I'm hoping to slowly turn this thread into an epic tale of triumph. lol, I guess anyone who starts one of these must want the same at some level. I am foregoing the smaller games and getting a job until I can afford to get back into the $300 game minimum. This might be the smallest game it is possible to build a substantial roll to hop into the next game which is the $500 game.
Prior to February, I had never played in games this big, but with the help of my buddy who is a full-time pro, he staked me, I got an awesome crash course into the world of high stakes poker in LA.
I never considered poker to be even possible until I was in my last year in college. A few years earlier, my buddy had told me to just quit school and go play but I just didnt believe it. Looking back it was probably the best time for me to try this experiment.
I had no wife, no kid, and an abundance of extra money in the form of student loans, which I ended up blowing anyway on god knows what. I just didnt know any better, and college was an overall positive experience for me.
Back to the goal and challenge:
I've worked a variety of jobs and have known for a few years now that corporate america is not for me. When I actually discovered poker, that is, began believing it was possible as an escape out of the system, I put my all (or my most) into it. I'm way behind all these online wizards and geniuses but I have a a good out in my friend, who really does this everyday. He showed me it is possible to do, now I need to see if I actually can get back there.
He already told me that he can stake me whenever again, but I need to start bringing in money asap, to cover bills, life money, etc. As far as the stake goes, I only ended up being down around $1400. I will post a graph, but my app doesnt have a simple export function. I stopped playing because I was not working for 2-3 months and he was helping me out with some cash, so I ended up racking up a side debt we werent really comfortable with.
I started out medium hot. I was up 7 or so buyins after 2 months in the 1k game. I know that sounds silly to anyone who has played those stakes, but I felt somewhat accomplished to have not gone broke right away, and HEY I was showing a small profit and putting money in my buddys pocket. He had helped me a lot over the years so I never really cared splitting about the profits. He was giving me cash on the side, and I felt like I was paying back some past debts, plus I was just happy to be winning. Sitting in games with celebrities and people I had seen on TV. I felt like if I could be comfortable at these stakes, I would never need to go look for a job. Just a casino that spreads no limit daily.
Ironic, or not, that April 1st 2013 was when the doomswitch kicked in for me. Things had been going smoothly for me for the last two months, I was getting really complacent. My homie had kept trying me to not smoke weed while I would play, but I just couldn't. Plus, I was winning, so I kept thinking that was trumping his argument that it makes one play worse.
In the back of my mind I was worried about losing, because I was so close to the edge. I had basically given everything up to pursue this. My wife and I were separated at the time I quit my job and went for it, and I didnt want to look like a total failure. Around the middle to end of March, she began calling me more, telling me to come home and she needed help with our son. Me, being the narcissistic ******* that I am, thought she was being lonely and hearing about the success of poker, wanted me back.
Well, it turned out to be meningitis. I took about a week off, stayed with her in the hospital, and welll, wouldnt you know it, it brought us back together. I was excited to tell her about the poker stuff. I was excited to tell her about my dream working out. I guess there is something to being solemn during success as well as during failures.
I never got past the emotional highs and lows of the experience. If I had a good session or couple of sessions, I would be almost gitty, spending money like a madman for the next couple of days. If I had a big loss I would sulk and stay in bed later/be lazy etc. Being away for the last month and a half has helped my game a lot.
I just got a job last week. It pays me enough to cover my bills and I even get medical insurance so at least I can get my kid covered, I should be able to save as well. I hope it lasts long enough to get me back on my feet.
There is no money like poker money though. And there is also no high like having the nuts on the river and getting bet big into. The dream is still alive, its just lying dormant while the dreamer gets back to a good place to make it come true.
For now, I have a Carbon account that we set up as a test account prior to taking the shot at the 1k game. It started with $100, got ran up to $300 and crashed back down to almost zero. I played 10nl, 25 and even some 50nl. I feel like I am good enough to compete with the bots and Carbon regs, but I have yet to be able to crush consistently. I see my micro stakes online adventure similar to my live grind. They will get better together.
For now thanks for reading. Can't really say in before busto, cuz I started out busto. I'm hoping to be able to climb that mountain again...
Thanks.
