Before N After Birthday

Before confessing to having a birthday on the 3rd, I played the Battle of the Blogger Tournament challenge on the 2nd.  I got lucky really early and managed to double up and bust a player when I raised with A-K and got reraised as they went all-in.  I had been popping in raises periodically and it must’ve looked as if I was in complete steal mode with my raises, but I hit a flurry of hands – medium pocket pairs, A-Face, etc., – and raised preflop with them every time.  So when I raised with A-K, I’m sure the other person figured I was stealing.  He had Q-J suited (if I remember correctly) and I instacalled.  Big slick was good. 

Then it was the holding pattern of no cards, steal an occasional blind, wait through more of the ‘no card syndrome’ and when we started to get down to the last 4-5 tables, I was the lowest chip holder during the majority of that. The chat was on fire, and never slowed down…I didn’t get involved as i didn’t feel the need to gab and opted instead to read as I looked at all the bad hands. I did win a pot once when I called a raise – and a call – and I pushed with 7-7 and one more player called.  I believe they all had me covered. I won that pot and jumped up to 11K in chips but it was still a very short stack at the level we were on.  I went out 14th out of 116 player and picked up $40 for my freeroll efforts.  Nice!  Thank you Full Tilt and Alcanthang!

It feels like summer has finally started in the desert, there was barely a whiff of a wind on my birthday (yesterday) and it was a very welcome gift from Mother Nature.  Today is following suit, it’s calm and warm, the sun is blazing.  I went out to the road and punished myself with a session on the Trikke, this evening I will go again.

About two weeks ago I a call from the Monkey…Jimbo…he was in Las Vegas, getting ready to crash (it was early so his crashing at that time of night is too bizarre for Vegas), he was sober, exhausted, and out here on a golfing run with his buddies from CO.  We talked for over an hour and I tossed out the fact that he should check with the guys and see if they wanted to hit the Winery for dinner after the golf session they were planning in Pahrump.  He was going to call me back and let me know the following day.

He did call me back, drunker than a wino finding a full bottle down on Burnside street, after he’d drained all the ones he salvaged from the garbage cans.  He was in rare form.  His friends were in the car too, heading back from where ever the hell they golfed for the day, laughing their asses off at his drunken lunacy.  He said he had been drinking, *giggles and hoorahhing* Just a small example:

“I’ve been touching myself.”  *Jimbo and entourage laughing – me too*

“Do you think I should use lotion?* *More laughing*

MOI, “Of course, you should always use lotion.”

We didn’t do dinner at the Winery, but we did do a helluva lot of laughing.  Last I heard he was talking about heading down to play poker and wondering if Boba would give him a seat.  From our first conversation, he had no intention of playing poker…ahhh well…and he should be in Venezuela by now or on the way soon – work related.  Call me next time you hit Vegas  you crazy kid!  Or before!  And thanks for the Facebook B-day wishes!

I leave you with the saltcedar in Bloom:

Thank you everyone for all the happy birthday wishes!