I started on 50B. Pretty funny! Usually the worst start in the room is 30B because that means you’re taking a break and heading for Table 1, high limit, more high limit, add triple doses of high limit, and that’s how you’re spending your shift. Since we have 20 tables set up in the pit, I was in exactly the same line-up as 30B. Well what can you do? So one half hour later, I hit Table 1. It was something like $1,500-3,000 or some nonsense that only people not into the reality of working for a living can play.

Phil I. was in the 2s and had a jacket laying on the table in the 1s. He looked up at me as I stood behind the dealer and I asked, “Does this play?” motioning towards the jacket.

He had his usual grin and retorted, “Only if you want it to?”

I laughed, “You’ve always got an answer don’t you!” He does too. Quick on the comeback, great smile.

Barry G. and Phil were playing some kind of ‘other game’ between the two of them. I have no idea what it was. The game was Deuce to Seven and one of them would state they ‘had it’, after looking at their cards, and the other one would throw them two $5,000 chips or four chips or something. Jennifer got into the act for a few hands, one hand they both peeled off four $5,000 chips and threw them to her. Then she opted out because she said Marco was on his way and he wouldn’t understand it.

The game was pretty uneventful and I moved into a mixed game with Sam G. in the 8s. He was carrying on about something to do with the house and why wouldn’t they do this or that and he asked me, “Do you know, Darlin’?”

I told him I had no idea. Funny how sometimes I’m ‘dealer’, sometimes I’m ‘honey’, and sometimes I’m lots of other unspeakables but Sam usually makes me laugh. It’s hard to get upset with his insanity.

The 6s took a walk and Layne Flack jumped in as a play over. Meng La was in the 7s and took a walk. Instantly a play over box went over the chips and Shaun S. sat down.

Sam never slowed down with his jabber and gab and played quite a few hands. Suddenly, out of nowhere, the 5s asked the air, “How long does it take before you know if you have a venereal disease or not? Three days?”

The air failed to answer him and he tried again. The 2s misunderstood him and prodded. The 5s wasn’t bashful at all about asking the question again. The 2s said he’d gotten chlamydia once when he’d been here, he’d had an extreme amount of itching and couldn’t figure out why until he went to a Dr. The 5s said he had someone to go home to and he needed to know before he went home – hell yes he was wearing a wedding ring – and the conversation slid around that for a few moments. I know if I thought I might have something, I would be at my Dr.’s office asking questions, not a group of guys on table 2.

In the meantime, Shaun had just paid both blinds and was now the button and Meng returned. Meng wanted his seat. Shaun refused. They went back and forth in a boisterously, semi-serious, blustering kind of way. Meng told Shaun to get the fuck out of his seat. Shaun told Meng to get fucked. It went on and on with Meng standing over Layne’s shoulder and their voices were pretty loud. Sam and Layne were in a hand of Deuce and the ‘fuck this’ and the ‘fuck that’ was drowning out everything. Finally I asked, “Would you two just be fucking quiet? They are trying to play poker,” as I motioned to Layne and Sam.

It was a crack up. Meng looked at me and started laughing. So did Shaun. But they went right back to it, Shaun telling Meng he would throw Meng’s chips on the fucking floor…etc., etc., etc.

Hey…it was just another night of poker – poker – poker.