Wednesday, June 09, 2010
Phil Laak did it! CONGRATS!
While most of us are sitting in our little cubicle watching the poker news to see who has won what in Vegas…tis the season (Yah WSOP)…there are actual people out there that can some how muster the time and energy to gamble excessively. My hat is off to Phil Laak for breaking the world record for the longest poker game. 10 Hours of poker is hard enough…Can you imagine 115 hours??? Holy cow!
That’s it! Poker game at my house next week…I am going for 116! Who is in? Any one? Some one? Hello?????
Anyway, Phil not only broke the world record, but he smashed it! He beat the previous world record of 78 hours. Now that is some dedication. But wait! I’m not done…not only did he kill the previous record…but he also managed to bring home a total of $6766 (He donated half to Camp Sunshine) in winnings. Look at him trying to do something good for the community…You go Phil!
According to Steve Freiss (a freelance writer out of Vegas), Laak has been on a strict diet and exercise regime since January. Apparantly low fat meals and Yoga do a poker player good. (I’m practicing my poses later…no cameras please!)
He also did this with no stimulants of any kind. No coffee, no sodas, no meth, no energy drinks…nothing whatsoever. Phil…You are the man! Degenerate or not…you did it! We bow to your poker longevity greatness.
Now, who’s next? (I can’t get any one to come over)Labels: Phil Laak's new world record
grl 7:29 PM
Sunday, August 09, 2009
It dawned on me today that I'm starting a new chapter in my life.
There have been a lot of very interesting chapters...so I have no doubt that this one will be equally as entertaining. About 7 years ago I suppose my life was re-introduced to poker, and my life hasn't been the same since. But really about 4 months ago when I received that phone call from my mother "I have an idea" she said...is when it all started getting a little more serious...yet not so serious all at the same time. Pokerhag has evolved from a "I have an idea" phone call to a full blown website and even inventory. Okay...so the inventory is a box of shirts and hats, but it's a start.
I have been working on building pokerhag.com for 4 months now...give or take a few. It's been a lot of work. A lot of ups and downs, but now we are at the point that it's actually about launch time. Of course, I'm working my 8-5pm regular job and am a single mom, so my time is fairly minimal, but I have somehow managed to put many many man hours into this site.
I'm not normally a web site builder, but found it interesting years ago so I learned how to maneuver around building a website, and now thanks to all of the new fun tools out there it's even easier than ever to build a website. It's been quite the learning experience for me and for every one else involved. There is still quite a lot for all of us to learn too...but it'll be worth it, we hope, once we've got it all down and everything is running smoothly.
Let me move backwards again just a bit. I started playing Texas Holdem about 7 years ago and instantly loved playing. Growing up with a family of card players, it's something I've always loved. I started playing online and then found a local place to play some cash games, and so the poker obsession began. 4 years ago I met my bff and my bf, Mark. He had been playing at some local pubs and restaurants, in mostly Amateur Poker League free tournaments. He introduced me to those, and I started playing a whole lot of free poker tournaments.
Over that time I felt like I had refined my game a bit more. I started hitting some casinos, and not doing too badly, playing more home games with friends, and now have built pokerhag.com, along-side my mother.
For quite some time now, I've daydreamed, as I'm sure many people have, about becoming a professional poker player. Of course, being a single mom, with a mid-grade salary, it's not really an option for me right now. However, my son graduates in about 6 years from now. That gives me 6 years to decide whether it's something I really can do , or if I should just continue to daydream about it.
Instead of being a full time poker professional...Why couldn't I become a part-time poker semi-professional? I started tossing the idea around with my boyfriend and my mom, and all of us thought that it sounds like a pretty great idea. Great! I will go to the casino twice a week and see how I do.
It seems like I've stayed ahead when playing poker for the most part. Of course, there are good times and bad times, but more good than bad. The free poker tournaments that I played so often, I was winning quite a lot. The home games I play, I normally leave ahead, and the times I have been to the casinos, I have done well, for the most part. I won a tournament earlier this year at the Casino, only the 2nd one I had ever played there. I normally play cash games when I go to casinos.
Anyway, it just seems like a good idea to try out my new semi-professional career and see how it goes.
I decided I'm going to go to the casino twice a week and play the minimum buy in on the $1/$2 cash table, which is $100. I know it doesn't sound like much, but again, I'm a single mom, I need to be as frugal as I can be. :)
We went to Winstar one weekend so that we could play satellites to get into the $440 satellitte that will get us into the The River Tournament in August. I was up a few hundred dollars and I won a seat into the $440 mega satellite. I went the next day to play the mega satellite and didn't get my seat to the tournament. I was up for the day however. A whole $6. Which we spent for dinner. I spent exactly $6. So really with gas...maybe I was down.
I went the next week, lost my $100 and left. I went another day and decided to play the $2/$5 instead with a minimum of $300. I lost that and went home.
The next week I did it again. I went twice, lost twice. Then the next week, I went twice, and lost twice again.
Then I started wondering if I had made the best decision. I had never lost so often. At this point, I'm trying to reevaluate and see if I can learn from my mistakes.
I'm about to the point that I'm pretty broke and wont be able to afford it much longer if I don't start making some type of profit.
I have tons of books that I've bought. Unfortunately, I have a bad habit of reading MAYBE half of each book, getting bored, and moving on to the rest. I've probably missed a lot of important information not finishing these damn books. HAHA! My new goal is to start finishing these damn books. Along, with all of my other "goals".
I'll post more about my story later. There really are more details to speak of, but they'll have to be another time.
I'm interested in hearing other poker stories. If you have some fun or interesting stories. Let me know. grlinabox@pokerhag.com
grl 7:58 PM
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Working on pokerhag has been quite daunting tonight. It's getting late so I think it's time to stop now. My eyeballs feel like they are bleeding. It's sure been a big task for someone that knows so little. But I somehow keep going and continue to build it.
Build it and they will come, right? Boy I sure hope so.
grl 11:23 PM
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
I'm multi-tasking! Watching the WSOP on ESPN, cleaning the house, doing laundry, blogging, twittering, working on pokerhag.com, and tending to an injured dog. Multi-tasking is great for busy minds. ;)
Tomorrow after work I'll run up to Winstar for a few hours. I should've went tonight since it's Ladies Night. Maybe next week. There is just way too much to do around this house.My son is outside playing with his friends right now so I have a little bit of time to get some things done.Blogging...check!
grl 7:43 PM
Monday, July 27, 2009
Boy it's been a long and busy weekend. I saw Tori Amos on Friday night. Man O man is she incredible. I always leave her shows in awe.
The rest of the weekend was poker. Surprise! Saturday we went and played a couple of satellites at Winstar and some cash games. Didn't do any good in either of the satellites, which sucked, so played cash the rest of the afternoon.
Sunday Mark played the $440 tourney. I waited 3 hours to finally get on a cash table. Played for a few hours, and then headed home.
I was completely exhausted by the time I got home. We watched a couple of movies and one of our shows. I couldn't even hold my eyes open long enough to finish In Plain Sight.
I'm still feeling it tonight but will do a bit of work on pokerhag.com and then I'm heading to bed. I just hope I sleep well tonight. Another busy day at work tomorrow.
grl 10:39 PM
Sunday, May 03, 2009
I'm watching the heads up tournament on tv. LEAVE ME ALONE!
grl 12:00 PM
Thursday, September 04, 2008
We got a new doggie yesterday. She is a little Rat Terrier. My son has named her Clover. I went to the pet store and got her all of the necessary doggie stuff that a doggie could need, food, bowls, collar, leash, doggie bed, etc.
I get her home and she automatically hops in her doggie bed. She likes it.
As soon as she gets up we see the blood in her bed. She is in heat! UGH!
Back to the pet store to get some doggie diapers. Just what I need on my new carpet. I will call today and get her appointment so that I can get her fixed.
Whew! What a mess.
grl 7:53 AM
Monday, July 17, 2006
It's Monday and I suddenly remembered I had a blog. Wow! Haven't been here in a long time. Maybe I'll write some in here later today.
grl 7:06 AM
Friday, May 19, 2006
Well it looks like it's going to be another busy weekend. Seems like there is never a lack of things to do.
I did manage to get through the golf tournament yesterday. All went well and without a hitch. Another notch in my belt.
I took today off work. Woot! I'm spending the day cleaning and getting ready for my sons birthday party tomorrow. We decided to have it at the park so he could invite all the kids he wanted. He invited TONS...but no RSVP's have been returned so there is NO TELLING how many kids will be there. It could be 10, it could be 40. HAHAHAH...Luckily, several of my friends are coming to help with it. Which not only enables me to be able to see my friends but also allows for a less stressful situation. ;)
I got a couple of the Dallas Cowboys to sign stuff for Michael for his bday too. Pretty exciting stuff. The most exciting is...I got him a computer. A pretty nice one too for almost nothing. He is going to be so incredibly excited. I can't wait to see the look on his face when he see's it. I'm actually waiting to give him that one on the 30th, on his real bday.
Tomorrow night I'm supposed to meet friends out and then I think some of us are coming back to my place after. I'm really looking forward to that too. It'll be fun just hanging out and drinking and relaxing after the busy day.
I'm thinking that Sunday, if I'm up to it, I will be going to Main Street Days in Grapevine. I got some VIP passes for it. They said that I can go to the VIP area with those passes and have free food and drinks while I'm there. Sounds good to me!
Next weekend I am going to have a 5 day weekend. OMG! I'm not going to know what to do with myself. I'm going to be pretty broke though so I wont have to wonder too much. ;)
Well...I just got back from the gym and am in need of cleaning my place now. Lot's to do now.
grl 10:02 AM
Sunday, April 23, 2006
Wow! My weekends are filling up fast and the past weekends are just becoming one big blur. How did it become so busy??? As soon as I think I may have a weekend for myself...there is something else I feel I have to do.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not complaining. I like keeping busy. Every now and again however, it's time to take a break before you break. ;) I think I'm going to have to make that break happen soon.
My first belt testing is coming up soon. This coming Saturday. I still have my one-step sparring stripe to earn but I'm certain I'll get it tomorrow. It's really a lot of fun. I'm pretty proud of myself for doing it. So far it's worth it.
Ok...the weekend was so busy and I'm incredibly tired so I guess I'm going to shut things down around here and head to bed. I hope anyone reading this is having an EXCELLENT weekend.
grl 7:46 PM
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Not really sure what to do.
One of my friends just got married. She moved into her husbands house and put hers on the market. Last night they offered me the house for a lease to own type of situation. Very inexpensive as far as houses go but it's all the way out in White Settlement. I just looked it up it's 42 miles from my office.
It's a converted 3 bedroom with a carport on an acre of land. The schools are good over there and my sons daycare has a place just a couple of blocks away.
I don't know what I'd do about the gym. I'm not sure about Taekwondo either. I guess we'd have to find another place near there.
If I do this it's going to have to be RIGHT away. UGH!
Any suggestions?
grl 8:35 AM
Monday, March 13, 2006
Wow! March is proving to be a great month for me.
The weather is great here lately...I ate lunch on the patio today and enjoyed every minute of it. The sky was a beautiful blue and the clouds were sparse but were like billowy little cotton balls. The food was terrific. The company was excellent.
Ok...blah blah I know...
I got back to the office today and was asked AGAIN to apply for another position in my company. That makes number tres that I've applied for lately. I guess I am going to weigh my option and see what pans out. LOVE IT!
I came home as quick as I could and got to the gym about 5 minutes late for my class...luckily one of my friends was in the locker room changing too. So we were late together. HAHAHAH It somehow made us feel better.
Sometimes I just feel like I'm on top of the world. Like nothing could beat me down. Everything great just falls into place. When I feel like that I always think now "What did I do to deserve this? I have a GREAT life!"
grl 9:07 PM
Sunday, March 05, 2006
I didn't work out at all this weekend. I feel pretty guilty about it. Tomorrow I'll have to get back on track for the week. I did manage to get my house pretty clean though. I also went over to my friend Chelseas house and helped her paint some. It's really been a pretty uneventful weekend.
I'm actually looking forward to going in to work tomorrow. I'm going to talk to my boss about this new opportunity and see if it makes him want to jump on giving me the other position I applied for. Either way, it's going to be GREAT!
grl 8:26 PM
Saturday, March 04, 2006
As I was passing my sons fundraiser from school around my office yesterday, the Director over our data sales team called me into his office.
"Leslie, I'm about to post a new position for a Data Sales Engineer. Have you ever thought about applying for that position?" He asked me.
I said "Well, to be honest with you, I've been trying to move up in sales. I'm money driven and would like to go where I have the potential to make A LOT. Matter of fact, I have just applied for another sales position as of a few days ago and I know the potential for mucho dinero is there."
Scratching his head "Well Leslie, what were you hoping to make?"
I replied "I was hoping to make around $80 to $100k this year."
"Hmmmm...I could certainly come close to that." He told me
Of course I perked up when he told me that. I'm certainly willing to listen to him if he wants to pay me somewhere around there.
This job is really a pretty sweet job. I would get to work with people I love, have TONS of flexibility, and would hardly have to be in the office. I love that idea. but not only that it's probably the best career path decision I could make. From that position I could pretty much go into any sales position in the company.
Later on, I called one of my friends on the team, that also happens to be the person that will be hiring for this same position. He was so excited when he found out that I was interested. It sure did make me feel good. He told me that my boss probably wouldn't like it...but he would like to have me in the position within the next 30 days if possible. Woot!
It's great to be wanted!
grl 6:18 AM
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Crash And Burn
grl 5:06 PM
Monday, January 02, 2006
So my girlfriend and I decide we are going out for New Years. We buy some new jeans and a tshirt for her, a v-neck sweater for me. We get dressed and she takes her kids and mine to the skating rink for a lock in. Her husband will pick them up at 2am when it's over.
9:30pm we finally head out. Of course, there is a HUGE accident on 183 and we are stuck in a traffic for about an hour.
10:30pm we get passed the bad traffic and head towards the club we are going to first. It's over on Greenville Avenue.
11:00pm we get into the club, each get a drink, say hi to a couple of friends. I get some quarters and start playing pool.
11:15pm my girlfriends cell phone rings and she runs out to answer it so she can hear. She comes back in..."Leslie, I have some bad news...but it might not be that bad!! Your son fell at the skating rink and busted his chin open. He WILL be needing stitches but he isn't ready to leave yet."
UGH!!!
11:16pm I call the skating rink and the manager tells me that he isn't ready to go but he has a HUGE gash in his chin. Of course I have to leave right away to go get him.
11:59pm I show up at skating rink to take son to hospital. We wait for the countdown and head to the hospital.
1:00am the doctor finally shows up and looks at his chin and says it's definently going to need stitches. Probably 6 or 7.
1:01am My son runs from the doctor crying and scared, locking himself in the bathroom.
1:02am I tell the doctor that this is NOT going to be pretty.
1:05am Mikey finally comes out of bathroom and hugs me BEGGING not to get stitches and if we can just go home. He didn't care if he had a scar!!!!
2:00am the doctor comes back in. Mikey is finally settled down a bit. Well...until the doctor says it's time for him to lie down.
2:02am the fight starts. Mikey decides he will have no part of these stitches. The doctor, the nurse, and me wrestle with him to get him on the bed. Hold him down and discuss the situation while we are holding him.
2:03am We decide to call in a male nurse to help hold him down...He is screaming now too at this point. He saw the needle.
2:05am the other nurse comes in and helps hold him down while the doctor numbs him and stitches him.
2:15am Mikey is calm now and stitches have been placed strategically on his chin. 6 of them to be exact.
Blood is everywhere but our work is done.
I take Mikey home and get him cleaned up and changed and then we head over to Dennys for our I just got stitches breakfast. heheheeh
We were home by 4am and finally sound asleep.
Boy do we know how to bring in the new year with a bang!
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
grl 10:53 AM
Thursday, December 29, 2005
Did I mention how much fun Michael and I had at the Korn concert. We had seen Korn a couple of times before but we got to see a few new ones this time too. Mudvayne was definently interesting to watch. So was Sevendust! Of course don't let me forget Drowning Pool. Very entertaining. Definently different from the previous concert we went to.
grl 9:50 PM
Saturday, December 24, 2005
I hope everyone has a very merry Christmas.
grl 10:13 PM
Saturday, December 17, 2005
Opal wasn't kidding about how great Polyphonic Spree is. We got tickets unexpectedly to it tonight. We were about an hour late...but didn't miss any of their show. Wow! The whole experience was incredibly fun! There wasn't a single person in the place that didn't have a big huge smile. I don't know if we could have had more fun tonight than what we had. Happy Holidays!
grl 12:54 AM
Sunday, December 11, 2005
Life has been pretty crazy lately. It's been fun, don't get me wrong. I've enjoyed it. I mean REALLY enjoyed it. I think though...after having this much fun for this long...that you need to rest. Rest the wicked mind for a while. Ya' know? :D
I will give you a few highlights of the past few months.
grl 1:48 AM
Monday, December 05, 2005
Now THIS is safe sex!
grl 9:19 PM
Thursday, November 03, 2005
Well Well Well...
Lookie Here...
It's a blog!
I almost forgot I had one of these. It's been a long time.
I have been working and hanging out with Michael and working and hanging out with Michael. Okay, a bit more than that...but that is it for the most part. I did have a sitter most of last weekend and am having one again this weekend so I've been trying to make the best of it.
At this point I'm really unsure of what I'm going to be doing this weekend. I just know I want to have a TON of fun. I want to get out, I want to laugh, I want to enjoy myself, and mostly I just want to do whatever I want to do. I like having some free time to myself. Man I like it!
Anyway, I'm having company this evening. :D It's gonna be a happy night.
grl 7:31 PM
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
I'm tired today. Work is kicking my ass. It's good though. I think this whole week is going to be hell week. It's okay though, I'm always up for a challenge!
Well now my bday has come and gone. It was a pretty good bday too. I really didn't do much but I did go to my moms and hung out for a bit. I got the greatest bday card too! On the outside of the card it had 3 highways that intersected. On the highways were people, thousands and thousands of people. When you opened the card it said "Happy Birthday from all of the people you have slept with." HAHAHAHAHAHA...I nearly fell out of my chair when I read it. It was great. Made my day actually.
I wrote out my 35 things to do for my 35 years too. I just haven't posted it yet. I'll get around to it sometime soon. Maybe this time I will get everything done. I'm sure gonna try.
Don't have much, other than work going on this weekend. Some of my friends from East Texas called me tonight asking if they could come out. They do that every now and again though and about 1/4 of the time they actually do it.
Next weekend I'm volunteering at Six Flags Fright Fest for the Boy Scouts. I'm gonna be a scary clown in one of the haunted house. For 2 hours of work, Mikey and I get tickets for a day at Fright Fest. Sounds like fun!
Well...my son is needing me so I'm going to cut this short. I'm going to try and make a conscience effort to post more.
grl 8:25 PM
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Well I'm into the last couple of weeks of finishing off my list of 34 things to do in my 34 years. I don't guess it's all going to happen....but that's okay. I will need to come up with my list of 35 things soon. I'm curious to see how different it looks compared to the current one.
Anyway, not much going on around here besides work and poker. Lots of poker lately. Mikey is really loving being able to spar in Taekwondo too. Though one night that he went in this week he forgot his cup and they wouldn't let him do it and last night he want for sparring night and they weren't having it. Poor little guy is frothing at the mouth to do it some more.
We actually scored some free GreenDay tickets too. Woot! That will be our evening out this weekend. I wanted to go play poker with my sister and her boyfriend last night but I'm pretty broke. Surprise! They went to the poker room that I normally go to for the first time. It sounds like they had a pretty good time.
Alright...not much else I feel like typing right now so I guess I will end this post now. I hope you are all doing well. Ciao!
grl 2:03 PM
Thursday, August 04, 2005
It's hard to believe that the summer is almost over. Kids will be starting back to school within the next couple of weeks and we will all be back to our normal monotonous schedules. I SO enjoy the summers. I'm going to hate to see it go. Atleast we still have summer weather until September, if not longer.
What have all of you been doing with your summer? Had any fun? Done anything exciting? I would love to hear some of your fun stories. I feel bad that I haven't kept in touch with my blogger friends but I sure have had a good time. I guess it really goes both ways so I shouldn't feel too bad. ;)
This weekend I'm going to a barbecue at one of my friends house on Saturday night. Anyone wanna come? Free food and a bounce house for the kids will be included. Let me know if you want to. The more the merrier. We are all about the fun!
I don't have much else planned for this weekend. Next week I work 3 days and then I'm off for 5. I took Thursday, Friday, and Monday off to get Mikey ready for school. He will be starting a new one this year. We already went and bought his school clothes and supplies. Now he is all kinds of excited about it. He asked me last night if he could lay out his outfit for his 1st day. heheheheh...I told him I didn't think it was a good idea to do that just yet. I miss being a kid and getting excited about the small things like that. Hmmmmm....What am I talking about...I AM just a kid and I DO get excited about those things too!
Does everyone get annoyed that I put so many pictures on this blog? I just love showing my son off. Can you tell? Maybe I will try to post some other types of pics too. Most of my life just revolves around him, therefore lots of Mikey pics. What type of pics would you LIKE to see? I take so many that it's ridiculous. Give me some ideas that you have and I betchya I can make it happen. (If anyone still reads this thing anyway.)
Right now, I'm sitting at American Airlines in their cafeteria selling phones and typing in my blog. I'm quite the multi tasker, eh? I hope you are all having a happy Thursday. Ciao!
grl 12:02 PM
Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Time flies when you are having fun. Okay, the past week hasn't been THAT much fun. I've been sick! I'm tired of coughing and hacking at this point but I'm glad I'm feeling better too.
It's been so long since I've talked to any of my blogger friends. I haven't even gotten to visit your blogs much. Soon summer will be over and I will have more time. Hopefully.
Michael just recently got his camo belt and now he gets to start sparring. He is super excited about it. Here are a few pics from his testing. None of them turned out that great.
grl 6:57 PM
Wednesday, July 06, 2005
This month it has been three years since I started this blog. WOW! I sure haven't come far. :)
The last few weeks have been pretty crazy. I'm actually dating a new guy now too. Who woulda thought? I've been pretty much doing nothing but hanging out with friends at the pool and barbecuing. It's been fun!
We were up until 6am the other morning. My son didn't make it. He passed out about 4am.
grl 7:09 PM
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
i know I haven't posted in a while. I just haven't felt like it. Mikey and I have been keeping ourselves pretty busy. Now that it's hot outside we spend a lot of time at the pool. Hmmmmm...maybe that calls for a get together at the pool one weekend? If you are up for it let me know.
Last weekend we went the Dallas Museum of art for their Late Night Friday Night deal. It was great as usual. I sure wish they would do it on a Saturday though. I wouldn't be wiped out by 10:30 that way. Friday nights are our most tired night.
Saturday some of my girlfirnds came over and we swam and played volleyball and were out at the pool until close to 2am. It was fun. It got pretty crazy the later it got but it was still fun.
Sunday I took Zsa Zsa to the dog park. She had the time of her life. It was tons of fun watching her run and play like she did. Mikey ran and played with the doggies too.
Tomorrow night is the next Edge Hold 'em tournament. I'm supposed to go but I'm thinking I may not have a sitter. I'm supposed to find out in a few. This one is at a strip club. I'm thinking maybe I could buy lap dances for the guys that I'm playing against to throw them off a bit. What do ya think? hehehehe
Anyway, that's enough for now. I will try to post more soon.
grl 9:16 PM
Saturday, May 21, 2005
It's getting to be about that time...
The time to feel the fingers entangled in my hair. Time to feel the burn from the twine on my wrists and i certainly can't forget the feeling of letting myself go. Being the best slut that i can be for Him.
There is nothing better than the first time He has me crawl to him on my hands and knees and uses me however he wants. The first time He whispers in my ear telling me exactly what he is going to do to me. The flush that I feel from my warm skin is devestating and exciting.
*sigh*
grl 6:13 PM
Saturday, May 14, 2005
My son is now a yellow belt. I'm so proud of him. He has really working hard on his form. He looks really good. Out of all the kids in his belt rank in his classes, I think he has the best form. I'm not saying that just because he is my son either. Really. :)
Today we have a busy day. We are doing a walking tour out at The Stockyards this morning with his Boy Scout group and then we have some booths set up out there and we have to work them for an hour. Once we've messed around out there we are going to head over to his friends birthday party at Tornado Terry's. We probably wont get home until 7 or so tonight. I'm certain I will be wiped out by then.
I already took Zsa Zsa out for her morning walk so I guess I had better go jump in the shower now. I hope you all have an excellent weekend.
grl 8:00 AM
