road trip day... ah fuck it, I lost count already
Steve's going to be the only person to appreciate this entry, as all I plan on discussing is volleyball and poker.
Several weeks ago I had visited the Attleboro Parks and Recreation Department website, looking for a place for _talkovercoffee and I to play while I was down here in the area, the theory being that she would be overawed by my incredible athletic prowess and immediately want to drop trou (revealing several underlayers of spandex; weird girl, that Angela) and/or start smooching immediately.
A few days ago, I left a message on the league coordinator's voicemail, wondering if there was any open volleyball going on. Fast forward to yesterday, when mere minutes after I had given up hope of playing volleyball the whole of the month of April, I get a phone call from an unfamiliar number. Screening my Massachusetts calls, as I am still avoiding a certain florist who I upset by being disinvited to prom (you and me both, brotha!), I warily checked my voicemail, only to discover a message informing me that there was volleyball. TONIGHT. I called Brian back, and he let me know that there wasn't open volleyball, per se, but that he ran two leagues on Tuesdays nights, an "A" league and a "B" league, and after quizzing me on my skill level he said that there were ALWAYS no-shows in the B League slot, and that there would, at minimum, be a ref out for the A league, but also the possibility of a player slot as well. Overjoyed at the news, I changed and leapt in my car as soon as it was feasible time-wise. Unfortunately, Angela hadn't been returning my texts or calls (I secretly think she only leads me on so I leave her messages in my oh-so-sexy voice, which she can then later replay in intimate moments of privacy), so I was flying solo, but hey, we all know the ladies of the area are awfully flaky, and hardly necessary for a good time anyway.
I arrived in Attleboro with very little time spent gawking the the hispanic youth being handcuffed and frisked in the middle of the town. Parking my car (which, as an aside, is an absolute joy to drive, especially considering the SL1 that was my main ride previous) outside a group of townhouses and walking towards the rec building, I was accosted by a horde of teenage girls sitting on their stoops, staring at my ass and delivering obscene catcalls, and chose to double back to make sure my car was securely locked. Walking into the building, I found myself surrounded by an army of gigantic beefy men, each with their arms or legs or teeth wrapped around a massive body bag. Feeling like a total sissy even with a sleeveless shirt showing off my (now appearing wimpy) rippling MAHSALLS, I summoned the courage to ask where I could find the... gulp... volleyball courts. Barely hiding looks of disgust behind walls of sheer bulk, the crowd of testosterone gave me directions leading upstairs and around a few corners.
After pacing back and forth in front of the room containing beginner ballerina lessons, and honestly appreciating the boxers' prank for what it was (hilarious, guys, really!), I eventually stumbled upon the gym. Introducing myself to the first spicy young senorita I found, I was directed to my phone buddy, a man was appeared hopelessly top-heavy but managing to walk upright with minimal trouble despite the barrel chest and comparitively matchstick legs. I found myself jealously thinking that HE could walk upstairs through the sparring pit without being directed to don a tutu. Brian was a nice guy though, bringing me back to my original spicy senorita who just happened to have an open slot on her team (and, I became aware to my profound shock, another open slot elsewhere to which I may be invited), and IMMEDIATELY, without a chance to warm up, I was tossed into a game to pick it up as I went. Oh, there was SOME advice. "This is the #1 team we're playing against. We have to beat them."
The setup of the game was amazingly weird to me. On one side of the gym, they had a "men's net" and on the other side, a lowered net for the women. On the women's net, where we started off, men were not allowed to block or hit from the front row, forcing everyone to stack positionally and scramble as each serve commenced. Though taking some time to get used to it (they stuck me in the back right almost exclusively to pass on serves and to dig kills out from the line), I only bodyslammed three of my teammates in succession to reach my position, and very rarely foot faulted on my serves. The relief in my teammates' eyes was evident as I held my own, and we won the game handily, as our women were superior in looks, balance, poise and charm, as well as volleyball skillz. The next game was over on the men's net, as it appeared that everyone in the gym played each other team twice, one on each net. My team went 7-1 on the night, with our only loss being a slop-fest to that same #1 team on the men's net. I can't say I was ecstatic about my play; occasionally I was confused about where I was going on a given serve (co-ed 6v6 with esoteric rules isn't exactly the way I wanted to jump into a game) and I really couldn't put a lot of kills down definitively, but my passes were nigh perfect and I made a lot of great digs. When the A League finished, I was forcibly given the number of a woman on my team (she wanted to keep me "up to date" on an item of small interest we were discussing, supposedly, though I believed her when she said she wanted post cards) and everyone pretty much took off.
After checking my phone messages for word of Angela (nothing, though my mom called), I got back together with Brian and he stuck me on another team. Surveying the gym, it appeared to be play hour at a centralized daycare facility (Brian DID tell me not to expect too much from the B League), and sure enough, my suspicions were confirmed when my captain came over and introduced herself. I don't remember her name (though she did write it down for me as she, too, wanted to keep in touch), but I immediately was able to categorize her as an ex-goth.. mid 20s, pudgy, dyed hair, tattoos she got when she was in her teens, and a contented settled expression as her face as she introduced me to the rest of the team. Interestingly, two of them were members of her immediate family: a diminutive husband (who looked about 16; about 5'7" with 1" body fat, reminded me of a sober, athletically inclinced aldiyen), and a mid-teens daughter (currently going through HER goth phase); pale with an emo haircut (replete with bangs that kept getting into her face) and too much makeup. Also on the team was another girl with a very appealing accent, Vera, and another guy who was the real life equivalent of background noise. To make a long story short, the woman told me that this was unquestionably a "just for fun" team and though I believed her, it was proven beyond doubt when the daughter, Chelsea, set almost exclusively while we were on the men's net (our one win there being almost the direct result of my serving 6 aces in a row). On the women's net, the husband, Mike, set until I suggested I take over for our final game. Though it was enjoyable and challenging, as I've never been with a "permanent setter" team long enough to try the position out myself, we didn't have any better luck and ended up 1-7. Nonetheless, 4 hours of volleyball, and a fine dinner of swedish meatballs made my Tuesday more than a success in my eyes.
Additionally, as an amusing sidenote, as I returned to my car at around 11PM, one of the girls that originally accosted me shouted over, inquiring as to whether I would enjoy poison oak. Curious as to the terms of her offer, I replied asking what part of her body it was on and if she was really THAT desperate to rub herself all over me. As her and her friend broke out into fits of the giggles, I felt my job there was done, and returned home for some yoga and a relaxing shower.
To quickly touch upon poker, as I feel I've done quite enough writing for the past two days already, I want to post a good hand/bad hand and also ask if anyone has done any research as to the best dates and times to play poker online. Obviously Friday and Saturday should be the big money nights, as all the fish come out swinging (sometimes empty 40s, which lead to even more free money), but I've always made my best money on Sunday afternoons. How do you feel about weekdays, especially midday? Logic contends that there are going to be tight career players to avoid and the occasional housewife/college student to fight for position on. Experience tells me that it probably isn't worth it, as this is the time of week in which the greatest fluctuation in my bankroll has occured; today for example had me from +100 to -200 to even to -200 again to +200 (finally!) as I pulled the plug to ensure my bankroll's survival throughout the rest of the evening. If you have any statistics or even gut instincts, please share. Otherwise I bring you:
PS this converter sucks, I have to do a half hour of editing to make it even display the right pot amounts.
Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ BB (6 max, 5 handed)
saw flop|saw showdown
Button ($256.84)
SB ($140.24)
Hero ($123.73)
UTG ($97.85)
MP ($100)
Preflop: SB posts a blind of $0.5. MP posts a blind of $1.
1 fold, MP (poster) raises to $1, Button calls $2, 1 fold, Hero calls $1.
Flop: ($6.50) Qh, 8d, Ah (3 players)
Hero checks, MP bets $1, Button calls $1, Hero raises to $6, MP calls $5, Button folds.
Turn: ($19.50) Th (2 players)
Hero checks, MP checks.
River: ($19.50) Qc (2 players)
Hero bets $25, MP raises to $50, Hero raises all-in $90.73, MP is all-in $42
Final Pot: $201.5
Results in white below:
Hero has Ac Qs (full house, queens full of aces).
MP has 9d Qd (three of a kind, queens).
Outcome: Hero wins $23.73 from side pot #1 with a full house, Queens full of aces.
Hero wins $201.5 from the main pot with a full house, Queens full of aces.
***** Hand History for Game 1961655460 *****
0/0 TexasHTGameTable (NL) - Wed Apr 27 15:20:04 EDT 2005
Table Table 36730 (6 max) (Real Money) -- Seat 5 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: BB ( $78.15)
Seat 2: UTG ( $168.68)
Seat 3: MP ( $79.42)
Seat 4: CO ( $38.76)
Seat 5: Hero ( $77.33)
Seat 6: SB ( $99.5)
SB posts small blind (0.5)
BB posts big blind (1)
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ Qh, Qs ]
(two folds), CO raises (3) to 3, Hero raises (7) to 7, CO calls (4)
** Dealing Flop ** : [ Jh, 7c, Td ]
CO checks. Hero bets (32), CO calls all-in (31.76)
** Dealing Turn ** : [ Qc ]
** Dealing River ** : [ As ]
Creating Main Pot with $77.02 with CO
** Summary **
Main Pot: $77.02 | Side Pot 1: $0.24 | Rake: $2
Board: [ Jh 7c Td Qc As ]
CO balance $77.02, bet $38.76, collected $77.02, net +$38.26 [ Kh Js ] [ a straight, ten to ace -- As,Kh,Qc,Js,Td ]
Hero balance $38.57, bet $39, collected $0.24, lost -$38.76 [ Qh Qs ] [ three of a kind, queens -- As,Qh,Qs,Qc,Jh ]
Several weeks ago I had visited the Attleboro Parks and Recreation Department website, looking for a place for _talkovercoffee and I to play while I was down here in the area, the theory being that she would be overawed by my incredible athletic prowess and immediately want to drop trou (revealing several underlayers of spandex; weird girl, that Angela) and/or start smooching immediately.
A few days ago, I left a message on the league coordinator's voicemail, wondering if there was any open volleyball going on. Fast forward to yesterday, when mere minutes after I had given up hope of playing volleyball the whole of the month of April, I get a phone call from an unfamiliar number. Screening my Massachusetts calls, as I am still avoiding a certain florist who I upset by being disinvited to prom (you and me both, brotha!), I warily checked my voicemail, only to discover a message informing me that there was volleyball. TONIGHT. I called Brian back, and he let me know that there wasn't open volleyball, per se, but that he ran two leagues on Tuesdays nights, an "A" league and a "B" league, and after quizzing me on my skill level he said that there were ALWAYS no-shows in the B League slot, and that there would, at minimum, be a ref out for the A league, but also the possibility of a player slot as well. Overjoyed at the news, I changed and leapt in my car as soon as it was feasible time-wise. Unfortunately, Angela hadn't been returning my texts or calls (I secretly think she only leads me on so I leave her messages in my oh-so-sexy voice, which she can then later replay in intimate moments of privacy), so I was flying solo, but hey, we all know the ladies of the area are awfully flaky, and hardly necessary for a good time anyway.
I arrived in Attleboro with very little time spent gawking the the hispanic youth being handcuffed and frisked in the middle of the town. Parking my car (which, as an aside, is an absolute joy to drive, especially considering the SL1 that was my main ride previous) outside a group of townhouses and walking towards the rec building, I was accosted by a horde of teenage girls sitting on their stoops, staring at my ass and delivering obscene catcalls, and chose to double back to make sure my car was securely locked. Walking into the building, I found myself surrounded by an army of gigantic beefy men, each with their arms or legs or teeth wrapped around a massive body bag. Feeling like a total sissy even with a sleeveless shirt showing off my (now appearing wimpy) rippling MAHSALLS, I summoned the courage to ask where I could find the... gulp... volleyball courts. Barely hiding looks of disgust behind walls of sheer bulk, the crowd of testosterone gave me directions leading upstairs and around a few corners.
After pacing back and forth in front of the room containing beginner ballerina lessons, and honestly appreciating the boxers' prank for what it was (hilarious, guys, really!), I eventually stumbled upon the gym. Introducing myself to the first spicy young senorita I found, I was directed to my phone buddy, a man was appeared hopelessly top-heavy but managing to walk upright with minimal trouble despite the barrel chest and comparitively matchstick legs. I found myself jealously thinking that HE could walk upstairs through the sparring pit without being directed to don a tutu. Brian was a nice guy though, bringing me back to my original spicy senorita who just happened to have an open slot on her team (and, I became aware to my profound shock, another open slot elsewhere to which I may be invited), and IMMEDIATELY, without a chance to warm up, I was tossed into a game to pick it up as I went. Oh, there was SOME advice. "This is the #1 team we're playing against. We have to beat them."
The setup of the game was amazingly weird to me. On one side of the gym, they had a "men's net" and on the other side, a lowered net for the women. On the women's net, where we started off, men were not allowed to block or hit from the front row, forcing everyone to stack positionally and scramble as each serve commenced. Though taking some time to get used to it (they stuck me in the back right almost exclusively to pass on serves and to dig kills out from the line), I only bodyslammed three of my teammates in succession to reach my position, and very rarely foot faulted on my serves. The relief in my teammates' eyes was evident as I held my own, and we won the game handily, as our women were superior in looks, balance, poise and charm, as well as volleyball skillz. The next game was over on the men's net, as it appeared that everyone in the gym played each other team twice, one on each net. My team went 7-1 on the night, with our only loss being a slop-fest to that same #1 team on the men's net. I can't say I was ecstatic about my play; occasionally I was confused about where I was going on a given serve (co-ed 6v6 with esoteric rules isn't exactly the way I wanted to jump into a game) and I really couldn't put a lot of kills down definitively, but my passes were nigh perfect and I made a lot of great digs. When the A League finished, I was forcibly given the number of a woman on my team (she wanted to keep me "up to date" on an item of small interest we were discussing, supposedly, though I believed her when she said she wanted post cards) and everyone pretty much took off.
After checking my phone messages for word of Angela (nothing, though my mom called), I got back together with Brian and he stuck me on another team. Surveying the gym, it appeared to be play hour at a centralized daycare facility (Brian DID tell me not to expect too much from the B League), and sure enough, my suspicions were confirmed when my captain came over and introduced herself. I don't remember her name (though she did write it down for me as she, too, wanted to keep in touch), but I immediately was able to categorize her as an ex-goth.. mid 20s, pudgy, dyed hair, tattoos she got when she was in her teens, and a contented settled expression as her face as she introduced me to the rest of the team. Interestingly, two of them were members of her immediate family: a diminutive husband (who looked about 16; about 5'7" with 1" body fat, reminded me of a sober, athletically inclinced aldiyen), and a mid-teens daughter (currently going through HER goth phase); pale with an emo haircut (replete with bangs that kept getting into her face) and too much makeup. Also on the team was another girl with a very appealing accent, Vera, and another guy who was the real life equivalent of background noise. To make a long story short, the woman told me that this was unquestionably a "just for fun" team and though I believed her, it was proven beyond doubt when the daughter, Chelsea, set almost exclusively while we were on the men's net (our one win there being almost the direct result of my serving 6 aces in a row). On the women's net, the husband, Mike, set until I suggested I take over for our final game. Though it was enjoyable and challenging, as I've never been with a "permanent setter" team long enough to try the position out myself, we didn't have any better luck and ended up 1-7. Nonetheless, 4 hours of volleyball, and a fine dinner of swedish meatballs made my Tuesday more than a success in my eyes.
Additionally, as an amusing sidenote, as I returned to my car at around 11PM, one of the girls that originally accosted me shouted over, inquiring as to whether I would enjoy poison oak. Curious as to the terms of her offer, I replied asking what part of her body it was on and if she was really THAT desperate to rub herself all over me. As her and her friend broke out into fits of the giggles, I felt my job there was done, and returned home for some yoga and a relaxing shower.
To quickly touch upon poker, as I feel I've done quite enough writing for the past two days already, I want to post a good hand/bad hand and also ask if anyone has done any research as to the best dates and times to play poker online. Obviously Friday and Saturday should be the big money nights, as all the fish come out swinging (sometimes empty 40s, which lead to even more free money), but I've always made my best money on Sunday afternoons. How do you feel about weekdays, especially midday? Logic contends that there are going to be tight career players to avoid and the occasional housewife/college student to fight for position on. Experience tells me that it probably isn't worth it, as this is the time of week in which the greatest fluctuation in my bankroll has occured; today for example had me from +100 to -200 to even to -200 again to +200 (finally!) as I pulled the plug to ensure my bankroll's survival throughout the rest of the evening. If you have any statistics or even gut instincts, please share. Otherwise I bring you:
PS this converter sucks, I have to do a half hour of editing to make it even display the right pot amounts.
Party Poker No-Limit Hold'em, $ BB (6 max, 5 handed)
saw flop|saw showdown
Button ($256.84)
SB ($140.24)
Hero ($123.73)
UTG ($97.85)
MP ($100)
Preflop: SB posts a blind of $0.5. MP posts a blind of $1.
1 fold, MP (poster) raises to $1, Button calls $2, 1 fold, Hero calls $1.
Flop: ($6.50) Qh, 8d, Ah (3 players)
Hero checks, MP bets $1, Button calls $1, Hero raises to $6, MP calls $5, Button folds.
Turn: ($19.50) Th (2 players)
Hero checks, MP checks.
River: ($19.50) Qc (2 players)
Hero bets $25, MP raises to $50, Hero raises all-in $90.73, MP is all-in $42
Final Pot: $201.5
Results in white below:
Hero has Ac Qs (full house, queens full of aces).
MP has 9d Qd (three of a kind, queens).
Outcome: Hero wins $23.73 from side pot #1 with a full house, Queens full of aces.
Hero wins $201.5 from the main pot with a full house, Queens full of aces.
***** Hand History for Game 1961655460 *****
0/0 TexasHTGameTable (NL) - Wed Apr 27 15:20:04 EDT 2005
Table Table 36730 (6 max) (Real Money) -- Seat 5 is the button
Total number of players : 6
Seat 1: BB ( $78.15)
Seat 2: UTG ( $168.68)
Seat 3: MP ( $79.42)
Seat 4: CO ( $38.76)
Seat 5: Hero ( $77.33)
Seat 6: SB ( $99.5)
SB posts small blind (0.5)
BB posts big blind (1)
** Dealing down cards **
Dealt to Hero [ Qh, Qs ]
(two folds), CO raises (3) to 3, Hero raises (7) to 7, CO calls (4)
** Dealing Flop ** : [ Jh, 7c, Td ]
CO checks. Hero bets (32), CO calls all-in (31.76)
** Dealing Turn ** : [ Qc ]
** Dealing River ** : [ As ]
Creating Main Pot with $77.02 with CO
** Summary **
Main Pot: $77.02 | Side Pot 1: $0.24 | Rake: $2
Board: [ Jh 7c Td Qc As ]
CO balance $77.02, bet $38.76, collected $77.02, net +$38.26 [ Kh Js ] [ a straight, ten to ace -- As,Kh,Qc,Js,Td ]
Hero balance $38.57, bet $39, collected $0.24, lost -$38.76 [ Qh Qs ] [ three of a kind, queens -- As,Qh,Qs,Qc,Jh ]