Football, Bahamas, and some Biloxi Blues

I think I had left off about a quarter of the way through describing my trip to Ct. Well, Foxwoods is huge, and Mohegan Sun is beautiful. Mohegan Sun has a gorgeous poker room, and if I lived in the area I would most likely spend my poker playing time there. Foxwoods poker room is large, and has any game you want. I didn't enjoy it as much as I should have.

Overall, I lost on the trip, in a monetary manner. I felt like a big winner though after getting together with some old friends and having a fabulous time out on the town in Saratoga Springs. They even have a casino there, but alas, no poker.

We partied pretty hard drinking and carousing on Friday night. We spent Saturday recovering. My buddy, Mike, even took me for a walk across the golf course that runs near his home. It's too bad the weather had turned cold because it would have been nice to play. Next time I need to go up earlier in the fall.

Mike also took me to the Jets-Jags game that Sunday. He has season tickets and great seats on the 30 yd line. The Jaguars won, and I was all smiles again. Mike was mumbling about all that money he spends on the entertainment, but I am 100% sure he was just sore because his beloved Jets got beat by an also-ran. He gets the last laugh though as his Jets prepare for San Diego this weekend. Interesting fact, I had heard somewhere that San Diego means Whale's Vagina in Spanish.

I then drove all the way back to Jacksonville that Sunday evening. Most likely this was a bad move, in the overall scheme of things. But, I really wasn't that tired, so I just kept going. Something was pulling me home and I wasn't sure if it was good or bad.

As it turned out that something wasn't pulling me home at all. It was pulling me to an exact point in time where I could run over a breadbox shaped metal object that had fallen off the truck that was parked some ways up ahead. I could not avoid the object, and as I drove over it I was praying that my car might actually clear the object.

I at least was able to straddle object with my tires, and did not get a flat. The noise that I heard, as the underbelly of my little Honda Civic rode over this strewn piece of damned metal, was immediately depressing. It was a very loud CLUNK. Imagine hitting a large car battery left in the rode. I actually think it was a piece of the truck's breaks, and I was sure my car was ruined.

I was relieved when I pulled off the next exit, always watching my gauges, and looked under the car to find no discernible damage. The wave of relief I felt as I realized I would not be stuck calling a tow truck in the lovely state of Georgia was something akin to finding out you do, in fact, have a hotel room booked in the foreign country you just landed in. Wait, that's a later story.

So many stories. Yup. Life on the road. It's fun when you are winning, and the money is pouring in. I've been on poker trips where I have won half a year's salary in one weekend. I have been on poker trips where I have lost a months salary. Lately, everytime I go anywhere it feels like I'm going to lose.

It is a horrible feeling to be on a losing streak. Hence my lack of writing on the internet. Why write when it's much easier to just feel sorry for yourself? I am SOOOOOO sure (see the emphasis on the sarcasm?) that the attitude I just displayed is just what all successful people in the world exhibit. Yeah, and Morgan Fairchild called earlier and wants to get together this afternoon for a late lunch. She called it Lupper. How old is she now?

Back on track.

After coming home from up north I played a lot of cash game hours. I won some and lost some. Losing more than I wished. Winning less than hoped. Wondering why I keep playing this game, and living this lifestyle. Of course, I came up with no answers other than I like to be able to do what I want. That, and I wanted more out of life.

I won a trip, by pure chance, to the Atlantis Resort in the Bahamas. I was one of 12 people traveling from Jax to play in a 1,100 dollar buy-in event at some series Pokerstars was putting together.

There were a lot of name pros there. Chad Brown, Daniel Negrauneu, and Dennnis Phillips were wandering around. There were thousand of internet pros there as well.

These internet guys can play some poker. They are very aggressive, and I will admit I was off my game. To Prevail Takes Apathy went out the window as I instead tried to out muscle them.

Wrong answer, Dipshit.

I have got to work more on my tournament play, my cash game play, my golf game, and just about everything else in my life. I ended up getting it all in with pocket Q's, and the other guy had pocket K's, and I caught no saving card and was out right before the dinner break. I think I probably finished around 100th out of 393. They paid the top 40. Shit.

The Bahamas is a strange place. A 15% gratuity is placed on every bill you get. Therefore, the service is what you might call "laid back".

It's slow. Ok? Slow as molasses in January. Also, it seems that in any job there are always at least two people doing the job of one. And those two, or three, or four people are always chatting with each other and not doing a whole heck of a lot. I am sure this is the reason for everything costing so much. The resorts employ a lot of people. It's a strange form of Socialism, but at least the majority of them are working. Which is better than the whole of the local population living in squalor, which it seems they do not.

At least it doesn't look like the casino's and resorts are taking everything. I know a gallon of milk cost $8.00, and a tuna fish sandwich cost $10.00. A slice of pizza was $7.00. But, wealthy people vacation at this island, so, let em pay.

I did go to a local bar and grill. I had four Kalik beers, and some conch fritters for an appetizer. I then had Red Snapper with black beans and brown rice. The Snapper was the whole fish with plenty of spices. I was at a bar, and this fish was the ultimate pick at it, drink some beer, pick at it some more bar food. It was good. It also only cost me $24. I thought it a good deal.

It is difficult at time to understand the local even though they speak English. "Tey talk like tis, mon, almost like thee Jamaicans, mon". Except the Bahamians speak quickly. And I was always "what's that?" or "excuse me?" Oh well, it was a fine evening.

I exited the local bar and there was a man asking if I needed a taxi. Yes, sir, you read my mind. I asked him how much to go to the Nassau Palms hotel and he told me $10. Sounded like a bargain to me. It was now dark, and the streets lights left a lot of huge, dark gaps for me to navigate through if I chose to walk back.

Why was I at the Palms instead of the Atlantis? Funny you should ask.

My contact through Pokerstars would never reply to me whether or not I would have a room on the 7th of January. I was arriving a day earlier than originally planned due to the lack of flights in on the 8th. I was not worried, but my wife would have none of it. Despite some last minute scrambling through the hotel to see of I had a room, we just could not be sure. I wanted to roll with it, but my thoughtful wife booked me a room at the Palms for the first night on the island. I am glad she did because that first night was a lot of fun.

The rest of it I could take it or leave it. Actually, I take that back. I hung out for a little while with the Jim and Josh, the two managers of the poker rooms in Jacksonville. They are a couple of nice guys and they got to listen to me whine about getting knocked out of the tournament. I'm sure they enjoyed that. Note the sarcasm? Good.

After coming back from the bahamas, oh wait, one more thing. If you are traveling internationally be sure to wear shoes you can slip on and off. I must be stupid.

So, after returning home from Nassau I turned right around and drove to Biloxi. Biloxi stunk and I lost some more money. Now I'm home.

Tomorrow is the 15th. Bill paying day.

Codsey out.