Man v. Man

I fell off the wagon.

I'm not sure how or why it happened. Everything was going well. I was living life with passion, expending effort every day and enjoying it.

The next thing I knew I was lying on the couch alternating episodes of LOST and Man v. Food. I was slacking on most of the things I had labeled priorities to start the year. I had no desire to do anything with anyone else, except maybe drink and/or play board games.

I blame the weather.

There has not been a week-long stretch of nice weather here in Boulder. There have been flirtations with Spring but nothing has stuck. Winter just keeps coming back, having worn out its welcome long ago. It snowed the last two days. There's no traction, no evolution, no turning of pages or new leaves.

I blame poker.

January through March I was alternating deep runs and super-deep runs. Since then I have made little noise, cashed few tournaments, and rarely, if ever, sniffed any serious cheddar.

I do know why this is happening.

First, the game is getting more difficult. Opponents are playing better and I have not made the necessary adjustments to combat them. The SCOOP tournaments on PokerStars, even the medium and low buy-ins, are not to be taken lightly. My opponents deserve more respect than I have given them.

Second, I have been very unlucky. Cold cards, coolers, bad beats. Standard.

Third, I have been playing like crap. It's easy to play well when you're running good. It's harder when you're not. It's easier to stay patient when you're playing less, when the only activity you have planned for that day is that one tournament. It's harder to stay patient when you have other things on your plate, or when you've already busted four tournaments that day.

It all boils down to willpower. I have none. It's so much easier to call a big bet than it is to fold a good hand, especially online. It's so much easier to keep sleeping than it is to get out of bed the first time you wake up. There are a million examples. I am having a really hard time doing the thing that is harder to do, even if I know it to be the better thing.

The fog of this confounding Spring is lifting. I realized that despite my worst efforts I have managed to take care of some business this Spring, to position myself for a strong second half of the year. An exciting weekend awaits, involving snowboarding, a birthday party, and the highest-stakes online poker tournaments I have ever entered.

Next week I am going to California, and the week after brings the commencement of the ultimate battle of poker, weather, and willpower: the 2010 World Series of Poker.

Wise Words From The Bartender At Cantina Laredo

"Superstitious things happen to superstitious people."

The NFL's Best And Worst Contracts

A while back in some hotel I stumbled upon a USA Today listing every NFL contract for 2009. Understand these contracts are heavily manipulated and don't reflect the average of what a player may be paid over the course of several years. Signing bonuses and deferrals may slant the numbers one way or another for one season.

Check out these $5mil+ contracts for guys that aren't exactly household names...

Devery Henderson WR NO $5,000,000
Geoff Hangartner OL BUF $5,000,000
Luke McCown QB JAC $5,006,760
Chauncey Davis DE ATL $5,007,280
Brandon Jones WR SF $5,400,000
Jason Allen CB MIA $5,506,240
Joselio Hanson CB PHI $5,720,000
Chris Johnson CB OAK $6,006,760
Frank Omiyale OL CHI $6,300,000
Chad Clifton OL GB $6,373,610
Shane Lechler P OAK $6,401,560
Jon Stinchcomb OL NO $6,500,000
Rocky Bernard DT NYG $7,000,000

Tommy Kelly DT OAK $7,001,560
Jovan Haye DT TEN $7,007,280
Gosder Cherilus OL DET $7,496,370
Michael Boley LB NYG $9,500,000
Kerry Rhodes S NYJ $9,950,000
Max Starks OL PIT $11,406,240
Brandon Jacobs RB NYG $11,506,110
Chris Canty DE NYG $12,250,000
Derrick Harvey DE JAC $12,367,500
Joe Staley OL SF $12,677,280
Jake Grove OL MIA $14,200,000
Vernon Carey OL MIA $15,000,000
Jason Brown OL STL $15,007,150
Antonio Smith DE HOU $15,507,280
Chris Long DE STL $16,592,280

Kelvin Hayden CB IND $17,480,000

The 50 best deals last season:
50. Chris Horton S WAS $392,280
49. Pierre Garcon WR IND $391,760
48. Steve Breaston WR ARI $464,680
47. Lawrence Timmons LB PIT $725,990
46. Jason Snelling RB ATL $467,280
45. Tashard Choice RB DAL $390,200
44. Le'Ron McClain RB BAL $466,760
43. John Carlson TE SEA $483,000
42. Leon Washington RB NYJ $541,240
41. Paul Soliai DT MIA $466,240
40. Joe Thomas OL CLE $1,200,000
39. Zach Miller TE OAK $466,760
38. Melvin Bullitt S IND $465,720
37. Joseph Addai RB IND $718,720
36. Jason Jones DE TEN $392,280
35. Troy Polamalu S PIT $4,305,200
34. Eddie Royal WR DEN $389,810
33. Gary Brackett LB IND $2,419,680
32. Orlando Scandrick CB DAL $391,240
31. David Harris LB NYJ $861,240
30. Johnny Jolly DT GB $535,910
29. D'Qwell Jackson LB CLE $640,000
28. Paul Posluszny LB BUF $700,000
27. Brandon Flowers CB KC $755,000
26. Leonard Davis OL DAL $755,720
25. Jamaal Charles RB KC $390,200
24. Sidney Rice WR MIN $465,330
23. Anthony Spencer DE DAL $485,680
22. Joshua Cribbs WR CLE $645,000
21. Ed Reed S BAL $3,604,160
20. Vincent Jackson WR SD $626,630
19. Tamba Hali DE KC $945,070

18. Dwayne Bowe WR KC $560,000
17. Elvis Dumervil DE DEN $540,980
16. David Hawthorne LB SEA $391,240
15. Ryan Harris OL DEN $466,890
14. Terence Newman CB DAL $902,280
13. Marion Barber RB DAL $624,420
12. Michael Turner RB ATL $1,007,280
11. DeAngelo Williams RB CAR $745,000
10. Leon Hall CB CIN $688,090
9. Jay Ratliff DT DAL $1,254,290
8. Johnathan Joseph CB CIN $710,000
7. Matt Forte RB CHI $388,120
6. Jerod Mayo LB NE $507,280
5. Haloti Ngata DE BAL $823,750
4. LaMarr Woodley LB PIT $466,240
3. DeMarcus Ware LB DAL $1,009,940
2. Adrian Peterson RB MIN $760,330
1. Tony Romo QB DAL $625,980

And the 20 worst:

20. Nate Washington WR TEN $7,806,240
19. Jon Kitna QB DAL $4,000,000
18. Ken Hamlin S DAL $4,310,200
17. Max Starks OL PIT $11,406,240
16. Chris Simms QB DEN $3,466,500
15. Daunte Culpepper QB DET $5,050,000
14. Chris Long DE STL $16,592,280
13. Jovan Haye DT TEN $7,007,280
12. Domonique Foxworth CB BAL $8,006,240
11. Chauncey Davis DE ATL $5,007,280
10. Kerry Collins QB TEN $8,507,280
9. Michael Clayton WR TB $7,506,760
8. Derrick Harvey DE JAC $12,367,500
7. Glenn Dorsey DT KC $13,070,00
6. Jake Delhomme QB CAR $6,325,000
5. Derek Anderson QB CLE $6,450,000
4. Antonio Smith DE HOU $15,507,280
3. Roy E. Williams WR DAL $13,660,320
2. JaMarcus Russell QB OAK $11,255,440
1. Vernon Gholston DE NYJ $9,186,240

My 100 Favorite Songs: #18

Nada Surf - Blonde On Blonde



February 2004, the beginning of my New Zealand study abroad, Nada Surf's Let Go album was my best friend in the whole world.

Wise Words From Orson Scott Card

Jeremiah Smith sent me this quote from Orson Scott Card's Empire, which I found alarmingly applicable to my own pursuits:

"If you always behave rationally, then reason becomes the leash by which your enemy pulls you. Yet if you knowingly make irrational decisions, have you not betrayed your own ability? The battlefield is not a place for actors, playing the role of this or that style of commander, for you can always imitate a worse commander, but never a better one. You must be yourself, even if your enemy comes to know your weaknesses, for you cannot pretend to have personal abilities and traits that you do not have."

Fisch Scores Again

Seth "SFisch4" Fischer made his second six-figure score in eight days, this time for $108k in an epic SCOOP 2-day event. TheMasterJ33 also made the final table.

Both of these guys will be at the house this summer. Though poker is not going real well for me right now, I am looking forward to the WSOP which starts at the end of the month.

April Top 15

15. Graham Parker - Love Gets You Twisted
14. Steve Miller Band - Rock 'N Me
13. Gabriella Cilmi - Sweet About Me
12. Toad The Wet Sprocket - Walk On The Ocean
11. Nirvana - Smells Like Teen Spirit

10. Nirvana - Lounge Act
9. Lady Gaga - Bad Romance
8. Hockey - Song Away
7. Tony Lucca - Devil Town
6. Ween - A Tear For Eddie

5. The White Stripes - Seven Nation Army
4. Broken Bells - The High Road
3. The Black Crowes - Twice As Hard
2. Needtobreathe - Hurricane

Song of the Month: Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Beat The Devil's Tattoo