April 15 - I am green!

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  =)

Build your own custom video playlist at embedr.com

 

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

*SS*

April 12 - Happy Easter

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

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

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

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)

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!

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*