Wolfy Nostalgia Post of the Week

My next selection comes from a man I consider the Blogfather. Maybe he hasn't been posting as long as some, but his was the first blog I ever read and have continued to read to this day. His posts are always well written, varied, often humorous (sometimes intentionally), and usually opinionated (This quality might be what keeps me coming back for more). I give you Thomas Fuller.

This particular selection is from February of 2007.

Idiot

I do some stupid shit. I really do.

I forgot to bring my clothes on this trip. I left them all in a hamper in my room. I realized that this morning.

I didn't check the fluids in my car before embarking on this 1,000+ mile road trip. This became a rather pertinent issue shortly before I crested Emory Pass, the surprisingly high and harrowing gateway between Truth or Consequences and Silver City. The engine oil pressure light went on, accompanied by a chilling beep. There wasn't enough oil in the engine.

It's not that I'm an idiot. I don't do this stupid shit beacuse I don't know better or I can't process information. It's that I'm lazy in the brain. I know you're supposed to check the fluids in your car before a long trip and I know you should check the rooms in your house for forgotten items before leaving for over a month. I just don't do a lot of this elementary stuff a lot of the time. I don't think it through. I get easily distracted by mundane tasks and I don't make them a priority, regardless of their necessity.

Most of my poker friends are like this. Most of them are even worse than me I think. I'm not sure what causes this disability of organization. Does our gaming prowess come from a deficiency in basic task completion, two different intelligences requiring opposite forms of thought? Did our quick rise to financial success make us forget the importance of basic societal skills? Or are we just lazy, and that is why we became attracted to the gaming, gambling lifestyle?

It's getting to be embarassing. I can just buy some new clothes, and I appear to have taken care of the oil problem. But eventually this little problem is going to cost me dearly.
_

I got to Tucson at midnight. Spencer and I went to a park nearby and shot hoops. There was a lot of snow on Emory Pass, but that was the end of my winter. It's in the sixties as I write this, and I won't be north of Vegas till mid-March. I made it through the winter, and I couldn't be more excited about that.

***********

And now the inevitable slew of comments:

cviox said...
You need a wife (or a Truman). BTW Truman that's a compliment that you can actually keep Paul somewhat together.
9:12 AM

Cyrus said...
man i wish my winter was over =[
12:12 PM

Kevin said...
Classic Fuller. I love it.
1:45 PM

Bag said...
Thomas Fuller, ummmm.
1:53 PM

gamblegambel said...
I lost my backpack so many times in college that I literally stopped bringing anything besides one pencil and one piece of paper to class.
2:25 PM

TheGraveWolf said...
Some people forget their bathing suit, some forget socks or dress shoes...you forgot CLOTHES. Good lord sir. How many times would you have left your head on top of the car if it weren't attached to your neck?? I don't think it is fair to blame this on poker. You and Cadet Fish (rank: space) seemed to have these issues before poker as well. Enjoy your time in the sun - hopefully it will be warm enough that you don't need CLOTHES.
3:00 PM

Jeremy said...
not to have too much fun at your expense, but this was just about the most fun i've ever had reading one of your blog entries. it made me think of the packing bet between you and kevin. i'd like to think that winter is ending most places. it's 42 here today.
3:06 PM

Kwicky said...
wow tom, that takes a lot of talent! i must say, though, reading this post and the wolf's inevitable response to it brought tears to my eyes as i was laughing so hard. maybe our forgetfullness serves a greater good - namely bringing smiles and wonderment to other people's lives ;)
7:35 PM

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Post Script

"It's getting to be embarassing. I can just buy some new clothes, and I appear to have taken care of the oil problem. But eventually this little problem is going to cost me dearly."

Moon's predictions proved all too true as he has since lost a laptop to the asphalt of Broadway and Table Mesa (Do those intersect?) when his computer failed to stay on the roof of his vehicle at speeds in excess of 30mph. GnightDoubloons.

Wolfy Nostalgia Post of the Week

Our next post comes from a blogger whose work will be on display many more times. The post presents an interesting question, but the comments steal the show. From early 2006, I give you the Kwickfish.

January 2006

Enlighten me - Master vs. Addict
I once heard that, in order to master a trade, such as dancing, skiing, or poker for that matter, one must put in 10,000 hours. My question is, at what point is the distinction made between an addict and a master of a certain trade. I mean, couldn't you say that all those people "mastering" dance or skiing were just addicts? Being addicted to something has such a negative connotation associated with it, whereas mastering something is elevated to the noble status, and it baffles me. When I tell people I play a lot of poker, they just give me the look, and I can tell exactly what they are thinking, "oh, another poker junkie, how lame". Maybe once you stop sucking at whatever your passion is, it's not addiction anymore and it morphs into mastery?

GnightMoon said...
I'll enlighten you - you are not a master of poker. You're not even a master of cash game no limit Texas hold 'em.
3:36 PM

Bag said...
Things you have spent 10,000 hours doing and are therefore a master of:
Sleeping
Masterbation
Breathing
Thinking about how sexy Bag is
Waiting tables
Minesweeper
Being drunk
Playing Counterstrike and Starcraft

Tru said...
While addiction definitely happens before mastery, the chief difference I see is that when it's an addiction, it controls you. When it's mastery, you control it.
Addiction is slavery, mastery in enlightenment.

Kwicky said...
Wow, well put tru, I like your definitions. And bag, you forgot that I'm a master of owning Wolf's little sister in your list there
********************************

Speaking of addiction Mr. Fishycake, I couldn't help but notice that you also mention my little sister in your first ever blog post. Asking me to "send her your way when she is legal". Very classy my man, very classy. Welcome to MY world Gramma.

Wolfy Nostalgia Post of the Week

There will be no blog this week.


Instead I give you THIS:




picture courtesy of Craig Corbman

Discuss.

Wolfy Nostalgia Post of the Week

A classic never dies. My next selection comes from a poster whose blog inspired some of the greatest poker one liners (In fact, this post starts with one of my favorites.) and some of the world's greatest comments. At this date, it would seem he is temporarily retired from blogging but his name will live on forever... Lazypoo!!

(From May of 2006)
Big Stack Little Stack

You hear about stack sizes on Tv, from your friend, your family, and they are in your worst nightmares. What does stack size have anything to do with poker? Well in tournament games you can play so many more hands because you are risking a smaller percent of your stack compared to a short stack who is risking about 10% of his chips to see a flop; most of the time. Another thing you hear about being the "big stack" is that they bully people around. Because they are good? Probably, but thats not the reason. The reason is to put you all in and if you lose a 50 50 you're out of the tournament and you get no pay or a lot less than if you just waited. So big stacks are in essence the big dick at tables.
In cash games... from commen sense you can probably calculate the odds of someone having 6x the buyin from being a passive agressive or loose player. I think 90% of the time they are going to be loose in some sense if not all. I was playing against a person today and got into two big hands with him and one medium sized one.The first hand: I saw that he was a big stack and that he had bluffed before so I decided to slowplay. I think I might slowplay a little too much but I can get off of my hands a little bit easier than most people. Anyway so here is how it went down.

Seat 3: ForkaDork ( $1146.78 )
Seat 9: SDeeSU ( $344.79 )
Dealt to SDeeSU [ Ks As ]
Work4Fish420 folds.
maya0 folds.mantler folds.
SDeeSU raises [$7].
GrannyJean50 folds.
MilkLeg folds.
Flyboy94 folds.
ForkaDork calls [$7].
andyg9 folds.
lil_bo_poop folds.
** Dealing Flop ** [ 7h, Kd, 4c ]
SDeeSU bets [$8].
ForkaDork raises [$16].
SDeeSU calls [$8].
** Dealing Turn ** [ 4d ]
SDeeSU checks.
ForkaDork bets [$35].
SDeeSU calls [$35].
** Dealing River ** [ 5c ]
SDeeSU checks.
ForkaDork bets [$149.37].
SDeeSU: looks like u hit a 4
SDeeSU calls [$149.37].
ForkaDork shows [ Th, Ad ] a pair of fours.
SDeeSU shows [ Ks, As ] two pairs, kings and fours.
SDeeSU wins $414.74 from the main pot with two pairs, kings and fours.

I decided to slowplay this hand because he reraised on the flop. This is a standard move to scare your oppenent into thinking you hit. With a king up there I could be holding anything from 88 to qq to AQ or AJ suited. I thought about it and I knew he didn't have shit so I was just going to call this hand down. On the river though, it got me thinking but the only thing he could really have had was a set. So I called and won 200 on something I would usually get paid nothing or lose a lot on.

The second hand: I had top pair and wasn't betting too high then came a 1 card for a st8 and he bet pot on the river so I folded. He showed the 2 4 for the bluff. Ass :)The third hand: This hand was extreamly tough on me. With 500 at stake against a large stack isn't the kind of position that you want to be in especially with nothing. Here is how it went down.

#Game No : 4291565522
Seat 3: ForkaDork ( $1276.47 )
Seat 9: SDeeSU ( $525.66 )

Dealt to SDeeSU [ Qc Jc ]
maya0 folds.
azukar folds.
SDeeSU raises [$7].
MasterLee32 folds.
MilkLeg folds.
DivisnByZero folds.
ForkaDork calls [$7].
andyg9 folds.
PapioPapio folds.
** Dealing Flop ** [ Tc, 8d, 5s ]
SDeeSU checks.
ForkaDork bets [$15].
SDeeSU raises [$30].
ForkaDork raises [$50.75].
SDeeSU calls [$35.75].
** Dealing Turn ** [ Js ]
SDeeSU checks.
ForkaDork bets [$796.36].
SDeeSU is all-In [$452.91]
** Dealing River ** [ 5c ]
ForkaDork shows [ Ks, 7d ] a pair of fives.
SDeeSU shows [ Qc, Jc ] two pairs, jacks and fives.
ForkaDork wins $343.45 from side pot #1 with a pair of fives.
SDeeSU wins $1051.32 from the main pot with two pairs, jacks and fives.

I mean right there it seems like a good play by me but there was no way that I knew that he was THAT dumb. Haha. I assumed he wanted a fold after rrr then going all in so.. I guess a pro would have made this call easier because I really couldn't put him on QQ KK or AA. So basically the only hands he could have done that with was with two pair. Could have gone either way I think, oh well what do i care I'm 500 dollars richer :).

Today: +500 Year to date: 6000

I made and lost money other than this... lost with trip 2s to trip jacks. Damn set over sets.. but I do that to people too. :)

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The first post featured in Wolfy's Nostalgia Post of the Week did not receive any comments back in the day - shocking, I know. But all Nostalgia posts will also feature any comments made at the time of the post. There were two for this one.

Julian Silvain said...
"Mr. Madison, what you've just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I've ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response was there anything that could even be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it. I award you no points, and may God have mercy on your soul."

TheGraveWolf said...
Haha, damn dude...you stuck a fork in ForkaDork...that guy got owned. Also, very interesting commentary on big stacks in tournies - I think you make some good points about how they have big dicks.Anyway, don't forget to keep slowplaying against those aggro guys eh eh?