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Egoism Individualism Sovereignty Splendor (These ideas are explicated in this sloppy manifesto) SplendorQuotes: Splendor is the interior experience of being so enthralled by the act of creating the values that contribute to and ultimately comprise your idealized perfect self that, while you are experiencing it, you are your idealized perfect self. Living is what you're doing when you're too enthralled to notice. Dying is what you're doing when all you can do is notice. Man is the only animal capable of comprehending what his life requires, and he is the only animal capable of failing to do what his life requires. Self-love is the joy and reverence you earn and deserve by the relentless pursuit of your deepest desire. Self-esteem is the high regard in which you presume to hold yourself in appreciation for the accomplishment of absolutely nothing. Greg Swann's writings Wild Cochise Gang: Our family pages and Christmas cards Read my free e-book about love, splendor and philosophy, The Unfallen My Myers-Briggs type is ESTJ: Administrator--Much in touch with the external environment. Very responsible. Pillar of strength. 8.7% of population. Take a free Myers-Briggs personality test. War with Iraq: The Cain Doctrine The 'wrest' of the story Taking a better grip Why the Bush Doctrine will prevail--and fail A Just and Libertarian war... Persephone's second coming... presence of the recent past Nick and Norm drive the point home A Costco family Christmas Hang tough The season's greetings Curing the incuriosity of the East A canticle for Kathleen Sullivan Colloquy with a goat Back-handing the sinister American left To Condi, with sweetness Reds Sacrificing Diana Defusing the Unabomber Let 'em eat steak Shyly's delight Anastasia in the light and shadow Archives Join the email update list 
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Tuesday, June 24, 2003
Poker Nation: Tellin' lies and gettin' paid... I was obliged, over the last three days, to go up to the White Mountains of Arizona. I went up there for Real Estate classes in Show Low--an auspiciously-named town for a poker player--and I had every intention of playing poker while I was up there. I had heard that the poker room at the Hon-Dah Indian casino was particularly soft, and I was looking forward to getting some of my Social Security taxes back from the pandemic population of octogenarians who infest Arizona's rural Indian casinos. Alas, this was not to be. When I got to the poker room, they had one active Texas Hold-'Em table with a waiting list eighteen octogenarians deep. So as not to say that I'd driven all that way for nothing, I won ten dollars playing 'Little Green Men,' a nickel slot that has been lucky for me since the very first time I ever sat down in a casino--Binion's Horseshoe in Downtown Las Vegas. Then I went back to my hotel on the auspiciously-named Deuce of Clubs Street, a sadder but wiser man. But I can make the best of anything. I was out of town in the cool mountain pines with no computers and a very limited ability to work outside the classroom. I had time to relax and watch the jiggling, giggling girlflesh on Country Music Television. I worked out the story for a Willie story that's been bugging me for months. And: I had time to read. I had only brought two books with me, but with the girlflesh distractions on TV, that was enough. Of the two, the more compelling was Poker Nation by Andy Bellin. The book promotes itself as some kind of literary experience, but that's a hard sell. What it is really is a very personal glimpse of a nebbishy New York kid who combines good cards with a bad character to contrive an all but utterly wasted life. This is not something that one would race to look at, except that the train-wreckish verisimilitude of it is completely compelling. It happens that I am somewhere near the vortex of a swirl of interest about casino poker among libertarians, objectivists, anarcho-capitalists and other nay-sayers. I am very careful, in my own mind, to distinguish my motivations from those commonly found in casinos. Bellin's book, as a consequence of his character flaws, presents what I see as a valid and valuable cautionary tale. Plus which, there are some decent poker tips buried in the squalor. I got home from the mountains tonight, richer by ten bucks and a world of wisdom. After Cathy went to bed, I logged onto PokerStars.com and won $36 in less than 20 minutes of $2-$4 Hold-'Em. No octogenarians that I know of, but we can't have everything... |
SplendorQuests
Work
I am a a Realtor working in sunny Phoenix, Arizona, and the Designated Broker for Bloodhound Reatly. I am an Accredited Buyer's Representative, a Certified Buyer's Representative, a Certified Residential Specialist, an E-Pro Internet Certified Realtor and a Graduate of the Realtor Institute. I speak frequently on real estate issues and write a weekly column for West Valley sections of the Arizona Republic. If you need--or you know someone who needs--to buy or sell a home in the Metropolitan Phoenix area, I would be grateful for the opportunity to compete for the business. I think I represent the best of all worlds: Objectivist intelligence, Libertarian integrity and Catholic conscientiousness. For a liberty-loving take on real estate news, visit the Bloodhound Home Marketing Group weblog. And if what I'm doing suits the readership of your web site or weblog, please do link to it. Or go me one better by putting the customizable button above on your web page. Either way, for every person you refer who buys or sells a home with us, we will donate 10% of our net commission to the charity or advocacy group of your choice (within limits; we won't give money to people who kill people). Find out more from our referral page.
Play
If you don't know how to play poker, but want to learn, a place to begin is my Amazon list of poker books for beginners. Just remember: If you don't have a Positive Expected Value--you're gambling... | ||
