My WSOP Starts Tomorrow

I arrived in Las Vegas last night. The descent and landing were rough thanks to currents of hot air rising up from the scorching city. It was also a clear flight, though, with spectacular views of Grand Canyon, Lake Powell, and the whole majestic desert landscape.

Gareth Chantler, whom you may know from CardRunners or from his frequent comments here at Thinking Poker, picked me up at the airport. I’ve known Gareth for over a year and we’ve spoken by Skype many times, but this was our first in-person meeting.

He was kind enough to drive me to Whole Foods, enabling me to get some milk and fresh fruit. I can’t tell you how great it is not to be wholly dependent on the Poker Kitchen and the Rio’s many fine (LOL) eateries while I’m here. I didn’t buy too much because I was expecting to have to cram things into the minibar fridge or failing that set up a makeshift freezer with the help of the ice machine, but it turned out there was actually a mini fridge in my room so that was a nice surprise.

I was also surprised to find a coffee maker, something I’ve never before seen in a Las Vegas hotel room. Not that I want their shitty coffee, but having a way to make hot water means I could have brought dehydrated backpacker meals and my own coffee along with my French press coffee mug. I nearly brought the coffee just because I hate Starbucks and resent the hell out of having to pay them $3/cup for my dark addiction, but it’s just so unlike the penny pinching Caesar’s Entertainment to provide anything for free that I figured no way in hell there would be a coffee maker. The whole thing made a lot more sense to me when I saw the sign that “K-cups” (the little pre-measured packets of coffee that you have to use with this machine) are available in the minibar for the low low price of 3 for $8.

I’m not anti-balling quite as hard as I did at the PCA, but I did bring cereal, peanut butter, jelly, packets of tuna fish, granola bars, and a few other snacks with me. Along with the milk, bread, and fruit I bought last night, I’m well-stocked to provide a lot of my own meals.

Gareth and I planned to eat dinner at Lotus of Siam, but finding a one-hour wait, we went across the street to another Thai place that emphasized its many vegan and vegetarian options. Komol had perhaps the largest menu I’ve seen at any restaurant ever, but the food and service were both quite good.

So was the company. Gareth is a fascinating guy. After dropping out of college for the third time and increasingly depressed by the harsh Canadian winter, he decided, as he put it, “to take responsibility for my own happiness” and moved to Peru. He paid the bills playing both online and in Peruvian casinos, sometimes from rented apartments and sometimes from the common room of hostels, first from Lima and then from Cuzco. His travels took him to Trinidad and then back to his native Ontario, where he spent several weeks practicing in live poker tournaments before moving on to Las Vegas for his first ever WSOP.

Having just returned from Europe myself, I was eager to talk travel with him. We discussed the stress and exhilaration of fumbling through unfamiliar situations, the best way to eat guinea pig, and the time that he was mistaken for a member of the Campus Crusade for Christ and invited back to the dorm room of another member for some gay porn. His observations about America were consistent with those of many people I met in Europe, namely that it’s a lovely country but that everyone here is really very fat and the murder rate is simply unbelievable. In short we had a great time.

Still feeling the effects of jet lag from my return from Europe, now supplemented by another three-hour shift from the east coast, I went to bed early and woke up early. The professional poker player is a nocturnal hunter, so I took advantage of the early hour and entered the $550 10 AM mega satellite. Sure enough the field was super soft, though it probably would have been anyway. The tournament was a success in the sense that I got my run bad out of the way, so now I’m ready to take on my 7th WSOP Main Event!