A Sad Start to the Day Then Things Look Better

Our day started at 7 a.m. when Helen got a phone call from her friend Gail, who is coming to visit us next week.

Before visiting us, Gail is flying to Florida on Friday to spend the weekend with her mother who has been very ill for a while. Sadly, Gail's mother died this morning. She had been in poor health for months, but it's still a shocking thing when one of your parents dies. Helen spent a long time on the phone with Gail, who is still going to Florida on Friday and coming to see us on Monday. She arrives around 8:30 Monday night...

After talking with Gail, Helen encouraged me to go play some poker, so I headed to Bally's. The poker room was quiet, with only 1 table going. I was able to get right into the game, but the only seat available was the #1 seat, to the immediate left of the dealer. It's one of my least favorite seats, but I took it.

I bought in for $100 and for the first half hour, I didn't really play much. Then I looked down at Q-Q and found myself involved in a pot with one other guy. When things settled, I had shoved all but $20 into the pot, which I lost to his pocket K-K.

I re-bought for another $100, determined to play better and I did. I was able to win a few small pots and eventually I had built my stack up to $180, only $20 short of being even. Then came a hand that set the tone for the next hour...

I was dealt K-10 of Spades and bet $6. Four players called and the flop came K-K-4 with two Hearts. I bet $25 and two guys folded, while the other guy raised me to $50. I called. The turn card was 10 of Hearts, giving me a full house. I bet $50 and the guy shoved his whole stack of $150 into the pot. I called and showed the full house...he had the Ace of Hearts for a flush. I won the pot of more than $300. Ironically, just a few days ago I lost an Ace High Heart flush to a similar full house...poker can be strange.

The guy was steaming and he rebought for $200. A few hands later, we tangled again... I held a J-10 of Spades when I bet $10 and he was the only caller. The flop came A-K of Spades and the Q of Diamonds. This gave me a Straight with two shots at a Royal Flush (which would pay a jackpot of $3,200). I bet $10 and the guy raised me to $50. I called his $50. The turn card was a 4 of Diamonds. I checked, the guy bet $50 and I went ALL-IN. For the second time in 10 minutes, he shoved his whole stack in against me. The river card was a 2 of Clubs...I showed the Straight...he mumbled and mucked his hand...

By this time, I had built a stack of over $800 and just kept winning hands. Eventually I had $1,060 in front of me - a profit of $860 when I cashed out at about 3 p.m. So five hours of poker was pretty profitable today...

Leaving the poker room, I went to the sports book and put a $30 bet on MSU -4 over U-M. Go GREEN! The Spartans rolled and I'll be cashing that ticket in a few days.

When I got home, Helen and I decided to celebrate with takeout from the Cheesecake Factory. Helen had the Chicken Tacos with beans and rice, while I chose the BBQ Chicken Pizza. CF never fails to please the palate...

Helen is on the phone with our Grandson Alan, whose birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks. The namesake will soon be 16. We're just kicking back watching some TV, but tomorrow the adventure continues...