The wind is rampaging and snorting, ripping up everything that’s not nailed down and sending it via airmail to another location. I hate it! It’s been on the UGLY side for the last few weeks and tonight it’s screaming and moaning around outside my house as if waiting for me to walk out so it could send me to another location too. I refuse to go. I’m staying inside.

The clocks leapt forward an hour and cost me part of my precious time away from work. I had planned to meet Dan B. and Chad P. for an early a.m. venture to climb a ridge in Calico. An hour before I got to the meeting place, Chad called and said he was pushing into a five ball at MGM and wouldn’t make it…overtime for that kid. When Dan arrived it was windy and cold and we decided to go into Red Rock Canyon and climb to Calico Tanks. It turned out to be a beautiful thing, just overcast and cool enough that it was quite comfortable with all the exertion of climbing continuously up, and the wind wasn’t apparent in the canyon we were in.

The Tanks – a huge basin at the top of the ridge that holds rain water until summer heats up. This is the most water I’ve ever seen there. It’s quite deep and the basin is quite large although it doesn’t appear so from the angle of the picture. Turtlehead looms in the background.

On the really great side of life, Jim AKA The Monkey (from CO) and Wayne AKA Murph (Palms dealer), and I are all going to deal the Ultimate Bet/Aruba event this year. Watch out Aruba! What a rip! Which means I still have to go finish the trip report from last year…damn it! Where does time go?

I received this email from a reader (that I know will introduce himself next time, right, Jasper??) and asked his permission to print it because it’s so damn Sam G’ishly funny.

*begin email*

Dear Linda,

You dealt to me this past weekend in the 80 game, I should have said hello but felt it might have been inappropriate to talk about you and your site at the table.

But I had to share a funny story with you.

One of the days around 5am, the 80 game was short and the 2/4 mixed game had just broken up. Sam G was playing in it, I believe Marlon put him in the game.

Marlon was playing in the 80 game and Sam G decided to play short with us with his profit from his 2/4 session.

His play is so bad, no wonder he is on the rail all the time.

Anyway, he bluffed some local out of a pot and showed it face up and said his infamous, “I’d tip you dealer but I did all the work.”

A few hands later, I pick up AK suited in the SB, only Sam G limps and I raise it up, the BB folds and the great Sam G and I take the pot heads up.

The flop comes up 6, 6, 2. I bet and Sam G called. I put him on a medium pocket pair or AJ.

Anyway the turn comes a rag and I check, Sam G takes a stab and I check raise. He shows me 77 and pitches it into the muck. I show him the AK suited and he has this disgusted look on his face and he leaned back in the chair dejectedly.

Afterwards, I thought to myself, next time I do that, I am going to say, “Dealer, I did all the work, but I am still going to tip you.”

Take care, Jasper

*end email*

My two days off disappeared like a piece of paper that’s caught in this wind whipping around outside. I enjoyed them a lot…I think.

Poker Pit, Tournament Time, and Monday – all wrapped into meaning see you there!