August 2007

2 August 2007

A whole lot of driving, no playing. Stopped just before Biloxi at a hotel ... what a mistake. See, I figured that I was only spending one night, arriving late (around midnight) so I wouldn't have time to play somewhere to get the poker room rate. Instead, I booked in advance (to get the discounted internet rate, which, incidentally, is more than double what I'll be paying per night to stay in Tunica ... man, I love Tunica) at a local hotel. I have never smelled anything so foul--I think the building must've sustained water damage in the hurricane & wasn't adequately repaired. I don't know how the hotel staff can work with that odor everywhere.

3 August 2007

I pretty much only play at the Beau when I'm in town ... except this time. Biloxi has several poker rooms & I've only played in two of them (IP in addition to the Beau) so I figured I should write up some of the others for my readers. First, I hit Boomtown and sat at a low spread limit table where almost everybody was over the age of 60. They were great. Most all of them knew each other. The guy sitting on my left kept making a side bet ($1) with the guy across from me as to which of the two of them would lose the hand (or fold before the other)--it was the cutest thing to watch those two! Anyway, pretty nice atmosphere.

After Boomtown, I went to the Isle of Capri and had lunch at the food court. Shrimp Po' Boy. One of my favorites. Whoever thought of putting fried shrimp on a high calorie, overly processed, white bread hoagie roll was a bloody nutritional genius ... but yes, ladies and gents, I ate every bite of it (even though it was only average for a shrimp po' boy). Hey, it had tomato on it--that counts for something, right? After lunch, I hit the poker room for a little bit of 1-2 no limit. Very nice ... tripled my money in an hour and a half and left. Loved the staff in that room ... one of the dealers even tickled my foot. That's a good sign--I love it when the dealers play with me (as long as it's harmless fun). It means I've found a nice atmosphere. I'd never even stepped in that casino before, but I like it. I might even consider booking a room there. Maybe for the tournament at the Beau at the end of the month--I called to make my reservations before I left town on this trip and found they were booked the first weekend (but I'm there for the second weekend which includes the ladies' tourney). Hmmm ... we'll see.

Left the Isle, went to the Beau for some shopping (thinking the entire time that I couldn't believe I hadn't played there), picked up a Starbuck's at the new Hard Rock (and took a peak at their poker room), and hit the road. Three hours later, I pulled over in Vicksburg for the night ... no, I'm not hitting the casinos here. I'm a girl on a mission (that mission being, of course, to make it to Tulsa by early evening tomorrow). So I stayed at a cheap hotel (when did $70 a night become cheap???? and no internet access, so I can't post this 'til tomorrow) and will take off driving first thing in the morning.

4 August 2007

I HATE YOU, POKERPAGES!!! I had in my mind that lowball tournament in West Siloam Springs was tonight, but before I left town two days ago, I double checked it on PokerPages. They had it listed for tomorrow, so I took my time getting here ... only to find that it was tonight and I missed it. ARGH!! Recently, PokerPages has been dropping the ball on things ... and they are the site I like best. But the Orleans Open didn't even show up on their tournament listings until right before the tournament started.

So, I checked into the hotel at Catoosa and went downstairs to play a satellite to get into the ladies' event tomorrow. I only was able to play one (which I chopped) before they stopped having enough interest ... so I'm stuck paying part of my entry. Played a little 1-2 no limit and decided I was way too tired so ... time for bed.

5 August 2007

Man, did that suck. First of all, only 63 ladies played. As disappointing as that turnout is, I actually thought that might give me an advantage because I can usually best at least 100 to 150 players in every tournament I play. Yeah, I went out 26th. Why can't I place in a tournament??? Geez, this is frustrating. This time, I know I made a few mistakes. I thought I was being smart avoiding a couple of races with small pocket pairs, but I guess I should've raced. Oh, well.

I was going to hit the 1-2 again because they only run one table of 2-5 that doesn't stay completely full. But, the sweetest dealer here was nice enough to tell me that the 2-5 here is a good game with skilled players (after he told me he had been rooting for me to win the tournament J ... man, I love dealers--why can't everyone be that nice?). Thank you, sweetheart, for that tip. I got back all that I spent here on the tournament plus a little extra--not much extra, 'cause I quit early. I have a long drive ahead of me tomorrow to get to Tunica. Plus, I want to see a little of Tulsa and Little Rock, if I have time. Tulsa was definitely a good time, though. I might have to head back here again.

6 August 2007

The drive to Tunica ... very pleasant. I got away late, though, so I didn't see much of Tulsa (just a drive by) and completely skipped Little Rock altogether. I checked into my hotel (a little disappointing ... read the review of the Grand) and headed over to the Gold Strike thinking I'd get in a few hours of play. I got put into a four handed "must move" 1-2 no limit game that broke after 15 minutes because the other three players were given seats in a game. How much does this suck? I headed over to the Horseshoe.

I had decided not to play in a serious game on a day that I traveled just because I might be a little tired and not have the best judgment. But I went ahead and entered the 2-5 game anyway. I played 1-3 no limit while I waited for a seat. I only played 2-5 no limit long enough to lose about $150. I was happy, though, to see the best player in Tunica still at the game. I just love this guy, though I'm not sure if he likes me hanging around; I always buy in short, and I know guys like him want to see large cash on the table. But I still think he's an incredibly nice guy and a fantastic player. I'm not sure if he'd appreciate me spotlighting him on the web so I won't do it. But if you're ever playing 2-5 in Tunica (at the Horseshoe except, possibly, at tournament time) and you run across a guy who can completely run over the table, knows when he's beat, and always puts himself in good position to sack people ... tell him PokerMouse said "You Rock". Well, don't actually 'cause he'd have no idea what you're talking about ...

On the agenda for tomorrow? Sleeping in.

7 August 2007

Got over to the Horseshoe about 4 p.m. and piddled with 4-8 limit until I could get into the 2-5 game. Got there and lost. Not a good day.

8 August 2007

Day 2 of getting few hands, not making a draw, and being drawn out on. I played a few hands badly to boot. It sucked and I lost. The game was fun, though--all eleven hours of it. Not only did I have the best player in Tunica at my table, but I also had this gorgeous sweet dealer from the Gold Strike. And I learned what a fluffer is. What more could a girl ask for?

I did "play aces right" for the first time today. I limped from early hoping someone would raise from late, which happened. So I was able to get it all in pre-flop. I think that might've been the only hand I won all night. OK, a bit of an exaggeration. I couldn't play eleven hours on my buy-in without winning a few small hands.

So what about tomorrow? I don't know. I'm on a wicked bad run of cards. Or maybe I'm just playing badly. I am playing way too conservatively. I may pass on the 2-5 and opt for 1-3 instead. Or perhaps I'll play limit for a little while. We'll see.

9 August 2007

My 11 hour game yesterday lasted until 4 a.m. (when I finally got broke and left) so it was about 7:30 p.m. before I left the hotel for the day. I had breakfast at Subway and headed down to the park to watch the sun set into the Mississippi. Disappointingly, the sky was not a glow with colors, but it was a very pretty scene nonetheless. Then to the Horseshoe, where the 2-5 game had already broken for the day (I assume because their daily tournament was starting). So I played 1-3 no limit. Within the first 10 minutes, I was down 300 when my pocket aces ran into a set. Never recovered that, in part because the game was dying. So I came back to the hotel and decided to get some work done. Of course, it's almost 4 a.m. so I should go to bed soon but ...

10 August 2007

Words cannot explain how bad today sucked. It didn't just suck a little ... it sucked a lot. Actually, it was one of the most incredible sucks ever. So here's how it went down:

Decided to have an early dinner in Memphis (as breakfast, of course, 'cause I didn't leave the hotel room 'til 3 p.m.) but thought that I should check out some of the local rooms first. I just revisited ones I had been to before to see how the action was going. Then I stopped at the grocery store to get a water on my way to Memphis when the guy hands me a fifty cent piece as change for my purchase. Now I love those, so I took that as a good sign that I should be hitting the poker table instead. So I skipped Memphis, went back to the Veranda, got my wallet, and headed over to the Horseshoe. Got into the 1-3 (lost a little) for about 20 minutes and then transferred to the 2-5 main game. Immediately my chip stack rose. I had, at one point, half the money I've lost over the past two days back. Then I hovered. The game was totally prime, except one old man who outplayed me a few times. Then, in the course of two hours, I lost everything. Not just the day's profit ... I lost everything I had in the game. It couldn't have been worse. Got my set beat. Got outdrawn. Had my full house drawn out by another full house on the river. Couldn't pull my draws. Everything went wrong. So, thanks for the advice, Mr. Caro, to stay in the game as long as it is good. That advice cost me a whole lot today.. mostly in terms of my temperament. This just confirms I'm on a losing streak. I did make a few too many bluffs and semi-bluffs that didn't work out. I should've toned that down a bit. But other than that, I was totally playing an "A" game. OK, I guess maybe that'd bring it down to a "B" game. But, all the same, I totally should've come out ahead.

At this point, I can't wait to leave Tunica and hit New York. A change of environment'll do me good. Not only that, but I have two full days of driving that'll keep me from losing anything at poker (at least until I get to New York). So tomorrow will be my last day in town. I have no idea what I'm going to play. What do you do when you're running like this?

Right now I'm soaking my misery in a brownie sundae at the Atrium (Gold Strike). Man, I love those things. If you ever see a girl wolfing down a brownie sundae in the Atrium while typing on her computer, come on over and remind her of what a sucky poker player she is. God, today sucked. I really just can't believe that happened.

Unbelievable ... they even ruined my sundae. They gave me cinnamon ice cream instead of vanilla--how gross is that? Could today get any worse??? I SO DESERVE A GOOD SUNDAE!!! What's left to happen to make this day worse? Someone's going to tell me Christmas has been cancelled and I have cancer? AAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

11 August 2007

Got to the Horseshoe and signed up for the no limit. I love Janice. She's always working when I come in and this trip she immediately said "Hi, Mouse" and wrote my name down for 2-5 no limit before I had a chance to say anything. I haven't been here since January, so I really have no idea how she remembered me (back in January, she didn't immediately remember me from previous trips) and remembered what game I wanted. When I first came in this trip and she wrote me down for 2-5, I told her to put me down for 1-3 while I was waiting. Now, every day I've come in this trip, she's immediately put me on the list for both games right after saying "Hi, Mouse". This is just one more reason why Tunica in general, but particularly the Horseshoe, feels like home. I hope the casinos realize how valuable employees like that are.

Well, right after I signed up for no limit today, Janice called open seating on 10-20 limit Hold'em. I don't have much patience, so I took the seat. Only play time I've come out ahead in Tunica this trip. Unfortunately, I only won back about a fifth of what I've lost the previous five days. Is that it? I've only been here six days? If I weren't losing so badly, I'd want to stay. I love this place. And I love the dealers here. Well, some of them, anyway. OK, most of them. Both Davids working at the Horseshoe this time were particularly cute because they toyed with me some. Thy is just a nice guy. Really nice. I love the dealers here. You guys rock.

12 August 2007

Took advantage of my last free meal for the trip by eating brunch at the Horseshoe then got on the road. Last night, I had a fun time talking with the gentleman on my right in the 10-20 game. When I told him I was headed to New York, he suggested I stop at Caesar's Indiana along the way so I took his advice. He said the games here were pretty good, which they may be, but I've discovered they're not good on a Sunday night. Lost one buy-in playing 1-2 no limit because I played badly. There goes everything I won in Tunica. I didn't reenter the game because it wasn't good playing conditions plus they do a time charge. I played a little 4-8 but then the game broke so I came upstairs. Too bad I won't have more opportunity to see what the play is like around here. I'll need to head out early in the morning because it'll be a long drive to New York.

I had a late dinner at Legends. Of course, the only reason I ate there was because I saw the brownie sundae on the desert list. Now bear in mind that at brunch this morning I ate about three deserts. But, yet, I ordered the brownie sundae. Now, this is a desert meant to be split among at least five people ... it's served in a 48 oz. martini glass. Hmmm ... and there I was sitting at a table by myself with a desert as large as my head. Yum. It could have been sweeter, though. You can read my review.

13 August 2007

That is a long-ass drive. I just got to Turning Stone. There is a lot of construction on the highway, but it is a nice drive. Lake Erie was pretty ... well, at least what I saw of it off interstate 90. I thought about going to see Niagra Falls since I drove through Buffalo, but time really got away from me. I had to stop at a mall in Buffalo to buy something to wear tomorrow. Get this, I checked out of the Grand in Tunica and then went to do my laundry over at the RV park & they refused to let me because I was no longer a hotel guest (even though I had been there for about a week). I was so pissed. So all my clothes are dirty. I'll do laundry tomorrow.

But I'll tell you ... New Yorkers are rude. Actually the two young men I dealt with at Target and at Starbucks were extremely nice. But the sales girls in the malls ... wow. I wonder if they know how badly their attitude comes off. I don't think they meant to be rude, but they were.

OK, went downstairs and played some 2-4 Hold'em because when I called to make my reservation, they were a little rude about making sure I understood I had to play daily to get the poker room rate. I'm tired from driving so I wanted to adhere to my rule of not playing in a serious game on a day that I travel/am tired. The 2-4 seat came open before the 4-8 Omaha, so I took it. What a game ... very straight forward. Nobody raises on a semi-bluff. Everyone starts raising when they hit 2 pair or better (even if that's on the flop). Wow. One of my opponents raised my flop bet because he had flopped a boat. This is the first time I've sat in game that low limit and seen such straight forward play. Usually, I see people betting and calling like monkeys. Anyway, as I'm sitting there watching the action I notice that all the dealers are being inconsistent in the way they rake the pot. So I finally asked one what the policy was ... you got to read about it in the room review. I couldn't believe it.

14 August 2007

This is just unreal ... another craptacular day of no limit. I made one bad play early on for $300 and I think that may have influenced my play later (negatively). I called off the money on AKs when my King paired and the other guy slow played a set on me. I just read him wrong and didn't think he had the set. Then this kid sits down next to me and takes off one of his sandals. Oh, my god. Now, I play barefoot often ... but never when my feet are reeking. I was gasping for air and gagging. Oh, people, have some pride. One more reason to leave the game. After a huge loss, I decided to play 4-8 Omaha Hi/Lo for a bit. How do you manage to play that game for 2 hours and not even split a pot? Answer: you play like me.

One thing I noticed today is that all the boys here appear to be about 15 years old. And there's a lot of them. I guess these are the guys that can't afford to make it out to L.A. I just didn't have a good time last year in L.A. (I left early because I didn't like where I was staying) so decided to avoid it this year. I didn't think this tournament venue would suck as bad as it does. It's a shame, too, because the hotel is actually nice. I'm going to play some low limit tomorrow, but I may end up leaving here early.

15 August 2007

Alright, I figured out why everyone here looks to be 15 ... they are. Seriously, I was playing today with a guy who said he was 19. I hate playing with young guys. It gives me no advantage. I need guys my own age or older. Most of them like me and I usually end up having a much better time. When I'm in a good mood, I play better.

I finally had a friendly dealer here today ... a girl. Go figure. Usually I find the male dealers to be much sweeter than the female dealers. But the only sweet dealer I've run into here was a girl. In fact, as long as I'm on the topic, the only supervisor I've met here who was sweet and helpful was a female (I mentioned her in the room review).

I stuck to 4-8 limit Hold'em today. Won $130 before dinner and another $75 after dinner. I'd've kept playing but the table broke (it was the only 4-8 table). I was playing really well today ... should've made about $300 more but got unlucky as hell on one hand: two callers limp and I look down in middle position to find two black tens. I raise to 8 and two people cold call behind me. Both limpers and the big blind call. Flop comes 10-4-6. I bet out, the guy behind me raises, two players cold call and I reraise. We cap it. The next card is a blank and we cap it again. The last card is a 6, pairing the board & giving me top full. I bet, the guy next to me raises, I reraise, and he reraises. I pay it off, thinking there's no way he caught a two-outer. He turns over four of a kind. That was about a $300 pot. How often does a pot get that large in a 4-8 game? I couldn't believe he caught that miracle card and I paid it off. I thought he was on a set ... I just didn't think it was the sixes when that fourth one came off.

It was nice to have a win today, even if it was a little one. I'm in the hole and that makes you feel bad and play bad. I'm going to stick around here tomorrow, but then I think I'll take off on Friday. Rumor is that Foxwoods has a 10-20 limit game that runs daily (they can't get one together here, even with the large tournament crowd). I'm taking myself off no limit for a while ... except for, possibly, the 1-2. Whatever's going on with me, I've lost my step and I'm playing no limit like a sissy. I'm letting people run over me when I shouldn't & I'm taking stands when I shouldn't. I've gotta get my groove back, because playing no limit that way is just costly.

16 August 2007

I stuck to limit today. It didn't help. I got drawn out on all of my good hands. I flopped a full house and a guy drew out a straight flush on me. Next time something like that happens, I think I'm going to take it as a bad sign and scale down the limits on my game. In the 15-30 limit game I played, I flopped the nut straight only to have someone draw out a full house on me. That's the second time that has happened for a big pot. I did play one hand horribly today. On the flop, I have 3 outs to an inside straight facing about 10 to 1 immediate odds (and about 13 to 1 implied odds, if I had thought about it). I folded, because I'm stupid. Of course, one of my three outs hit on the turn and the hand would've held up. I'm retarded. I don't know what made me fold. Yeah, I do ... the guy next to me was rushing me to make a decision and I didn't think it through correctly. I'd have been soaked, of course, if a flush card had hit ... but I still think it would've been right to play for it.

17 August 2007

Got up early today ... well, 10 a.m. is early for me ... and drove back to Buffalo to see Niagra Falls. If you haven't been there, it is much prettier from the Canadian side, just so you know. Had lunch at the Top of the Falls Restaurant in New York State Park and admired the view of the water. Next time, I'd go into Canada and eat at the casino that looks kind of like the space needle because it has a revolving restaurant at the top. After lunch, I stopped briefly by the Seneca Casino, just to see what it looked like ... I'm not writing a review of it yet because I really didn't spend much time there. Then I crossed the border to check out Fallsview Casino. I didn't play there, but I got enough information to write a review of it. Took some more pictures of the falls and then my camera battery died before I could take a picture of the giant Frankenstein eating a whopper above Burger King (and all the other cool buildings they have in that tourist area of Niagra Falls, ON).

I must admit that I was disappointed by the lack of French signs and the abundance of American restaurants (T.G.I. Fridays, Tony Romas, Hard Rock, Planet Hollywood, Denny's, etc.). Except for being harassed by the border guards, I didn't feel at all as though I had ventured outside of the U.S. OK, the Canadian border guy was cute, eh. He had the accent, followed the script, didn't bother me, eh. The American border guard, though ... geez, I'm surprised he didn't drop tackle me. He asked me the same questions repeatedly: what are you doing up here, where are you staying, when did you get here, where are you headed now, is that where you are staying, who do you know there, why are you somewhere without your family ... good christ. Meanwhile, all the other cars are just zooming through the border after a 2 second stop ... but me, I get the Spanish Inquisition. Or American Inquisition. Then he makes me pop my trunk and goes burrowing through all my luggage. Now, bear in mind that I left the suitcases and clothes I'm currently using in my hotel room. So what do I have in my trunk? One duffle filled with clean clothes (from when I did my laundry) for use later and a second duffle filled with ... can you guess? ... dirty undies. That's right, ladies & gents ,... the border patrol guy goes pawing through my duffle full of worn panties and bras. You might think I'd be embarrassed, but I was much too busy laughing my ass off.

Physically, I don't even remotely look like I could be from the middle east. Plus, I'm a GIRL traveling ALONE. If I were a guy or if I were with other people maybe ... but why the hell are they stopping me? They do this at the airport, too. You remember in high school how you'd stick that sign on someone's back that says "KICK ME"? Sometimes I wonder if someone stuck a sign on my back saying "TERRORIST" or "NUCLEAR WARHEAD INSIDE". After his trunk search, he comes back and sighs "Go ahead" sounding like he's all disappointed that he didn't find Osama in my trunk. Hey, the Canadian guy told me to have a nice day. I think this says something for Canadian hospitality versus American hospitality.

So I spent a lot of time driving. It was 3 hours each way. Got to the hotel and headed straight for the poker room. Did I say I was taking myself off 2-5 no limit? Yeah, well, it was the only seat open right away and I didn't want to wait because I was only playing to get hours for the poker room rate. I won. And no, Mr. Caro, I didn't manufacture a win by quitting while ahead ... I played exactly 2 hours (it's supposed to be 4 for the room rate, but I've played over that the previous two days so I should get some slack).

I was thinking of checking out tomorrow and heading to Foxwoods, but time has gotten away from me. It's 2:30 a.m. now. I'm thinking I might stick here one more day and hit Foxwoods on Sunday. I need to get some sleep and maybe I can go to bed early tomorrow so I can get out early on Sunday. It would have been nice to have two days at Foxwoods, but I guess one will have to do.

18 August 2007

I got into a really good game of 4-8 Hold'em. I should've made about $300 more than I did, but I made several costly errors. I guess that happens to all of us ... I'd be surprised to meet someone who plays perfectly all the time. Let me tell you about a hand, though, that made me feel just terrible. It was up against a really nice guy I've played against three times while here. Now, this is the same guy who pulled out a straight flush to beat the full house I flopped two days ago. Anyway, I'm in the blind with 9,4 off and there are around six callers or so. The flop brings me a four along with two clubs and it gets checked all the way around. Next off is the 9 of clubs, putting a potential flush on the board and giving me two pairs. Nice guy bets. Now, I know nice guy is capable of betting with anything based on how I've seen him play so I called. River is a nine. I bet, he calls and turns over a queen high flush. I feel horrible for rivering him that way, particularly so since he was low on chips. But, hey, I've gotten it, too.

I felt badly, as well, for this good natured man from western Canada who sat down at our table. The poor guy had no clue how to play with any skill. But when he first sat down he hit a hot streak and immediately went up between two and three hundred bucks. One hand, the guy on my right made it three bets with pocket aces and Canada-man cold calls the three bets with Q,9 off. Flop gives him a 9 (not top pair), turn brings a Q, and the river is another 9. The guy with A,A (who'd waited 'til the river to check raise) hit the roof. In fact, a lot of people were making nasty comments about Canada-man's style of play. I just don't understand that ... guys, don't discourage or alienate bad players--you want them at your table. Their streak will end, and then you will reap the benefits. Anyway, Canada-man's streak ended after about an hour and a half and then he slowly declined in chips. When he really got low, he got so depressed ... and I felt horrible, particularly since he'd been so nice the whole time & everybody had been making comments about his play.

The weather is so lovely up here ... I could definitely get used to this. It was so chilly this evening I couldn't walk outside without a jacket. Imagine that ... in August! Life is so unfair ... I totally deserve a climate like this.

19 August 2007

Got away from Turning Stone a little late so I didn't make it to Foxwoods until 6 p.m. I called twice over the past two days to see if they had a cancellation and could give me a room, but they are booked solid. Tip: if you want to go to Foxwoods, book way far in advance. So I decided to get closer to Atlantic City tonight.

Foxwoods is huge. The poker room is huge. I don't dislike it, but I truthfully don't prefer rooms that large. I like to be able to see just about everyone else in the room. I like to be able to pay attention to the action at several other tables besides my own. Here, there's just too much stimulation. You could have a friend playing across the room and not even see each other. Even the Bellagio is a little on the large side for me, and Foxwoods poker room is at least triple the size of Bellagio. It was nice, though, and the game was good. I took an open seat in the 10-20 game, was down two hundred within an hour, was up 500 within two hours ... then our "must move" went down to four handed and I lost one big pot that took me down to up only three hundred. Then I moved to the main game and the "must move" broke. I went back to up 500 within a half hour. It was getting dark outside so I decided that was a good score ... not huge, but fairly decent for a 10-20 game, I think. So I left.

Arrived in Abescon at 2:30 a.m. and checked into a cheap hotel. Woohoo. You gotta love cheap hotels. Well, no actually you don't because they are, after all, incredibly disgusting ... but this one's not that bad. It's the Howard Johnson. I wouldn't want to spend an extended vacation here ... but I could even stay here a couple of days, if I had to. $58 for the night with tax and the manager is letting me check out late since I checked in so late. That was nice.

Tomorrow, I can only play for an hour or two then I have to head home. So tomorrow will be my last entry for this trip.

20 August 2007

Four hours just to get my money back out of the 10-20 Hold'em game at the Taj. The game was good, but I was having major card trouble. I sat down and immediately went up $200. Then I went card dead. Within an hour, I was adding an additional buy-in to the game to try to get my first buy in back. Got all the way down to only $90 bucks and managed to come back up to even. I pulled out of the game at that point.

The day started out badly so I should've known. I overslept. When I finally got out of the hotel, I headed to the Trop because one of the really nice guys I played at Turning Stone suggested they had a good 7.50-15 Limit Hold'em game. So first I ate. I decided to eat at Corky's BBQ. It was horrible. Then I go to the poker room and find that the game I was looking for only had one name on an interest list. So that's when I headed for the Taj.

I really enjoyed playing at the Taj. That could eaily become a second home. I may try to make it up during the U. S. Poker Championship next month. We'll see. Now, I get a week off before the Beau. Sigh.