Starting a Riot in Suburbia

A 3rd place finish as I snuck to the felt to play the MATH on PokerStars hoysted by hoyazo. Sweetie and I watched Heroes (a bit weird) and Studio 60 (she fell asleep midway through the episode), and I’d asked permission to play and it had been granted.

It was a Who’s Who of poker blogdom throughout the night as my starting table included Joe Speaker, Jordan, jeciimd, greenie, and Iakaris.  I was a card rack the entire night and should have done even better than third.  I took Jordan out with a set of ten’s then KK vs JJ, took out bdidde with KK vs QQ, Life’s a Grind with AJ vs 66, came over the top of greenie twice with AK then sent him packing with AQ vs QT on a Q-high flop, etc.  I got to share the felt with one of my fellow Team PokerStars bloggers, Wil Wheaton.  Wil plays for PokerStars and has adopted the sissy chop, chop, hack school of min-raising to insult you while stealing your blinds.  He made a couple of good laydowns against me but hoy ended up taking him out with 77 vs 44 (I’d laid down 55 to a raise).

I was comfortably in 2nd chip position down to four players with three to cash:  hoy strong in 1st after busting Wil, I had second, then Joe Speaker and slb109.  I made one major misstep, I believe, raising UTG with A7o making it $1310 to go with blinds at $200/400, Joe moved all-in on the button for another $2175.  I didn’t do any fancy analysis except that I’d been caught and hoped he had JJ or something.  That hand put me at $6875 in 3rd and then I dropped off $2400 to hoy over the next two hands.  I was bleeding like a stuck pig and the bubble play was in full force, with alot of treading water.  I hate to play that way but no one could kill slb off.  His AK grabbed a king against Joe’s baby pocket pair, and I went card dead for three orbits of blinds.  I finally tried to steal and overthought my CC hoy bet, ending up with $302 in chips instead of $2.  Joe called and flopped a king with AK vs. my stellar J8o steal attempt, then I caught AA on consecutive hands to build the $302 back to $3518.  You can read slb’s account here.  Where he might see I luckboxed to survive I see that because of poor play earlier I didn’t double through Hoy and get some serious chips.  He had 88 the first time I held the aces, and it could have been a dangerous hand had I had a decent stack.  slb eventually bubbled, taken out by Hoy.  slb’s probably right that I suck and am a luckbox, but we’ll leave it at that.

Three handed I was at $6818 to Joe’s $9482 and hoy’s $16,700.  I got it up to $7318 but went on a nice ten-hand tear to end it for me, blinded off after hoy’s KK was cracked by Joe’s QQ when Joe and I were even stacked.  That put me at a 3:1 chip deficit to both men, and Q7o and 53s was not going to hack into that.  Qd-8d vs. Hoy’s A9s was the final blow, but I have to look back at the baby ace hand with Joe and not calling with A3 when slb pushed for his last 975.  That and getting hit by the deck early was that, but a great time again.

Always appreciative of the nice chatter during the tourneys.  Since I work alone now for hours on end in the basement, it really is cathartic to play and chat with who at the least are relatively nice to me and at best are friends or could be.   Could be not to understate the affection I have for folks like Iak and Mook and Kat and Hoy (and even Waffles?), but once you actually meet me it could turn sour.  Didn’t happen with Pauly or Otis, who I think are great guys, but I’ve also probably turned off more folks that I’ve met either through my weird introverted behavior or by an occasional horrible donkey play that is never forgotten.  I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad experience when I met someone, so hopefully friends is more like it.

Other than that, +$287 on Party $10/20 after I busted out combined with $137 on Stars for the 3rd place plus a little HORSE and NLHE thrown in prior to the tourney, and it was a nice $414 evening.  The Party session was short and sweet, with a nice pot from the button with one limping poster.  I called with Kd-7d, past marginal in my book but just looking to hit a flop in an unraised pot.  A-K-2 was good enough for me to stay in, confronting a bettor on the flop and a different guy on the 5c turn.  66 vs. QJ was what I was expecting, so I’ll take it.  Picked up Ah-Jh on the button and raised with a bb calller, the flop came 4c-2h-Ac, so I bet and was called.  8c on the turn led to a check/raise by the bb, but I called the raise and the river 7h bet.  8h-5h no good, but I did decide on one other marginal hand on the next hand.  I got 85o in the bb, there was a limper and and a raise with a call from the sb, so I went ahead and called with this junk.  Never do but did.  288 on the flop with another 2 on the turn was perfect.  I should have bet the turn but instead waited for the check/raise.  A-Q paid me off on the river, which was probably fine by me.

In other news from Suburbia, Whole Foods opened last week in our neck of the woods.  It is absolutely tailor made for Upper Middle Class Suburbia, as there were as many SUV’s in the parking lot as probably SoCo shots this weekend at the Bash.  Two traffic cops trying to get people in and out of the parking lot on Day 3, many of Sweetie’s neighborhood buddies were there picking obscure fruits and vegis to bring home.  Our neighbor made a return trip Saturday to grab escargot, which has to be the most pretentious thing I’ve ever heard to serve your children.  Sweetie and I basically just did laps through the dessert/chocolate area, although the Little Guy loved looking at fresh fish three times his size.  Good flowers, so I grabbed two bouquets of purple mixed stems of delphinium and a few white roses and things I don’t know the name of.  As an aside, go buy flowers for your wife or significant other if you are a male.

Another beautiful morning in the ATL, and I’m chatting with Sweetie and the Little Guy as I finish this up.  It’s a good day, and I hope it will be for you.  Thanks for stopping by.