Bowling:
Last Thursday marked the end of IBM Bowling League. Unfortunately, my team didn't make the 4-out-of-8 team playoffs. :( The last night of the regular season we needed to win at least 2 points. I had already botched a triple-score by throwing a fucking gutterball on a possible turkey in game 1 (OUCH!). Come game 3, with the season on the line and down to the last frame, I needed a double to win total points. I get the first strike, then possibly the biggest adrenaline rush of the year, my 2nd ball misses and leaves a 6-10 split... UGH. Clutch Andy didn't show up that night, and we lost total pins by 7 and missed the playoffs by 0.5 games. :'( The only good news of the year is that I ended up with a 193 average, which was above my 192+ target. At least I'm still improving every year!
Vegas:
Over the weekend I traveled to Vegas for a couple friends' birthdays. While Tina and Tyler had been there all week already, I got in on Thursday at midnight. I gambled with Anthony for about 6 hours and won $300 in Pai-Gow and Craps, a good start to the trip. The next day we watched U of A in the NCAA tournament, then headed out to Hot 'n Juicy, which is a seafood shack off the strip. I got a pound of clams and a pound of crawdads and it definitely didn't disappoint, but I still think the crawdads I had in New Orleans were better, rightfully so.
That evening we walked north up the strip, making an impromptu stop at Tacos El Gordo. I've never eaten here before, but there was some pretty legit meat in there! I got three tacos: de Cabeza, de Lengua, and de Buche. You can look those up in Spanish if you want, but I basically tried all the cool stuff. :) The Cabeza tacos were amazing and definitely the best of the 3. After the snack, we went to Circus Circus for the Midway games. I hadn't been since I was a kid, but my parents used to take me here once a year, for several years. They still had all of my old favorites, and I won a few stuffed animals for Duncan. After the carnival games, we were hungry again and decided to try the All-You-Can-Eat Korean BBQ at Kimchi Time for $30 a person. It was a ton of food and the best part is that they supply a server to cook the food for you, which is a relief if you're like me (always cooking the BBQ for everyone else; it does get tiring).
The last day of Vegas was spent at the pool at the Flamingo (where Anthony got us a room comped for free). The trip ended with me winning $100 in $1-2 NL Poker, which would be all I would win for the weekend since on the second day I had lost the $300 I had made the first night. Still, leaving Vegas even or ahead is always a good feeling! And so concluded a relaxing weekend in Vegas, which was perfect for my tastes.
Pool:
Tonight we are 12 weeks into our 16-week regular season and we have a key matchup against the 2nd place team. This is the team that "dethroned" us last session by finishing 1st place while we were trying for a three-peat. Earlier this year, I made the mistake of not playing my best squad against them and they beat us 9-5. I am not making the same mistake. Tonight I will play my best lineup so that we can try and extend our 3-point lead on them!
Basketball:
Ironically, tomorrow's basketball matchup in the IBM Basketball League also features the #1 vs #2 teams in the league. My team ranks #1 and will be facing off against the #2 team in the league in the last week of the regular season. A loss would give them the top seed in the playoffs, so we can't let that happen! It should be a very good game and may end up being a preview of this year's finals.
That about wraps up the major updates for me. With no big trips planned for a while, I will just be focusing on my leagues. 'Til next time!
