I had a great time at Foxwoods. Not just because I took about a grand off the 1/2 NLHE tables. That was fun. I feel good about how I treated the whole game in general. So without further hesitation I will treat you to some of the highlights.
I went to Foxwoods with my WSOP chip from 2005 in my pocket. Sort of as a lucky symbol but also to remind me of what a great guy
Dr. Pauly is. The first time I ever played live, and the first time I played at Foxwoods was with him. It actually is the first time I ever won live too. Perhaps that chip is lucky!
The ride up to Foxwoods was thoroughly enjoyable. I always get bored riding alone. I need someone in the car with me. Luckily I had the wonderful
VeryJosie with me. She made the ride fly by even if we got a little lost.
I did not have the usual excited anticipation to play. You know that nervous energy you get. Where you have to basically run to the table and get in immediately even if the blind is only 2 hands away. I shut all that down.
Instead I focused on my inner mental state. I told myself that I am lucky as anyone else and that I play a damn good game of poker. I tried to not think about past sessions or how I was "Bad luck Waffles". Instead I wanted to start fresh and positive.
I brought three buyins of $100 each. I did not want to just slap a full $300 on the table. I have no bankroll going. I just wanted to give myself a few shots to succeed. I think this worked out well. Once I get a bankroll built up I will bump it to three full buyins.
We got a fresh, new table to start with. It was towards the back of the room and had sun pouring in later in the afternoon. I took the 4 seat. I liked the position. Josie was in the one, some young kid started in the two, a really solid player who was getting total lucksack cards was in the 3.
A heavy blonde cutie comes and sits down in the five. She immediately starts talking to me. "Did you go to school with me? Is your name Eddie?". We were having a nice conversation. Later in the game she made a really rude comment to Josie after it became apparent we knew each other. Josie said she was hitting on me but I am clueless.
Our side of the table was awesome. Everyone was talkative and having a good time. The lucksack had like 3 boats and quads all in like a fifteen minute period and amassed a huge stack.
The first big hand I was in ironically was against Josie. She raised pre-flop and I called with KT spades. I might have been tired of her raising. Her and the guy in the two seat kept randomly raising or something. It got me off my game a little at times and I made some looser calls which is NOT how to win.
The flop came down QJ spades. I had a SF draw and an over card. I think I counted my outs as 21x2. I know. I know. I overestimate sometimes. So when Josie bet out and I had a little less than a hundred behind I jammed in on her. She insta-called and flipped up her Aces. We were racing for a stack. I think I would make this place all day long. Anyone disagree? She obviously had some of my outs which was bad. She also won this hand so I had to rebuy!!
I was nursing my second hundred as it went up and down. At one point it was down to like fourty bucks. I worked it back up. I then flopped two pair and got all in 3-ways. I was basically trying to isolate the early position player. The guy who called behind me had TP queen kicker. He rivered a Jack to make a better two pair. I was back down to nursing my hundred. Luckily he did not have more.
I worked my stack BACK up and then got creamed when someone before me jammed a Jxx flop. I had KJ and did not put him on a hand. I called and it was heads up. He turned over A2, no draws, and then promptly turned me into a liar with an Ace on the turn. Ug. Back to nursing a hundred.
I started feeling the old attitude creep in. I grumbled at the Ace guy a little. I made some loose calls. I played pretty shitty for a couple hands. I then mentally focused myself. I told myself I AM NOT bad luck. I have the same luck as anyone. I am a normal person. I am NOT Waffles. I am lucky and good and I can do this. I can be a winner. No more negative mind fuck games. So I settled down a little.
A few hands later I tangle with the kid next to Josie. I forget the exact hands. I think I had TPTK and he had TP weak kicker. He paid off my value bets which were smallish in the 10-20 chip range. We may have both even made trips. I can not exactly remember. This got me back over two hundred though.
I then got into the BIG hand of the day. I had just won the hand with the kid and Josie raised my blind. I look down and see a small pair of 3's and decide to set mine. The flop comes an awesome AJ3. Josie raises and since it is just the two of us I jam all in. She can not call fast enough. It is an INSTANT call. She flips up her AQ TPTK and I turn over my set. She has no redraws. She then asks "how much does he have like 50?" and the dealer says, "No, he has like 250!".. She is like "WTF?!!?!". She has to cut out a huge part of her stack and then she puts her head in her hands like OMG! What was I thinking! It was kind of sad.
I tried to cheer her up and tell her she could work her stack back up. She was kind of playing a little reckless because she was mad. A little while later she calmed down and started building her stack again.
For me that hand was THE last tough moment of the day. I now had around a $500 stack and I played it well. I never looked back. At first I started playing a little too loose. The adrenaline started RUSHING through my body. I caught myself and stopped making bad limp/calls from EP with ace rags and things like that.
People came and went from the right side of the table. We had an Asian kid come in. I was licking my lips saying "Damn, AWESOME, a Crasian!". Crazy Asian Players! WOO HOO! This kid was totally opposite. His game was so ABC that I could read his every move. He played well for a while then got busted on a slightly bad beat.
I lost a few chips when I jammed in over an EP guy with my two pair. A guy further down the line had flopped a set of two's. Ouch. I think it was the right move but it hurt a bit.
I started opening my game up a little. I played solid but when I saw hands where people were drawing or where I knew they hated their hand I 3-bet and then showed stellar hands like 8 high nothing to try and get some action.
I also raised a lot of hands in late position especially on the button. Josie, the kid in the two's, and the lucksack were the ONLY part of the table that would EVER raise. I mean guys limped Queens and Aces at times. It was pretty sick. So I started raising to 15-20 when 3-4 people limped before me and none of the better players raised. I would sweep in some small pots and show my 53o or 84o.
I bluffed Josie off one hand. It was not a large hand. I knew she hated her cards but she also had me beat. So I put the river bet in and made her fold. I think she played it well.
I also played a nasty, fishy hand with her. I had a 9 on a TJQ type board.. maybe not even that good.. she put out two good sized bets of like 20-30 and I called like a fish. I rivered my straight and value towned her which was not very nice. It was actually a horrible play on my part and the type of thing that ends up making you a losing player.
The left side of the table kept spewing out people while our side was pretty stable all day long. An old guy name Angelino came and he was a loud mouth. A couple comments he made were pretty funny.
I had A4 and the flop came down A4x. He bets out and Josie calls and I call behind. The turn is an 8, he checks, Josie puts out a big bet and I KNOW I am now beat. I put her on EXACTLY A8. So I make the disciplined fold of my two pair. I fold it face up (causing an uproar because there were people left to act, ooops)... Angelino then starts YELLING at me. HOW YOU FOLD THAT!!! YOU SUCK! YOU NEVA WIN NOTHING! WHAT YOU MARRIED TO JOSEPHINA!!!! I showed him my hand was ring-less. He goes on and on and on. Oh my god. He would not shut up.
I started letting him get to me but then I just decided to cool down. He was exactly like I usually am though. Complaining about bad beats and peoples plays. Josie went all in with nothing but a flush draw on the turn and sucked out on him. I think she was feeling frustrated because she never plays that way. He goes off on her. OH MAY GOD! WHY YOU PLAY SO BAD! YOU SUCK! IMMA GET YOU!". It was so stupid.
In order to relieve my frustration I start in on my side of the table in a slightly quiet voice "Hey you kids! Getta off my grass!" "No let your dog shit on my lawn!". It was hilarious. My whole side of the table started making fun of him, just not too loud because we did not want to set him off. He got a little quiet when he got stacked but then he won a few post and starts ramping it up again.
Eventually he came by and gave Josie a massage when he learned she was Italian too. He said "Imma not get you anymore Josephina! You ok with me!". It was pretty funny. I hear he has good hands too.
As Josie mentioned she got to have pictures with
James Freakin Woods. He blew off some dude who wanted a picture too but Josie charmed him.
After that everything I said was "James Fucking Woods would not fold that.." or "James Fucking Woods would.." because Josie was all like "That's James Freakin Woods and I have a Picture with Him!".
I was ready to leave when my stack hit $800 but Josie kept wanting to play. She actually suggested we leave after "this blind".. then she would play for another hour.. then she was like "I have to pee so bad".. then play another hour. It was kinda funny and I thought I would never leave. Eventually she got tired and felt like leaving.
I took her out for dinner to pay off our bet. Whoever wins the most pays for dinner. I had cashed out almost $900 and still had another hundred in my pocket. So I was cool with it.
Josie took a picture of my two racks full of redbirds but apparently I am never going to see that picture otherwise I would post the proof. Dinner was pretty good. We went to the
Cedars Steak House. I was hoping she would not pull a
Wolfie. I wanted to keep some profit. She was reasonable with a glass of wine, a $18 plate of Shrimp Cocktail and $10 Beefsteak Tomato Salad. Of course this was not dinner to her so I still apparently owe her one.
The ride home was pleasant. I would have rather won some more money and stayed the night but Josie helped keep me awake on the ride home. I dropped her off and finally got in around 3AM. Ug.
It was a long day and I was exhausted. I woke up really early the next day too. I was a winner though. I fought through some bad beats and bad mentality and came home with a pocket full of cash. I gave the kids each a twenty (Josie's suggestion, and a good one!) and still stuck $800 in my new savings account, and have enough cash for lunch all week. I am considering this my bankroll for the moment and intend to go back soon.
I woke up this morning. I was tired. So I decided to send my boss an email and go in a tiny bit late. I worked out the football pool and played a little Warcraft. I went to my bank and deposited money. I went to my old bank and got some printouts of the finances and changed the mailing address to my PO Box. I enjoyed the sunshine and getting things done.
I feel really good this morning. I think things are looking up. No more negativity. I am going to take the world and make it my bitch. Peace.
