Monday, October 26, 2009

Using Both Hands - the SuperChop BBQ Sandwich


Why does man kill? He kills for food. And not only food: frequently there must be a beverage. - Woody Allen

I love poker but my first love is food and I like to share my experiences (about really good stuff) with my readers. I know there are a lot of pulled pork sandwich lovers out there but here’s the scoop on the ultimate BBQ sandwich. We're in Texas, therefore you know we are talking beef. Grand Prize BBQ, a little sole proprietor spot in Texas City serves two thick slices of made in house jalapeno cheese bread loaded with their delicious smoked beef brisket and smoked sausage chopped up right in front of you. The meat is piled high and no sauce is added until the sandwich is assembled. I don’t know if they invented the thing but I have never encountered one anywhere else. To devour this colossal sammy, you must use two hands and most people can’t finish one by themselves. I love taking associates from work to this place and watching them wear a portion of their sandwich back to the office after an “accident” while eating. There is a secret to eating a huge messy sandwich like this and not wearing it but I never reveal it until the 2nd visit. If you are in the local vicinity, stop in for one of these and you will not be disappointed.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Broadway

A man has made at least a start on discovering the meaning of human life when he plants shade trees under which he knows full well he will never sit. – D. Elton Trueblood

Broadway – the primary entrance route to the city of Galveston – not the straight of the same name – has been forever changed. It was formerly lined with huge majestic century-plus old oak trees throughout the esplanade and also at curbside of the many stately old Victorian homes. The foliage of these massive trees - at some sections of Broadway – met in the middle forming a beautiful canopy of green above the roadway. This is no longer the case. Most of the big trees have been cut down to the ground. The massive influx of salt water that covered much of the city post Hurricane Ike, killed most of the oaks. A sparse few trees remain. The once proud entrance to the old city appears bare - wide open to the sun and sky like at no other time in my life. Although many small (approx. 10 ft) oaks are being planted to replace the old ones, I will be long gone before the street looks anything like it did before. The huge palms fared well and remain but without the oaks, it just doesn’t look the same.

Friday, October 9, 2009

I Still Blame Frist

Men become more civilized, not in proportion to their willingness to believe, but in proportion to their readiness to doubt. - Ambrose Bierce.

I have been playing a bit of online poker again lately.

So, I ran the auto rate feature on PokerTracker last night.

A full 33% of the players in the database had their icon changed.

75% of them changed to indicate a better player rating than before.

This means that, yes - the online games are getting tougher.

There are still fish out there, but the ratio of fish to decent/good players is dwindling.

Although I have done well lately, I have also found myself in a rather “Jordan-esque” mood regarding online poker.

I still enjoy it but I don’t have the same drive to play online I once had.

My desire to play live, however, is stronger than ever.

Now, if I could just find more opportunities.

Sadly, I doubt the online environment will ever be like it was pre-UIGEA. The peak of the “boom” has passed and it seems unlikely, no matter what happens in Washington, that we will experience the massive influx of new players that we enjoyed during that glorious period.