in chips)
Seat 4: monsterali ($49.50 in chips)
Seat 5: 7curse ($50.75 in chips)
Seat 6: glennf29 ($31.15 in chips)
Seat 8: bilsinho ($54.60 in chips)
Seat 9: ddppmm ($84.25 in chips)
monsterali: posts small blind $0.25
7curse: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Ad Kh]
glennf29: raises $0.50 to $1
bilsinho: calls $1
ddppmm: folds
paulc2403: folds
sunny8124657: folds
rhjh: calls $1
monsterali: folds
7curse: raises $25 to $26
glennf29: calls $25
bilsinho: folds
rhjh: folds
*** FLOP *** [4s Jh Qd]
7curse: bets $6
glennf29: calls $5.15 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [4s Jh Qd] [3s]
*** RIVER *** [4s Jh Qd 3s] [7c]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
7curse: shows [Ad Kh] (high card Ace)
glennf29: shows [Jc Kd] (a pair of Jacks)
glennf29 collected $61.55 from pot

*SS*

January 1 - Goals for the year + month

2009-01-01T17:25:00.002-05:00

My Goal completion for December 2008:

[ ] 50hrs of on-line play
[x] 40hrs of live play
[x] 2 new students
[/] eat better
[ ] work out 2x/week
[ ] make 1 video for my site
[/] write one article for my site
[x] possibly start writing a book
[ ] incorporate myself officially

--------------
--------------

Goals for 2009:

- $60K from poker
- 25+ students
- Write a mini-book (poker articles and such)
- Do about 10 videos for Stox
- Get 2-5 more profitable horses
- Get out of depression and grind more
- Work out more and get in the best shape of my life
- Eat better
- Get a "real" job?
- Enjoy life to a greater degree

-------------
-------------

Goals for January:

- 2 new students
- Finish my “Range Merging” article
- Cutout 400 calories/day
- Get a new place
- Find at least one new reason to enjoy life
- Socialize more
- 1 new video for my site
- 1 new video for Stox
- 33hrs/wk of job-related activity (coaching, playing, vids, etc)
- Write more of my book(s)

Good luck in 2009 everyone!

*SS*

December 31 - Year-end

2008-12-31T20:10:00.001-05:00

So this will be my last update of the year. Ended out the year far below what I had initially expected. But the games also got insanely tougher and I ended up taking a lot of time off for one reason or another. So, I survived while making some money, had some fun, and onwards with life we go.

Before we go any further, I just wanted to say thank you (and I suppose “your welcome” as well =) ) to a recent blog post by Mpimp. I'm glad I was able to help him through coaching and glad it has made his life, and family's, better. So cheers to you Mpimp, and best of luck in '09 =)

The last few days have been the best kind of hectic. I ended up picking up around 3 more students, doing at least 1 coaching session per day, have spent a lot of time with my dad, lots of time with my GF, and have been having fun. I haven't put in more than 1 real session since I've been home, but I'm on pace to get started again next week. I have also seen quite a few movies recently, although I will admit I regret seeing the Benjamen Button movie. There was a lot of death in the movie, and I was already in a sad mood thinking about my brother. There was a very sad line “we have to lose everyone at some point, otherwise, how would we know how much that person meant to us?”...and although very well done movie imo, I wasn't ready for that . But I also saw Valkyre and 7lbs, and will say I enjoyed both of those a lot.

I've also been writing an article for my site. It's coming along slowly but surely, but the example I am currently writing on is a bit intense and I think I might scrap it to find a more everyday example. The article is on range merging and will go over the basics of how to use it and implement it profitably in your game. I know many people mention it, but so far as I've seen, there really isn't much written on it. So I will go over that a bit and hopefully have that done within the month.

Other than that, life is breezy. I am very thankful for the year I've had. I've learned massive amounts of information this year, and hope to be able to say that every year until I die. I will write up a goal list for 2009 as a whole and January probably tomorrow. I believe I am going to a party with my GF tonight, so hopefully that goes well. Hope all is well with everyone, take it safe, and best of luck in 2009.

Full Tilt Poker Game #3918833464: Table Old Harbor - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:51:48 ET - 2007/10/21
Seat 1: fadrus ($111.20)
Seat 2: TheSnake-28 ($125.60)
Seat 4: Its RIGGIGGITY ($100)
Seat 5: eaglebob ($37.45)
Seat 6: mliang ($119.95)
Seat 7: caaashier ($152.10)
Seat 8: MTDHT ($101)
Seat 9: Xelpho ($118.05)
TheSnake-28 posts the small blind of $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY has 5 seconds left to act
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [5d 6s]
eaglebob calls $1
mliang folds
caaashier folds
MTDHT folds
Xelpho calls $1
fadrus folds
TheSnake-28 calls $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
*** FLOP *** [5c 5s 4s]
TheSnake-28 checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $3
eaglebob folds
Xelpho calls $3
TheSnake-28 folds
*** TURN *** [5c 5s 4s] [6c]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $8
Xelpho raises to $24
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $64
Xelpho raises to $114.05, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $32, and is all in
*** RIVER *** [5c 5s 4s 6c] [Ad]
Xelpho shows [5h Ah] for a full house, Fives full of Aces
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [5d 6s] for a full house, Fives full of Sixes
Xelpho wins the pot ($199) with a full house, Fives full of Aces

*SS*

December 27 - Christmas passed

2008-12-27T20:47:00.001-05:00

Christmas was awesome! Wasn't as stressful as I imagined it would have been, but I also decided to have a more positive outlook on the whole day. Holidays have sucked a ton since my brother passed and family composition changed...but life is about rolling with the punches and making the best of what you have. So I did, or attempted to, do just that.

I ended up getting a lot of awesome things, even though I didn't ask for hardly anything. The GF got me a ring that works pretty well with my watch, along with some video games, clothes (which she will inevitably steal), and some other gifts. Also got a new set of headphones, some giftcards, and my big gift; an iPhone. The iPhone is just so awesome, and yet another sign that our generation is unable to be unconnected for even 20 seconds.

I ended up picking up a few students as well, and had two intro sessions today that went well. Also did a session yesterday at 100NL which went OK. I'm still not running super, but by playing less (which has been a pretty common theme over the last couple months) I don't notice it so much =). I do have some very solid plans for next year as far as hours go. I decided that I will set my hour goals to include coaching, live play, and actual sessions. My main goal will be supernova and a bare minimum financial number.

Other than that, I have a lot to do this week. I would like to get a place to live this week, and I have a schedule littered with coaching and such. I have sent out some emails, and hope to be hearing back in the next few days. Being picky sucks when trying to get a new place, especially one on quick notice...but I'm sure it will work out.

That's all for now, hope all is well with everyone...

Full Tilt Poker Game #6408266609: Table Nial (deep) - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:55:38 ET - 2008/05/14
Seat 1: raisinchips ($203.70)
Seat 2: Its RIGGIGGITY ($208.85)
Seat 4: ontherun ($184.90)
Seat 5: alexis_gav ($128.35)
Seat 6: Stellpflug ($200)
Seat 7: krookymunster ($211.50)
Seat 9: joepoker77 ($201)
raisinchips posts the small blind of $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #9
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Kh Qs]
ontherun folds
alexis_gav folds
Stellpflug raises to $2
krookymunster folds
joepoker77 folds
raisinchips calls $1.50
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $1
*** FLOP *** [Ks 8c Qd]
raisinchips checks
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
Stellpflug bets $2
raisinchips folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $12
Stellpflug raises to $22
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $66
Stellpflug raises to $198, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $132
*** TURN *** [Ks 8c Qd] [6h]
*** RIVER *** [Ks 8c Qd 6h] [Td]
Stellpflug shows [Kc Kd] three of a kind, Kings
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Kh Qs] two pair, Kings and Queens
Stellpflug wins the pot ($399) with three of a kind, Kings

*SS*

December 24 - Getting acclimated...

2008-12-24T00:32:00.000-05:00

So I've spent the last few days getting acclimated again with Boston. Being home again hasn't really hit, except for the weather part. Holy Jesus my body got used to Vegas weather in a hurry, and now winter feels like hell. So I'm hoping my body hurries up and can deal with 20* weather again soon, because this sucks right now =)

Finally finished my Stox video series! The last video comes out next Monday (the 29th), and I think people will enjoy that one quite a bit. I played 100nl for 4 tables during it, and had a pretty swongy session, which generally makes for a fun video. I also have a video set for January, and hopefully a video or so for February. I'm hoping to be doing a University video in February focusing on betsizing, tis the goal anyway.

Went into Boston tonight and did “guy's night” which was a good time. Prepped me for a lot of the family time the next few days has to offer. I think I might go to church at some point on Christmas eve, just to see what it's all about. I haven't been to church in hovering around 4 years or so, so we'll see. I don't have much else planned except eve/breakfast with my dad, and Xmas day with my mom+sister. So fingers crossed that it's as stress-less as possible.

I'm exhausted as hell, so I'm going to go pass-out. Hand before bed, and merry Christmas all!

Full Tilt Poker Game #9646369398: Table Carey - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 12:48:32 ET - 2008/12/23
Seat 1: Its RIGGIGGITY ($101.25)
Seat 2: Willis04 ($186.20)
Seat 3: RyGuy500 ($64.90)
Seat 4: pokerinsidecokr ($92.50)
Seat 5: LightninFeather ($50.50)
Seat 6: wv_mase ($25.15)
Seat 7: eden07 ($36.05)
Seat 8: WuLi -D- ($101.70)
Seat 9: do_it_boy ($48.95)
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the small blind of $0.50
Willis04 posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #9
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ac Ad]
RyGuy500 folds
pokerinsidecokr folds
LightninFeather folds
wv_mase raises to $3
eden07 calls $3
WuLi -D- calls $3
do_it_boy folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $15
Willis04 folds
wv_mase folds
eden07 calls $12
WuLi -D- folds
*** FLOP *** [8h 6d Ts]
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
eden07 bets $21.05, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $21.05
eden07 shows [Kc 9d]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ac Ad]
*** TURN *** [8h 6d Ts] [2s]
*** RIVER *** [8h 6d Ts 2s] [7s]
eden07 shows a straight, Ten high
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a pair of Aces
eden07 wins the pot ($76.10) with a straight, Ten high

*SS*

December 20 - Finally done!

2008-12-20T12:46:00.000-05:00

Finally back in Boston! What a hellish trip. I left Chicago pretty early on Thursday and the goal was to get to Turning Stone (casino in upstate NY). Was supposed to be like 13 hours of driving and it took me about 16 hours with the weather. Damn snow storms and such. Also started listening to “V for Vendetta”, but only got about ½ way through it (it's an 8 hour audio book) before I went back to CD's. On that same note, I managed to only listen to 3 different CD's the entire drive, which is pretty sick for a 45+hour drive.

Spent the night at Turning Stone, had a hellish session, and crashed out. Got the buffet in the morning because I remembered I had some comp money left on my VIP card, and then hit the road at about 11:30a. It should take about 4hrs, 4.5hrs if slow, to get from TS to my Boston place. It ended up taking about 8 hours total to get there. The highways were crushed with snow, visibility of about a sneeze, and the roads were only filled with the type of people that would be driving on a day like that, retards.

Only ended up spinning a few times, but lucky for me I'm fairly good with drift driving. I actually wanted to have some fun and do some highway donuts (and there were some spots where there was no one on the highway), but figured with all my stuff in the car (TV, monitors, etc) that not doing so would be more +EV. Sad thing was I could really only average about 35mph, so it felt like it took forever, because it kind of did.

Finally back in Boston, and chilling out right now. Reviewing a few poker videos, doing some emails, then probably going to start grinding at some point today. The GF is working till tonight, so I have some time to put in some volume, which should feel good because I'm very motivated to do so. I think I will probably play some 100NL, and just play a few less tables (9-12). I am looking forward to this, as it feels like forever since I've put in a good amount of volume.

Other than that, I hope to get my snowboard out this week and hit a mountain or so. I haven't boarded in forever, and this mini-blizzard is perfect for getting back into it. Hope all is well with everyone, pz.

Hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #5207649252: Table Monterey - $1/$2 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:33:13 ET - 2008/02/10
Seat 1: KiLa KaM ($200)
Seat 2: GW Woody ($271.70)
Seat 3: thegucker ($82.55)
Seat 4: Barnicke ($78.40)
Seat 5: Mick Skywalker ($59.15)
Seat 6: Its RIGGIGGITY ($212.35)
Seat 7: TheGrizz71 ($112)
Seat 8: Tunica Rags ($173)
Seat 9: toJongbraNdon ($214.75)
TheGrizz71 posts the small blind of $1
Tunica Rags posts the big blind of $2
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [8d 7d]
toJongbraNdon raises to $7
KiLa KaM folds
GW Woody calls $7
thegucker folds
Barnicke folds
Mick Skywalker folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $7
TheGrizz71 calls $6
Tunica Rags folds
*** FLOP *** [Ts 6d 4s]
TheGrizz71 checks
toJongbraNdon bets $22
GW Woody folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $88
TheGrizz71 folds
toJongbraNdon calls $66
*** TURN *** [Ts 6d 4s] [7h]
toJongbraNdon bets $119.75, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $117.35, and is all in
toJongbraNdon shows [Qs Qc]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [8d 7d]
*** RIVER *** [Ts 6d 4s 7h] [9h]
toJongbraNdon shows a pair of Queens
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a straight, Ten high
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($437.70) with a straight, Ten high

*SS*

December 17 - Trip Update

2008-12-17T15:52:00.001-05:00

Ok...update from the last few days:

Leave Vegas at about 1:30a PST on Sunday night/Monday morning. Get tired within about 45 minutes, which is very LOL pathetic, and decide I best take a NoDoz + Redbull to get going. Really good idea because about 6 hours later I'm still cranked. Drive through Arizona and finally hit Utah when the sun is coming up. Very pretty state for the first 20 minutes, before the boredom sets in and you realize there is nothing but mountains for the next 5 hours.

Finally get into Colorado and enjoy that scenery a ton. Very serene with all the snow along the mountains. Made me look forward to winter in Boston so I can get some snowboarding done. I finally realize that the likely reason my car busted last time in CO was because I was using cruise control in the mountains. Now taking 70 (or 76?) through CO takes you literally winding through the mountain side, which means constant grade changes (going from +6 to -6). If you are using cruise control there, the car is unnaturally trying to maintain a speed while burning the low and high side of that gear.

Needless to say, I drove without cruise control. And although it was a little sad that I could only do 40mph going uphill, at least I got through with no issue. Got to northern CO by about 7p, and decided to crash out, so I pulled off to a rest stop. However, I soon realized it was -10*F outside, and that sleeping in that would be hellish. So I grabbed a quick hotel room, crashed out, and started back on the road at about 5aCST.

Drove through the rest of CO, then got into Nebraska. Nice state, but about ½ way through the weather got bad. I am driving right behind that hellish weather pattern that is bringing snow everywhere. So from Nebraska to Chicago, IL, was just terrible. Also got caught in some Des Moines, Iowa traffic during all that, so I got a tad tilty. But got through it, and am now spending a day in Chicago, seeing some friends, then back on the road tomorrow nice and early. Hopefully I will get to Turning Stone tomorrow, so if anyone is playing there Thursday-Friday, let me know and I'd be happy to grab some Emerald with ya =)

So about 24 hours of driving done (about 1.5K miles) and about 20 (1.3K miles) left. Wish me luck =)

Hope all is well with everyone, and of course, a hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #5208473248: Table Revere - $1/$2 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:43:57 ET - 2008/02/11
Seat 1: Narena ($246.55)
Seat 2: bangnine ($208)
Seat 3: pecka ($38)
Seat 4: ConanBarbarian ($296.80)
Seat 5: AMHotStuff ($131.75)
Seat 6: gravity1234 ($324.60)
Seat 7: Class V ($200)
Seat 8: Its RIGGIGGITY ($425.45)
Seat 9: mariojr ($547.30)
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the small blind of $1
mariojr is sitting out
Narena posts the big blind of $2
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [8h Ah]
bangnine folds
pecka folds
ConanBarbarian folds
AMHotStuff folds
gravity1234 calls $2
Class V folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $1
Narena checks
*** FLOP *** [Th 9h Js]
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
Narena bets $4
gravity1234 calls $4
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $4
*** TURN *** [Th 9h Js] [7d]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $12
Narena raises to $24
gravity1234 raises to $75
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $63
Narena folds
*** RIVER *** [Th 9h Js 7d] [4d]
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
gravity1234 bets $80
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $80
*** SHOW DOWN ***
gravity1234 shows [Qd Kc] a straight, King high
Its RIGGIGGITY mucks
gravity1234 wins the pot ($349) with a straight, King high

*SS*

December 14 - Last post from Vegas

2008-12-14T08:21:00.000-05:00

Well this will be my last blog update from Vegas for awhile. So far I don't feel that stressed about having to move again, nor the 45 hour drive...so no complaints about that. I get really sick when I get stressed (90% of the time when I'm sick, it's just a stress-induced sickness), and I did that when I left to come out to Vegas. So now I just have to pack my stuff, burn some CDs (DL'd some audiobooks + music), and then hit the road. I'm planning my trip so I can hopefully see everything in the opposite time of day I did last time (for instance, I drove through a lot of Utah at night, so I wish to do that during the day this time, etc).

Met up with KurtSF for dinner on Friday. Good kid, and had some good poker/life discussion throughout, which is all you can ask for. Then did a session at the Venetian, and followed that up with a session tonight. Would be nice if I could ever run good for any period of time, but I suppose I have another 17 days of hell left (I am convincing myself that 2009 will be my year =) ).

Also got the majority of my Christmas shopping done, which is sweet. Got some tacky Vegas stuff for the family (along with things they actually wanted), and a circular present for the GF. Also got my present for the Secret Santa thing, and I think that person will enjoy their gift quite a bit. I feel kind of broke at the moment for some odd reason, but going on spending binges will do that. I look forward to being done with setting up in a new place and being able to go back to working hard and saving, rather than minimal work and burning money.

Well I'm exhausted, and need to get some sleep before my busy day tomorrow. I need to pack up all my stuff, do a Stox video (because the one I did tonight was not good enough quality imo), and then start driving. I want to get started around midnight, so I don't really mind sleeping through today. Wish me luck if possible...and I will do my best to check email/blog/IM every day or so.

And of course, a hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #6395215798: Table Freeman - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:54:55 ET - 2008/05/13
Seat 1: Hussman2 ($46.45)
Seat 2: Arnz18 ($100)
Seat 3: thebigfish888 ($101.70)
Seat 4: TNN4731 ($144.15)
Seat 5: joepoker77 ($106.25)
Seat 6: Its RIGGIGGITY ($100)
Seat 7: iemdavid ($100)
Seat 8: atman ($176.15)
Seat 9: just_my_luck_09 ($52.45)
Arnz18 posts the small blind of $0.50
thebigfish888 posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [3s 3h]
TNN4731 folds
joepoker77 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $1
iemdavid folds
atman raises to $4.50
just_my_luck_09 calls $4.50
Hussman2 folds
Arnz18 calls $4
thebigfish888 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $3.50
*** FLOP *** [6h 8c 3c]
Arnz18 bets $10
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $10
atman raises to $20
just_my_luck_09 raises to $47.95, and is all in
Arnz18 adds $14.50
Arnz18 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $37.95
atman calls $27.95
*** TURN *** [6h 8c 3c] [3d]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $47.55, and is all in
atman calls $47.55
*** RIVER *** [6h 8c 3c 3d] [8d]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows four of a kind, Threes
just_my_luck_09 showed [Kh Ks] and lost with two pair, Kings and Eights
atman showed [Js Jc] and lost with two pair, Jacks and Eights
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the side pot ($95.10) with four of a kind, Threes
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the main pot ($169.85) with four of a kind, Threes

*SS*

December 11 - Site Stats!

2008-12-11T16:49:00.000-05:00

Just a quick random update. Was checking my Google Analytics page and realized I finally hit my 2,000th unique visitor since launching in July. Just wanted to say thanks to those that visit the site, and hope you are enjoying it!

Also, I have added 2 new blogs to the right. One is LMD, an old student of mine who is now working his up the 6max ladder...and the other is my first female student, WordHappy. Enjoy!

And I suppose a hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #6895181911: Table Underhill - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:54:26 ET - 2008/06/19
Seat 1: Its RIGGIGGITY ($100)
Seat 2: svenakira ($70.40)
Seat 3: idurk10 ($101.05)
Seat 4: buick19 ($100)
Seat 5: dankdonk420 ($59.40)
Seat 6: tep5068 ($20.20)
Seat 7: konnix ($117.40)
Seat 8: SilvrEagle ($110.35)
Seat 9: dikemp ($101.50)
buick19 posts the small blind of $0.50
dankdonk420 posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #3
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Kd Kc]
tep5068 calls $1
konnix folds
SilvrEagle raises to $3
dikemp folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $12.50
svenakira folds
idurk10 folds
buick19 adds $0.50
buick19 folds
dankdonk420 folds
tep5068 folds
SilvrEagle raises to $35
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $100, and is all in
SilvrEagle calls $65
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Kd Kc]
SilvrEagle shows [Qs Qd]
*** FLOP *** [Qc Ad Th]
*** TURN *** [Qc Ad Th] [5h]
*** RIVER *** [Qc Ad Th 5h] [5c]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows two pair, Kings and Fives
SilvrEagle shows a full house, Queens full of Fives
SilvrEagle wins the pot ($199.50) with a full house, Queens full of Fives

*SS*

December 10 - Good stuff...

2008-12-10T03:06:00.001-05:00

So interesting last couple of days. My Stox video got pushed back by a day (there was a video release mix-up, and Tuesday's video went on Monday and vice versa), but it all worked out. It seems to be liked by most people (had my first real negative response to a video, but only from one person, so I'm not really worried about it). I suggest checking it out if you are a Stox member (or getting a Stox memebership which can be free if you play on FTP), it's the first part of “Kiss The Ring” series, and I play 25nl in it. Enjoy!

I also put in a session the other day, and a session tonight. Actually decided to play 100nl and play less tables tonight. Partly because one of my videos for this series will be a 100nl session and I wanted to get accustomed to game flow/sizes again, and partly because I figured if I was going to be cutting down how many tables I was playing I should play a bit higher (I'm rolled for 100nl on-line, so it wasn't an issue). Session went well, though I was surprised that statistically I ran much tighter than normal (13/10) even with less tables...small sample though, so I will keep an eye on that.

I also got invited to be part of a poker lecture in January. I think it will be a cool experience, and I believe the class size is pretty large. For some odd reason I'm not nervous at all because poker is one of those topics I am 100% comfortable talking about. So I get to talk about bet sizing maximization and also do a Q&A...so it should be a good experience for sure. Who would have thought that poker would lead to doing guest lectures?

Also meant to go car shopping this morning, but slept through it, and then slept through lunch, and then slept through dinner. My sleep schedule is absolute garbage, crashing out around 8a and waking up around 6p. I really need a better sleep schedule. So tonight I am going to try and get a good nights sleep, do car shopping, then get home in time for 2 students. Hurray coaching! I am not really sure how car shopping will go, or even if I want a new car, but I figure why not check it out? On that same note, I have not yet figured out where I am living in Boston yet, but am constantly looking/emailing/and calling...so hopefully when I get home I can check a few places in person and do what I need to do. Wish me luck!

That's enough for now. And of course, a hand before I crash:

Full Tilt Poker Game #9380174960: Table Houlton - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 22:28:52 ET - 2008/12/07
Seat 1: Fletch182 ($58.35)
Seat 2: Its RIGGIGGITY ($51.75)
Seat 3: Dog_bluffer ($50.75)
Seat 4: brewpalmer ($17.15)
Seat 5: Menion87 ($8.50)
Seat 6: NinjaSnipr ($73.85)
Seat 7: deebo-chips ($53.30)
Seat 8: EMUPOKERDUDE ($11.50)
Seat 9: player2321 ($22.05)
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the small blind of $0.25
Dog_bluffer posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ah 2h]
brewpalmer folds
Menion87 folds
NinjaSnipr folds
deebo-chips folds
EMUPOKERDUDE folds
player2321 folds
Fletch182 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $1.50
Dog_bluffer raises to $5.25
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $12.50
Dog_bluffer calls $7.25
*** FLOP *** [2c 3s 2d]
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
Dog_bluffer checks
*** TURN *** [2c 3s 2d] [Ad]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $15
Dog_bluffer calls $15
*** RIVER *** [2c 3s 2d Ad] [4h]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $24.25, and is all in
Dog_bluffer calls $23.25, and is all in
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ah 2h] a full house, Twos full of Aces
Dog_bluffer mucks [3d 6d] - two pair, Threes and Twos
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($98.50) with a full house, Twos full of Aces

*SS*

December 8 - Moving soon

2008-12-08T05:15:00.001-05:00

So I am moving for sure. Not 100% sure where yet, but I know it will be in the Boston area. I want to be closer to the GF, and also closer to my family. I think my dad needs me around more than he leads on, and I want to be good to the family. I think I'm leaving in like a week or so, so until then it will be a little stressful. I'm also looking into getting a new car before I leave because now is a great time to refinance anything, and even better to get new things! I will probably still get a jeep, but who knows, maybe I'll see if anything else strikes my fancy.

Did my video for Stox tonight which felt good. Put in a nice session at 50nl and had a fun variancecoaster. KK<99 aipf, 35ss>AK aipf, guy calls my pf 4b with 63ss, very LOL. So had a winning session, I put together what I feel is a solid video on table selection + my 50nl session. This video series is cool in that it incorporates both live session and classroom style. My first video of the series gets released today (the 8th), so check it out if you haven't already...and please rate it!

Also did 2 live sessions this weekend, and holy God, actually pulled a profit each night. Did both nights at the Venetian, because I love that poker room more than anything. For some odd reason I got on good tables both nights as well. I've been noticing a few things about the room...for one, the average size of an open raise has dropped considerably over the last 2 months (from $15 to about $7). Secondly, the number of games running has dropped (might be due to economy, off-season, or both). Third, less spewfish that constantly reload. Might be small sample size (I think only about 150hours of live), but still interesting to see first hand.

Life will be getting a tad stressful over the next little while, but I'm just here to enjoy the everlasting adventure that life is. And of course, a hand (and against a student too =/ ):

Full Tilt Poker Game #9379494135: Table Block - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 21:46:51 ET - 2008/12/07
Seat 1: treborii ($36.55)
Seat 2: kwriter ($38.45)
Seat 3: dowork14 ($111.55)
Seat 4: MrsPauls ($51.60)
Seat 5: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50)
Seat 6: jaguarevo1 ($0), is sitting out
Seat 7: maplesf ($21.30)
Seat 8: Journeyman54 ($63.30)
Seat 9: 4Gooner4 ($30.75)
MrsPauls posts the small blind of $0.25
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #3
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [3h 5h]
maplesf folds
Journeyman54 folds
4Gooner4 folds
treborii folds
kwriter folds
dowork14 folds
MrsPauls calls $0.25
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $1.50
MrsPauls raises to $6
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $20
MrsPauls raises to $51.60, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $30, and is all in
MrsPauls shows [As Ks]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [3h 5h]
*** FLOP *** [5c 5s 8h]
*** TURN *** [5c 5s 8h] [3s]
*** RIVER *** [5c 5s 8h 3s] [8c]
MrsPauls shows two pair, Eights and Fives
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a full house, Fives full of Eights
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($97) with a full house, Fives full of Eights

*SS*

December 4 - Back in Vegas

2008-12-04T07:48:00.001-05:00

Got back in Vegas yesterday. Took a 4p flight, got back in Vegas at 10p and was lucky to sleep through half of it. I was running on 5 hours of sleep in 2 days, so got 3 hours of sleep on the plane, got home, ate a quick ice cream sandwich and crashed out for another 14 hours. I think I'm all caught up, but we'll see. I am snapping a sickness at the moment (thought it was strep, but luckily not) and stress fever...so hoping that happens sooner than later.

Also got my video for Stox done today (series is released on the 8th), which felt good. First session online in almost 3 weeks, which also felt lovely. Only 6tabled 25nl for about 40minutes, but something is better than nothing. And, with that, I'm motivated to work again! I will be putting in some more sessions, and doing some more videos the rest of this week.

I have also been adding students like wildfire lately. I have 3 intro sessions this week alone, and possibly 2 more next week. I love coaching! Wide range of abilities and backgrounds, so hopefully I can create more monsters to ruin the games and make them harder than they already are. Coaching keeps me nice and motivated though, so hopefully this will get me grinding between sessions even more than I was a few months ago.

Other than that, life has been pretty solid. I'm not sure if I'm staying in Vegas much longer. I really don't have much out here, the jobs are pretty limited and don't hold as much future, and I want to try something new. I'll make my decision in the next few weeks, and who knows, might be driving cross-country again. Hurray 45hr car trips! (though at least ½ as cheap given the drop in gas prices!).

That's enough for now, hope the month is going well for everyone, and of course a hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #9313592620: Table Summer Leaf - $0.10/$0.25 - No Limit Hold'em - 5:13:39 ET - 2008/12/04
Seat 1: Cityofangels ($24.40)
Seat 2: Its RIGGIGGITY ($27.20)
Seat 3: amonisis ($80.95)
Seat 4: jaman1965 ($9.60)
Seat 5: galleche ($7.05)
Seat 6: ML1210 ($23.80)
Seat 7: ProprioBono ($5)
Seat 8: Gerrard37 ($50.95)
Seat 9: tessioinft ($24.75)
Gerrard37 posts the small blind of $0.10
tessioinft posts the big blind of $0.25
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ad Ac]
Cityofangels calls $0.25
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $1.20
amonisis folds
jaman1965 folds
galleche folds
ML1210 folds
ProprioBono folds
Gerrard37 folds
tessioinft folds
Cityofangels calls $0.95
*** FLOP *** [7s 8s 7d]
Cityofangels checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $1.95
Cityofangels calls $1.95
*** TURN *** [7s 8s 7d] [Qc]
Cityofangels bets $3.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $13
Cityofangels raises to $21.25, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $8.25
Cityofangels shows [8d 8h]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ad Ac]
*** RIVER *** [7s 8s 7d Qc] [Ah]
Cityofangels shows a full house, Eights full of Sevens
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a full house, Aces full of Sevens
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($46.70) with a full house, Aces full of Sevens

*SS*

December 1 - Goals for the new month

2008-12-01T05:10:00.000-05:00

Goals

1...50hrs of online play
2...40hrs of live play
3...2 new students
4...eat better
5...work out 2x/week
6...make 1 video for my site
7...write one article for my site
8...possibly start writing a book
9...incorporate myself

Kind of a big goal list...but I expect that most of it is very do-able. So fingers crossed I do it all. I'm excited about finally putting in hands again, I feel very confident right now, and have formulated a motivation team to help with putting in the hours. Should be a very profitable month given how sick soft holiday games tend to get.

So best of luck to all of you!

Full Tilt Poker Game #5113813744: Table Scotmist - $1/$2 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:05:17 ET - 2008/02/04
Seat 1: Its RIGGIGGITY ($262)
Seat 2: bigmoney71 ($266.60)
Seat 3: ORDoften ($107.10)
Seat 4: RazeAllin55 ($33.10)
Seat 5: hackysac24 ($78.40)
Seat 6: m118834 ($40)
Seat 7: honey4peaches ($33)
Seat 8: R0underBipp ($75.55)
Seat 9: funnyactordj ($116.20)
funnyactordj posts the small blind of $1
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $2
The button is in seat #8
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Kh Jc]
bigmoney71 folds
ORDoften folds
RazeAllin55 folds
hackysac24 folds
honey4peaches folds
R0underBipp folds
funnyactordj calls $1
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $6
funnyactordj calls $4
*** FLOP *** [8s 7h Kd]
funnyactordj bets $110.20, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $110.20
RazeAllin55: wtf was that
funnyactordj shows [9h 8d]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Kh Jc]
*** TURN *** [8s 7h Kd] [Tc]
*** RIVER *** [8s 7h Kd Tc] [5s]
funnyactordj shows a pair of Eights
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a pair of Kings
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($229.40) with a pair of Kings

*SS*

November 28 - Black Friday

2008-11-28T03:38:00.001-05:00

Well happy thanksgiving a day late. I was going to write a blog post for yesterday, but forgot. I suck.

Boston is going well so far. Spending a lot of time with family and the GF. I get back to Vegas on Tuesday of next week and am enjoying my time here as much as possible. I haven't done too much since I've been here, but did manage to squeeze in a few coaching sessions the last few days. I still haven't played any poker which is really pissing me off...but I blame being home and being out till 1a+ with the GF =). So back to the grindstone soon, just not sure when.

I am going to start a poker video soon. I have another Stox series coming up and for some odd reason the time escaped me a bit and I realized I have to start working ASAP. This series will probably be about 10-20min of classroom per video then 40-50min of playing. I think I am going to focus on Micro to Small (10nl-100nl) and obviously teach a wide range of skills (from “how to stereotype” to “how to mega-table”)...so hopefully people will get a lot out of this one as they did out of the last one.

Also, I am one of those nutty ass people that loves Black Friday (day after Thanksgiving where there are sickO sales everywhere and doors open super early). I am staying up and then will start moving around 4:30a. It is a ton of fun to be out grinding that early with all the other nutters and you really do shave off about 30-45% of your Christmas spending. I also realized that I need to give my Xmas list out to people, and other than an Iphone (or solid equivalent), I don't have much else on it thus far. Any suggestions?

Well that is all new with me. Also, my body will not adjust to the time difference, and I am sleeping super odd hours (like 6a-11a with a nap from 3p-6p). Hoping my body starts adjusting soon, otherwise I'm going to need to get back on my melatonin. And last sidenote...my GF has strep and ear infections going around in her house. I currently am feeling very fatigued, throat sick, and achy...If I get strep, I am going to be a very angry person. Sickness isn't great for grindcore =)

Alright, hand then sleep. Night, and happy extended Xmas season to those who don't hate it.

Full Tilt Poker Game #5166026233: Table Grand Teton - $1/$2 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:35:46 ET - 2008/02/07
Seat 1: ElkThuringer ($164)
Seat 2: Bluffnbeaver ($199.20)
Seat 3: rst1 ($266.05)
Seat 4: Its RIGGIGGITY ($382.35)
Seat 5: lamtyson ($45.20)
Seat 6: must be famous ($146)
Seat 7: gotthenutlow ($106.30)
Seat 8: Suigin406 ($205.40)
Seat 9: MrDissemble ($158)
gotthenutlow posts the small blind of $1
Suigin406 posts the big blind of $2
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Jd Ad]
MrDissemble folds
ElkThuringer folds
Bluffnbeaver folds
rst1 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $7
lamtyson folds
must be famous folds
gotthenutlow calls $6
Suigin406 folds
*** FLOP *** [Qd As Kh]
gotthenutlow checks
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
*** TURN *** [Qd As Kh] [6h]
gotthenutlow bets $16
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $16
*** RIVER *** [Qd As Kh 6h] [Td]
gotthenutlow bets $83.30, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $83.30
*** SHOW DOWN ***
gotthenutlow shows [Qs Ks] two pair, Kings and Queens
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Jd Ad] a straight, Ace high
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($211.60) with a straight, Ace high

*SS*

November 23 - In Boston

2008-11-24T00:37:00.000-05:00

So I landed in Boston earlier today. Left at like 11p from Vegas, and got through security just as the plane was boarding. I found the Vegas airport to be quite hilarious. There really are rows of slot machines lining the hallways, and even better, there are people sitting there playing them. It was so sad to see people just sitting there thumbing in coin after coin...*sigh*. So got through the airport with no issue, and no one bothered me about my dog either, which was awesome.

This was Kingjamen's first trip on a plane. Everyone in the airport loved him and they were quite awesome holding and petting him while I was gathering my stuff past the security checkpoint. He scared a few people on the plane when he would randomly pop out of my hoodie and look around, but he does that often. I thought it was very cool that I could have my dog just chill in lap the whole plane ride...and even better that he had no issues at all.

So got to see my dad and sister today, and also did breakfast and dinner with the GF. Awesome to see her, especially after a 2 month long-distance thing. I'm sure I'll be seeing her quite often this week, though it will be very busy between appointments, coaching, her working, and holidays. I'm trying to stay very positive about being home, amongst other things, because like I've said in other posts, happiness is about relative point of view. So if I can learn to base my happiness on certain things, especially things I can control, then I will get more out of life.

Also, I have played no on-line poker in quite some time. This week I plan to get back to the grind. I don't have my external monitor with me, so I plan on playing 4-10 tables of 100nl-400nl. I should be able to hyper focus more on my actions, upping my WR enough to counteract the smaller amount of tables. Other than that, I did an 8 hour session on Saturday at the Wynn, and of course lose yet another 2BI+ 12+outter. I swear, one day I will win so many coin-flips and be rich, until then, I will brick all of them and hate stuff.

I'm gonna go crash. Trying to get used to the time difference (lost three hours in my trip), so I'm going to try and get to sleep early so I'm awake for counseling tomorrow. Nothing better than getting a mental check-up before grindcore season =).

Full Tilt Poker Game #5928843100: Table Lantana Falls - $3/$6 - No Limit Hold'em - 15:47:45 ET - 2008/04/06
Seat 1: thihamt ($2,335.75)
Seat 2: Inzomnia ($591)
Seat 3: RiverMeAA ($1,085.15)
Seat 4: zanjan ($53)
Seat 5: PoorNapoleon ($742)
Seat 6: padirk165 ($585)
Seat 7: AdmiralTwill ($627)
Seat 8: Its RIGGIGGITY ($120)
Seat 9: MrDissemble ($1,128.90)
MrDissemble posts the small blind of $3
thihamt posts the big blind of $6
The button is in seat #8
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Js Jc]
Inzomnia folds
RiverMeAA calls $6
zanjan folds
PoorNapoleon folds
padirk165 raises to $27
AdmiralTwill folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $120, and is all in
MrDissemble folds
thihamt folds
RiverMeAA folds
padirk165 calls $93
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Js Jc]
padirk165 shows [As Th]
*** FLOP *** [5h 2h 7h]
*** TURN *** [5h 2h 7h] [3c]
*** RIVER *** [5h 2h 7h 3c] [Kc]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a pair of Jacks
padirk165 shows Ace King high
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($252) with a pair of Jacks

*SS*

November 20 - Personality Test

2008-11-20T05:26:00.000-05:00

Ok...so it will be a very busy next couple of days. I'm flying back to Boston sometime between now and Monday (I would tell you when, but the GF reads the blog, I'm attempting to sneak up on her, so now no one gets the know), and need to move all my stuff from my current house into my new temporary place. I moved over the heavy stuff today (my 60lb trunk of books and desk), and will move the rest over on Thursday. The goal is to get it all in 2 trips, which I think is more than possible if I hustle.

The last few days have been busy with coaching and random doings. Did an intro session yesterday that ended up running 2.5 hours, which made it a 4.5 hour coaching day, which was awesome, but super tiring. Felt good though, and I really feel my students are making great strides right now. Also got my first LeakFinder client, so hopefully I can get a review from her (yes, females play poker too =) ) to share.

I've also been listening to a ton of downtone electronica lately. If people are into that genre, I suggest checking out Hexstatic “Chase me” and Booka Shade “Body Language”. I am very much a music nut, and am obsessed with finding perfect music for perfect situations. For instance, if I were granted 3 wishes, one of my wishes would always be to have a soundtrack for life. Music 24/7, perfectly picked out for each situation, would be amazing. But these two songs especially have a very positive tone and have been really solid background music while getting things accomplished...so I love them. Which reminds me, thanks to conversations with about 90 different people and lots of reading, I am starting to snap this depressive state I was slipping into. Trying to be happy with life isn't easy, but most certainly is worth the effort.

Also, I got this from one of my students the other day: Jung Personality Test, and I definitely suggest doing it and seeing the results. I am apparently an INTJ, and after reading a lot of reviews on that personality type, it's scary how much its true.

I'm off to bed. Sorry for the super random post =)

Full Tilt Poker Game #5931700753: Table Lantana Falls - $3/$6 - No Limit Hold'em - 19:18:25 ET - 2008/04/06
Seat 1: MrDissemble ($396)
Seat 2: JoRDANe ($251)
Seat 3: deweyzena ($1,400.70)
Seat 4: Elin88 ($1,608.55)
Seat 5: Pasame la SALSA ($847)
Seat 6: zanjan ($234)
Seat 7: kobe2468 ($101)
Seat 8: Its RIGGIGGITY ($129)
Seat 9: chislodc ($900.15)
zanjan posts the small blind of $3
kobe2468 posts the big blind of $6
The button is in seat #5
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Kh As]
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $6
chislodc folds
MrDissemble folds
JoRDANe folds
deweyzena folds
Elin88 raises to $27
Pasame la SALSA folds
zanjan calls $24
kobe2468 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $129, and is all in
Elin88 folds
zanjan calls $102
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Kh As]
zanjan shows [Jc Ad]
*** FLOP *** [8d Jd 5h]
*** TURN *** [8d Jd 5h] [2d]
*** RIVER *** [8d Jd 5h 2d] [5s]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a pair of Fives
zanjan shows two pair, Jacks and Fives
zanjan wins the pot ($288) with two pair, Jacks and Fives

*SS*

November 17 - Moving time

2008-11-17T05:38:00.000-05:00

So the house stuff is official now. They offered us “cash-4-keys” and my roommates wanted to take it...so time to get moving. Checked out a few places today/yesterday, and have a place lined up for tomorrow if I chose to take it...not 100% sure what I want to do quite yet...but I'll be figuring it out this week for sure. I am getting stress sick again from the whole ordeal, but I feel more comfortable now than I did before.

Other than housing stuff, I met up with 2p2r PartyPoker123 this weekend for dinner. Really nice kid, and related to me in more than a few ways. Very cool of him to take time away from his 600K hand bet and do dinner. Not really sure how the hell one goes about grinding that hard and that long...but all power to ya =). After that I fired up a session at the Venetian...and of course ran like hell hole.

Ended up -2.5BI by the time the weekend was over...which sucked. Not very happy with how live has been going lately, but doing a quick hand/hour calculation, it turns out I'm pretty much break-even over 4K hands...which on-line is a joke...so I'm just reminding myself to look at sample size. I am noticing the effects of the economy on the games as well, which was expected I suppose. Very sad to see games getting torn down and the fish starting to dissipate a bit.

On the same note of fish dissipation, I am doing another series for Stox!!! I have Mondays inked in for December (except the first one, so it will again be a 4 video series). I have a very cool idea for this one. I think I will call it “100%” and everything will be 100% something. 1 video will be 100% vpip, another will be 100% limping, and another 100% raising. I haven't figured out what the 4th video will be yet (maybe 100% checking?), but all suggestions are welcome so long as it works with the 100% theme. The goal of the series is to educate while entertaining, but also show many different marginal spots that people tend to struggle in.

Super fun stuff for sure. I also want to work out some more this week. I have taken a huge interest in getting myself back in shape slowly. I ended up doing a nice 200m swim on Friday, and hope to put in more laps this week. Swimming is by far the most solid cardio I can be doing, and also gives the entire body a work out.

Thats enough for now. A hand before bed:

Live 1/2nl at the Venetian:
(I wasn't involved at showdown, just a fun hand. I do have a reason for not raising on the flop)

2 limps, hero ($350) raises to $11 with KhQs, 2 callers behind, 2 limpers call

Flop: (5 players, $58) Qh Th 4s.

UTG check, MP1 ($850) fires $15, Hero calls, CO ($200) calls, 1 fold, UTG ($700) raises to $75, MP1 calls, Hero folds, CO folds

Turn: (2 players, $238) Ac

UTG shoves $614, MP1 calls $614

River: (2 players, $1466) 4c

UTG shows QT for 2pr
MP1 shows KJ for a straight, King high

UTG curses all and tells MP1 how bad he is...while also saying “there is nothing I could do, I played it perfectly”. Lol, nice 3x pot shove on the 2nd worst card in the deck. Poker isn't dead yet I suppose.

*SS*

November 14 - Going to the gym

2008-11-14T05:08:00.000-05:00

Boring but nice week thus far. Got quite a few hours of coaching done which felt great. So far I'm on pace for my goal of picking up students, and picked up my third one today. So hurray! I finally managed to hit a goal!!! I also got a burst of motivation today and got my ass to the gym. I'm not thrilled with my physical shape since I became a “pro”. I'm far from fat (6'0”, 165lbs) , but I cannot run 2mi straight through yet and my strength is way down as well...I mean hell...I'm getting winded chasing my dog around the house sometimes.

So the gym was great. I want to be kind to myself, and not over-exert myself. So I just started by slow jogging a 1/2mi, did some weights, some push-ups/situps...and I plan to go back tomorrow and get some swimming in before I go put in a session. I will never be a good runner (combination between bad knees/shins and I have super ADD), so I want to do something else for cardio...and being that a friend taught me how to swim in college, I feel I should put that to use (even though I still suck...its better than nothing).

Also got my car patched up today. My dumb ass hit a pole on my way out of Caesars one night (going like 1mph, but still beat the bitch out of my car), and I really wanted the dent out. So I ran into some guys today that had the tools on them to do it (don't ask, super sketch situation), and it was done when I got out of the gym. I ended up sitting down with the guys that patched the dent after and talked about God/religion for awhile (again, don't ask how I always get in odd convos in odd situations). For some odd reason, I keep noticing a very scary trend amongst 20-35yr olds who love Jesus...they hit rock bottom from drugs or gambling. Of course, that doesn't surprise me much given where I live currently...but is religion something that people do just because they need to grasp something on their way out of the hole, they either dug or were thrown into?

I don't want this to become a huge religious conversation, but it's just something I noticed. I mean hell, I never even considered going to church until this year (after the death of my brother)...and the only reason I wanted to go was to try to understand what the fuss was about. Religion is a silly beast.

Also...quick word on UIGEA stuff since some people have asked me my opinions on it. I suggest not panicking. This appears to be nothing more than more loopholes with fancy verbiage, juuuuuuuuuuuuuust like the last time they tried it. I think the entire thing is insane personally. Obviously the government is jealous they didn't get their dick wet from offshore poker money, and the fact they are trying to “protect teens FROM UNDERAGE GAMBOWLING!!!” is insane. I disagree with everything the UIGEA crap is about, if they really wanted to protect kids there are a thousand other ways to do it. The entire thing gets me angry (I really don't enjoy my government telling me what I can and cannot do with my money (when I'm not hurting anyone) and then ruining my job while taxing me out the ass for it).

And a hand before bed:

PokerStars Game #21899312438: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2008/11/09 17:00:29 ET
Table 'Salome V' 9-max Seat #5 is the button
Seat 1: Naruse ($50 in chips)
Seat 2: AndeyPandey ($50 in chips)
Seat 3: Furioso_xx ($123.50 in chips)
Seat 5: calboy96 ($54.30 in chips)
Seat 6: BergenNH ($112.95 in chips)
Seat 7: iamjwm1965 ($58.70 in chips)
Seat 8: Punisher2421 ($36.15 in chips)
Seat 9: 7curse ($60.50 in chips)
BergenNH: posts small blind $0.25
iamjwm1965: posts big blind $0.50
grruuz: sits out
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [9c 9h]
Punisher2421: folds
7curse: raises $1 to $1.50
Naruse: folds
AndeyPandey: calls $1.50
Furioso_xx: folds
calboy96: folds
BergenNH: raises $3.50 to $5
iamjwm1965: folds
7curse: calls $3.50
AndeyPandey: folds
*** FLOP *** [7c 3h 9s]
BergenNH: bets $6.50
7curse: calls $6.50
*** TURN *** [7c 3h 9s] [6c]
BergenNH: bets $6
7curse: raises $21 to $27
BergenNH: calls $21
*** RIVER *** [7c 3h 9s 6c] [5h]
BergenNH: bets $74.45 and is all-in
7curse: calls $22 and is all-in
*** SHOW DOWN ***
BergenNH: shows [8d 8h] (a straight, Five to Nine)
7curse: mucks hand [9c 9h] (three of a kind, Nines)
BergenNH collected $120 from pot

*SS*

November 11 - Site update!

2008-11-11T05:04:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to put a quick update in the blog. The site has been upgraded a little bit. There is now an “Articles” section which will be getting thicker every month. Currently, I just have my Poohbah post in there, but there are a number of people writing articles as we speak that will be getting posted soon. The goal is 3-10 articles per month with topics ranging from life to strategy. WW also suggested interviews, and I think I might do some of that as well...so we'll see how that goes along.

Also, I officially released “Leakfinder” as a service. Effectively this service couples the statistical review and the real-time analysis of coaching. Mpethybridge (2p2 Mod, who runs the current thread on 2p2 concerning statistical review) will be handling the statistical side of the coaching while I will handle the 1hr sweat session. This is great as a stand-alone service for people who just want a review to ensure their game is still tight, and also as a pre-cursor to coaching.

Hopefully people enjoy the new look and additions...and as always, if there are any comments/questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

And of course, a hand =)

Full Tilt Poker Game #8907947678: Table Duval (deep) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 19:08:21 ET - 2008/11/10
Seat 1: NickiNit ($50)
Seat 2: NBForrest ($51.55)
Seat 3: kdiamond_rp ($54.85)
Seat 4: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50.75)
Seat 5: uRaMaG ($98.75)
Seat 6: mosdef213 ($48.50)
Seat 8: bliZZard010 ($23)
Seat 9: 2girls1coon ($108.80), is sitting out
bliZZard010 posts the small blind of $0.25
NickiNit posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [8s 7s]
NBForrest folds
kdiamond_rp folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $1.50
uRaMaG folds
mosdef213 folds
bliZZard010 calls $1.25
NickiNit calls $1
*** FLOP *** [7h 2s 4s]
bliZZard010 checks
NickiNit bets $3.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $12.30
bliZZard010 raises to $21.50, and is all in
NickiNit calls $18
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $49.25, and is all in
NickiNit calls $27, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [8s 7s]
bliZZard010 shows [8c 8h]
NickiNit shows [Ks As]
*** TURN *** [7h 2s 4s] [7c]
*** RIVER *** [7h 2s 4s 7c] [Td]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows three of a kind, Sevens
NickiNit shows a pair of Sevens
bliZZard010 shows two pair, Eights and Sevens
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the side pot ($54) with three of a kind, Sevens
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the main pot ($66) with three of a kind, Sevens

*SS*

November 10 - Life direction

2008-11-10T04:50:00.000-05:00

Well poker has been going not well...so I'm going to talk a little about poker in this post...and then ramble about something else for the rest. Friday I did a session at Venetian and actually had a nice session. +2BI or so, which wasn't too bad at all. Hit a nice double draw (will be my hand at the end of the post) for an $800 pot, which was lovely to say the least. Saturday I lost a BI never playing a pot bigger than $125. I can't tell you how awesome it is to constantly just sit there getting dealt garbage, and then hitting nothing with the draw hands, no sets, no pairs, no nothing...yet a kid sits down and in 5 straight hands hits trips+ every hand...and claims he “runs bad”. *grumble*

Did an 18 tabling session today, and lost 2.5BI playing well. Hit 1 set out of 49 pp's seeing flops (of course the 1 set I hit I got perfect-perfect'd to lose a BI)...1/14 of pair+ with AJo+, and was dealt AA/KK ½ as many times as I should have. O well. For some odd reason PokerStars is slow as crap. I've actually increased my amount of tables because seeing 500hands/hr is just too damn slow. I'll experiment with it for a bit longer and see if most tables is decreasing my WR at all...but I'm pretty sure all that will happen is my redline will increase while my blue/green do as they wish. PokerStars players are super weak/tight...good for my style I guess (also, playing 19/14 while 18tabling is silly-fun).

Well, now that I'm done venting about this retarded game that I run retardedly bad at...I wanted to talk about my life direction. Any and all comments are welcome...but I wanted to get this out...so now seems like a fun time to do that.

For one, I feel as thought I'm playing poker for a living right now in hopes of avoiding a “real job”. I know I am capable of more than playing poker for a living, and I strive to reach a higher level in life. For one, I feel playing poker has very little benefit to anyone but myself (I mean hell, I make my money causing pain to others in a sense). I want to help not only myself, but others. I really just want to feel like I'm contributing...but my big issue is that I feel businesses tend to be so greedy that I wouldn't be doing anything but working to help grow greed which “takes” from people (right back to doing what I'm doing now, taking money and causing pain for people, but in a suit and tie).

So there is some dissonance. Also, I have no idea what I want to really do. There are two thoughts here...one is teach, get paid nothing, but enjoy what I do while feeling like I contribute, two is jump in my suit and tie, work my way up the political/corporate ladder, and get paid well while doing things that help business. Oddly enough this seems like the comment I made a few posts back about quality v quantity. I would have a high quality teaching (or something of the like), and a high quantity (money) if I went the corporate route. The damn thing is that my brain is so geared towards business, and not using a solid skill-set seems wasteful. If only I could seriously get into corporate coaching or something, I could combine both skill+desire...because right now I have no desire to become a corporate work-horse, nor a broke dude.

I know that I am avoiding my “jump” into the real world. I came to Vegas in hopes of propelling myself in life, and here I still sit behind my damn computer playing poker every day. The only difference is I go to a casino to play poker sometimes now, so there is some interaction while working. I just need to pick a route and jump. I'm not sure if I don't jump because I'm scared of hating it, I would hate wasting time, or I just secretly want to break-even for the rest of life. I just need to go forward with something...I always preach to people that they need to actively think and progress, and it's time I take my own advice....just need to flip a coin and pick a route.

Thanks for reading my ramble...

A hand before bed:

Venetian 1/2nl

Hero (covers table, MP3) overlimps Qh 9h...

Flop: (6 players/$12) Kh Th 7s
check, check, check, check, I bet $10, fold, fold, SB raises to $41 (with $380 stack), folds to me, I call.

Turn: (2 players, $95) Jd (omgomgomg!)
SB bets $110, I shove, SB tanks and finally calls

River blanks off, I ship a nice pot. Hurray hitting a draw!

*SS*

November 7 - I went to a club?

2008-11-07T05:47:00.000-05:00

So this week has been fun thus far. I got a phone call from my uncle on Tuesday who had apparently just landed in Vegas the day before. His new company was hosting a party with Dub Magazine over at Blush (nightclub at the Wynn)....and he invited me to come down. Very cool experience for me as I have never been to a club before. However, I was quickly reminded why I don't go to clubs...because I'm claustrophobic. I didn't stay that long because of that, but meeting the people he works with was cool (also, DJ Scribble was spinning there, which was cool because I'm a huge fan of Scribs). Interesting night overall, then headed over to Venetian to put in a small session before returning home.

Live poker is angering me quite a bit lately. Cannot seem to strap a winning session together lately. I know I haven't been running very well (missed 7/7 of my last 12+ draws), and haven't been hitting flops often...but it's very frustrating playing with people who might as well be drooling on their cards and having them winning the money you are not. It's also very frustrating knowing that you have to have a +5BI session to be back on track as far as hourly rate is concerned. But, I'm still very confident, and have decided to not look at the bottom line for a bit...and just focus on pounding in hours and grinding through the hell patch.

Also did a few coaching sessions this week. Had an intro session with one student that went very well. Was a constant back-and-forth of information and questions...most certainly my favorite type of coaching session. Besides coaching, I've been putting in hours myself this week! Not many, but some...which feels good after this hellish start to the month. I think I'm -$1Kish so far, between live and on-line, so I'm hoping that flips and then I'll start grinding hard. I also watched another Jared video on Stox (the psychology guy I mentioned a few posts back), and am loving his message. I realized 2 very important things today:

1.)..Poker is built to reward bad players. If bad players were not rewarded, then they would not play, and there would be no fish (the main reason why I, and others, play this game).

2.)..I tilt because I feel as though everything should be even. My frame of reference on “even” (or more correctly, “normal”) is based on too small of a sample size. If I extend my sample size then I realize normal will never be actualized...and thus can never be mad

I think once I can fully tweak my brain to understand these things, I won't tilt any longer. Realizing these things is the first step, now I have to implement and work with them. At least now I know what I need to be working on, rather than bumbling around trying to figure it out.

And of course, a hand!

PokerStars Game #21742060123: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2008/11/03 21:55:59 ET
Table 'Thuban IV' 9-max Seat #7 is the button
Seat 1: FACUMDP ($96 in chips)
Seat 2: ScaveX ($94.95 in chips)
Seat 3: hongzhong ($10 in chips)
Seat 4: Make_my_D ($65.95 in chips)
Seat 5: As5s ($10 in chips)
Seat 6: DeSignor ($47.15 in chips)
Seat 7: dwq2300 ($9.25 in chips)
Seat 8: RockHolly ($50 in chips)
Seat 9: 7curse ($50.75 in chips)
RockHolly: posts small blind $0.25
7curse: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Qh Qs]
FACUMDP: folds
ScaveX: folds
hongzhong: folds
Make_my_D: folds
As5s: folds
DeSignor: raises $1.50 to $2
dwq2300: folds
RockHolly: folds
7curse: raises $4.50 to $6.50
DeSignor: calls $4.50
*** FLOP *** [3d 6h 7d]
7curse: bets $8
DeSignor: raises $14 to $22
7curse: raises $22.25 to $44.25 and is all-in
DeSignor: calls $18.65 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [3d 6h 7d] [Js]
*** RIVER *** [3d 6h 7d Js] [5s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
7curse: shows [Qh Qs] (a pair of Queens)
DeSignor: mucks hand [5d 2d] (a pair of Fives)
7curse collected $91.55 from pot

*SS*

November 4 - Digging...

2008-11-04T04:16:00.000-05:00

So this month got off to a bad start to say the least, lol. Fired off 10.5BI within 24hours, which believe it or not, isn't really that much fun. So now I feel like I'm digging myself out of a $1K hole before I even got started. *sigh* O well...I decided to look at my PT over the last 2 months rather than 3 days so it's more psychologically pleasing. Even after this swing I'm still doing 4PT/100 over the last little while...so I'm still very confident.

I decided I would take this time to also move a lot of my play over to PS. I just need a change of scenery and I also want to prep myself for SuperNova next year. I originally had it goaled to get SN this year, but after a severe drop-off in expected volume, I decided SN would just be pushing myself too hard. Like I said last post, Quality>Quantity. So my first session went well. However, word to the wise, always get your software checked before you start a session. I had quite a few issues with my mouse scroll scripts and also application attention. I'm finally all set up now, and very motivated to grind, so expect to see a bit of me on PS in the near future =)

Also...I plan on adding a section to my site. I want to have an articles section for people to post articles they think can help a player. I plan on writing at least 1 article per month, and hope to get some 2p2r's to also pitch in. If you are interested in writing an article, please email me at splitsuit@gmail.com . Topics are whatever you feel is relevant. For instance, my first article will probably have to do more with the psychology side, while other articles will definitely focus more on the strategic side of things. So like I said, if interested, just email me (it's always good to have articles posted on a legit site...fills up the resume =) ).

Other than that, life has been pretty bland. Whenever I run bad I tend to focus a lot of time and energy on grinding and getting my mental back on track. So today was a lot of grind, then play Halo to release, then back to grinding. I actually think I'll be putting in some volume at this rate =). Also, since I don't think I've told people this before, I'm sort of superstitious. I know it's not logical, but whenever I run bad I change everything on my computer. I always change my wallpapers (until I have a winning session with one), then change the music I listen to during sessions, then change my avatar, etc. I think the wallpapers have changed 3 different times today, lol. Anyone else do anything odd?

Alright, thats enough for tonight. Here is a video I've been watching nonstop tonight. The choreography is amazing, as is the song...so enjoy...

and of course, a hand:

PokerStars Game #21742060123: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2008/11/03 21:55:59 ET
Table 'Thuban IV' 9-max Seat #7 is the button
Seat 1: FACUMDP ($96 in chips)
Seat 2: ScaveX ($94.95 in chips)
Seat 3: hongzhong ($10 in chips)
Seat 4: Make_my_D ($65.95 in chips)
Seat 5: As5s ($10 in chips)
Seat 6: DeSignor ($47.15 in chips)
Seat 7: dwq2300 ($9.25 in chips)
Seat 8: RockHolly ($50 in chips)
Seat 9: 7curse ($50.75 in chips)
RockHolly: posts small blind $0.25
7curse: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Qh Qs]
FACUMDP: folds
ScaveX: folds
hongzhong: folds
Make_my_D: folds
As5s: folds
DeSignor: raises $1.50 to $2
dwq2300: folds
RockHolly: folds
7curse: raises $4.50 to $6.50
DeSignor: calls $4.50
*** FLOP *** [3d 6h 7d]
7curse: bets $8
DeSignor: raises $14 to $22
7curse: raises $22.25 to $44.25 and is all-in
DeSignor: calls $18.65 and is all-in
*** TURN *** [3d 6h 7d] [Js]
*** RIVER *** [3d 6h 7d Js] [5s]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
7curse: shows [Qh Qs] (a pair of Queens)
DeSignor: mucks hand [2d 5d] (a pair of Fives)
7curse collected $91.55 from pot

*SS*

November 1 - Goals for the month

2008-11-01T22:02:00.000-04:00

So October is finally done. Good month when all was said and done...I ran at about 5.7pt/100 this month, and had a decent hourly over my ~75hrs of live play. Can't complain when things are going fairly well. I oddly have felt really good doing minimal working lately. I feel I'm hyper focusing on quality over quantity which is a really good thing, plus limits the chance of burn-out (which I was close to a few months ago). Live poker has been feeling really good as well...my hourly isn't as high as I would like it to be...but I estimate I've only put in about 3K hands thus far...so I can't complain all that much.

November Goals:

1.) 40 hours of on-line play
2.) 40 hours of live play
3.) Pick up at least 3 new students
4.) Get website addition done (new add-on for coaching)
5.) 1 video
6.) Write 1 poker-based article

All very do-able. I have lower hourly goals this month because I will be “on vacation” for a decent bit of the month. I'm going back home to see my GF and the family...and obviously for Thanksgiving. I have begun to hate this time of year very much (always associate it with going home and my parent's divorce and my brother's death)...so I'm just going to try to be very relaxed if possible. I hope the real life stuff won't bleed into poker, and if it does, my hours will get cut even further...no reason to put in hours if the quality isn't up to par.

Just wanted to put a quick post up for the first of the month. I'm on my way down to the strip to grind out a session (maybe MGM tonight?). Cheers for a good month for all =)

And of course...a hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #8737254525: Table Wood Plank - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 21:01:47 ET - 2008/10/30
Seat 1: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50)
Seat 2: Tayfun72 ($22.45)
Seat 3: mushtart ($66.60)
Seat 4: pingpong101 ($18.45)
Seat 5: ermoin ($61.95)
Seat 6: dotdamage ($31.95)
Seat 7: blasehaseXXL ($75.50)
Seat 8: lew17325 ($0), is sitting out
Seat 9: bacy67 ($30.65)
ermoin posts the small blind of $0.25
dotdamage posts the big blind of $0.50
Tayfun72 posts a dead small blind of $0.25
Tayfun72 posts $0.50
The button is in seat #4
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ad Qh]
blasehaseXXL folds
bacy67 calls $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $3
Tayfun72 folds
mushtart folds
pingpong101 folds
ermoin calls $2.75
dotdamage folds
bacy67 folds
*** FLOP *** [4h 8h Jh]
ermoin bets $7.75
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $35
ermoin raises to $58.95, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $12, and is all in
ermoin shows [Ah 9s]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ad Qh]
*** TURN *** [4h 8h Jh] [7s]
*** RIVER *** [4h 8h Jh 7s] [6c]
ermoin shows Ace Jack high
Its RIGGIGGITY shows Ace Queen high
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($98.75) with Ace Queen high

*SS*

October 30 - Video!!!

2008-10-30T05:06:00.001-04:00

I just finished a video for my site!!! Feels good as I've been meaning to get this done for about 2 months now. I did a 100vpip video at 2NL, which is a really fun video where I play every single hand to at least the flop. So there is a lot of talk about ranging, flop play, CB-ing, and how to exploit given our image. Hopefully the video will be out later today (the 30th), and also hopefully people enjoy it.

So I started doing coaching again, which I feel good about. I took the last week off because the house thing stressed me out and I wasn't feeling very good (read last blog post if you are confused). But I did a few sessions today, and have a couple more lined up this week. I think I'm going to start promoting coaching again next month and also increasing prices (turns out the average student needs few hours with me to get what they need). So if people want the lower pricing, get the applications in soon to lock in the lower price (current students will not get a price increase obviously).

Mentally I am feeling much better. I talked it out with quite a few people, and I really feel the big gap in understanding is my base of reason. Religion gives you a nice base of reason because it doesn't have to make sense for you to believe in it...so you can easily believe that a higher being has you on Earth for a reason. (no, I have no interest in debating religion in this post =) ). Logic forces me to look at all the angles and then analyze everything...which is good in most situations but intangible things. I think my main issue is that I don't just live...I don't just “be”...I constantly analyze. I was having a conversation with my friend and I confused him a lot because everything I do in life I do a utility v. cost analysis in my head (utility is the economic term for “happiness” essentially). I think I need to work on just relaxing, being, and enjoying everything.

Poker has been going pretty well lately. I still haven't had a losing on-line session for the latter part of the month (and only 1 losing live session). So I feel very strong right now. And usually when I go on a big winning binge I fear playing because I don't want to lose and mess it up. However, I still want to grind right now...which feels awesome. I didn't meet my goals for the month (wanted to do around 125hrs of poker and only did about 110hrs)...but I'm just happy I was working, winning, and felt like the time spend was more quality than before. I'm looking forward to moving back to 100nl next month...I think my new style should do quite well, and running 18/15 will boggle the minds of people who had me at 11/7 at that level in the past.

Well that's it for now. Hope all is well with everyone else...and enjoy Halloween. I'm thinking the strip on Halloween will be nutty...and of course...a hand (put in ¼ of your stack, and fold against the 100/58'r...niiiiiiiiiiiiiice idea sir!):

PokerStars Game #21611833531: Hold'em No Limit ($0.01/$0.02) - 2008/10/30 3:40:39 ET
Table 'Dubiago' 9-max Seat #9 is the button
Seat 1: pokerlimper ($0.85 in chips)
Seat 2: JoekDAwei'KU ($5.62 in chips)
Seat 3: bakalatron ($4.69 in chips)
Seat 4: 7curse ($4.25 in chips)
Seat 6: ShanePotckin ($2.01 in chips)
Seat 7: sunhong365 ($3.32 in chips)
Seat 8: xxxMFBxxx ($7.46 in chips)
Seat 9: Porfidio ($10.27 in chips)
pokerlimper: posts small blind $0.01
JoekDAwei'KU: posts big blind $0.02
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [8h 5s]
bakalatron: calls $0.02
7curse: calls $0.02
ShanePotckin: calls $0.02
sunhong365: calls $0.02
xxxMFBxxx: folds
Porfidio: folds
pokerlimper: raises $0.18 to $0.20
JoekDAwei'KU: folds
bakalatron: folds
7curse: raises $4.05 to $4.25 and is all-in
ShanePotckin: folds
sunhong365: folds
pokerlimper: folds
Uncalled bet ($4.05) returned to 7curse
7curse collected $0.48 from pot

*SS*

October 27 - Odd mental state...

2008-10-27T06:29:00.001-04:00

Well the house thing is starting to figure itself out. Apparently the company that gave us the 3day-quit notice is tied with the bank...and we have some more time than we thought if we follow the legal system correctly. The time frame is 30-60 days from what we can tell...so hopefully it stays at the longer side of that =)

Poker has been going decently. Actually hadn't had a losing session since the 11th...but then had a loser at the V on Saturday. I think I realized what tilts me more than anything. I absolutely hate when I will miss all of my draws, and people will hit theirs. For instance, I got in 4 pots with the same player on Saturday. I missed 1 FD, 1 SD, both with 2 cards to come against them. They hit 2 FDs against me when I had TP/2pr each time. It infuriates me when normalization will never happen. I try not to do this, but I actually kept track over the last 3 days, and I have actually only hit 1 of 27 draws (SD+)...stupid game.

I've been in an odd state the last few days. I know that when a person reaches a certain point of “enlightenment” they begin to question a human's purpose in life. Which of course leads to them asking themsevles why they are alive, and then what would happen if they died. I reached this awhile ago, and even after talking it out with a few different counselors, I've only reached “life has no direct purpose...just have fun and create a your own purpose” This severely depresses me as I constantly strive for a bigger end-goal than “omg, lets have fun!”

A huge issue with this for is this...I love helping people. I like helping people progress and make their lives better. However, when I look at it from the outside point of view...I am helping people progress towards what? Either I help them reach a thought process which will lead to this realization...or I help them towards an end-goal of nothing. I think a big problem with this, for me, is that I don't have a religious base. When your entire base of reason is logic there will be huge problems when the solution isn't tangible. I think this is where I struggle a lot...making sense of non-tangibles like these.

I don't know...the whole subject is very odd to talk about, and always leads to a religion v logic argument anyway. I just wanted to give you a little bit of how I'm feeling at the moment. The stress of the house stuff, holidays coming up, my brother, and the finality of this house are making my brain work in overload. Which probably explains why I am getting a little tilty at times (I mean hell...I even started getting heated while playing Halo because I felt I was running bad there). I just need normalcy...or to construct a state of normalcy for myself.

Also...nicest thing someone has said to me in like forever: “well how about this...if it wasn't for you I wouldn't have paid bill the last 2 months...I've only paid bills because of poker as the casino has been way slow...so my daughter and my wife and I all thank you very much.” (from a student who can name himself in the comments if he chooses to do so). It means a lot to me when people thank those that have helped them, and I'm glad I have helped him in such a positive way.

Sorry about the emo-esque post...a hand before bed (like...you must feel salty when you see how nitty/bad you are, right?):

Full Tilt Poker Game #8678133615: Table Franklin - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 22:41:05 ET - 2008/10/26
Seat 1: scbobbyb ($23.45)
Seat 2: mininoto ($54.50)
Seat 3: Man of Gold5 ($13.60)
Seat 4: BcuzItsSo ($50)
Seat 5: wayner777 ($34.15)
Seat 6: DOM D ($40.15)
Seat 7: shark2006 ($27.65)
Seat 8: Its RIGGIGGITY ($57.10)
Seat 9: Boston2000 ($10)
shark2006 posts the small blind of $0.25
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Qs Jh]
scbobbyb folds
mininoto calls $0.50
Man of Gold5 folds
BcuzItsSo folds
wayner777 folds
DOM D folds
shark2006 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
*** FLOP *** [Jc 3h Qd]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $1
mininoto calls $1
*** TURN *** [Jc 3h Qd] [5s]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $2
mininoto calls $2
*** RIVER *** [Jc 3h Qd 5s] [6s]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $4
mininoto raises to $10
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $6
*** SHOW DOWN ***
mininoto shows [3s 3c] three of a kind, Threes
Its RIGGIGGITY mucks
mininoto wins the pot ($25.90) with three of a kind, Threes

*SS*

October 23 - Not an awesome day

2008-10-23T04:33:00.000-04:00

So today sucked just a little bit. My house got foreclosed on. Gotta love when you've been paying your rent religiously...and your landlord just decides he doesn't want to pay the mortgage anymore. So we get the 3-day quit notice on the door today, and of course the notice is dated yesterday. Gotta love it!!!

So ensue panic mode as I try to figure out wtf to do. I got a place lined up that is far from optimal, and the lease hasn't been signed yet in case I decide to find a new place. So I have 1 day to figure everything out. Hurray life! I just keep reminding myself that things could be worse, and keep trying to figure out what to do from here. It would seem that all my roommates are leaving town now so I'm kind of on my own for the moment. I guess every situation is an opportunity though...so plenty to do at this point.

I'm kind of sick at the moment...more from stress than anything else. When I feel the floor has been taken from me I tend to go into panic mode and get sick (throwing up and nauseous at all times). I'm trying to stay calm...but easier said than done. So I'm packing everything up while typing this, and hoping the sun is shining brightly tomorrow. I think I somehow condensed a bit from the trip last month. Which is good...except I picked up some bigger ticket items (TV, desk, chair, etc.). I'm really hoping I find something close so I can just move it all within 2 hours.

Other than all this crap...my horse is moving up again (he moved down after paying back principal and having a bit of a downer). So back up to 50nl with him, and then hopefully up to 100nl. Also...I haven't had a losing session in almost a week (though very minimal work being done, at least it feels good to see a streak of green across my PT data).

I have to be up in a few hours to start house hunting, and I'm hoping I'll be all packed and loaded by then. Wish me luck if you find a moment. And as usual, here is a hand to enjoy:

Full Tilt Poker Game #8598396311: Table Justice Creek - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 21:04:41 ET - 2008/10/21
Seat 1: zebra30 ($19.05)
Seat 2: FAST DAVID ($35.85)
Seat 3: bigmikesw ($24.45)
Seat 4: m1key likes ($43)
Seat 5: littlegreeno ($28.10)
Seat 6: kaldexpoker ($10)
Seat 7: DART1962 ($69.50)
Seat 8: Its RIGGIGGITY ($52.75)
Seat 9: foodperfectaa ($37.65)
littlegreeno posts the small blind of $0.25
kaldexpoker posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #4
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Qd Qh]
DART1962 raises to $1.75
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $5
foodperfectaa folds
zebra30 folds
FAST DAVID folds
bigmikesw folds
m1key likes folds
littlegreeno folds
kaldexpoker folds
DART1962 raises to $24.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $52.75, and is all in
DART1962 calls $28.25
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Qd Qh]
DART1962 shows [Jd Ad]
*** FLOP *** [Ts 2h 5c]
*** TURN *** [Ts 2h 5c] [Kc]
*** RIVER *** [Ts 2h 5c Kc] [Jh]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a pair of Queens
DART1962 shows a pair of Jacks
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($103.25) with a pair of Queens

*SS*

October 20 - 8hr Grind

2008-10-20T06:00:00.000-04:00

So just posted my Poohbah post. Took way too long to get it done, but decided to hunker down for an hour tonight and just finish it. The link. Any feedback on that is more than welcome, and of course, if there are questions, I'd be happy to answer those as well.

So got some hours of live in this weekend. Did an 8 hour session on Saturday night. I got stuck like $600-$700 quick, and told myself that so long as the table didn't completely dry up, I would grind back until even. Well the table didn't dry up, and it took me about 6hrs to grind it all back. Was a really fun session despite running like crap. I was blessed with the privilege of sitting next to the biggest life luck-box ever. The night before he lost about $1K at poker, had $31 left, went over to Let-it-Ride, and hit a royal the first hand for $50K. Lol, some people are just that lucky.

So he spiced the table up by shoving blind a few times, blind betting whatever chips were in his hand, and yelling as loudly as possible. He had some friends at the table, so obviously that kept him going for some time. Finally the floor came over and told him “sir, the entire room can hear you. If you don't quiet yourself to a reasonable level, I will have to have security escort you out. Would you like that?”. To which, without missing a beat, he responds “No...but I would like if you would get me some more alcohol”. I only ended up taking a small bit of nothing from him, but he made a table at 3am fun.

Other than that, I've been doing some coaching and grinding as well. Finished my final video for this month's series at Stox. Really good video in my opinion of sLAG play on a weekend. And winning 3.5BI at the same time is always nice. Been getting some new students as well, which is always good. So this week and the next I will be doing a few intro-sessions, which I always look forward to.

Also, in an effort to get motivated again, Datakid and I are utilizing the buddy-system to ensure we put in a certain amount of hours per week. My goal is 10-15hrs/week of on-line, so 5 days of 2-3hrs/day. I swear the buddy-system is a great way to motivate yourself, keep it fun, and ensure the end-goal is reached. So hopefully that goes well. It also makes me feel more focused doing 10-15hrs of online, 10-15hrs of live, and 5-15hrs of coaching per week. It's like a real job!

“Celebrity” siting this weekend: Teddy “The Iceman” Monroe. Decked out with “diamond”-studded headphones. LOL

And a hand before bed:

Full Tilt Poker Game #8551098656: Table Horizon Ridge - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 18:33:14 ET - 2008/10/18
Seat 1: staceshuttle ($36.75)
Seat 2: Tha Riparian ($71.05)
Seat 3: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50)
Seat 4: DevilPrince ($48.35)
Seat 5: Tilt_Me19 ($52.25)
Seat 6: Unluckytwo ($48.15)
Seat 7: Johnnyj580 ($61.25)
Seat 8: Winston3346 ($20.35)
Seat 9: 808CSNJ ($79.30)
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the small blind of $0.25
DevilPrince posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ks Ah]
Tilt_Me19 folds
Unluckytwo folds
Johnnyj580 raises to $1.75
Winston3346 calls $1.75
808CSNJ folds
staceshuttle folds
Tha Riparian folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $7
DevilPrince folds
Johnnyj580 raises to $21
Winston3346 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $50, and is all in
Johnnyj580 calls $29
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ks Ah]
Johnnyj580 shows [Ad Th]
*** FLOP *** [Kh 4h 5h]
*** TURN *** [Kh 4h 5h] [2d]
*** RIVER *** [Kh 4h 5h 2d] [Qs]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a pair of Kings
Johnnyj580 shows Ace King high
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($99.25) with a pair of Kings

*SS*

October 17 - omg omg omg

2008-10-17T05:55:00.000-04:00

Omg omg omg...I'm actually putting some hands in!!! I'm really only putting in like an hour per day of playing, but anything feels good right now. I still have to force myself to sit down and play, but at least I am doing it. I really would like to be putting in 3-5 hours per day on average, but I'll take the babysteps for now. However, I have been averaging like 1hr of coaching per day as well...so at least I am doing something =)

Ended up picking up a few new students this week, which went well. Also did a double sweat session, which was a cool idea to me (student A and student B, A+me watch B for an hour, and then B+me watch A for an hour). This made me think about having an hour or 2 session where people can watch me play as a group, and we discuss as we go along. Could charge less per hour (because it's not as personal), but still a very solid learning experience. I dunno...I'm still in talks about a poker revamp service...so we'll see what develops with it all.

So other than playing, I haven't been doing too much. I decided to wipe the dust off my Poohbah (yea, it has been about a month since I've even mentioned it), and finish it up. It's currently being looked at by a few people, and then hopefully I can finalize it and post it. The goal is Sunday, but we'll see how long it takes for people to get back to me =) The post is only going to be about 8 pages (thus far), which is smaller than the 15 pages I had originally quoted. I decided I would take out some examples and leave more to the reader to think about. The goal with the post is to think...about what your doing and why you are doing it...so it's only right that I force the reader to think.

Also, I'm thinking it's about time to get back to 100nl. I have an aggressive bankroll for it on-line, so I might start playing weekend 100nl games coming soon. I just don't like hindering my hourly by playing lower than I should be, and poker, especially the way I am playing it, is all about opportunity cost. So we'll see how that goes. So poker stuff is coming together...hope all is well with everyone else.

And of course, a fun hand (omg omg omg...I held!):

Full Tilt Poker Game #8522440340: Table Fulton (deep) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 22:00:55 ET - 2008/10/16
Seat 1: keeganaydan ($28.60)
Seat 2: KADET_1 ($98.45)
Seat 3: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50)
Seat 4: Juston1254 ($30)
Seat 5: Tha Riparian ($133.80)
Seat 6: TonyTony Choper ($71.90)
Seat 7: krookymunster ($102.40)
Seat 8: yjs0626 ($112.45)
Seat 9: Earthman42 ($106.35)
KADET_1 posts the small blind of $0.25
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ks Kd]
Juston1254 folds
Tha Riparian folds
TonyTony Choper folds
krookymunster folds
yjs0626 folds
Earthman42 folds
keeganaydan folds
KADET_1 raises to $2
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $6
KADET_1 raises to $98.45, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $44, and is all in
KADET_1 shows [8s 8h]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ks Kd]
Uncalled bet of $48.45 returned to KADET_1
*** FLOP *** [3h 7h Jh]
*** TURN *** [3h 7h Jh] [3c]
*** RIVER *** [3h 7h Jh 3c] [4d]
KADET_1 shows two pair, Eights and Threes
Its RIGGIGGITY shows two pair, Kings and Threes
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($97) with two pair, Kings and Threes

*SS*

October 14 - BBC is awesome

2008-10-14T06:16:00.000-04:00

Pretty solid week. Made a few bucks at the casino, which means both I'm happy and my staker is happy. Always nice when that happens =). Tried out a few new games this weekend and did Caesars on Friday and Mirage on Saturday. Had my first “celebrity” siting as well...saw Jerry Bus (owner of the Lakers) at Mirage...kind of cool.

So far I'm enjoying live. I don't enjoy that I've put in about 42 hours of live play, and only seen about 1.6K hands (currently about 2hrs of work for me on-line). O well...still making OK money thus far, and it's a really nice mix-up from on-line. This month has just been working on Stox videos which hasn't been super motivation for me to play. So between live and coaching, I've gotten back some motivation. So far my goals for the month (40hs live, 30hrs on-line) should be completed for sure.

Random notes: I've been watching a lot of BBC (the British television network that we get here on cable)...and I love British programing. BBC is, from what I've heard, the “best of the best” in British TV. The accents are awesome, the picture is meh because they don't care about over-producing and making garbage, and they use awesome slang that I don't understand. For anyone that enjoys cars even a bit, I suggest checking out “Top Gear”...where they do car reviews and tons of random activities with cars (like drowning a Toyota truck and racing high-end cars versus airplanes).

Also, check out “Dragon's Den”. It's a show where the “Dragons” (a group of venture capitalists worth well over $20M each) hear pitches from entrepreneurs attempting to get funding for their start-up company. There are some good ideas on the show, but often times they are crap and it's funny to see how badly they prepared for such a situation. Really awesome show for anyone who wants to become an entrepreneur and would need funding at any point. Makes you focus on what VC's will ask during these encounters and also how prepared you need to be (also, how to not answer a question).

Other than that, I had a semi-job interview over the weekend (family contact that wanted to meet me and see what he could help with). I think it went well and that he will be putting me in contact with some people this week. The thing that struck me as odd, is that poker came up. I'm not sure why, but poker might be the hardest thing in a job interview. Because people want to understand the resume gap (even though I graduated in May, apparently they expect you get a job within a month of graduating), so they ask how I've been affording life. I need to figure out a good answer for this, as “I play and coach poker” doesn't seem to feel right. Any suggestions? And on that topic, I love that I graduated when I did!!! The job economy is just booming with good jobs!!! (super sarcasm obviously)

And on that note, a hand before bed (villain ended up being a dude I know from Syracuse (which I did not know at the time)...oddly small world sometimes):

Full Tilt Poker Game #8434276636: Table Wood Plank - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 19:56:39 ET - 2008/10/10
Seat 1: a88shin ($50)
Seat 2: TBluehand ($50)
Seat 3: turoati ($50)
Seat 4: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50)
Seat 5: MikeB1337 ($50)
Seat 6: Faaantastic ($51.25)
Seat 7: Cransley69 ($80.40)
Seat 8: titralac ($20)
Seat 9: njochems ($50)
Cransley69 posts the small blind of $0.25
titralac posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [7d 8h]
njochems folds
a88shin folds
TBluehand folds
turoati folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $1.50
MikeB1337 raises to $4.50
Faaantastic folds
Cransley69 folds
titralac folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $11
MikeB1337 calls $6.50
*** FLOP *** [6c Qs 7h]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $39, and is all in
MikeB1337 calls $39, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [7d 8h]
MikeB1337 shows [Ac As]
*** TURN *** [6c Qs 7h] [7c]
*** RIVER *** [6c Qs 7h 7c] [4h]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows three of a kind, Sevens
MikeB1337 shows two pair, Aces and Sevens
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($97.75) with three of a kind, Sevens

*SS*

October 10 - Tilt?

2008-10-10T05:56:00.000-04:00

It's been a very solid week thus far. For 1, I got some solid coaching in. Had a few intro sessions this week, and I think the new students are feeling confident. Also did a little bit of playing. I attempted to make a new video for my site, but that failed miserably being everyone at the table wanted to take 9000 seconds to make any damn decision. O well, hopefully I can get one out soon enough. I've been lazy on filling the site with content. With that in mind, if people would like to host a video or so on the Video page...I'd be happy to do so (as long as the video isn't garbage).

Oddly enough, I began to get tilty this week. I've been fairly good about tilt control over the last few months, but lately have been feeling it hard. The tilt is preventing me from putting in solid sessions, and also preventing me from putting in as many sessions as I'd like. I don't feel tilt changes any my plays...but it certainly effects my outlook after a session, makes me get off sessions quickly, and also discourages me from putting in more hours. This deeply concerns me, so I've been putting some work into introspecting.

First, I hate running bad when others run well. This has been a huge reason why I haven't taken HU as seriously as I should. HU is effectively a zero-sum game (obviously rake comes off the table, but winnings are just pushed back and forth)...so if one person is winning, the other is losing, if one is running hot, the other must not be. This crappy thought process creates a dwelling effect on things very much out of my control. I cannot control how I run, I cannot control how “lucky” I am, I cannot control the turn card, I cannot control variance. What I can control is how I react to these things, my decisions, and my overall mental processing.

Now, these things are not easy to control. The work it takes to control how you physically and mentally react to a situation is insane. However, as a person who has chosen poker as my current profession, it would behoove me greatly to increase my control again. So, I watched a Jared Tendler (Stox psychology guy) video on controlling tilt, and began to introspect. Nothing was really said that I wasn't already aware of, but it was a nice refresher on tilt management. I'm now trying to remember to not lash out verbally (no more cursing at the screen) and to stop dwelling. I seem to dwell on “how horrible I run in comparison” often, which I know is a very negative thing to do and has no positives attached to it. I also need to remember that although people do suckout on me, I do suck out on others as well, but my brain will automatically remember when I get sucked out on and forget when I do the sucking out.

So hopefully with another video watched or so, and some more introspection (and maybe a run or so this weekend), I can start feeling more positive. Optimism is something I'm very strong at helping others view in their situations...but not something I excel at in utilizing in my own life in real time. I think I need to start stepping back, relaxing more, and progressing with a new outlook.

With all that out of the way, I guess I'll crash out for a few hours. Thanks for reading like usual, and of course, a hand (I love checking that flop to melt his brain):

Full Tilt Poker Game #8407394083: Table Mean (deep) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 20:56:49 ET - 2008/10/08
Seat 1: Its RIGGIGGITY ($70.65)
Seat 2: Hanser666 ($122.55)
Seat 3: ViktoriusBIG ($59.20)
Seat 4: sshilton2 ($80)
Seat 5: canael ($50.65)
Seat 6: Mr Dewey ($27.90)
Seat 7: smileagain ($100)
Seat 8: ad1166 ($50)
Seat 9: MogKupo ($100)
ad1166 posts the small blind of $0.25
MogKupo is sitting out
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $0.50
MogKupo stands up
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Kd Ah]
Hanser666 folds
ViktoriusBIG folds
canael folds
Mr Dewey folds
smileagain folds
ad1166 raises to $2
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $5.50
ad1166 calls $3.50
*** FLOP *** [As 7c 7s]
ad1166 checks
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
*** TURN *** [As 7c 7s] [Ac]
ad1166 bets $7
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $7
*** RIVER *** [As 7c 7s Ac] [Ad]
ad1166 checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $18
ad1166 calls $18
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Kd Ah] four of a kind, Aces
ad1166 mucks [5d 5s]
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($58) with four of a kind, Aces

*SS*

October 7 - Stox Video 1 Released!

2008-10-07T05:54:00.001-04:00

So the first video of my Stox series came out on Monday! I think it came out really well, and it looks as though most people who are watching it feel the same way (voted 4.7/5 so far). If you get a chance, check out video #610, and any feedback is more than welcome.

Also finished my video for next Monday, and need to get started on the 3rd installment. I'm not 100% sure what the 3rd video format will be, but I'm thinking that quite a bit of LAG play will be showcased. I've been spending a lot of time thinking about LAG play lately and, through doing these videos and forcing myself to speak out the thought process more, I feel strong right now. So hopefully I can make a solid video and really portray all the info possible.

So in my last post I mentioned being more motivated. Well, I'm doing alright so far. I've put in about 16hrs of live play, and a few hours of on-line. Had a very nice live weekend, and made a few stacks which is always solid. Also met KurtSF this weekend (met him over at Binions) who was a cool kid. I love meeting 2p2'rs...I find it very interesting to see some people's on-line v in-person personas. So I added a few more rooms to my list of places played at, which now consists of Venetian, MGM, Bill's, Binions, and Mandalay Bay. I'd like to play at all the rooms by some point and see no reason why this cannot be done.

Other than poker, I've been playing a ridiculous amount of video games lately. I'm learning Halo (the strategy part), and loving it. I still suck, but I'm finally starting to get double digit scores more often in 4v4 slayer. I also played through Portals once again, which if you have never played it, is an amazing game. Super original, and I love the puzzle aspect of it all. However, I need to cut back on the video games a bit an start grinding more. I hate being lazy and knowing I'm putting in massive amounts of hours playing Halo, and not making money.

And a hand before sleep (my bust-out hand from the microFR HU challenge):

PokerStars Game #20987963930: Tournament #112601992, $5.50+$0.25 Hold'em No Limit - Match Round I, Level I (5/10) - 2008/10/06 - 21:23:39 (ET)
Table '112601992 1' 2-max Seat #1 is the button
Seat 1: SplitSuit (1469 in chips)
Seat 2: entertainme (2531 in chips)
SplitSuit: posts small blind 5
entertainme: posts big blind 10
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to SplitSuit [Qs 2s]
SplitSuit: raises 20 to 30
entertainme: calls 20
*** FLOP *** [Qd 8h 7c]
entertainme: checks
SplitSuit: bets 38
entertainme: calls 38
*** TURN *** [Qd 8h 7c] [2h]
entertainme: checks
SplitSuit: bets 89
entertainme: calls 89
*** RIVER *** [Qd 8h 7c 2h] [4h]
entertainme: bets 250
SplitSuit: raises 1062 to 1312 and is all-in
entertainme: calls 1062
*** SHOW DOWN ***
SplitSuit: shows [Qs 2s] (two pair, Queens and Deuces)
entertainme: shows [7h 7d] (three of a kind, Sevens)
entertainme collected 2938 from pot

*SS*

October 2 - First of the month...

2008-10-02T05:25:00.000-04:00

I love the first day of every month. I always consider them a fresh start. At least it's a positive way of looking at things =) With that in mind, it does mark the month of my video series over on Stox (LINK TO SCHEDULE). I'm very excited about it, and hope people check it out and give lots of feedback. I think this video series will help every player of every skill level, as even top-tier players may think about something in a new and profitable light. So check it out as the first video is out on the 6th.

The business stuff is all over the place right now. Hopefully something will solidify within the next few months. I would like to be an entrepreneur by 23 without a doubt. Although an argument can be made that I am one now (have own site + offer a service), I would feel better if the business was something my mother wouldn't sneeze at. That's always been my major issue with poker as a career...the respect you get is much lower than it should be from others.

On top of that, I recently read “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” (amazing book about basics of being financially independent/educated), and it really stressed learning as much as possible, because no knowledge is useless. This struck home for me, and I'm currently trying to do just that. My friend and I while researching businesses to start learn so much through the planning process it's insane. Also, I'm trying to learn new skills...so I actually went to a club promoter meeting today to see if I can't improve my personal selling skills. No skill is useless, right? I won't take a full-time job with it by any stretch of the imagination...but learning the skill + the contacts = a fun experience from what I can guess.

So this month is back to grindcore. No more lazy me. Not sure what kind of goals I'm setting yet, but I would like to do about 60hours of live play, and about 30hours of on-line play. No more goals concerning hands...but I would like to play more hours. I think this will help me focus on putting in time, even if I play PLO8 for a few hours...just putting in the hours is good. On a related note...my stakee is doing quite well. Congrats sir =)

Well, I'm exhausted and need sleep, here's a hand from last month to enjoy while I get hands going this month:

Full Tilt Poker Game #8089139888: Table Chip (deep) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 19:51:42 ET - 2008/09/15
Seat 1: sergeja ($59.05)
Seat 2: crakbaby ($50.70)
Seat 3: NeedAJoker ($50.45)
Seat 4: Baillabong ($54.85)
Seat 5: Its RIGGIGGITY ($54.55)
Seat 6: SiIverstar ($152.60)
Seat 7: TXBee ($50)
Seat 8: BonfireBill ($38.45)
Seat 9: Tilt_Me19 ($47.45)
SiIverstar posts the small blind of $0.25
TXBee posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #5
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Js Kh]
BonfireBill folds
Tilt_Me19 folds
sergeja folds
crakbaby folds
NeedAJoker folds
Baillabong folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $1.50
SiIverstar folds
TXBee calls $1
*** FLOP *** [5s Jc 6d]
TXBee bets $3.25
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $13
TXBee calls $9.75
*** TURN *** [5s Jc 6d] [Ah]
TXBee bets $35.50, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $35.50
TXBee shows [8h 8s]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Js Kh]
*** RIVER *** [5s Jc 6d Ah] [7s]
TXBee shows a pair of Eights
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a pair of Jacks
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($97.25) with a pair of Jacks

*SS*

September 30 - Month almost over!

2008-09-30T07:12:00.000-04:00

Thank goodness September is almost over! This month was super hectic between moving (42 hour drive was hellish) and getting settled. Very lazy poker month given everything, which I'm hoping to turn around next month. Not sure if I am still going to go for SuperNova on PS like I had planned (currently have like 800 VPPs...i just wanted the challenge.) Which is really just like 225 hours of 100nl+ 24 tabling. This could easily be done in 2 months if I put my mind to it...but we'll see.

I've been very busy with career stuff as well. I'm currently doing the preliminary work towards getting a business off the ground with my roommate. From the talks we've had with venture capitalists thus far, it seems to be a very plausible and profitable venture if all goes well. Still doing work on that, and am hoping that this becomes a solid business, especially with the ability of expansion if necessary.

Along the same path of the career, I'm also still trying to setup some interviews. I got in contact with a company today that I would absolutely love to work with. They are a business coaching company, which is right up the alley I've been looking for. Coaching is just something I really enjoy, and in the business world you generally just do like 75% consulting, 25% mentoring. Although I'm only 22, my age is actually a benefit given I bring the “young” view point that most corporations lose as time goes on. So tonight I'm going to tweak my resume and hopefully get an interview at some point this week.

Video series for Stox is coming along nicely. The first video is on the 6th of October...so peek that if you get a chance. I'm doing a 4 video series, and doing a mixture between classroom style (powerpoint+audio) and live video. The first video is a beginner video and covers stealing, preflop+flop play, and a lot of the basics of FR NLHE. I'll post links when it's all said and done.

Live poker has been sucking a bit, but it happens. I'm getting very tired of people seeing 80% of flops, and nailing 80% of those. An yet, every time they are in a pot with me...they have me murderfaced. *sigh* Still profit on the stake, but not as much as I'd like...o well. Plenty more time to get rich =) Also...I think I'm meeting up with KurtSF this week...which should be cool. I always love meeting people I've talked to on-line in person, so long as no white vans are parked outside with promises of delicious candy...

And on that note...a hand before I get stuff done (notice villain's awesome line!)...

Full Tilt Poker Game #8173840575: Table Bracken Cliff - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:28:13 ET - 2008/09/21
Seat 1: QLxing ($20.35), is sitting out
Seat 2: thomas852 ($21.45)
Seat 3: Tiema ($41.30)
Seat 4: 1ndAoff1c3 ($55.15)
Seat 5: malukaBr ($38.50)
Seat 6: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50)
Seat 7: DasWisse ($8.95)
Seat 8: ohodge ($61.25)
Seat 9: Give2Charity ($52.55)
DasWisse posts the small blind of $0.25
ohodge posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [6h Qc]
Give2Charity folds
thomas852 folds
Tiema folds
1ndAoff1c3 folds
malukaBr calls $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $2
DasWisse folds
ohodge folds
malukaBr calls $1.50
*** FLOP *** [6s 2h Ac]
malukaBr bets $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $2.50
malukaBr calls $2
*** TURN *** [6s 2h Ac] [6c]
malukaBr bets $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $7.25
malukaBr calls $6.75
*** RIVER *** [6s 2h Ac 6c] [3h]
malukaBr bets $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $26.50
malukaBr raises to $26.75, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $0.25
*** SHOW DOWN ***
malukaBr shows [4c 5c] a straight, Six high
Its RIGGIGGITY mucks
malukaBr wins the pot ($74.75) with a straight, Six high

*SS*

September 24 - Back to it...

2008-09-24T06:59:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to put something up since it has been a few days. I'm in the process of trying to learn HULHE. I currently suck very much at it, and it's fun because in seeing 80% of flops, and like 40% of rivers...I get to see how truly bad I run! Only down like 50BB playing 2/4HU (I have a severe stop-loss in the learning stage to a.) control the “loss” feeling differential than NLHE, b.) not get super frustrated over 100BB downs that happens, and c.) it's good for ya)....but it really is amazing how often people will hit 2pr when I have a piece. Or how often I get notched...O well...just keep on grinding.

Finally starting to put in more sessions. I got very lazy for a bit there, and I'm finally back to putting in like 2 sessions/day at a minimum...playing through FTP and PS. It hasn't been fun by any stretch (more set < set, set < flush, notched trips, etc), but at least I'm getting back in the swing of things. I also figured out a huge transitional leak I had. So in fixing that, I now either 1.) put in a 35min-1hr session playing my normal aggro game...or 2.) put in 45min of aggro, then super tone-down. I realized I wasn't adjusting as well as I should against people adjusting to my stealing and such...and that should pay off well in the near future.

I've recently pumped my FR stats up a bit. I'm running like 16/12/3.5 on average, ATS of 60%. It's actually kind of fun, and people are just so passive it's amazing. I just need to either 1.) cooler people more or 2.) dodge more often...and all will be gravy.

Other than that, Kingjamen got neutered the other day. Poor guy. He's still a bit sluggish...but he's starting to get his swagger back...slowly but surely. Not really sure what personality changes I should be noticing, but I'm really hoping he stops marking on furniture. He doesn't really do it in the house...but he will in a new place (or...did. I haven't taken him any place new since the operation). So I'll keep an eye on that and hope all goes well.

Things to do...make a video for my site (whoops...been awhile), finalize my Stox video, and finalize my Poohbah.

And a hand before bed (“mis-click”...I guess I got away with it because I was running 42/35 over 45 hands on this table?):

PokerStars Game #20645760683: Hold'em No Limit ($0.25/$0.50) - 2008/09/23 - 21:55:01 (ET)
Table 'Glauke IV' 9-max Seat #3 is the button
Seat 1: jimmyoscar ($74.80 in chips)
Seat 2: JayDollars ($45.90 in chips)
Seat 3: freddy827 ($49.55 in chips)
Seat 4: Soply ($53.10 in chips)
Seat 5: cahchetes ($42.45 in chips)
Seat 6: xTJaxx ($49.50 in chips)
Seat 7: K'zUpQ'zDoWn ($48.65 in chips)
Seat 8: 7curse ($51.25 in chips)
Seat 9: ihibitor ($99.85 in chips)
Soply: posts small blind $0.25
cahchetes: posts big blind $0.50
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to 7curse [Ah As]
xTJaxx: folds
K'zUpQ'zDoWn: folds
7curse: raises $24.50 to $25
ihibitor: folds
jimmyoscar: calls $25
JayDollars: folds
freddy827: folds
Soply: folds
cahchetes: folds
*** FLOP *** [6c Qs 5s]
7curse: bets $26.25 and is all-in
jimmyoscar: calls $26.25
*** TURN *** [6c Qs 5s] [9d]
*** RIVER *** [6c Qs 5s 9d] [Tc]
*** SHOW DOWN ***
7curse: shows [Ah As] (a pair of Aces)
jimmyoscar: mucked [2d 2h]
7curse collected $100.25 from pot

*SS*

September 20 - Session at the Venetian

2008-09-20T06:10:00.000-04:00

So I ended up taking a live stake...which I think is definitely the best decision I can make choosing to play live right now. I'm still a little light off-line, and this is helping me get a shot in games I couldn't play comfortably for a couple of months. Live is silly because your hourly is lower, but capital necessary to be in a game is greater. So to comfortably play 5/10NL live you would need a 30K bankroll for a solid hourly of $150/hr (7.5pt/100). Whereas you can make $150/hr (2.5pt/100) playing 12 tables of 400NL with a $15K bankroll. I know that my time can be better spent grinding online, but I like the mix-up of live play, so I'll sacrifice a little opportunity cost for added utility.

I ended up getting a $2K stake (I believe possibility of infusion, but I'm not 100% certain) for 1/2nl games. It's only a 10BI stake for the level I'm playing at, but I'm confident I shouldn't have an issue grinding it out. Did a session tonight at the Venetian for like 3.5hrs which felt really good. Ended up ~2BI...which was a nice start to the stake. It took me like an hour to acclimated to how live play works though because I haven't played it in almost 5 months.

For instance, I had to get used to listening to people make up the most absurd stories about their lives, people they know, money, or anything they could possibly exaggerate to false-inform people of their bravado (because I apparently will like them more if I think they know X, Y, or Z). Also had to get used to people “Hollywooding” again. Seriously though...you are at a 1/2nl game...quit wasting time with your deep sighs and checking your cards 90 times. O well...I'll get used to it.

Other than live play I tried to pump out my video for Stox today. I didn't realize how badly Camtasia sucks at audio narration and such...and probably spent about 4 hours trying to figure out how to use the horrible software. Finally quit it, and decided I will just use Camtasia for the video part, and then use ACID6 for the audio narration. I have a sweat session tomorrow for the mirco forum, and will pump out the video after that. I'm expecting to spend probably 4 hours on it to “perfect” the quality (goal: minimal “ummm's”)...which would bring the total hours spent on this video to about 14. I'm hoping people really enjoy this series on fullring NLHE and take something out of it =)

Now, because I'm fresh off a live session, tonight's hand will be a live hand.

Villian = New, but doesn't seem to be very smart. Probably 19/4 over 20
Aggroface = aggro with weak hands, passive with strong ones. Probably 22/14 over 60

Preflop action is littered with limping and folding. Aggroface checks the BB, and Villian is in the CO.

Flop comes 886r. Aggroface leads for $15 into $9 (very LOL, very standard). Folds to Villian who calls only.

Turn is a T and it checks through.

River is a T (rainbow), and Aggroface fires $35. Villian quickly calls and tables J6 very proudly while saying (and of course, pointing at the 6) “Pair of 6's!!”. Aggroface open mucks 45o. No one corrected Villian...

*SS*

September 18 - HULHE?

2008-09-18T04:25:00.001-04:00

It has been a pretty sweet week thus far. Got most of my stuff setup in my room...tho sadly have been very lazy as far as getting my clothes unpacked and organized. O well...plenty of time to take care of that. Figured out where the basics are around here (food store + basic shopping plaza), so I'm all set up for that kind of stuff...and also took a walk around the neighborhood just to see what it looks like. It's actually a really nice place (northern Vegas, which I've heard is like “the new nice part of Vegas”)...and it's really aesthetically pleasing as well.

Besides palm trees and 90* weather...I've been trying to put in some more poker time. Picked up two new students this week, and might have a 3rd (and possibly 4th) on the way. As usual, I can't say enough how awesome it is to have this opportunity. I've actually started taking some coaching myself in HULHE. My roommate out here has recently turned to HULHE (he's just one of those kids that clicks with just about all games) and is working with me a bit on learning this game. So far it's semi-intuitive, but a lot of the calling down A-hi/K-hi stuff is just really odd.

Along with “calling and showing down”...I did a romp of the 2NL 100vpip thing. Was actually quite fun, and I did record it...tho sadly I used the wrong recording device and it sounds like a teletubby doing lines of coke. *Sigh* O well. I think I might start suggesting my students, especially ones that are interested in LAGging at all...do this. It forces you to play hands and get yourself in spots you probably wouldn't normally see. I think I ended up doing about 130pt/100 at 2NL...which just adds to my month =)

I finally started finalizing some of my Stox videos. I'm doing a 4 video series in October which I'm very excited about. The videos will bastardize the classroom style that Stox is known for as well as live recording and replayer. It will start with a very basic overview of FR in the first week, and quickly ramp up to more advanced topics. I will also be rolling out my “POTT” acronym for the first time to people that aren't students...so hopefully that will be a nice framework for people to think within.

Other than that...life is gravy. Here's a hand before bed (my learning stages of HULHE...LOL at villain):

Full Tilt Poker Game #8121319718: $5 + $0.25 Heads Up Sit & Go (61776087), Table 1 - 30/60 - Limit Hold'em - 3:34:13 ET - 2008/09/18
Seat 1: Its RIGGIGGITY (1,830)
Seat 2: koffing (1,170)
koffing posts the small blind of 15
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of 30
The button is in seat #2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Qh Kd]
koffing raises to 60
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to 90
koffing raises to 120
Its RIGGIGGITY calls 30
*** FLOP *** [Qc Kc Js]
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
koffing bets 30
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to 60
koffing raises to 90
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to 120
koffing calls 30
*** TURN *** [Qc Kc Js] [4s]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets 60
koffing raises to 120
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to 180
koffing raises to 240
Its RIGGIGGITY calls 60
*** RIVER *** [Qc Kc Js 4s] [3c]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets 60
koffing calls 60
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Qh Kd] two pair, Kings and Queens
koffing mucks [As 2c] - Ace King high
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot (1,080) with two pair, Kings and Queens

*SS*

September 15 - In Vegas!

2008-09-15T04:32:00.003-04:00

In Vegas!!! Well, I've been here for about 2 days now...but finally here. Spent a lot of the last 2 days setting up my room. Also, the roommates I have have been here for about 6months already (yes, I paid rent for 2 places for some time), and thus the house has been dirtied a bit. So I spent some time cleaning as well (I'm not quite OCD...but bordering on it when it comes to cleanliness and organization). Felt better after I got the bathroom and kitchen cleaned up.

The rest of the drive was kind of hellish. Was only 11 hours from Denver to Vegas, which I thought I could pump out in 1 push...I was wrong. Took a nap about 6hrs in, then another an hour later, lol. I really do suck at long distance driving...I blame my ADD =). On the last part of my trip I listened to an audio-book about executive coaching (effectively, people that help coach higher level business executives on/with numerous issues). This really got me thinking about some nice business ideas (pretty much, if I listen to or read anything, my brain automatically starts thinking about business ideas)...and I will be talking ideas out quite a bit with people this month.

So other than moving, life hasn't been too exciting. I look forward to getting back to the grindstone this week (have some coaching sessions setup, and some initial sessions...which I always love)...and hope to start putting in some decent volume. I also need to start making appointments for Kingjamen who needs follow-up rabies shots, heart worm stuff, and to get neutered. So much to do...

Well, being that my body is still adjusting to this 3 hour time difference, I'm just gonna crash out. No hand today because PT3 seems to be acting up for some odd reason. However, here is a slide show of some pictures i took along the way.

I would have taken some of Boston to IL...but I had seen all that before. These are mostly Colorado and Utah (Nevada was a trip that was so boring + flat, I didn't take any pictures). Also, you really can't take this all in from some pix...it's really something you need to see firsthand. Enjoy!

*SS*

September 12 - Stuck in Denver...

2008-09-12T00:58:00.002-04:00

Trip update:

1.)---- got started at 3a this morning...chugging out of central NE
2.)---- got to CO
3.)---- holy Jesus...boring ass scenery
4.)---- get to Denver and so on...omg...amazing country side+mountain views
5.)---- transmission starts acting up
6.)---- transmission slips and i cant go faster than 35mph uphill with gas pedal fully down
7.)---- scream some expletives for quite awhile
8.)---- pull off at the closest auto shop. they tell me i need a complete rebuild (will take 5days) and will cost me about $3K. however, dude tells me he will pay for my rental car, and then drive my car back to Vegas for me. i try not to LOL and leave
9.)---- every other shop is booked for a week or so (I don't wanna be I'm bumble****, CO for that long)
10.)---- end up dragging my sorry ass car (and it really shouldn't be...its a 2004 Grand Cherokee with only 73K mi on it) 35mph BACK to Denver (about a 77mi trip)where i can get it looked at tomorrow morning
11.)---- best of all...i have 72,955mi on my car. my warranty expires at 70,000mi.
12.)---- currently just chilling in a hotel waiting for the morning to hear how much this is gonna cost me. *sigh*

hurray lifetilt!!!!

Was doing so well on this trip before this. Hope everything gets settled in the morning and I can get to Vegas by Saturday. I really don't want to be here for much longer. O well, just part of the journey =)

Also, on my trip I've “read” two books (audio-books are close enough to reading ;) ). I read “Brining Down the House” and “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”. I think everyone should give “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” a solid read through. Really gives some nice insights to basic financial understanding and also reiterating the point that thinking and learning is super valuable.

And an old hand for fun (again, notice the expert mis-click):

Full Tilt Poker Game #7405267518: Table Camino Entrada - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:46:21 ET - 2008/07/27
Seat 1: xQ_ses ($77.10)
Seat 2: Its RIGGIGGITY ($100)
Seat 3: 151CaribouLou ($37)
Seat 4: Miyogi ($107.60)
Seat 6: nastynate_79 ($93.50)
Seat 7: lamotta867 ($85.75)
Seat 8: Chomper44 ($175.50)
Seat 9: sal2000 ($34.50)
nastynate_79 posts the small blind of $0.50
lamotta867 posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #4
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ah Ad]
Chomper44 raises to $3.50
sal2000 folds
xQ_ses folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $100, and is all in
151CaribouLou folds
Miyogi folds
nastynate_79 folds
lamotta867 folds
Chomper44 calls $96.50
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ah Ad]
Chomper44 shows [Kc Kh]
*** FLOP *** [Qc 2c 5c]
*** TURN *** [Qc 2c 5c] [3h]
*** RIVER *** [Qc 2c 5c 3h] [3c]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows two pair, Aces and Threes
Chomper44 shows a flush, King high
Chomper44 wins the pot ($198.50) with a flush, King high

*SS*

September 9 - I'm a Stox coach!!!

2008-09-09T20:05:00.000-04:00

This will be short...but just wanted to put something up

I left for Vegas at around 5p Monday Sept 8. Only 5 hours later than I originally wanted to leave! Stayed in Syracuse that night at a friend's place. I am currently in Ohio, probably about 40mi away from Indiana. I originally wanted this to be a nice and relaxing journey...LOL. I'm currently realizing how much I suck at driving for long periods of time. I'm exhausted already.

I think I am going to just alternate between driving and sleeping for the rest of the trip (drive 5-6hrs, then sleep for 3-4, rinse-repeat). Still not sure when I will be in Vegas, but probably by the end of the week for sure.

Other than driving (which has been filled with me doing math and poker problems in my head in order to keep myself awake), I got good news today! LINK ! I am officially working with Stox Poker...which I have been looking forward to for some time. I think this will be a great opportunity for both of us, especially with Stox getting a boost in their FR department.

Well, just wanted to get that out there. I'm off to take a nap...so here is a quick hand (plz notice the expert turn mis-click to induce):

Full Tilt Poker Game #7965459548: Table Corporate Center - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 19:48:39 ET - 2008/09/06
Seat 1: Its RIGGIGGITY ($53.65)
Seat 2: hyeTARP31 ($36.85)
Seat 3: lucky_dogg11 ($11.30)
Seat 4: TBluehand ($58.65)
Seat 5: FractionGS ($11.80)
Seat 6: SorenK78 ($52.30)
Seat 7: Hamish6 ($111.50)
Seat 8: SlewDog ($40.25)
Seat 9: becks_yo ($32.05)
lucky_dogg11 posts the small blind of $0.25
TBluehand posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ac 8c]
FractionGS folds
SorenK78 folds
Hamish6 folds
SlewDog folds
becks_yo folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $1.50
hyeTARP31 calls $1.50
lucky_dogg11 folds
TBluehand folds
*** FLOP *** [Kc Jc 7c]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $2.25
hyeTARP31 calls $2.25
*** TURN *** [Kc Jc 7c] [4d]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $0.50
hyeTARP31 raises to $9.75
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $19
hyeTARP31 calls $9.25
*** RIVER *** [Kc Jc 7c 4d] [8s]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $15
hyeTARP31 calls $14.10, and is all in
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ac 8c] a flush, Ace high
hyeTARP31 mucks
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($71.45) with a flush, Ace high

*SS*

September 6 - I played poker!

2008-09-06T05:22:00.001-04:00

I feel it has been a fairly uneventful week thus far. Surprising actually, because I'm getting errands done and constantly running around, hanging out the with GF, or running errands and running around with the GF. Got my car fixed up (just needed to get my muffler replaced + exhaust system touched up)...now I have a Jeep Grand Cherokee that sounds like an F250. Paid off the rest of my bills (car tax, insurance, car payment, rent, credit card, and license)...and although it's -$1K...at least it's out of my way.

I actually put in a session the other day! Holy Jesus I'm epically lazy right now. It did feel really good just to put in some hands though. I feel very sharp at the moment, though coaching + writing will do that. I'm thinking about bets and actions more than I ever have in the past, and recently came up with a very awesome realization. Betting near pot as a CB against regs = good.

Random note: I believe I am one of 2 people who has a very special stat for PT3. “Average size of CB” Best...Stat...Ever. I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner..but I got in touch with a PT3 support guy who had it back to me within 5 hours of the concept. (If you would like your name mentioned here, please IM and I'll credit you)

I've also been talking with another card player about creating a dual-coaching program. I think this would be quite intense for the students, but also very eye opening. More info on this soon I hope...

Also...I've read some very nice comments about my blog + site on 2p2. So for all the people reading (and I know there are quite a few), thank you very much! I think I need to have some more improvement material on this site though. I might make a bigger effort to fix up the “Improvement Methodology” page if people would use it. Comment if you'd like me to, and also what you'd like to see. I might start a monthly newsletter-esque type thing with an article of popular interest...thoughts?

This weekend will be busy as hell between packing and spending time with everyone. I will be happy when I can get myself to a point of equilibrium again. O well...life could be so much worse. Off to sleep as I have to be up in 5 hours (gonna finally pick out a headstone for my brother's plot). So I will leave you with a hand (and self-reminder that even I can suck out sometimes, albeit he was 19/16 over 600 hands)...enjoy!

Full Tilt Poker Game #7936473928: Table Wolf Dancer - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 18:28:27 ET - 2008/09/04
Seat 1: EZ going papa ($57.70)
Seat 2: thepokernei ($38.90)
Seat 3: sammyq ($62.30)
Seat 4: am_man22 ($60.10)
Seat 5: Mullins1420 ($56.75)
Seat 6: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50)
Seat 7: Seemann_84 ($9.75)
Seat 8: zoitkiller ($50)
Seat 9: 808CSNJ ($50)
zoitkiller posts the small blind of $0.25
808CSNJ posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Qh Qc]
EZ going papa folds
thepokernei folds
sammyq folds
am_man22 folds
Mullins1420 raises to $1.75
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $5
Seemann_84 folds
zoitkiller folds
808CSNJ folds
Mullins1420 raises to $20
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $50, and is all in
Mullins1420 calls $30
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Qh Qc]
Mullins1420 shows [Ad Ac]
*** FLOP *** [4d 5c 2h]
*** TURN *** [4d 5c 2h] [Qs]
*** RIVER *** [4d 5c 2h Qs] [Th]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows three of a kind, Queens
Mullins1420 shows a pair of Aces
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($97.75) with three of a kind, Queens

*SS*

September 3 - New Month

2008-09-03T02:09:00.000-04:00

Just got back from vacation a little bit ago. Spent a really awesome weekend up at the family lakehouse in NH. The GF came with as well and got to meet the whole family (which she had previously met in pieces), and also brought the dog. Pretty much spent the entire time tubing (which left me very sore and cut up) and just relaxing. I didn't really think about work once, and really enjoyed the time in a stress-less environment.

Among other things I also got my mohawk cut off. I had it for about a year and it was time to chop it off. I need to have my “professional hair” for job shopping. I am currently sporting the crew cut and not enjoying it at all. O well, I'll give it a month and should have my full head of hair back. Hopefully I can get a job in the future where I can have my mohawk back...

Well...back to the grindstone today. I spent a few hours today fixing up my website (which I'm guessing is the spot everyone is reading this blog from). While it may not seem like much, it takes quite awhile to link the blog pages correctly, and thus changing every page. I know there must be a way to streamline this activity...but I haven't yet figured it out. O well. Things redone: a.) video/image on homepage, b.) “What's New” box on homepage, c.) Blog page w/ direct links to other blogs. I'm looking to add to this and would really appreciate if current/past students would either link their blogs, or create one. If you would like me to put your blog link up, just send me an email: splitsuit@gmail.com

New month = new things to plan. Obviously my main goal is to get out to Vegas safely, and set settled in a new place. In the interim I am very motivated to grind out. (Of course I haven't put in a session so far this month...but at least I want to). I have a few coaching sessions lined up this week, and I leave on the 8th for my journey. I talked with my uncle quite a bit today and we really talked about how awesome of a time this could be. While I don't want to be traveling all month, I would like to explore a little bit and get off the highway a bit. Well, my trip is from Boston, MA to Las Vegas, NV, going through Chicago, IL and Omaha, NE....anyone have any suggestions on things I should see or do? Anyone wanna meet up for a drink along the way?

Well...I'm exhausted and need to get up early for breakfast with the GF (she bet me the bill that I won't wake up in time to take her out for breakfast...money in the bank). Here's a fun old hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #5928850622: Table Sunny Dunes - $5/$10 - No Limit Hold'em - 15:48:17 ET - 2008/04/06
Seat 1: txgunner ($1,297)
Seat 2: Its RIGGIGGITY ($285)
Seat 3: Baltika3 ($1,000)
Seat 4: RichieRichZH ($831.40)
Seat 5: hells fury ($569.50)
Seat 6: jjacky333 ($155)
Seat 7: angelsach ($1,000)
Seat 8: Temhigh ($2,138)
Seat 9: joniboy ($961.25)
joniboy posts the small blind of $5
txgunner posts the big blind of $10
The button is in seat #8
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Kc Kh]
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $10
Baltika3 folds
RichieRichZH raises to $45
jjacky333 folds
angelsach folds
Temhigh folds
joniboy folds
txgunner calls $35
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $169
RichieRichZH raises to $293
txgunner folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $116, and is all in
RichieRichZH shows [Qh Ks]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Kc Kh]
RichieRichZH has been disconnected
Uncalled bet of $8 returned to RichieRichZH
*** FLOP *** [Jh 5s 6s]
*** TURN *** [Jh 5s 6s] [Kd]
*** RIVER *** [Jh 5s 6s Kd] [Ad]
RichieRichZH shows a pair of Kings
Its RIGGIGGITY shows three of a kind, Kings
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($617) with three of a kind, Kings

*SS*

August 26 - Games getting tougher?

2008-08-26T05:51:00.003-04:00

Well I'm doing a fine job so far of making sure I play as little poker as possible! O well...3 more weeks of laziness allowed, and then its back to GrindCore. I would like to at least reach 30K hands this month, though I'm not figuring I will reach that point. I'm currently about 22.5K, which is officially my laziest month this year. I'm cutting myself some slack on that, and focusing on other poker related things right now.

Today was a very good day however. Had my intro session with a new student that went very well, and I think he's looking forward to smoothing out some of his rougher details. I was also approached by a backer today to stake me for live play. I'm currently a little light off-line, and thought some backing would help me get started splitting time between on-line and live poker. I am a huge bankroll nit and figured this would help me psychologically, especially while getting adjusted again to live play (which is a different beast than on-line play).

I was having a conversation with a player I respect the other day and we were talking about WR's in today's current 100nl (FTP) games. 2p2 has advocated often that 4pt/100+ is very attainable for the most solid player (top 5% maybe?). However, I think given the way the poker economy is evolving, that the WR cap is perhaps a bit lower than it was perceived to be previously. We were both thinking that 3pt/100 at 100nl might be the new “very attainable for the most solid players”.

Now I don't think, and I don't believe he does either, that the game has gotten difficult to the point of marginal WR. However, we do both acknowledge that 100nl (on FTP) has gotten harder and the regs have definitely improved over the last 7months. Anyone else agree or disagree here? I know, despite my current running this year, that reg quality has increased and the amount of huge weekend spew-fish have decreased. It can be assumed that the US recession isn't helping matters any, but also that the training tools available might be causing game conditions to noticeably change over the next year.

An on the note of improving players that will ruin the pond, my Poohbah is coming along well. I have a few people currently reading it and helping me with the logistics of the paper. It's a very lengthy work, and I suspect it will take people about 2-3 times of reading it to really start grasping all there is to it. I think the best way of describing this is a bastardization of ProfessionalNLHE, NLTAP, economics, and my thoughts. Hopefully that will help you understand what you're in for =)

Also, as I mentioned in my last post, I'm considering using this paper as a skeleton for an on-line FR NLHE book I'm looking to write. In thinking about it the other day, I was thinking of making this very Super System style, and was wondering if anyone had any interest in writing a chapter or so. The idea would be a compiled work with general play and then also specialized chapters based on that players personal strengths (like mine would be on bet sizing). Anyone interested in talking this idea out?

Alright, that's enough for tonight...a hand an then sleep:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7579732333: Table Hagan (deep) - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 17:54:46 ET - 2008/08/09
Seat 1: EYEfoldAA ($199.90)
Seat 2: NDirish80 ($200)
Seat 3: constas ($313.15)
Seat 4: Its RIGGIGGITY ($101.50)
Seat 5: DerkeDerkeDerke ($74.05)
Seat 6: dachs ($100)
Seat 7: MySecretGarden ($145.15)
Seat 8: shibainu2 ($94)
Seat 9: marketa555 ($144.40)
shibainu2 posts the small blind of $0.50
marketa555 posts the big blind of $1
dachs posts $1
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [8h 9h]
EYEfoldAA folds
NDirish80 folds
constas calls $1
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $1
DerkeDerkeDerke folds
dachs checks
MySecretGarden folds
shibainu2 raises to $5
marketa555 folds
constas calls $4
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $4
dachs calls $4
*** FLOP *** [Jh 9d 2h]
shibainu2 bets $21
constas calls $21
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $96.50, and is all in
dachs folds
shibainu2 calls $68, and is all in
constas folds
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [8h 9h]
shibainu2 shows [Ad Jd]
Uncalled bet of $7.50 returned to Its RIGGIGGITY
*** TURN *** [Jh 9d 2h] [8c]
*** RIVER *** [Jh 9d 2h 8c] [3d]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows two pair, Nines and Eights
shibainu2 shows a pair of Jacks
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($217) with two pair, Nines and Eights

*SS*

August 23 - Lack of play...

2008-08-23T05:55:00.001-04:00

It's been a very busy last few days. I managed to pick up a few new students which I'm very excited about. Some of my current students are starting to get to the point where coaching isn't as necessary for them and I'm very stoked for them. Congrats to everyone so far! =)

Besides coaching, I've been working hard on being the laziest person ever (oxymoronic, I know). I think I've put in 1 session since my last blog post. Blah...I did exactly what I thought I was going to do. I knew I would lose motivation right before I left for Vegas. O well, at least I have income coming in from other things which always helps the lazy spurts. On a semi-related note, I added my stakee's blog “I vi ii v7” in the blogroll...so make sure to check his blog out and follow our progress. (I believe he's already +7BI in the first week...keep up the good work sir)

Been spending a lot of my non poker time with the GF. Trying to cram in as much 'seeing each other' time as possible before I leave. I set my launch date on September 8th. So we've just been bumming around, watching lots of movies, and enjoying each other a little more. Also, semi funny story:

So being that I'm taking Kingjamen to Vegas, she decided she wanted a pet, but something simple and easy. So she decided to go check out guinea pigs at Pet's Mart. So we take King and get his nails clipped, then go check out the lil guinea pigs. She picks one up, and is interested in seeing what King would do. LOL. She put it on the floor in front of King (who by the way, is the world's wimpiest dog ever), and wouldn't you know it, the chihuahua attacks the lil bugger. King snapped that thing hard too, and I'm pretty sure the guinea pig was bleeding badly. Lesson learned...King doesn't like guinea pigs. (Obviously she didn't buy that one...and yes, some animals were hurt in the production of this story)

I'm very excited about leaving. I'm going to try and take my time getting out there, but I don't want to slowpoke given how much I have in my car. Apparently I might I have to take my 32” TV with me as well (which originally was supposed to be re-bought and shipped directly to Vegas). If it does go with me, then I literally have a very uneasy amount of valuables in the car. I'm going to try to blog often on that trip and do different things + take pix. It will be just me and the puppy on the ride, so we'll see what the little guy is up to doing.

Also, the Poohbah post is coming along well. I've decided to use this Poohbah as the skeleton for an 'online NLFR' book I've been planning on writing for some time. My original plan was to look into 2p2 for publishing, but given the situation this week, I'm not too sure how I feel about that. They made me change my 2p2 handle because my website name = 2p2 handle. I've had my 2p2 handle for ~4years, and in that time have done nothing but give to the community. My website has been up for 2 months, and I promote 2p2 in quite a few places (links and such). However, 2p2, instead of PM-ing me and asking me to change my URL, flipped and told to change my handle (or have my Split Suit account shut down all together). Awesome! So the brand I've built around that name for 4 years is now gone!!! *^%#. My marketing professors would have been so proud...

But, all is said and done at the moment. So my new 2p2 handle is *Split* in case people were unaware. And on that note...a hand before sleep:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7614058215: Table Regena Rose - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 1:24:42 ET - 2008/08/12
Seat 1: tsirsilva ($126.80)
Seat 2: JayCe 24 ($100)
Seat 3: dzuropa ($85)
Seat 4: ShouldaWoulda ($5.55)
Seat 5: NDirish80 ($160.80)
Seat 6: ANT_NN ($19.50)
Seat 7: Irish Craig ($139.75)
Seat 8: pkrfrmhou ($56.70)
Seat 9: Its RIGGIGGITY ($106.90)
Irish Craig posts the small blind of $0.50
pkrfrmhou posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Qh Qs]
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $3.50
tsirsilva folds
JayCe 24 folds
dzuropa folds
ShouldaWoulda raises to $5.55, and is all in
NDirish80 folds
ANT_NN folds
Irish Craig folds
pkrfrmhou raises to $20.65
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $68
pkrfrmhou calls $36.05, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Qh Qs]
ShouldaWoulda shows [Jd Jc]
pkrfrmhou shows [Jh Js]
Uncalled bet of $11.30 returned to Its RIGGIGGITY
*** FLOP *** [Kh 4h Ks]
*** TURN *** [Kh 4h Ks] [8h]
*** RIVER *** [Kh 4h Ks 8h] [3c]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows two pair, Kings and Queens
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the side pot ($100.15) with two pair, Kings and Queens
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the main pot ($16.30) with two pair, Kings and Queens

*SS*

August 19 - Some people...

2008-08-19T05:06:00.002-04:00

Ok...new week and new goals! I'm attempting to be very optimistic and I have some fun things to help this.

1.)I think its fun to play poker again! I'm now spending a lot of time watching Stox vids of other genres of poker (lot of HU and 6max stuff). I'm considering getting into HU a bit (will for sure when I get to Vegas), so we'll see how that goes. I decided I would give that a go at HUPLO last night...didn't end up that well, but learned a valuable lesson: “don't bluff someone who hits the nuts often”

2.)I have a little money on PS that I keep over there for rainy day MTTs and such. Being that I want a bankroll on PS and don't want to have to deposit, I'm going to grind that up. My goal is to aggro bankroll that starting at 25nl. I think this will be fun, while also giving me some great insight to the current level of microFR (as it has been quite some time since I put in work at 25nl). I will still play 50nl-200nl on FTP during that time, but will probably split time between the two so I can get a move on my PS bankroll.

3.)Every single one of my students has increased their WR!!! Nothing makes me happier than watching my students succeed.

4.)Going to be doing a video within the next 2 weeks. I'm thinking I will do a 50nl video, and am debating between 2tabling and playing like 40/25, or 9 tabling and playing sTAG. Suggestions?

Other than that, nothing too exciting. Just bumming around for 2 weeks, then off to Vegas. O, random thought...was at the store today with my dad who was just picking up a quick bottle of wine. This old dude (probably late 40's) was at the cash register at the same time we were, and was hassling the hell out of the 17 yr old girl working it. This lasted like 3 minutes, and I finally just went over there to see what was going on...the old dude is bitching about $1. ONE DAMN DOLLAR. I was in shock to see this guy just grilling and steaming on this girl over $1 that the dude blatantly did not pay. I finally just gave the cashier a dollar to get things moving (because this really wouldn't have stopped if someone didn't do something)...AND THE GUY KEEPS COMPLAINING!!!

He's now bitching at me because I gave her a dollar. *sigh* Some people are just out there. But at the same time I thought about how this isn't that uncommon. Although generally I see it more with people an their coupons or arguing over a few dollars at McDonalds, but it's super sad. I don't know if it's because I'm a poker player and thus money movement, losing and earning, is commonplace, but a few bucks really isn't worth arguing over. I just know that I usually give people money in these spots just to get things moving (if I go to WallyWorld I tend to always bring a few singles in case people are complaining about something stupid, because its really not fair to the cashier getting paid $6.50 to hear you complain about a $4.99 item being rang up as $5.59). I just wish people could put things in perspective a bit better.

And a hand before bed:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7694143564: Table Hitching Post - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:06:47 ET - 2008/08/18
Seat 1: feel it burn ($10)
Seat 2: grizmaldi ($45.50)
Seat 3: kamunikator ($33.20)
Seat 4: bighowe05 ($52.20)
Seat 5: PokerQueen350 ($34.20)
Seat 6: MClark79 ($73.80)
Seat 7: Its RIGGIGGITY ($50.75)
Seat 8: missvoyage ($19.20)
Seat 9: unknowneinstein ($35.10)
PokerQueen350 posts the small blind of $0.25
MClark79 posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #4
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [3c 3s]
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $1.50
missvoyage folds
unknowneinstein folds
grizmaldi folds
kamunikator folds
bighowe05 raises to $5.25
PokerQueen350 folds
MClark79 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $3.75
*** FLOP *** [2c 4h 5h]
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
bighowe05 bets $4
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $34
bighowe05 raises to $46.95, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $11.50, and is all in
bighowe05 shows [Ks Ah]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [3c 3s]
*** TURN *** [2c 4h 5h] [2h]
*** RIVER *** [2c 4h 5h 2h] [3d]
bighowe05 shows a straight, Five high
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a full house, Threes full of Twos
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($99.25) with a full house, Threes full of Twos

*SS*

August 17 - Busy Weekend

2008-08-17T04:48:00.002-04:00

Busy weekend. Family got in on Thursday (Godfather + Grandparents) for the benefit which was on Friday. I did a coaching session on Thursday afternoon, and after that it was crunch time to get everything together for the benefit. Spent probably 13 hours alone just labeling different gift items...which got super boring in a hurray...but w/e...“labor of love” as the family kept saying.

Benefit on Friday went very well. I think we raised quite a bit of money for the scholarship fund in my brother's name. It was a tad bit awkward though because of my mohawk. I'm getting it buzzed off on Labor Day, but am keeping it till then. Well the town we live in in Boston is very affluent, and thus I got quite a few snide comments about my 'hawk. O well, can't please everyone, but I wasn't going to not do my 'hawk when the 'hawk is in remembrance for my brother anyway!

Did a little sessioning today (like 2K hands). I don't know whats going on, but I feel like every session I'm starting very behind, and playing to breakeven. I know I'm not a breakeven player, and am not approaching sessions like “hey, lets break even today!” It just seems that I always lose 2 stacks before I even get my tables all up (exaggeration, but frustrating). I'm hoping that one of these days it will just all click again and I can combine playing well with running well, rather than just the prior.

I also mentioned my cash out situation last post. Well my CashPickup withdrawal got declined! *initiate Godmode* But, someone posted a thread in the Zoo that said there was some email addy that FTP had opened up if you needed a check badly (which I really do). Oddly enough FTP got an email back to me within an hour saying they could help me out, and I apparently now have a check in the mail. Hopefully all goes well with this one.

Well because I cashed out quite a bit for Vegas trip and everything, I left myself a small bankroll for 50nl (~$2K). (I decided that I would play 50nl for a little bit in an effort to regain myself and also work on some intricacies I haven't been utilizing to my advantage) I always play very over-rolled, but oddly enough, have no issues with shot-taking and such, especially in an aggressive manner. I figured that at the moment I would put in some grinding at 50nl, which has been going well as far as play goes. Not so much in the running department, but when u get another two set < sets (I'm actually -1BI with trips at 50nl this month, lol) and some other lovely hands, it happens. My style has changed quite a bit since I started playing 50nl a bit, which I'm keeping a close eye on, although I'm very confident its a positive change.

Thats enough for now...have to get some sleep before a coaching session at noon...and a hand for everyone:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7675465167: Table Port (deep) - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 18:31:32 ET - 2008/08/16
Seat 1: The Pure ($71.55)
Seat 2: Shadowbxr ($101.80)
Seat 3: BigJerry44 ($49.70)
Seat 4: Jaguardac ($55.10)
Seat 5: Its RIGGIGGITY ($55.10)
Seat 7: Menudencia ($50.25)
Seat 8: vlrhsgo ($102.80)
Seat 9: Windgat ($32.25)
Menudencia posts the small blind of $0.25
vlrhsgo posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #5
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [9d 9h]
Windgat folds
The Pure folds
Shadowbxr folds
BigJerry44 raises to $1.50
Jaguardac folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $1.50
Menudencia folds
vlrhsgo folds
*** FLOP *** [9c Ts Th]
BigJerry44 bets $2
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $8.75
BigJerry44 calls $6.75
*** TURN *** [9c Ts Th] [Kc]
BigJerry44 bets $12
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $12
*** RIVER *** [9c Ts Th Kc] [Kd]
BigJerry44 bets $27.45, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY folds
Uncalled bet of $27.45 returned to BigJerry44
BigJerry44 mucks
BigJerry44 wins the pot ($43)

*SS*

August 14 - Happiness

2008-08-14T04:43:00.001-04:00

Lots of stuff I want to talk about right now...

1.) I got my first horse!!! “I vi ii V7” has officially been staked by me. We're going to be very aggro with the bankroll and hopefully get him to 100nl by Christmas (starting him at 25nl). Kid is very solid, and I'm very excited about this investment (as is he).

2.) I dislike FTP!!! 3 checks bounce, now 5 (leaning towards 6) days without approval on CashPickup. Then on top of that, I check the Zoo...and apparently CashPickup might be fading out. There is no check option for me, and nothing else. So effectively my money doesn't actually belong to me!!! (exaggeration I hope)

3.) I don't like this year very much. That is all.

4.) I got my resume in motion yesterday. Hopefully I can get some phone interviews and have everything ready for the my first week or two in Vegas. I'm looking at marketing (entry level) in Vegas, preferably in the gaming sector, but I'm open for everything. Anyone have a connection they wouldn't mind exhausting? =)

5.) The benefit for my brother who passed last year is on Friday. I'm very stressed about it because it's slightly emotional, but isn't meant to be. Anyone that has been in this situation before knows the fear of the “so...how are 'you' doing?” conversation that is guaranteed to happen about 90,000 times. We are also having a silent auction, and I was considering offering 2-3 hours of coaching for 2 people as a bidding item. However, I decided against this because people in this town (and well, 99% of towns for that matter) wouldn't have the slightest clue for the value on that, nor would there be much interest most likely. But who knows, my poker coaching always comes up at these kinds of functions...so maybe I can score some new 40 year old students.

6.) Happiness. I've been very pissy-pants the last few days...a lot of it stemming from poker stuff (feeling like I'm running uphill constantly). I was reading 2p2 a few minutes ago and came across this gem:

“I'm one of the happiest people I know because I choose to be happy. Happiness is a choice. Every man who has ever walked this earth has faced similar problems in life. I read somewhere that all of life's problems can be related to your health, wealth and relationships and I have yet to come up with a problem that lies outside of these parameters. The difference between a happy person and a depressed person is that a happy person realizes what he does have, and views his problems as challenges. Instead of focusing on how bad he has it because of his problems, he chooses to focus on solutions to his problems, and grows from overcoming those problems. In time, he will develop new problems, but a happy person welcomes those new challenges because they present him more opportunity for growth. If you ain't growing, you're dead.” - JohnnyBeef

I am going to read this every single day for the rest of the year. I think my mindset has begun to slip from taking losses as challenges, and thus results in me being more upset about them. Hopefully by focusing on being happy and interpreting losses/issues as challenges to overcome, I will be able to get my psychology back on track.

Thats enough rambling for tonight. A hand!:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7624659770: Table Dancing Leaf - $0.25/$0.50 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:10:32 ET - 2008/08/12
Seat 1: DelhiCamels ($52.80), is sitting out
Seat 2: Nelli999 ($10)
Seat 3: Its RIGGIGGITY ($59.70)
Seat 4: azarf ($27.60)
Seat 5: MasterTCX21 ($39.25)
Seat 6: macman247 ($51.05)
Seat 7: NewStarIsBorn ($59.05)
Seat 8: thekid64 ($50)
Seat 9: olsenjun ($10.75)
azarf posts the small blind of $0.25
MasterTCX21 posts the big blind of $0.50
The button is in seat #3
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ks Kh]
macman247 calls $0.50
NewStarIsBorn folds
thekid64 folds
olsenjun folds
Nelli999 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $2.50
azarf folds
MasterTCX21 calls $2
macman247 calls $2
*** FLOP *** [4d Js Kc]
MasterTCX21 checks
macman247 checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $3.50
MasterTCX21 calls $3.50
macman247 calls $3.50
*** TURN *** [4d Js Kc] [7d]
MasterTCX21 checks
macman247 checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $13.25
MasterTCX21 folds
macman247 calls $13.25
*** RIVER *** [4d Js Kc 7d] [Tc]
macman247 checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $32
macman247 calls $31.80, and is all in
Uncalled bet of $0.20 returned to Its RIGGIGGITY
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ks Kh] three of a kind, Kings
macman247 shows [Qd Ad] a straight, Ace high
macman247 wins the pot ($105.35) with a straight, Ace high

*SS*

August 12 - Idea...Thoughts?

2008-08-12T05:46:00.001-04:00

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand, right back to normal we go!!! Back to effective breakeven in poker again this month. This has me questioning some things. Not really my play nor play-style (I do very heavy analysis on that after every session, and have really only found one minor weakness that is currently getting fixed up), but just my overall decision to keep doing what I'm doing. I think I'm going to follow the path of a few other very solid players and grind down at 50NL for a little bit of time.

At 100NL I've dropped my WR down to 1.4pt/100 (~250K hands). Not that I find this number unacceptable or anything (I mean hell, I realize its a + number, and that automatically makes me top 35% of poker players), I just don't find I'm maximizing my time playing poker. After talking with some people about the current level of 50NL, I'm thinking I can beat that level for 3.5-6pt/100 (which is a higher hourly).

My thoughts right now are to grind out 50NL for some of the weekday sessions, and really grind out 100NL during solid happy-hours and weekends. I'm also considering getting some table selection aides to help me hyper focus on table selection. My current table selection methods include # of shortstacks, # of solid regs, and overall table flow/position. I think with the use of TableTracker or maybe Telescope, that I can up my pt/100 a lil bit (an every lil bit helps).

I don't know...anyone wanna talk me out of this?

Hand:

(I wonder if this has anything to do with my WR dropping??)

Full Tilt Poker Game #7614338011: Table Camden Rose - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 1:53:57 ET - 2008/08/12
Seat 1: MClark79 ($122.95), is sitting out
Seat 2: supermanthat ($86.95)
Seat 3: shooter6926 ($100)
Seat 4: Blakester143 ($157)
Seat 5: vagabond07 ($67.80)
Seat 6: nttflox ($20)
Seat 7: bwals ($116.45)
Seat 8: Its RIGGIGGITY ($100)
Seat 9: reDZill4r ($114.75)
vagabond07 posts the small blind of $0.50
nttflox posts the big blind of $1
shooter6926 posts $1
The button is in seat #4
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ac Ad]
bwals has 15 seconds left to act
bwals folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $5
reDZill4r folds
supermanthat calls $5
shooter6926 folds
Blakester143 folds
vagabond07 folds
nttflox folds
*** FLOP *** [5c As 2h]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $6.50
supermanthat calls $6.50
*** TURN *** [5c As 2h] [5s]
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
supermanthat bets $12
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $31
supermanthat calls $19
*** RIVER *** [5c As 2h 5s] [4c]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $45
supermanthat calls $44.45, and is all in
Uncalled bet of $0.55 returned to Its RIGGIGGITY
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ac Ad] a full house, Aces full of Fives
supermanthat shows [5d 5h] four of a kind, Fives
supermanthat wins the pot ($173.40) with four of a kind, Fives

*SS*

August 9 - Lazy Grind

2008-08-09T04:46:00.001-04:00

I'm very happy with this month so far. Although I'm not running particularly well or anything, I think I'm running fairly average, which is a nice change of pace. I generally would prefer average over a sample than the extreme variance I normally get (normally because extremely well doesn't do anything for me while extremely bad does). I've played a whole 8K hands so far (I really thought I would have grinded more), and I'm doing about 1.5pt/100. Nothing to write home about, but certainly nothing to piss and moan about.

I've been doing lots of poker thinking lately as well. With lots of coaching happening, and more students in the pipeline, I realize how much I personally get from coaching. I not only get the financial benefit, but I get to learn, think deeper, and also focus on my image (both professionally and at the table). There have been a few things I have tweaked already after coaching (mostly in terms of pf and flop play) that I may not have realized without going over it so many times.

Things I've been thinking about include:

1.)when to CB, how to CB, why we CB
2.)double barreling
3.)VB-ing tighter

My Pooh-Bah post will look at all of these more in depth, and my goal is to have that posted by the 20th of this month. Writing this is really giving me a good chance to think a deeper level, while also focusing on conveying my message on the 1st level. I was reading a post the other day on what makes a good coach, and one of the main bullet points from people was “the coach can think deep, play well, but give me this me time that really sets me apart (and I think a big part of the reason why 2p2 is so receptive to my videos and posts). information in a way that is easy to understand and apply.” I think this is something I've been doing for quite soSo hopefully I can continue doing that through this Pooh-Bah post.

I've been very lazy this week personally. Sadly I only got to the gym once, and ran once (albeit, 2 days left this week)...but I'm proud for getting even that done. My GF also noticed that I'm starting to do more things per day (when I'm in a depressive state I often tend get 0-1 things done per day, no matter how big/small they are). I also noticed this, and think I snapped out of that mini-depression I was feeling late last month!!! I think a lot of this came about when I got some new motivation, started being more organized (professionally and personally), and started getting more exercise.

Also, I just added my BlogList on the right side of the page. So if anyone wants me to add their blog there, just drop a link in the comments and I'll hook you up so long as 1.) you hook me up, and 2.) your blog is acceptable. Everyone loves a little extra exposure, so lets all help each other out =).

Alright, again, another late night. So here's a hand before bed:

(“never go broke in a limped pot”...lol)

Full Tilt Poker Game #7521236528: Table Montpeliar - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 15:22:21 ET - 2008/08/05
Seat 1: Its RIGGIGGITY ($102.10)
Seat 2: x1a137d2 ($38.15)
Seat 3: FlashOver ($106.05)
Seat 4: Wazzamaniak ($45.60)
Seat 5: R1986 ($30.70)
Seat 6: HoldThsNutz ($118)
Seat 7: kotzii ($60.20)
Seat 8: adrianus13 ($39)
Seat 9: Dr-Sarcasm ($115.95)
FlashOver posts the small blind of $0.50
Wazzamaniak posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [8d Td]
R1986 folds
HoldThsNutz folds
kotzii folds
adrianus13 calls $1
Dr-Sarcasm folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $1
x1a137d2 folds
FlashOver calls $0.50
Wazzamaniak checks
*** FLOP *** [8c Th 4d]
FlashOver bets $4
Wazzamaniak folds
adrianus13 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $16
FlashOver raises to $52
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $101.10, and is all in
FlashOver calls $49.10
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [8d Td]
FlashOver shows [Jh Tc]
*** TURN *** [8c Th 4d] [6d]
*** RIVER *** [8c Th 4d 6d] [6s]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows two pair, Tens and Eights
FlashOver shows two pair, Tens and Sixes
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($203.20) with two pair, Tens and Eights

*SS*

August 5 - Positive

2008-08-05T04:16:00.001-04:00

Decent start to August. Breakeven so far, over a whopping 5K hands. But...I'm feeling much more motivated to grind out...which I'm very happy about. I was worried that I might get lazy this month, and not really grind out till Vegas. However, it seems my body+brain are finally working together, so grindcore it is.

I did 2 coaching sessions in the same day today (something I don't normally do). Feels good to be mixing in playing an coaching more than I ever have. I feel my playing has improved quite a bit thanks to this. It's also forced me to look at myself psychologically more. I no longer feel as though I can flip out in a chat thread or go off about how baddly I'm running. This forces me to focus on positive things, and not dwell on dumb variance crap. No one cares that I'm down X amount of buy-ins, and no one cares about whatever cooler crap happens. I think more people need to remember that dwelling on the little dumb things is counter productive in general, and they should really spend more time focusing on playing and improving in other areas (no, this is not a slight on anyone).

I was talking with WhiteWhale a bit tonight, and we had an awesome conversation. One point we talked a lot about was motivation in this game, and its overall importance to playing. I think this is something that may have been missing from my game, whether entirely or partially I'm unsure. This motivation can come in the form of a new topic being presented, an interview being watched, or just talking with another card player. Right this moment (and I think the conversation with WhiteWhale was my motivational moment) I am very grindcore oriented, which I think will keep me grinding sessions longer, harder, and better.

It's been a nice relaxing few days. The GF has been back so I've hung out with her the last few days. I finally got my mohawk trimmed up, got to see my dog for a few days, and saw a few flicks (Step Brothers + X-files ) with her. I also helped her paint her room (an of course by this I mean that I did 80% of the painting while she stepped in paint and did other silly things). She's also letting me do some tagging on her walls when they are done (yea, its like periwinkle blue and will have tagging on it)...which is cool because I haven't tagged anything in years. So I need to plot out something nice, then get practicing =)

Alright, its 4a, and I'm exhausted. A fun hand before sleep:

***** Hand History for Game 7517888422 *****
$100.00 NL Texas Hold'em - Tuesday, August 05, 12:19:02 ET 2008
Table Pink (deep) (Real Money)
Seat 2 is the button
Seat 1: MyEntourage ( $178.70)
Seat 2: URazEiFOld ( $153.15)
Seat 3: meatyballz85 ( $60.75)
Seat 4: MClark79 ( $149.10)
Seat 5: Its RIGGIGGITY ( $205.10)
Seat 6: Chadmw ( $83.75)
Seat 7: ohodge ( $313.70)
Seat 8: tylerf13 ( $223.75)
Seat 9: davenigma ( $98.50 )
MClark79 posts small blind [$0.50].
Its RIGGIGGITY posts big blind [$1.00].
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [ Ks As ]
Chadmw folds
ohodge folds
tylerf13 folds
davenigma folds
MyEntourage folds
URazEiFOld calls [$1.00]
MClark79 folds
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to [$4.00]
URazEiFOld calls [$3.00]
** Dealing Flop ** [ 2h, 2s, Qs ]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets [$4.50]
URazEiFOld raises [$16.00]
Its RIGGIGGITY raises [$60.50]
URazEiFOld raises [$133.15]
Its RIGGIGGITY calls [$84.15]
URazEiFOld shows [Jc, Kh ]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ks, As ]
** Dealing Turn ** [ 6s ]
** Dealing River ** [ 2c ]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a flush, Ace high
Its RIGGIGGITY wins $303.80 from main pot

*SS*

August 2 - New month!

2008-08-02T04:50:00.001-04:00

Hurray for it no longer being July! Although August is off to a superb (sarcasm) start, I'm just happy that July is in the past. I ended the month +$1.3K, and although I'm not thrilled with the results, they could have been much worse given the events of the month. As for August, I put in a 3K hand session earlier just to grind it out a little bit. -1.5BI in the more annoying ways (I ran into the nuts 3x, got 5 outted twice, 4 outed once, etc). But, I'm still very confident about this month.

I've also been exploring staking a bit. I have wanted to add some passive income to my plate for awhile, so I figured now is a great time to do so. I'm looking into long-term stakes (3-6mo minimum) starting at 25NL. Investment is lower here, and I also get time to work with the stakee while they are still learning, and patch leaks before they become flood-holes. I'm in talks with one person now, that will probably go through next week. Also, Mpethy is awesome and helped me write up an awesome contract for the arrangements, so props and thanks to him!

I decided to buy the 100Kpt thing with my medals (and 1 $26 token for fun). So if anyone thinks of anything they want from the FTP store, just leave a note in the comments and make me an offer. I have 315K points, and will probably buy an iTouch 32GB at some point soon, but if some1 really wants the monitor or something, I can always put it on hold.

My GF finally gets back later today! I haven't seen her in almost a week, so that should be good times. I also haven't seen Kingjamen...so I'll finally get a few days to chill out with him (GF and I share him atm). I think we're all gonna go off to the beach tomorrow and just chill out because I haven't seen the beach in like 3 weeks (which very unacceptable when you live 10min from the ocean). I put in the majority of my work this morning so I could spend more time with her tomorrow, and then Sunday is right back to the grindstone.

I'm not putting any more hand goals on myself if possible. My goal is just to grind the most when I'm feeling right, and not force myself to mega-volume if the games aren't in peak condition. I decided I'd rather make my goals in terms of hours, so I guess I'll aim for about 20hrs/week, and 5hrs/week of coaching. I also want to play some more MTT's this month. The only thing that sucks about MTT's (other than the life-tilting variance) is that best ones run during peak hours. Sadly, my brain cannot handle MTT and Cash at the same time...so I'll have to figure something out.

BTW, I very much dislike FTP right now. Besides running me the way they do for the sample they have...I believe 3 of my checks from July bounced. Thats awesome! I love that I have to wait 9million months for my, yes MY, money! O well...I'll just live a little light off-line for a bit longer. It's really time to get to hustling as well. I'm figuring my trip to Vegas will cost me about $1K in gas + w/e else I spend along the way. Not to mention some little fix to my exhaust system as well. So $1.8K will probably be the cost to get out to Vegas. And yet another piece of the bankroll gets torn apart!

A hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7475430357: Table Blossomwood - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 2:17:47 ET - 2008/08/02
Seat 1: DISPOSABLEHERO1 ($37)
Seat 2: ProudDonkey ($56.80)
Seat 3: rivahata ($123.20)
Seat 4: freakinrican815 ($89.50)
Seat 5: PChop22 ($44.65)
Seat 6: HiPolymer ($119)
Seat 7: snow_mann3 ($0), is sitting out
Seat 8: kaizoku318 ($100)
Seat 9: Its RIGGIGGITY ($118.60)
kaizoku318 posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #6
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Kc Ks]
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $3
DISPOSABLEHERO1 calls $3
ProudDonkey folds
rivahata folds
freakinrican815 calls $3
PChop22 folds
HiPolymer folds
kaizoku318 adds $1
kaizoku318 folds
*** FLOP *** [6h Th Qs]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $6.50
DISPOSABLEHERO1 calls $6.50
freakinrican815 folds
*** TURN *** [6h Th Qs] [6c]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $15
DISPOSABLEHERO1 raises to $27.50, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $12.50
DISPOSABLEHERO1 shows [Qh Ts]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Kc Ks]
*** RIVER *** [6h Th Qs 6c] [Qc]
DISPOSABLEHERO1 shows a full house, Queens full of Tens
Its RIGGIGGITY shows two pair, Kings and Queens
DISPOSABLEHERO1 wins the pot ($75) with a full house, Queens full of Tens

*SS*

July 31 - July is Over!

2008-07-31T03:11:00.001-04:00

I did my Well on 2p2 this week. A Well is a thread on 2p2 where a known poster has people pelt him/her with questions, some personal some poker. Feel free to ask any questions in there, and I'll answer them.

The Well: SplitSuit

Other than my Well, I've been very busy this week. Since Monday I have done a coaching session everyday. I've picked up a few new students and am loving it! I actually feel very proud of myself for turning a -3pt/100 loser into a winning player, after one 2hr session. Obviously there were some super leaks, so we re-worked his strategy from pre-flop onwards, and he's been winning everyday since. Nothing makes me prouder than a student that just gets it, applies it, and grinds the hell out of this game.

I haven't gotten much grinding done lately. I think I'm just letting this month fade out and will resume grindcore hard on Friday (Aug, 1st). I'm at 37K hands now, so I might just push through, get to 40K tomorrow (no coaching sessions scheduled for then) and bid this month good riddance. At this moment I'm +$1.3K after all is said and done...but I'm not proud of that at all. I think August has a huge shot at being my 'turn around' month. My cutting down of tables, my hyper focusing, and my intense thinking (thanks to coaching) really has me optimistic on having a great great rest of the year.

Also, on the same accord as my Well I suppose, it's getting to be about time I get a Pooh-bah post finalized. I already have 3pages started from a few months ago, so I think I will expand heavily upon it (probably try to cap it at about 7pages w/o examples). My working title is “Bet-Sizing: Optimally Maximizing”. I really want to go into some depth with this as I think its the most important over-looked concept in PL/NL. So I'll expect to post that sometime in August or September, and will obviously link it here. If anyone has any articles, suggestions, questions, comments...please fire them here or ship me an email: splitsuit@gmail.com

Semi-off topic...On FTP I have 210K pts, and I have 2450 medals (getting another 250-300 this month). What should I do with them? At 2500 medals I can buy 100K pts, and buy something big. Any ideas or suggestions? Or should I just save up my pts, and wait on the medals an buy the $600 bonus in a month or so? Side bonii promotions are awesome...but I never know whats optimal.

Side business idea...I was thinking of doing 1 or 2 things. Since I know a lot of people are into coaching and making vids, I've been thinking about doing this:

1.) Offering to build websites for people. Fairly cheap in comparison to what you'd find otherwise, and I know exactly what you want/need (poker sites are generally pretty simple, but need certain things for sure). Can also help people market them, update, and maintenance them. I had a lot of fun building my own website, and really think I can make solid sites for people.

2.) Expand my own website and give other coaches or interested parties their own pages. I already get traffic here on a daily basis, and that cuts down on a lot of work that they might have to do. Of course I would host, update, and maintenance everything, and charge a monthly fee (haven't worked out this figure yet, probably around $40/mo).

Any thoughts on that?

And as usual, an awesome hand! (nice flop call buddy):

Full Tilt Poker Game #7444227734: Table Singing View - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 20:53:07 ET - 2008/07/30
Seat 1: Max Revenge ($133.35)
Seat 2: Fusch ($107.85)
Seat 3: GTstables ($97)
Seat 4: Its RIGGIGGITY ($100)
Seat 5: kNosPeee ($117.55)
Seat 6: cdicara ($78.90)
Seat 7: Promilleernst ($100)
Seat 8: ghanditerp ($48.50)
Seat 9: Ghostrider117 ($103.45)
Max Revenge posts the small blind of $0.50
Fusch posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #9
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [3h 3d]
GTstables raises to $3
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $3
kNosPeee folds
cdicara folds
Promilleernst folds
ghanditerp folds
Ghostrider117 folds
Max Revenge folds
Fusch folds
*** FLOP *** [Th 3c 4c]
GTstables bets $7.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $25
GTstables calls $17.50
*** TURN *** [Th 3c 4c] [6d]
GTstables checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $39
GTstables raises to $69, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $30
GTstables shows [5s 7s]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [3h 3d]
*** RIVER *** [Th 3c 4c 6d] [4s]
GTstables shows a straight, Seven high
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a full house, Threes full of Fours
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($192.50) with a full house, Threes full of Fours

*SS*

July 28 - The weekend

2008-07-28T05:12:00.001-04:00

This weekend was a blast!!! I think I broke 100% even after rakeback. Albeit, very small sample size, but still a 5K hand push. I came to a lot of conclusions about my game and they are this:

1.)I suck at coinflips forever.
2.)16tabling isn't really for me while full-stacking
3.)My game is very powerful postflop (between hand reading, pot control, and manipulation)
4.)I can use these skills much more when 12tabling
5.)I enjoy playing a bit looser than my superTAG stats

I've decided to cut my tables down to 12 for the time being. I got this advice from someone awhile back, and I really think this is best for me. My core-competencies are really in post-flop play, and playing superTAG really squeezes my edge to pre-flop play. I feel really good since making this decision. I'm able to play more position pots, really focus on picking off weak players, and making more value per hand. I don't like only seeing 750 hands/hr...but I'm OK with that if my WR does what I expect it to do.

I actually managed to get to a + WR this month at 100nl! I'm very proud of this especially after my nice lil ~15BI downer. I'm thinking I'll put in another 6K hands this month to hit 40K hands for the month, and be done with it. Besides playing I have a coaching session later on today (first session with a new student), and I have a few possibilities lined up. I really am excited about being able to coach more. Ideally I'd like to coach ~7-10hrs/week (so ~5-8 students). We'll see how that works out as we go on.

Nothing super exciting going on lately. I did go on a mini-shopping spree the other day. Nothing feels better during a downswing than dropping more money. O well, I needed new shoes, pants, and shirts, and I wanted new stuff before I got out to Vegas anyway. Also decided to get a few RJD2 albums. RJD2 is amazing, his style is all over the place, and I really wish I could replicate his style.

RJD2 - 1976
just one of his many sounds (and one I like to session to now)

And as usual, a hand! (serious LOL at villain):

Full Tilt Poker Game #7405540991: Table Camino Entrada - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:07:26 ET - 2008/07/28
Seat 1: lbsracing ($68.70)
Seat 2: Its RIGGIGGITY ($100)
Seat 3: 151CaribouLou ($41.90)
Seat 4: Miyogi ($118.40)
Seat 5: lazienbastos ($20.40)
Seat 6: jsmooth007 ($17), is sitting out
Seat 7: lamotta867 ($79.75)
Seat 8: Punisher_007 ($105)
Seat 9: wannagopro ($119.55)
Miyogi posts the small blind of $0.50
lazienbastos posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #3
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Ac Ad]
lamotta867 folds
Punisher_007 folds
wannagopro raises to $3
lbsracing calls $3
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $15
151CaribouLou folds
Miyogi folds
lazienbastos folds
wannagopro calls $12
lbsracing calls $12
*** FLOP *** [Ts Ah Qc]
wannagopro checks
lbsracing checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $36
wannagopro calls $36
lbsracing folds
*** TURN *** [Ts Ah Qc] [9h]
wannagopro checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $49, and is all in
wannagopro calls $49
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Ac Ad]
wannagopro shows [Jc Jd]
*** RIVER *** [Ts Ah Qc 9h] [9d]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a full house, Aces full of Nines
wannagopro shows two pair, Jacks and Nines
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($213.50) with a full house, Aces full of Nines

*SS*

July 26 - The month is almost over!

2008-07-26T04:48:00.000-04:00

So about that depression I mentioned last post...yea...i think I've got a mild case of it. Dammit! It's really putting a hindrance on getting volume in this month. Because I've been really unmotivated to grind out I've just been putting in SS'ing sessions. I hope this weekend I can put in some really nice, long, and profitable full stacking sessions. If I had to set a goal I'd say I'd like to put in around 9K hands this weekend....but as I said earlier in the month, I am setting no more solidified hand goals for the month.

I did a coaching session in earlier today. I always love the first coaching session with a new student. Get to see their PT, and really start from scratch in a way. This player was actually not using any tracking software nor HUD before today. I was amazed that some players (especially serious players) don't utilize these programs! So we spent some time working through the software, setting up HUDs, and learning which stats meant what and how to use them. I feel as though I've done that quite a bit this week between talking to players and posting in some 2p2 threads on HUDs. O well, but I'm happy to have another student on board, and even more excited that he was really happy about the first lesson.

Besides coaching, I have a sweat session with Billx on Sunday (I've decided that I want to do one sweat session per week. Although in the future I will not set them up on weekends for the obvious reasons of profitability). I'm hoping this goes as well as the one with JH1 from last weekend, which I feel was a great experience for both of us. I also decided to sweat 'EricDarland' at a 12tabling 200NL session yesterday. Was really nice to see someone running a nice smartLAG game, but wish some more interesting spots would have come up. O well, I think we were both on the same page, but there were some tweaked differences between our styles, which I believe are just functions of our standard levels.

I finally got some running done yesterday! Feels like awhile since I've done that (like 5-7days, but still don't like not being out moving), but felt really good. I'm sore as hell because I decided I was going to do some of my old agility drills...huuuuuuuuuuge mistake! Haven't done that kind of explosive movement since high school...so needless to say my legs are killing me. At least it will help me get into shape faster. I'm not out of shape per se (6'0” 162), but my cardio is not up to par and I'm not as strong as I used to be. My goal is to get cardio in shape first then start lifting again. I don't need 'beach muscles'...just my strength back. Sadly, I don't think I'll ever be “jacked” or anything, but there are worse things in life.

And as usual, I'm getting to bed around 5am. I really need to get my sleep schedule back on track...obviously a bad sleep schedule is terrible for depression. Ill make that my 1 goal for next week. =)

A hand, then bed: (villian's comment before his push made me LOL)

Full Tilt Poker Game #7051477844: Table Wispy Sage - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:14:35 ET - 2008/07/01
Seat 1: donkeidic ($45)
Seat 2: RacknStack ($77.10)
Seat 3: Its RIGGIGGITY ($141.45)
Seat 4: MolsenMI ($103)
Seat 5: LacieK ($113)
Seat 6: Goso ($20)
Seat 7: giveusakiss ($80)
Seat 8: martingal19 ($85.60)
Seat 9: Mondrigor ($102.10)
RacknStack posts the small blind of $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #1
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Kh Kd]
MolsenMI folds
LacieK folds
giveusakiss folds
martingal19 calls $1
Mondrigor folds
donkeidic folds
RacknStack calls $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $5
martingal19 calls $4
RacknStack folds
*** FLOP *** [9c 3c 2h]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $7.50
martingal19: nh
martingal19 raises to $80.60, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $73.10
martingal19 shows [Jd 9d]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Kh Kd]
*** TURN *** [9c 3c 2h] [5s]
*** RIVER *** [9c 3c 2h 5s] [8s]
martingal19 shows a pair of Nines
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a pair of Kings
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($169.20) with a pair of Kings

*SS*

July 24 - Moving along...

2008-07-24T01:26:00.009-04:00

Finally strung a few good/winning sessions together! For some odd reason, I've been very unmotivated this month. I could have easily put in 50K hands more if I had the motivation to do so. But between a 15BI downswing and life stress, I'm just happy to have put in the hands I did. I'm at 32K hands right now and still down slightly on the month (-$200ish)...which I'm sadly very happy about. I still have a week to go though, so I expect to b around 40K-50K hands by the end of the month. Sadly, I feel as though I've been a huge let down to my FR-challenge team (which, I guess by pure results, yes, I've been exactly that), which I hate being especially as a Captain. Though I believe the majority of my team had a bad go-at it, but hopefully we can get a last minute WR-boost =)

I feel as though a slight depression is coming over me lately. I haven't met a single one of my goals, I haven't ran in like a week (an if I can't manage a run, there's no way I can manage a lift)...I dunno...i need to get my shit together. I have spent quite a bit of time thinking things though, which is good overall. Just trying to figure out what's effecting me, why it's effecting me, and how I can get through it. The majority of the reasoning for feeling the way I am is the stress of living here. Back in Boston is always very stressful for me (divorced family is here as well as my brother's resting spot) and I think I've overstayed my time here.

Thank God I only have about 1.5months left here. I love my family, but my family+this place = not good for me. I'm looking more and more forward to Vegas everyday! I'm currently trying to spend a lot of time to figure things out so I don't have to have a very long 'introductory period' when I get to my Vegas house. I'm looking for jobs, financial planners, and housing stuff regularly.

I've decided it would be best if I get a job out in Vegas. I like to be social, and really dislike that poker is such an individual game. I mean, yea, I could go to a casino an grind out for 75hrs/week (which is very easy for me to do live)...but I generally dislike poker players while playing poker. 1.) most people at a casino tend to smell foul, 2.) people there tend to be morons. Either they don't understand real life, they have an IQ hovering around 42, or they have the most anti-social tendencies ever. Or 3.) they are the over-ego people that make me go crazy. Couple that with the scum of the earth that casinos tend to attract, and I think live play for that many hours a week is out of the question. =)

So I'm thinking a job will help me feel a little more financially secure, will hopefully offer me benefits (healthcare included), and offer me the ability to learn something new. I honestly love nothing more than learning, whether it be learning someone's backstory, a new marketing technique, or how to read a weather map. That, and I'll be able to meet some new people and cut out my resume gap, makes a job (which seemed like a drag in the past) seems more lucrative now.

For those that haven't yet, please watch my latest video if you get a chance (check the “Videos” page of www.splitsuit.com). I think it came out fairly well, and I will probably do another one within the next 2 weeks. However, I think I'm only going to post them on 2p2 once a month just so I don't bother everyone and overpost vids and stuff.

And as usual, a fun hand!:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7350098528: Table Rio Poco - $1/$2 - No Limit Hold'em - 23:26:08 ET - 2008/07/23
Seat 1: thewire ($148.50)
Seat 2: AJ105 ($133.50)
Seat 3: BPRANGERS76 ($197.20)
Seat 4: AirsickAce ($140.70)
Seat 5: greatstar00 ($42)
Seat 6: OBPWRX ($59.10)
Seat 7: Its RIGGIGGITY ($48.95)
Seat 8: refresh13 ($185)
Seat 9: lucksallugot ($100)
refresh13 posts the small blind of $1
lucksallugot posts the big blind of $2
The button is in seat #7
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [8c 8s]
thewire folds
AJ105 folds
BPRANGERS76 folds
AirsickAce calls $2
greatstar00 folds
OBPWRX calls $2
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $48.95, and is all in
refresh13 folds
lucksallugot adds $2
lucksallugot folds
AirsickAce calls $46.95
OBPWRX folds
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [8c 8s]
AirsickAce shows [5c Jd]
*** FLOP *** [Qs Ac 9d]
*** TURN *** [Qs Ac 9d] [Kc]
*** RIVER *** [Qs Ac 9d Kc] [2d]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows a pair of Eights
AirsickAce shows Ace King high
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($99.90) with a pair of Eights

*SS*

July 21 - It's a slow grind sometimes...

2008-07-21T03:18:00.003-04:00

Omg omg omg...things are finally starting to turn around! So I decided to go against my last post and do a bit of short stacking (like 2.5K hands of it). Did that through 100nl and 200nl, just to get my feet wet with it again, get a change of pace, and skew up my stats for the month. I didn't like it all that much, was just nice to be able to think through a different set of ranges for 2hrs and also win a few coin flips (regression to the mean, regression to the mean...). After that I decided to go back to full stacking.

On Saturday I did a sweat session with JH1. I was very impressed with him: he had a solid thought process, was very smart, and overall really good player and person. So I sweated him for 6tabling 50nl for about an hour, then he sweated an 8tabling 200nl session of mine. I didn't run very well, but minimized loss to about -$300, which I was happy about. Was a little tilty after that session, mostly because of a 5 outer and a JJ v AA in a position hand...but took a 20min break before firing up another session. Did a +1.5BI session, +2.5BI session later that night, and booked a nice +2.5BI session tonight while doing a video tonight. So nice to finally be getting close to break even on the month. * sigh*

I also finally got my Cash Pickup withdrawal from FTP approved, and I will pick it up later today. I've been a little angry with FTP after having 2 checks get bounced, and a 3rd take 15+ days (still not here yet). But at least this withdrawal gives me a little breathing room cuz I have very little off-line right now. O well, just reminds me to plan better for the future, especially in this odd cash-out climate.

I made a video tonight as well...which I should be posting up later today. For some odd reason when I compress with Camtasia it takes like 8-12hrs for a 1hr video in .wmv format (which keeps it very small, but retains really solid quality). Hopefully people will like the video as there are a couple of fun spots. I really want to get more traffic to my site as well. Since putting the site up I've been hell bent on getting traffic there, and not really cuz of the coaching. I just think its cool that I have my own lil corner of the Internet, and I love checking my page stats to see how many new visitors and such I have. I've been using Google Analytics (yea, Google is taking over the world) and its a really nice application that measures so many things about the site. Apparently, I have people in Finland watching my videos, which I find really awesome. So in an effort to get more traffic I think I might start posting my vids on other poker forums. I've only been a part of 2p2 since posting with poker, so this should give me a chance to branch out, meet new people, and get a lil more movement on the site in general.

In personal news, I saw the Dark Knight in IMAX (omg, a goal that I completed!??!) on Saturday. My God, in IMAX, that movie looks amazing. Apparently some of the scenes were shot specifically in IMAX (like the cityscapes and also the bat-cycle sequence), and they really looked gorgeous. I also got some cooking done, which I like doing in my spare time. Made shrimp diablo pizza with my GF the other night, and it came out really well (let me if u want the recipe...its very spicy, but really flavorful). Other than that, it was kind of a quiet weekend. I took a lot of naps because I'm having a hard time getting to sleep at night, and my body is kicking my ass for it. O well, it happens.

Goals for the week:
~) run 4x
~) work on a new song
~) do a sweat session with someone
~) read ½ of this new book I got (about the psychology of a healthy and intimate relationship...I like psychology books in general)
~) start my trunk design (I have this trunk I use for storage (old military trunk), and I want to turn it into art work)

I've been finding lately that I really want to exercise my creative side of the brain a little bit more. I think poker forces you to really lean on the logical side, and thus hinder your ability to sometimes be more creative. So I'm trying to make sure I keep both sides of my brain strong.

And as usual, a hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7227417375: Table Round Castle - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:15:49 ET - 2008/07/15
Seat 1: RiverOfNoReturn ($38.65)
Seat 2: CHzar ($31.80)
Seat 3: bsk_500 ($38.15)
Seat 4: Its RIGGIGGITY ($175)
Seat 5: derMichaaa ($20)
Seat 6: giveusakiss ($108.65)
Seat 7: goozent ($31.50)
Seat 8: Goldz ($111.60)
Seat 9: wererat1972 ($96.75)
bsk_500 posts the small blind of $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #2
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [9c Ac]
giveusakiss folds
goozent folds
Goldz folds
wererat1972 folds
RiverOfNoReturn calls $1
CHzar folds
bsk_500 calls $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
*** FLOP *** [6c 7c 3c]
bsk_500 bets $2
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $8.50
RiverOfNoReturn calls $8.50
bsk_500 calls $6.50
*** TURN *** [6c 7c 3c] [6d]
bsk_500 checks
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $18
RiverOfNoReturn calls $18
bsk_500 raises to $28.65, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $10.65
RiverOfNoReturn calls $10.65
*** RIVER *** [6c 7c 3c 6d] [8d]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $1
RiverOfNoReturn calls $0.50, and is all in
Uncalled bet of $0.50 returned to Its RIGGIGGITY
*** SHOW DOWN ***
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [9c Ac] a flush, Ace high
RiverOfNoReturn shows [5c 4c] a straight flush, Seven high
RiverOfNoReturn wins the side pot ($1) with a straight flush, Seven high
bsk_500 shows [7h 7d] a full house, Sevens full of Sixes
RiverOfNoReturn wins the main pot ($111.45) with a straight flush, Seven high

*SS*

July 18 - And it continues...

2008-07-18T04:51:00.002-04:00

I am so frustrated right now. Just one of those stretches where nothing is going right. Not like this is the first one I've ever encountered (by a long shot =) ), but this one is really getting to me. I'm at -13BI right now, and analyzing sessions twice over at this point. I'm really not worried about my play at all, most (11) of the BI's are just coolers and running bad, which is very reassuring. I think this downswing, coupled with the hell that is Monday (1yr anniversary of my brother's passing) and life stress, is just dragging on me.

At the moment I'm considering different poker options. My options are short stack for a little bit (just to mix things up) which I would do at 200nl-1Knl, cut down the amount of tables to like 6-12 (which was suggested by a friend I respect quite a bit, and thus I am heavily considering this), or moving over to PLO for a little bit. I'm not really considering PLO as an option, though I suppose my winning of 7 of my last 59 coin flips doesn't help that much =). I'm not the worst PLO player, but I don't think I want to deal with that kind of variance right now. I don't really want to short stack right now (I'm saving this for my move to PS, which I'll go into in a bit) just because the variance is sick and +/-10SSBI sessions are super common. I guess that leaves me with cut down tables. I think I'll do this for weekday games (and oddly enough, move up at the same time. So I'll 6-12 table 200nl during non peak hours). This will allow me to re-tweak my game, get used to 200nl again for when I move up, and probably make a better hourly than I am right now (currently doing $40/hr for the year at 100nl w/ RB). However, I'll still probably 16table during peak hours and weekends just because I find that to be most profitable for me.

I am planning on moving some, if not a huge %, of my play over to PS in the next two months. One of my goals for the year was to get SuperNova, which is very possible given my current level. I think I'll have to play about 250K hands at 100nl (or 215K hands at 200nl), which should take about 2-3 months if I really hustle. So I'll b jumping on the 24tabling bandwagon and ruining all the PS games =). I'll probably just SS there so I can clear SN as quickly as possible, burn the bonii, and get back to FTP. I'm really a sucker for FTP, I love the software, the game selection, RB, and overall look. Albeit the customer service does suck often, the servers do crash sometimes, and other issues; but nothing is perfect.

Also, I've noticed some people talking to me on the tables lately, and just wanted to say “hi”. However, I don't have chat on FTP right now, so please don't feel I'm being rude and ignoring you. I self-banned my chat so I can focus on playing and not talking silly nonsense.

As usual, I'm behind on my goals. I've done 2mi of running, made no video, played like 5K hands, etc. I think my next week's goals are gonna be simple so I can actually accomplish all of them for once. In the next few days I'd like get health insurance (srsly, with how much I pay in rake, you'd think FTP would give me health insurance =) ), see the new Batman movie at an IMAX theater, and make a video. Very simple goals, so that should be good. I won't set any hand goals for probably the rest of the month as I'm very stressed lately and think that forcing myself to play might draining me a bit.

And a hand (lol...wtf is villian doing?):

Full Tilt Poker Game #7254912974: Table WPTfan.com - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:37:17 ET - 2008/07/17
Seat 1: NJSparty ($105.50)
Seat 2: OUBoomerSooner ($64.55)
Seat 3: VVarrenI3uffett ($94.25)
Seat 4: Tarik84 ($0), is sitting out
Seat 5: iemdavid ($100), is sitting out
Seat 6: aquitas1 ($42.60)
Seat 7: Its RIGGIGGITY ($100)
Seat 8: kbslimjim ($58.85)
Seat 9: tanian99 ($151.85)
ccrw85 sits down
aquitas1 posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #3
ccrw85 adds $40
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [Kh Kd]
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $3
kbslimjim folds
tanian99 folds
NJSparty folds
OUBoomerSooner folds
VVarrenI3uffett folds
aquitas1 calls $2
*** FLOP *** [Ks Qs Qc]
aquitas1 checks
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
*** TURN *** [Ks Qs Qc] [Kc]
aquitas1 bets $3
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $12
aquitas1 raises to $39.60, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $27.60
aquitas1 shows [Ad Qd]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [Kh Kd]
*** RIVER *** [Ks Qs Qc Kc] [4s]
aquitas1 shows a full house, Queens full of Kings
Its RIGGIGGITY shows four of a kind, Kings
Its RIGGIGGITY wins the pot ($82.20) with four of a kind, Kings

July 16 - Downswings Are Not Fun

2008-07-16T02:41:00.007-04:00

I really need to snap out of this downswing. The variance is really starting to kill me. Every month I encounter at least 2 different 7BI downswings, so I'm very used to downswinging on a regular basis (aka, regular variance). But lately I've been encountering 10-15BI downswings more regularly. Of course, there are the 10-20BI upswings, so I'm making money overall...but I really cannot understand why I'm running like this. I play a very low variance style, I hand read well, and yet people that play 35+% of their hands just hit the most insane stuff. They either have KK+ when they shouldn't, they overset me, they snipe some crazy draw, or they 5 out me. Couple this with the times I'm on the bad side of setups (KK < AA, set < set, set < flush, AA < KK), and I'm hating this month quite a bit.

I took tonight off in an effort to regain a lil confidence. I'm very confident in general, especially about my game, but the last few months have been pushing my edge a little bit. I do feel better in that I'm aware of a few very respected players that have had 200K-400K break even patches, and that I'm only at around 175K of small WR (~.8ptbb/100). I know most people would consider this a decent WR, but I really do expect 1.4-2.5ptbb/100. So I'm just gonna keep my head up, keep chugging, and wait till my WR regresses to the mean.

Other than poker stuff, I got back together with my GF. I think living apart for a bit will be very healthy for us (she moved back in with her parents). She is working very hard to get healthy again, and I'm working very hard at being more open and emotional in the relationship. I think if we couple these things together that we will be very well off. I'm a little nervous about Vegas (I leave early Sept. (right after Labor Day)), but I'm focusing on baby steps right now.

So other than my silly downswing, life is OK. Have barely started on any of my goals for the week, but I still have 5 days left =). Did a little bit of Wii Fit today, and feel much better after doing some Yoga (and seriously, I never thought I'd see the day where I did Yoga). It's just very hard to run when it's 95 degrees outside, and 20 minutes of running might make me pass out. Hopefully the weather will cool down a bit, otherwise I'll just start treadmilling (which I really do hate to do, feels so odd).

Thought: with the recent split in forums on 2p2 (splitting the 400+ game) I've realized that I'm very against the elitist attitudes. I will not name names, but there are quite a few people that think because they have $XX, or do this/that, that they are better than other people. An not only do they have that thought, they flaunt it as though it's a respectable quality. Insulting, demeaning, or criticizing people for anything, especially something they are truly working toward, is just rude and really immature. However, I do understand that most of 2p2 is 16-24yr old males, so obviously the 'e-peen' waving an frat brother crap will always be present. I am asking that if people feel I'm being elitist in anyway to please tell me. This is a quality I have no interest in displaying, intentionally or otherwise. Thanks!

I was going through comments the other day and realized I said I would post a picture of Kingjamen. So here are 2 of them...

(don't worry, I never actually started the machine =) )

(like the first week we got him...he was so small back then)

and as usual, a hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7065635230: Table Piedmont - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 0:47:37 ET - 2008/07/03
Seat 1: davenigma ($105.90)
Seat 2: WatchingF1 ($42.50)
Seat 3: GOLDDUST-47 ($40), is sitting out
Seat 4: g2005 ($88)
Seat 5: VVarrenI3uffett ($97.80)
Seat 6: Kardonoff ($100)
Seat 7: laserfocus ($44.90)
Seat 8: Its RIGGIGGITY ($138.45)
Seat 9: i9nite ($100)
davenigma posts the small blind of $0.50
WatchingF1 posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #9
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [9h 9d]
g2005 folds
VVarrenI3uffett raises to $3
laserfocus folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $3
i9nite folds
davenigma raises to $11
WatchingF1 folds
VVarrenI3uffett folds
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $8
*** FLOP *** [Qh 3c 2s]
davenigma has 15 seconds left to act
davenigma bets $9
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $9
*** TURN *** [Qh 3c 2s] [9s]
davenigma has 15 seconds left to act
davenigma bets $29
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $58
davenigma raises to $85.90, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $27.90
davenigma shows [Qc Qs]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [9h 9d]
*** RIVER *** [Qh 3c 2s 9s] [Tc]
davenigma shows three of a kind, Queens
Its RIGGIGGITY shows three of a kind, Nines
davenigma wins the pot ($212.80) with three of a kind, Queens

*SS*

July 13th - Bleh

2008-07-13T20:03:00.002-04:00

Well, so far I'm not doing all that well on my goals. LOL. I really need to learn how to set more attainable goals as I've struggled to hit the majority of mine in the last 2 months. But, I did manage to put in 10K hands so far (of course, that decided to trainwreck me to breakeven for the month), I did write this blog post, and I did mess around with some music (reworked a song I was working on last month). So I guess not all is lost.

This weekend was tough all the way around. My GF and I broke up after 7mo. Even though I was the initiator, it still ended up hurting me more than I thought it would. Tried to control myself psychologically an put in sessions, but was having a hard time, hence why I'm short on my hand goals. O well, just hard losing something that has been there for so long, but at the moment I think it's the best decision.

Besides that, I've just been trying to focus on the betterment of myself. I'm trying to schedule myself a little better, and really set aside hours for me to work, workout/run, and take care of side business. My uncle ended up getting me a Wii Fit for my birthday, which has really been awesome for working on some balance stuff I wouldn't otherwise have worked on. Which reminds me...apparently, my family runs GodMode when it comes to the Wii. Over Xmas my dad and I picked up the last Wii in a 30mi radius (some random morning order that just got delivered). I got a Wii in Syracuse for graduation...and ended up picking up the last one in the mall. Then, randomly go to Best Buy (like 15mi away) after checking the local stores for the Wii Fit, and turns out they randomly got a shipment of 6 that morning. So yea, apparently all my GodMode power is used for Nintendo products...*sigh*

So my plan for the week is run 10mi (not per day, just 10mi in total. I'm not a good runner at all), get in 25K-40K hands (prolly will be closer to the short side of that), and get to the gym 2-3x. I know exercise is one of the healthiest things you can do psychologically, so I might as well get my body back in tune. I think I'm also going to make 1 video, and try to pick up a new student because I've been lazy with my coaching goals this summer.

And a hand:

Full Tilt Poker Game #7195991943: Table Roaring Lion - $0.50/$1 - No Limit Hold'em - 20:06:47 ET - 2008/07/12
Seat 1: SirCJT ($127.45)
Seat 2: Its RIGGIGGITY ($276.30)
Seat 3: iemdavid ($104.10)
Seat 4: iwinuluz ($78.20)
Seat 5: Johnai ($24.50)
Seat 6: SmokinAces04 ($88.95)
Seat 7: Beerpants ($93), is sitting out
Seat 8: garrylim ($88.25)
Seat 9: boose55 ($152.90)
SirCJT posts the small blind of $0.50
Its RIGGIGGITY posts the big blind of $1
The button is in seat #9
*** HOLE CARDS ***
Dealt to Its RIGGIGGITY [2h Th]
iemdavid folds
iwinuluz folds
Johnai folds
SmokinAces04 folds
garrylim calls $1
boose55 folds
SirCJT folds
Its RIGGIGGITY checks
*** FLOP *** [2s Jc Td]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $2
garrylim raises to $7
Its RIGGIGGITY has 15 seconds left to act
Its RIGGIGGITY raises to $25
garrylim: wow
garrylim calls $18
*** TURN *** [2s Jc Td] [Qh]
Its RIGGIGGITY bets $41
garrylim raises to $62.25, and is all in
Its RIGGIGGITY calls $21.25
garrylim shows [9s Tc]
Its RIGGIGGITY shows [2h Th]
*** RIVER *** [2s Jc Td Qh] [7h]
garrylim shows a pair of Tens
Its RIGGIGGITY shows two pair, Tens and Twos

*SS*