Chance to win a seat at Barcelona for the EPT

[tikay]

I just played a couple of heads-up matches on Sporting Odds.com (won one, lost one - I mistakenly played Limit in the one I lost - what an AWFUL game Limit H-U  is!).

They have a ticker at the bottom of the page which announces that they are running a qualifier for the Barcelona EPT at 5pm BST (1600 GMT) on Sunday.

It's $260 + $20 to enter, & they award a $6,500 package (including $1,000 travel) for every 25 runners.

I need you to be aware, so that there can be no suggestion of impropriety, that I (not blonde) supply written content & do some other stuff for Sporting Odds.com, & I have a "column" on their site, for which they pay me.

I may as well go the whole hog now & give you a link to the August column & Pro Tips (stop sniggering Ariston), a new column will go up this weekend.

http://www.sportingoddsgames.com/c/content/poker/kendall-tony.html

[RED-DOG]

Ok question time again, I have many, I'm curious by nature , some call it nosey

How and when do you find the time to write all those articles and stuff what with everything else, and do you outline them in your head first or do you just start 'cold'?

What boxes aren't ticked in your wish list?

[tikay]

Questions questions......

Time is a weird thing, tasks can expand to fill the available time, the trick is to make time expand so you can do all the things you wish.

Yes, I outline them in my head frst. If it's a subject or a piece I am enjoying, then I usually write too much - say they want 1,000 words, I find that in 10 minutes, I've already reached 1,200 & still not finished, so it has to be pared down. But when it's an "to order" piece, as the newspaper frequently request, & it's a subject I don't know much about, or enjoy writing, then I find I can spend 30 minutes & have only written 300 words. And in those cases, the piece is usually poor quality.

I was asked to write a Profile of The Camel - lovely, I like the guy, know him well, respect him, & the piece took less than 15 minutes, & I was quite pleased with it. Another week, they wanted a Profile of Bruce Atkinnson, which I really struggled with. (By the way, both will be on blonde in the next 48 hours).

What boxes in my Wish List are not ticked! Wow, what a question. A few, but I must confess, most of the things I ever wanted to do in life I have done, but there are still a few left.

A tour of Scotland, right roind the coast - no A roads, just using the little B roads. I love the coastline, & I love Scotlands coastline particularly. I'd buy a little camper van, & I reckon it would take 6 or 9 months - I want to be able to just stand & look at places without the need to rush. I planned to do it this year, but things sorta got in the way.

Get a dog - one with a limp preferably. You know, the old man & his dog, limping into the sunset, growing old together.

Continue to be of  good health, & if I am struck by some dreadful illness, let it be short and sharp. Being dead does not bother me, we all have to go, but dyjng slowly does.

I'd like blonde to be a success. Dave placed a lot of faith in me, & I want to pay him back somehow. He's a good man, & I care for him greatly. blonde - & me in particular, were mocked something shocking in the early days, by a senior figure in poker, who went out of his way to give us a hard time, tell everyone we were a bunch of amateurs who would never succeed, & we had no traffic. Well we ARE a bunch of amateurs, but enthusiasm and effort go a long way, and our traffic graph is going very nicely indeed, over 5,000 Unique IP's some days (that's different peeps who log in), still a way to go, but the graph is definitely progressive, and they are tidy numbers after only 8 months, especially considering the "downs" we have been plagued with.. So I'd like blonde to succeed. I continue to show great kindness to the man in question, that's my way of getting even......

A partner would be nice, too. I had a 12 year relationship which ended last October - not my decision - and it devestated me. It was as a direct result of the "end" that I got into writing, it's my painkiller. Every time something dreadful has happened in my life, I have bounced back by working hard, it's a wonderful medicine & painkiller, whereas self-pity and "poor me" is a killer. But I do miss having a partner, someone to share innermost secrets with, someone to hug. Hugs are the nicest thing in the world, and I miss them terribly. Humpy pumpy is wonderful, & I miss having a partner in that resprct very much, but hugs are what really matter. (How you fixed Tom?).

Oh, and I'd like Dave to win a WSOP Bracelet, Thewy too. I love those two guys, and I would get more pleasure from them winning a Bracelet than I would if I won one - truly. Receiving is good, giving is better.

That's about it I guess. Need to be realistic, it's getting late.

[RED-DOG]

Cats dont mind being left to their own devices, a dog would be miserable if you left it

Could you abandon poker for 9 whole months?

ps, most poker players dogs limp

[tikay]

Sorry about the abrupt end to that post Red, Charlie, the eldest cat, who sleeps on the monitor roof, jumped on the keyboard and pressed the "SEND" button somehow. I'll edit the post to finish it off.

[tikay]

But the dog would come with me on the Scotland tour, - I'd want the companionship. It has to be a dog that smiles a lot, one of those that's tail is aslways wagging.

[snoopy1239]

Like this one?

Click to see full-size image.

[tikay]

No, NOT like that one snoops.......

Have edited the post after Charlie wrecked it.....

[Robert HM]

Thanks tikay, thankyou.

[tikay]

Bloody hell, another question. Could I abandon poker for 9 months? No, but I could abandon it altogether. Whatever I do, I do full-on, & I love the poker scene. But if I went off for 9 months, I am not sure I would be able to find my way back into the scene. I dunno, is the real answer.

[RED-DOG]

What a wonderfull answer to a simple question, thank you

How I envy people who find writing easy, that piece would have taken me all day

Reading other peoples stories of triumph, or just survival, when facing terrible adversity has helped me a great deal over the years, I am amazed at the courage they find when they need it the most

This is the first time in my life I've ever been without a dog and I hate it. If you do get a dog, please take the time to train it, dogs are pack animals and as well as having someone to love and protect, they need someone to tell them what to do, they want to please you, give them the opportunity

I'm tempted to ask another question, just to see what you will say next

[ariston]

Tikay makes up for lack of posts last night with one huge one, well done matey.
Scotland- the roads on the west coast are more spectacular than the east Imo, The road to Fort William from the Cal Mac off southern Skye is possibly the most surreal one you could ever drive.
Blonde being a success- no need to wait for that one it already is
Bracelet for dave and yoyo- nothings more certain, hope its sooner rather than later though
Partner- if you want one I hope you find one but please no more mention of rumpy pumpy, its dangerous at your age you know 
Dog- as reddog quite rightly said you cant go off leaving a dog so get a dog and you would have to quit poker.
Writing- keep it up mate, there must be some publications/websites in the UK you haven't written for yet (I can't think of any but there must be some). I enjoy writing as well and I find that quite strange because I hated it when younger (Maths and sports where more my bag), maybe its because I have found something I have a passion about- its impossible to not have a million different thoughts/theories about this game. Any peice I write I just "talk" with my fingers in effect then go over it and edit it a few times- I then send it in and they correct syntax and stuff and lay it out. No point in saying to me how many words it has to be, I just write until I feel it looks right and says what I wanted to say.
Ilness- couldn't agree with you more, I have dealt with both long drawn out and short deaths and I know which I want when its my turn. You aint that old yet Tony (don't tell anyone I said that) so I wouldn't give Illness a thought. Live every day like it could be your last mate, thats my take on it lately.

[Foxy]

Questions Questions, very good Tony very good indeed.

[tikay]

Arisrton is right (there's a thing) about the roads on the West Coast of Scotland.

I drove up a few years back, & went through the Pass of Glencoe. I nearly fainted with it's dramatic beauty, I just stood there for 4 hours & gaped. Ballaculish (Pass of?), Fort Wiliam, Oban. I don't know why, but I have a yearning to go to Marshalltown. I kept seeing signs saying Marshalltown 139 miles or whatever, & was thinking "HOW FAR"? So I checked it out on the map, & there is a bit of Scotland - a sort of nose - sticking out, & Marshalltown is right at the very bottom. I HAVE to go there. I stood on the quayside in Fort Wiliam where the ferries leave for the outer Isles, & was filled with a yearning to get on one - such rugged & tough boats & seamen. And such beautiful golf courses.

Gotta be done. It's on the list. Me & the dog.

[ariston]

The Isle of skye is a must Tony, unbelievable scenery on there. You have to use the ferries (I have avoided the obvious gag when you mentioned rugged/seamen in the same sentence but please stop lining up easy ones for me) Tony- Calmac onto the south tip of Sky then from Uig (the top) across to Stornaway. You can get lost up there for weeks. Its amazing such a beautiful country is full of scottsmen (gulp- Im raeady for a backlash now  )