AGP Flashback: September 27, 2011

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The Beat: Origins of Poker; Texas Hold ‘em

Poker has a rich history with many different variations developed over several years of dealing cards. Where did the most popular of poker games originate? Time for part 1 of a multi-part series titled ”Origins of Poker”. Full Story Here

Off the Mark: I See London, I See France

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Flashes are awesome, accidental or on purpose. It’s a little eye candy treat. No harm. No foul. Through the years I have seen many flashers and it’s always a surprise. If you are a flasher it’s important you always follow the three rules. I’ll divulge those soon.

I was 12 years old in 1977. Billy, Mike, Robert and I would sit in the back of the school bus with a hand written sign that read, “HELP! WE HAVE BEEN KIDNAPPED!” trying to get attention from other motorists. It never worked. One day a 1970ish “Scooby Doo” van was following us. The guy driving had a full Jesus beard. His wife, the passenger, was a skinny young lady wearing a yellow tube top. The old fashioned awesome tube top. I don’t think it’s legal to sell anymore. She was tugging on a snagged thread. The more she pulled, the longer it got. So she jerked it hard as to break the thread and the whole top just came down, exposing her little perky, well you know. Three of us boys went from “pre-teen” to “teen” that afternoon. Billy? Well, he couldn’t stop talking about the dude’s groovy beard.

A few months ago I was having a terrible day. I must have had a scowl on my face. Sitting at a red light in my work truck, I look down and notice a 40ish year old lady who was pulling up her skirt, just a little, then a little more. So I tilted my head and looked at her. She pulled up her skirt and showed me her pretty panties for about 3 seconds. She had a big smile on her face. She pointed at her big smile and I think she said, “Smile. be happy.” Saying it out loud as I’m writing this, she could have said, “Fifty bucks, half hour.” Regardless, she didn’t break any “flashing” rules.

So what are the three flashing rules?

Round Up: Kerry Wood; Over the Limit

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WWE presents “Over the Limit” on pay-per-view from the PNC Center in Raleigh, N.C. The WWE has made what is typically filler ppv into a show worth watching with two interesting matches. Let’s take a look at the matches and possible outcomes ( I feel like I’ve wrote something similar before).

Zack Ryder vs. Kane - Zack used his Internet show to not only save his career, but push himself into the main event level. However, a few months after he reached the possible pinnacle of his career, Zack finds himself where he actually belongs, wrestling in the free youtube.com pre-show match. His opponent, Kane, continues to wrestle at a high level despite his age.

Prediction - Zack picks up the win with a rough ryder to the shock of himself and the crowd.

WWE Tag Team Championship – Kofi Kingston & R-Truth (c) vs. Dolph Ziggler & Jack Swagger - The WWE seemingly continues to test Dolph and his patience by putting him in matches below the level he should be involved. Does anybody remember Jack Swagger as World Champion? Kofi finds himself with another partner after Evan Bourne enjoyed “high flying” a little too much. Evan’s replacement, R-Truth has a history of addiction himself.

Week 17 AGP Home Game Recap: Behind Every Good King is a Great Queen or Two or Three…

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Week 17 of the AGP Home Game produced a new record low, regular season high, forfeit and an outcome fit for a king. This is how a king was crowned two-time 2012 winner.

Tuesday’s game featured a 2012 regular season high ten players on two tables of five players each. All regulars except family man, Ricky “Poker God” Hodge and the elusive, Buzz Finger were accounted for, at least for 3 1/2 minutes…

“Scab” Jerry Agren continues to play with his all or nothing aggression, with the result being nothing this week. The 2nd hand (that’s right, 2nd) of the game turned into a showdown at the “kiddie” table between Jerry and “The King of Poker” Troy Steffy.  Troy began the action with a pre-flop raise and was called by Jerry.  The flop revealed an 8-Q-2. Jerry bets and Troy calls. The turn places a 9 on the board. It also spelled doom for Jerry. He bet, was raised, went all-in and was immediately called. Jerry reveals his turned two pair of Q-9, while Troy shows his pocket Queens! Jerry is drawing dead and is eliminated in 10th place in a new record time of 3:30! There were no pictures taken of this obvious Hand of the Night, so this artist’s re-creation will have to do. Playing the role of Admiral Ackbar is Jerry. Troy is the Death Star:

“Messed Up” Burgers = McBrick Through the Window

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Incensed about the “messed up” cheeseburgers they purchased at a McDonald’s drive-thru window, two Murfreesboro, Tennessee men allegedly returned to the fast food joint and vandalized it, cops report.

The peeved patrons were apparently set off by the paucity of onions on their cheeseburgers.

According to a Murfreesboro Police Department report, Christopher Slate, 21, and Sean Mosey, 23 were collared in connection with Sunday’s early-morning attack on the McDonald’s. Each man was charged with felony reckless endangerment and vandalism.

Slate (left) and Mosey are pictured in the above mug shots.

In an interview with cops, Slate said that the duo was “upset with McDonald’s because their cheeseburgers had been messed up.” He then “advised that they went home and continued to drink beer and got worked up about the cheeseburgers.”

Breed ‘em & Weep: Gender Stereotypes

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Lately, in our house there has been plenty of talk about what boys and girls are supposed to do BECAUSE they are boys and girls. Shelby has told Jonah repeatedly, “You can’t have your nails painted. You’re a boy!” Gabe has said to me, “Mom, I’m not cleaning up those dolls. They’re Shelby’s and I don’t like dolls.” And Jonah loves to guess which gender is belting out the ballads on the radio. These behaviors have perked my curiosity into what makes humans at such a young age identify so strongly with the roles of males and females.

During the sexual revolution and the women’s movement there was much debate about how women raised their children. After many feminists began to speak out and gained momentum, it was decided that boys and girls should not be made to play with toys based solely on their sex. Toy stores across the nation took down the “boys” and “girls” hanging signs over these sections and declared them unisex toys. Little boys were pictured playing with dolls and girls were shown playing with trucks. Did the “professionals” believe just because they changed the toys kids were playing with it would make them equal? After toy sales declined during the next few years, toy stores decided to venture back into separate sex toy sections and began to make a profit once again.

The Round Up: 134>88

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Following his 17th place finish at Darlington, Dale Earnhardt, Jr. extended his losing streak to 134 races. Yet NASCAR fans continue to vote an overwhelmingly underachieving driver as favorite. The love affair for Dale Jr. compares to the relation North Siders have for the Chicago Cubs. Dale Jr. has become the lovable loser of NASCAR. Even the financial backing of the New York Yankees of NASCAR, Hendrick Motorsports, can’t help Dale Jr. find the winner’s circle. Drivers with far less funding and possibly more talent have won races since Dale Jr’s last victory on June 15, 2008 at Michigan. He happened to use mileage strategy to win the LifeLock 400 under green, white, checker circumstances.

Anybody know who this is? He's won more than Jr. since 2008.

Less notable drivers to win since Dale Earnhardt, Jr.

  • Trevor Bayne
  • Marcos Ambrose
  • David Ragan
  • Regan Smith
  • Casey Mears
  • Paul Menard
  • David Reutimann
  • Brian Vickers
  • Juan Pablo Montoya

As Dale Jr. slowly sputters into another disappointing season, it may be in the best interest of Henderick Motorsports to begin to look in another direction. If winning and making money are the goals of any franchise, especially one as heavily corporate sponsored as NASCAR, then investing in a better future is a more viable option.

Better driver options to drive for Hendrick Motorsports

The Dan Truth: Conference Finals Preview

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Here it is, the moment you have all been waiting for. My thoughts on the Stanley Cup Conference Finals match-ups.

Eastern Conference

The New York Rangers advanced to their first Eastern Conference Finals appearance since 1997 after going the distance and eliminating the Washington Capitals in seven games. The New Jersey Devils earned a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals when they quickly disposed of the Philadelphia Flyers in five games.

The cross-river rivals are in the conference finals together for the first time since 1994. It is a series that will be evenly matched due to the talent each squad possesses and the familiarity between both teams.

Players to Watch

Carl Hagelin (NYR)

Hagelin was the Rangers’ leading scorer in head-to-head meetings versus New Jersey. In the six meetings, Hagelin scored two goals and assisted on six others for eight points. In Game 1, the Rangers will have the last change, so expect John Tortorella to exploit Hagelin’s speed.

Ilya Kovalchuk (NJD)

Kovalchuk missed Game 2 against the Philadelphia Flyers with a back injury, but was able to come back in the series. He is nursing that injury, so it will be interesting to see the impact he has against New York. During the regular season, Kovalchuk scored two goals and assisted on two others for four points, and had a plus-minus rating of minus-two.

Goalie Matchup

The Beat: The Ups and Downs of Poker

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Poker is a challenging game. It takes a minute to learn, but a lifetime to master. Perhaps that is why so many people are drawn to it, always looking for that big win. That is every player’s dream. Except it never happens that way, at least not all the time. The swings in poker can make players leave wondering why they even sat down in the first place. The swings can get so bad at times, some players end up quitting for awhile or all together. One minute you are up and the next few hands you are railed. In this edition of The Beat we explore how to manage the ups and downs of this crazy game we call poker.

The best way to you can avoid letting the swings get to you, is to simply realize they are going to happen. No poker player in the world runs well all the time. In fact, many pros will tell you they have busted several times in their careers. Tom Dwan, a famous online player and poker pro for a now defunct Fultilt poker, has claimed several times that he has never lost it all. Now that may be true or a bluff, but despite any of his claims he can attest to the ups and downs of poker. If you play poker you know that a bad beat is bound to happen. Even if your goal is to play perfect poker by getting your chips in when the odds are the best possible and with the best hand, you will still most likely suffer a bad beat. However, on the reverse side you will also be on the beneficial end of some of those bad beats. Ultimately, it evens out. No limit hold ‘em is the worst version of poker when it comes to swings and bad beats. Players knows that you can go from a few chips to the chip leader in a matter of a few hands. On the other hand, squandering a giant chip stack isn’t too uncommon either. You have to realize that these things are going to happen and we should accept the beats and move on. I will admit myself that moving on and forgetting a session or hand is difficult at times. Often I find myself saying “I hate No limit hold ‘em.” However, living with swings is a must if you want to be a consistent winning player.

Steak and a Movie: THE AVENGERS

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Rated: PG-13

Time: 143 min

Starring: Robert Downey, Jr. (as Iron Man), Chris Evans as Captain America), Scarlett Johansson (as the Black Widow), Samuel L. Jackson (as Nick Fury), Mark Ruffalo (as the Hulk), Chris Hemsworth (as Thor), Jeremy Renner (as Hawkeye), Tom Hiddleston (as Loki), Colbie Smulders (aka Robin from HIMYM), Stellan Skarsgard (as Prof Selvig)

“Marvel’s The Avengers” as it is officially named has only been out for 1 week and has already set a plethora of records including biggest opening weekend and quickest to $150 million, $200 million, $250 million… well, you get the point. Is the movie REALLY that good? So good that it outpaced the 8th installment of a mind-numbing Harry Potter movie by $31 million on opening weekend?

Off the Mark: Tech Un-savvy

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I know we all have heard it at some point in our life. Maybe it was at a Walgreens pharmacy waiting area or at an old relatives home. But we all have heard that uncomfortable argument between to lovely old people. Husband and wife have been married forever, love each other, but in an ordinary argument just say horrible, mean, disgusting things to each other as if no one is around. I think it must be a conditioning thing. They’ve heard it all before so they keep stepping it up a notch to get the same effect. Kinda like crack I would imagine.

Tina and I have been married for 22 years. We are a happy, normal couple, not at all complacent. We always do things for each other, spend time together and try to have fun. I could never see us being that old couple in Walgreens.

Last week I surprised Tina with a new Droid Razor Smartphone. I’ve had a Droid for a while and she has used it on occasion, so it seemed she liked smart phones.