Vegas & The Aftermath - Diary

[TightEnd]

Luton Friday £75 frezeout 8pm start, 5000 chips

[RED-DOG]

Today I'm going to service and sharpen the ancient motor mower that was snatched back from the brink of death at the hands of the scrap man several years ago. The cutting deck works on a system of belts and pulleys and anyone who can remove and replace them in less than a day automatically qualifies for membership of Mensa.

This mower is too old to run on unleaded petrol, I have to add a lead substitute to the fuel or else the valve seats will burn out. Some days it can be a bit temperamental, but if you are familiar with it's foibles, you can faf around, altering the mixture and pressing different buttons until you eventually get to the root of the problem. It may sound strange, but this process is probably more therapeutic and beneficial to me than it is to the mower, sometimes, in my more fanciful moments, I imagine it just pretends to need my attention because it knows that as I work with it, I work through my own problems.

Once it starts, it insists on running at it's own pace, it won't slow down quickly enough for my liking when it comes to a difficult bit, but I have learned not to fight it, I just hang on and hope for the best. It coughs and creaks and sometimes it backfires alarmingly, but it was forged in a bygone era, and it's made of sturdy stuff. Even after a lifetime of use and abuse it still always manages to get the job done. Over time, I have developed a deep respect and admiration for it. It has never let me down.

[tikay]

Today I'm going to service and sharpen the ancient motor mower that was snatched back from the brink of death at the hands of the scrap man several years ago. The cutting deck works on a system of belts and pulleys and anyone who can remove and replace them in less than a day automatically qualifies for membership of Mensa.

This mower is too old to run on unleaded petrol, I have to add a lead substitute to the fuel or else the valve seats will burn out. Some days it can be a bit temperamental, but if you are familiar with it's foibles, you can faf around, altering the mixture and pressing different buttons until you eventually get to the root of the problem. It may sound strange, but this process is probably more therapeutic and beneficial to me than it is to the mower, sometimes, in my more fanciful moments, I imagine it just pretends to need my attention because it knows that as I work with it, I work through my own problems.

Once it starts, it insists on running at it's own pace, it won't slow down quickly enough for my liking when it comes to a difficult bit, but I have learned not to fight it, I just hang on and hope for the best. It coughs and creaks and sometimes it backfires alarmingly, but it was forged in a bygone era, and it's made of sturdy stuff. Even after a lifetime of use and abuse it still always manages to get the job done. Over time, I have developed a deep respect and admiration for it. It has never let me down.

That's a wonderful piece of writing Tom, it puts my blathering to shame. More please.

[The_nun]

See Tony just look what your diary thread has done, apart from your fantastic posts, which I beg you to keep up, you have now encouraged Tom to write another great piece. Thanks boys..x

[tikay]

See Tony just look what your diary thread has done, apart from your fantastic posts, which I beg you to keep up, you have now encouraged Tom to write another great piece. Thanks boys..x

I was sure that Posts about the 10.04 to St Pancras & the Tom being pulled across a field by a tempremental mower (which I am visualising now) would suit someone........

Thanks Maureen.

[RED-DOG]

Don't sell yourself short Tony, this has been one of the best blonde threads ever imho.

I did not intend to hijack it, but considering the similarities between yourself and the mower, it seemed somehow appropriate.

[tikay]

Don't sell yourself short Tony, this has been one of the best blonde threads ever imho.

I did not intend to hijack it, but considering the similarities between yourself and the mower, it seemed somehow appropriate.

Thank you Tom.

And yes, I just adored this, & read between the lines, exactly as suggested. It's one of the nicest things ever Posted on blonde.

Once it starts, it insists on running at it's own pace, it won't slow down quickly enough for my liking when it comes to a difficult bit, but I have learned not to fight it, I just hang on and hope for the best. It coughs and creaks and sometimes it backfires alarmingly, but it was forged in a bygone era, and it's made of sturdy stuff. Even after a lifetime of use and abuse it still always manages to get the job done. Over time, I have developed a deep respect and admiration for it. It has never let me down

[technolog]

When I read your lovely last paragraph I knew you were paying a wonderful compliment and nothing so vulgar as hi-jacking - marvellous, almost brought a tear to my eye!

[tikay]

When I read your lovely last paragraph I knew you were paying a wonderful compliment and nothing so vulgar as hi-jacking - marvellous, almost brought a tear to my eye!

Yes - was'nt it just wonderful.

Now, I'm off to backfire.

[tikay]

"My next Live Tourney will be the £300 in Walsall", & "I hope this little losing streak ends soon" were my words yesterday.

Well, my iron self-discipline failed again, & I decided at the last moment to go to Luton for the £75 Freezeout, & copped for exactly £1,000, three of us deciding to save £1k each & then play for the remaining £900, in which I fell short in a monster-rooney three way exit & final hand.

I'd had a bit of a rough day on blonde & other stuff, & just wanted to get away for a few hours - well, that's my excuse. So the three Tourney run of near-misses & bubbles ended nicely, £1,000 is serious moolah to me, that's a whole bunch of little tourneys, & keeps the Bankroll ticking over nicely, & I'm freerolling tomorrow in the Walsall £300.  I'm really not convinced I should continue to play big buy-in, big field Comps, as I get by nicely in the smaller affairs, but no doubt I'll yield & be down at Luton (by far my luckiest Venue, over a Dozen Fessie Cashes there) for some of the Fessie Events, work permitting.

Tighty also Finalled tonight, & he ran well all evening. I can't nick a chip from him, he's got my number now, so I crossed him offf the target list. But the Blinds got huge, 4k-8k I think, & he & I were both low-ish, he with about 40k, me 35k.  Anyway, with 5 or 6 left in the Final, he moved in UTG, & if you think about it, he'd do that with any two in that situation, so after a bit of a dwell, I decided to take him on, all-in, with  , & he flipped over a surprising  (because I assumed he had nought) . As had happened all night, I hit the flop hard, 2 pairs, & he was on his way. An auto-play by both of us, I'd say.

I'm afraid I'm getting a reputation as a Luckbox in Luton, thoroughly deserved it is, too.

I'm not gonna bore you with too many hands, but I do find it fascinating how, on occasions, "odd" Pots go down.

First off, I called a 300 Raise (I was in late Position) with  , & three of us saw this flop.....

 

They both check, &, come on, let's be honest, if they have got any sort of Ace they gotta bet it to protect it on that flop, but they both Check, so I fire in 1k. One Pass, one quick & confident call. Well, he's either huge, or flushing.

The turn was another A, jeez, I'm miles behind now unless he's flushing.

He checks again, I bet 3k now, he calls again, nooooooooo!

The river was the  , & I've paired my top card. And I have the deuce kicker, don't forget......

Check check, I sheepishly turn over my 4-2 having paired the 4, & he turns over his missed flush,  .....! So I was dominated all the way, & would still lose to Ten high if I had not rivered my 4.

Mumblings of "lucky fish" start to be heard, but that was nothing compared to this corker.

I have Jim McShane to my left, he's a pain in the butt, & I can't get much past him. Anyway, it's my BB, he's limped under the Button with  , there is a mid-pos Limper with  , & it's a check from me in the BB with 

The flop is a juicy 

I check, Jim bets a teasing 125 with his pocket Nines, & Ten-Ten man calls. I decide to have some fun, & min-reraise to 250 more, & Jim min re-reraises, Ten Ten man calls. What could these guys have? I decide to get all lairy, & push all-in. Neither of them have a deuce or pocket Kings as I see it, & they can't possibly call with anything else. Jim mucks quickly, he can't bluff me this time, but Ten-Ten man calls & proudly flips over his hand. I'm thinking like, well, what on earth did he think I had? Not complaining, mind......

And so it continued.

Soon up to 18k, (we began with 5k), I make it 2k (Blinds 300-600) with QQ, & Nice Man (probably Chip Daddy) makes it 5k more. I just sensed he had nothing, so quickly pushed all-in, he called in a trice,  - with  .

What? How do these guys make these calls? Does he think I've re-re-Raised with A-8, or 7-7?

Anyway, let's be grateful, he misses his 3 outer & we are in dancing territory now. Or as Mr McShane described it, Morris Dancing territory in my case.

And so it continued, I won every race, & all was well in my little poker world.

In the Final, there was a huge Chip Leader, I'm avoiding him as he's trigger-happy, but he & I played a bizarre hand. Blinds at 1k-2k, he makes it 7k, I go all-in for 25k more with AQ, & he calls instantly with, wait foir it, .......A-5!  He must have known the Board would pair twice, choppity-chop. Then I found QQ in a 3 way coup, scooped again. Easy game when you are catching cards.

I took Maria down with me, & hoped she'd get a result, she's running worse than a bandy pig right now. She muscled her way up to a decent stack with no hands, except a bit of an oddity against Alex Martin's 7-9 with Ten-Ten. Then she got on the wrong end of the nightmare match-up of AA v KK, & that was that. I feel for her, there's me hitting everything in sight, having a ball, & she can't catch a card. I guess that's Poker, but I did feel for her.

Anyway, I got a lovely £1,000 "packet" of £50 notes from Grosvenor, & we drove up the M1 in contrasting moods, me unable to believe my luck, & Maria, well, the same really. Except I seem to get the good luck all the time. I dropped her off at Leicester Services at 0430, the dawn was coming up & was simply breathtaking, so I stopped off in Stanton-by-Dale in Notts & spent half an hour watching the dawn break, & listening to the birdsong. Forum grief? What forum grief? Dawn comes every day, many of us take it for granted, but they signal another day, another challenge. And in my case, another freeroll.

[tikay]

Walsall awaits on Saturday &, I hope, Sunday, for the £300 Freeze, & I know Red & Thewy are going, hopefully Karabiner too, that's a lovely comp.

The Poker Week Cameras will be there on Sunday, so I'm there Monday too for the "reaction chat" stuff with Compo, who I've not seen since Vegas.

So I'm booked into the Village Hotel for Saturday & Sunday night, to save me driving back & forth, & even if I bust on Saturday, I'll stay in Walsall on Sunday & take a little rest, I'm bushed.

The Vegas Trip has left me a bit drained. I have acres of writing to do that I'm behind with, lots of "awkward" e-Mails to sort, but somehow I can't be arsed to get on top of them. I guess it's Jet-Lag.

OK, it's 8am, & I've not got to bed yet, I'm outa here.

Cashing in tourneys produces an adrenelin rush (for me), but I'm gonna be well grumpy & tired on Saturday. Stay clear of me is my advice.

[TightEnd]

well played last night tikay

Next time, I will know better than try and win a 60-40 against you. You run so good I need at least 80-20 to be 50-50, if you see what I mean!

[tikay]

Cashing in tourneys produces an adrenelin rush (for me), but I'm gonna be well grumpy & tired on Saturday. Stay clear of me is my advice.

Well THAT never worked! Got up at 1pm, planning to get cross to Walsall & get some kip at The Village prior to the Tourney, & it all goes off on blonde - Ariston & Johnny Raab affairs, shall we say, so that's another 2 hours of my life stolen. At my age, every hour counts.

So, change of plan. I'm gonna get ready, then ring Tom, & see if he minds if I drop round his place for a cuppa en route to Walsall. He lives in such idyllic surroundings, at one with nature, & he's such lovely company. I think a cuppa with him would be just the job right now.

[The_nun]

Jealous as hell, enjoy it Tony, you deserve a rest.x

[RED-DOG]

Jealous as hell, enjoy it Tony, you deserve a rest.x

Steady on Maureen, the tea's not that good.