For thinking out loud

This is what is left of our wood for our stove. We are at that juncture where we wonder if it is worthwhile to find someone who has some firewood available, and if so, how much we are willing to pay. This room, measuring about 10’ x 10’, was full to the doorway at the beginning of the heating season. And even though we have cut back on the amount we have to use each day because of warmer weather, we burn anywhere from 10 to 12 pieces a day. To make matters worse, not all of the wood in this picture is ready to burn. The middle of the pile is from a photinia we cut down this last summer, and it will need to dry out some more, unless, of course, we want a chimney full of creosote. So, in order to get a better idea of just how much wood we have left, I moved the photinia against one wall and piled the rest on an opposite wall. We have about two weeks worth of wood.

Now, if we lived in a colder climate, or we didn’t have a heat pump for back-up heat, we might be in a world of hurt. We can bite the bullet, throw on an extra sweater and endure. And snuggle a bit more.

Staying active helps to keep warm as well. That was partly the reason I moved wood today. I worked up a bit of a sweat. And, I made some progress on cleaning and organizing the barn. One can now walk from one end to the other without having to step over bags of lime, yet I have a long way to go.

I also started working in the greenhouse. The shelving units are in place, and I can tell that I am going to have to move more in from storage… after I figure out where to put the stuff that is stored on them. In the barn? I don’t think so. Not yet, anyway.

I have to back up a little. Although the shelves are in place, or rather, positioned the same way we have in previous years, I am not so certain that it is the most strategic plan. Typically I create two long rows of shelves, one in front of the other, and while everything manages to sprout, the plants on the lower shelves tend to get stunted because of the lack of sunlight. The plants on the second row of shelves suffer even more as they get even less sunlight. I could rotate trays around to insure that all plants get sun, but that sounds a bit too much like work. As I sit here writing, I think that I will try something different.

As my regular readers will know, the greenhouse is round. I am thinking that by placing shelves in two concentric arcs I might be able to get more consistent light to more plants. I have another project for tomorrow.

The seeds should start to arrive Wednesday.

Spring - Get Started

Today is the first day of spring? Maybe it was yesterday. One couldn’t tell by the sleet and snow this morning. Actually, this time of year the weather is so changeable here, that it could be mid-spring and we’d still be getting sleet. No biggie, and we can’t let it stop us from what needs to be done.

Yesterday I sat down and ordered seeds. Lots of them. Herbs, veggies, flowers. About $300 worth of seed, and at an average of $2.50 per pack, you can get an idea of the task ahead of me. So, in preparation, I went out to the barn today and started filling planting cells. Lots of them. 4,136 to be exact.

I started with 12 bags of soil, each holding 2.8 cubic feet of soil mix. I used 5 of those bags today, along with a little left over soil, and about half a box of six-pack cells (36 cells to a tray). This should get me started.

When I bought the six-pack cells, I was given a choice between shallow or deep cells, and I chose the latter. This will allow for better root development and a stronger transplant. Most of the starts will be planted in these cells: broccoli, corn, beets, cabbage, etc. I have another box of 4-inch pots that will hold starts such as eggplant, peppers, tomatillos, and the like, plants that tend to need to have some size to them before being transplanted. Tomatoes will be sold in gallon cans.


I have a little system for filling cells and pots with soil. I set up my table with a row of empty trays and another row of containers. I put the containers in the trays and set a tray into my wheelbarrow full of soil. I pile the soil into the containers, and spread and smooth the soil out so that each cell or pot is full. Over the years I have found that I have a tendency to underfill the outer cells, so I add a little more soil to the cells around the edge, just to be on the safe side. (The outer cells also dry out first after watering the starts, so a little extra soil helps.)


I’ll start filling these trays with seeds as soon as I get them from the seed sellers. I place a seed in each cell, push it down with my finger, and when a tray is completed, I place it back in the wheelbarrow for some top dressing. But I’m getting a little ahead of myself here.

Tomorrow I will get the greenhouse ready.

I got plenty of nuthin’

R called late this afternoon to say that he wasn’t having his scheduled home game this evening. The last one attracted a mere ten players, which included his girlfriend. Instead, he was opting to go into Salem to play in a game he knew about and invited me along.

R explained, “They start with a cash game, then play a tourney and then there’s another cash game. It’s easy money.” I was out the door as fast as I could go, after chores, of course, and kissing the DW.

I arrived just as the first cash game was wrapping up, and just in time to watch R stack off. The only other person I knew in the room was the guy to R’s left, a very soft player, who had amassed quite a few chips. He called out to me. “Hey, are you here to clean me out again like you did at R’s?” Everyone looked up from the table to see who he was talking to. Great. So much for anonymity being a possible edge.

There were a lot of young guns at this game, some who clearly weren’t old enough for the casino, but certainly old enough to be sporting their online logowear. I commented about it to R. “Last time I was here, a guy had brought his two kids with him and they both played the cash game.” Then he added, “There’s usually two guys here who are calling stations, They’re not here tonight.”

The tourney was cheap enough, $30 with a $20 rebuy. Oops, make that unlimited rebuys for the first three rounds. We started with 4000 in chips and blinds started at 50/100 and skyrocketed from there every 20 minutes. It was basically an all-in fest, and I did not fare well. My M was under ten almost all of the time. I called a short-stacked BB all in with 5 limpers, all who folded except me. I had Jd9d, he had Ah5h. Ace took it. I was short with A-10 and jammed, ran into AJ and rebought. I could have called a raise/reraise with my pocket nines, committing half of my stack. I could have flopped a boat. Oh, that’s right, I folded those nines. Finally, AQ was no good against AK and I decided to call it a night.

I suppose I could have hung around for the cash game to start. R tried to talk me into it, yet I knew that my patience had already been tested. It was time to kiss the DW hello. Maybe I’ll try again at some point in the future…the cash game, that is. As for tournaments, I can do without.

Out and About

I had some time on my hands today.


Talk about black and white... That's my riggette. I saw the guy who owned the big F350 get out of his compensatory gesture and I said, "You're making my truck feel bad."


Just for Crash, an old Minneapolis Moline tractor. I was not familiar with this brand.

I had outs…

One of Hwang’s key concepts is the notion that one may have to fold when ahead, or when one even suspect he has the best hand at the moment. The reason: no redraws. Well, I the hand below, I knew what I was up against and decided to gamble just because the pot would have been sooooo sweet.

PokerStars Pot-Limit Omaha, $0.25 BB (8 handed) - Poker-Stars Converter Tool from FlopTurnRiver.com

MP1 ($11.50)
MP2 ($24.25)
CO ($21.55)
Button ($34.95)
SB ($13.45)
BB ($21.95)
UTG ($13.35)
Hero (UTG+1) ($24.25)

Preflop: Hero is UTG+1 with 3, Q, J, J

1 fold, Hero calls $0.25, MP1 calls $0.25, 1 fold, CO calls $0.25, Button calls $0.25, 1 fold, BB checks

Flop: ($1.35) J, 8, 9 (5 players)

BB checks, Hero checks, MP1 bets $0.25, CO calls $0.25, Button raises to $2.30, 1 fold, Hero calls $2.30, MP1 raises to $10.75, 1 fold, Button raises to $34.70 (All-In), Hero calls $21.70 (All-In), MP1 calls $0.50 (All-In)

Turn: ($60.85) 6 (3 players, 3 all-in)

River: ($60.85) 5 (3 players, 3 all-in)

Total pot: $60.85 | Rake: $3

Results:

Button had Q, K, 4, 10 (flush, King high).

Hero had 3, Q, J, J (three of a kind, Jacks).

MP1 mucked Q, 8, K, 10 (straight, Queen high).

Outcome: Button won $57.85

Preflop: 50%.74% to win
Flop: 38.74% to win
Turn: 25% and other two could still tie.

Had I raised preflop (unlikely with my suited, dangling 3h), I imagine both players still would have called. It was a pretty loose game, which is also the reason I came in early with the type of hand I did. I was looking to hit the flop hard and trap.

When I ran the hand through the Omaha calculator at CardPlayer.com, I was somewhat surprised that I was still a 3:1 favorite when all of the money went in on the flop, so it wasn't such a bad move after all... Maybe. It helped that both opponents had basically the same hand. All I needed to do was pair the board or spike the case J. This is Omaha; it could happen.

Dear Diary,

No pictures. Oh, I suppose I could have taken pictures of our meals at the dining room table: t-bones, baked blue potatoes, brussel sprouts and carrots one night, take-out Thai the next. Or a simple snap of us sitting around the living room chatting about literature. Otherwise, no pics.

Does that mean that there was no travel involved when my niece and her college roomie came to visit? No. DW took them up to a local hot springs for a relaxing dip. I suppose DW could have taken the camera and snapped some shots of the tattooed guy in his birthday suit.

The young women left this morning for Portland. We are going to head that way this evening for dinner with them and fellow PAer sbstar. I’ll take the camera, just in case.

It was a nice visit. Both girls are very bright, well-read and conversant on many topics. I also enjoy watching my niece mature into a young woman. She’s not had it easy in a lot of ways, primarily because she had the misfortune of seeing her father (my Dear Brother) struck and killed by a drunk driver four years ago. Something like that is going to leave a mark. This uncle tries to fill the void as best as he can for her and her two sisters. DW’s generosity of spirit helps as well.

While the women were relaxing in the magma-heated waters, I spent some time in the barn, readying my work area for the eventual seed plantings. What a mess! Yet, I made some progress, and with a couple more hours of undivided attention, I’ll be ready to start my production line. (I just received the numbers from my buyer, and it’s not going to be a huge production; actually quite manageable.) And, there will be pictures. I promise.

Today is a beautiful day, a perfect day for the Violet Green swallows to return. I was out tending to the ducks and I heard a familiar chirp. There they were, flitting around and checking out the real estate. They’re not camera-shy in the least bit, so I got my camera, but by the time I returned, they were nowhere to be found. Sorry

Of course, even with company, I managed to squeeze in a little PLO late at night and finish reading Hwang. I must say, I’m a bit confused with my mixed results. At first glance it appears that I am still very much in the middle of finding a range of hands that play well on a consistent basis. Yet, in PLO that quest seems to be a little more elusive than in NLHE. Of course, the other side of that coin is figuring out the range of my opponents. I’m not doing a lot of preflop raising (Hwang’s advice to the newbie), which makes the task nigh impossible; yet, even when I do raise preflop, I am sometimes amazed at what someone is willing to call with. Add to the equation a difficulty with hitting draws while others seem to do so with ease, and I’ve got some variance. My buddy Stan says that the variance should be less in Omaha than in HE, which seems counterintuitive. Clearly I have a lot more work to do.

And right now, I have to work on my seed orders.

Just so you know

The next couple days are going to involve visitors, so there will be a hiatus. There will be some travel involved, so I'll have some pics.