i have visted 3 poker rooms in california that will give the players racks of one-dollar chips instead of $5 chips even though they do have $5 chips.

Hi, everybody. My name is Sid, and I’m an addict.
It took me a long time to accept that. But when you take a job in a casino just so that you can be there all the time and try to gain an edge, you’re an addict. It’s obvious even to me. More so to my family and friends, who I barely see anymore.
It’s not pills or coke, booze or heroin that I’m hooked on. I’m addicted to gambling.
The casino that made me so obsessed is not an ordinary one, though. It’s far from ordinary.
You don’t play for money at Fantasy Casino. You play for your dreams.
I hear you laughing.
But have you ever had a really, really great dream? One that got so good you snapped awake the second it started to get really excellent?
Well, imagine that times a thousand. Times a million.
A dream so real and so perfect that all of your fantasies become reality. Time stretches out. You feel like you are there forever. A lifetime passes before your return.
Infinite wealth, the ability to fly like superman, you’re surrounded by sex and beautiful people all day as you relax in a palace built to your mind’s most exacting specifications of perfection.
But then you wake up, and in an instant it is gone.
The power, the wealth, the endless sex and supernatural powers.
Everything is suddenly NORMAL again.
And so you go back to the casino.
I went back to the casino.
But the problem with gambling is that you don’t always win. And when you lose, suddenly the winnings are gone as well, vanished without a trace. All I knew was that I had to have that feeling again.
So I went inside the giant building and then followed the secret signs which led to a door that led to a staircase going downwards.
I went down the stairs and knocked on the door marked “Private” and waited for an answer.
“Password.”
The voice on the other side of the black door waited for my response.
“Seramth Gin.” I said the unnatural words carefully and deliberately, still not knowing their meaning.
A friend had told me the password, a fellow gambler who I would later find dead in his apartment. His corpse white, bloated, and maggot-infested.
His eyes were black and filled with blood which streamed from his eye sockets like tears. He had bit his tongue clean off and his fingernails were found lodged in various surfaces throughout his apartment. Like he had been trying to claw his way out of a steel box that only he could see.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. That was later. At this point I was still hopeful for another wonderful dream. Still thankful for his advice to seek out the place.
The door opened and I walked inside. It was the same as it had been the day before, only less busy at this time – still early afternoon.
I approached the table I had been sitting at the night before.
Poker – Texas Hold ‘em: Ten dream limit – the sign read.
The rules were simple. You got a stack of chips. If you doubled them, you received a dream. If you lost them, you lost a dream.
I wasn’t concerned about losing dreams yet, I still didn’t understand exactly what that meant.
When I lost my first stack of chips, I quickly bought in again. And again. And again.
Pretty soon I realized I had lost eight dreams with no winnings whatsoever. I was in a slump. A losing streak.
I decided to go home and count my losses. Literally, since I had no idea what that even meant.
As I got up to leave the table, the dealer looked at me. His eyes were remorseless and cold.
“See the cashier on your way out,” he said, handing me eight black chips.
I gulped and walked over to the glass window where the cashier sat waiting. Handing him the eight chips, he raised his eyebrows and clicked his tongue.
“That’s a shame. Hold out your hand please.”
Two men in black suits came up behind me suddenly and stood on either side of me, intimidating in their stature and demeanour.
I did as he asked and held out my hand with the palm facing up.
The cashier pulled out a strange-looking device from beneath the counter. It had a vial of vermillion-coloured liquid at the top that was attached to the rest of it which resembled a gun with a hypodermic needle at the end.
I screamed and tried to pull away, but the two men grabbed me and held my arm through the window. Thrashing and elbowing them, I tried to get away but it was useless.
The cashier injected the stuff into my veins quickly and it felt cold and slimy going through my system. I could feel it suddenly in my heart, turning it cold and then up into my mind and my lungs and all extremities causing me to shake and violently seize. I writhed on the floor, blood pouring from my ears and my eyes.
Finally the feeling settled down into a numbness that prickled the insides of my blood vessels. It wasn’t until later, once I realized what the casino really was, that I found out what they had done.
I went home with the certainty that they had injected me with something. If winning had resulted in the greatest dream I had ever had – essentially an almost never-ending fantasy – what would happen after a loss?
Nightmares. That was what it would be. I was sure of it.
I settled into bed that night and closed my eyes, drifting off to sleep quickly after such an emotionally exhausting afternoon.
As soon as my eyes closed, they opened again and it was morning.
It felt as if I had not slept at all. My mind was fuzzy and it was difficult to focus. My eyes wanted to close again but my alarm was telling me that it was time to get up for work, so I hit the “dismiss” button and hopped in the shower.
I threw on my clothes and went out the door. At work I noticed a few people looking at me strangely, but I didn’t realize until someone pointed it out to me that my shirt was on inside-out. At this point I was still working in an office doing commodities trading and such lapses were frowned upon.
If you couldn’t focus enough to put your shirt on properly in the morning, how could you focus enough to get the work done in such a demanding environment? Millions of dollars changing hands with each transaction meant that such trivial things were put under a magnifying glass and coupled with other subsequent mistakes each following day after that, I found myself in the boss’s office by the end of the week being handed my walking papers.
Desperate for rest after days of not feeling any benefit from sleep, I went back to the casino.
They knew just by looking at me how to dig their claws in further. After a couple hours I had managed to win myself a dream.
They handed me the complimentary cocktail as they had the time before. I hadn’t realized the significance of it and still didn’t, despite the unusual vermillion colour of the drink. I swallowed it in one gulp and went out the door practically dancing and clicking my heels, ready to go home and feel rested again.
My dream that night was wonderful. Everything I had hoped for in many ways.
But not as good as the first time. I wanted that feeling back again.
Knowing that it was a dream the whole time and realizing that it was going to end seemed to shorten the fantasy, made it seem hollow and manufactured.
If I could win again maybe it would be like that first time, I thought.
The casino drew me in again and again. I found myself a zombie most days, exhausted, at my wit’s end. Ready to call it quits for good and say goodbye.
But then I would win again and it would all seem to be alright for a while.
My debt kept growing and growing with nearly every trip. The hypodermic needle would be plunged into my skin and every time they had to hold me down. Every time I would feel a little more empty. A little more hollow.
Waking up every day began to feel the same. Nothing had definition or purpose.
“You’re here all the time,” one of the goons whispered to me as they shot the needle into my vein the time after that. “Haven’t you figured it out yet? You should just get a job here and then at least you’ll be in on the secret.”
I applied the next day and got an interview with the boss. I would find out later that if you got someone to apply there you got a one dream bonus.
In his office, the well-dressed man was sitting behind a massive polished ebony desk. The room was adorned with paintings, sculptures, and other high-priced artwork. He had photos everywhere of himself shaking hands with world leaders, new and old, for hundreds of years.
His face never changed. Never aged.
“So, you want to work with us? Tired of dreamless nights without end? You want to have some relief, is that it?”
“Yes. Please. Anything. I’ve been coming here for so long and it’s an endless cycle. I want back what I’ve lost but I keep finding myself more and more in debt with each visit.”
“Ah, so do you understand it now, then? What the ‘injections’ are?”
It finally dawned on me, sitting there. Not injections at all. They weren’t putting something in us. They were taking something out. The vermillion-coloured liquid in the vials – our dreams.
“If I take a job with you, will the same rules apply? Will they still take my sleep, my rest, every time I lose?”
“Yes. We can’t have the employees living by different rules than everyone else. But we will give you an alternative injection, so that you feel well-rested when you come in for your shift.”
“I’ll do it. I need to rest. I need to get some meaningful sleep. My life has been miserable ever since coming here.”
“Well, I can’t promise that this will help,” he said, getting up from his desk with a hypodermic gun in his hand. The vial of fluid sitting atop this one was jet-black and looked evil and poisonous. He rolled up his sleeves as he primed it and I watched a few beads of it drip oil-like out of the tip of the needle.
“What the hell is that!? I don’t want that stuff in me!”
“But you need to sleep, my dear worker. I can’t have you passing out at the blackjack table like a narcoleptic! You agreed to this, after all. You wanted to rest, and the only way for that to happen is for you to have SOME sort of dream. Not everyone is as lucky as you, you know. To have that wonderful vermillion fluid in your veins. Some people come to us begging to take it from them. Some of our employees for example, the ones who do the recruitment for us, are full of this black stuff.”
“What?” I had gotten up from the chair and was backing away from him towards the door. But I found it was locked as he approached.
“First you have to tell me the password, Sid.”
“Seramth Gin.” I said the words that I had said every time to gain access to the casino, only this time I pictured the letters and rearranged them in my mind.
“Nightmares.”
He smiled as he injected me with the vial of black hate, and it went into my veins feeling hot and unpleasant. I began to sweat and the beads of it turned cold on my skin as I shivered.
I’ll sleep tonight. I might even wake up feeling rested. But as long as I live and work at that casino, I’ll be afraid to dream again. Because now my unconscious hours are occupied by the most terrifying experiences imaginable. Nightmares beyond imagining in their awfulness. That is my fate.
Unless… Just maybe, I can win one more time.
JG
TCC

I was asked to make a post about some stories within the Casino grounds so I thought I'd share. I have many so I'll do my best to pick the better ones.
Some back information: I've been a Casino Dealer for 11 years, I've been a supervisor for five years, and I've been a Surveillance Operator for one year. I've worked at three properties, none of which are connected or owned by the same company. I've worked on : Government/Private/Native American owned casinos.

1. From Hero to Zero.

At my first Casino, I was one of the first group of people who were trained to deal Roulette . After 4 weeks of working 6PM-3AM then doing roulette training from 3AM-8AM (Not paid) , I actually really enjoyed the game and after about six months I became extremely quick at the number game and the pace of the action was steady with very low margin of errors. Young man walks in, cashes in for $500. He buys in for $2 chips and just loads the board. After a few spins and pretty decent hits, he then changes his chips from $2 to 5$ then to $10 and racks his winnings up to $10,000. It was then, five spins in a row, he loaded the board with some pretty gross bets, and every spin I would hit the ONE number with either NO CHIPS on it, or maybe 1 chip , He lost all $10,000 in a matter of minutes. He leaves , and I go on break. After my break I was going back to the same table and wouldn't you know it, the same young man walks in and cashes in another $500. He tells me he just sold his car outside and this is all that he had left. So we do the same deal, buys in for $2 chips, then slowly starts betting $5 chips, $10, $25...and he makes $10,000 AGAIN. Within the next 25 minutes it was straight agony. Every spin, same thing, he would bet $2500 in chips, and win only $250, $400, and after about a half hour he lost it all . Never saw the guy again.
2) Man down
At this property, we are 24 hours for table games. It's currently 5AM , and I'm dealing some $25 Blackjack to this guy. He's probably early thirties , heavy guy. He's sober as can be, but right away I can tell he's been losing. We know how much you've bought in for, how much your down, or up, and I could see he was down $2000+. After about twenty minutes of pure losing, his temper starts to flare.At this point I now have two other guests at my table. Drinking coffee, not saying a word, just losing their money. After losing hand, after hand, this guy looks me straight in the eye, seized up, starts shaking, he can't move. He tries to punch towards me and smashes his stack of chips all over the place and falls backwards to the floor. I call for security, we cannot touch him due to liability . I can't move from my table because, well, liability / casino cash property, all I can do is try to talk to him. As I'm doing so, these other two woman who are sitting at my table just look at me and one says "OK, dealer, cmon lets go " as she taps the table telling me to start dealing and forget about the guy having a stroke on the floor. As security takes him to the ambulance out front, I had to stay behind for a couple minutes and give a statement. I go on break. I come back, and 45 minutes later, he comes right back in with a oxygen tank and keeps gambling for the remainder of the morning.
3) You get a dildo, and YOU get a dildo!
On a late summer Saturday night, we had a large event for these massive muscle guys/strongman competition type thing. After their show, I'm at the roulette table , and five of these boys come over to play. They were absolutely hilarious. They were feeling pretty good, cashed in somewhat large amounts and I could tell this was going to be a fun time. After about a hour of dealing to these guys, it's almost midnight, everybody is pretty hammered , I spin the ball, and all five of these guys take out these god damn (what I can only tell was) two feet purple dildos from inside their pants, and wiping them around in the air. The ladies were just loving it, one of the dildos landed in the roulette wheel and we had to shut the table down to re-calibrate the wheel to make sure nothing had been changed. I just remember that night was so much damn fun, I couldn't believe what I was seeing and I would never forget it.
4) Full Moon
On this day, I was actually training dealers / supervising them on small games like Three Card poker. We opened the table at 10AM, and this older man came and sat down . He played all day. The jackpot was $21,000 and that was pretty high for this table. He played, and played and played. He's one of the players where you know he's wearing a diaper because he's been drinking coffee/pop all day and hasn't moved in eight hours. As the day went on, this man never moved from his chair. Getting closer to midnight, he was aggravated and said "I need to go have a smoke, I'm getting killed in here". He left, and the very next hand, the lady beside him was dealt the jackpot . He didn't say much, but you could just tell he just hated life at that very moment because had he not gotten up, it would of been his hand. The man calmly took his cane , his hat, jacket, coffee, and left. The next morning I found out when he did leave he drove his car straight through his bank and was arrested.
5) Slick Robber
I actually give props to people who can actually pull this off. This story may confuse you so I'll try and explain things as best as possible. A lot of casinos have machines as soon as you walk through the front doors. A man walks up to one of these machines and sticks in HIS $100 bill. He doesn't gamble it, instead he hits the cash out button and gets a $100 TITO ticket where he then takes the ticket to the ATM machine to get his $100. Now remember, his Original $100 is in the slot machine. He then takes the $100 from the ATM and goes back to the same machine, and repeats this process over a hundred times. Essentially he's taking money from the ATM, and loading up the Slot Machine . Now he knows he can't do it too much because if the slot machine gets full of money, the machine will shut down and the slow attendant will have to take all the cash out. So he deposits over $10,000 , then has a small crowbar, he cracks the machine open and makes a run out the front door. To my knowledge he was never caught . But damn, that was pretty smart .
EDIT:
6) Mental Health is a thing.
10PM man walks in to play some high limit BlackJack. This guy knows the game and played well. Dressed nice, drank juice/tea , a little bit of a attitude, cashed in over $10,000. When this man was half way down his buy in, he said something a long the lines of "If I don't win here tonight, I'm going to go set myself on fire." I wasn't sure if he was serious because when people are down, they tend to say a lot of nonsense. I actually left early that night, and from a third party was told he did exactly that in the parking lot. The next day it was clear something terrible had gone wrong in the parking lot .
EDIT:
7) Nothing good happens after midnight
After a busy Saturday night, I was dealing a mix of games, and during this story I was in the middle of Blackjack. I had one young kid (probably 19) sitting in the middle, one older male probably in his later 40's sitting beside him on his right, and I had a really nice couple in their 20's sitting together at the other side. This young kid wasn't playing just sort of watching, and ever time the old man won he would give this young guy some of his winnings. The older man, was a wine drinker, and he had black between all of his teeth, I'll never forget. He's a little drunk but nothing terrible. As the night goes on, the older man goes and uses the washroom, at which point the couple asked the young guy "Oh was that your dad?" and the young guy says "Hah, no I wish!". The couple and I just looked at each other. This old guy, was in complete control over this kid. Absolutely disgusting. The night ends, and I find out the couple called a few of their friends, and they all waited outside by this old mans truck and beat the living hell out of him. 40 years old, sleeping with a 19 year old, completely brain washed . Very weird.
8) That one co-worker where you just wish they would quit.
One of our co-workers, nice guy but had a very big ego and we as employees just sorta left him alone. One day he had enough of the atmosphere and quit. Now usually when you quit, you cannot come back until you paperwork is finalized. How ever, HR was in that day, and he was given the paperwork the very next day. He came in, cashed in $1000, and made $50,000 in about a hour at the Baccarat table. My manager, was extremely annoyed, because now this guy is just mocking the casino and having the time of his life (Thanks for the big tip by the way :) ) and so he decides to call it quits. He wants to ban himself and he wants $50,000 in cash. The casino says Nope, we are going to give you a cheque. Now here's the thing, most business people will take the cheque, how ever you CANT CASH the cheque until the following monday because it's on that day where the funds are available. The casino on the other hand will cash their own check in anytime , because they want you to play. So this guy pretty much said go to hell I want my cash, and he called the police. Police show up, and management promptly gave him the cash.I though it was absolutely hilarious .
​
9) No good deed goes un punished
I was dealing Three Card Poker, and the jackpot was around $17,000. This old man (a regular) was sitting there all day grinding it out. Super nice guy, always a pleasure to deal to. Well, after hours of playing, he stands up and says "Hey john!, can you come here for a minute?" so his buddy John comes over. He says to John "I need to go take a piss real quick, can you play my card until I get back?" John agrees . John takes the chips and I stop him and explain he can't play his friends chips, he needs to cash in and play his own. And he does. Welp, second hand out and bam, doesn't he win it. The old man comes back and is so happy, he can't believe it. John, took his $17,000, didn't say a word to his "buddy" and walked away. I never felt so much hatred in all my life. Didn't give him a dollar, not a thank you, nothing. The old man sits back down again, the progressive resets to $2500, and he sat there grinding away again.
10) The Top Knot
I had this player , young guy, who was born into a fortune. One of his relatives passed away and left him a pretty big sizable amount of money, so he played poker every single day for the rest of his days. I will add, he IS a good player. I did not enjoy his company just because of the "Know-it-All" attitude, but he was good. We'll call him John. John is 5'10, and well build, with muscle. John also decided today was the day to show off his Top Knot. (google top knot if you're not sure what I mean) So he sits down, and he's absolutely KILLING the table. Every hand, after hand, after hand. And because he's in such a good mood, he's playing any two cards, calling any $500 bet, and he's just dominating. This one guy at the table decided he had enough. He got up, without saying a word and left. A moment later, he comes back in, walks behind John, and takes a pair of scissors , and cuts off his Top Knot. I for one couldn't believe it, dying laughing inside, and it just turned into one big brawl. That was a good day.
11) That one bad seed
One of my best friends who I haven't seen in YEARS ended up being part of the crew. Was kind of nice to catch up. We never really got along as we grew up because he has a very high picture of himself . He wanted that 10/10 woman. A mansion, and a new Corvette. So every month or so we would all go up to the other casino to play. I myself would bring no more than $500, but I couldn't understand how this guy (we'll call him Kyle) was spending THOUSANDS of dollars at the tables. So this wen on for a few months. Well, one day, as we're closing the casino, he and I are in the High Limit room and we're getting ready to close the tables. We are told to take the chips out, count them, put them back, sign this piece of paper and that's it. Well as the supervisor was locking the tray, the piece of paper fell to the floor, so she asked Kyle to grab the piece of paper. As he bends over, a great big $500 chip falls right out of his sock. Kyle was fired immediately , but it all made sense. They offered Kyle a deal where if he replaced all the stolen chips they would not make it public. Not sure how that turned out.
12) If I ever decide to write a book, this will be the last chapter: <3
After working at my first Casino for five years, I met a Indian woman who was visiting from another part of the country. During this time I was explaining a game to her, which honestly I don't think she even cared. She explained she was visiting and sight seeing , and that was that.Well, two years later I ended up moving to the other side of the country and transferred casinos, and low and behold she worked there as a Dealer. We got married , and it's been 5 years.
13) The Tip
One of our tables that we've had for a couple years had a progressive jackpot that had reached $100,000. The dealer at the table was sitting pretty lonely. Nobody really played the game because people knew it was extremely difficult to win the jackpot. My memory is a tad foggy, but you somehow needed to flop the royal flush. This young guy sits down and says to the dealer, we'll call him John. "John, if you pay me that jackpot, I will tip you $10,000" Well John started dealing, and about a half hour into his shift, he F*cking did it. He dealt him the royal. And you know something?This young lad, kept his word, and he made sure there was a audience, and he tipped exactly $10,000. That was a moment right there. That pay cheque was real nice. I think we all got about $500 more than usual. The moment that jackpot was awarded they got rid of the table because the money it was making was not near what the casino wanted. I'm sure there have been bigger tips at other casinos, but that was something special .
14) The Lawsuit
Now this story I'm going to have to beat around the bush a bit due to the nature of what happened. I can't won't answer any questions that you may have on this topic other than what I have to say because it had a lot of publicity . The waitresses at this casino had to wear very thin sexy clothes. Not borderline legal, but it was noticed. One day they called all the waitresses to come in and explained they were changing their outfit to something even more sexier. Now these new dresses were very very borderline legal . The staff said No way. We're not wearing that.So , friday night comes, and the staff work their whole shift, then at the end of their shift were called into a meeting and were all fired. Welp, one of those ladies father was a pretty big time lawyer. Brough the casino to court and won. They won big. Good for them. We had no waitresses for a couple days haha.
Thanks for reading along, I have many more I can add as the day goes on, those were just some off the top of my head. Feel free to ask any questions of the Casino industry. I don't really have many stories about the surveillance department because that's the one area where I can't really say a whole lot due to its privacy and contracts I was and still am under.

In the story, Arthur explains to Ariadne that she will need a totem that will act as a reminder to the dreamer that they are in fact dreaming. It must not be too common. Something that has a weight or movement that only you would know. ~ ARIADNE: Like a coin? ARTHUR: Too common. You need something that has a weight or movement that only you know. ARIADNE What’s yours? Arthur holds out a DIE. ~
WHAT WOULD YOUR TOTEM BE?
:My totem would be a specific coin. Although, Arthur explains that a coin would be too easy to copy/guess, mine is a 1923 Peace silver dollar with a chip above the eagle from when i dropped it while riding the train from Sears Tower after work. If I am dreaming, the coin will always land standing up on its edge after I flip or drop it. The coin will also never topple when I spin it and will stop on its edge like Cobb’s top.
~ Dom Cobb's totem is a spinning tractricoid top that originally belonged to Mal. Should he spin the top and it topples over, he is awake; if it continues to spin, then he is still dreaming. Arthur's totem is a weighted red die. The purpose of the loaded die is to make one side heavier than the rest; therefore when rolled the heavy side will flip down and only the opposite side can face up. Should the upright side of the die be different than the original, he will know he is dreaming. Ariadne's totem is a slightly hollowed-out golden bishop chess piece. She deliberately hollows it out to alter its weight and center of gravity, so that only she can know the exact weight and feel of her totem. Eames' totem is implied to be a red casino poker chip. The use of the poker chip is not entirely clear in the movie; however, it is thought that the chip will multiply in a dream when he rubs his fingers against it. ~
New to REDDIT but always have wondered other peoples “personal icons”.

Good evening! I am looking to sell the following items. Prices are firm unless you buy several lots. Please see the "disclaimer" at the bottom for payment/shipping info. Thank you!
Silver Proof/Pics: https://imgur.com/a/oT9qhMz
5x 50 Grams Geiger Square in Assay $75 Each
5 oz YPS Poured Bar $155
5 oz ATB Everglades Handled (some hairlines) / Toned $155
1982 Mexico Libertad $35
SOLD Silvertown Poker Chip (note 1/4 round scratch on one side) $35
5x Individually Priced Rolls of BU Franklin Half Dollars Proof/Pics: https://imgur.com/a/fqJqahQ
1957-P $250
1958-D $250
1960-P $240
Pending 1961-D $240
Pending 1962-D $240
​
Disclaimer: Shiping is $3.00 for first-class or $7.00 for SFRB (buyers preference or SFRB over 13oz). Payment via PPFF (No Notes). I pack carefully and use a lot of strong tape. Buyer pays first and I will ship and provide tracking ASAP. Once the items are scanned at the PO my liability ends. If you want to pay extra for insurance let me know.

Two years ago we had the pleasure of watching one of the worst stretches of basketball for one of the NBA’s most lucrative and storied franchises come to an end. Ownership played the long game; their front office made a mixed bag of good and bad decisions on draft day, in free agency, and in the trade market. They watched the league market correct their respective front offices for trying to reach around or shortcut their way to playoff basketball leading to the decision to blow it up and focus on their youth. Their brass sold their fan base on watching a nucleus of young talent with distinct but interlocking skills grow together and learn how to play consistently winning basketball. The fans watched promising homegrown talent leave the team and then make all star game(s) for other teams but continue to be moved after those same all star appearances with fans faithful to those specific players carrying the hope that they found their home by now. Regardless, the question is now in front of Chicago’s front office as it was in front of the Lakers’ front office 2 years prior. A top 5 player isn’t on the market every day. We have a promising young core, but do we compromise it to put ourselves on this superstar’s timetable?
The 2 situations are not identical and I don’t want to act as though they are, but the question is the question. Chicago is quietly sitting at the poker table with a good amount of chips: young promising players at all 5 positions(Coby White, LaVine, Patrick Williams, Lauri, WCJ), and no one expects you to trade all 5 by any means. But what could/would a Chicago package for Harden look like?

Hypothetical offer:

Houston Gets: Zach LaVine, Lauri Markkanen, Cristiano Felicio, unprotected firsts in 2022 & 2024, the better of CHI or HOU’s 1st round draft picks for 2021, 2023, 2025, and a top-10 protected pick in 2027
Chicago gets: James Harden, Bruno Caboclo, the worst of either CHI or HOU’s first round draft picks in 2021, 2023, and 2025
1.) Zach LaVine, undoubtedly would have to be in the deal. The 2 best players in this deal play the same position, have mostly the same strengths and weaknesses (different ways of specifically expressing them, but at the end of the day mark a good amount of the same stats offensively), but are on either side of 30. Zach LaVine I’d say is one of the 10-15 best scorers in the NBA. He’s raised his scoring averages each of his first 6 years in the league, flies through the air in transition, and all the tape you watch of him makes you want to believe he’s an all-star caliber guy, but there’s one glaring reality holding him back from that echelon of the NBA. He’s entering his 7th season and he has yet to play .500 basketball or appear in the playoffs. The talent is unquestionable, the athleticism eye popping, but his negatives are unavoidable.
2.) Lauri Markkanen was once one of the NBA’s 10 most envied prospects. With length, range, touch, athleticism, and European heritage the Dirk comparisons were inevitable and unfair from the beginning but still tantalizing nonetheless. Athleticism and shooting are always at premiums in this league and Markkanen possesses both. With a spotty Games Played log and a lack of trust in his body on display at times in his third season his trade value is murky and for all anyone knows he could end up like Rubio, a young euro prospect dripping with potential never getting to fully realize it due to injury. However one of the best things for the rehabilitation of Rubio’s career and perception was ultimately making his way to a better team with better coaching, getting to display his consistency for a playoff team, and just getting to be a guy instead of the guy.
3.) Cristiano Felicio is only in the deal realistically to serve as filler to get CHI in range to take on Harden’s contract, but with the dearth of bigs on Houston’s roster it’s not unheard of for Felicio to get run as an 11th man if Boogie and/or Wood find themselves in foul trouble.
Why the Rockets do it: Houston has built a brand over the last decade and a half as one of the West’s most consistently quality franchises. One franchise has made the NBA playoffs every season since the 2012-13 season and that franchise is the Houston Rockets. While it can be argued it’s exclusively attributable to their defining superstar James Harden and his uncanny durability, once upon a time before Harden donned a Houston uniform the McGrady-less (and eventually Yao-less) rockets took the eventual champion Lakers to 7 games before exiting that series as they ran out of gas against Kobe, Pau, Odom, and co. And they did it with a lovable cast of misfit toys like Chuck Hayes, Carl Landry, Shane Battier, Aaron Brooks, Metta World Peace, and Kyle Lowry. The Rockets as much as they led the way for the league’s recent love affair with analytics also sport a track record that speaks to the appeal of being consistently competitive. They didn’t need to tank for McGrady, they didn’t need to tank for Harden, and transitioning into a team with a mix of veterans with chips on their shoulders (John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins), young guys hungry to win (LaVine, Lauri, Christian Wood), and 3nD role players could be a lot more manageable and lovable group for first time head coach Stephen Silas. This package is also the most comprehensive out there for Harden right now. An AD or Holiday level return doesn’t seem to be materializing in the market right now, and the 2 media front runners for Harden (Philly and Brooklyn) don’t have a package with both a high level player and ancillary assets to make up the difference between the hypothetical 50-60 cents and the dollar that is Harden.
Why Chicago does it: First things first, the team that gets the best player typically wins a trade, and a trade without Wendell Carter Jr. or Coby White is also a win for the front office. A franchise with the youngest MVP ever, the GOAT, and the team that developed current NBA sweetheart Jimmy Butler is in their worst performance as a franchise since Jay Williams’ career was cut short. Harden on his own is a top-7 offense and a 45 win team, but some of the complementary pieces not in the trade offer could add up to be some of the best tailored supporting cast of Harden’s career. Coby White shows more promise as a heat check and off ball guard than the lead ball handler of an nba offense. With a season average of less than 3 assists his rookie year juxtaposed against 43% 3 point shooter and presence as a big-bodied guard, White poses a very interesting offensive (and defensive as a switchable perimeter defender) fit next to Harden. Wendell Carter and the other wings that Chicago has should be able to fill in the gaps on defense.
Personal opinion:
It’s ballsy of Chicago because if Harden doesn’t like how Chicago handles him when they get him he’s currently only able to be kept under contract for another 2 years, but if Harden has patience it could be a very savvy move into an easier path to a title. The floor of a Harden Bulls team would be the 4-6 seed in the East, and Harden would have to give up the least as a player going to Chicago versus Philly or Brooklyn. The championship conversation label wouldn’t immediately be there like it would going to Philly or to Brooklyn, but there would be a lot of young pieces around Harden that could be used in a second move in the subsequent offseason to bring a second top 10 guy next to Harden. The ceiling of this Bulls core is very difficult to pinpoint, but it’s hard not to see shades of the Lakers’ core before they signed lebron where as a group it’s hard to see them consistently winning games without a proven leader and top-10 guy in the nba.
For Houston it seems as though the market is either just a star level player and maybe a pick (Philly) and a lot of ancillary players and multiple picks (Brooklyn). For a player better than AD it is a frustrating and unenviable position for a front office to not be able to extrapolate the same value out of Harden, and I give them kudos for playing the trade offer patiently. However it’s on everyone’s mind that Harden wants out of Houston so they are on the clock to move him before he walks especially considering he turned down the extension he is currently eligible for. It’s lemonade-from-lemons time for the new Houston front office.
I’d like to hear other opinions or other potential destinations if anyone else has any other ideas or dark horse destinations for Harden.

Look at this absolute LANDCHAD of a man, Toby Maguire, who simply dominates these cheap-ass rentcels at a simple game of poker:

Bloom, 36, details how the games ended for good when Maguire decided she was making too much money. The “Seabiscuit” star humiliated her in front of the other players, ordering her to “bark like a seal who wants a fish” for a $1,000 chip.
She tried to laugh it off, but Maguire persisted, “I’m not kidding. What’s wrong? You’re too rich now? You won’t bark for a thousand dollars?”
Bloom also tells how Maguire refused to play poker without his Shuffle Master, a $17,000 device “that is supposed to deliver a fair, random shuffle every time and increase the speed of each game.”
One day, when Bloom was delivering a check for his winnings, Maguire suggested that she pay him to rent the machine for future games.
“I looked past him to the expansive foyer of his mansion in the hills. You could see straight through to the ocean. I laughed. Surely he was joking,” Bloom writes.
“He couldn’t possibly be serious about charging rent for a machine he insisted that we use, from the guys whose money he was taking every week. But he was as serious as death.” Maguire wanted $200 a night for his Shuffle Master.

That's right, pokercels. We refuse to play poker without a mechanism that guarantees fair shuffling and since you're too cheap to own a high-quality shuffling machine yourself, you'll pay ME rent for its use. $200 a night is an absolute bargain, it barely covers its cost of amortization let alone the interest. Don't wanna pay? Fine, you'll bark for some chips then. My game, my rules. Smdh if I were a pokercel rentoid I'd be tipping Toby at LEAST $15 per shuffle plus a maintenance fee of $90 per game on top of an initial non-refundable deposit of at least $5,000.

Yes, they exist, the people that play poker with playmoney only. It’s just for entertainment and nothing bad can happen, but this also leads to an environment where the players don’t respect your raises and are just calling everything. Unless you play the 2-3 highest stakes/tables.
So it’s your turn to adapt and exploit the fish. For beginners it’s great to learn about the structure and „how it works“, but it has nothing to do with real cash games. Every 2/4 cent real money table plays more serious poker than the 90% of the WSOP Playtika players. I will explain where you find the 10%. That beeing said it’s a fun experience to get into the game but if you ever plan on playing for real cash and are a beginner, avoid this.
I am at 18 Billion chips now and would like to share some tipps and tricks on how to build a bankroll and „where“ and „how“ to play the WSOP „cashgames“.
1.) Learn to fold. Seriously. I got a pre-flop fold percentage of ~48 % and yes, that is super tight for WSOP App games. Whenever I check the profiles I usually find 10 % (lol) to 35% pre-flop fold statistics so the „Game“ for most players is less poker mathematics but watching flop action. Keep that in mind and expolit this.
2.) Hence my next advice, be patient. Act like are a glitch on the table that calls or raises accidentally. Wait for good hands . But don’t play like a robot that only plays KK and AA on the button. Calling with TJ or 89 as suited connectors out of position is not a bad idea because sometimes even the other players register that you are only in action with strong hands. Someone that folded 30 turns and only played his blinds and even folded SB here and there is suspicious when raising. Not every table has 9 clueless donks.
3.) Raise once in a while. Only calling Leads to the usual flop action where 7 of 10 players are still in the pot and you will be wrecked in the river so often. Forcing the loose players to pot size bets makes some of them hesitate and fold their 59 preflop that might catch the 9 and 9 on the Turn and River.
4.) Players that hit the flop even with the lowest pair won’t fold, and thats were you get your playmoney profit long term. Most of them refuse to surrender and even call pot size bets on the turn and river even if they are beat.
5.) The WSOP Playtika App always suggest you play the maximum possible buyin tables and ignores bankroll management. That is your responsibility.
I usually only play with 10-15% of my Bankroll, but I play with Auto Rebuy (that only will be an issue because playmoney has variance, too, and your well played all in flush might eventually lose on the river) and Auto Top Off. That means I always play with the maximum buyin/BB on that table to get paid when I hit the nuts and face another player that fuels a big pot.
It’s the worst feeling to win less because you could not maximize the pot bets.
6.) You remember the 10 % I mentioned that „somehow“ play more serious Poker? They exist, but you only find them in the last third of the High Stakes tables.
The Playmoney WSOP tables are structured like this with Stakes and Buy In Ranges:

• 5K/10K - 50K/1.25M
  
• 10K/20K - 500K/2.5M
  
• 25K/50K - 1.25M/6.25M
  
• 50K/100k - 2.5M/12.5M
  
• 100K/200K - 5M/25M
  
• 300K/600K - 15M/75M
  
• 600K/1.2M - 30M/150M
  
• 1.25M/2.5M - 62.5M/312.5M
  
• 3M/6M - 150M/750M
  
• 6M/12M - 300M/1.5B
  
• 12.5M/25M - 600M/3B
  
• 30M/60M - 1.5B/7.5B
  

Once you play at the 6M+ stakes tables you will face a different type of players: Many have levels of 200 and 300 and more which means they grinded fast and/or well. They play this game at least more than „casually“ and more focused and act slightly tighter. The pre flop percentage usually is above 40% so there are less limpers and calling stations. Be careful if you find 50% pre flop folders and <5% post flop raisers. They will have strong hands once they start betting and raising.
The most „serious“ playmoney poker gamers are in the last 2 tables, because the 3B table is an equivalent of ~ 90 Euro/Dollars and you won’t find casuals here that throw away real money. Players of the highest playmoney limits actually follow fundamental poker strategy and respect your behavior and raises. You will find players there with way better reads and you won’t find casual limpers that play for the action.
So the good news is, you CAN have a somewhat serious full ring poker action at the WSOP playmoney community. The bad news is you have to grind through the donk festivals of the first 8-9 limits and tables. It’s frustrating sometimes but be patient, fold often and make the calling stations pay with your sets.
Some additional thoughts: - ignore the Momentum - ignore the Slot Machine - a big friendlist is nice for many free chips here and there - ignore the obnoxious Piggy Bank
That’s it. Any other WSOP playmoney poker entertainment folks here?

Don’t play Poker Stars VR! It is a total rip off and they refuse to fix the game. They are making a killing selling chips for real money and the headset freezes constantly! They would rather spend time making new toys then fix their shitty game. They should be sued for literally stealing thousands of dollars from people, by knowing they have a problem and not fixing it! Then they say just go to discord? Wtf that is total bullshit too! I’ve tried to get ahold of some guy Jordan to no avail. I quit playing the game a few months ago and went back recently to the same bullshit freezing every 10 minutes! What a joke.

Please note a lot of these items (especially amiibos) I also have listed on Mercari, so it's first come first serve. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
Also I may bump this post with an edit to add some new things as I find them in the next 24-48 hours, so feel free to check back.
I also have had multiple sales prior to discovering mushroomkingdom with zero issues. https://www.reddit.com/mushroomkingdom/comments/jcq9u1/ut0rrent0712_trade_thread/
I'm trying to downsize and get some stuff out of my apartment, so looking to sell some stuff that's not being used. Priority will be for those looking to buy the Console/Games as a bundle versus individually. Shipping will be priority mail with tracking. For the consoles, Insurance will be added as a safety measure. Shipping on the XBone is heavy at 8 pounds before packing material, so I will eat some of the shipping cost on that and ask 30 for shipping (USPS Estimator has it at about 40+ the insurance up-charge). Amiibo Shipping will be split, so asking $4 dollars shipping (average cost for me for a single amiibo via USPS First Class, $7.50 for Two Amiibo's, $8.00 for three, etc. Multiple Amiibo shipping will be via USPS Priority mail, not First Class Individual game shipping will be $2.00 sent first class in a padded envelope for disk based games. GBA/DS/SNES games under $25 will ship for standard First class rate via USPS in a box for $2.50 (split cost), or $8.00 for priority mail for GBA/DS games over $25 which includes $50 insurance.
If multiple items are being bought, I'll combine shipping to save. If you live in the SF Bay Area, I would also be happy to meet up and waive shipping costs that way.
If buying multiple items, I will also consider reasonable offers. Single price on games is negotiable within reason. Don't hesitate to make an offer. Single amiibo prices may be negotiable within reason, and if you're buying multiple, I'll be up for more haggling to combine shipping.
One last note. NES and SNES games I have no way of testing. I'm going to assume working though. I will be popping open the cases to ensure no corrosion before shipping tomorrow.
Diablo 3 Poker Set $100 Front sticker does have scratches on it, and one deck of cards was opened to look at artwork, otherwise everything else including the poker chips are all still sealed and has never been used.
Final Fantasy VIII Rinoa Heartily Extra Soldier Figure NIB (Box is bent) $35
Wii U Super Smash Bros: $10
Wii U Hyrule Warriors: $10
Xbox One Console: 500GB. Will come with the box, HDMI Cable, Power Cable, and one wireless controller (takes 2 Double A batteries, not included due to shipping regulations) $175 or $200 with all the games
Halo: Master Chief Collection $25
Sunset Overdrive: $5
Killer Instinct Combo Breaker Pack: $20
Sega Saturn Console & Controller (no other accessories/Cables): $50 + Shipping (Please note, this console has a cable security bolt and Loss Prevention SN from EA on it. I used to work from the company from 99-02 and they had a give away of old legacy consoles from their library that I claimed)
FIFA 96 SNES Sealed: $25
Killer Instinct SNES: $15
NES Mega Man 5: $100 (includes just slip sleeve.)
Nintendo DS Coral Pink w/ Charger and stylus (console case is faded a bit, and the lower screen has a bit of shadowing on the left, otherwise works great, DS/GBA slots tested and work) $40
Final Fantasy IV DS CIB: $30
Cooking Mama DS CIB: $15
Lunar Legend GBA Cartridge Only: $30
Final Fantasy 1&2 Dawn of Souls GBA Cartridge Only: $25 (sticker has some yellowing)
Namco Museum 50th Anniversary CIB (Box is a little beat up) $20
Final Fantasy V GBA Complete in box: $85
https://imgur.com/gallery/Wmc7pJj
Final Fantasy IV GBA Complete in box (Missing cartridge insert and box has some wear: $45
https://imgur.com/gallery/ogDOJpo
Breath of Fire GBA Cartridge Only: $20
Super Mario Advance GBA Cartridge Only: $15
Castlevania: CotM GBA Cartridge Only: $20
Final Fantasy VI GBA Cartridge Only: $65
Fire Emblem The Sacred Stone GBA Cartridge Only: $55
Shining Force Game Gear Cartridge Only: $50
Sonic The Hedgehog 2 Game Gear Cartridge Only: $10
Mortal Kombat Game Gear Cartridge Only: $10
Prince of Persia Game Gear Cartridge Only: $10
Alien 3 Game Gear Cartridge Only: $18
Streets of Rage Game Gear Cartridge Only: $15
Aladdin Game Gear NIB: $15
Jungle Book Game Gear NIB: $15
Lion King Game Gear NIB: $15 (Buy all 3 Disney games for $20 + Shipping)
Soul Calibur Sega Dreamcast: $15
Sega Game Gear Console: $30 Parts only. Comes complete with battery clips and no screen scratches. Color is extremely faint and a slight tap will power it off. May make a good reclamation project if someone wants to try.
Sega CDX w/ no accessories: $200 (I'm treating this as a parts only purchase. I no longer have the AC Adapter or cables, though I discovered a PS2 Slim power adapter will work if you have one. The last time I used it, it worked great, but that was 20 years ago, so I can't guarantee functionality. If you have cables and it does work, this is a steal as working systems go for 350-600+ on ebay.
https://imgur.com/gallery/9JEayKS
Next is the amiibo list with prices
Samus (x2) $15
Sonic $35
Diddy Kong $25
Pac Man $40
Marth $20
Super Smash Bros Link $30
Shovel Knight $20
Mewtwo $30
Yoshi SSB $20
Falco $15
Mario SSB: $30
Donkey Kong $40
Light Blue Yarn Yoshi $20
Pink Yarn Yoshi $15
Wii Fit Trainer $12
Shulk $12
Robin (x2) $20
Ness $20
Captain Falcon $25
Luigi $20
30th Anniversary Mario 8bit (box crease) $12
Charizard (x2 both with box crease) $20
Splatoon 3 pack (1st run with green squid) $35
Super Mario Bowser $20
Rosalina $35
Toon Link $20
Rob/G&W/Duck Hunt 3pack $35
Peach (with box crease) $15
Pit (japanese and slight box bend) $20
King Dedede $25
Super Mario Yoshi $20
JigglyPuff with Box Crease $20
Zero Suit Samus $15
Super Mario Peach (with box crease) $15
Super Mario Toad $15
Ganondorf (with box crease) $30
SSB Princess Zelda $55

I walked in and was immediately awestruck by the ornate interior of the best casino in the world, The Barterer’s Lounge. Some players were walking around with suits and escorts while other people looked like they had not eaten for days. My cohorts? Adam, Bart, Carl, David, and Erin. We decided to have a seat at a “Texas Holdem” table with someone waiting to play. This guy looked like he had just snorted cocaine, after a 2 day bender on whiskey, but hey, “When in Rome” right? Weird thing is, this guy was in a suit and had five escorts. Five! Judging by the sheer boredom of his lady friends, this dude clearly hasn't left this table in over eight hours.
The table seats six and the rules are very clear. At a new table: The only buy-in is allowed once at the beginning of the game. But you don’t have to pay the fifteen dollar entry fee in cash or otherwise until the end of the game. If you go out, only then do you have to pay the cash. We already knew this and we had plenty of cash for a trip to the casino. Woo! Adam had been saving for, jeez, over a decade? Adam’s been family friends since as long as I can remember. Who knows how old the guy is but he’s Bart’s dad and I love them both. Carl lives next door and we do some work from home but mostly sit at home playing some consoles drinking some beer and doing neighborhood poker with David and Erin. They’re an awesome pair. We all looked at one another and visually confirmed that we had exactly fifteen dollars in cash ready for the game because once you sit down, there is no turning back. Security has a person watching every individual one to one while sitting at a table. It is kinda creepy to have someone watching over you, but hey, I know the rules.
Carl and I were already doing a visual check on this guy and figured he’s too whacked out to be a smart player in this poker game. But he can obviously afford the buy-in so we were very happy to have a few more chips to pass around between the five of us at the end of the game. “Frank, you ready?” Carl asks. “Yeah, let’s rock,” I replied. We all sat down together and the player at the table eagerly agreed to play a game with us. Once we all agreed to play together, one of the security guards powered up the dealer. The automaton started whirring up and a few sparks flew from faulty wiring that obviously hadn’t been maintained in years. But if it works for the house, it works for me.
“Sir, this is a casino,” the robot said. I replied, “Duh,” and the dealer dealt our first two private cards each. Our extra player says “Hold on a sec, I want to make a side wager. I want to put a chip in saying that the old fart loses all his money on this first hand.”
The dealer mechanically screeches “This is a side wager separate from the game’s pot.”
We all looked at each other dumbfounded. “Does this guy even know the rules of Texas Holdem?” I thought. I looked at Carl and I knew that is exactly what he was thinking too. “Yea, I’ll call that for a chip.” We all threw a chip in. But not Adam. Why would he? He still has all his chips and as long as he doesn’t do anything stupid, or even bet at all, Kevin loses that bet.
Our extra player was turning out to be a real go-getter, so I wanted to do some small-talk to bring him off the game. “Hey, My name’s Frank. Yours?”
“Kevin,” he says abruptly between the twitches of his eyelids. “Hey Kevin, nice to play with ya dude,” I reply.
Kevin immediately says, “Hold on, I’ll bet another chip that the old man goes under this hand.” Easiest call of my life. Everyone throws another chip in because old man Adam ain’t no fool when it comes to poker. All he has to do is not wager “all-in” on a losing hand and we all get a few extra chips at the end of the hand. We all toss in that chip.
“Alright let’s get on with it,” Kevin barks at the dealer. The first three cards are shown and immediately Kevin wants to do another chip that Adam goes under this hand. We all call.
I ask him, “So what do you do, Kevin?” He says with a straight face, “Well if I’m not here I’m on my jet going between my five mansions.You know what, let’s put in another chip that Ole Yeller flops on this hand.”
I knew this guy was off his rocker and we didn’t care because everyone knows we’re all good for the money or else the “barter rules” come into effect. We all had visually checked our cash before we sat down. Well I don’t actually know about Kevin but I figure he’s good for it considering his escorts had all bought themselves Wendy’s chicken tenders from the food court on Kevin’s credit card.
Play resumes and Kevin puts a few chips on the actual game of poker this time. Adam does nothing, no surprise there. But the rest of us call Kevin’s position. Who knows what each other’s dealt hands are. I only know mine. “So five mansions huh? Nice,” I say. “You do anything else for fun?”
Kevin looks at me like he wasn’t expecting such filth to speak and disgustedly replies, “Well, I like my yacht. It’s got its own docking port for a smaller yacht. So you could say I’m into water sports.” After realizing he spent even a few seconds humoring me, Kevin shouts, “Let’s do three more chips in another side pot that the old man actually literally dies during the game.”
We all chuckled pretty good at that one and threw our three chips in each. “Let’s play.” Kevin demanded. “Show the next card,” he snarled. As the card lands on the table, Kevin bets ten more chips that Adam goes all-in on a losing hand. Seeing as this is the first round of the game and we all had the same chips at buy-in, it’s a no brainer match position for 10 chips. Meanwhile Adam is stone-cold poker face and hasn’t actually put any chips in on the opening three.
“Alright 15 chips on the play,” Kevin absent-mindendly said without even looking at the card. I noticed that he hadn’t even looked at his hand because his two cards were strewn out in front of him in the original place the dealer placed them.
Everyone but Adam plays Kevin’s bet and the showdown resumes. Well, almost resumes. “And I’ll put half of my remaining chips on my initial bet that pops loses all his chips this hand,” Kevin states. And guess what we all did? We called the bet because we’re all keeping track of how many chips were initially given out and this was a no-brainer that we were all on the same pace of losing chips. Except Adam of course because he hadn’t placed any bets so far. He was ready for a few actual full games of poker. I know he had more than only the fifteen dollar pay-out fee for a single game if he lost.
“And I’ll put the rest on my other bet that the boomer literally dies during this game.” We all blankly looked at each other and threw our remaining chips on that bet. But not Adam, why would he? He’s got all his chips from not even Adam’s old but he’s not on death’s door by any means. He lifted weights professionally in his earlier years and still does cardio daily. Naturally, he doesn’t look a day over fifty.
“We have an ‘all-in’ at the table” the junkbot for a dealer said and an extra set of lights flicked on at our table. They were so bright I was getting a terrible glare from an heirloom ring I had on my finger. I rotated the rock to the inside of my finger and made a fist so the glare wouldn’t blind me.
The robot dealer plays out the last card but it doesn’t matter to Kevin or anyone else because we’re all-in. “The player who placed the initial bet shows their hand,” says the dealer.
And we all waited patiently. We sat together in silence for what seemed like forever.
Until Kevin’s casino-assigned agent realized that Kevin was too coked out to do it himself.
“A two of hearts and a seven of clubs from the initial bet maker.” The dealer continues, “There are no additional plays on the field for the bet maker. The player with the best hand wins.”
I only had a pair of three of hearts and a four of diamonds in my hand.
Carl immediately turns his cards over. “A pair of sixes with another on the table. That’s three of a kind.” We all split the earnings of the initial side bet amongst ourselves minus Adam. And since Adam still had a pulse we all split the second pot too. “This game is closed. All players must pay their cash fee for the round. If any players do not have the cash initially agreed upon to enter the game, barter rules come into effect,” the dealer said. We all reached into our pockets and put the fifteen bucks on the table. Kevin reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a ten dollar bill and a half eaten chicken tender. Kevin frantically searches his other pockets for any cash on his person. “Oh shit,” Kevin muttered as his face turned pale. “I must have spent my cash last night when I was more drunk.”
I perk up a bit because I had no idea that there was even a chance to trigger the barter rule with this guy. The dealer asks, “Do you accept the remaining payment of meat to cover the remaining five dollars of this player’s entry fee?” “Hell no!” I shouted. “I want a million bucks, and one of your houses.”
Bart finally chimes in and says, “Me too. Oh yea and I want your jet.” Carl agrees and adds “And the yacht!” David says, “Don’t forget the mini-yacht too.” Erin says, “I know you have a nice car, We’ll take that too.” Kevin slumps into his chair as the dealer asks, “Are there any other terms to this agreement?” We all looked at each other and Adam added, “And an order of tendies all around. But not for Kevin.”
That was a bad move, Kevin.

https://imgur.com/a/xxmE10v
Prices based on eBay sold listings. Like to move this stuff so make offers
Prices are negotiable. I encourage offers especially on larger bids. Priority goes to larger orders. Would like to do 100 dollar min orders. Ships priority flat rate at cost. Over 200 ships for free.
edit forgot payment methods. PayPal FF no notes at all or GS + Fees or Venmo
SOLD Silver town poker chip $40. SOLD
SOLD 2 1 oz silver bullets sealed $58 for both. SOLD
Sold Coors light 1 oz bar tones. $44. SOLD
Beaver bullion 1oz and 2oz bars $122.
Sold 3 A mark A0102 1 oz bars. $30 each. SOLD
SOLD National Be My valentine bar sealed $33.
SOLD Opm 1 oz mint sealed mushroom. $33. SOLD
1973 GLM happy halloween bar $33.
SOLD 6 toned Harley Davidson 1.4 oz bars. SOLD
pamp 1 gram gold assay is starting to come apart. $75

If you are looking for a good site to do some slot machine gambling online, then look no further than a login joker388 review. We have all done it at one time or another; we were at the casino or at home and found ourselves in the place where we just wanted to hit two or three jackpots. We are not usually the first ones to get there or to win the money, so the place becomes a hive of activity with everyone trying to join in on the fun. This can often lead to some people getting into trouble with the police for gambling money or other illegal activities.
The login joker388 is a very popular online casino that is one of the favorites of many players. There are many different games that can be played, such as poker, blackjack, baccarat, keno and roulette among others. It also features a video slot machine that can give players hundreds of dollars in as little as fifteen minutes. The baccarat game is a favorite at this casino, which you can try for yourself by playing a game for real money. You might be surprised to learn, however, that it is actually one of the easiest games to play.
A game that you may want to try are the blackjack games that the login joker388 site has to offer. Blackjack is probably the most popular game at this casino, with over ninety percent of all players winning money on a regular basis. You will need to know the basic strategy for blackjack before you start, so if you are not sure what you are doing, I would suggest that you stick to playing the simpler versions until you can master the trickier versions. The basic strategy for blackjack involves playing for the long term and bluffing as soon as you see that your opponent is throwing up the white flag. This means that you should be prepared to lose a lot of money, but since blackjack is a game of probability, you should also have an idea of when you are likely to win. Once you have the basic strategy down, you should try the other versions of the game.
Another game that you may find interesting are the online versions of the casino's other popular games: the card games Yodlee and Layaknya, which are known collectively as the Baccarat game. The login joker388 site boasts that this version of the game is far more exciting than the regular version because of the wild card shuffling that players must use to come up with more combinations. These wild card shuffles are used to make the game more exciting than it already is. If you like the excitement this offers, then you will love playing the card games, which you can do while you are having fun at the casino bar.
The login joker and dari slots are great games to play during your casino visits. In the regular version of these games, there are five different colors of chips that are used, which must be mixed using a machine that works via a spinning wheel. The colors used in the traditional version of the slots are green, red, blue, orange and black. You can choose which color your chips are by how many coins are rolled over the course of a single spinning cycle, and then you can use those colors to place your bids. In the online version, however, you will be given two different colors. These chips will still be used in the same way, but the only difference is that you will be able to select from the many colors of chips in the virtual slot.
The login joker and dari slot machines offered by the website are supported by software that has been designed by a professional arcade game designer, who is a member of Slicks Inc. This software allows for all of the characteristic features of the traditional slot machine games, such as random number selection, reel spin, bonus games, jackpot games and progressive betting. This software also offers a feature that allows the players to increase their chances of winning the jackpot prize by bidding higher than the current bid amount by using coins bought with real money or through the payment of a withdrawal fee. The login joker and dari slot joker are one of the slot games offered on the site, and is a popular choice among visitors to the site.

Okay guys, I’m pretty new to the world of poker, but I understand the basics. I thought it’d be fun to start a home poker game amongst friends. We’re all kind of newbs so this is just for fun, nothing too serious or crazy.
I have the following chips (they are labeled): 240 $1 chips 180 $5 chips 124 $10 chips 128 $25 chips 63 $100 chips
So the plan is this: Once a month, 6-8 friends will come over and we’ll all contribute $10 dollars in cash to a prize pot. This is the buy-in. Then everyone gets an equal amount of chips, as follows: 20 $1 chips 15 $5 chips 10 $10 chips 10 $25 chips 5 $100 chips Then we play somewhere around 3-4 hours. If someone loses all their chips, they have the option to buy back in (but only once) for another $10. If only one person remains (has the most chips and no one else has chips), and no one else wants to buy back in, then that person gets all the cash. If after 4 hours, there are two people left with chips, then the cash will be split 60% for the person with the most chips and 40% for the other person. If after 4 hours there are 3 people left with chips, then 50% for first place, 30% for 2nd place, and 20% for 3rd place. The blinds will be $1/$2 for the first hour, $5/$10 for the 2nd hour, $10/$20 for the 3rd hour, and $25/$50 for the 4th hour.
Just to reiterate, I’ve never played in a casino before, I just started learning about poker and I have put together this plan based on what I’ve read online. I would like my poker night to go smoothly so I wanted to post this in hopes that someone more experienced would give feedback. Thank you in advance.

Poker online is simply the most popular game of poker played online. It has in part contributed to a large increase in the total number of poker players all over the world. This means that there is an ever increasing potential for new players to be introduced into this fast expanding, highly lucrative industry. And why not? Poker online has some unique advantages over playing poker offline.
First of all, buying-in is much easier to establish online. In a game like poker, where all the action takes place in real time, the ability to establish a buy-in is easier. Players can see each other and make sure that they are indeed "playing poker online" before ever entering the playing hall. Online, players can also communicate with each other through instant messaging or even voice, if voices are allowed - which, given the language barriers, is often not. Buy-ins can be determined with a simple click of the mouse.
Also, when you play poker online, there is no physical presence! Players can play their game in rooms or on their computers, wherever they choose to. They do not have to find a designated room or computer to play their game. They simply sit down in any corner of the house, in front of the computer, and go to town. They literally can play poker online from any location that they want.
Finally, free tournaments are provided by many online poker sites. For a minimal nominal fee, these poker sites offer large cash prizes - sometimes even as high as thousands of dollars - to eager players who sign up to play. Free tournament play is also available to players who do not own any cards or chips. Many times, these freeroll tournaments require a deposit to be made before the player may start. Once the initial buy-in is made, these freeroll tournaments provide constant, reliable money throughout the duration of the event. Players quickly begin to see the benefits of signing up for free online poker tournaments.
Now that you understand why poker online is a great way to play free poker for fun, you might wonder where you can find these tournaments. Many of the top poker websites offer freeroll tournaments daily, weekly, and monthly events. Many times, a good number of these online poker sites host both freeroll and tournament tournaments, allowing players to mix and match at their leisure. Another option is to play free money onsite at various poker online casinos. Many of the top poker websites provide an excellent pay-out experience, with money being sent to players' account within minutes after the end of a game.
In summary, by having a monthly membership to one of the top online poker websites, you can reap the benefits of frequent player specials, freeroll tournaments, and the opportunity to make money playing with free money. By constantly meeting monthly volume requirements, you'll be able to gain enough referrals to become a full-time poker star. In addition to the above benefits, you'll be exposing yourself to the best ways to make money playing online poker. Frequent tournament play will increase your skills, while receiving lots of referrals will assist you in becoming a frequent poker player with bankrolls. When you combine the above poker strategies with the above free money tournaments, you'll be a force to be reckoned with in no time at all!

my deposit was 10.00 then I won 5 bucks with 6 Max somehow.
15.00
and played roulette. the previous day i had seen success betting on a train of reds and blacks. the next day i picked the correct number, and won
4.90 with 0.10 bet on a whim. there were two triplets that day....so why not a double....after all there are patterns in random....
19.90
feeling good. I fall asleep. the next day I hope to repeat my success....like a stupid heres my thought process and if you can point me to right direction I would be grateful. so i went from 10 to 20 and then went on a full tilt and lost it all.
i had some issues with my back shoulder....had to lay in bed couldn't sit completely or stand so laid in bed decided to play poker and well heres how i lost it all
went to 17.99
i should quit come back when theres more players...but i feel insulted by that slow play.
goes to 15.99
okay get up. this time i get sucked out with KK. cmon man!
9.99
okay definitely walk away. this time I get slapped around like a whore by bigger stack. no honour!
4.00
on my last buy in I thought 'okay playing AAs only.' Shove! bad beat. how is it that i am getting beat with a shit hand when the chip difference is significant?
2.00
I get frustrated and bet it on a number on a roulette. I lose of course.
0.00
I vow never to use 888poker again...
on pokerstars, back when I was a degenerate gamblger...literally went into debt which I paid back. I lost $10,000...also I was on anti-depressants and for some reason started to gamble and I looked at the fucking symptom list and gambling is part of it lol...
so like a stupid person I thought I could make back what I had lost on wsb-esque dangerous stock option bets. calculated insanity mind you but who could predict SEC freeze would end reliably at the end of the day....I fucked up shoving all in...coulda made a million fucking dollars with about $15000. The previous similar shove on this same stock have netted me $5000 USD man I was fucking hooked. thats why I went all in. well some contrarian extremist like me bet almost half a million...poof gone....he lost his entire fucking fund....I think $400K? Imagine buying 400,000
GOAL: I really wanna make back the $10,000 I lost playing also tournaments but dont wanna spend any more than $200, do you know any good stuff on that too? I have already sunk $125. $100 in 888 and $25 in pokerstars..... so I 'm gonna try my luck with bodog.eu with a 40 deposit which I've heard is softer. tbh pokerstar felt softer compared to 888 as it nowhere near has the pokerstar number of players...but pokerstars felt very quite hard.
should I continue or nah? are the tutorials on youtube any good? what books should i read?
I don't think I am reckless as before....back when I was on anti-depressants when I played $500 Spin and Gos...holly hell....what a fuking degen...I just had no sense of fear at all...now I just look back in complete regret
now I strictly fucks with very small buy ins...like 10, 20 deposits that I have lost....this helps me control.
question: are there people out here that make rent by grinding 0.02/0.05 6 max zoom/snap poker?
edit: heyhey i just wanna learn how to do this properly. I appreciate any help.

One of the most downloaded video games for the PSP is Poker. The PSP is a great gaming system, but with so many different types of games available, you can easily become confused on which game you should download. There are several poker video games available for download online, so you have many options. You also have poker 99. Poker is one of the newer games added to the list, but it has become extremely popular among gamers. Poker is one type of game that can really test your skill in a variety of situations.
When you play poker online, you do not play against the computer. While you can use cheat codes to try to win money, you will still be playing against other real people. While this may sound bad, it really does give you a good chance to improve your skills. You will be able to ask questions, make observations, and see how other players play the game. This is very helpful in determining when it is better to stay in and fold, or when it is better to stay in and play against a top hand.
When you play poker online, you are allowed to use one of three kinds of deposit bonus codes. These are offered by most casinos, so it is not very hard to find one. However, not all casinos offer them all of the time. You need to find codes for online poker 99 bkqv. These are codes that are given by online casinos and offer players a chance to get free money to play with while they are in the free trial period.
The one time free deposit bonus codes that you get with Poker 99 bkqv are for the no deposit bonus codes. The no deposit bonus codes allow players to play against dealers with virtual chips instead of real currency. Players need to have at least one thousand dollars in virtual currency to be able to use these no deposit bonus codes. There are certain restrictions as to how much virtual currency a player has in order to be eligible to use the no deposit bonus codes. They must have at least ten thousand dollars in currency or they cannot take advantage of the promotion.
However, there is a limit on how many players can play for free. The maximum number of players that can take part in the promotion is the number of poker players that can be found in a single online casino. Each player has to be found in the same online casino in order for the promotion to work. If a player finds another player in a different online casino, the first player has to give up their current game. It is a very simple rule that keeps the poker players happy.
One more type of no deposit bonus code is the virtual bank deposit bonus. These are good bonuses, but only if the casino has real money accounts. These virtual bank deposit bonus require the use of a credit card and the player will not get full value for the amount of money they put into the account. They do, however, get a little bit of extra virtual currency with each deposit that they make. There is usually no limit on the number of times that the player can get the free money from the virtual bank. The virtual bank deposit bonus usually requires the player to create an account with the online poker site.

99Online Poker tells the story of one poker pro who tries to make it big in the world of holdem poker. As he enters the scene, the tables might be a bit shaky due to his overly aggressive play, and his overly aggressive style of playing is what lands him first in trouble. When the tables start to turn, so does 99Online Poker's winning streak. He wins more, until one night stands out above the rest. That night, 99Online Poker shows the world what he can do when he's playing holdem poker online against some of the top players in the world, and this leads 99Online Poker into earning millions of dollars.
This isn't done overnight, though. For the next three years, 99Online Poker slowly gains more players by the week. The holdem poker community at these times consists of hundreds, if not thousands, of players. This is because online poker allows players to play in large poker rooms where holding the actual poker cards is much easier for them. Many of these players join because they like the challenge of working their way up in the ranks from being a regular table poker player to being one of the top players at a known poker room. Others join simply because they love poker and would love to participate in online poker's high-stakes world.
It's understandable how these players feel. They've worked hard to get where they are, and now some online poker room is going to tell them that they're going to be cheated out of their winnings if they stick with their tables. This, of course, doesn't sit well with 99Online Poker players, who see no reason not to fight for their winnings, and aren't willing to give up the chance of seeing their name written all over the internet thanks to some new competition.
It's an interesting part of this story, however. 99Online Poker players treat competition like they do their friends. They respect their opponents, because they recognize that the people who frequent the tables on the site play just as good or better than the players at the big "table" itself. They do this even when they might lose a few wagers, because they know that their opponents can be just as consistent as they are. 99Online players treat their competition with respect for some reason, perhaps because they enjoy the challenge of working their way up through the ranks of the poker world, or maybe because they want to see other online poker players take advantage of the easy, low-stakes way of playing poker that 99Online offers. In any case, it works out pretty well for everyone.
While some players make a living playing poker online, there are plenty of others who lose money doing so. Some of these players simply quit because playing in the real world is just too hard, while others simply give up because they're not seeing consistent winning payouts in their online games. Fortunately, the players at 99ptions always have another room to play in if they lose, so there's really no quitting for these people.
The final reason why players at 99ptions are so successful is because the site is so user-friendly. 99Poker includes many different types of poker chips, including very tiny ones that you can't see with your naked eye. The nice thing is that these chips look and feel just like poker chips in the casino, so you know you're playing in a real casino. When you sit down at a table, you'll be greeted by flashy icons that indicate which game you're playing, and then by colorful buttons that allow you to put in more money to play. Everything is clearly labeled and easy to use, so even the most inexperienced players can quickly learn how to play the different games.

Sitting here on a Fri night (in Aus), playing poker with mates (online cos restrictions mean can't go to each other's houses yet), drinking very nice whiskey.
Snuck in a quick SB SS game before poker and got a tight 1 goal win. Then won the first poker game after getting down 1,000 vs 14,000 heads up (chips not dollars).
Flicking refresh on the auction house every so often for <60k collectables and snipe a 32k GC.
Irrelevant to everyone here but given the lockdown we have been through recently (Victoria - acknowledged as harshest lockdown restrictions in the world) this is a highlight of the year!

Link to Previous Tales From 2+2: Poker player steals $1m+ chips and tries to sell it on 2+2 poker forums
More Tales From 2+2: A Very Controversial $70k prop bet
Tales from 2+2: Homelessness, Grinding and the Biggest Shot of a Grinder’s Life: The Jared Huggins Story

The Blossoming of TV Poker

The Year is 2006. Online poker is thriving. Partypoker has the highest traffic of any poker site but Pokerstars are gaining new players quickly with aggressive marketing strategies. Lots of poker sites are investing heavily into marketing and one key place to channel their advertising budget is TV. New innovations, improved graphics and increasing funding meant that poker TV is at an all-time peak of popularity.
40% of the the 2006 WSOP Main Event’s attendance is from online sites and poker sites are offering large amounts of cash for players on TV to wear an advertising patch. According to Dan Goldman’s blog, Pokerstars spent over $730,000 on WSOP players’ gift bags. The WSOP is seeing more TV time and this year the $50k HORSE event is added to the TV schedule alongside the WSOP main event. This year’s $50k WSOP HORSE final table saw some huge names including Chip Reese, Phil Ivey, Patrik Antonius and Doyle Brunson.

The Path of a New Player

In Finland, Mikael Paisting is watching the 2006 WSOP on TV. He enjoys watching poker broadcasts and is fascinated by the game. It’s a very common story for players to catch an interest by watching poker TV and sign up with to one of the many poker sites available. He chooses to deposit on Partypoker. Mikael is a committed learner and player. He reads several poker books from well-known authors such as Dan Harrington and David Sklansky. He also watches many training videos. Like many players starting in online poker he begins at the microstakes cash tables.
Microstakes are a rite of passage for many online poker players. The limits range from 2nl to 10nl, so the standard buy in is $2-10. Some will play microstakes for weeks, months or even years improving their game and increasing their bankroll so they can move up to small stakes, 25nl and above. Some players see the microstakes as a job and play as many tables as they can to eke out a living wage. Some players have never played microstakes and skip it entirely for higher stakes. Mikael starts to play and doesn’t do well, this is normal for many beginners, even those who study. However, over the next few weeks Mikael continues to lose. Months go by and Mikael still hasn’t turned a profit. He discovers problems with tilt and often takes his frustration out in the chat box. An example of his rage:

Paisting:THAT IS NOT NORMAL OMG!! JUST UNBELIEVABLE

Mikael doesn’t play 10nl very often and spends the majority of him time playing 2nl and 5nl. He continues to multitable cash games on Partypoker but he just can’t win. He starts to lose big, thousands of dollars, mostly at 2nl which is known as the softest cash game on the internet.

Getting Noticed

Mikael continues to play long sessions over the next five years, he claims to play 5-7 days a week for 4-8 hours a day. By 2011 he had played 2 and a half million hands while playing 6 to 9 cash tables at one time. Mikael is still mostly playing 2nl and is down a colossal amount: $7000. Mikael has been suffering from major tilt problems and has a very wild and noticeable style of playing microstakes. He starts to get noticed on 2+2, a very popular poker forum. A player posts a link to his PTR graph, a site which tracks online cash games. They are shocked at his losses over so many hands:

yegor: wow such a massive fail
he played 2.5m hands at 2nl and 5nl and he's losing
Donkey111: I remember him from my 2NL days.
often goes on some massive tilt sessions and spews like 20 BI in 500 hands by shoving any 2 cards preflop.

He even gets hate from his PTR account where he is ridiculed on his profile comments, he also replies:

VELAir26: Spend your time with family, friends or other hobbies instead
Paisting: im fine with this you stupid idiot

Mikael continues to play his reckless and tilting style over the years. By 2014, he has been playing for 8 years and is down five figures at microstakes; he starts to look for excuses for how much he has lost. He posts a thread on 2+2 detailing how he feels that he wins at the start of the month and then inevitably starts to lose. He asks how he can take legal action against Partypoker. His fellow posters tease him:

5thStreethog: Did the thought ever cross your mind that it might be possible that the reason you cant beat NL2 in over a million hands might be because you arent very good at poker?

An Attempt at Redemption

2019 comes and Mikael Paisting has been playing microstakes for 13 years, and steadily losing a lot of money. He got a new computer in late 2018 and has been grinding away on it. Mikael is getting mentioned more on 2+2 and he is well known on the tables of Partypoker as he drops stack after stack. Many players on Partypoker furiously try to get on his tables to call his tilt shoves; when Mikael is present other player’s stacks can get as high as $100 at 2nl as he shoves buy in after buy in to button steals. Some were said to be using seating scripts to instantly be placed on a table with Paisting. At this point he is feeling very low. But despite years of losing money and insane tilting he is determined to improve. Mikael is aware of his losses and has a fierce desire to make back the money he has lost since he’s started tracking on his new PC.
He decides get help and he looks to 2+2, the very same forum that had mocked him over the last decade. He logs in as Paisting, his last name. He starts a new thread, types out a post and chooses a title: 'Biggest loser in online poker history wants to grind $16k'. He posts this thread in the sub-forum Poker Goals & Challenges, a place where players post their goals and try to update their thread with their progress. He posts graphs of his losses from his database on his PC. He starts the thread by posting some shocking graphs of $8700 lost at 2nl, $6000 lost at 5nl and $800 lost at 10nl. At 2nl he had an incredible rate of -170BB each 100 hands. The final graph of his microstakes losses posted show $15,000 lost over 365,000 hands. An average loss of $75 a day.
The 2+2 poker community are stunned by the graphs:

HorseofHell: I'm actually shocked it's possible to lose this much at 2nl
Mahsjdj: This can't be real can it?

Mikael posts about the hard work he’s put into poker and mentions that has watched videos, read many instructional books and is honest with his astounding losses:

Paisting: I've lost literally all my money including all my life savings to online poker. I want to try one last time to win those money back and little bit of extra. That's why $16k. What I need is support and guiding.

The community react to his plan to grind all the money back at microstakes:

Fodersneso: This is really disturbing.
Why on earth would you try to grind this all back? Losing at this rate is traumatizing. You're going to grind out 3000 BIs @nl5 now or what's the plan? Really curious how you think you can turn this pile of insanity around...

The community show disbelief and doubt that his story is real but several posters claim that what he says is true. He has been active in Finnish forums for more than 10 years and players starts to share hand histories and stories about his playstyle. He posts about his regret of picking the game up:

Paisting: Never had a winning week in 13 years.
If it were possible to go back ten years I would say to myself "Do not never play single one hand!"

He then goes on to tell 2+2 posters a disturbing source of his funds for his staggering 2nl losses:

Paisting: I've taken huge amount of fast loans.

He sheds a little light into his personal life:

Paisting: My age and relationships has nothing to do with this. But not working, no kids or wife and middle aged. What I have is time to play.
I get a little unemployment benefit that goes straight to the rent. My eating costs are very little because I'm only eating one meal per day. There are times when I must take more fast loans if need of clothes, unexpected bills, sickness etc. That's why getting back those $16k is so important to me.
No disability, never played anything else than poker or lottery when pots are bigger, maybe 5 times in year. Playing poker does not give me any excitement or I'm not cheering won pots.

Posters try to give him strategy advice, they try to persuade him time and time again that shoving 100+ blinds to a minsteal isn’t a good idea. Some others question his sanity and tell him to quit:

FazendeiroBH: Not trolling, I´m actually serious here. You lost an absurd amount of money playing the easiest stake in the world (nl2). You keep losing doing the same faulty strategy. No book ever said you should jam 100 bb preflop rfi. It´s quite obvious there is something wrong with you and your brain, and the more you delay seeking professional care for your mental problems, the worst it´s gonna be for you.

Paitsing updates his thread with highlight hands from his cash sessions. He seems to cherry pick hands to post and will only post hands where he loses all ins as a 70-95% favourite. He delusion leads him to blame the site, his luck and the other micro grinders. He often writes about specific players and gives his opinion on how badly they play. He often quotes their HUD stats and wide calling ranges while ignoring that they are probably adjusting heavily to his own playstyle. Some time passes and he discloses that he has lost almost $500 at 2nl since starting the thread three weeks ago.
He updates his followers with the first monthly graph of the thread from his 2nl play in April 2019. He plays for 90 hours in April and his average daily loss is $50, 25 buy ins each day. 2+2 players start to analyse the graph. They notice that there are several breakeven spots where he may be playing reasonable poker but also huge 150 buy in downswings, some drops in the graph are so steep that he is losing about a buy in every 5 hands for periods of hundreds of hands. He says:

Paitsing: Only trying to get my money back from guys who are playing nl2 forever and never moving up. When I started poker long time ago I tought it's exciting to read watch videos if it gives me more money. After 2 years figured out it's just sitting on computer like in work and if I'm someday +-0 never ever playing this stupid game. This is like war.

The thread goes on like this for almost a year. The thread repeats itself over and over. He will post a few selective bad beats, ignore good advice and berate his microstakes tablemates. A fellow microstakes grinder makes his first appearance in the thread: 6betpot. 6Betpot would play at Paisting's tables and often win many buy ins, 6Betpot would go on to post highly contrasting hand histories to the bad beats that Paisting posts, he would also reveal Paisting’s preflop 3 bet is around 30%. Some players would criticize 6Betpot for predatory behavior but 6Betpot would maintain that he would try to persuade Paisting to stop playing in a spewy manner. Someone asks to see the hands and 6Betpot posts some, here is one:

888 Poker - $0.02 NL (6 max) - Holdem - 6 players
BTN: 250.5 BB
SB (Paisting): 425.5 BB
BB: 101.5 BB
UTG: 100 BB
MP: 106.5 BB
CO: 84.5 BB
Pre Flop: (pot: 1.5 BB) BTN has AdQs
fold, fold, fold, BTN raises to 2 BB, Paisting raises to 425.5 BB and is all-in, fold, BTN calls 248.5 BB and is all-in
Flop: (502 BB, 2 players) Kh4s4c
Turn: (502 BB, 2 players) 3h
River: (502 BB, 2 players) Jc
BTN shows AdQs (One Pair, Fours)

Paisting shows 5s Js (Two Pair, Jacks and Fours)

Paisting wins 471 BB<
Later in the thread Paisting would reveal his line of thinking during hands like these; a poster asked why he though 3 betting hands like J5 was a good idea. Paisting replies:

Paisting: If you don't want them to run over you, you must do something. Blind play is very important and you can't let them run over you. When 80+ habit stealer gets shoves straight to his face he must learn at some point that I'm not giving blinds.

Many tried to reason with him and show him clearly why this was wrong, he not only refuted their strategy but would argue against them, often citing his opponent’s HUD stats.
Later on in the thread Mikael posts horrifying news. He explains that he didn’t transfer hands from his old computer to his new computer. The graphs he posted at the start of the thread only showed the tip of the iceberg. He reveals that $16k loss from the graphs was from just 7 months of play!:

Paisting: That 16k is in 209 days and in about 1 year as you can see from the first post. Big part of my losings has left to hard drive of my old crashed computer. That's past and I don't wanna think about it anymore. Main goal is this database I have here in my computer. But yes what I have been repeating many times, moving to 888 poker has sky rocketed my losses although I can play only 6 tables compared to party's 9 tables.

Posters speculate that his lifetime microstakes losses probably amount to six figures:

SpinMeRightRound: I mean if he's lost $20k in the last year, and he's been doing this for more than 10 years, he may have lost $200k or more.

In late 2019, Paisting claims that there was a ring of players were colluding against him. He goes on to say that the new site he plays on, 888, were asking for hand histories from certain players. He showed emails of his communications and posted that 8 players had had their account frozen. He also shows screenshots that his account is temporarily frozen during the investigation. Posters speculated:

CrunchyBlack: Pretty sure they think you're chip dumping lmao
.isolated: They think you're chip dumping to him. Funniest. Thing. Ever. The irony here is nearly palpable.

2020: The Struggle Continues

At the end of the year Paisting posts his 2019 graphs. He says that he hasn’t had a winning week yet and he’s still committed to making back 2019’s losses. His graphs show down 12k from 320k hands of 2nl in 2019.
In January 2020 he continues to post regularly and makes comments about him hunting down players worse than him:

Paisting: When you hunt really bad player (yes enzet there are plenty of worst player than me on 888 look those hand histories really carefully) hours and hours and wait good hand just to site let them to suck out it is affecting your game really badly.

He posts about his continuing struggle to win back the $16k:

Paisting: I have years dedicated for this project and anything back from that amount is winning to me. At this point it’s impossible to make any profit because of horrible suckouts.

He also posts about the high interest loans he’s taken out:

Paisting: I have huge amounts of loans that are basically all taken for poker. I don't eat much and all my other costs are very low.
And because of those loans I must get back so much money that is possible and these suck outs must stop.

February 2020 arrives and he posts his January chart, the worst posted yet. He takes a gigantic loss of $1,550 at an eye-watering rate of 210bb/100 hands. Often when he posts monthly graphs he would highlight that he ran a few buy ins below EV when he would be down hundreds of buy ins for the month.
The months pass and the cycle continues. Paisting posts the usual bad beats, posters berate him and try to give him advice and Paisting resists their efforts. Here is one of many similar hands posted in February:

888Poker, Hold'em No Limit - $0.01/$0.02 - 6 players
UTG: $1.46 (73 bb) Paisting (MP): $7.45 (373 bb) CO: $15.44 (772 bb) BU: $2.00 (100 bb) SB: $3.47 (174 bb) BB: $2.00 (100 bb)
Pre-Flop: ($0.03) 1 fold, Paisting(MP) raises to $7.45 (all-in), CO calls $7.45, 3 players fold
Flop: ($14.93) 6c7c4d (2 players, 1 all-in)
Turn: ($14.93) Ts (2 players, 1 all-in)
River: ($14.93) 8h (2 players, 1 all-in)
Total pot: $14.93 (Rake: $0.93)
Showdown: Paisting (MP) shows 7dTc (two pair, Tens and Sevens) (CO) shows JsJc (a pair of Jacks) Paisting (MP) wins $14

March comes and the regular monthly graph is posted. The uploaded graph shows is he down $1900 or 950 buy ins for last month. Mikael refutes that he is a gambling addict:

Paisting: 888 has given many 10 dollar bonuses to me play slots. I have never played them and in fact my account has 20 dollars freeplay bonus to play their slots. I will not use those money now or in future. So that's gambling addict to you.

April and May roll by and the monthly graphs are posted. He played fewer hands than normal, 43,000. But is down $1,250, all at 2nl.
In June he posts the usual monthly graph with -$1900 and it’s the lowest win rate he’s posted before, a colossal -335b/100hands, the graph has some alarmingly steep downswings with one section where he loses $500 in 1000 hands. That’s a loss of one buy in every 4 hands. Getting these monthly updates shows how quickly he loses money at 2nl and collaborates with earlier estimations that he is likely down more than $100k at microstakes over the past 14 years. Approximations indicate that Mikael has paid over $20k in rake to poker sites over the years.

The End, for Now

Mikael is still playing microstakes to this day. His poker story isn’t over yet but so far it is a sad one. My previous two Tales from 2+2 stories had mostly happy endings but not this one. This story is like a car falling down a cliff and it hasn’t hit the bottom yet.
Let this story be a lesson that poker isn’t for everyone. Players with addiction or mental issues should reconsider if the game is best for their lives. Serious poker players should consider bankroll management and how tilt affects their winrate if they do choose to play.
Seek help if you think you or others need it.
Original thread (Still active)