A nice three in a row

...of poker hands: KK, AA and AA.

Didn't win too much but it was nice to see them anyway.

Happiness is ...

... going 7-0 in Week 3 NFL picks (12-6 for year) and being able to tease a co-worker who is a Redskins homer that the hapless Lions beat dude's team.

Milestone: Day 1,000

Today I ran my 1,000th consecutive day of running. W00t.

A poker player assembly at the Dome (Falcons 28, Panthers 20)

Yesterday was a good outing. In addition to Sham, we had Skidoo and Doug come out to watch the Falcons put one on the Panthers at the Georgia Dome.

We got our act together with regard to getting the grill coals hot this time -- last time Sham and I had so much trouble getting them lit, even though there are two Eagle Scouts between us!

Yesterday Sham brought the firewater and it was all good. We had the usual favorites from the DeKalb Farmers Market -- pork kielbasa, chicken bratwursts and pork hot Italian sausages. Sham even was able to make the chicken wings that we weren't able to do last week. His seasonings were pretty good, as once again I forgot to bring the buffalo wing sauce!

Across the lot a group broke out the Bojangles fried chicken and mimosas. Another SUV asked us for jumper cables- they had been playing the car radio the entire time, running it off the battery, which was dead by the time tailgating was over.

Was happy that it didn't rain too hard to keep us from being able to tailgate. The game also was good -- the seast for my second season ticket section were better than the first and it seemed like there were a lot more Falcons fans around there, so I imagine that's where we'll be watching the games for the rest of the season.

I don't think the word "poker" was mentioned the entire time, though. It was good to catch up with people I haven't seen in quite a while.

Another three-barrel

I probably still had the best hand but it's hard to think about the alternative...

Full Tilt Poker $1/$2 No Limit Hold'em $0.30 Ante - 5 players - View hand 281272

The Official DeucesCracked.com Hand History Converter



Hero (CO): $200.00

BTN: $226.20

SB: $203.10

BB: $474.40

UTG: $200.00



Pre Flop: ($4.50) Hero is CO with Q J

1 fold, Hero raises to $7, BTN calls $7, 2 folds



Flop: ($18.50) 6 4 A (2 players)

Hero bets $15, BTN calls $15



Turn: ($48.50) Q (2 players)

Hero bets $35, BTN calls $35



River: ($118.50) 5 (2 players)

Hero bets $142.70 all in, BTN requests TIME, BTN folds



Final Pot: $118.50

Hero wins $115.50

(Rake: $3.00)

New Orleans bound

I've booked my trip to New Orleans for early December. My gf has a hematology conference there and I am looking forward to spending some time at Harrah's New Orleans, even though the poker room there has never been too friendly to me.

The last time I played there was Sept. 27-28, 2006 and I chased some kind of oesd/flush draw that didn't get there. I didn't have much sparks on my first visit there May 29-31, 2005.

But this cat feels he is up to the challenge. I'm planning to also take at least a day trip to scout out the Biloxi, Miss. rooms (and get a chip from the Hard Rock Casino & Hotel Biloxi and as always play in the sister of the Bellagio, the Beau Rivage.

All around, I'm hoping for a good trip.

Pocket eights (Tony Gonzalez) gets there (Falcons 19, Dolphins 7)

It was so nice to be back at the Georgia Dome today for the Falcons game against the Miami Dolphins. I couldn't believe that football season was here and the pieces of paper that represented my season tickets would actually be put to use.

Sham and I started off the day with our usual tailgating routine -- my hibachi with chicken wings and sausages from the Dekalb Farmers Market.

Only thing was, we had trouble getting the charcoal to light early, so we only cooked the sausages -- really excellent pork kielbasa, pretty reliably delicious chicken brats and nice hot Italian sausages.

We got in to the Dome on time for the kickoff. My tix are better this year, being Upper Sideline instead of Upper End Zone, the best we could get last year.

I couldn't believe how terrible the Dolphins looked -- their quarterback got sacked four times and the Falcons defense that I questioned was making play after play, including a hit so hard on a Dolphin the football went up in the air, giving the Falcons a pick.

And it was awesome seeing No. 88 Tony Gonzalez do what the Falcons paid him to do -- get open and into the end zone in the third quarter. He juked a dude to do so, which was pretty hilarious.

Anyway, this was a long-awaited start to the fall and I'm glad it is finally here.

The Mixed Limits (Full Tilt poker)

A few days ago I settled in to play my points on Full Tilt and saw a curious abbreviation along with the others: "ML"

ML is Mixed Limit, which is used to differentiate itself from NL (no-limit), PL (pot-limit) and FL (fixed-limit) on Full Tilt.

In Mixed Limit games, they are like some home games me and Gnome have been to. Basically limit (in this case $.50/1 for a $.50/1 table) for 10 hands and NL ($.10/.25 for a $.50/1 ML table) the next 10.

Kind of curious but allowing a middle ground for people who are used to limit and want to play NL (or vice-versa).

Play smart. Run smart.

I've been thinking the last few days that a lot of the concepts that make for successful poker players also applies to running and really just wraps around the basic rule -- don't get in over your head.

1). Accept who you are. You may play fast -- or slow -- but you're not going to have a style that's exactly like someone else.

2). Listen to yourself. Poker and running both are pursuits where it pays off to listen to your instincts. If you do, you may find you're running yourself ragged, not heeding external dangers or just trying to be something you aren't.

3). Avoid exhaustion. It's super difficult to play poker well when you're tired. You're just too prone to making a mistake. Same goes for when you run. You're not at your best and you may have to do more to avoid injury.

4). Practice. If you want to be a winning poker player you're going to have to put your time in at the tables. You don't know how to play NL$1/2 by playing lower limits -- you have to play those limits. Same goes -- for a 10K you're going to have to get out there and run the distance to be successful.

5). There's someone always better than you. If you're too results oriented you're going to set yourself up for a major pitfall -- there will always be a better player than you out there, there will always be a naturally gifted runner who's faster. Stay within yourself.

6). Take a break. This applies especially to when you're in a poker downturn. It's equally good advice when you just aren't running very well. In the first case you need to recover mentally. In the latter case, you need to recover mentally and physically. Unless you are used to grinding the tables or the streets day in and day out, you won't enjoy it unless you take some time off.

So play smart and run smart. You'll find your favorite pursuits will be more enjoyable in the end.

Punk Hand of the Day

Full Tilt Poker $0.50/$1 No Limit Hold'em - 5 players - View hand 267188

The Official DeucesCracked.com Hand History Converter



BTN: $105.40

SB: $20.50

Hero (BB): $119.95

UTG: $121.60

CO: $100.00



Pre Flop: ($1.50) Hero is BB with A K

2 folds, BTN raises to $3.50, 1 fold, Hero raises to $11, BTN calls $7.50



Flop: ($22.50) 3 Q A (2 players)

Hero bets $17, BTN raises to $51, Hero raises to $108.95 all in, BTN calls $43.40 all in



Turn: ($211.30) 2 (2 players - 2 are all in)



River: ($211.30) K (2 players - 2 are all in)



Final Pot: $211.30

BTN shows A Q (two pair, Aces and Queens)

Hero shows A K (two pair, Aces and Kings)

Hero wins $208.30

(Rake: $3.00)

Quadz

Wow. Couldn't get my money in fast enough to call the all-in river bet.

Full Tilt Poker $1/$2 No Limit Hold'em - 8 players - View hand 266694

The Official DeucesCracked.com Hand History Converter



UTG+1: $155.55

MP1: $146.40

MP2: $147.50

CO: $50.00

Hero (BTN): $200.00

SB: $80.00

BB: $67.00

UTG: $200.00



Pre Flop: ($3.00) Hero is BTN with 2 4

1 fold, UTG+1 calls $2, 3 folds, Hero calls $2, 1 fold, BB checks



Flop: ($7.00) 3 2 K (3 players)

BB checks, UTG+1 checks, Hero checks



Turn: ($7.00) 2 (3 players)

BB checks, UTG+1 checks, Hero bets $4, BB calls $4, UTG+1 folds



River: ($15.00) 2 (2 players)

BB bets $61 all in, Hero calls $61



Final Pot: $137.00

Hero shows 2 4 (four of a kind, Twos)

BB shows K T (a full house, Twos full of Kings)

Hero wins $134.00

(Rake: $3.00)