SPAM

Good morning everyone.  I sit here in the Flamingo poker room after another disappointing freeroll result, but I'm not going to cry about it for too long.  I finished 42nd of 72 entrants (top 20 get paid) after my KQ spades went up against pocket 4's in the 400/800 round.  I was the BB, so 800 of my 3,200 chips were in the pot before the action started.  The 4's min-raised to 1,600 UTG+1.  The action folded around to me, and I shoved the rest of my stack, knowing that I'd need more chips to cash (the blinds would soon be rising to 800/1,600).  His min-raise smelled like a small to middle pair, and even if he called, the only hands that had me in dire straits were AA, KK, QQ, AK, and AQ.  Like I said, my opponent turned over 44.  The dealer put a K in the window, but the whole flop was K 4 K, and I didn't get any help on the turn or the river.  I'm liking the Flamingo less and less with each passing day...  At this point I have to hope that all of my good fortune here shows up for the monthly freeroll...

Okay, enough of that.  Now we'll turn our attention to the nasty topic of SPAM...  My friend and former student Valerie posted a Facebook status a few days ago where she expressed (dare I say?) enthusiasm about an upcoming "meal" where she was going to "get to" eat... (yeah...), SPAM...  Yuck!!!  Being the thoughtful person that I am, I tried to save her from making this horrific mistake, but Valerie wasn't having any of it...  :)  Then I decided to query my friends on Facebook, and I posted a status asking if anyone else actually likes eating this stuff (other than being dared to, or losing a bet, or being tortured)...  ;). And to be clear, we're talking about Spam, the stuff that OOOOZES out of can surrounded by slime (if you're fortunate to hit the can JUST RIGHT)...  It's kind of like ham, but it must of made unfortunate decisions somewhere along the line.  Something definitely went wrong somewhere anyway...  :

WELL, I tagged Valerie to this status, to which she initially replied "LMAO" - she understands (as you all should) that I only pick on people I like, and WOW, if she didn't find some supporters...  I had to eat this 'ham wannabe' sometimes as a child, but it seems that there are people out there who actually eat this stuff voluntarily...  :)  My friends Norma, Ann, Joey, Olivia, Yvonne, Gracie, Miletus, Jennifer, and Valerie's sister Daisy all rallied to Valerie's defense.  Before I give you "recipes," I need to thank Barbara ("NOPE") and Chrysteen ("No!!!) for their staunch opposition to Spam.  I also need to recognize (and express my envy) of my friend Nici, who has NEVER even tried Spam (SOOOO lucky)...  ;). Okay, in my defense, almost none of the Spam lovers seem to like the product by itself.  Gracie said that it's a little salty (which doesn't begin to cover what's wrong with it).  :P  Anyway, the majority of this group (Ann, Joey, Yvonne, Miletus, Jennifer, and Daisy) prefer to fry it (I mean, you have to TRY to kill it, right?).  :)  Ann likes it with scalloped potatoes, Joey likes to make SLT's out of it, Yvonne likes it with macaroni, Jenn likes it with bread and mustard, and you do have to give Miletus credit for only eating it "once in a blue moon..."  Olivia, while not preferring it fried (she likes it on a sushi roll with avacado) does have something in common with the rest of this group - she's smart enough to realize that if you add other stuff to the Spam, that helps to KILL THE TASTE of the Spam...  :)  Daisy (who is definitely Valerie's sister) added "Go Spam!!!" and wished upon me dreams (nightmares) of Spam and mayo sandwiches...  :P  Please feel free to weigh in with your opinion of Spam (unless you like it of course, in which case you can keep it to yourself)...  ;)  And in all fairness to Spam, I would eat it before I'd eat liver...  :)

Okay, well I guess the positive about my bad run at the poker tables as of late is that I'm going to step back and get ready for the upcoming kickoff to the football season.  The college games start ten days from now, with the NFL opener kicking off exactly a week afterward.  I'm about to find some food, so I'll let you go for now.  Have a good one and I'll see you soon...