REPOST: Vegas Moments: Final Thoughts

I originally posted the following on December 19, 2005, after coming back from my second poker blogger gathering, the 2005 Winter Classic at Imperial Palace. If you're coming out with us, please take a few moments to read this post!

Here we are, a week later, at the end of one of the longest reports I've ever written about any trip. This makes post number five. You probably noticed that only one of them had any "real" poker content in it, which may come as a bit of a curiosity. The natural assumption, if you've never been to one of these gatherings before, is that poker is going to play a central role in the trip. After all, we're all poker bloggers, right?

The thing is, poker is really just a means to an end at these gatherings. It's a way to pass the time together when we need a break from all the carousing, partying, drink-guzzling and junk-confirming that's going on. Many of us don't need Vegas for live poker -- we can get into a live poker game just about any day (or at least weekend) of the year. Riverboat casinos, barge casinos, indian casinos, Atlantic City casinos and California card barns all provide that opportunity.

Going to one of these blogger gatherings and spending all your time playing poker is like ordering the swordfish at a steakhouse. Yeah, you got what you came for, but you missed out on the real deal. If you spend all your time playing cards, you don't get to listen to Daddy talk about how much a blue whale pussy weighs. You don't get to throw back shots of Southern with Al. And you don't get to chain smoke with Iggy while heckling the daughters of drunken cowboys. You can spend any ol' day of the year playing poker, but how often do you get the chance to mock G-Rob's hair?

I should be fair. The competitive poker player in me (and I think, many of us) can't pass a whole four days in a place like Vegas without playing at least a little "real" poker, especially when the tables look like they're swimming with fish. That's like asking Pauly and Grubby not to visit a strip club on a night when strippers are giving lap dances for free. Not gonna happen.

When that competitive drive to fleece the fish raises its head, it's too easy to lose sight of the amazing social interactions going on around us at these events. That's why sometimes we need to just fold the hand, rack up the chips, and get up from the table. This year I told myself I would tune into those interactions more than I did last year. Last year, I breezed in and out of town with barely a word to most other bloggers. Hell, some people didn't even realize that I attended at all! I definitely succeeded in reaching my goal this year, but reading everyone else's trip reports, I still don't think I've struck the perfect balance.

Thankfully, there will be more gatherings in the future to correct this deficiency. I'm sure of it. You all are too amazing for there not to be.