Thursday, June 29, 2006

Poker at the Clearwater

School Work - Wednesday

I worked the early morning until the early evening on Wednesday on some curriculum stuff at school. I was so pumped up after completing my unit that I decided to flex my muscles a little for the crowd. Work is fun.

Poker at the Clearwater Theater - Thursday
Before I get to the Clearwater tournament, let's start at John's house at about 2pm. We decided last night to have a mid-afternoon poker session. $1 buy-in netted 100 chips. We played until 5:30pm. If one of us went out, we could re-buy 100 chips for $1 more. The game was the dealer's choice. The person with the most chips at 5:30pm walked away with all of the cash. Here are your participants:

Jesse

John

Scott

Marc

This is my ideal afternoon, to be totally honest. We played five card draw, seven card stud, seven card stud (High Spade, Low Hold), Omaha, Omaha Hi/Lo Split, 7 & 27, Texas Hold 'em, and Nighttime Baseball. I love mixing it up like this. I may not be very good at it, but I still enjoy it. I'll explain it like this: John won $14 on from an initial $4 pot. Scott had to re-buy twice. John had to re-buy three times. And I had to re-buy six times. Kind of pathetic, I know, but I would like to point out that I rebought at 5:15pm, with only fifteen minutes left to go, and I was the chip leader for the last hand. That's pretty impressive. Jesse, in an even more impressive feat, was knocked out of chips at about 5:15pm, even though he didn't have to re-buy once. That's poker, baby.


John ended up winning that last hand (and apologies, John, but this picture of you is absolutely outstanding) because Scott pushed all-in. We were playing High Spade, Low Hold, which has the possibility of a split pot. If the pot were to split between the two, I'd win the money. I could sit out and let them duke it out. But, if the pot didn't split, it was guaranteed that one of them would beat me easily. So, I had to call. John ended up winning the whole thing, obviously. The pot didn't split. He had a full house and the high spade down. God, I love that picture.

Onto the Clearwater. Apparently, the Clearwater Theater in West Dundee has a No Limit Texas Hold 'Em tournament every Thursday night. It's absolutely free, so we decided that the afternoon poker would be a warm-up for the evening's main event.


This was a picture of the room before the field showed up. At the start of the tournament there were 48 people on eight different tables. Scott, John, and I were all on a table together. We were hesitant to push each other around, so instead we beat up on everyone else at the table, which took a while. By the time we mopped up at our table, we split up: John and I went to one table with two seats open and Scott waited for one seat to open up at another table.

Playing with people I've never met before is fun to me. Typically, they don't know what to expect from me, and I don't know what to expect from them. Long story short, at that table I turned my 6600 chips into 16500 chips (the initial chip count for everyone was 2500). John held his own for a while at the table before being put out in 10th place. Scott went next at 9th place at his table, which allowed me to take a seat at...


the Final Table!

My heart was racing every time I pushed all-in, or every time I faced a big decision, which was weird because, after all, this was a free event. I didn't have any money at stake, whereas earlier in the day I kept going all-in and losing and putting another dollar in the pot that John eventually took home. I ended up finishing in third place at the Clearwater, which is pretty respectable. The blinds kept eating me up, I wasn't getting good cards, and the Red Woman - who also knocked Scott out, coincidentally - was on the rush of a lifetime. Every time someone pushed all-in she either had a high pocket pair - Queens when I pushed all-in with 9/10 of spades - or she outdrew them with over cards.

Overall it was a really fun experience. I'd go again next week, but I'm moving my sisters to Florida. I am proud of my crew, who all finished in the top 10 at the tournament. I think the MPG Crew is ready to take over the... West... Suburban... Free... Poker... World?

Off to bed. I may try to finish Eats, Shoots and Leaves tonight. Fascinating book for all you grammarians out there. Tomorrow will probably see me back *gulp* at the laundromat. Gross.

she loves me. she loves me not. she loves me!

so a little 4 year old girl says to me, "i love you ms annie! i love you more than all the days!"

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

the cubs game: a different perspective

so the cubs game last night.... in one word? disappointing.
here's why... in a not so concise manner.

cubs vs. brewers, 06.27.06.
a play in three acts.
from the viewpoint of the two 29 year old women that sat in section 240, row 11, seats 13-14.

the cast:
woman 1 (the complainer)
woman 2 (the listener)
scott (the cubs fan in section 240, row 12, seat 14)

act 1, scene 1:
innings 1 through top of 5. brewers go up 3-0 on pretty standard effort from the cubs. w1 and w2 are engaged in the same conversation throughout, over the course of 2 beers each and a combined 3 glances to the field and/or scoreboard. cubs are obviously losing because of the atmosphere of the crowd.

w1: ...and i'm just floored... i mean i'm devastated, you know? so i finally told him that i love him more than he loves me... and i'm like, 'you're just in love with love, you know? you don't want to meet my dad, do you? you don't care like i care...?!'
w2: no....
w1: yes! and so i'm telling him all this, and it's like he's not even listening. so i don't talk to him for like two days, and he calls me up one night, and we get talking, and i finally ask him to come over for dinner and to talk about 'us'...

act 1, scene 2:
bottom of 5th. zambrano homers (2) on a two run fly to right field stands. incredibly, henry blanco was on base, and the cubs get 2 back. cubs fans are on their feet. w1 and w2 stay seated, engrossed in discussion about evil boyfriend over beer number 3. it's obvious to background cubs fans that as the only player that cares about anything, zambrano should be in the line-up every game... maybe in left field? 2nd base? as D.Z. (designated zambrano)?

w1: ...and it just kills me to say this but we talked and i felt better about things until the next day when i called him twice and left him an email and he never got back to me.
w2: oh... honey, it's just not worth it.
w1: i know! but then he finally did call a couple days later, you know after i've just gone through 48 hours of suffering... but we talk again, and end up going out last friday night to this party...

act 2, scene 1:
innings 6-7 jacque jones, surprisingly, doubles (14) on a fly ball to center field. ronny cedeno scores. tie game, 3-3. w1 and w2 leave their seats for an apparent bathroom break and maybe some food. they will not return for 2 1/2 innings... just before the 9th. brewers immediately get one back as jeff cirillo singles on a line drive to right field and damian miller (ex-cub of course) scores. 4-3 brewers.

w1: (on the way down the steps) it's just unbelievable because i know i shouldn't even bother, but i can't help it...
w2: (following w1) um-hmm...

act 2, scene 2:
cubbies bring new and, naturally, false hope to the game by having what seems to resemble a major league 8th inning. aramis ramirez homers (14) to center field. todd walker later singles to left field, scoring pinch runner matt murton. 5-4 cubs.

scott: alright!

act 3, scene 1:
w1 and w2 return before the brewers' 9th, still deep in conversation about evil boyfrield. after sitting with their new pretzels and beers number 5 or maybe 6, they resume conversation.

w1: ... so i just figure, 'tonight, just one last time, i might as well get *blanked* because, i dunno, i should just go out with a bang you know!!
w2: ha ha ha.... nice! hey, people are excited... what's the score?
w1: i don't know. what inning is it?
w2: ... it's tied! yay! no wait...
w1: how can you tell?
w2: up on that thingy. they've got the score up there by innings i think.
w1: one.. two.. three... four... they have four scores, right?
w2: yeah, four to...

this interaction goes on for several minutes. brewers make the cubs and their respective (but not very respectful) fans look like complete idiots. gabe gross hits a sacrifice bunt. corey koskie scores. throwing error by pitcher ryan dempster. corey hart reaches on fielding error by shortstop ronny cedeno. damian miller scores. rickie weeks hits a sacrifice fly to center field. gabe gross scores. 8-5 brewers. w1 and w2 leave, maybe after figuring out the score, maybe not.

scott: (sigh).

the end.

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Lincoln Park Zoo & Wrigley Field

I played in two poker tournaments late last night at the time I usually post on SOG2k6. In the first, I put in an absolutely miserable performance and ended up something like 2500 out of 3500. Frankly, I'm amazed I outlasted 1000 other people. In the second tournament I fared much better, and was even 22 out of 2400 at one point. I was on my game. But then a cold streak hit and I wasted all of my chips, and my patience decided to go, too. I ended up 359th out of 3500 total, and even won $.18, which is $.8 more than I posted to get into the tournament. I was so upset, though, that I slammed my headphones down, turned off the computer, and went immediately to bed. So, as a result, I missed...

The Lincoln Park Zoo - Monday

Annie had the day off Monday because she has these awesome new hours where she only works four days a week (albeit at ten hours a day). She gets either Wednesday, Friday, or Monday off once a week, and on the weeks she gets Fridays off, she gets the following Monday off, too. Hooray for four day weekends!



We did a lazy little jaunt around the place, stopping at the must sees: seals, gorillas, new African Apes exhibit, lions and tigers, and the small mammal exhibit. The tiger above is doing her best impression of the Chicago Cubs. Spot on.



Really, though, the whole trip was just an elaborate excuse for ice cream and root beer floats. Mmm... root beer floats. Kind of a strange name, though, don't you think? Doesn't the ice cream actually float? Best not to think about it, I guess. The whole trip was highlighted by the fact that I got a killer parking space on Lincoln Park West, and we only had to walk a smidge to the front gates. Free, close parking spots do not exist in Chicago, unless you're riding with me.

Brewers 8, Cubs 5 - Tuesday
Tonight's Cubs game was a mirror image of my day. They pussy-footed their way through innings one through four, giving the Brewers a 2-0 lead. I pussy-footed my way around the house from 10am through 3pm, doing absolutely nothing at all, though I know I have a zillion tasks to finish in the very near future. In the fifth and sixth innings, the Cubs scored a total of three runs to tie the game 3-3. At 3pm I reheated last night's spaghetti and garlic bread and had a decent lunch for once. Also, I watched the news while I ate. They failed to score a run of their own in the seventh, though they did allow the Brewers to take the lead 4-3. I failed to complete a mission in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City though I (a) played it five times, and (b) have beaten the same damn mission before when I was in college. In the eighth, the Cubs went ahead 5-4 on some clutch hitting. At 4:45pm, I realized that I better shower and get my stuff together quick-fast-and-in-a-hurry because I was supposed to meet Annie downtown at 6pm for the Cubs game. In the ninth, the Cubs blew it all by allowing the Brewers to score four runs to win the game 8-5. Annie and I had a wonderful time at the Cubs game, only to eventually have our hearts broken in the ninth when the Cubs allowed the Brewers to score four runs to win the game 8-5.


Guess who we saw there? Just guess. Scott and his dad have partial season tickets in the right field seats. Check out Scott's new hat. He wanted it last time we were there, though they didn't have it in his size. Our wardrobes, thankfully, are starting to diverge.


Our seats for today's game were in left field. In fact, we messed up initially and sat one section over until a couple came and gave us the "you're sitting in our seats" look. We shyly moved away and took another stab at where we thought we were supposed to sit. Eventually, I calmed the fear we both had about having to go through the same embarrasment again by checking with an usher to make sure we were in the right seats. If you look very carefully you can see Scott in this picture, just to the right of the right field foul poll. You see him?


It was wonderful to see Derrek Lee back in action, though he did go 0-5 for the night. I can't blame him, though. He probably came back a week too soon, don't you think? Honestly, and it pains me to say this, the Cubs are a bad, bad, bad baseball team. Who would have thought that just before Spring Training? We added Pierre. Murton was supposed to be solid. Jones and Cedeno were two question marks, though they've both turned out to be the de-facto top dawgs for the moment. Ramirez is slumping. The Walker/Perez/Womack/Bynum/Hairston thing isn't quite working out (which is sad because Todd Walker should be the EVERYDAY starting second baseman. Neifi got the start tonight. Ick!). Lee, Prior, Wood, Bynum, and Womack are all hurt. Pierre blows (and he's killing my fantasy team, too)! We suck. That's all there is to it. We're a bad baseball team.


At least we have good old Wrigley Field, which is a strikingly beautiful place to be able to watch a ballgame.


And at least we have Carlos Zambrano, who got the crowd on its feet with a two-run homer in the fifth inning. Vive la Zambrano!

Off to bed. I am quickly making my way through Lynne Truss' Eats, Shoots and Leaves. Highly recommended. Tomorrow I am going to work early. I have procrastinated for too long.

Monday, June 26, 2006

title?

Thank god Marc finally won a bracelet in the MPG. My hats off and utter congratulations to him. If he didn't win this week I was worried things were going to start to break in a fit of sacrificial frustration.


Since I'm not a teacher like everyone else here you'd think that I don't get a true Summer of George, but since the wife is one her's blends on to mine. A couple mondays ago I got to paint our dining room. A couple tuesdays ago I got to paint it again. Later this week it looks like it may be time for the hat trick.


My brother has the studio booked out all week so I have nothing to do but make some cables for stage one of our major summer upgrade. Maybe this would be a good week to finally get in some poker at the Clearwater Theater?

Sunday, June 25, 2006

The Weekend: MPG III & the Friendship Festival

This past weekend was jam-packed with fun and excitement and activities, so excuse me if the commentary is a bit short. I'll let the pictures do most of the talking. Shall we begin?

Monthly Poker Game III - Friday Night

The night started for myself, Scott, and Jeff at 7pm with a $1 game of H.O.R.S.E. Jeff was the victor. As everyone else arrived at around 8pm, we played a game of Around the World in Scott's driveway. I thought it was great that nine dudes in their late-20s were playing (and getting excited about) a game they all learned at around age eight.


Also, Baker has, hands down, the ugliest basketball shot this side of Mars. It is a sight to behold, though he was able to eventually able to get to the top of the key.


Poker started off with a bang this month. We had nine players in attendance, including Jesse, who obviously takes his game very seriously. Both of the sanctioned games were $5 No Limit Texas Hold 'Em games, and I was able to take a few small pots early in the first one before...


I started unneccesarily chasing hands that never seemed to come to fruition. The worst was a hand against my brother-in-law, Chris, who called my pre-flop raise (I had Ace/Queen) of $40. The flop came Ace-Ten-Six, no double-suits. I bet $75 with top pair and a pretty good kicker. He calls. Next card comes Jack. I figure that I've got him beat at this point, so I lay out a $200 bet. He calls, next card is nothing special (like a 3) and he checks. I can't figure out what he has, so I mistakenly check and reveal my Aces. He flips over a ten and a Jack and takes down the hand. I should have bet big time on that last card. It's been killing me ever since. At that point I was the shortest stack at the table, by far, so I decided to take a few snapshots of the hands that came my way over the course of the next hour. Here it is, the anatomy of a poker player's stack throughout the course of a friendly neighborhood game:









Obviously, I did not win the first game.


Congratulations to Jeff, who did win that first game in his first appearance at the Monthly Poker Game. He deserved to win that bracelet.


I won my first bracelet in the second game, edging out Jeff in an intense heads-up match at the end that lasted about forty-five minutes. We didn't finish the second game until 2:30am.


After that, Scott, Jeff and I played three-way five card draw, where Scott cleaned house.


After that, dice. We played this until around 5am, when the sky outside started to lighten up. We decided, at that point, that enough was enough. Time for bed.

The Friendship Festival - Saturday
I grew up in Bourbonnais, where the Friendship Festival is held every year in June. I try to go down every year to check it out. Fond memories from childhood, and all that jazz. I play the same games every year:

Skee-Ball

Fast Pitch, and my personal favorite...

Horse Racing. This game, by the way, is totally rigged. Only hot chicks, like my wife (pictured above) and Jesse's (he's there, too) girlfriend, seem to win, no matter how few and far between their good rolls are. Totally and completely rigged.


The main attraction for the 21+ crowd on the weekends, though, is the beer tent, which I like because the whole town, in essence, goes out drinking for two nights a year. This is the pile of EMPTY kegs they had stacked up in the back.


My little brother, Andy, is one of the head honchos at the place, and was able to take a few minutes out of his busy schedule to stop at the beer tent fence (he's not of-age quite yet) to say hello to his mother and me.


Westphal even came in from Wisconsin. She and my sister, Lindsey, were able to catch up before Linds makes the big move to Florida in a couple of weeks.


My other sister, Erin, is also making the move to the Sunshine State, so it was real nice, for me and Annie, to get to spend some QT with the both of them before they move away... forever.

And, in case you were wondering, my family exclusively endorses the open-mouth smile.

Friday, June 23, 2006

Cooties

a lady sitting to my left had a startling, dry cough. for each cough, she would cover her mouth with her fist. using a fist to cover your mouth for a cough or a sneeze or a yawn is only a detour for the germs and/or breath. instead of escaping center stage, they escape to either stage left or stage right.
therefore, majority of the lady's dry, startling cough landed neatly on my shoulder and cheek.

The Long Room

Important News: As some of you know, we recently launched a new myspace page for our group, Kimball. We'd love for you to stop by and check it out and ask us to be your friend. We are slowly working towards playing some shows, and are much more rapidly working towards recording an album. Thanks to everyone who has said hello or stopped by already. We appreciate the support. Always keep an eye out for new songs and new information in the near future. We'll be working diligently on it as time progresses.


I need at least two days to mentally prepare myself to do laundry, and that is why I sighed when asked if I would do it today. To be honest, I steadfastly refused every time Annie mentioned it, yet when she got home from work the cold-wash was drying on our new rack, and the other clothes were all clean and neatly folded away in the drawers.


I was even able to get a bit of work done at Dunkin' Donuts over a sour cream 'n onion bagel and a chocolate milk. I'm taking a ton of Lord of the Flies-related pre-reading and putting it into ACT/PSAE format. Not the most interesting of tasks. I also spent quite a long time this morning searching out World War II photos and info on the internet.

The rest of the day was pretty uneventful. I did the dishes, picked up the wifebeaters from yesterday, and even made dinner just in time for Annie's arrival. She can imply that I'm lazy all she wants, but I want it to be known, here and now, that I am not. I'm a good house-husband.


The only exceptions being those times that I'm out until two in the morning hanging out with the fellas. Scott and Jeff were laughing at some kind of Matt Fast nudity story. There's so many to tell, honestly, that I couldn't possibly narrow it down.


Awwwwwkward...


Scott and I stopped at Rick and Matt's place to pick them up. Rick apparently does not like to be photographed. When he is being photographed, he closes his eyes to pretend that it is not happening.


Matt was telling jokes. I haven't seen these two for a while now, which is quite the testament to my summer so far. It was really nice getting to sit back and relax and tell stories and jokes with these guys. Matt was giving Scott and I flack all night about our new band name - Kimball. He thought we should call ourselves the Fast Bros. I kind of like it.


Greg Static even stopped by. He sat down for a while and we had a nice chat. Turns out he's having his own little Summer of George. I encouraged him to run a Summer of George Sister Blog. I think it would be really cool to organize a whole bunch of these badboys into a Summer of George network. We could do all kinds of things: group Adventure Days, group ticket prices for Wrigley Field, flash mobs, etc. Bueller? Anyone?


After we left the bar, Jeff, Scott and I randomly decided to stop at that little diner on Irving Park just east of the Long Room. I even figured out how to take timed pictures with my camera. I kid you not, we heard the following conversation take place:

Drunk Dude 1: It's going to be your favorite meal ever!
Drunk Dude 2: I love my favorite meals ever...


My favorite meals ever.

Off to bed. I have to be at my new home inspection in seven hours. Must sleep. Tomorrow means the above and the finalization of the loan. T-minus thirty-some days until the big move. We should probably start packing.