Monday, October 31, 2005
Headed home
I head back to Little Rock on Tuesday afternoon after a very productive trip. The script isn't finished but it is currently in great shape--much funnier than I originally thought it could be. I'm really excited about it. More details when I get home. I hope everyone has an enjoyable Halloween night.
Saturday, October 22, 2005
L.A.: Two earthquakes and a thirsty homeless guy
The flight into Los Angeles was pretty uneventful, which is always good. I got an exit row seat for the whole trip so I had a little extra leg room, which is big for the knee and for me in general. John picked me up but he had to work pretty soon after that--right now he has a job working in the art department of a low-budget film that is supposed to finish shooting tomorrow. He can't wait to be done so we can really focus on our screenplay.
Apparently there were two earthquakes here today but I didn't even feel either one. I guess they were around 3.0 or 3.1, pretty minor. I went through a much bigger one when I lived here--big enough that I could feel it, at least. The other "event" of today was having a smelly homeless guy ask me to buy him a beer at the store. I politely declined, only to find him peeing in the parking lot shortly thereafter.
John has to work Sunday but we're still going over to officially sign our contracts in the morning. We will also receive our first check, which is nice. And then, umm...I guess we have to actually write this thing. Wish us luck!
Apparently there were two earthquakes here today but I didn't even feel either one. I guess they were around 3.0 or 3.1, pretty minor. I went through a much bigger one when I lived here--big enough that I could feel it, at least. The other "event" of today was having a smelly homeless guy ask me to buy him a beer at the store. I politely declined, only to find him peeing in the parking lot shortly thereafter.
John has to work Sunday but we're still going over to officially sign our contracts in the morning. We will also receive our first check, which is nice. And then, umm...I guess we have to actually write this thing. Wish us luck!
Thursday, October 20, 2005
California
On Saturday, I'm headed to L.A. for a paid gig to write a screenplay for a producer out there. It's a long, sordid story and I'm still curious about how everything will turn out but I'm definitely excited about the opportunity. My friend John Kinsman and I will be co-writing this one together, as we did with "Whiffleball." We're not getting paid a ton but we will see a decent chunk of change on the off-chance that this thing ever actually starts production. But for now, I'm just happy to be doing it. We plan to have a first draft done by around November 1, which is a little ambitious. Should be fun!
Also, I did appear on the ESPN WSOP coverage this week. It was during the second hour at around the halfway mark, and just as I predicted, I caught a little camera time because of the guy next to me in the red shirt and big red pimp hat. ESPN re-runs these all the time but it's certainly not anything to sit down and watch if you just want to see me, because if you blink, you'll miss it. There's a chance I could be on again next week during the coverage of day two but none of my tables got any heavy camera action on that day so I think that my 15 minutes of fame--or, in this case, one or two seconds--are up.
Also, I did appear on the ESPN WSOP coverage this week. It was during the second hour at around the halfway mark, and just as I predicted, I caught a little camera time because of the guy next to me in the red shirt and big red pimp hat. ESPN re-runs these all the time but it's certainly not anything to sit down and watch if you just want to see me, because if you blink, you'll miss it. There's a chance I could be on again next week during the coverage of day two but none of my tables got any heavy camera action on that day so I think that my 15 minutes of fame--or, in this case, one or two seconds--are up.
Wednesday, October 12, 2005
WSOP Main Event on ESPN
ESPN began their coverage of the World Series of Poker Main Event last night, dedicating one hour blocks to each of the first two "day one" flights of the tourney, meaning that my day will be featured in their first hour of new programming next week, probably followed by an hour dedicated to day two when I got knocked out. I really don't expect to make it on TV at all, and if I do it will definitely be a "blink and you'll miss me" moment. It was fun and a little surreal to watch the tourney on TV knowing that I was there and that I was a part of it. There were also some crazy hands, like Jennifer Harman losing when her opponent caught a straight flush on the river to beat her. It was also informative to see Daniel Negreanu at the TV table--he admittedly had a terrible WSOP, blaming most of it simply on cold cards. Some people are quick to criticize him, saying that he had lost his focus at the tables and was becoming too concerned with his poker celebrity and other outside interests--a criticism also often aimed at Phil Hellmuth. Well, judging by the coverage, Negreanu has absolutely nothing to worry about. His reads were dead-on and he played nearly perfect poker but just couldn't catch the right cards. It happens.
Monday, October 03, 2005
ALDS thoughts
The ALDS begins on Tuesday and I think that the Red Sox are in remarkably good shape, considering the shaky state of their pitching staff until now. One huge move that should not be overlooked is Bronson Arroyo's move to the bullpen for this short series. Rookie Jonathan Papelbon has emerged as a solid set-up guy, filling the role that Mike Timlin vacated when he became the closer. But the big hole in the bullpen has been the huge, sucking void in the search for any reliever that can get people out before the 8th inning--enter Bronson. The White Sox have a predominantly right handed line up, which helps even more, as lefties have been giving Arroyo fits lately. Papelbon has been a stud in September and he can easily handle 2-3 multiple inning appearances in this series, if needed. Same for Timlin. But having Arroyo out there to quell any early fires is a dynamic that we've been missing all season.
I also think that despite Matt Clement's second half struggles he has a chance to do really well in game one. The White Sox hitters aren't patient, so Clement's penchant for walks--the one things that gets him in more trouble than anything else--won't be as big a factor. If the Red Sox can take early leads, they can get the White Sox out of their small-ball mindset, and I think they'll do just that in game one against Jose Contreras, a pitcher that the Red Sox have historically lit up. I like the Bosox in game one, and to win the series, probably in four games.
I also think that despite Matt Clement's second half struggles he has a chance to do really well in game one. The White Sox hitters aren't patient, so Clement's penchant for walks--the one things that gets him in more trouble than anything else--won't be as big a factor. If the Red Sox can take early leads, they can get the White Sox out of their small-ball mindset, and I think they'll do just that in game one against Jose Contreras, a pitcher that the Red Sox have historically lit up. I like the Bosox in game one, and to win the series, probably in four games.
Sunday, October 02, 2005
Wasted Saturday
Saturday was a complete waste of a day. It all started with the donuts.
At about 11 AM, Beth asked if I wanted some donuts for breakfast before the Sox game started. Of course I did, but I was already in pre-game mode and really didn't want to leave the house. I just turn into a hermit and have no desire to be "out with the people" when I get locked in like that. But we're talking about donuts, so I relented and agreed to make a quick trip with her to Shipley's, which is right down the street. We arrived there and their shelves were absolutely bare, although the sign indicates that they are open until 2 PM, so I'm not exactly sure what they plan to sell for the next three hours. "Come back tomorrow," implores the shopkeeper, as if they are purveyors of some exotic, hard-to-find item. No thanks, we'll go to Krispy Kreme. That trip was pretty uneventful, aside from Beth's fruitless attempt to purchase a gallon of milk there, ordering one at the drive through window. "Do they have gallons?" I asked. Before pulling off, they had forgotten our milk entirely. Beth reminded the girl at the window and then was handed the standard, small bottle of milk. Which is all I figured they had. But whatever.
Sadly, we were not out of the house long enough to kill the entire FOX Sports pre-game show. I'll save most of my venting about the FOX baseball broadcasts for subsequent posts, assuming that I'll be watching more of their horrific product in the weeks to follow. But they are awful. The Red Sox themselves weren't great either, and I could tell from the first inning that we were in trouble. When Tim Wakefield's knuckleball is on, it floats and dances through the strike zone, causing many missed swings by batters. That just wasn't happening. From the top of the first, the Yanks were getting good wood on the ball. The Sox battled back a couple of times but just couldn't break through against Randy Johnson when they needed to, and thus we're left with a shot at the wild card berth. We can wrap that up with a win on Sunday or a Cleveland loss. It won't be as satisfying as winning the division would have been, but I'll take it. And thankfully, Sunday's game will be on NESN. Last one of the season.
Game two of my personal double-header was the ASU-USC game. I had the mildest of hopes that the Devils could actually pull off an upset against the Trojan juggernaut, and obviously I really wanted to see the game. It featured the number one team in America, the two-time defending national champs, playing a top 20 opponent on the road...so, of course, the Little Rock ABC affiliate elected to show us Nebraska-Iowa State. Absurd. The move would be defensible if the choice involved even a single team with the slightest regional interest--any team from the SEC, for example. But Nebraska-Iowa State? Give me a break.
The only alternative is the Game Plan, an option through the satellite that allows users to purchase out of market games. We went with that. Beth did it, actually, in a very kind gesture, going to the computer and signing up for it without even telling me, knowing full well that I was already annoyed beyond belief by the Sox loss that was nearly over.
So we buy the game...and it doesn't come on. There are an array of channels featuring these pay-per-view contests and none of them have the ASU game on, even the single channel dedicated solely to that game. Oh, but two channels have the Nebraska game. I'm not even joking. And to make it worse, they even had different feeds of the game. For some inexplicable reason, the ABC affiliate here elects to show afternoon games on a slight tape delay if they get to them after they have started. This is a practice that used to be commonplace...about 20 years ago. Hello, 2005 called, and they say "hi." Are you kidding me? In the information age, exactly what is the point of, say, a 10-15 minute tape delay? It's absolutely insane. In this instance, it resulted in us getting the Nebraska game on ABC local with a feed that appeared about ten minutes behind the one we were getting on the ASU-USC channel on the dish.
The ASU game finally kicked in with about six minutes left in the first quarter. I won't rehash the game itself, as I'm sure anyone who cares at all already knows what happens. But I will add that we lost the game feed for no reason at all in the 4th quarter, and during the time it was out we missed the two teams exchanging touchdowns and two lead changes. So that wasn't worth watching at all. Of course, it kicked back in just in time for me to see the Devils completely melt down at the end of the 4th. After the game, Beth called DirecTV to bitch and she rightfully got the charges for the game refunded.
So that's how my Saturday went. Pleasing.
At about 11 AM, Beth asked if I wanted some donuts for breakfast before the Sox game started. Of course I did, but I was already in pre-game mode and really didn't want to leave the house. I just turn into a hermit and have no desire to be "out with the people" when I get locked in like that. But we're talking about donuts, so I relented and agreed to make a quick trip with her to Shipley's, which is right down the street. We arrived there and their shelves were absolutely bare, although the sign indicates that they are open until 2 PM, so I'm not exactly sure what they plan to sell for the next three hours. "Come back tomorrow," implores the shopkeeper, as if they are purveyors of some exotic, hard-to-find item. No thanks, we'll go to Krispy Kreme. That trip was pretty uneventful, aside from Beth's fruitless attempt to purchase a gallon of milk there, ordering one at the drive through window. "Do they have gallons?" I asked. Before pulling off, they had forgotten our milk entirely. Beth reminded the girl at the window and then was handed the standard, small bottle of milk. Which is all I figured they had. But whatever.
Sadly, we were not out of the house long enough to kill the entire FOX Sports pre-game show. I'll save most of my venting about the FOX baseball broadcasts for subsequent posts, assuming that I'll be watching more of their horrific product in the weeks to follow. But they are awful. The Red Sox themselves weren't great either, and I could tell from the first inning that we were in trouble. When Tim Wakefield's knuckleball is on, it floats and dances through the strike zone, causing many missed swings by batters. That just wasn't happening. From the top of the first, the Yanks were getting good wood on the ball. The Sox battled back a couple of times but just couldn't break through against Randy Johnson when they needed to, and thus we're left with a shot at the wild card berth. We can wrap that up with a win on Sunday or a Cleveland loss. It won't be as satisfying as winning the division would have been, but I'll take it. And thankfully, Sunday's game will be on NESN. Last one of the season.
Game two of my personal double-header was the ASU-USC game. I had the mildest of hopes that the Devils could actually pull off an upset against the Trojan juggernaut, and obviously I really wanted to see the game. It featured the number one team in America, the two-time defending national champs, playing a top 20 opponent on the road...so, of course, the Little Rock ABC affiliate elected to show us Nebraska-Iowa State. Absurd. The move would be defensible if the choice involved even a single team with the slightest regional interest--any team from the SEC, for example. But Nebraska-Iowa State? Give me a break.
The only alternative is the Game Plan, an option through the satellite that allows users to purchase out of market games. We went with that. Beth did it, actually, in a very kind gesture, going to the computer and signing up for it without even telling me, knowing full well that I was already annoyed beyond belief by the Sox loss that was nearly over.
So we buy the game...and it doesn't come on. There are an array of channels featuring these pay-per-view contests and none of them have the ASU game on, even the single channel dedicated solely to that game. Oh, but two channels have the Nebraska game. I'm not even joking. And to make it worse, they even had different feeds of the game. For some inexplicable reason, the ABC affiliate here elects to show afternoon games on a slight tape delay if they get to them after they have started. This is a practice that used to be commonplace...about 20 years ago. Hello, 2005 called, and they say "hi." Are you kidding me? In the information age, exactly what is the point of, say, a 10-15 minute tape delay? It's absolutely insane. In this instance, it resulted in us getting the Nebraska game on ABC local with a feed that appeared about ten minutes behind the one we were getting on the ASU-USC channel on the dish.
The ASU game finally kicked in with about six minutes left in the first quarter. I won't rehash the game itself, as I'm sure anyone who cares at all already knows what happens. But I will add that we lost the game feed for no reason at all in the 4th quarter, and during the time it was out we missed the two teams exchanging touchdowns and two lead changes. So that wasn't worth watching at all. Of course, it kicked back in just in time for me to see the Devils completely melt down at the end of the 4th. After the game, Beth called DirecTV to bitch and she rightfully got the charges for the game refunded.
So that's how my Saturday went. Pleasing.
Friday, September 30, 2005
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Whiffleball goes to Hollywood
My buddy John and I finished the script for Whiffleball. He's in L.A. and he already has a couple of industry people interested in reading it, including one story that is so bizarre and "out there" that I'm not even going to write about it here yet. But I'm going to keep a running journal of our experiences shopping the script and I'll post stuff about it later on, when the time is right.
Don't even get me started on the Red Sox. I'm not sleeping well. Let's leave it at that.
ASU vs. USC on Saturday. Yeah...I'll say that we have a chance. I don't feel as well as I did the last time we had such a huge regular season match up like this, which was vs. Nebraska in '96 when we were 26 point underdogs and I told everyone I knew that not only would we definitely cover, but that we'd probably win the game outright. Of course people dismissed me as a blatantly home-rooting crackpot. Which I basically am, but I also don't go around making huge calls like that too often, and I'm not making one this week. Right now USC is probably the best college offense I've ever seen, and I really don't know if we can stop them or contain them. But there's a chance that we can make it interesting, and it should be a hell of a game to watch.
Don't even get me started on the Red Sox. I'm not sleeping well. Let's leave it at that.
ASU vs. USC on Saturday. Yeah...I'll say that we have a chance. I don't feel as well as I did the last time we had such a huge regular season match up like this, which was vs. Nebraska in '96 when we were 26 point underdogs and I told everyone I knew that not only would we definitely cover, but that we'd probably win the game outright. Of course people dismissed me as a blatantly home-rooting crackpot. Which I basically am, but I also don't go around making huge calls like that too often, and I'm not making one this week. Right now USC is probably the best college offense I've ever seen, and I really don't know if we can stop them or contain them. But there's a chance that we can make it interesting, and it should be a hell of a game to watch.
Monday, September 26, 2005
Angst...a good thing
The Boston Red Sox won the World Series last year. Sometimes I have to type that sentence, or at least say it in my head, because it still hasn't fully sunk in. It's something I had waited for my whole life, and it happened in insane fashion after an incredible ride. But it did have one long-term effect (or so I thought) that I didn't expect: it changed the way I would root as a fan in 2005. It made me more relaxed. For the majority of this season, being the World Champs changed the way I felt about things, muting both the highs and the lows. We were in first place for much of the season, and that was great, but I didn't get too fired up over it. And when bad things did happen, things that would have had me cursing or breaking things in prior years, I maintained an even keel, a shocking level of calmness. Is it possible that winning a championship changed the way I watch the game? Was Dan Shaughnessy actually right...do Red Sox fans really define themselves by losing?
I am happy to admit that the answer is a resounding "no." As of last week, all of the Red Sox Angst came rushing back, as if we'd never won anything...and in the best way possible. That blown game in Tampa Bay had me swearing loud enough that one of the dogs was huddling in front of me on the couch, unsure of what to do. We're still the 2004 World Champs, and that's something that can never be taken away. But now 2005 feels like any other year and I'm rooting accordingly, and ecstatic about it. If we blow it this year, I'll be just as pissed as I was in any pre-'04 year, and that's great. Seven games left. Tied with the Yankees. The season ends with three Sox-Yanks games at Fenway. I live for this.
And no, I'm not bitter that I had tickets to the Friday Sox-Yanks game but sold them. Nope. Not at all. *sigh*...
I am happy to admit that the answer is a resounding "no." As of last week, all of the Red Sox Angst came rushing back, as if we'd never won anything...and in the best way possible. That blown game in Tampa Bay had me swearing loud enough that one of the dogs was huddling in front of me on the couch, unsure of what to do. We're still the 2004 World Champs, and that's something that can never be taken away. But now 2005 feels like any other year and I'm rooting accordingly, and ecstatic about it. If we blow it this year, I'll be just as pissed as I was in any pre-'04 year, and that's great. Seven games left. Tied with the Yankees. The season ends with three Sox-Yanks games at Fenway. I live for this.
And no, I'm not bitter that I had tickets to the Friday Sox-Yanks game but sold them. Nope. Not at all. *sigh*...
Friday, September 23, 2005
Quick good stuff
With so much bad stuff happening lately at seemingly every level, I thought I'd take a moment to reveal a few great (but minor) things going on:
The season premiere of Lost was excellent. They actually showed something meaningful inside the hatch! I had my doubts about how season two would begin but they really opened things up well.
Have A Nice Day by Bon Jovi is probably the best new song I've heard in at least a year. It's one of those songs that's so catchy that you want to sing along with it even when you don't know the words. Well, you don't. I do. I love it. I also really enjoy the fact that in 2005 Bon Jovi can release a song that works as well for me now as Livin' On A Prayer did in '87.
Joey on NBC was absolutely hilarious Thursday night. I watched all of last season, basically out of blind loyalty because I was such a huge Friends fan, but a lot of Joey's first season was really mediocre. Tonight's ep was literally funnier than all of last year combined. I hope they keep it up. Nice Kevin Smith cameo, too.
Right now the Sox and the Pats, sadly, don't belong in a "good stuff" piece. I really hope that changes this weekend.
The season premiere of Lost was excellent. They actually showed something meaningful inside the hatch! I had my doubts about how season two would begin but they really opened things up well.
Have A Nice Day by Bon Jovi is probably the best new song I've heard in at least a year. It's one of those songs that's so catchy that you want to sing along with it even when you don't know the words. Well, you don't. I do. I love it. I also really enjoy the fact that in 2005 Bon Jovi can release a song that works as well for me now as Livin' On A Prayer did in '87.
Joey on NBC was absolutely hilarious Thursday night. I watched all of last season, basically out of blind loyalty because I was such a huge Friends fan, but a lot of Joey's first season was really mediocre. Tonight's ep was literally funnier than all of last year combined. I hope they keep it up. Nice Kevin Smith cameo, too.
Right now the Sox and the Pats, sadly, don't belong in a "good stuff" piece. I really hope that changes this weekend.
Saturday, September 17, 2005
Death and Life
My father-in-law passed away on Labor Day and my nephew was born three days later. I don't really feel like rehashing everything about Jim Bob's death in the blog because it was just so draining for everyone for a while. He had a heart attack and basically died instantly. It is horrible for the whole Hillis family and I just did the best I could to support everyone in any way I could during the aftermath. He was only 60 years old.
On a much lighter note, my nephew Logan is adorable. We just got back from Memphis where we got to see him for the first time at just shy of a week old. It's pretty amazing how tiny he is.
Anyway, I don't really have a ton to add but I'm sure I'll come up with some random material later this week. I hope everyone is doing well.
On a much lighter note, my nephew Logan is adorable. We just got back from Memphis where we got to see him for the first time at just shy of a week old. It's pretty amazing how tiny he is.
Anyway, I don't really have a ton to add but I'm sure I'll come up with some random material later this week. I hope everyone is doing well.
Thursday, September 01, 2005
New Orleans
Thanks to everyone who has passed along their best wishes, inquiries about friends in New Orleans, or a simple statement of "I'm glad you don't live there any more!" I'm not really in touch with anyone that still lives there either. Most of our friends have left so the only others there are acquaintances I made in school or co-workers from the restaurant and I don't have any phone numbers or e-mail addresses to get in touch with anyone. I just hope they got out, because the situation for those that stayed looks simply despicable. Leave it to a legitimate natural disaster to bring out the absolute worst displays in certain people. Why is that any catostrophic event now gives specific segments of the population a license to behave as if life is Lord of the Flies? I don't get it. I'm not talking about grabbing some food or water from a store, but rather the rampant occurences of gangs brandishing guns, stealing absurd things like jewelry and TVs, and actually opening fire on people that are trying to help. It's inexplicable to me. For any volunteer/cop/National Guardsmen/soldier/etc./ that finds him or herself in such a predicament, I know that I speak for many of us when I simply say: shoot back. Any criminal taking advantage of such a deplorable event deserves whatever they get. Sorry to rant, but hearing about it really, really pisses me off.
On to lighter things.
I finished the Murder One DVDs. Brilliant. I was actually sad when it ended because it was so good and I had becomes so invested in the characters and the story. Okay. I'm done babbling about Murder One for now.
Random list of the day: The last five CDs I listened to in their entirety:
5. Mix CD that I made in March, 2004. The mixes that I make for The Loop March trips usually rock and are always staples of my collection.
4. Mix CD that I made in October, 2001, that features not one, but two tracks by Steel Dragon, the fictional metal band from Rock Star.
3. Appetite for Destruction. It's easy to forget how great this whole album is when you only ever hear three songs on the radio. And speaking of that, exactly when was it decided that all classic rock stations would play "Paradise City" about twelve times a day in 2005? Not that I'm complaining.
2. Disc two of the Van Halen: Best of Both Worlds greatest hits compilation.
1. A mix CD that I made in January, 2002, before heading to Vegas to watch the Pats win their first Super Bowl. It was a disc that somehow had slipped through the cracks of my collection, one that I thought was lost for good. I was preparing to make my best attempt to re-create it, mainly due to the fact that I have owed a copy of it to a friend of mine for a long time. I put him off because I didn't have the heart to tell him it was gone. Then I found not one, but two copies of it just the other day. Bizarre...
We're off to Memphis for the long weekend. Mom and Dad just drove down a couple of days ago so it will be great to see them, plus Laurie could give birth to the little guy any day now. Everyone have a great weekend!
On to lighter things.
I finished the Murder One DVDs. Brilliant. I was actually sad when it ended because it was so good and I had becomes so invested in the characters and the story. Okay. I'm done babbling about Murder One for now.
Random list of the day: The last five CDs I listened to in their entirety:
5. Mix CD that I made in March, 2004. The mixes that I make for The Loop March trips usually rock and are always staples of my collection.
4. Mix CD that I made in October, 2001, that features not one, but two tracks by Steel Dragon, the fictional metal band from Rock Star.
3. Appetite for Destruction. It's easy to forget how great this whole album is when you only ever hear three songs on the radio. And speaking of that, exactly when was it decided that all classic rock stations would play "Paradise City" about twelve times a day in 2005? Not that I'm complaining.
2. Disc two of the Van Halen: Best of Both Worlds greatest hits compilation.
1. A mix CD that I made in January, 2002, before heading to Vegas to watch the Pats win their first Super Bowl. It was a disc that somehow had slipped through the cracks of my collection, one that I thought was lost for good. I was preparing to make my best attempt to re-create it, mainly due to the fact that I have owed a copy of it to a friend of mine for a long time. I put him off because I didn't have the heart to tell him it was gone. Then I found not one, but two copies of it just the other day. Bizarre...
We're off to Memphis for the long weekend. Mom and Dad just drove down a couple of days ago so it will be great to see them, plus Laurie could give birth to the little guy any day now. Everyone have a great weekend!
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Fargo Rock City
As I mentioned before, I loved Chuck Klosterman's book Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs. I checked his list of previous titles and it turns out a few years ago he wrote a book completely about 80s hair bands called Fargo Rock City. The title is terrible, because the Fargo reference is basically meaningless, despite the fact that he grew up outside of there, while the "Rock City" part only makes people think of Kiss, who are hardly a focal point of the book. Klosterman agrees, as he writes that he would have preferred it be called Appetite for Deconstruction. And if you don't get the pun, then the book isn't for you. But if you agree that Poison were wildly underrated and that Appetite for Destruction is one of the greatest albums ever recorded, run to the store and pick it up. It's a series of anecodtes and essays told in semi-chroological order, starting when Chuck listened to his first Motely Crue album in '83. One of my favorite chapters entails him explaining a principle called "the jack factor," an analysis of an album's value based on how much money someone would have to pay him to willingly never listen to it again. Great stuff.
I checked out the premiere of Prison Break on Fox last night and it looks like it has potential. You have to immediately shrug off the laughable premise and just try to get into the show. I'm not sure how long this concept will have legs but the first two hours were pretty interesting and well done. They say that they already have story lines for subsequent seasons but I could see it wearing thin pretty quickly. One good year would be nice. Kind of like Murder One had in 1995-1996...
I'm almost done with that season of Murder One on DVD and I can say I was more than a little surprised that they reached a verdict in episode 21...of 23. Hmm. Anyway, the show is really good, better than about 98% of anything that's on TV now, and it's too bad it never got a real shot at success when it aired.
I'm really happy we don't live in New Orleans any more. Our old street is completely underwater, as is about 80% of the city from what I can tell. I hear that the Saints are considering temporarily relocating to San Antonio. Yes, I know, that's the least of what anyone should be worrying about but with the start of football looming I can't help thinking about it. Plus the San Antonio Saints is a pretty cool sounding name. I wonder how they would draw there--probably pretty well. And I guarantee the Alamo Dome is a nicer facility than the airplane hangar they are accustomed to playing in.
I checked out the premiere of Prison Break on Fox last night and it looks like it has potential. You have to immediately shrug off the laughable premise and just try to get into the show. I'm not sure how long this concept will have legs but the first two hours were pretty interesting and well done. They say that they already have story lines for subsequent seasons but I could see it wearing thin pretty quickly. One good year would be nice. Kind of like Murder One had in 1995-1996...
I'm almost done with that season of Murder One on DVD and I can say I was more than a little surprised that they reached a verdict in episode 21...of 23. Hmm. Anyway, the show is really good, better than about 98% of anything that's on TV now, and it's too bad it never got a real shot at success when it aired.
I'm really happy we don't live in New Orleans any more. Our old street is completely underwater, as is about 80% of the city from what I can tell. I hear that the Saints are considering temporarily relocating to San Antonio. Yes, I know, that's the least of what anyone should be worrying about but with the start of football looming I can't help thinking about it. Plus the San Antonio Saints is a pretty cool sounding name. I wonder how they would draw there--probably pretty well. And I guarantee the Alamo Dome is a nicer facility than the airplane hangar they are accustomed to playing in.
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Great TV show
I've been watching episodes of a ten year old TV show called Murder One on Netflix lately and they are really good. I remember watching the show a few times when it originally aired on ABC and I enjoyed it then, but they idiotically scheduled it against the juggernaut that was ER...and this being pre-TiVo, keeping up with two shows in the same time slot was just too much. But the show is great and it holds up really well. Check it out if you're looking for a full season of shows to rent.
My nephew arrives in less than a month...crazy! I still think of my little brother as, well...my little brother, so wrapping my mind around the concept that he is now 30 with a real job and (soon) two kids is pretty wild sometimes. But I can't wait to meet "the little guy," as he is being called until he gets a name.
Sox are in the middle of a brutal road trip but I think they'll be in great shape in a couple of weeks. Finishing up with a ton of games at Fenway will be a huge advantage for them. They will probably win the division for the first time since 1995. Bring on the playoffs.
It is absurdly hot here. Over 100 degrees with humidity is just cruel. I keep hearing that Arkansas has an actual change of seasons and I really hope I see something like that happen soon.
My nephew arrives in less than a month...crazy! I still think of my little brother as, well...my little brother, so wrapping my mind around the concept that he is now 30 with a real job and (soon) two kids is pretty wild sometimes. But I can't wait to meet "the little guy," as he is being called until he gets a name.
Sox are in the middle of a brutal road trip but I think they'll be in great shape in a couple of weeks. Finishing up with a ton of games at Fenway will be a huge advantage for them. They will probably win the division for the first time since 1995. Bring on the playoffs.
It is absurdly hot here. Over 100 degrees with humidity is just cruel. I keep hearing that Arkansas has an actual change of seasons and I really hope I see something like that happen soon.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Good for Phil
Major #2 for Phil Mickelson and I'm very happy for him. PTI had a discussion about his future prospects today, debating how many major titles he'll finish with, having the over/under set at five. I'd love him to go over, but it's funny that as recently as two years ago people wondered if and when he'd ever win one. I think now that he has a couple, it will get even easier for him. He'll win another one next year.
Friday, August 12, 2005
Saturday, August 06, 2005
Random thoughts of the day
I was driving in my car today and Youth Gone Wild by Skid Row came on the radio and it could not have made me any happier. I absolutely cranked it.
I cooked decent dinners at least three nights in a row this week and that is probably the first time I have ever been able to say that. Yes, I'm that bored.
I recently read Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman and I was absolutely furious at myself for not picking it up sooner. I literally have held the book in my hand but I inexplicably never bought it. It's frickin' brilliant. I am absolutely his target audience, as the book addresses things like how the Celtics-Lakers rivalry can be applied to practically any competitive situation, the cultural significance of The Empire Strikes Back, and why John Cusack has potentially spoiled the chances of true love for nearly everyone. The book is subtitled "a low-culture manifesto," but that is selling itself short. It's the most brilliant insight into pop culture that I have ever read. It's so good, I wish I wrote it. Sheer genius.
Cool new TV show: No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain (10 PM Monday on the Travel Channel, check your local listings). I loved Bourdain's book Kitchen Confidential, so I decided to check out this show, which is basically a cuisine-centric travelog, albeit one filtered through Bourdain's inimitable ballsy sensibility. Last week's episode saw him in Iceland in the dead of winter, eating shark meat fermented for months in lye--a product that he was implored not to touch with his hands, for fear that it might injure him...before eating it. "That is the worst thing I have ever put in my mouth," he stated afterwards. Coming from him, that means something. It also says a lot about him to add that he had more of that lovely shark dish later at a local watering hole, prefering to do that and quickly chase it with some Icelandic schanpps rather than offend his hosts.
I'm selling two tickets to a Sox-Yankees game on eBay, and you can imagine how much this pains me.
The NFL pre-season begins in less than three hours. Enough said.
I cooked decent dinners at least three nights in a row this week and that is probably the first time I have ever been able to say that. Yes, I'm that bored.
I recently read Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs by Chuck Klosterman and I was absolutely furious at myself for not picking it up sooner. I literally have held the book in my hand but I inexplicably never bought it. It's frickin' brilliant. I am absolutely his target audience, as the book addresses things like how the Celtics-Lakers rivalry can be applied to practically any competitive situation, the cultural significance of The Empire Strikes Back, and why John Cusack has potentially spoiled the chances of true love for nearly everyone. The book is subtitled "a low-culture manifesto," but that is selling itself short. It's the most brilliant insight into pop culture that I have ever read. It's so good, I wish I wrote it. Sheer genius.
Cool new TV show: No Reservations with Anthony Bourdain (10 PM Monday on the Travel Channel, check your local listings). I loved Bourdain's book Kitchen Confidential, so I decided to check out this show, which is basically a cuisine-centric travelog, albeit one filtered through Bourdain's inimitable ballsy sensibility. Last week's episode saw him in Iceland in the dead of winter, eating shark meat fermented for months in lye--a product that he was implored not to touch with his hands, for fear that it might injure him...before eating it. "That is the worst thing I have ever put in my mouth," he stated afterwards. Coming from him, that means something. It also says a lot about him to add that he had more of that lovely shark dish later at a local watering hole, prefering to do that and quickly chase it with some Icelandic schanpps rather than offend his hosts.
I'm selling two tickets to a Sox-Yankees game on eBay, and you can imagine how much this pains me.
The NFL pre-season begins in less than three hours. Enough said.
Monday, August 01, 2005
Manny Being Manny
The MLB trade deadline has passed and I am absolutely ecstatic that the Boston Red Sox did not deal away Manny Ramirez. The reported offers that were on the table for him were just dreadful, and thankfully Theo Epstein and company were smart enough to realize that the best move was to stand pat. And honestly, this whole situation has been ridiculously overblown. Manny is just a goofy guy who flakes out for a few days about once a season. That's it. That's all. That's the entire story. For the rest of the time, he's the most feared hitter in the American League, a cleanup bat that we could never replace, and a future Hall of Famer. Thank god we kept him. If we can just get a couple of people healthy, we'll probably win the whole thing again.
Sunday, July 31, 2005
Free poker money
A while back, a poker message board that I frequent had a post about a site called powerplayer.com that was literally giving people $25 just to sign up on their site. Lots of poker sites give out sign up bonuses and whatnot, but this was flat-out free cash with no deposit required so I used the code to try it out, if only because it sounded too good to be true. It wasn't. The $25 was immediately deposited in my account. The code is now defunct, otherwise I'd post it here so anyone could give it a try.
I hadn't played much on that site, mainly because I don't really like their graphics or their software. It is a skin (a duplicate site that looks exactly the same but has a different name) of Poker Room, which I had tried before because my friend Vince used to play there occasionally. Anyway...I was bored on Friday night and logged onto the site as a $5 MTT (multi table tournament) was about to begin, so I signed up. I ended up finishing in 12th place out of 250 starters. It was a rebuy tournament with an add-on but I didn't do either one and I cleared almost $20 of profit. I got knocked out with pocket queens on a pretty short stack so I can't really complain about the final spot. Tonight I logged back on there again and came in 2nd place in a $5 sit and go tournament (a single table tournament that starts when ten people sign up). Not too bad--all of this for free! My plan is to run the account up to a couple hundred bucks, try to clear an additional $75 bonus that they give you for free if you play enough, and then move the money into my Neteller account.
We saw Charlie and the Chocolate Factory today and it was really good. I loved the book as a child but I've never seen the original movie all the way through, so I can't compare there, but it did seem very faithful to the novel while still incorporating some modern touches. Johnny Depp was great, as always. I can't think of an actor working today that commits more to a role than he does (e.g. Pirates of the Caribbean, Once Upon a Time in Mexico), and he's always great fun to watch. The cast of kids they got was phenomenal as well.
On the other side of the spectrum, I recently rented Napoleon Dynamite. I held off on seeing it for so long because I just didn't think I would like it. I was right. When it finally ended, I was mentally labeling it one of the worst movies I've ever seen. However, a couple of things are making me reconsider this position. First, I've found that I'll occasionally think back to a scene or a moment that is weirdly funny. And secondly, and probably more importantly, my brother thinks that I should give it a chance. If anything, I thought that he might hate it more than me, but on the contrary; he suggests that under the right conditions--his exact preference was "watching it with Kinsman after a few beers"--that I might find it funny. This is probably true, so maybe I'll put this theory to the test some day. Until then, I'll just have to work on my nunchuck skills.
I hadn't played much on that site, mainly because I don't really like their graphics or their software. It is a skin (a duplicate site that looks exactly the same but has a different name) of Poker Room, which I had tried before because my friend Vince used to play there occasionally. Anyway...I was bored on Friday night and logged onto the site as a $5 MTT (multi table tournament) was about to begin, so I signed up. I ended up finishing in 12th place out of 250 starters. It was a rebuy tournament with an add-on but I didn't do either one and I cleared almost $20 of profit. I got knocked out with pocket queens on a pretty short stack so I can't really complain about the final spot. Tonight I logged back on there again and came in 2nd place in a $5 sit and go tournament (a single table tournament that starts when ten people sign up). Not too bad--all of this for free! My plan is to run the account up to a couple hundred bucks, try to clear an additional $75 bonus that they give you for free if you play enough, and then move the money into my Neteller account.
We saw Charlie and the Chocolate Factory today and it was really good. I loved the book as a child but I've never seen the original movie all the way through, so I can't compare there, but it did seem very faithful to the novel while still incorporating some modern touches. Johnny Depp was great, as always. I can't think of an actor working today that commits more to a role than he does (e.g. Pirates of the Caribbean, Once Upon a Time in Mexico), and he's always great fun to watch. The cast of kids they got was phenomenal as well.
On the other side of the spectrum, I recently rented Napoleon Dynamite. I held off on seeing it for so long because I just didn't think I would like it. I was right. When it finally ended, I was mentally labeling it one of the worst movies I've ever seen. However, a couple of things are making me reconsider this position. First, I've found that I'll occasionally think back to a scene or a moment that is weirdly funny. And secondly, and probably more importantly, my brother thinks that I should give it a chance. If anything, I thought that he might hate it more than me, but on the contrary; he suggests that under the right conditions--his exact preference was "watching it with Kinsman after a few beers"--that I might find it funny. This is probably true, so maybe I'll put this theory to the test some day. Until then, I'll just have to work on my nunchuck skills.
Friday, July 29, 2005
Back to reality
I didn't win the World Series of Poker. I didn't even win any money.
I'm back home, and it's been long enough that I can finally sit down and write about it all. This will probably be long and rambling, if only to make up for the dearth of posts lately.
So where was I? That's right, I was in Vegas for the WSOP. My friend Shaw B was in town with a bunch of his buddies from Dallas, a rowdy crew of guys that I had never met. I met them at The Palms and we had a blast. They were all sitting at a blackjack table together and Shaw relinquished his third base seat to me. To make a long story short, the session ended after everyone there won a decent amount of cash and we all pounded a round of shots called a Red Headed Slut right there at the table. After that, we headed up to Ghostbar, one of Palms' notoriously cool hipster hangouts. This one happened to be 55 stories up, including a balcony patio with a gorgeous view of all of Las Vegas. Good times.
After several absurdly expensive cocktails, we made our way back downstairs, only to find ourselves all sitting down to play blackjack once again. What ensused was classic Vegas material: we all were feeling good and had had plenty of beverages, so of course that led to even more rowdy behavior at the table, exacerbated by the fact that we hit a tremendous stretch of cards. We had a blast. The details were a little sketchy even the next morning, let alone this long after the fact, so we'll just leave it at that.
I spent the next couple of days scouting out the WSOP and just having fun. Poker legends were everywhere, as were Hollywood celebrities. I saw Antonio Esfandiari at least five times. We saw Jennifer Tilly out and about more than once, wearing her WSOP bracelet, which I thought was great. I caught Tobey Maguire playing some high-limit Hold 'Em at Bellagio. I met Phil Hellmuth at a party and he was great. All in all, it was a fun and crazy week.
I started the tournament on Saturday at 11 AM and I was understandably a little nervous. However, those feelings quickly passed and I settled in to play my best game. For the record, my first hand ever at the WSOP was a glorious 2-8 off suit...glorious in that I didn't even have to think about playing it. I played pretty tight at first and it became evident that almost my entire table was filled with players that weren't very good. The lone exception was the player on my left, a friendly and personable guy about my age who went by the name of Tex. We got to chatting a little bit and really only got involved in two pots against each other. In one, we were the only players to see the flop and although I had no hand at all, I made a token bluff. He raised right back at me and I laid it down. This was very early, so it didn't cost much. In the other hand, I hit a fluky full house and he laid down his hand after I made a sizable bet on the river.
Shaw B and Erik, my faithful railbirds, also took a liking to Tex's wife, whom they met as they were all watching us. But Tex and I soon parted ways, as our table broke up pretty early. I wouldn't run into him again, although several days later I found out (spoiler warnings for anyone waiting for the ESPN coverage) that Tex went on to make the final table and finish in 3rd place, winning a cool $2.5 million. From all indications, he is a great player and a great guy, so good for him. And I'd bet good money that his wife logs some ESPN camera time.
The rest of Saturday was fairly uneventful. My stack didn't make any huge swings one way or the other. I did knock out a couple of other players and sit next to a couple of other pros, notably Gavin Griffin and Arnold Spee, who were both very nice guys--in 2004, Gavin became the youngest player ever to win a WSOP bracelet; Arnold won a World Poker Tour event in Reno, defeating Phil Ivey, among others. Late that night I went pretty card dead and was basically happy to have survived the day with a bigger stack than I started with. I ended the night with $12,000 and change in chips, which we bagged up at around 2:30 AM. I then went outside to find the longest cab line I've ever seen at a hotel in my life. I got to bed at around 4.
I came back eager and ready to play on Sunday and won a decent pot with AK on the first hand of the day. Shortly after that, former champ Chris Moneymaker busted out three tables away from mine. I got a chance to meet Chris and chat with him a little bit on Thursday and he was incredibly nice and gracious, just a super guy, and accomodating as can be for someone who still gets hounded everywhere by fans.
The cards went dead again and I just hung around, waiting for my shot. It finally came in the afternoon when my stack was down to about $11,000 and I was dealt pocket aces for the first time in the tournament. A very loose player with a big stack two seats to my right raised to $2500, so this was my chance. I wanted to get all of my money in, and I wanted him (and only him) to call me. Thus, it was Hollywood time. With one player sitting between us, I went into full acting mode, leaning out, staring at his stack of chips, then checking my own stack, then looking at him, then at his chips again, then at my cards again...before finally going all in. Everyone else folded, and he called with a suited KQ. I ended up making aces full of tens and my stack went up over $25,000, the highwater mark of the tournament.
Then the cards went dead again. Dan Harrington got knocked out two tables away from me and walked right past me to do an ESPN interview. He got a standing ovation from the whole room, including me. Harrington's two books were a huge help for me, and it felt odd to see him bust out before I did. Apparently I even held up the action at our table for a moment as I was standing and applauding while the action was on me.
Harrington is a tight player and his books preach patience, which had gotten me this far and looked like it would get me to the dinner break again, which was fifteen minutes away when I was dealt pocket kings. I raised to $2500 and got one caller--exactly what you want to happen. He took quite a while to make the call so I thought he had a borderline hand. The flop came 6-8-9. Perfect. I was first to act and bet out $7000. He thought long and hard before calling. He had a ton of chips and clearly was on a draw of some sort. Me, I had about $11,000 left at this point after my two big bets. The turn brought a useless deuce. I thought for a moment, knowing that I had the best hand, and pushed it all in. He eventually called and revealed a 6-7. He had called a $2500 raise pre-flop with a suited 6-7. Absurd. But I was right all along--he was on a draw and I had him beat.
Until a 7 fell on the river. He made two pair, and I was out of the tournament. I was stunned. I made my way out of the tournament area and Erik and I made a beeline to the bar, where we quickly downed several Captain and Diet Cokes and I made a few requisite "I'm out" phone calls and sent a few text messages. I couldn't believe it was over.
After taking some time to get a little distance from everything, I realized that my feelings about everything couldn't be more conflicted. I was completely happy with how I played. I was in the biggest tournament in the history of poker and I finished in the top 20% and outlasted many of my heroes. That felt great. And I went out on a hand that I read right and played right...but it still knocked me out, and that felt terrible. If I had won that hand, I would have been over $50,000 in chips and I would have been looking really good. But it just didn't happen. I had an incredible time and it was a great experience, but I was left with a painful, nagging feeling that I still have been unable to shake: I can play with those guys. They're the best in the world, and I can play with them.
I'll fill in more of what has happened since soon. Nothing earth-shattering, although I have read a couple of good books.
I'm back home, and it's been long enough that I can finally sit down and write about it all. This will probably be long and rambling, if only to make up for the dearth of posts lately.
So where was I? That's right, I was in Vegas for the WSOP. My friend Shaw B was in town with a bunch of his buddies from Dallas, a rowdy crew of guys that I had never met. I met them at The Palms and we had a blast. They were all sitting at a blackjack table together and Shaw relinquished his third base seat to me. To make a long story short, the session ended after everyone there won a decent amount of cash and we all pounded a round of shots called a Red Headed Slut right there at the table. After that, we headed up to Ghostbar, one of Palms' notoriously cool hipster hangouts. This one happened to be 55 stories up, including a balcony patio with a gorgeous view of all of Las Vegas. Good times.
After several absurdly expensive cocktails, we made our way back downstairs, only to find ourselves all sitting down to play blackjack once again. What ensused was classic Vegas material: we all were feeling good and had had plenty of beverages, so of course that led to even more rowdy behavior at the table, exacerbated by the fact that we hit a tremendous stretch of cards. We had a blast. The details were a little sketchy even the next morning, let alone this long after the fact, so we'll just leave it at that.
I spent the next couple of days scouting out the WSOP and just having fun. Poker legends were everywhere, as were Hollywood celebrities. I saw Antonio Esfandiari at least five times. We saw Jennifer Tilly out and about more than once, wearing her WSOP bracelet, which I thought was great. I caught Tobey Maguire playing some high-limit Hold 'Em at Bellagio. I met Phil Hellmuth at a party and he was great. All in all, it was a fun and crazy week.
I started the tournament on Saturday at 11 AM and I was understandably a little nervous. However, those feelings quickly passed and I settled in to play my best game. For the record, my first hand ever at the WSOP was a glorious 2-8 off suit...glorious in that I didn't even have to think about playing it. I played pretty tight at first and it became evident that almost my entire table was filled with players that weren't very good. The lone exception was the player on my left, a friendly and personable guy about my age who went by the name of Tex. We got to chatting a little bit and really only got involved in two pots against each other. In one, we were the only players to see the flop and although I had no hand at all, I made a token bluff. He raised right back at me and I laid it down. This was very early, so it didn't cost much. In the other hand, I hit a fluky full house and he laid down his hand after I made a sizable bet on the river.
Shaw B and Erik, my faithful railbirds, also took a liking to Tex's wife, whom they met as they were all watching us. But Tex and I soon parted ways, as our table broke up pretty early. I wouldn't run into him again, although several days later I found out (spoiler warnings for anyone waiting for the ESPN coverage) that Tex went on to make the final table and finish in 3rd place, winning a cool $2.5 million. From all indications, he is a great player and a great guy, so good for him. And I'd bet good money that his wife logs some ESPN camera time.
The rest of Saturday was fairly uneventful. My stack didn't make any huge swings one way or the other. I did knock out a couple of other players and sit next to a couple of other pros, notably Gavin Griffin and Arnold Spee, who were both very nice guys--in 2004, Gavin became the youngest player ever to win a WSOP bracelet; Arnold won a World Poker Tour event in Reno, defeating Phil Ivey, among others. Late that night I went pretty card dead and was basically happy to have survived the day with a bigger stack than I started with. I ended the night with $12,000 and change in chips, which we bagged up at around 2:30 AM. I then went outside to find the longest cab line I've ever seen at a hotel in my life. I got to bed at around 4.
I came back eager and ready to play on Sunday and won a decent pot with AK on the first hand of the day. Shortly after that, former champ Chris Moneymaker busted out three tables away from mine. I got a chance to meet Chris and chat with him a little bit on Thursday and he was incredibly nice and gracious, just a super guy, and accomodating as can be for someone who still gets hounded everywhere by fans.
The cards went dead again and I just hung around, waiting for my shot. It finally came in the afternoon when my stack was down to about $11,000 and I was dealt pocket aces for the first time in the tournament. A very loose player with a big stack two seats to my right raised to $2500, so this was my chance. I wanted to get all of my money in, and I wanted him (and only him) to call me. Thus, it was Hollywood time. With one player sitting between us, I went into full acting mode, leaning out, staring at his stack of chips, then checking my own stack, then looking at him, then at his chips again, then at my cards again...before finally going all in. Everyone else folded, and he called with a suited KQ. I ended up making aces full of tens and my stack went up over $25,000, the highwater mark of the tournament.
Then the cards went dead again. Dan Harrington got knocked out two tables away from me and walked right past me to do an ESPN interview. He got a standing ovation from the whole room, including me. Harrington's two books were a huge help for me, and it felt odd to see him bust out before I did. Apparently I even held up the action at our table for a moment as I was standing and applauding while the action was on me.
Harrington is a tight player and his books preach patience, which had gotten me this far and looked like it would get me to the dinner break again, which was fifteen minutes away when I was dealt pocket kings. I raised to $2500 and got one caller--exactly what you want to happen. He took quite a while to make the call so I thought he had a borderline hand. The flop came 6-8-9. Perfect. I was first to act and bet out $7000. He thought long and hard before calling. He had a ton of chips and clearly was on a draw of some sort. Me, I had about $11,000 left at this point after my two big bets. The turn brought a useless deuce. I thought for a moment, knowing that I had the best hand, and pushed it all in. He eventually called and revealed a 6-7. He had called a $2500 raise pre-flop with a suited 6-7. Absurd. But I was right all along--he was on a draw and I had him beat.
Until a 7 fell on the river. He made two pair, and I was out of the tournament. I was stunned. I made my way out of the tournament area and Erik and I made a beeline to the bar, where we quickly downed several Captain and Diet Cokes and I made a few requisite "I'm out" phone calls and sent a few text messages. I couldn't believe it was over.
After taking some time to get a little distance from everything, I realized that my feelings about everything couldn't be more conflicted. I was completely happy with how I played. I was in the biggest tournament in the history of poker and I finished in the top 20% and outlasted many of my heroes. That felt great. And I went out on a hand that I read right and played right...but it still knocked me out, and that felt terrible. If I had won that hand, I would have been over $50,000 in chips and I would have been looking really good. But it just didn't happen. I had an incredible time and it was a great experience, but I was left with a painful, nagging feeling that I still have been unable to shake: I can play with those guys. They're the best in the world, and I can play with them.
I'll fill in more of what has happened since soon. Nothing earth-shattering, although I have read a couple of good books.
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