Since the big studio/office clean up, have been studying some of my materials that reference Feng Shui in addition to reading and reaffirming some of the information on sites like Zen Habits.
If you really study the information, not just read, it becomes clear how important it is to have your head straight before taking on important activities that require full attention of both sides of your brain as well as your emotional state and the amount of mental space that is available at that time.
When we sit down to play poker it is best if your full attention is on what you are doing. Most of us know the range of hands we play and what we do in certain positions and how we handle certain players. Much of that can be done by rote but to be truly creative in your play, it is important that other aspect of your current situation are free of distractions.
Say you are playing, you know you will be playing for a certain amount of time, you have the time set aside....no problem....but you are anticipating some event that will happen later, or you really know you have pressing matters that should be attended to instead of playing....these distractions are there even if you have stuffed them back as far as you can. We can only compartmentalize so much before our brain is invaded by these thoughts and feelings of unease.
When you have a losing session and are irritated by some of the actions that have taken place the first thing to do is analyze where the root of the problem is....is it the bad play by others, is it just bad luck....or is it you and not being totally focused on the task at hand.....these are important issues that must be evaluated constantly....
Creative play happens when our mind is free of distractions and our physical, mental, and emotional house is in order....studying strategy will get you so far but to take your game to a higher level....the other parts of your self come into play.
Friday, July 31, 2009
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Feng Shui and Poker......yes they are related and can co-exist
Have been in a funk poker wise for the past few weeks. Have gone to the casino a few times and was playing online some everyday. Really running bad and rarely having a winning session. I could not believe the crap people were playing, how badly I was being sucked out on and how it was obvious that all the online stuff was rigged. Then I convinced myself that in the live play, it was just bad luck and bad play by others the past few times. Then I started thinking about why I was allowing this to happen and how I could change what I was doing to counteract all the bad stuff everyone else was guilty of....the more I thought about it the more pissed off I got.....sad thing is, I was getting more and more pissed at myself....this forced me to have a long overdue talk with myself.
It became apparent that I was doing something causing all this "bad luck". First off I had to admit that I have been very distracted lately.....something was not right in my little universe. My world is multi-faceted. In my real world, I have a husband, who is extremely independent, and I am an artist, and I am working hard with my team to get the Pokerhag website up and running. So I am juggling all that and playing poker everyday.....no wonder I am distracted.
The multi-tasking is only part of the problem....I can do that. When playing online, I am usually playing one table and playing very low stakes.....but still do not have my attention focused....enough.
I started diagnosing the issues and beginning with the most basic and that is my work area......it is a pit. My art files and associated materials are mixed in with my pokerhag crap, I have lists and stickys everywhere, drowning in paperwork......all of it one big fat mess. All surfaces in the office/studio are covered and there is barely a path to the desk area. I have it configured in a U shape with the computer on the left and my art equipment on the right.....also I should add that I have the TV on just about all the time.....also, I should mention that I am ADD.
I work in a room that is about 12' x 14' and the cockpit area that I sit in most of the time is about 60" x 90". Three days ago, I made a plan and started tackling the reorganization of this area. Now I have another room called the office that is more than adequate that I could divide out the art work from the pokerhag business and I can play poker online from any room in the house but have eliminated that option for the time being.
My theory is that if all of these parts of my life can co-exist in my brain, why can't they co-exist in my physical life. This is the approach that I am going on for the present time. Whenever I have moved furniture and set up my work spaces, I have tried to keep the basic principles of Feng Shui to the best that I could and that was one of the criteria for this cleanup project. I have a lot of stuff and it was quite a challenge to get it all split out and into its proper place. I filled trash bags, put files where I can actually find them....everything has a place or it is not here anymore.
It really surprised me that it took 3 full days to get it all pulled together.....all surfaces are clear, the floor is clean, I know where every is.....am already feeling less negative. About 10 years ago, I was in a similar situation only I was not playing poker then but the symptom at that time was that my feet felt like they needed to be amputated.......was lucky enough to find a podiatrist who was also a psychic and Feng Shui practitioner. .......with a Feng Shui reading she diagnosed that if I cleaned my studio and put magnets in my shoes, that my feet would quit hurting......she turned out to be right so I have systematically arranged our living spaces to conform to those principles. As an aside, she told me a lot of other things that turned out to be correct but that story is for another day.
Guess that I have to do one of these re-evaluations from time to time and mine was way overdue. It looks like Feng Shui may have rescued me again.....hope I don't make this the ten year habit......
Monday, July 27, 2009
False Security of Banning Gambling...danger looms in every illegal game......
What politicians in Texas like Rick Perry fail to understand is the peril posed by not legalizing and regulating gaming. Safety issues and bad influences are usually top of the lists of reasons that they oppose legalizing gambling. The truth of the matter is that the banning of legalized gambling has fuel a number of very dangerous and profitable enterprises.
While there are a lot of slot machine operations around the private poker games are real common, lucrative, and dicey businesses. In Texas it is legal to have a privately held game in a home....they are legal as long as the person hosting the game is not taking a fee/rake of the money in play. People can play for any stakes legally and there are many home games attended by good friends that have been going on successfully for years.
Since the great poker boom which started in 2003, for profit home games have started springing up all over the place. I would not be surprised if there are not illegal operations going on in virtually every city or small town in the State. For a small fee on each pot played the "house" is making a lot of money. Most of the people putting on these games have sophisticated survellience equipment...camera systems that cover the whole exterior of the buildings where the games are played.
It is not uncommon to hear of police raids on these games and large amounts of cash confiscated. One was a couple of years ago in McKinney where some prominent citizens were given citations if not arrested on the spot. Every few months we in the poker world hear of these raids as they don't always make the mainstream news. One thing you do not hear so much about are home game invasions where robbers come in armed and order all the money be handed over. A few months ago a young man outside of Dallas was killed in such an armed robbery. These happen routinely but you rarely hear about them in the news since they usually don't get reported since the robbers do not usually resort to violence unless challenged. There is so much money involved that the practice of hosting the home games continues to grow. It is common for many thousands of dollars to be involved.
It seems that one of the most dangerous aspects of these games are the potential for violence and it just does not end with the players who you might say are willing participants. While some of these games are held in warehouse settings with many tables set up, many are held in apartments and residential areas. Many of these games are in homes where families with children live and you can bet that if there is a threat that a game may be invaded by armed thugs that the players in the games are more than likely armed themselves. A lot of children in that home or just in the neighborhood may be at risk.
Also at these "home" games it is common practice for alcohol to be served. This also bypasses the liquior laws of the State if the drinks are being provided for a fee. That further compromises the safety of the players and possibly families that are present.
It just does not make sense to continue this ban in Texas....at least let the voters decide...let the communities decide. The refusal of Rick Perry and other like-minded politicos to allow a vote on this is symbolic and pandering to specific groups. The bill in the legislature this term was through committee and was ready for a vote and there were enough votes to pass but Rick Perry vowed to veto the bill so it was not worth the time and effort of the supporters. There were not enough votes to override the veto.
The sad thing is that if and when the bill passed, it would still have to be voted on by residents of the Great State of Texas. What Perry is saying is that the people in this state cannot even have the chance to make the decision for themselves........just pandering plain and simple......sad for us, our education system, our low income and unemployed citizens...people losing their homes....people that like to play games and have to go elsewhere.....just politics as usual.
While there are a lot of slot machine operations around the private poker games are real common, lucrative, and dicey businesses. In Texas it is legal to have a privately held game in a home....they are legal as long as the person hosting the game is not taking a fee/rake of the money in play. People can play for any stakes legally and there are many home games attended by good friends that have been going on successfully for years.
Since the great poker boom which started in 2003, for profit home games have started springing up all over the place. I would not be surprised if there are not illegal operations going on in virtually every city or small town in the State. For a small fee on each pot played the "house" is making a lot of money. Most of the people putting on these games have sophisticated survellience equipment...camera systems that cover the whole exterior of the buildings where the games are played.
It is not uncommon to hear of police raids on these games and large amounts of cash confiscated. One was a couple of years ago in McKinney where some prominent citizens were given citations if not arrested on the spot. Every few months we in the poker world hear of these raids as they don't always make the mainstream news. One thing you do not hear so much about are home game invasions where robbers come in armed and order all the money be handed over. A few months ago a young man outside of Dallas was killed in such an armed robbery. These happen routinely but you rarely hear about them in the news since they usually don't get reported since the robbers do not usually resort to violence unless challenged. There is so much money involved that the practice of hosting the home games continues to grow. It is common for many thousands of dollars to be involved.
It seems that one of the most dangerous aspects of these games are the potential for violence and it just does not end with the players who you might say are willing participants. While some of these games are held in warehouse settings with many tables set up, many are held in apartments and residential areas. Many of these games are in homes where families with children live and you can bet that if there is a threat that a game may be invaded by armed thugs that the players in the games are more than likely armed themselves. A lot of children in that home or just in the neighborhood may be at risk.
Also at these "home" games it is common practice for alcohol to be served. This also bypasses the liquior laws of the State if the drinks are being provided for a fee. That further compromises the safety of the players and possibly families that are present.
It just does not make sense to continue this ban in Texas....at least let the voters decide...let the communities decide. The refusal of Rick Perry and other like-minded politicos to allow a vote on this is symbolic and pandering to specific groups. The bill in the legislature this term was through committee and was ready for a vote and there were enough votes to pass but Rick Perry vowed to veto the bill so it was not worth the time and effort of the supporters. There were not enough votes to override the veto.
The sad thing is that if and when the bill passed, it would still have to be voted on by residents of the Great State of Texas. What Perry is saying is that the people in this state cannot even have the chance to make the decision for themselves........just pandering plain and simple......sad for us, our education system, our low income and unemployed citizens...people losing their homes....people that like to play games and have to go elsewhere.....just politics as usual.
Texas Missing Boat On Legalized Gambling
So this weekend I went to Winstar, just north of the Dallas area right over the Oklahoma border...about a one hour drive from the Dallas Metro area....have made this trip many, many times over the years but yesterday was very eye-opening, reaffirming and downright impressive. It was extremely busy even for a Saturday and I have never seen so many cars in the parking lot and the busses full of people ready to mostly play the slots and Bingo.
As is the case on many weekends, the poker room was full with every table in the 50+ table poker room filled and waiting lists of 50 or more for the 1/2 no limit hold'em and loads of lists for many of the other games. The high stakes room was filled also. It is amazing how much money that is on these tables at one time...thousands of dollars may be up for grabs in each hand.
It is not a surprise to see the poker room so busy since the "The River", a huge $3,000,000 tournament that will be held next month (August 2009) is running satellite tournaments for the mega-satellites and the big tournament itself......it is that way every year at this time and it is common for good sized waiting lists for poker.....but the poker situation was not really the amazing part of the story.
The Winstar World Casino is huge....you almost need a ride from one end to another. The majority of the casino is filled with an enormous number of slot machines in addition to the game tables for Blackjack and other house games. In the casino world, the poker rooms are probably the least profitable of all the areas.....slots are where the real money is.
Two things that were so jaw dropping was how crowded the whole facility was...you could hardly walk around the place.....just an extremely large crowd that were there for the sole purpose of spending money on food, drink and lots of gambling.
I got to the casino about 2:30 in the afternoon and had to park in the overflow parking lot so walked through a substantial part of the parking lot and while walking started looking at license plates. On my way in, I counted two that were not from Texas.......Two Not From Texas. I left at 8:30 and made the same long walk to my car and again, I looked for empty parking places and license plates.....again, I saw Two Plates Not From Texas.
When are the people of Texas going to wake up and smell the coffee..???? Each time our State Legislature meets, every two years, bills are introduced to get a gaming bill through so that the residents of our Great State can enjoy the same privileges as those in Oklahoma and Louisiana.....but each time the bills are shot down and we have a governor that has pledged to the Christian Community that this will never pass under his watch.....he wants to run for a third full term and needs that support.
Now Texas politics is very interesting....huge amounts of money have been pumped into the effort to keep the casinos out of Texas by the Christian Right........the funny thing is that a lot of this money comes from the Indian Casino interests in Oklahoma......strange bedfellows to say the least. Also, follow the money trail to the politicians who take the campaign funds from these same groups....very interesting indeed.
Texas residents for the most part have no idea how much revenue they are losing....it is a staggering amount. Yea, Yea, Yea.....I know all those arguments from the Religious community....crime, degenerate gambling, organized crime, etc.......well folks, we already have that and we are footing the bill and getting none of the benefits. The people that engage in those behaviors just drive to Oklahoma and Louisiana to do what they do, but they live here in Texas. They don't pay their taxes here in Texas, they get their food stamps here in Texas, their kids get CHIPS here in Texas, when they need to commit a crime, they do it here in Texas.......
Now let's be clear here.....a very, very small percentage of the people enjoying the adult games in Oklahoma are responsible for any criminal or irresponsible behavior....most of us like to go play games, slots, eat/drink and just have a good time in general. The bad element is going to be there whether it is in Oklahoma, Louisiana, or Texas. I am not even mentioning the dangerous underground gaming that exists all over Texas right now...that is a whole other aspect to this subject.
The bottom line on this is that we Texans are paying for and/or supplementing the educational and operating costs for three states not just ours. That makes us mighty generous....but with budgets the way they are, can we afford it. Is it fair to our own residents? Is it fair to our children? Is it fair to our senior citizens on fixed incomes? Is it fair to the property owners?
Texas is missing out on billions of tax revenue and thousands of jobs. The State of Oklahoma rakes a fee off the top of every single dollar spent in their casinos. That is Texas money. The range of jobs we could have in our State touches all levels from custodial workers, food workers, office jobs, security and all the way up to upper management....we are talking about good jobs.
So to deal with the element of bad behavior brought on by gambling (which we already have) the State would have the revenue to add social service programs, education for our kids, and tax relief for everyone. There would be money for more health care, better roads, and adequate law enforcement. We are letting our neighbor states create the perceived problems associated with gambling and sending them home for us to deal with the associated costs.
Yes, politics makes for strange bedfellows....while some in the Religious community want to keep us pure....keep to their standards, just the opposite is happening...they take the money from the gaming interests to keep it away from here so in effect, they are already supporting the industry in a back door way. Why not be in control? Nothing is being stopped.....people are still able to gamble legally, just not in our own State....we are sending our kids money out of state so that we can uphold a principal and by doing so has opened the door to all around us to swoop in and capitalize on our failure.
I challenge anyone opposed to allowing gaming in the State of Texas to drive to Winstar or any of the other casinos in surrounding states on a Saturday, look at the parking lot, they go inside and mentally calculate the number of jobs and tax dollars that could be ours and to reasonably judge how much of humanity we are really saving. Do we want to continue to be a nanny state and keep our head in the sand.....just take an honest and objective view and the answer is there.
As is the case on many weekends, the poker room was full with every table in the 50+ table poker room filled and waiting lists of 50 or more for the 1/2 no limit hold'em and loads of lists for many of the other games. The high stakes room was filled also. It is amazing how much money that is on these tables at one time...thousands of dollars may be up for grabs in each hand.
It is not a surprise to see the poker room so busy since the "The River", a huge $3,000,000 tournament that will be held next month (August 2009) is running satellite tournaments for the mega-satellites and the big tournament itself......it is that way every year at this time and it is common for good sized waiting lists for poker.....but the poker situation was not really the amazing part of the story.
The Winstar World Casino is huge....you almost need a ride from one end to another. The majority of the casino is filled with an enormous number of slot machines in addition to the game tables for Blackjack and other house games. In the casino world, the poker rooms are probably the least profitable of all the areas.....slots are where the real money is.
Two things that were so jaw dropping was how crowded the whole facility was...you could hardly walk around the place.....just an extremely large crowd that were there for the sole purpose of spending money on food, drink and lots of gambling.
I got to the casino about 2:30 in the afternoon and had to park in the overflow parking lot so walked through a substantial part of the parking lot and while walking started looking at license plates. On my way in, I counted two that were not from Texas.......Two Not From Texas. I left at 8:30 and made the same long walk to my car and again, I looked for empty parking places and license plates.....again, I saw Two Plates Not From Texas.
When are the people of Texas going to wake up and smell the coffee..???? Each time our State Legislature meets, every two years, bills are introduced to get a gaming bill through so that the residents of our Great State can enjoy the same privileges as those in Oklahoma and Louisiana.....but each time the bills are shot down and we have a governor that has pledged to the Christian Community that this will never pass under his watch.....he wants to run for a third full term and needs that support.
Now Texas politics is very interesting....huge amounts of money have been pumped into the effort to keep the casinos out of Texas by the Christian Right........the funny thing is that a lot of this money comes from the Indian Casino interests in Oklahoma......strange bedfellows to say the least. Also, follow the money trail to the politicians who take the campaign funds from these same groups....very interesting indeed.
Texas residents for the most part have no idea how much revenue they are losing....it is a staggering amount. Yea, Yea, Yea.....I know all those arguments from the Religious community....crime, degenerate gambling, organized crime, etc.......well folks, we already have that and we are footing the bill and getting none of the benefits. The people that engage in those behaviors just drive to Oklahoma and Louisiana to do what they do, but they live here in Texas. They don't pay their taxes here in Texas, they get their food stamps here in Texas, their kids get CHIPS here in Texas, when they need to commit a crime, they do it here in Texas.......
Now let's be clear here.....a very, very small percentage of the people enjoying the adult games in Oklahoma are responsible for any criminal or irresponsible behavior....most of us like to go play games, slots, eat/drink and just have a good time in general. The bad element is going to be there whether it is in Oklahoma, Louisiana, or Texas. I am not even mentioning the dangerous underground gaming that exists all over Texas right now...that is a whole other aspect to this subject.
The bottom line on this is that we Texans are paying for and/or supplementing the educational and operating costs for three states not just ours. That makes us mighty generous....but with budgets the way they are, can we afford it. Is it fair to our own residents? Is it fair to our children? Is it fair to our senior citizens on fixed incomes? Is it fair to the property owners?
Texas is missing out on billions of tax revenue and thousands of jobs. The State of Oklahoma rakes a fee off the top of every single dollar spent in their casinos. That is Texas money. The range of jobs we could have in our State touches all levels from custodial workers, food workers, office jobs, security and all the way up to upper management....we are talking about good jobs.
So to deal with the element of bad behavior brought on by gambling (which we already have) the State would have the revenue to add social service programs, education for our kids, and tax relief for everyone. There would be money for more health care, better roads, and adequate law enforcement. We are letting our neighbor states create the perceived problems associated with gambling and sending them home for us to deal with the associated costs.
Yes, politics makes for strange bedfellows....while some in the Religious community want to keep us pure....keep to their standards, just the opposite is happening...they take the money from the gaming interests to keep it away from here so in effect, they are already supporting the industry in a back door way. Why not be in control? Nothing is being stopped.....people are still able to gamble legally, just not in our own State....we are sending our kids money out of state so that we can uphold a principal and by doing so has opened the door to all around us to swoop in and capitalize on our failure.
I challenge anyone opposed to allowing gaming in the State of Texas to drive to Winstar or any of the other casinos in surrounding states on a Saturday, look at the parking lot, they go inside and mentally calculate the number of jobs and tax dollars that could be ours and to reasonably judge how much of humanity we are really saving. Do we want to continue to be a nanny state and keep our head in the sand.....just take an honest and objective view and the answer is there.
Sunday, July 19, 2009
All Lines Have been Erased........
If the WSOP events this year have showed nothing else, the lines between the live and online players have all but disappeared. The big argument has raged on the forums for years about who the better players were...now we see little difference between the two.
A few short years ago, the online players slipped out from their comfy homes and ventured into the casinos to play some of the big money tournaments and made a big splash. By the time many of them could even play in the WSOP they had already been playing for big money online and reaping big money results. Many of the live players, mostly older, were not playing online or were just tipping their toes into those waters......fast forward four or five years and now we see the formerly live only players being competitive online and the online guys playing more and more live and having to fight harder than they did early on.
While the age and style of play of the "old guys" was being trashed, the really good ones have been paying attention and have learned new trick from the youngsters and are giving them a run for their money.....literally. This year during the WSOP, Bobby's Room has been buzzing and the high stakes games have been juicy. The Internet kids have brought their money and they seem to be enjoying the live play action more and more. Many of this kids have been playing each other for years just like the live players were playing each other for year but face to face adds a new dimension for them as well...then they mesh each group with the other and now you got some games.......
See......you can teach an old dog new tricks.......and just remember who wrote those books you all cut your teeth on and just remember the old adage....the cream always rises to the top.......same in poker...players will go where the money and great competition is......great players adapt.......and these lines being blurred if not erased altogether makes the poker world more interesting every day.
A few short years ago, the online players slipped out from their comfy homes and ventured into the casinos to play some of the big money tournaments and made a big splash. By the time many of them could even play in the WSOP they had already been playing for big money online and reaping big money results. Many of the live players, mostly older, were not playing online or were just tipping their toes into those waters......fast forward four or five years and now we see the formerly live only players being competitive online and the online guys playing more and more live and having to fight harder than they did early on.
While the age and style of play of the "old guys" was being trashed, the really good ones have been paying attention and have learned new trick from the youngsters and are giving them a run for their money.....literally. This year during the WSOP, Bobby's Room has been buzzing and the high stakes games have been juicy. The Internet kids have brought their money and they seem to be enjoying the live play action more and more. Many of this kids have been playing each other for years just like the live players were playing each other for year but face to face adds a new dimension for them as well...then they mesh each group with the other and now you got some games.......
See......you can teach an old dog new tricks.......and just remember who wrote those books you all cut your teeth on and just remember the old adage....the cream always rises to the top.......same in poker...players will go where the money and great competition is......great players adapt.......and these lines being blurred if not erased altogether makes the poker world more interesting every day.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Withdrawal Started Early............
Already bummed because it was the last broadcast of Bluff/ESPN360 for the Internet feeds of final tables at this year's WSOP....imagine my dismay when, due to technical issues and I suspect the long HORSE that morning, the plug was pulled on the last broadcast......really cold turkey....what will I do.....well, nothing.....it actually was not so bad.
Started remembering what I was doing six weeks ago and remembered that I had another life that was not some wannabe poker player sweating as many events as possible in the World Series of Poker.....
The Hag has made peace with the end of a great month+ of fun and has already made her selections for the fantasy league in the Main Event and will be keeping the laptop close by to check Pokernews.com as often as possible for updates on her favs.
As always......the Hag always says that next year she will be there and is very serious about it this time....as she is every year.....but really.....next year will be hers to be there........it is at the top of her bucket list......dreams can come true.......
Started remembering what I was doing six weeks ago and remembered that I had another life that was not some wannabe poker player sweating as many events as possible in the World Series of Poker.....
The Hag has made peace with the end of a great month+ of fun and has already made her selections for the fantasy league in the Main Event and will be keeping the laptop close by to check Pokernews.com as often as possible for updates on her favs.
As always......the Hag always says that next year she will be there and is very serious about it this time....as she is every year.....but really.....next year will be hers to be there........it is at the top of her bucket list......dreams can come true.......
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
WSOP Withdrawal
The last few events are taking place before the Main Events starts on Friday....the coverage this year on the Internet has been wonderful.....now, I am still pissed off that many of the cable companies in the US including Time Warner do not carry ESPN360so a portion of the American fans/players have been excluded....now we all know that someone will find a way around that but we should not have to do that....even with that little glitch....the coverage has been a real bonus with 24 final tables being live streamed.
My problem is that with the last final table this evening.....for a long time..I foresee a withdrawal problem looming. Have been staying up way too late and last night could not keep my eyes open when down to four but then when I got up, it was heads up for the HORSE event and got to see the last of it.
Tonight will be bittersweet....I have loved seeing the FTs and seeing the hole cards was not even an issue. To me was very interesting to guess and learn the ins and outs of many of the games......so much to take in and who cares that you are watching slow action for 10-12 hours at a time....
Will see how the next few days go.....of course will be tuned in to
My problem is that with the last final table this evening.....for a long time..I foresee a withdrawal problem looming. Have been staying up way too late and last night could not keep my eyes open when down to four but then when I got up, it was heads up for the HORSE event and got to see the last of it.
Tonight will be bittersweet....I have loved seeing the FTs and seeing the hole cards was not even an issue. To me was very interesting to guess and learn the ins and outs of many of the games......so much to take in and who cares that you are watching slow action for 10-12 hours at a time....
Will see how the next few days go.....of course will be tuned in to
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