Back After These Messages...

I really hate that I didn't get a chance to do an American Idol post today. I had minor surgery to have a cyst removed from my head and ended up laying on the couch most of the day with some pain and after-procedure nausea. I am feeling much better tonight and hope to get a good nights rest. I will do my best to recap with my thoughts for the week on AI sometime this weekend.

Small Stakes Poker: The People You Meet

People are strange when you're a stranger
Faces look ugly when you're alone
Women seem wicked when you're unwanted
Streets are uneven when you're down
-The Doors

This is one of my favorite lyrics ever. I am not really a Door's "fan", but I do recognize some of the more beautiful lyrics that Jim Morrison penned while hopped up on whatever herb, shroom or pill he was hopped up on. Sometimes I sit down at the local bar/restaurant to play a game of poker and the lyrics sound through my head like its the opening credits of "The Lost Boys". You meet many different types of people at the local bar poker tournament.

The "Pro":

The "pro" is the guy sitting next to you telling you what everyone has. "He has to have A-Q to call that re-raise and I know he likes that hand." Sometimes the "pro" is correct is a happy clam when he "proves" his pro status with a correct calling out of someone else's cards. The pattern I have noticed is that the "pro" doesn't make these reads while actually in a hand. If they are in a hand too long with their amazing reading skills then they play the Negreanu card and "pay it off"...just like a pro. They make all the right moves and act just like the pros they see on TV. The big question is this...if they are so good, why are they playing basically free poker in a bar in Tennessee?

The "Fun Time Guy":

This is my favorite person to sit next to. Usually not because of their poker skill, because that varies as far as one can imagine, but rather because they are having fun. One of the major things I had to learn about basically free poker (BFP going forward) is that you HAVE to have FUN. Its not about wins, losses or money...cause honestly, you ain't making any money and your wins and losses only matter in your memory. The cards have no memory and neither should you. Have fun with BFP. The Fun Time Guy will win occasionally and finish last just as often if not more. But this is the person you want to hang out with.

The "Bad Beat Boyz":

There are some people...no matter where you are playing...who want nothing more than to pee on your poker. I hate poker pee'ers. Every time there is a big hand or you show them down, they have a "one up" story that will ruin the moment for everyone at the table. They forgot this is poker that doesn't matter for much more than fun. They have a bad beat for every situation and take it way too seriously. God hates them...or so they would have you believe. They never catch cards and never win. And its always a non-win to be sitting next to them.

The "Serious Type":

They aren't pros because they know their place, however, they do think that every hand should be played by the book. I haven't figured out which book they are reading, but its got to be boring. They hate the Fun Time Guy and usually can be found near the Bad Beat Boyz talking about how they made the perfect play but some donkey did them wrong. The Serious Types are no fun unless you figure out how to get under their skin in some way. Usually dealing them a losing hand where they played it wrong does just that.

The "Home Gamer":

This can be a mixture or a copy of any of the above, but the Home Gamer is typically pretty knowledgable about the game and how things should be run. They always have a different way of playing in their mind. They play off hands that noone else will because its normal at their place to do so. They do not get why they are called donkeys by the Serious Types and Pros. It's their normal game to play hands that others don't play. And hey...."It won didn't it?!?!?"

The "Noob":

This is my favorite to watch. I hate to be in hands with the Noob and I hate to be near them because the play is erratic at best. The Noob will play "2-3" because they love Michael Jordan. And they use the same excuse as the Home Gamer..."It won didn't it?!?!?" The Noob relishes in bad play. They usually get mad about you correcting them or helping them, so they hate the Pro and the Serious Type. They are timid and will call all day. They rarely raise, but when they do they typically do not bluff. They will raise completely out of nowhere and there is no logic to the raise. It will usually be an overbet. There are also Noob Imposters...but we won't cover those. Just beware anyone who is too noob.

The "Wild Card":

This covers all other options. There is the smelly guy, the girl who is on her phone all night while holding up the game, the heavy guy who breathes too heavy and the random bar guy who decided after weeks of watching the games he would stumble over from the bar and play a little while. All makes and models of people are represented. I have played with many nationalities, homosexuals, women, men...I have sat across the table from most any type of person you can come up with. All they wanna do is play poker in whatever style they prefer.

It all comes down to style. What style are you when you sit at the table? No matter what it is, keep in mind that your game is yours. Play well and stick to your own methods. Improve upon your methods and attempt to improve your overall game. None of the strangers at the table should compromise your method and throw you off of your game. The most important thing to remember here...enjoy the strangers at your table and keep in mind that this is BFP and it SHOULD be fun for everyone in their own way.

American Idol: Week 1

I have been a huge fan of American Idol for a few years now. This show is where I release the inner critic and make myself a lot easier to get along with when it comes to discussing music. Anyone remember when I was a complete jackass about it? I do. Well American Idol has become a weekly therapy session in my ongoing fight against railing on people's musical choices. Now I get to rail on the contestants for THEIR musical choices. It's no coincidence that Constantine was voted off after doing a Nickelback song. Where is he now? See my point? :)

This year started out rough. We endured what seemed like 40 weeks of auditions. I think they added a week over the last few years and if I am being honest (credit: Simon Cowell), it sucked. I was happy we moved to the top 24. Its really hard, with the way the show is edited, to remember some of the auditions of the people in the top 24, so I am usually not as skeptical until we see them start performing. Here is my feelings and thoughts on Week 1 of the top 24 and on who I think should go home.

The Guys:

The guys were overall weak. Danny Noriega is so feminine (read gay) that he should not even perform with the guys. He destroyed an Elvis song. I pick him as Sanjaya of the year. He will annoy me for a while, I feel it. Many of the guys just picked bad songs for them. But its 60's week and its hard to do a 60's song any justice nowadays. None of these guys know what to choose or to sing or even how to sing most of the songs in the 60's. So you end up with slow, ballady crap. The highlights for me were Michael Johns, David Cook and Jason Castro (Dreads Boy). In a tough week to pick songs, these guys picked songs that they could perform and would relate. The middle of the pack was not that great. David Archuletta, who seems to be the judges pet, was average at best. We know he has a great voice, but that song was horrible for him. To hear the judges talk him up really put me off. I have to dislike him now. The rest were not even mentionable for the most part. However, here are the 2 I see going home. The main reason is that I could not even remember their names this morning to type this. That's a bad sign.

Jason was horrible and should have been shuffled off the stage before the chorus began. Luke was completely forgettable and to say he has a "Kenny Loggins" quality to his voice is insulting to fans of "Dangerzone".

The Girls:

The girls started out worse than the guys, IMHO. It was a dreadful night last night with a few good moments. It amazes me to see that this year they have allowed people with previous recording experience to go this far and those are the people who are just not performing. Kristy Lee Cook was horrid and Irish Girl (Carly Smithson) was nowhere near the praise she was given by Randy and The Drunk. Simon was spot on. Stand outs for me were Syesha Mercado and Brooke White. The others were mostly forgettable for me. I will mention this...Amanda Overmyer is getting old quick. We have heard the same voice sing different songs and to be honest it sounds like someone is taking Michael W Smith and putting his voice through a blender before spitting something out that is close to the tune of a song. I hate her voice and I hate that we have to put up with her doing song after song in that same tired Janis Joplin impersonation. Here are your bottom 2:

Joanne was my choice because I just don't think her "okay" version of a great song will translate to votes. I love that song, but it just wasn't great. Amy was horrid and should have been cut on the spot.


There are my thoughts. I will try to make picks every week based on my opinion of the goings on. I don't have a favorite yet for the entire competition, but I will about the time of the top 12. We will get to that in a couple weeks.

I thought Sanjaya's sister was hotter than this. I guess she let herself go.

Small Stakes Poker: Intro

I wanted to bring some poker content to my new site and thought of the perfect opportunity last night when I was playing at a local bar. As many of you may know, Tennessee has 'no gambling' legislation in place. It stinks, to be quite honest, that you cannot sit down at a poker table and use the money you have earned to play a game you choose to play. I understand the risks of gambling and all the gambling addicts that are brought into the mix...but we have a lottery. Not to mention I can drive 15 minutes across the Virginia border and bet the horses.

The closest casino is in Cherokee, NC and does not have live poker tables. From the descriptions I have heard of the place, it is basically a very costly video arcade. I say no thanks. It's not that I don't trust the computers, but the thing I like about poker, and one of the major reasons I don't play online that much, is that I enjoy playing live with people around me. Maybe it's the mix of characters you may find or the dynamic of actually bluffing at a pot with more than a big raise and a prayer behind your mouse that you don't get called down.

So all of this limits the play in my humble corner of the world, which after many years of thinking I needed to leave I discovered I love, to home games and to playing at "freerolls". If you ever read ernpac.com you know about the freerolls in Knoxville. They were attrocious. Free poker equals bad play. It's a rule and there is little changing it. However, in the Tri-Cities, the going rate for free poker is $6 per game. Its pretty standard. There are a few truly free games in the area, but I have found that $6 DOES make a difference...somewhat. So it qualifies in what I am calling, for the sake of this series, small stakes poker.

I can unequivocally say that compared to most of the play I encountered in the Knoxville area with the SEPC and at Bailey's, the play I have seen in the last 4-5 months has been miles better. Because you are paying $6 of your money to compete for points towards a prize payout in a larger tournament, it matters. What place you finish at your table matters. If you have a bad run, it matters. You see less of the "Well, I have to be somewhere anyway, I am all in" players. There is a difference and I have appreciated that difference.

This series will go into the intricacies of playing in very small stakes poker places like the local $6 freeroll and even online in the freeroll's there or the cheap rooms that are available to the masses. The play varies from place to place, but I think there are some steadfast things to look at. I won't speak about online as much as live, only because I hate playing online most of the time. We will take a look at the setup and dealers, the players themselves, the play and some tips on how to handle the environment and not get too awful mad when King-Eight takes you out. I hope to bring Rich in for some insight as well, since this adventure in the Tri-Cities poker scene has been shared with him and he was a varitable rookie in live small stakes poker. I hope you enjoy as we look at this from time to time in the near future.

Anyone interested in a game at my place soon? :)

Boy We Do Like Our Expensive Sandwiches...

Came across a great site today. Good for a laugh.

http://www.stuffwhitepeoplelike.org

2008 - The Year This Far...

Since opening up this site, I have touched on a few things, but haven't really given an update on where I am mentally and physically in 2008. I will give a quick update and ask that you think of me in the next couple weeks.

The beginning of the year brought about no really new challenges to start with. I have felt down for some time as far as physically and attribute that to sleeping issues. I cannot sleep on my back because I suffer from sleep paralysis. It scares me to death to have that happen, so I sleep on my side. Thats not the issue, but sleeping on my side does not stop my snoring. I believe I have sleep apnea. I have a sleep study scheduled tonight and those of you that pray, please do. If you don't, then a thought sometime tonight would be appreciated.

The other issue I had this year was that what WAS a benign cyst on my head became infected and ruptured. I spent the bulk of a week in pain with this swollen place on my head. It affected my rest and the infection affected my overall health. I have the cyst removed week after next at the general surgeon.

Because of all of this, I haven't felt the best a good portion of this year. I keep going and doing normal things and I try to feel better when my attitude allows me to get past it. So if you have seen me and I have been down, seemingly sick or just out of it, this may have been the reason.

Here is to feeling better and actually getting a good start to this year in March. A couple months late, but hopefully just as effective.

Some Monday Music....Woohoo!!!

Thanks to Rich for this one:


I really like this band:


And an old favorite from high school for good measure:

To Bonnaroo or Not to Bonnaroo?

So I came up with a puzzling question last night after seeing the headliners for Bonnaroo this year. Should I lay all my worries and negativity aside and just go? I have spent all day thinking (at least in the back of my head) about the pros and cons of such an endeavour. I even emailed Dr Pauly to see what he thought of staying offsite during the festivities and see if there were any problems doing that. As the day has gone by, here are my pros and cons.

Cons

1. Price - Roughly $250 to $280 for the tickets. Not counting hotel or any other expenses.
2. Commute - The drive there is not a problem. It's the daily drive if I stay in a hotel. I imagine it's crowded and poses issues getting to earlier concerts.
3. Hotel - Can I even get one?
4. If no hotel, camping - I was never a camper...could I do it in this situation with the constant smell of feet, BO and pot in the air?
5. The constant smell of feet, BO and pot in the air.
6. Noone, so far, really is as excited about it as I am. The fiance has a million more cons and one of the friends who asked me about it in the first place backed out because of ticket price.

Pros

1. Pearl Jam, Metallica, Kanye West, My Morning Jacket, Willie Nelson, M.I.A., Ben Folds, Against Me!, Solomon Burke, Aimee Mann, Mike Birbiglia, Death Cab for Cutie.
2. The possibility that this is a chance of a lifetime to see 2 of my favorite bands ever in one place.
3. If you count the 12 acts above and divide 250 by that, its a little over $20 per act...with about 30-40 more acts that could also impress.
4. Its a 4 day vacation...what better?
5. My brother may go and we can use his camper saving money on hotel.
6. Tickets for Pearl Jam alone run about $100-$150....now...divide the $100 left over by 11 and you have about $9 per act besides PJ.

Granted, many of my pros are me talking myself into it...but wouldn't it be a fun time? Now I just have to play the camper angle with my brother.

Has It Been 4 Years Already?

One of the things I swore I wouldn't do long ago when I started blogging was talk about politics too much. Since I want to break those old rules, I am going to do just that today. I was getting ready this morning with my normal male morning rituals and had time while sitting down for a few minutes to read part of my new Entertainment Weekly magazine. I always swing to the back page cause I read magazines backwards but also because Stephen King writes for them once a month and I was hopefuly it was his turn. I enjoy his take on the world in these little snippets he offers monthly. This month he offered this:

Stephen King: The Celeb-ing of the President 2008

I agree with King quite a bit this time in his summation that the races seem like a reality show this time around. We are all watching our TV's like most of the known world does on American Idols finale night. Here are my thoughts on the candidates I think have a chance...

McCain - I will be honest. I am so turned off by the republican party right now because of the war, rising gas prices and our completely abismal economy (I won't complain too much cause I may buy a house soon). I haven't sat down and read through his website like I should have. However, McCain "seems" like he has a good grip on how things are going. Not as good as say Ron Paul or Huckabee, but he has a decent grip on reality from what I can see...and mind you, I haven't been looking his way that often.

Romney - I just don't think he has a shot. He is still in it for now, but really? You think the right-wing, nearly fascist religious groups will support a Mormon? And if they do...how will they skirt around that issue. While I am on the subject, why does it seem that a Republican can just say "I am saved and go to so-and-so church" and Pat Robertson and the Pharisees of today follow them to the mountain hoping for the 11th commandment, but a Democrat like Barrack Obama states he is a christian and I hear "Yeah...I am sure he is...just like Bill Clinton was..." What?!?!? Didn't the Republican party give us Richard Nixon? Yet they can still do no wrong. I know it goes much deeper than that, but really...

Clinton - 2 words. Not again. I refuse to put someone from one of the 2 families we have had in this quasi-monarchy for the last 20 years or so in office. Period. I don't care for her politics, but I care less for her last name.

Obama - Here is the guy I like. I have read excerpts from his books (granted, I need to read the whole books) and I like the way he thinks. He has a good policy for healthcare and poverty. I refuse to listen to the right wing who say "healthcare is important BUT..." and continue to pump millions of dollars into a war we cannot win while our sick and poor are suffering. The 2 are very close issues and are very important. Call me a hippy too, but I think we need someone who is more mindful of the environment in office instead of 2 former (current?) employees of the oil industry who continue to rape me at the gas pump for no good reason.

Overall, I think the country is ready for a change. It is time for a change. That's how the system was designed. Checks and balances were put in place by men much smarter than I so that the greater common good of the American people is maintained. I beg you, whomever you vote for, please be mindful of their politics. Be mindful of the politics and viewpoints of the OTHER options too. Don't vote R because grandpappy did. Vote however you like, just vote and just vote smart.

Fighting Mondays

Never has a commercial captured my opinion of Monday mornings like the one in the clip below. I am sure anyone who has lucked upon my little site has seen this, but I wanted to watch it again and share it. I love it. This was me this morning.

Why I Don't Like Churches Anymore

I have always said something about churches in general..."Churches are great, except for the people." Now that's not a very christian way of thinking, I admit, but for me its a very true feeling I have. It took a while to get where I currently am with religion. For the sake of this thought, I am going to use the term religion when tied to churches. I seperate the term "christian" from churches for reasons I will share in a bit.

When I moved to Knoxville a couple years ago, I was active in my church here in Kingsport. I was working with the youth group and taught a Sunday school class. I made a move in order to advance my career and I thought it would be relatively easy to replace the church I was leaving. What happened, however, was that I visited some churches and they were not what I had imagined. I went non-denominational so I could escape the things that I didn't like about the Baptist church. What I ended up doing was essentially sitting alone in a sea of people who didn't know me, my name or care who I was. The pastors would teach/preach about missioning to people while there were people sitting in their midst who wanted to feel like they belonged and they did nothing to make that happen.

Because of that I turned quite cold towards the Sunday morning ritual. I visited churches back in Kingsport when I was in and when I was embraced, I still was cold and felt distant from the whole ordeal. I was sitting outside my body watching myself in church and shaking my head. I wasn't "getting" it. I made a list of the things I hated about every church...it would go something like this:

1. The pastor hasn't mentioned what I wanted to hear this morning. He is intelligent and thats turning me off too. I can't believe that he isn't preaching about what I want. The gall!

2. These people sure are haughty. Man. They drive their SUV's to church, sucking gas, ruining the environment and then sit there with a smug look like Jesus loves them more. Bastards.

3. The music is too old fashioned. No wait...maybe it's too contemporary. An old song with priase format!?!? What!??! I hate praise music anyway. What kind of musicless crap is this? They are playing 3 chords! Schmucks.

Now...I see how I was being when I was being that way. I was being an ass, to be quite honest. Not to say my thoughts were not true, but why was I going to church at this point anyway? My checklist of "perfect services" was not being completed, so it was constantly someone else's fault. I know and knew while I was doing it what was wrong. It was and still is me.

I have become quite hateful towards organized religion. That hate has blocked me from some true joy. I pick at its parts and at the things that have always annoyed me. I hate the offering ceremonies in churches. I think tithing is a personal worship experience and putting or not putting money in a passed around pot while others watch is inexcusable to me. I hate that most churches in my area are so negative towards things I don't have issues with. I don't like that most churches in my area are horrible to other denominations and other faiths because they disagree on such small topics. I hate, I hate, I hate until I no longer find joy in attending church under any circumstance.

I know I am being a jerk, but as I move forward I am starting to forgive myself for the things I know I am doing wrong and those churches for things they don't even know they are doing wrong. I am looking, with my fiance, at churches because I know the importance of meeting with people and worshipping as a group. I know I have to let my personal crap slide away and I have to realize on a daily basis that I need that group connection as much as I need personal worship time. I know what God has intended in these weekly rituals, so for that reason I must look for his purpose and bypass all the alterior motives the horrible sinners I go to church with (and am included with) have. Forgiving their trespasses, as well as my own, is the only way I can truly remember that I was forgiven before I did a single thing wrong.