Gambling

When I tell the girlfriend that poker isn't gambling and that it's like investing in the stock market, she says something along the lines of, "Exactly, that's gambling." Contrast that with my father, of course, who thinks not investing is gambling, just like poker is. Whatever it is, there's a degree of luck involved, so I suppose there's always some sense in the notion that it's "gambling". Allow me to share my thoughts regarding the market.

There's panic all over the place because people are worried about credit issues. Subprime has spilled over into the general debt market, and that in turn has freaked out everyone. Wall Street is selling things left and right, and the general vibe is negative enough to put our beloved stock market into a selling frenzy. Call me lucky or call me clever, but I liquidated pretty much anything that didn't have long term value to me already so I've been waiting on the sidelines waiting to pick up some deals. Some others are already saying it, so it's not a novel concept or anything, but I think Q4 is really going to reward those value stocks that have good growth and industry attention but have been unfairly caught up in the selling frenzy. Come end of this year, my guess is that I'll either be begging on the streets or I'll make some sick, sick gains.

Now here's the real question. Who wants to stake me? I need room and board for the next six months and you take 100% of the loss, 50% of the gain.

Bottled Water

At the checkout line with my Dasani water bottle in hand, a stranger commented to me, "Don't you know that's just tap water? And it's killing the environment." For a brief moment, I thought about responding with a comment like, "Really? Tell me everything.", but judging from her appearances, I would be in for a lengthy discussion. I was in no mood to listen the the latest gossip she had heard from watching the local news.

"I know it's bottled water, but did you know that it's made by Coca-Cola and they put in a secret ingredient lfor a mere sip of water like this."

She looked at me in disgust and shook her head, but that shut her up. The truth is that I've known for ages that Dasani and Aquafina were not made from natural spring water. I don't really care. I drink tap water in decrepit countries where the chance of getting something more than just water is a distinct possibility. I'm not afraid of infected water. Evian water appeals to me about as much as a strand of Mikimoto pearls. However, I do like the idea of quenching thirst with chilled water and the convenience of having a bottle when I'm on the go. I realize that it's made from plastic and plastic is destroying the environment, so I try to avoid wasting water bottles, but yeah, I do use them.

What really gets me, however, is the fact that people get on their high and mighty horse after they've watched a three-minute special on the local news exposing the water industry as being deceptive because they use tap water instead of real water, or wasteful because they are destroying the environment with their water collection and bottling practices. Especially with the latter, I don't know why the "water" industry is getting heat when that is a problem that isn't unique to the industry. The woman above, for example, had plastic bottles of other drinks and products in her holier-than-thou shopping cart.

As I drank the ice cold Dasani in my not-as-feul-efficient-as-can-be car, I didn't feel the least bit guilty. I was actually feeling rather relieved that someone out there provided purified tap water in a bottle because it was pretty darn hot in Southern California that afternoon. Yeah, I'm selfish like that.

Destroying Mike May

Mike May is single-handedly being my muse for this journal. It's very fitting because he's actually my own audience as well. (Hi, Mike!) Let me tell you a story about Mike May that he doesn't even know. I think the both of us started playing cards at a place called "Diamond Club". While I can't speak for Mike, the Diamond Club was certainly my favorite place in the world to play cards; it's a pity that it's long been shut down and is only a distant memory. Of course, some friends of mine, with very much help from Mike, are in the midst of producing a documentary which will outline the underground clubs that make New York poker.

I was just a beginner when I started playing cards at the Diamond Club, but Mike was already well on his way to becoming a pro. Needless to say, he helped me along with the education and took nothing from me except for a lot of little round chips. I was like a machine back then, a loose, passive player that just kept sliding chips ahead. You know those gaming machines in the casinos that push the quarters, but the quarters never fall? Well, I'd push chips out and they'd fall...right into the hands of the likes of Mike May.

Years later, I re-introduced myself to Mike but never mentioned the fact that I think he took a good chunk of my law school spending money away from me when I was naught but a poor student. By-this-time, Mike had already established his name in the poker world, having placed in several tournaments and was well on his way to being known as "the Claw". I pretended to be his friend so that he would take me under his wing and teach me all his poker tricks, and then I could one day take revenge upon his pour soul and bust him into eternity. No luck. Not only does he become a better player day-by-day, but he sought protection in the foreign land of Florida, where bingo reigns supreme and poker players resort to poker cruises to claw social security money away from retired folk who need it for life-sustaining medications.

Time will heal broken hearts, but not mine. What healed my poor bitter soul and revenge-seeking mind was a lovely [read = hot] girl that convinced me that if I lifted my lifelong goal of taking Mike out, she'd sleep with me. So I did, and it was so worth it. Now I am forever indebted to him for helping me score what I could never otherwise score. Thanks, Mike.

Beginning

If ever there was a beginning, this was it. And then I had writer's block...