the WU reborn

headache

i very rarely get headaches, so imagine my surprise when i woke up at the crack of 8 a.m. (after having gone to sleep at 5 a.m.) with a headache the likes of which i do not recall ever having.  i seriously thought my head was going to blow up.  thoughts of all the horror films i had seen where insects and other animals crawl into your ears and set up camp flashed before me. 

i staggered to the kitchen to get some water, and nearly fell when my elbow (extended holding my head) slammed into the refrigerator.  i ate 2 expired excedrin (that i bought in vegas at the bellagio last time i was there), drank more water, and tried to fall back asleep.  thankfully, the sandman put me down like a two-legged dog.

i awoke at 11 with no trace of the headache whatsoever.  i'm sure it's stress related, as i've been having to deal with a few family related things, and also waiting to hear from a place that i am trying to move to within vancouver.  other mishaps related to recent stress include showing up for a tournament at the casino a day early, then the next day waiting an hour to play cash game only to find that i had left my wallet at home.  what the hell!?

for lunch, i had some frozen breaded salmon filets.  do you all have those in milwaukee?  all i ever remember is cod and haddock.  i wasn't really in the mood for salmon, but i am trying to clear out my fridge and freezer, so i have less to move.  also, hopefully this brain food will help my afflicted brain.

good intentions

have you ever stuck your neck out on a limb for someone or a group of people only to have them either not realize it, or misinterpret it as something else more diabolic?  i have to say i don't require any thanks, but it's sure nice to not be thrown under the fucking bus.

unbelieveable

as winter approaches

usually i'm very into halloween, but for some reason i just don't care this year.  i think part of it is because i don't have a big base of friends here yet, and so i'm considering moving (northward into vancouver) to remedy that.  a lot of my friends have talked about visiting from the US, but so far nobody has made the trip.  i suppose it's a nice idea, but if one doesn't make it a priority, it just doesn't happen.  as we get closer to the holidays, it's even less likely.  oh well, next year will be good.  moo claims she's coming in february for snowboarding, and lih-jen plans to head here around easter.

poker has been going kind of cold the last week.  people just keep "getting there" on me.  i'm not going to get into specific bad beats, but needless to say, i've been in a lot of 90%+ favorite situations when the money went in, and have gotten outdrawn.  i hope to shake this off before vegas.  i know that i'm playing well; it's just that sometimes the outdraws all come in a bunch.  thankfully, i'm still in the black for the month.

tonight i made dinner for the coles, and i dragged my cousin wei-loong over there as well.

menu:

cucumber sandwiches

creamy carrot bisque

bbq pork picnic roast

bacon potato parmesan tart

braised bean curd bowties and baby bok choy in black bean sauce

cherries jubilee

everything went over quite well.  a series of minor mishaps starting around noon caused the roast and tart to not come out exactly as i wanted, but all received praise.  i really liked the soup, and will make it again.

i've been doing a bit of reading and a lot of thinking lately.  playing poker for a living has given me the freedom to actually sit back and think about a lot of things:

1. i love my job.  almost everyone i know hates their job.  i hated my last job towards the end.  playing cards is pleasurable.  fixing donkeys' computers and getting tasked assigned to me by imbiciles is not.  i feel very fortunate that i've fallen into something that doesn't make me wake up and dread going to work, to facing someone, to having to put on a happy face in a meeting, etc.  this has lead me to think a lot about why people do what they do for a living.

2. why do people work at shitty jobs?  a book i'm reading says that people go through a process in life, and then pass that conventional wisdom on to their children, perpetuating the process.  you know it by now, but here it is anyway: go to school, do well in school, get a job in a big firm with good benefits, acquire a home, have kids, retire.  the part they don't talk about is what to do with the money once you get it. 

3. why don't people have any idea how to keep and grow their money?  because school and conventional wisdom teaches us how to put ourselves in a position to earn money, not how to keep and grow it.  most people have debt (other than student loans) once they graduate from university.  then they get a job, and with that comes buying a wardrobe, a car, and incurring a lot of debt buying shit they couldn't afford in college.  then they get a raise, and they feel they deserve or should get a nicer car, a bigger house, (because a house is an asset right?), and more shit.  then they work harder to get a bigger raise, etc. etc. etc.  they are in a ratrace that they can't get out of because they are motivated by fear (need for security), and greed (need for material things, and emotions that come with it). 

4. where the hell am i going to live?  is a home an asset?  hell no.  it's a massive liability.  you have to pay out your ass to keep it maintained, remodel it, refinance it, take equity loans out on it, and meanwhile your money is locked up in it not making money elsewhere.  i think it's going to be a long ass time before i buy a single family home ever again.  renting is lame too, obviously.  i think the answer lies in finding a way to live for free.  you can do that by mooching off other people, or by doing stuff like investing in multi-unit properties that have a positive cash flow, or at least make enough that you can live for free.  to me, that seems like a good idea, rather than paying 1k+ in mortgage every damned month.  i have to look into different laws for different states, countries, etc. 

5. doing stuff you don't want to do sucks.  this might sound childish, but i think this sums up any new philosphies that i'm coming up with.  i don't want to actually do anything that i don't actively want to do, and i'm going to make it a point not to.  i think once i master the ins and outs of having money work for me vs. working for money, then life will be a lot easier.  the notion of "free money" or "passive income" appeals a lot to me.  i'd like to be able to wake up at 9 a.m. and say "i'm up $500 already today."  the answers are out there, for sure.  once that happens, i'll have what most people will ever dream of having: true freedom.  the freedom to work, to play, to travel, to read, to sleep, to attend a function or not, whatever.... wouldn't that be nice?  to not have to answer to anyone ever?  to be able to visit people whenever you want to?  that's what i'm shooting for.

i guess all of this points to what's important to me in life: relationships and experiences.  putting myself in a position to have the power, courage, and freedom to pursue these seems to be living optimally, at least for me.

yet another blog survey

i'm bored waiting for my iPod to charge before my five-mile trek to the casino, so i thought i'd do one of these trendy blog self-surveys.

Ten Years Ago: In, October 1995, after dropping out of college, I was managing a Funcoland in Greenfield, WI. The job mostly consisted of scheduling, keeping the store clean, making sure people didn’t steal anything, and upselling video game cleaners. I drove my new 1994 green Acura Integra (the legendary Integrasled), and was waiting for my then fiancé, Charity, to move down to Milwaukee after graduation. I was playing a lot of Magic, the Gathering with friends, and was selling and trading a lot of cards to make extra cash. Eventually, I hoped to open my own business.

Five Years Ago: In October, 2000, I was about a year and a half into working at The Frantz Group, in Grafton, WI. I had opened my own business in 1996 and closed it in late 1998 to take a square job, much to my wife’s delight. I still dealt a lot in Magic cards, and started to travel around the world to buy and sell in the international markets. A few months later, I would divorce. I still drove the Integrasled, and spent most of my free time hanging out with friends and cocktailing on the east side. Right around this time, I got into trance, and started going to Chicago for a lot of shows.

One Year Ago: In October, 2004, I was finishing up a degree in English at UW Milwaukee. I went to a Renaissance wedding, and a Johnny Walker Scotch tasting in Chicago. My beloved Integrasled was gone, stolen for the 2.5th time and was replaced with my current blue Jetta. I was just getting back into poker, and had graduated to the 10-20 table at Potowotomi, where I was learning the ropes the hard way. With graduation looming in December, I was trying to figure out what to do with my life, since not a lot appealed to me.

Yesterday: I ate crab at the Richmond City Market with my cousin, Gerald. I played 1-2 No Limit at River Rock Casino and won some money. I read a bunch of old comics, and cursed McGovern for not having new Gaion pages done. I had cereal with dates for dinner, with a codeine chaser.

Five Songs I Know All the Words To: Most of Led Zeppelin IV.

Five Favorite Snacks: Beef jerky, sushi, cherries, curry puffs, arancinis.

Five Favorite Beverages: Lime juice, Hangar One gimlets, Teh Halia, San Pellegrino Limonata, horchata.

Five Things I'd Do if I Won a Sick Amount at the Lottery: Travel around the world playing poker, donate to a few charities, start a school for kids to teach them basic financial know-how, throw big a few big parties for family and friends, buy some real estate.

Five Places I'd Love To Be: Las Vegas, Vancouver, Monte Carlo, Tokyo, Florence.

Five Things I'd Never Wear: Tighty whities or meathugger swimsuits, socks with sandals, Dockers with golf shirts, penny loafers, cowboy hats. Five Favorite TV Shows: Family Guy, Iron Chef, WSOP coverage on ESPN, Law and Order SVU, 60 Minutes.

Five Things I love About Life: Having a decent conversation, cooking food for friends and family, writing something good the first time, movies on a big screen at the cinema, experiencing new places and things.

Five Favorite Possessions: Alienware laptop, iPod, Frisbee, snowboard, passport.

back in rainy vancouver

quote of the day: "if you find you've dug yourself into a deep hole, stop digging."

ok i know i've been slow getting the milwaukee photos up.  sorry.  here they are.

it was great to see everyone.  i really had fun attending the weddings and birthday gatherings.  there are a few people i missed this time around, but there's always next time, or you could always come out here and visit me, or meet me in vegas.

the last week of milwaukee i managed to get an irritating cough.  mom and dad expressed concern.  you know, the kind of parental concern that is annoying, mostly because you know they're right.  so, upon returning to vancouver, i went and saw a doctor at a clinic.  $50 gets you the appointment.  he spends 2 minutes with you, gives you a prescription for some expectorant with codeine (whee) and sends you on your way.

sunday night was a great dinner with wei-loong and eliz, and monday was thanksgiving over at the cole's.  we were especially thankful that cousin gerald wasn't hurt in the car accident that totalled his green machine. 

yesterday, i bought a few essential groceries, and made some pasta.  i read some comic books that i brought back with me, lost a little at online poker because i was too drugged out on codeine, and slept a lot. 

today, i decided to walk to the casino to play the 90+10 NL tournament.  it's about 5 miles from my place, and it was drizzling. fortunately, i had a free umbrella in my trunk from oneida casino in green bay.  unfortunately, it's a steaming pile of bat guano.  about 2 miles into my walk, the damn thing broke.  i mean the fucking thing snapped in twain.  so, there i was, rushing along in the rain, holding the 6 inches of umbrella stem that was left.  i finally got to the poker room, and sat down to relax, cough, drink water, and eat a clif bar.  i sat down for some 1-2 NL for 30 minutes before the tourney and lost $100.  then i played the tournament, took 2nd, and won $2300.  yay!

i took a cab home, rather than walk 5 miles in the rain and dark.  now i'm just watching 2005 WSOP episodes that i'm downloading from bittorrent.  i'm really looking forward to 10 days in vegas next month.  cory is coming out, and hopefully more will join.  let me know if you are available the 10th-14th.  i'm hoping to do well out there and then hit australia in january for my birthday.  i've got the miles, so all i really need is money for hotel and entry fees.

in the good land

my first return to milwaukee has been fun and action-packed.  since the wedding last weekend, i've met up with a bunch of friends for meals and cocktails.  it's been great to see everyone.  most everything else about milwaukee has remained the same, which is comforting in some way.  it doesn't much feel like returning home, other than the familiarity with the city.  in some ways, i don't feel like i have a home at the moment, because vancouver doesn't much feel like home either.

tyan and jay have been working on their house a lot, and it's looking good.  tonight we made lamb loin chops on the grill, and they turned out great.  mom and dad were going to go up north to check out the colors, but turned back at sheboygan when they found out that autumn hadn't progressed as far as they had hoped. 

the last five nights i've been down at the casino from around 10pm until 4am playing poker.  no limit is new to potowotomi, and the ten table room is brimming with excitement.  according to the room manager, it's killing the room, because a room of that size can't handle a game as big as this one is at 3-5 blinds and $600 buy in.  i would have to agree.  because of the general lack of experience in no limit, most of the regular limit players, eager to try their hand at no limit, are getting slaughtered by people with more experience.  i've never played in an easier game, and i almost feel like i'm throwing money away by not going every day.  the room would be more balanced if they had a 1-2 NL game and a 3-5 NL game, because then the new people could play 1-2.  instead, they're getting thrown in the shark tank.  the way it is now is not unlike high school kids jumping on the court vs. the lakers.

it's been rainy and a bit chilly here, but today was nice and warm.  i'm hoping it stays this way for the next week or so.

i made one purchase since arriving home: a pair of made in milwaukee koss td-85 headphones.  ryan recommended them, and i must say that i'm pleased with them.  i'd be using them every night at the casino, but they don't allow electronics.  they'll come in handy once i'm back in vancouver, and in vegas this november.  if things continue to go well, i'm hoping to go to australia in january for the aussie millions tournament.  it looks like fun, and an excuse to visit folks there.