Poker at the trump

Sheree, her lifelong friend and her friend's husband picked me up from Chicago's Midway airport last Friday afternoon. As I hopped into their SUV, I was a bit flustered, as I expected two people not three, the front seat was empty (the back windows were tinted), I had removed my contacts, and it had taken a full second after the honk for me to realize that I needed to abandon my post on the curb and get in the truck. I was also beating myself up a bit for not being clearer about where they could find me, and not watching both sides of the pickup island. They missed me the first time around, and if there is one thing I would love to avoid for the rest of my life, it is wasted effort.

So when they said to me, "Guess what we're doing tonight!" I struggled to focus on the question, on its possible answers, and what I would say if asked what I most wanted to do. What did Sheree want to do? My mind races sometimes, and I rarely apply the brakes. "We're going to the boat, and we'll see if we can get on some tables!!" The excitement in his voice conveyed that I should have the same, and I hope Sheree is the only one who noticed the confusion in my reply, "Awesome!"

Pasadena has its own The Boat. Well San Gabriel does. The last time I was on a table has to be sometime in college, and I am pretty sure that alcohol was involved. So my mind wandered for the next few minutes, and I realized I should have asked a followup question. Sheree told me privately, and my joy quotient skyrocketed.

We arrived at the Trump Casino riverboat on Buffington Harbor, 30 minutes outside Chicago in Gary, Indiana, at about 9:45pm. The only other time I had played casino poker was at the $1/$2 tables at Commerce, and the $2/$4 tables at Casino Morongo. I wonder now why I was not more nervous with the choice, but it was easy to graduate myself from the $0.50/$1 NL table and put my name down for $2/$5 No Limit, $50-$200 buyin. A trip to the ATM was made a bit more pleasant by my learning that the fee would be $3, not the $4 I had anticipated. The ladies left for the Wheel of Fortune slots, and we waited for our seats.

A few minutes later I was bumped from our not-yet-started table to one that had just lost a player. I posted a fee of the $5 big blind to begin playing immediately. Fold. Fold. Fold. Damn, should have waited for the button to get closer! A few minutes later some novice with a straight made on the river called allin on a board containing four to the flush. His seat was filled by my first nemesis, an older guy (50?) who had been eyeing me at the first table.

Then I was dealt KQs in late position. UTG raised to $20, four big blinds, and my nemesis called, so I was cautious as I called. The big blind called, and we saw a flop of QJ6 rainbow. The way so many hands had seen many bettors, I felt comfortable I had the best hand. My nemesis bet another $20, I panicked that he might have Jacks or better, or maybe pocket sixes. I figured him for the bully and raised it to $50 total, putting him allin, but saving half my stack in case I was re-raised. Thankfully the other two folded, and he turned up Q9, validating my novice poker analysis as moderately prescient. I was an 85% favorite to win after the flop. Now for the turn and the river.

Poker on TV is built for drama, and there is at least three, and closer to six seconds, between the turn and river cards being dealt. I was understandably disoriented as the turn and river came Bam BAM! First a 9 was dealt giving him two pair, eliciting gasps from the table as all saw my horrible beat, nearly immediately followed by louder ohhs and aahhs as the river dropped a beautiful ten, giving me a glorious King-high straight.

The poor guy bought in again for $100, but put $50 in chips in his pocket, and played with the other half. One hand later I took that from him when he went allin (for $30 after the $20 preflop) on a flop of rag-rag-rag, and I called with ATo, and was happy that his Ax missed the flop, turn and river. He lost the next $50 to another player, bought in for another $100, and I took almost half of that again when his pair of Aces lost to mine with a higher kicker, which were also part of four-to-the-flush on the flop.

By this time I had a nice table image, and it let me bluff off the only woman at the table when I raised preflop with position, then bet the flop that completely missed. I tried this again with pocket 8's on a KQx board, but was raised and I folded after a few seconds. I was mostly scared to try to read others, as I was not confident that I could simultaneously block the multitude of tells I must possess. I exercised the Phil Ivey play with strong discipline. Only play premium hands or late position. Don't limp, and almost always show strength on the flop.

But the play of which I am most proud is a fold. KJo with four or five callers of the $20 bet preflop. KQx hit the flop and I started counting how much I would win. Then two before me bet $20, and one before me raised to $50. Yikes. Had I called it would have been ugly. The turn came another King, and I would have lost my money. Those two went allin, showed pocket Queens, and King-Queen. They had flopped a set & two-pair, then each turned a full-house.

I finished with AKd, and bet into a King-high rainbow flop. There were plenty of callers preflop, and I knew I had to leave soon, so I bet $50. But I did so by holding a 20-high stack of $5 chips, and holding the top half ($50), dropping the bottom half, and by matching the two heights to make sure that I got exactly half.

Well when I play online the computer does this automatically, and the poker I watch on TV does not make the rules obvious. I did this half-matching beyond my chip stack and past my cards, near the center of the table, in the put-the-chips-you-want-to-bet-here area. On TV they stack, shuffle, and sort chips behind their cards, close to their bodies. Now the top half never left my hand, so I believe her threat was an idle one, but I needed help. The rule prevents what I guess is the opposite of a string bet (where you raise, don't announce it, and use two motions to add the chips. The advantage comes in reading disappointment or satisfaction in the call, and acting accordingly in the second part of the string bet.)

By the time the others were ready to leave, I had been playing for less than two hours, and ended up $237, after paying $14 towards the rake (and about $12 in tips). I think my cards were mostly solid, I didn't hang around on any draws, folded a solid hand when I should have, and learned a couple lessons in how to play live poker. Thank you, Donald Trump.

a little bit of Paris on the 210?

Pasadena, California made the list of The Best American Towns: "Los Angeles County's unholy trinity of smog, sprawl, and gridlock long ago earned it the stamp of America's paradise lost. But some eye-opening changes are unfolding, many of them in this revitalized urban village at the foot of the San Gabriel Mountains."

Dad found this gem in Outside magazine (outside.away.com?). I am happy that our city was chosen, and I am comfortable living here for the next couple of years. Of course I trust I will find soon a solid place to work in the vicinity, and at worst I will double my 6-12 minute commute.

When I moved here in September '95 with everything I owned packed into my little blue Blazer, I felt easy with the thought I could stay for decades, or just a couple of years. Ten years later, married, with solid friends, it is hard for me to imagine life anywhere else.

The article provided a few insights to why:
highbrow visuals at the Norton Simon Museum, Pacific Asia Museum, and Pasadena Museum of California Art; edgy performances from the Furious Theatre Company; readings at Vroman's Bookstore; or an alphabet's worth of dining options (Afghan, Brazilian, Cuban . . . ). You can surf in nearby Malibu, fly-fish in Angeles National Forest, and hoof it down the Pacific Crest Trail—all without leaving metro L.A. Within a few hours, you can climb in Joshua Tree, snowboard in the San Gabriels, or paddle the Kern River—which raged this spring with the torrential runoff of the biggest Sierra snowpack in years.

Sheree and I have our list of 16 'must-do' LA activities, and with the completion of each one, it will be hard not to replace it. The list above is a painful reminder that I need to do more to show her this city. Pasadena has 600+ restaurants, many of which I love, but few of which I have shared with her. Instead of our 16th visit to the Cheesecake Factory, maybe next time we will visit Yujean Kang's. Or Xiomara. Or J.J.'s. Or Justin's restaurant in Hollywood.

As long as there are unexperienced adventures, and no children deserving of a smarter school system, why would we leave?

Career changes

I recently learned what I had wondered for months. CMS will keep Jason, and I will be let out to greener pastures. There are less than 50 employees left after the six months of departures that followed December's workforce reduction, so they did not need to keep us both.

I had hoped that my slightly-more-senior position, and the fact I had supported all the computers, servers, networks, etc. for multiple months-long stints, even when we were at 100+ people, would give me an advantage. Maybe it is because he is so good. Maybe our new boss (mine for the next few months) preferred to take over my non-desktop support role. Maybe I could have played dirty. Maybe they get a price break with him over me. I will not dwell on why.

They are keeping me until November 4th, and I will be allowed to use the company network and phones in my job search. A half-dozen contacts are swimming through my brain, and I immediatly appreciate that I have enough time to make a value-driven decision.