Sometimes Treading Water is Good

Some quick February stats: 2,600 online hands (1230 on FullTilt and 1410 on Party), flat for the month including limited live cash games and SNG's (maybe up $100 or so). Bankroll sits at $5,443.

• Top table win: 51 hands, $381 ($5/10, Party); worst table loss: 83 hands, -$602 ($8/16, FullTilt)
• Top per hand average: Party (A2s, KK, JTs, AKs, 66); FullTilt (A9s, 98s, 86s, QQ, 88)
• Worst per hand average: Party (KTs, QTs, JTo, A8o, T9s); FullTilt (54s, AKo, AKs, A4s, T9s)

One thing that jumps out at the initial stats is that this is what a Closet Poker Player's existence looks like. I can't play regularly, having to steal playing time late night, when traveling, or after work before going home. It can be quite a challenging existence, forcing you to make bad table decisions (like the $8/16 FullTilt because that was all that was available). It may help my discipline, I'm not sure, as I am constantly feeling the pressure to act since my time is limited. I do feel I have a looser game than I would like due to this. It also makes goals quite a challenge for me. My first very positive goal is not to bust my online bankroll, which I'm happy to say I've achieved so far (sitting around $1925). I'd like to have some really big-time goals like I see from other bloggers I admire, but I'm going to stay simple, try to play at comfortable online limits and just take it from there.

I climbed into bed with All-In last night (our second of three boys). We had a late dinner at Ippolito's, celebrating Mardi Gras with chicken parm. We're giving up eating out for Lent which will be quite a sacrifice for us (we get one weekend meal per week). Lent is the 40 days leading up to Easter. It is a bigger Catholic period than Protestant, but many Protestant churches embraced it in the '80's and '90's to broaden their horizons a bit. This also means I don't eat out for breakfast or lunch, which will be a big challenge. Anyways, All-In sleeps on the bottom bunk of the bed with his older brother. I grabbed one of his bedspreads, wrapped it around me, and hopped on his bed around 8:30. At 10:30, I got up and went into our room, only to find my wife and our Gordon Setter asleep in our bed. I head to the guest room and plop down there, then somehow am taken to our bed around midnight. I'm up and out of bed at 7:00 this morning. 10 1/2 hours of sleep--I highly recommend it every couple of weeks.

A couple of quick notes:

• Go to see Avonita. Click on the Episode 2 part on the main page and enjoy. This is an advertising campaign that we developed for a client targeting the architect and design market. Ava Knight, designer by day, becomes Avonita, designer superhero. In the episode, Ava pursues her poker passion, winning a big risky pot in the beginning of the episode then forcing a big laydown at the end of the episode.
• Erin Bode. For WillWonka and you other St. Louis bloggers, here is one of your own. A great jazz vocalist that I found on iTunes. Regardless of your musical tastes, it's great.
• ProFlowers. Three dozen petite roses, $29.99. I was having lunch with my wife yesterday, and she told me about a lady she knows contemplating leaving her husband because he's constantly working and not focused on her. It sounded like she's got some issues to be sure, but one thing she said in their group was, "I can't remember the last time he gave me flowers." For the guys out there, there really is no reason not to give your wife or significant other roses for no occasion. If you're cheap, well, most roses come from South America now and are very inexpensive. Regardless, stop and get some flowers for her. Why? Well, because you get to play poker, if you need a reason.
• The Bay 101 Shooting Stars tourney going on as we speak, down to 59 players. My bud, Joe Sebok (Barry Greenstein's son) took a brutal beat late when Dan Harrington doubled through with A9 with Joe holding AQ (Dan sucks out a 9 when he needs it). Jennifer Tilly still there with other notables, including Gus Hansen, Allen Cunningham, Layne Flack, Robert Mizrachi, Chip Reese. Go to CardPlayer or Bluff to follow the action this afternoon.