Winter's almost gone

Winter's almost gone.
The snow went away.
The grey skies and rainy days remain.
Lots of time to play poker again...
In the Cambodian sunshine, a few big leaks sneaked into my game. Luckily, PokerVT helped me find and fix them quickly. Jon Ettinger's video series on six-max cash games improved my game tremendously.
Even made a nice, little three-figure profit for the month of February. Supposedly, it was going to be a month without poker so I'm happy I earned some cash nevertheless.
The future is looking bright.
Never mind the weather.
My bankroll is back up to a solid level (after a disastrous January).
Tomorrow I'll move up to the $0.50/$1 Rush Poker games on Full Tilt.
I feel ready.
The sunshine's gone.
Nothing left to do but poker.
Building up my my stash of cash for another run
to sweet, seedy Sihanoukville
somewhere in the far and distant future...

No Money Heads Up (Everyone's Solid)

Things are going well (+$$$!).
In Cambodia, I struggled a bit to get used to Rush Poker. Back in Brussels, my profit graph is going up again. Nice and steady, just the way I like it.

The Casino Clandestino Heads Up Challenge, on the other hand, is annoying me tremendously...
Small-stakes live poker should be irrelevant. But getting owned by that same villain, time after time, is not fun at all...
First I thought my heads up game was getting sloppy.
Then I found out:

There's no money heads up.
Everyone's solid.

(Check out the hilarious Two Plus Two-thread or listen to the song...)

Walled World

Living on the green side of the wall is just like a winning lottery ticket...
(picture credits: the very cool 'Information is Beautiful'-website)

After The Sunshine

Arriving in Brussels, early one morning.
Outside temperature: -4°C. Snow everywhere.
Fuck, everything exactly as it was.
No more perfect sunsets. No more tropical beaches.
Back to the dayjob.
Life in the big, grey city continued...
It will take a miracle to get out of here anytime soon.
Alas, I don’t believe in miracles.
So return to the daily grind it is
wake up/ work/ poker/ chill out/ sleep (repeat indefinitely)
At least, there’s still Rush Poker at Full Tilt.
Playing a billion, zillion, trillion hands until this fucking winter finally goes away.

The Long Way Home

Someway Outta Here

Originally uploaded by VagabondBXL

Only a few days left...

I almost forgot all about that cold, dark city far, far away.

Alas, time to leave sweet Sihanoukville behind...

Filthy Rich Fish got a huge boost in visitor numbers over the past month.

Thanks to all of you for stopping by and reading my daily ramblings!

Running out of time

Running out of words

Nothing left but

The long way home...

SnookyVille Visions

"Snapshots of a small town by the sea"


About one month ago, photography was nothing but a distant memory. By chance, I started playing around with a small camera. Took a few shots here, took a few more there... Now weeks have passed and I have been taking pictures everywhere, everyday.
No agressive big-lens, big-camera up-close spectacular photojournalism (for 'world peace' or, more sincere, for my own personal pride and glory). Been there, done that. This time around, no one was interrupted by my presence. Photojournalism death and gone. You want misery, watch BBC World.

This is just a personal view of my daily wanderings around town...
The streets, buildings, beaches and landscapes of this little town by the sea...

A vague and humble attempt to capture Sihanoukville anno 2010 in a series of simple, honest images

"SnookyVille Visions" on Flickr

Beating The Game

It’s been weeks since I have been stopped by traffic police while driving a moto-bike.
I guess I acquired the necessary skills.
Looking back, I was pretty much a noob during my first weeks in Sihanoukville.
Every time I saw traffic police I would slow down and steer my bike all the way to the right-hand side of the road. In Europe that makes perfect sense. When there’s police on the street, it's a good time to obey the law.
Out here it’s a whole different game, tough.
I have been a little fly going straight for the web of the spider...
So, from extended personal experience, here's my advice:
When you spot traffic police the trick is to move as far to the left-hand side of the road as possible and speed up. They will yell and maybe whistle but they will not chase you (it’s hot out here, especially in a police uniform). Do not make eye contact, do not slow down, look straight ahead and do not stop.
Alternatively, making a quick turn in a small side street or even going for the full U-turn are also very effective ways to avoid paying fines/bribes.
Stick to these simple rules and cruising around Sihanoukville on a moto will be smooth and hassle-free.
No rules, no helmet,
just full speed ahead...

Lazy Days In The Sun

It’s been a few days since I played online poker.
This morning I received a rakeback-payment on my PKR-account.
That almost had me going.
But I posted a few pictures on Flickr instead...
These are my last days in Sihanoukville. Time to just enjoy the sun and the sea...
After reading the ‘10000 Hours Rule’-chapter in the book Outliers (by Malcolm Gladwell), I’m no longer in a hurry. It states that to get really great in any kind of field there are always 10000 hours of practice required (Check the book for the details)
10000 hours of dedicated practice or settle for one lucky run (at best)...
I know what to choose but it’s going to be a long, long ride... So better start of with a few days of fun and sun. Soon enough I’ll be back in Belgium with not much else to do... (nothing ever changes)
Maybe I start with Sit ‘n Go’s again or I’ll continue my Rush Poker adventures. Six tabling on my desktop computer must be lots of (profitable) action-packed fun...
(but not just yet)
Next week I’ll get back into action.
Every 10000 hours of practice has to start somewhere.
Mine will start in cold, cold Belgium.
Now I'll just take my moto for a spin, have a few beers and go for a swim in the ocean before watching the sunset...

Sihanoukville: Sex, Dope & $$$

"Hey man, you wanna smoke weeeed?? What do you want? I got everything! Ganja, yaba, speed, opium, xtc, viagra, heroin, ... You wanna have a good time? You wanna fuck girl tonight? Wanna buy gun? I got everything you need..."


Sweet, seedy Sihanoukville
There’s something about this place
I can’t quite define.
The sweet urgency of now!
The brutal honesty of pure capitalism
While the Buddhist monks smile...
"It’s all good, it is all good."


Here I feel at ease
Happiness is mine.
Here in this strange, little place at the coast.

Home of countless dope dealers,
(under-aged) prostitutes,
corrupt police officers,
crooked politicians,
sketchy Chinese businessman,
alcoholic expats,
freaks, sex offenders, dope addicts, lunatics, ladyboys, hustlers and whores.
Russian mafia dudes (driving black Humvee’s with black tinted windows),
drunk Euro-trash kids,
ganja-loving backpackers,
lost souls,
dodgy nightclub owners,
cheap guesthouses, free WiFi, banana pancakes,
white sandy beaches

and

the only place on earth
where I'm a proud member
of a happy, lovely,
wonderful
family...

All in this same little place
(Same, same but different)

Phnom Penh Revisited Pictures

A long, long time ago I used to be a photographer.
Nowadays I sometimes press the shutter-button on my compact camera...
So a few lost hours in Phnom Penh resulted in these random snapshots:

Down The River (To The Sea)

It would be kind of sad to only play Rush Poker out here.
So we went daytripping...
Took the old Toyota Corolla out on Highway #4 to the National Park again. This time for more than just a fresh sea food lunch. My sister-in-law is in the know about dudes with boats. So we got this boat trip going. Down the river in a small, small traditional Khmer fishing boat. Passed mangroves and swamps, birds and fishing people all the way to the sea. We tried to spot dolphins there... I only saw water move (probably waves) but my wife insisted it was the real deal... Whatever, the only dolphin I’ve ever seen is the one on top of the Dolphin Shack, on Occheuteal Beach, where they serve cheap nasty ‘Vodka & Redbull’-buckets ‘till sunrise. Anyway, never mind that place. Today it’s all about the great outdoors. Wildlife doesn’t do much for me. But I’m a big sucker for sandy white beaches. That was the next stop. Fresh sea food lunch, after all, but at a beautiful, empty beach.
My kind of place
Angkor beer and fish barbecue, the perfect cure for too much poker.
Although I have to admit; I secretly listened to the Two Plus Two Pokercast on my iPod while the rest of us were sleeping away the afternoon heat... White sand between my toes, the ocean in front of me and talk about cards, flops and pot odds in my ears...
Late afternoon, we did a little bit of walking trough the jungle back to our little boat. Going back upriver while listening the Dylan’s ‘Highway 61 Revisted’...
Out of the boat and into the car.
Rolling into town 'round sunset.
Heavily sunburned and tired as hell.
This day in the outdoors washed away all of the Phnom Penh craziness...
My sleep troubles are solved, slept like a baby all night long.
Waking up early the next day,
feeling clean and fresh.
Starting up Full Tilt, all happy and confident.
But still losing at Rush Poker.
Losing money, losing happiness.
Lost 3 buy-ins in an hour...
Maybe I should forget about poker while I’m still here.
Just enjoy my days in the sunshine.
Let’s say another 1000 hands and I’ll quit...
(one thousand hands or maybe a few more)

Tangled Up In Rush Jittery

Leaving Phnom Penh, my mind started wondering.
My days in the sun are numbered.
Passed the half way point a while ago.
I need a plan.
I need to clean up my act.
Things need to change.
Fucking tired of how I live my life in Belgium.
Last night I had wild thoughts of cashing out my entire poker bankroll to stay high at Top Banana Guesthouse for a year or so. Sadly, I’m less drunk now and in need of a more serious plan.
Still, can’t see any other happy options besides poker.
If I could just get better, study more, play more hours, stay focused longer,...
Winning a major tournament, relocating to Phnom Penh and grind out my daily expenses in 6-max cash games... That’s the best possible scheme I could come up with.... But even I know, while driving out of Phnom Penh (somewhere between drunk and hangover), the odds are heavily against this silly daydream.
Nevertheless, I did the math. Getting bronze status in the Full Tilt Iron Man Challenge should be achievable this month (for the sixteenth month in a row!). I need some results. I need them now. January was horrible for my bankroll. But now there’s Rush Poker. Maybe the Rush will turn it all around...

Back in Sihanoukville;
Three hours and 1500 hands have passed...
I’m down 1,5 buy-ins.
Left my ability to sleep somewhere in Phnom Penh.... (who needs sleep when there’s Rush Poker, anyway) So I hang out on the beach all day, watch the ‘Flight of the Conchords’ on DVD (brilliant HBO-series) ‘till 4 o’clock in the morning and start playing Rush Poker around 8h30.
Now all I need to do is win - win - win... make profit...
seal the deal and lock up my ticket to a lifetime in the sun.
Once logged in, the tendency is to play as long as possible.
Full Tilt Happy Hours come and go.
When I close my eyes I see nothing but cards flashing by.
When I open my eyes 3 tables of Rush Poker scream for attention.
Can’t stop clicking... quick fold, quick fold, quick fold, raise, 3bet, fold, fold, raise, quick fold, raise, c-bet, got my Aces cracked, rebuy, quick fold, quick fold, raise, raise, bet, fold... My wife enters and leaves the room. Raise, c-bet, quick fold, quick, fold, raise, 3bet,... I’m staying right here. Raise, raise, quick fold, 3bet, raise, raise, quick fold, quick fold,... Keep the curtains closed and the fan at full speed. Fold, fold, raise, fold, raise, c-bet, quick fold, 3bet,... Trying to move the cursor around as quick as possible. Quick fold, raise, raise, fold,... It’s hard on this laptop with only a trackpad. Raise, c-bet, quick fold,... Still I manage. Quick fold, quick fold, raise, c-bet, quick fold,... Cannot stop. Raise, raise, quick fold,... At least another 1000 hands to go. Maybe more. Quick fold, quick fold, bet, bet, raise, fold, 3bet, fold, fold, raise, c-bet,...

All I need
a little bit of dope,
strong coffee and
a trillion hands of Rush Poker

I’m still here
but I wish I was back already


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