I played the nlhe shootout to match play. I had about T2600 in the fast structure (20 min levels, blinds doubling) when I lost half my stack with A5 to KT and then lost the other half with 88 to KJ. Gerdog was the beneficiary and won bustout prize #1 (a Mighty Ducks foam hockey puck).

Congratulations to ADB Jester (Jeff Woods). Only half of him showed up at BARGE...he lost a ton of weight and looks great. So does Bob Ogus who also lost a ton of weight. Jester said that he lost weight by playing online poker on his treadmill....

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Ted Stevens was indicted today on corruption charges. The Alaska Republican Senator was one of the biggest porkers in the Senate, and was the originator of the infamous "Bridge to Nowhere."

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There's been a big breakthrough in LED (light emitting diode) technology at my father's alma mater, Purdue University. According to this report, Purdue scientists have discovered a method to produce LED solid-state lights on regular silicon wafers. This should reduce costs dramatically. And since LED's are far, far more efficient in converting electricity into light this could have a tremendous impact on electricity usage in the United States. I'd expect this to take three to five years to actually be available in commercial production but this probably spells the long-term end of CFLs.

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Tomorrow at BARGE: I'm not playing the lowball. I will be picking up Oscar tomorrow morning at McCarren, and attending the Ethiopian dinner. Who knows what's in between. I do know how my day will start: a conference call with a client at 6am PDT. And yes, he will be paying me for that hour....