Tuesday In Limerick

Decided I didn't feel like going to work on Tuesday, so I went to the daytime riverchasers game at the power plant. Maybe I should've just gone to work...

I was in fold mode for the better part of the first half hour until I found AKo UTG. I limp. So do 4 others and we see a flop of KK4. Checks all around. Damn. Turn is an ace. B.U.T.Full. SB checks and the BB fires out a pot sized bet. Smooth call by me. Smooth call by 1 other. Hmmm. I'm sure that BB has a baby to mid ace, and am hoping that the other player has a K. River pairs the 4 and now I'm really hoping for KQs or KJs. BB fires a second bullet at the pot but I raise, praying for a call (or reraise) behind me. Unfortunately, the other player folds immediately (another baby ace?) and the BB considers for a decent amount of time before folding. A nice pot is a nice pot says I.

Anyway, a short time later, I pick up J6o in the BB and check my option with a few limpers in front. Flop top and bottom pair and decide to bet right out. Pot. Three callers. Turn bricks and I bet pot again. One player calls all in (two other folds), and flips a gutshot draw with one over. I guess 91% isn't good enough for yours truly, as his straight fills and he drags my a nice pot. That hand should have given me enough chips to play a more aggressive game but, alas, I am now approaching binary decision time as the blinds continue to grow.

I find A♦T♦ and shove directly into AKo. Even though I flop two baby diamonds, 12 outs twice is way too slim for me to expect to hit and IGH with about 20 players left.

Saturday is the 2007 Q4 RPT TOC. Top 40 there qualify for the final tournament that gives away the Main Event seat. GL me.

Hitting your gutshot on the river to cripple me, you better believe that's a paddlin.

She Has the Right Attitude

My older daughter is 6. I'm not raising her to strive for mediocrity. If she wants to play soccer, they WILL keep score. Losing is the greatest motivation for improvement. Alas, yesterday it came back to bite me...

2 table SNG, I am heads up but at a 2:1 chip deficit.

β₀: I see you're losing.
Me: There are only 2 players left. 16 are already out.
β₀: Ok, you're in second place. But you're still losing.

Grin.

Infidelity

Forgive me riggstad, I have been unfaithful. How could I have been so weak? Sometimes my insatiable yang just needs some of that delectable poker yin. And I'm not talking about that cyber stuff. That's always good for some temporary relief, but nothing compares to the real live, sweaty, smokey, genuine article. I'm not completely at fault, though. If Riverchasers was just around more, closer to home, I wouldn't have had to look to another. But I did. Would it make you feel better if I told you that I took it down? That it was purely physical? Probably not. Can I definitively say that I won't wander again? Again, probably not. As I've said, I'm weak. But, I'll always come home. There's too much history to throw it all away like that.

Anyway, the point is that I needed a live game last night and there just happened to be a league game run by a different company not 5 minutes from home starting after the kids went to bed. There were a couple of things I actually really liked about the game. Having the SB shuffle a second deck of cards was awesome. Instead of maybe 1 or 1-1/2 orbits per level, we were getting in 3. And the structure...20 minute blind levels, but by the time we were heads up over 3 1/2 hours later, the BB was barely over the starting stack. You just needed to get past the first 4 levels where the blinds doubled each time. After that, they really slowed down and there was a lot of room for actual play.

Thankfully, I was able to double up during the first few hands. UTG came in for a 3x BB raise. I'm in MP, find QQ, and reraise to 8x BB. Button calls, as does the original raiser. Flop comes queen high rainbow, and the original raiser checks. I bet half the pot and button min raises. UTG folds and I shove which he calls with AQ. TPTK NO GOOD! That's good for some breathing room. I finish up the next few levels having stolen a few sets of blinds and folded a few flops to heavy action, but was still comfortable when the table broke.

Now, accompanying me to my new table was UTG boy from my first hand. Over the course of the hour, it was completely evident to me that he tries to play like Phil Ivey. Very loose and aggressive and will continue on the flop, but will slow down if someone applies pressure back. Of course, in any bar free roll, complacency will get you short stacked in a hurry, so I was actively (but patiently) looking for a spot. It was a key point in the tournament for me. I'm in the BB and action folds around to Phil in the cutoff. He raises, but it just felt like a steal. Then the SB smooth called the raise. This didn't necessarily mean much as she was extremely loose pre-flop, but pretty weak tight afterward. She liked to see flops, but didn't withstand a whole lot of pressure. I thought it was a perfect time for an all in squeeze, with A9s, as the pot was large enough to make it worth my while to make a play at it. They both called. Uh oh. The final board was AKQT2, and my A9 held up? You've got to be kidding. Triple up and on my way.

I gave some of it back overplaying a weak ace, but managed to steal enough to stay mostly level. Had to lay down AQ to a big stack reraise where he showed jacks. Then I picked up TT on the button and open raised for almost half my stack. Same guy goes all in again, but this time I'm on the right side of the race and, having committed to the hand anyway, call and win. I guess I had earned a tight image, as every one of my steals was working. However, there were a couple of players who still tried to occasionally limp into the pot. These were consistently picked off by Phil, with a hefty raise. So, when I picked up KK UTG, I decided to see if I could make a limp profitable. Unfortunately, UTG+1 (former big stack who had doubled me) smooth called, as did Ivey. Fawk. 4 to the flop with pocket kings. Flop is AK8 rainbow. w00t! I check to the aggros, and am rewarded by a pot sized bet by UTG+1. If Phil calls, I might reraise right there, but he folds. I feign thought, and then make the call. When a J turns, I try an OBFV (all-in) and the former chip leader calls me with AT and he is drawing dead to a queen which doesn't come. We have a new chip leader.

Let the bullying commence. Steal, steal, steal, and steal some more. Eventually, someone was going to make a stand and, of course, it was Phil. I open raised with AJ and he called from the BB. Flop was K-rag-rag rainbow and not connected. I was almost positive that he was going to lead at the pot no matter what came on the flop. But his heart just wasn't in it. His probe stank of weakness so I raised 3x his bet and he slammed his cards into the muck. In another hand, I just smooth called him all the way down with TP, and he flipped 4th pair. It was a good thing that he was stealing from everyone else, as his stack just kept getting replentished before finding its way to the final destination.

The coup d'etat happened when I called Phil's raise from the SB with 44. I checked to his inevitable flop bet, having hit my set, and was rewarded with him shoving with TP2K. Buh bye. I pwned Phil Ivey. Well, as close as I'll ever get. Anyway, that got me heads up with a 12:1 chip lead and, even though I doubled the guy up when I was a 65% fav, the battle didn't last more than 6 or 7 more hands. I found 66 and he found A9o. Managed to win the race and it was over.

Sometimes cheating just feels so good.

Flyers 6, Senators 1

Best seats I've ever had for a Flyers game, suite level between the blue lines. Fully catered, open bar, NFC championship on the flat screens, awesome win for the orange and black. A good night to be alive.

Just Call Me J.D. McDuffie

Last night, Poker After Dark rd 2 where the top 9 gain a seat into the final tournament. 2270 runners and I was consistently in the top 200. But I could not win a race to save my life. No less than 5 times did I have a pair against 2 overcards and lost all 5 right on the flop. There is no way you can win one of these without winning your fair share of races, and at least I was in a position to be able to lose a few and not be crippled. But come on, every single one? The fifth and final lost race put me out in 288th. Serves me right to play my middle pairs aggressively.

So Conflicted

I am a life long Philadelphia Eagles fan. It's been 30 years since I attended my first game at the Vet, a win vs. the Jets at a time when the Eagles weren't beating anyone. I can't put into words how I feel about the fact that we were the only NFC East team excluded from the playoffs. And what's worse? A prime time game between the Giants and Cowboys to determine who goes to the conference championship. What am I to do? Watch the game in objective disdain of both teams? I think not. Hope T.O. hits a seam and blows out both knees on a crossing pattern? Tempting, but that's so 10 years ago. I finally decided to back the team from up the turnpike, but only because they have the better chance of being humiliated on the frozen tundra next week. It is for that reason only that I even cared. Well, that and I don't think I could ever root for the cowboys under any circumstances. GO PACK GO!

On the AFC side of the equation, did the Patriots really need the help? Did the Colts and Bolts really need to beat the holy hell out of each other? Do the Patriots really need to get to play perhaps the worst team in the AFC playoffs? Who now have a dinged up Rivers and L.T.? I mean, come on. So it really looks like we're headed full steam toward a rematch of Super Bowl XXXI, the Desmond Howard show. Can you believe Favre was already almost 20,000 yards into his career even then, 11 years ago? Anyone remember Drew Bledsoe? Well, the Pack won by 2 TD's then, and I think that result will probably be reversed this year. Randy Moss with a ring. Damn, I was hoping Gary Anderson's choke would have been the closest Moss would get, but here we are.

From a poker perspective, I played a live Riverchasers freeroll Saturday night, mainly to be able to watch the Pats/Jags. Wow was I card dead. Only PP the entire night was 99, AK once, and AQ once. It's really hard to overcome an active table where 2/3 of all hands are going to showdown at the river when you just can't get a hand to show down. Made it to the final 2 tables but couldn't get A9o to hold up against the 2 chip leaders' garbage (oesd after the turn that didn't fill) and IGH 13th.

Sunday, for the hell of it, I fired up one of Full Tilt's poker after dark qualifier freerolls. I've played these pushfests probably 15 or 20 times (180, 360 or 640 players), have final tabled 3 or 4 times, and busted in the final 2 tables 2 or 3 times more. Finally, I got over the hump. Key hand was mostly a frustration play on my part, but it worked out. I have 77 UTG and limp, since only about 1/2 the pots were getting raised at this point. There might have been a limper or two, or not, but the button raises about 10x BB which, to me, screamed steal. SB shorty calls for less and the BB chip leader calls. I shove for 4x the original raise and get called by AJo (raiser) and A7o (BB). SB has 55 and I avoid the 3 jacks and 2 aces to just about triple up.

At this point, there is still a lot of play left as most of the M's are still healthy. I catch some folks overplaying marginal holdings or flat out buffing a few times and steadily grow my stack until I take over the chip lead with about 7 remaining. Now that I have some chips, I can afford to loosen up a bit now and call with some medium strength draws or call a weakish flop bet to take the pot away on the turn. The last 2 key hands were 3 handed. In the first, I actually managed to pick up KK in the BB. Previous chip leader (very loose) completes from the SB after the button folds. I massively overbet the pot with a 12x preflop raise and he calls. Flop is Q high and he pushes in and I call. He shows the mighty top pair nothing kicker and I have a 9:1 chip lead heads up. Only the second or third hand in, I pick up KTs on the button and raise 4x BB. Player calls for 1/3 of his stack and we see a flop of 965 with two of my suit. He insta-shoves and I figure I have more than enough outs to justify a call, and do so. His 87o flopped a straight, but I pick up a 3rd and then a 4th club on the turn and river (only needed 1). Round 2 is tonight around 10:00 PM EST where the top 9 get a seat in the After Dark finals.

Thursday Afternoon At The Power Plant

Sometimes, you just need to look for some of the less traditional benefits associated with your job. Like when you work predominantly in MIS and both the analytics server and the database crash and will take the remainder of the day to be restored. It's even better when there's an afternoon Riverchasers game in Limerick on that day's schedule. Score!

First two levels, I paid my blinds and folded. It was just that bad. Then at level 3 (3/6), I call the half bet out of the SB with AQo after a few other limpers and the BB checked his option. I checked dark (as usual in the blinds), and saw A52 rainbow. Unfortunately, it checked around, but the turn was another A. Someone would probably now lead out, so I check raised a bet and a call. That lost the bettor, but the caller stuck around. I bet 1/2 the pot on a river K and, after about 2 minutes, my opponent mucked. He said he wasn't sure if I had an A, but he was probably beat.

I gave some of that back chasing down an OESD in a massive multiway pot that would have been a huge help. In fact, one of the players still in (who couldn't keep her mouth shut after the hand about what she had) said that she was open ended and an eight would have given her a straight. Fawk, she was drawing to the idiot end and I would've stacked her. From there, I kept looking for the spot that just wouldn't come. Then I have 145 left and am in the BB at 15/30. A few limpers, including some large stacks who will call raises with ATC, and I find AKo. All right, let me see if I can hit the flop before I shove. Flop comes AQx with two hearts. All in I am. UTG calls with KQ, no hearts (?) and other players fold. AK holds up and I double plus.

Table breaks. New table same cards. Blinds up. 25/50, then 50/100. I'm in the BB with half my stack posted, it folds to the SB who puts me all in. T6o. I call. He has K9o, so I'm live. 10 on the flop and I double. Very next hand, it folds to my SB and I find AKo again. No waiting this time, heads up. I push pre-flop and get called by KT. RPT donkeys. Suddenly, I have a medium sized stack (largest at my 5 man table) and the other table loses two so we go to the final table of 8.

First hand, I'm SB with A♣2♣. One limper then an all in for exactly the BB. I complete and BB checks. We check it down, and the turned A chops the pot between me and the limper (A5). Finally, we get down to 5 handed and the blinds are 200/400. This means that there are only about 20-22 BB total in play. RPT final tables are purely a lottery. It takes some skill to get there but, after that, it's completely up for grabs. I start that level UTG with 22. Yuck. Don't like it, but 800 all in. Called by KJ for most of his stack and 43 from the chip leader with huge odds. Board ends up ATT37. IGH 5th. Tournament ends about 4 or 5 hands later.

I know there is a first place at Limerick, I just keep falling just short. Oh well. The year is still starting well in live play (even if it is free) with 2 final tables in 2 starts, including one heads up chop. Personally, I think that consistently navigating a freeroll field is, in some ways, more difficult than playing a game with a buy in. Up to a certain level of player of course.

Brutal beat of the game:

Pre-Flop: Player 1 raises, Player 2 reraises, Player 2 calls.
Flop: AQJ rainbow. Player 1 bets, Player 2 calls.
Turn: J. Player 1 bets, Player 2 raises, Player 1 reraises all-in, Player 2 calls.
Player 1: AJ, Player 2: QQ
River: A

Disney Vacation - Part 4

Go read part one first.
Then parts two and three.

Thursday

We extracted ourselves from the clutches of the evil Disney corporation in order to visit an attraction exhibited by a much more wholesome company. Annheuser-Busch's Sea World Orlando. We were told that Orlando traffic on a typical morning was brutal so, wanting to arrive right at the opening, we got up before the sun hoping to get on the road by about 7:30. What's that road to hell paved with again? While we were grabbing a bite in the dining hall, ε's parents realized that they had left their admission tickets in PA. Oops. So after about an hour of the most unhelpful customer service associates imaginable (unhelpful, really?), they were resigned to the fact that they would need to purchase new tickets when we got there.

The first good thing did happen in that the morning rush must have dissipated abnormally early on this day as there were virtually no cars on the road. We made the 14 mile drive in about 20 minutes and were amongst the first few dozen cars in the lot. When we got there, ε's S-I-L decided that it was going to be a very poor morning for the unlucky individual manning the customer relations window. After only about 5 minutes, new tickets were issued without charge. It always helps when a line is forming behind the person making life difficult.

Anyway, we all are able to enter the park 10 minutes after it opens. I, and a few of the other adults, are interested in riding Sea World's coaster, Kraken, before the lines start later but the damn thing doesn't run when it's cold. Booo! So, we take in the pirate show, featuring sea lions and a walrus. The girls enjoyed it much more than I though they would, so I was pleasantly surprised.

Then, we head over to Shamu's Happy Harbor so that the kids can do all the rides there with little to no waiting. Busch has a park near home called Sesame Place which we had been to and all of the rides here had counterparts there, just named and painted diferently. When we had last been there, I took β₀ on the kiddie roller coaster but it had scared the life out of her. Just 6 months later, she must have rode that thing a half dozen times, getting happier each time. Although, β₁ wanted to ride it (too short, even with an adult), she rode every single other thing there she was allowed to. The scarier it was, the more she liked it. I'm going to have to keep my eye on that one as she starts growing up...

After a while, we did a quick walk through in the shark aquarium and then it was time to grab a bite and head over to the Shamu show. Can you really go to Sea World and NOT watch the whales do tricks? We walked into Shamu Stadium a good 30 minutes early (intentionally) and found seats in the upper center section, about halfway up. The lower sections are all considered "Soak Zones" so that, being a 40 degree January day, was just right out. The kids really enjoyed the show, but I was a little disappointed that it has turned into about 50% garbage on the video screens. But it's not my enjoyment that matters, right?

The show ended and we went back to Happy Harbor, but it was quite a bit more crowded that it was earlier. The girls manged to sneak in a couple more rides, but then it was time to leave to go back to the resort. We had about an hour to decompress before needing to depart to meet our dinner reservations. Tonight we were eating at Kona Cafe in the Polynesian.

ε and I split our appetizers, Lump Crab Cakes with asian tartar and pineapple relish and the Pot Stickers, wok-seared duck dumplings with creamy ginger soy sauce. ε went with a chardonnay while I chose a Fire Rock Pale Ale. For main courses, I went with the Pomegranate Barbecued Pork Chop served on pan-roasted fingerling potatoes and applewood smoked bacon braised Swiss chard. ε followed my lead from the previous night and went with seafood. Panko breaded shrimp and pan-seared scallops with sticky rice and ponzu, spicy guava-passion fruit and wasabi cream sauces. Dessert was a no-brainer: chocolate macadamia nut tart with vanilla ice cream and caramel rum sauce.

Although the food was really good (probably the best pork chop I've ever eaten), the atmosphere for us was mediocre at best. Perhaps if we had been seated closer to the inner depths of the dining room, I'd feel differently, but we were right on the edge with just a brass railing separating our table with passing foot traffic in the hotel.

After the filling dinner, we rolled ourselves back to the car and made our way back to our resort. The remainder of the night consisted of the girls staring at a DVD movie, ε catching up on email, and me doing a little light reading. All in all, a very good day for the girls, but just another tiring one for me.

Next... Day 5 Magic Kingdom and Epcot redux

Disney Vacation - Part 3

Go read part one first.
Then go read part two.

Wednesday
We started the day around 7:15 and, after shaking off the cobwebs, got everything organized and went for breakfast in the dining hall. After the previous day's mistake, we hopped on the bus waiting outside the hotel lobby and were dropped right in front of the entrance to Animal Kingdom. Much better idea.

Now, β₀ had 2 things on her agenda for the day. Meet characters and see animals. In that order of priority. We, being the logical yet silly adults, decided to hike out to Africa to jump on the Safari ride before the lines got insane. It was a perfectly reasonable plan, but not one readily accepted by a 6 year old who wanted her picture taken with Mickey and Donald. However, due to lack of insight, the adults' decision stood and, for the second day in a row, we had a very unhappy little princess. Of course, β1 was ecstatic on the ride. Hippos, rhinos, giraffes, nile crocs, okapi, lions, a cheetah, and elephants. And those were just the ones she loved the most. β₀ was trying very hard to maintain a foul disposition, but it wasn't quite working. Until the ride was over and she saw the webkinz for sale. Nothing that we couldn't find outside of Disney, mind you, just right there. And jacked up 20% over retail. This was one of those times during parenthood that you really need to pick your battles. Would $16 save the day? From that perspective, we did what we needed to do and bought her the damn koala. Oops, the little one wanted a leopard now, too. If this one gets unhappy, it's going to be a lot louder than a grumpy pout session. Another $16. Ship it.

Girls happy now? Check. Let's get the hell out of Africa before they find another reason and we have to cut the vacation short for lack of funds. Off to Camp Minnie-Mickey to visit Mickey and Donald. Thankfully, we didn't need to wait in the Minnie and Goofy lines since they came to us at dinner the previous night. It's the small things, right? Anyway, the weather is frightfully frigid for Florida, even in January. The night before was the coldest in Orlando in 5 years. So while ε, her mom, and the β's wait for pictures, I go with her dad in search of coffee. 10 minutes to the nearest stand, 20 minutes in line, and another 10 minutes back but at least I'm drinking something hot. Timing was good, though, as they were just finishing with Mickey (Donald only took like 10 minutes) and we decided it was time for a hot lunch.

Well, evidently, the food at the one restaurant there with indoor seating is really bad so we picked up some fairly tasty barbecue and ate on picnic tables. That was tolerable as long as the blasted wind wasn't kicking up. After we finished up, it was off to Dino Land. β₀ could dig for dinosaur bones and play in the rope netting while β₁ was riding some rides.

It didn't take too long before they were bored there, so we continued along to Asia. ε and I really wanted to ride Expedition Everest, but the line was around 2 hours long and they were no longer offering any Fast Passes. Sigh. Our consolation prize was that we got to see the bird show. Yeah yeah, smart birds doing tricks. But I got to sit down for a half hour, so that's something. Following the show, we decided to head back to the resort to relax for an hour before dinner, so we caught the bus and made it back around 4:30.

Our dinner reservations were for 7:20 at Le Cellier Steakhouse in Epcot's version of Canada. Not knowing how long it would take to get there, we got on the bus at 6:00 and were deposited at Epcot's front gate by 6:30. 15 minutes later, we were standing in front of the restaurant with 35 minutes to kill. So we meandered into the World Showcase for a little bit and arrived back just in time to be seated immediately, even though the dining room was packed. They must have their reservation system down to a science. I was happy to find they had Moosehead Pale Ale on the menu, as it is not that easy to find in the U.S. When we were on our cruise to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia a few years ago, we toured the brewery and got to sample some of the wares. The Pale Ale is very tasty so I had a couple with dinner. My selections were the Prince Edward Island Mussels, served chowder style with applewood smoked bacon and potatoes, and Sauteed Shrimp and Bay Scallops, served with a rich lobster cream sauce, linguini and spinach, finished with lobster oil. Mmmmm. ε had the Mixed Field Greens with crumbled bleu cheese and pecan-shallot vinaigrette and Le Cellier Mushroom Filet Mignon with baby bella wild mushroom risotto, white truffle and herb butter sauce, topped with parsnips. I kept it simple for dessert and went with the creme brulee. Dessert was the least satisfying part of the meal and it was still pretty darn tasty. Overall, probably my favorite meal of the trip, but not by much. Stay tuned.

By the time dinner was over it was almost 9:00, everyone was exhausted, and the kids couldn't even walk to the bus. I will say that carrying almost 50 pounds of tired child halfway across Epcot was the exact antithesis of what I really needed at the time, but what could I do? Buck up, get to the bus, back to the room, and pass out.

Next... Day 4, Sea World

A Pretty Good Start to 2008

It seems like my regular Riverchasers games are dropping like flies. I used to be able find a game within 5 minutes of my house 3 or 4 nights a week but, now, any convenient game timewise involves a 20-30 minute commute. It's not going to stop me from going, of course, I still need those nights out of the house to keep me sane. Just saying is all.

So last night I cruised over to the game in Norristown which isn't too far and didn't start until 9:00. That gave me a chance to get the girls through their baths and help get them into bed before I needed to leave. Of course, it was the final Monday night game at that venue so I once again need to find a good, convenient place to play.

Anywho, there were somewhere around 20 players (maybe a few more that trickled in late) and I was sitting at one of the craziest starting tables I'd ever been at. And to say a riverchasers table is extra crazy is really making a statement. By the time we finished level 2, I don't think I had put a single chip into the pot except when in the blinds and one player had already increased his stack between 3 and 4 fold. People were literally handing him chips calling large bets with hands like second pair when he had already made the nut flush. Oh, and for an entire orbit at 1/2, the standard preflop raise was 12.5x BB. Nutty.

The first hand I actually got involved with was at 3/6. I had 44 in the BB decided and decided to check my option and actually get to see a cheap flop of J♣3♣2♣. Even though I held the 4♣, I wasn't all that happy with the flop and I was OOP so I checked behind the SB and was happy to see that so did everyone else. Then a 4♠ on the turn and all hell broke loose. SB bet out about 1/2 of the pot and I called. After a fold, UTG+1 went all in for about a pot sized raise. Button folds and so does SB, but only after tanking for about a minute. Now, I was most worried about a medium sized made flush, but that was only one possibility and I wasn't drawing dead even if that was what he had. I figured that, most probably, I was ahead and that he had a flush draw plus either a piece of the board or 2 overs. It is quite uncommon that I'm going to lay down 2nd set at a riverchasers freeroll. I call and my read was exactly right. 77 with the 7♣. He groaned as I flipped my set but, for some reason, the SB started yelling "c'mon, pair the board!". He was absolutely elated that the board paired the 3 on the river. He had turned a wheel and folded to the all in. Wow.

I picked up a few more chips with a check raise out of the BB with flopped trips and then watched QJs crack KK and 77 with runner-runner-runner straight. I wasn't in that hand but it was pretty funny. UTG limps for 10. UTG+1 asks me to change his single black 100 chip and then goes all in for 100. Not to be outdone, a medium stack in MP also asks for change of a black, then reraises all in. Classic. Original limper hems and haws and finally says F it and calls all in. Limper scooped and 77 boy was out.

Now the hand that got me over the hump and into contention. I get two black tens UTG and raise 3.5x BB. Only the blinds call. Flop comes 5♣8♣9♣. SB bets less than 1/3 of the pot and the BB calls. I'm not exactly sure where I am but, getting 6:1, I'll see what the turn brings. Q♣. Now I'm pretty sure I'm up against another flush, but how big? SB bets 1/10 of the pot and BB folds. What the hell do I make of THAT? Seems a little small for a value bet. Could my T♣ be good here? I call and the river brings an offsuit 3. SB now bets 1/12 of the pot and there're just too many chips in the middle to fold. He shows A♥6♣. Nice.

Not much later, we go to the final table of 9. Expectedly, the shorties are pushing and busting and we get down to 6. Blinds are 50/100 and I'm sitting on almost 600, about middle of the pack. UTG shoves for 100 more and I find AQ. Time to isolate with an all in reraise and UTG flips (with a groan) KQ. Best hand holds and there's another 350 chips for my stack. At this point, I start stealing like crazy. 66. A7o. KQo. Mostly from the button or blind vs. blind but it worked every time. We finally get down to 3 players and we're all pretty even. Somehow, two of us split the third guy's chips almost evenly before I bust him. I'm in the BB for 200 and he raises all in to 250 from the SB. I throw in 2 green chips without looking and he flips AT. I have T9. Well, that's about as bad as it could be, but it's not worse than 9:1 so the dark call is fine. 9 on the river and we're heads up just about even.

Since it's already almost midnight and I'm looking at about 5 hours of sleep max ahead of me, I ask him if he wants to chop and he agrees. We play 1 hand face up for first place points, and A7 > 89 so, officially, IGH second. I'm pretty sure I would've taken it down, but I really didn't want to spend another 20-30 minutes for 4 points and $15. I'm really happy how I mixed up my play a bit and was able to exploit my tight image against the players who I knew were paying attention. Let's hope this will be a continuing trend.

Exchange of the night:

Player 1 shows AA at showdown
Player2: 'You limped with aces pre-flop?'
Player1: 'I didn't limp.'
Player2: 'Did you raise pre-flop?'
Player1: 'No.'
Player2: 'Then you limped...'
Player1: 'It's not limping unless you're playing shitty cards.'
Player2: 'No, that's called limping with shitty cards.'

Disney Vacation - Part 2

Go read part one first.

Tuesday

We got up somewhere between 7:00 and 7:30 and managed to get ourselves and kids ready for the long day. The dining hall serves food that is perfectly consistent with needing to serve several thousand people for each meal. Standard fare. Eggs and potatoes or pancakes and bacon or just fruit and a bagel. Not made to order, but kept reasonably hot in the steam trays and they go through enough so that what you get is palatable.

After breakfast concluded, we began the trip over to the Magic Kingdom where we would spend the first full day. For some reason, we decided to drive over instead of taking the Disney bus. That would be the last time we drove to a park for the week. We passed through the entrance to the complex right at 9:00 AM, flashed the card indicating that the $11 parking fee was already bundled somewhere in our package and followed the throngs to the lot. Parked the car. Got on a tram. Then needed to either get on a monorail or the ferry. Since the monorail line seemed to be several hundred long, we hopped the ferry. Even though we probably would have gotten to the main gate faster the other way, I would rather pass my time sitting on a boat than standing in a ridiculous queue. There would be plenty of opportunities for that later.

It was probably a good 30 minutes between when we got out of the car and finally were able to enter the park. Immediately, β₁ wanted to ride the train. ok. Seemed like a good way to review what was going on that day and figure out what we wanted to do next. Unfortunately, β₀ had evidently worked herself up internally into a frenzy and this was NOT in her plans. We were finally here and she wanted to do something that SHE wanted to do. Right. Now. Full blown pout session. Arms crossed, chin to chest, wouldn't say a word. Code blue. We need 50cc's of princesses, stat. Finally get off the train and head for Mickey's Toon Town. Evidently, there were going to be a group of princesses doing meetings until 11:30. On the far side of the park. When we get there, the line is already an hour long and there is less than an hour until they leave. No dice.

We walked over to Fantasyland, hoping that we could at least get the girls on some rides. Now, Disney has a pretty cool thing called Fast Pass. If there is a long line, you can stick your ticket in a machine and it will spit out what is basically a rain check for the ride. Then, when your hour long time window comes up, you go through a different entrance and skip around 90% of whatever line is there. Good deal. There is about a 30 minute wait for the winnie the pooh ride, but the next Fast Pass window starts in 45 minutes. We grab them and then notice that Pooh and Tigger are signing autographs and taking pictures nearby. No problem. As long as it will take to finally have the girls meet some characters, we'll then be able to get right on the ride. I was really proud of β₀ for waiting so patiently. She finally got to the front of the line and was able to give Pooh and Tigger hugs, have them sign her autograph book (a recurring theme), and get pictures with them. Then there was only a 2 minute wait to get back on the pooh ride. Things were starting to look up.

After the ride, it was time for lunch so off to FrontierLand and the Pecos Bill cafe. Standard burgers/fries/chicken strips fare, but everyone was hungry and we weren't looking for anything gourmet. Just quick. And when I say quick, I mean Disney quick which is about 15 minutes in a food line. After lunch, we found Peter Pan and Wendy at the front of a relatively short line, so we snagged a few more pics and signatures. We could have gotten Captain Hook and Smee also in an even shorter line, but β₀ said they were too ugly and didn't want to see them. We would end up waiting for a half hour for them later in the week. Sigh.

Oh well. Back to Fantasyland for some more little kid friendly rides. Carousel. Check. Teacups. Check. Then ε waited in the 50 minute line with β₁ for the flying Dumbos. Meanwhile, I noticed that the line for Ariel was down from 2 hours to just under 1. We did that and, thankfully, there was a little area there where the kids could run around and play in and around some sprinklers. So while I waited in the line, β₀ went into an hour long wait with me/play in the water loop and then we finally met Ariel. Now, the folks they get to play the characters are usually pretty spot on, but to me, this girl looked like she was earning a little extra scratch out behind Space Mountain $25 at a time if you catch my drift. But β₀ was really happy so who am I to judge?

Eventually, we just started meandering around, caught the show outside of the castle around 4:00 and slowly made our way to Liberty Square dinner at the Liberty Tree Tavern. We had reservations for "Goofy's Liberate Your Appetite Character Dinner". Family style servings of:

DECLARATION SALAD - Tossed Mixed Greens, served with our special Tavern Strawberry Vinaigrette Dressing

PATRIOT'S PLATTER - A generous serving of roasted turkey breast, carved beef, and smoked pork loin, with mashed potatoes, seasonal vegetables, herb bread stuffing, and Stouffer's Macaroni and Cheese.

DESSERTS - Apple cobbler with vanilla ice cream included.

But, they had Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, and Chip & Dale wandering around and stopping at each table for pics and sigs. The food was average at best, and β₁ slept in the booth the whole time, but it was a long day already and I wasn't feeling overly critical. By the time we finished, the sun was down and it was into the 40's which made for a not very pleasant trek back to the car. Got back to the hotel after 9:00 and collapsed.

Next... Day 3, Animal Kingdom

Disney Vacation - Part 1

So there you have it. I've officially gone from troll to noob. Yay. My
over/under for first real visitor is, let's say, 94 days. Jan 7 2008.
Truthfully, though, smart money would be on the over.

Me - from my first blog entry

So my little spec of dust of a blog is now 94 days old. And guess what? I even lost the prop bet I made with myself. The Riverchasers head honcho evidently found me via a Google search on his own company (you egomaniac :) ), and confirmed his visit via comment. Thanks for stopping by, Jim. I guess I'm now officially part of the club now as exactly one blog has a link to me. Yay me!

Anyway, my family just got home yesterday from our week long jaunt to Central Florida where we made a massive deposit into the Bank of Disney. I'm so incredibly tired that I just want to sleep for 2 straight days, but here I am right back at work Monday morning. I'll do my best to recap the trip but, for me, I can pretty much summarize every day as:

1. Wake up
2. Eat
3. Get on bus and go somewhere
4. Walk a lot and take pictures of kids having a boatload of fun
5. Repeat steps 2-4 one or more times, in varying orders
6. Go to bed

The trip was a bit unusual for me in that we were a larger group than just my wife and girls. You see, my wife's brother and sister-in-law are Disney freaks and when they heard that we wanted to do a vacation there, they wanted in. Oh, and they planned the whole thing. Feel free, knock yourselves out. Then, my wife decided that she would invite her parents to also tag along, but that we would be giving them their trip as a Christmas gift. That's some really expensive built-in baby sitting. But wait, it gets more surreal. After hearing that my in-laws were going, my wife's sister-in-law decides to invite HER parents to go too. YIKES! Our little family vacation is now 10 people strong across 4 adjoining rooms. I'm exhausted just recalling the details.

Now, being the statistics geek that I am, I will represent my family using a simple regression line, y = β₀ + β₁x + ε. My two daughters, who are currently 6-1/2 and 3, will be the β's, which leaves ε for my wife. There. Anonymity preserved.

Monday

Our flight from Philly to Orlando was at 1:45 PM so, never having flown with small children before, we left the house around 10:00. Since we didn't really want to lug all the bags plus the kids from long term parking to the terminal, we stopped at curbside check-in (the single best thing at any airport), checked the big bags and got our boarding passes. Then, we made our way to the lot and found a spot less than 30 feet in. Things were looking promising. Hopped the shuttle back to the terminal, breezed through security and made our way to the gate for a 90 minute wait before boarding. Well, we almost breezed. ε's dad had a hip replacement recently that the metal detectors had a problem with, but the delay was minimal. They were upgrading coach tickets for $100 apiece. Under different circumstances, this would have been a no brainer, but I wasn't shelling out for 6 of them. Lunch, drink at the bar, latte, and it was boarding time. And we left on schedule. Amazing. Plus, the girls did amazingly well for their first time on a plane.

We arrived in Orlando a little after 4:00 PM, picked up the luggage and the rental car, installed the car seats and off we went. Since there was going to be enough money spent on, well, everything, and we weren't going to be spending that much time in the room anyway, we decided on one of the value priced Disney resorts (around $82/night). It took about 30 minutes to get from the airport to the hotel, and we were all checked in to Disney's All-Star Movies and relaxing in our room by 5:30. It really reminded me of a college campus. There were 10 buildings of rooms and a centrally located "food court" which I kept referring to as the dining hall. We were on the dining plan, so all we needed to do was swipe our room key and the appropriate number of meal vouchers would be deducted. This was actually a cool feature that could be used at just about every restaurant that Disney owned, whether in one of the resorts or one of the parks. Even the ice cream carts had the little machine so that we could use our snack credits.

After dinner, the girls wanted to go swimming. I took β₁ to the kiddie pool so she could splash around for a while. ε's brother took β₀ into the main pool since she's a better swimmer, but not strong enough to be left alone. We finally had to forcibly remove them from the water around 9:00 to try to get some decent sleep in preparation of the chaos with which we would meet the next day.

In the next installment... Tuesday, Magic Kingdom.