Imponderables and other anomalies I found in my couch cushions...
So...have any of you noticed there's a lot of luck involved in poker?
Yeah - I'm just messing around, it's been a long week...
Like all of you I've read the posts debating this and I think it's all been laid out in toto, often with great insight and eloquence, so I won't even bother. Alright, technically that's not true because I commented my [earth-shatteringly profound] thoughts in response to CJ's post on it. But aside from that you won't hear one more word about it. Scout's Honour. Or Scot's Honor, depending on your area code.
It's been almost a week since I put anything out, but in the meantime I've gotten addicted to commenting on everyone else's site. I actually enjoy reading and commenting more than blogging. I may just close this newly opened shop and go back to the enjoyable business of reacting to what's happening in your worlds. Contrary to what a few very vocal individuals have been positing, I think the quality of blogging, in the old and new schools alike, is pretty damn good. I'm a voracious reader too, so I know what I'm talking about. I could say a lot more on this point, but what would it prove or solve?
Res ipsa loquitor - or as I told a resident who flew off the handle at a nurse a couple of days ago: Your insecurities and ill manners are showing.
There's certainly more than one way to tell the story of a given hand and no real crime in doing so as far as I'm concerned. For proof, just follow the trail of good-natured tears after a given Mookie or WWdN and you get a global, but corkscrewed, version of events I find more entertaining than simply knowing everyone's hole cards and percentages to win.
I personally doubt bloglines saves anyone that much time, and I think it distances the reader from the interactive component of blogging. [Edit: Wes has pointed out I don't really know what I'm talking about on this one, and I have to admit he's right. On everything else, Wes wants you to know I'm his personal role model.] I enjoy writing this stuff and do it in the sincere hope it makes someone laugh, or at least feel better about their game by comparison. But I'll be honest, it's reading what people have to say about it that motivates me to try to improve on it with the next post. I get plenty of validation in the real world, and I will bet most bloggers do to. I truly don't see much blogging-for-glory going on. Instead I perceive the act of keeping a blog to be a fundamentally generous one; wherein busy people make time to share their experiences in order to enlighten, entertain or empathize.
So I guess I'm a little surprised to see people who are quite accomplished at the game we all enjoy, go out of their way to crap on the efforts and attempts of others. Acting like a jerk when there's no identifiable reason to is a baffling calling. Whether you resemble Matusow or Sheikhan it makes little difference. You still look like a jerk.
On the issue of commenting, I think the power of it is seen when you put out a fairly short post [yes, I know I never do, but I allow it's feasible in theory - I'm thinking specifically of Waffles and Wes here] with what you think is a cogent point. Then in the comments section, people may focus their attention on one or two presumably ancillary sentences you tacked on for style. Their feedback in turn changes the nature of the post for everyone else who reads it, making it more cooperative than singular authorship.
Unless of course you're into deleting comments you don't like, which is within your purvey, but very 10th grade anyway you slice it.
F-train, I think, observed that blogging was about sharing communal knowledge. To be truthful, that's not what this is about for me. Mostly because I don't have much poker knowledge with which to commune. For me blogging in general, and the blogger tourneys in specific, are an enjoyable social experiment; a rare example of fellowship and competitiveness coexisting easily enough - for the most part.
The reason I keep playing the WWdN, Mookie and new favourite, Mondays at the Hoy, despite being a huge underdog [see Don for the current line] is that everyone has a good time and seems to genuinely enjoy each others' company. Makes no difference whether they're new on the scene like the appropriately named (if a little premature) NewinNov at Hoy's last night, or a grizzled vet like Pauly catching the Mookie last week. Bill Rini and Matt Marroon's despair and disparagements about bloggers and blogging aside, it often looks like one big [admittedly dysfunctional] block party. Yeah, I'm mostly outclassed at these tournaments, but who cares? For the cost of a movie ticket, I get the opportunity to play with better players [always a good thing from an education standpoint], learn a few tricks and most importantly have a lot of laughs. Hanging with bloggers has been a good time - in fact it's the most fun I have playing poker. It is a little strange that the same people who clearly enjoy each other's company at the faux-felt will go so hard at each other over issues that boil down to personal preference.
No, not as strange as Don driving the Druggie Buggie, but strange nonetheless...
So that's what I've been ruminating on as I crunched through a week of running a very sick critical care unit when I'd rather be playing poker.
And I finish with Good News:
If I accidentally managed to offend anyone, don't worry; I was just kidding! That makes it okay, right? Well that, or my new Lexus, I guess.
Later.
Yeah - I'm just messing around, it's been a long week...
Like all of you I've read the posts debating this and I think it's all been laid out in toto, often with great insight and eloquence, so I won't even bother. Alright, technically that's not true because I commented my [earth-shatteringly profound] thoughts in response to CJ's post on it. But aside from that you won't hear one more word about it. Scout's Honour. Or Scot's Honor, depending on your area code.
It's been almost a week since I put anything out, but in the meantime I've gotten addicted to commenting on everyone else's site. I actually enjoy reading and commenting more than blogging. I may just close this newly opened shop and go back to the enjoyable business of reacting to what's happening in your worlds. Contrary to what a few very vocal individuals have been positing, I think the quality of blogging, in the old and new schools alike, is pretty damn good. I'm a voracious reader too, so I know what I'm talking about. I could say a lot more on this point, but what would it prove or solve?
Res ipsa loquitor - or as I told a resident who flew off the handle at a nurse a couple of days ago: Your insecurities and ill manners are showing.
There's certainly more than one way to tell the story of a given hand and no real crime in doing so as far as I'm concerned. For proof, just follow the trail of good-natured tears after a given Mookie or WWdN and you get a global, but corkscrewed, version of events I find more entertaining than simply knowing everyone's hole cards and percentages to win.
I personally doubt bloglines saves anyone that much time, and I think it distances the reader from the interactive component of blogging. [Edit: Wes has pointed out I don't really know what I'm talking about on this one, and I have to admit he's right. On everything else, Wes wants you to know I'm his personal role model.] I enjoy writing this stuff and do it in the sincere hope it makes someone laugh, or at least feel better about their game by comparison. But I'll be honest, it's reading what people have to say about it that motivates me to try to improve on it with the next post. I get plenty of validation in the real world, and I will bet most bloggers do to. I truly don't see much blogging-for-glory going on. Instead I perceive the act of keeping a blog to be a fundamentally generous one; wherein busy people make time to share their experiences in order to enlighten, entertain or empathize.
So I guess I'm a little surprised to see people who are quite accomplished at the game we all enjoy, go out of their way to crap on the efforts and attempts of others. Acting like a jerk when there's no identifiable reason to is a baffling calling. Whether you resemble Matusow or Sheikhan it makes little difference. You still look like a jerk.
On the issue of commenting, I think the power of it is seen when you put out a fairly short post [yes, I know I never do, but I allow it's feasible in theory - I'm thinking specifically of Waffles and Wes here] with what you think is a cogent point. Then in the comments section, people may focus their attention on one or two presumably ancillary sentences you tacked on for style. Their feedback in turn changes the nature of the post for everyone else who reads it, making it more cooperative than singular authorship.
Unless of course you're into deleting comments you don't like, which is within your purvey, but very 10th grade anyway you slice it.
F-train, I think, observed that blogging was about sharing communal knowledge. To be truthful, that's not what this is about for me. Mostly because I don't have much poker knowledge with which to commune. For me blogging in general, and the blogger tourneys in specific, are an enjoyable social experiment; a rare example of fellowship and competitiveness coexisting easily enough - for the most part.
The reason I keep playing the WWdN, Mookie and new favourite, Mondays at the Hoy, despite being a huge underdog [see Don for the current line] is that everyone has a good time and seems to genuinely enjoy each others' company. Makes no difference whether they're new on the scene like the appropriately named (if a little premature) NewinNov at Hoy's last night, or a grizzled vet like Pauly catching the Mookie last week. Bill Rini and Matt Marroon's despair and disparagements about bloggers and blogging aside, it often looks like one big [admittedly dysfunctional] block party. Yeah, I'm mostly outclassed at these tournaments, but who cares? For the cost of a movie ticket, I get the opportunity to play with better players [always a good thing from an education standpoint], learn a few tricks and most importantly have a lot of laughs. Hanging with bloggers has been a good time - in fact it's the most fun I have playing poker. It is a little strange that the same people who clearly enjoy each other's company at the faux-felt will go so hard at each other over issues that boil down to personal preference.
No, not as strange as Don driving the Druggie Buggie, but strange nonetheless...
So that's what I've been ruminating on as I crunched through a week of running a very sick critical care unit when I'd rather be playing poker.
And I finish with Good News:
If I accidentally managed to offend anyone, don't worry; I was just kidding! That makes it okay, right? Well that, or my new Lexus, I guess.
Later.
posted by Iakaris aka I.A.K. at 12:39 AM
13 Comments:
good post man like the thoughts, though i'm not divulged into the blogger free rolls and all the rest of the ABC WWWWWZHEDDJLKFJLS codes you guys have (j/k) i respect the community and what it does for people in all walks of life. It really is amazing how you can get to know people you've never met just by reading a couple of post and start to understand there thought process as well as there humor. Well thats about all i got about to try and make some more money today...gl at the tables man take care...WHITE POWER!....i mean desi power
I personally doubt bloglines saves anyone that much time, and I think it really distances the reader from the interactive component of blogging.
I'm going to have to disagree with this one. The reason I use bloglines is that my computer seemed to continually crash forcing me to reformat, thus losing all of my bookmarks. After about the 3rd time of doing this, I found bloglines, and now my bookmarks can be accessed from any computer. It is a big time saver for me.
As for the interactive commmenting issue, I visit the site and comment about the same as time as I used to before bloglines. I'm not a very vocal person unless there is something I enjoy about the post (which I suppose you can take this as a compliment).
Raveen mah brown brotha! thanks for stoppin' by. Let's keep this link open, between poker and medicine - we may be able to learn a thing or two from one another. Are you interested in Psychiatry or Psychology? My dad is a psychiatrist (doesn't that explain everything about this blog?) in Toronto - sweet gig.
Wes - yeah, ya got me... If I'm going to slag something, it might help to know more about it. I probably should've tried it before criticizing it; I hate lazy thinking, and that was a good example of it.
Actually the whole point of this post was to draw you out of hiding, which it did, so now I can go back to sleep.
As always well done Iak.
Seems to me whether it's blogging, or business its always the old guard with all the disparaging remarks towards the young guns.
Well, never underestimate the power of insecurity and denial too for that matter.
How quickly people forget where they come from.
To be truthful, that's not what this is about for me. Mostly because I don't have much poker knowledge with which to commune.
You may not have poker knowledge, Iak, but you do know things other bloggers don't, I bet.
Don't forget that poker knowledge ain't the only smarts that are worth anything in this ol' block party.
In other words, quit kicking your own ass. =)
Well, back in my day...
Yeah, right. Like I've ever had anything cogent to contribute anywhere :). I think the reason that bloggers can go at each other so hard is that we are, by and large, a bunch of overeducated folks that are accustomed to, and enjoy, arguing. Most of the time there's no hard feelings behind any of it, we just like to argue. Look at Tri-clops.
And your contributions to poker knowledge are no less valuable for lack of experience or self-perceived ability. Sometimes the value in looking at a hand or situation from a different perspective is greater than hearing how Doyle Brunson wouldhave played the hand.
But of course, that's all just my silly-ass opinion. Be well.
Another great post...Iak (see I restrained myself from typing Ick)
I use Bloglines so I know when the blogs I follow have been updated. I then go to each site and read. Saves a bunch of time.
Ick,
Awesome post. I agree with you on most points, but I'm with Wes on Bloglines. I don't read blogs to look at banners or ads or whatever other cool stuff a blogger has put on his girl diary.
I read it for the content. And if I want to leave a comment (as I'm doing here), I have to click on the link to the actual site to leave one (as I've done to leave this comment :P ).
I also think that the old hands (with exception to Iggy and Pauly-who have always been very kind and welcoming) are just wistful for the 'good old days' when there were just a handful of bloggers and they were/are a very tight knit group. The young guns sort of threaten that sacred circle.
Things change. C'est la vie.
I'll shut up now.
Man, you are much deeper than me. Great blog, you captured where I'm coming from, just trying to throw out information that helps, and have fun at the same time.
Don, word on the street is that you're getting older every day. Mookie better bring you something cool from all of us.
Wolf and Falstaff (one of my fave handles), thanks for stopping by and I appreciate the kind thoughts, but I have no illusions about my game! BTW you both have very cool banners. One of these days, I must figure out how to do that...
BP - perhaps I shall try this Bloglines thing whereof you speak...
BD - of course we're on the same wavelength, we're identical hand twins. The day I read your AK post I had just finished busting in three different SnG's with it. Me stoopid...
It was good to finally get a chance to pay at the same table and break the curse. To bad I was moved from good karma to bad, and out within a hand.
see ya next week.
yea im def interested in psychiarty...already have an undergrad degree in psychology...but poker and medicine def a good combination looking forward to that new show on TNT about hte parmedic poker player should be interesting start this sunday at 10pm i think...holla
I don't think I disparage bloggers. Some of my best friends are bloggers :-)
Seriously, I think you have the an incorrect impression from my posts. My disappointements with bloggers mostly have to do with folks who don't "get it." Folks who haven't figured out that community (like respect) is a two-way street.
I don't like Iggy, Pauly, HDouble, fhwrdh, PokerGeek, etc, etc because they are great poker players (though some are) but because they are great friends. I've had some amazingly insightful conversations with Iggy. I've passed out in Pauly's hotel room (and he only took a minimum of embarrasing photos). HDouble lives across the street from me. fhwrdh and I have been through a 10 month IT project tied together at the hip. I was PokerGeek's best man. Yadda, yadda, yadda.
Again, my disappointment isn't in blogging but in specific people and what they do or don't do. My disappointment is with people who don't realize that the end game in all of this is to make the kinds of friendships that I just mentioned in the previous paragraph.
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