When you are thinking about giving yourself an 8 hour time out

Follow through you idiot

Happy 10th Anniversay AYBABTU!

Wow, has it been 10 years? Life goes by pretty fast! (I've done a lousy job of making my time....)

The Laziest Men on Mars -- Invasion of the Grabber Robots (orginal music)

Bad_CRC et al. -- All Your Base Are Belong To Us (remix/video)

You have no chance to survive make your time

(flash version)

[x] Still up for the month

About $75...

OK, I took a peek at this week's results overall and it's not that bad. Right?

Amazing hand to wind up the week -- is this even ethical? A railbird starts berating this guy on the table I just joined for being an idiot who open shoves any Ax. A few rounds later, I make my standard raise with 44. Sure enough, the guy open shoves with T3s. Thank you Mr. Railbird!

INXS -- Never Tear Us Apart

Wild eyed and crazy

What a day. OK, Friday was worse because I ended up giving back all my 100NL winnings and then some; but, well, it was my birthday. It didn't help that a player who chatted "in b4 conan goes broke" woke up 3 hands later with AA which I naturally shoved TT into for 160BB on a low flop. Not to mention spending Saturday ending up with the idiot end of more flopped straights than I can count!

And then today, I got stacked by a maniac for most of what was left of my roll (3 way all in AK = AK << the maniac's 65 FTL!). At one point I was down to my case $43 but no way in heck I was leaving my seat three to the right of a crazy person sitting on 4 1/2 buy ins!

I slowly chipped up and restacked the maniac with QQ versus an overplayed JJ where we both had an over pair to the board. Was back up $140 at that point, but couldn't leave out of shear etiquette despite having my roll (then back to $490 or so) on the table -- and then, naturally, ran AQ into AK on an A high flop.

Maniac eventually went busto, natch. I came back for one more crush.

I ended up $200 today, but, to paraphrase President Eisenhower, that happened, but, by God, it didn't just happen.

Nobody knows.

Victoria Williams - Crazy Mary

Down a long dirt road
Past the parson's place
In the old blue car
We used to race 
A little country store with a sign tacked to its side
Said: NO L-O-I-T-E-R-I-N-G-A llowed
(Underneath that sign always congregated quite a crowd)

Not sure why this guys was berating me

But it was a nice pot.

Poker Stars, $0.50/$1 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 8 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

MP2: $106.50
CO: $128.10
BTN: $50
SB: $122.90
BB: $104.55
UTG: $123.05
Hero (UTG+1): $100
MP1: $108.50

Pre-Flop: dealt to Hero (UTG+1)
UTG calls $1, Hero raises to $4, MP1 folds, MP2 calls $4, CO calls $4, BTN folds, SB raises to $20, BB folds, UTG calls $19, Hero decides he's got pot odds and calls $16, MP2 calls $16, CO folds

Flop: ($85) (4 Players)
SB bets $102.90 and is All-In, UTG raises to $103.05 and is All-In, Hero sobs a bit, says a quick prayer and calls $80 and is All-In, MP2 folds

Turn: ($370.80) (3 Players - 1 is All-In)


River: ($370.80) (3 Players - 1 is All-In)


Results: $370.80 Pot ($3 Rake)
SB showed and LOST (-$122.40 NET)
UTG showed and WON $45.80 (-$77.10 NET)
Hero showed and WON $322 (+$222 NET)

Not a bad result. Turns out my read of SB's hand was dead on: an overpair with no spade. UTG was a mystery, but against these exact hands I needed to call 80 to win 320, which means I needed 24% equity, but I was 28% percent to win. I don't love it but I've made worse calls.

SB: GO FUYCK YOIRU ****ING SELF YOU ****ING DUMB PIECE OF ****
Oh, here we go
SB: JESUS ****ING CHRIST
But I just won a huge pot and my inner Antonio comes out
Conan776: weeeeeeeeee
SB: shut the **** up you ****ign **** licker
SB: jesus christ you ****in suck so bad

LOL. Does he even realize he put his money dead to a running full house? Does he understand that I sucked out on the other guy and not him?

Ah well, since I'm no longer stuck, and I'm a little tipsy, and the blinds are coming back around, it occurs to me to make my farewells 
Conan776: oh oh my mom is calling
Conan776: gg tho
SB: shut the **** up
SB: use moms credit card to keep reloading to when yo ugo bust you ****ing broke *** ***

Hah, hah, I think he believed me!

SB: run and hide ***got
SB: do whta youre good at
SB: sucking ***
SB: and getting lucky
SB: and then going broke and re loading
SB: ****in degen
Conan776: this all is going in my blog
SB: blog? lmao
SB: your 3 tabling pro blog?
I didn't have the heart to tell him I usually 2 table. Maybe if he didn't 20 table he wouldn't be berating the wrong guy!
SB llllllolllllllll

Eric Clapton -- I Shot the Sheriff

Cause I'm a working on a set mine

Lee Dorsey, 1966

Another sixteen hours of two-tabling 100NL this week, but not quite as much richer as last time. I definitely tilted off ~$200 at the end of a losing session early on, which isn't normally like me. I'll have to try not to do that next week.

Out of all the hands I played this week, this one is my favorite, not because I binked a 2-outer on the river, but because I feel like I figured out how to get max value when that happened given my opponent's range. Or maybe I'm being result orientated, but I still love it when a plan comes together.

Poker Stars, $0.50/$1 NL Hold'em Cash Game, 8 Players
LeggoPoker.com - Hand History Converter

BTN: $79.70
SB: $162.95
BB: $118.65
Hero (UTG): $95
UTG+1: $110.75
MP1: $46.90
MP2: $92.80
CO: $23.55

Pre-Flop: dealt to Hero (UTG)
Hero raises to $3, 4 folds, BTN calls $3, 2 folds

Hmmm. Button is a fairly fishy player, I've got him at a VPIP/PFR of 29/0 over 14 hands. If he's got a HUD he sees me as 42/17 over 12 hands so I've got some image problems. Still UTG is the new UTG, right?

Flop: ($7.50) (2 Players)

Eh, that's ugly, but I really want to win this pot. Let's see how ye olde Reverse Scandinavian Min-Raise Bluff works here...

Hero checks, BTN bets $5, Hero raises to $10, BTN calls $5

Eh, I don't like that, but I've got to follow through on the turn. I should be able to fold out everything except TPTK (i.e. AQ).

Turn: ($27.50) (2 Players)
Hero bets $16, BTN calls $16

This really sucks, he has exactly AQ. I know, I know, ranges, blah blah, but I know he's got AQ.

River: ($59.50) (2 Players)

Yes! I mean... oh no! Ugh. So I've got the best hand, but I can't decide what to bet for value now because he might somehow put me on a flush. I know he doesn't have a flush because is already on the board.

And then... I had a good idea. There's still a 25% chance that he is holding the !!

Which would mean he would know I don't have the nut flush. So if I check, he might decide there's enough of a chance that I flopped a set or rivered a week flush to turn his hand into a bluff.

Hero checks, BTN bets $50.70 and is All-In, Hero calls $50.70

Results: $160.90 Pot ($3 Rake)
BTN showed and LOST (-$79.70 NET)
Hero showed and WON $157.90 (+$78.20 NET)

Hah! That's how we do!!

Lee Dorsey - Working In The Coal Mine

'Cause I make a little money
Hauling coal by the ton
But when Saturday rolls around
I'm too tired for havin' fun

Some sessions make me want to cry

Somehow I only lost 5BI yesterday, despite these lousy situations:

*8x on a 567x9 board (c/r'd by villain who had T8)
*AA << JJ, as I called down villain who flopped quads
*I turn two pair, 50% VPIP villain leads into me when an Ace hit the river, I shouldn't even need to tell you what he had.
*Villain calls down my top set with TT on a low dry board, he rivers a Ten.
*KK << AA AIPF ~130BB deep (standard, but when it rains it pours)

Often I'll wake up the next day after a long session, and there's one hand from the previous night stuck in my craw -- rarely two, let alone five!

I might be lucky to end up break even this week. Oh well, there probably is no use in crying about it.

Godley and Creme - Cry

You don't know how to play the game
And you cheat
And you lie
You don't even know how to say good-bye
You make me wanna cry

The state of modern AI

At least Watson doesn't play poker! (yet)

Andrew Bouvé -- Would You Like To Buy a Vowel, Watson?

Happy Saint Valentine's Day

A little Irish music to hold us all over until Saint Patrick's.

My Bloody Valentine -- Soon

Wake up
Raoul
I want my money

(Oh like you understand the words? Yeah, don't go there... I let you get to me. Yeah, yeah.)

O versus O (extended interview parts I II and III)

Updating my earlier post, here is the rest of the O'Reilly/Obama interview after the live cameras stopped rolling.

Bill O'Reilly -- Extended Obama 2011 interview part 1

Bill O'Reilly -- Extended Obama 2011 interview part 2

Bill O'Reilly -- Extended Obama 2011 interview part 3

[x] $1 a hand

Kind of a good weekend so far.

In honor of which, I think it's time for me to post what I think is the greatest alternative rock anthem evah.

Funny story: Billy Corgan wrote it for a girl he met just once, and he eventually ran back into her after it came out. He asked her if she liked the song he wrote for her, but she didn't know what he was talking about. He said, you know, "Starla?" "Oh no," she replied, "My name is Darla."

The Smashing Pumpkins -- Starla

No more words
Just you and I
High
In the sky

Name something that gets passed around

A fish's chips?
Paris Hilton?
Um....

Family Feud -- Devils & Angels

Not bad results for 16 hours work

... during an otherwise quiet New England winter week. That sinking yellow EV line can't possibly be right, but I did play a hand or two at 200NL and won a flip QQ >> AKo. Maybe rivered a 4 outer 2 pair vs higher 2 pair all in on a turn. Nothing all that crazy, imo!

Let's do this again next week!

And even aside from poker, I binked one of my 3 five dollar SuperBowl Squares with the final score for half that prize pool. EZ game, imo!

The Beatles -- We All Live In a Yellow Submarine

As we live
A life of ease
Everyone of us
Has all we need
Sky of blue
And sea of green

O versus O

Obama being interviewed by O'Reilly just before Superbowl XLV.

Sorry for more political content, but I'm a sucker for this stuff. And without the third O (Olbermann) around anymore to satiate my tastes, I'm perhaps projecting my famine upon y'all.

Update: you might also enjoy Obama Said To Be 'Playing The Media Like A Fiddle'
Update #2: I've posted the extended interviews here.

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://video.msn.com/?mkt=en-us&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;brand=foxsports&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;playlist=videoByUuids:uuids:853c4fb4-42fc-4b41-a618-b7da0923bf4f&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;showPlaylist=true&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;from=IV2_en-us_foxsports_videosearch&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;fg=RAMP" target="_new" title="NFL on FOX: O&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;Reilly interviews Obama"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Video: NFL on FOX: O&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#39;Reilly interviews Obama&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Happy 100th Birthday Ronnie!

Oh, Superman, where are you now,
When everything's gone wrong somehow?

Good old Ronald Wilson "Ray-gun" Reagan would have turned 100 years old today.

Ah, the memories. In his first week in public office, he signed the largest tax increase of any governor before or since in all of American history ($6 billion in today's dollars) to balance California's budget.

Not a mistake he'd repeat as President, where he racked up record deficits, increased government spending by 25%, and America's tax burden by 20% in real terms (except for the rich, of course).

And following the economic advice of a brain-damaged former NFL quarterback (with a penchant for reactionary anti-Communist science fiction), Congressman Jack Kemp, he (re)popularized the idea of trickle-down economics (a.k.a. Reaganomics). Which is why, a quarter century later, everyone in Detroit owns a yacht. Oops... or, maybe what's really happened since then is the near total destruction of the American middle-class (@~15:00+)? Shrug: who can say?

Still, Reagan is a high demigod in the Republican Pantheon, and we all know what the new Congress would like to do in light of the outcomes of Reaganomics so far: double down!

Another 30 years of the Reagan Revolution and I'm sure it'll all sort out.

Genesis -- Land of Confusion

I remember
Long ago
.
.
when the sun was shining
.
And then the stars were bright
All through the night
And the sounds of your laughter
As I held you tight
So long ago

My uNL Superbowl squares

Via 2+2 (h/t to hockeyav). First is $1, second is the $5 pool. (I leave figuring out which are mine to the astute reader)

My first time at a casino

Was awesome. A few years before the poker boom, mind you.

I had learned basic strategy for Mohegan Sun's Blackjack game. Dealer stands soft, double any 2, late surrender.

Having very little understanding of variance, I sat down at a $25 min post game, and ran 200 to 600 in about 15 hands.

And then I got up, and made the four hour drive back home (nearest casino is where?? ... in my dreams!).

I was reminded of that tonight: I made nearly a Buy In in as many hands as that 9 hour tour so many years ago. Note that this is not really a hit and run since the guy I stacked left the table -- still, I'm calling it a night.

R.E.M. (The Clique cover) -- I am Superman

You don't really love 
that guy you make it 
with now do you?
Trust me when I say 
I know the pathway
to your heart

Pretty good for a snow day

Except that I lost 2 1/4 Buy Ins at 50NL. God, that level is a hellhole.

But, looking at just 100NL I did alright.

You can see where AA << KK @ hand ~200, but I faded a few combo draws all-in on the flop along the way to actually get back above EV.

I need to get snowed in more often!

Rob Zombie -- Dragula

Dead I am the life, dig into the skin
Knuckle crack the bone, 21 to win
Dead I am the dog, hound of hell you cry
Devil on your back, I can never die

The Mighty Deuce-Four

nypokerkid: 2 4 offniceplayuing idiot

Thanks, as always, to Poker Grump -- I'm still a believer!