(Edit: Just found out that Harp, the PBR of Ireland, is not the Fire Sale today – it’s Ghost River Hefe. Still very acceptable. Will be there after work.)
Sorry for the lack of posts yesterday. On my lunch break I was busy actually eating lunch for a change. After work I fired up the netbook and started playing poker, and next thing I knew it was 12:30 AM and time for bed. Not only did I not post yesterday, I never made it out to any of the neighborhood bars for the first time in memory.
Speaking of lunch… got a tip for those who work in the airport area like I do. On American Way east of Getwell, across from the Waffle House, there’s a strip mall with a store called “Regal USA” Indian market. Inside there’s a cafe called Maharaja Cafe (not sure about the spelling there) that has really good Indian dishes, both vegetarian and with meat. They’re all well under $10 and you can get them for there or to go. While your food is cooking, you might want to do some shopping in the market – I brought back something called “Halditam’s Crispy & Spicy Super Mixture” which I’ve been munching on all morning at work. Better than a bag of Ruffles out of the vending machine, that’s for sure.
I’ve found a new poker game that has been keeping me busy. It’s called Razz and it’s 7-card stud, low-ball. Your low 5 cards out of 7 make a hand, and straights and flushes don’t count, but pairs, trips, and quads do. Aces are low, so the best hand would be the “wheel” straight of A-2-3-4-5.
I’m finding Razz to be a profitable game. Basically, it boils down to two rules:
1) Don’t play crap starting hands
2) Sit down at tables with players who do.
Do this, and opponents will be playing catch-up, so in the long run you’ll make money. Also, because it’s a limit game, I’m comfortable playing much higher stakes than Texas Hold’em. At Hold’em, my current bankroll only allows me to sit at 10 cent small blind/25 cent big blind tables, but at limit Razz, I’ll go all the way up to $2 small bet/$4 big bet tables where I buy in for $80.
The next game I want to learn is Omaha Hi-Lo. My friend Air Traffic Mike has been playing it on Full Tilt recently, and he told me he thinks it’s a game I where I could really do well. I’ve bought a book on Omaha that I’m reading in my spare time… when I get home I’ll try to remember to post the name. I’ll probably play Razz for the rest of December in order to pile up Frequent Player Points as quickly as possible on PokerStars, then switch to Omaha in January.
PokerStars or Full Tilt? All signs point to Full Tilt having better games, and I hear the Razz tables are even looser than Stars. I just hate Tilt’s cartoonish interface.
The worst 3-card starting hand in Razz, since Aces are low, would be KKK. I’ve nicknamed this hand the “Ole Miss.”
In the news… Walgreens has filed a petition to sell beer in its Memphis stores. I’d worry that this would be a problem Downtown, since the bums already congregate outside of Walgreens, but with the new panhandling and single-serve beer ordinances about to go to the City Council, I don’t think it will be a problem.
Channel 5 now has a free iPhone app available where you can get news, sports, weather, and more. Search for “wmct-tv.com mobile” in the app store.
Also, I saw on LifeHacker that the Louvre has an iPhone app that is so good that it feels like you’re getting your own private tour of the museum.
Kudos to Mayor AC Wharton for taking positive, proactive steps to help our homeless get the warm beds and the services they need. Yes, we do need a free homeless shelter in Memphis, but we can’t just pluck $500,000 off the money tree and erect one by tomorrow. First steps have to be taken. The mayor did the smart thing… he went to the people who know the most about the situation, the service providers, and he engaged them and listened to them, in order to come up with a plan to get where we need to be. Thank you Mr. Mayor. It’s good to have someone in office who cares about all the citizens of Memphis.
I can’t resist making a comment here… most readers of this blog know I was not a fan of former President Bush. It’s not so much that I disagreed with his policies (although I almost always did), it was his attitude of, “I’m right, you’re wrong, it’s my way or the highway, I don’t have to listen to or respect opposing views.” This is the same reason I was not a fan of the rightward-leaning leadership of the DNA from 2007 to early 2009, because they tried to steamroll their agenda through without listening to others or treating their opinions with respect.
But you know what? People on the left who take this attitude are just as bad. The MSPJC dismisses what Wharton is doing as “harassing the homeless” without even listening, because Wharton is not doing EXACTLY what they believe should be done. They’re right, Wharton is wrong, period, end of discussion. I wish the media would stop giving the MSPJC so much coverage. Why not interview the people at Calvary Outreach instead and get their opinion? Or Door of Hope? Those would be more objective sources to quote on what the homeless need. The people at MSPJC get an A for having their hearts in the right place, but they get an F minus for communication, strategy and tactics. They don’t take any positive, proactive steps of their own; they just complain about what everyone else is doing.