Which one is me?

My friend JK sent me this photo this afternoon. It pretty much sums up the way I feel about my game at the moment. I haven't posted much lately because all I've been doing is losing and not having a whole lot of fun. (The good news is that the rest of my life is getting more and more interesting.)

I'll be heading to Atlantic City on December 5th, and plan to play in at least one Circuit Event.

Poker Laughs (6): Poker Face

Christopher Walken is the nuts.

Real Motivation

Run, don't walk to read this post by Listening. A sample:

Hey — I like respect, too! We all like to have self-respect. We enjoy the respect of others. But if these things are the primary objective, instead of the natural result of your poker efforts — you've started a step behind and you'll never catch up. There is nothing for anyone to achieve to be worthwhile: you have value because you exist. And your value exists irrespective of anyone else's opinion of you. If you don't know this, you lack self-respect. If you lack this, you cannot respect your opponents. When you show this in play, you simply demonstrate your own weaknesses to your tablemates and make yourself exploitable.

Who knew you could learn this playing Razz! (I kid. Poker is poker.)

Do You Feel Lucky? Well, do you?

I ran across this article about people who describe themselves as "lucky" or "unlucky," and a researcher who says he's identified traits and behaviors that are consistently associated with each category.

To feel luckier, notice more opportunities, and be prepared to take advantage of them try:

• Relaxing and being more open and flexible in your behaviors and habits
• Widening your field of attention and observation
• Listening to and honoring your intuition
• Cultivating optimism and resilience.

Hmm. Sounds very much like most mindfulness practices.

I think the applicability to one's poker game is pretty clear.