Hi All,
I've been reading through this whole board with great interest..This is my first actual post, so let me share a 'bit' about myself.
I started working in a factory right out of High School, 18 years old. Like many of you have probably heard before, I planned to work for a year or two, save some cash, then hit the books again. Well, it didn't work out that way. Once I got making some decent coin, I was able to buy things, amass credit, pretty much live my life the way *I* wanted to.
School got put on the back-burner, because truthfully, there wasn't any particular field that interested me enough to justify leaving a 20$/hr factory job. There's geologists, pharmacists, and other well-educated people working right along-side me on the line; they just can't find work in thier particular field. Here I am, now 24 years old, and in the 5th year of my 2nd factory job. Will I ever go to College? Doubtful. Do I hate the factory life? Hell yes.
Now, on to the gambling.
My whole family gambles. For mom, it's bingo 3-4 times a week. Dad, he's hardcore for the ponies. Bases/pucks/skins for him also. Wacky.
I guess it's in my bloodlines. I started out making small time wagers on a Canadian gov't- run lottery called Sport-Select when I was 12 or 13. I did fairly well for a young kid. There was one period that I remember fondly, where I won 8 days in a row, parlaying 3 NHL picks everyday. (that's 24 straight, by the way) Might sound like bullshit, but it's the truth. I thought I was the best thing since sliced bread, it was so easy. *laff*
Little did I know, I was just a green-horn with more heartache ahead of me than I could ever imagine. It seems with age, I got greedier. Where a 5$ bet used to satisfy my younger self, by 18 I was parlaying 3-4 NFL games on Sunday, for anywhere from 100-200$. And if a 1 O'clock game fell through, killing my parlay, right back to the store I went, repeating my original bet. Of course, betting as idiodically as that caught up to me soon enough.
I walked into my first Casino at 19 years old. Casino Windsor.
Blackjack. 5$ tables. Sitting with various winos, old bittys, a general potpourri of people from all walks of life, if you will. It was great, I won, like many people do thier first time(s). Hook was set. I was good at BlackJack, I thought. Hah. Bring on the skids. I'm talking Rosanne Barr sized skid-marks here folks. People spltting 10's against 10's. You name it. I was such a green-horn.
*I know this might be starting to sound like a Gamblers Anonymous rant, but hell, I wanna share this stuff. After all, we're all gamblers, right?*
Went bankrupt at 22 years old. Felt like crap for over a year, as if I was in some kind of thick, hazy fog. But I survivied. Nobody found me hanging from a rope anywhere. Wasn't my only way out, but I got laid-off at a VERY bad time and it really was my best choice. No way was I letting anyone bail me out, this was my god damned mess to fix. The turning point came after dropping 3300$ at the tables one night. That dreaded walk up the carpeted exit ramp just deadens the soul, I tell ya. I was just about on the 401 freeway, headed back to Chatham, mind racing. I turned the car around, went back into the Casino, and....
....Had myself banned. I decided if I couldn't control myself, I shouldn't be there. Best damn thing I ever did. I haven't been to a Casino in 2 years, and never plan to return, either.
What the hell does all of this mean? It means, that in a way I'm glad it all happened. It taught me invaluable lessons..Yeah, I learned the hard way. I lacked money management skills in the
beginning.
I'm easing back into the game, slowly and confidently. Reading, jotting, watching, looking for any little morsel of information I can, on any given game. Yes, it takes hours sometimes. But it's worth it.
For the past few months I've been betting sides, partly on paper, and mostly bases. I can pick teams, fellas. I'm doing OK. Self control, what a difference it makes. It CAN be learned. Pro-Line, Sportselect, you ask? That lottery is such a joke that I'm not even going to say what I think of it. It's strictly for entertainment. There is no way anyone could ever beat that system, ever.
NYSportsFan: If you read this, I want you to know, that I share the same dream you do..Which is to someday gamble professionally. I don't think I can do it, I KNOW I can. And I hope you do too..I say, if that's what's in your heart, and if you KNOW you have the knack for capping, by all means, go for it. Like someone said in your 73-reply thread, life is short. Drop me a line sometime, will ya?
If anyone actually reads this whole damned long-assed post, kudos. My name is Percival, and I'm beginning to like this place already.
I've been reading through this whole board with great interest..This is my first actual post, so let me share a 'bit' about myself.
I started working in a factory right out of High School, 18 years old. Like many of you have probably heard before, I planned to work for a year or two, save some cash, then hit the books again. Well, it didn't work out that way. Once I got making some decent coin, I was able to buy things, amass credit, pretty much live my life the way *I* wanted to.
School got put on the back-burner, because truthfully, there wasn't any particular field that interested me enough to justify leaving a 20$/hr factory job. There's geologists, pharmacists, and other well-educated people working right along-side me on the line; they just can't find work in thier particular field. Here I am, now 24 years old, and in the 5th year of my 2nd factory job. Will I ever go to College? Doubtful. Do I hate the factory life? Hell yes.
Now, on to the gambling.
My whole family gambles. For mom, it's bingo 3-4 times a week. Dad, he's hardcore for the ponies. Bases/pucks/skins for him also. Wacky.I guess it's in my bloodlines. I started out making small time wagers on a Canadian gov't- run lottery called Sport-Select when I was 12 or 13. I did fairly well for a young kid. There was one period that I remember fondly, where I won 8 days in a row, parlaying 3 NHL picks everyday. (that's 24 straight, by the way) Might sound like bullshit, but it's the truth. I thought I was the best thing since sliced bread, it was so easy. *laff*
Little did I know, I was just a green-horn with more heartache ahead of me than I could ever imagine. It seems with age, I got greedier. Where a 5$ bet used to satisfy my younger self, by 18 I was parlaying 3-4 NFL games on Sunday, for anywhere from 100-200$. And if a 1 O'clock game fell through, killing my parlay, right back to the store I went, repeating my original bet. Of course, betting as idiodically as that caught up to me soon enough.
I walked into my first Casino at 19 years old. Casino Windsor.
Blackjack. 5$ tables. Sitting with various winos, old bittys, a general potpourri of people from all walks of life, if you will. It was great, I won, like many people do thier first time(s). Hook was set. I was good at BlackJack, I thought. Hah. Bring on the skids. I'm talking Rosanne Barr sized skid-marks here folks. People spltting 10's against 10's. You name it. I was such a green-horn.
*I know this might be starting to sound like a Gamblers Anonymous rant, but hell, I wanna share this stuff. After all, we're all gamblers, right?*
Went bankrupt at 22 years old. Felt like crap for over a year, as if I was in some kind of thick, hazy fog. But I survivied. Nobody found me hanging from a rope anywhere. Wasn't my only way out, but I got laid-off at a VERY bad time and it really was my best choice. No way was I letting anyone bail me out, this was my god damned mess to fix. The turning point came after dropping 3300$ at the tables one night. That dreaded walk up the carpeted exit ramp just deadens the soul, I tell ya. I was just about on the 401 freeway, headed back to Chatham, mind racing. I turned the car around, went back into the Casino, and....
....Had myself banned. I decided if I couldn't control myself, I shouldn't be there. Best damn thing I ever did. I haven't been to a Casino in 2 years, and never plan to return, either.
What the hell does all of this mean? It means, that in a way I'm glad it all happened. It taught me invaluable lessons..Yeah, I learned the hard way. I lacked money management skills in the
beginning.
I'm easing back into the game, slowly and confidently. Reading, jotting, watching, looking for any little morsel of information I can, on any given game. Yes, it takes hours sometimes. But it's worth it.
For the past few months I've been betting sides, partly on paper, and mostly bases. I can pick teams, fellas. I'm doing OK. Self control, what a difference it makes. It CAN be learned. Pro-Line, Sportselect, you ask? That lottery is such a joke that I'm not even going to say what I think of it. It's strictly for entertainment. There is no way anyone could ever beat that system, ever.
NYSportsFan: If you read this, I want you to know, that I share the same dream you do..Which is to someday gamble professionally. I don't think I can do it, I KNOW I can. And I hope you do too..I say, if that's what's in your heart, and if you KNOW you have the knack for capping, by all means, go for it. Like someone said in your 73-reply thread, life is short. Drop me a line sometime, will ya?
If anyone actually reads this whole damned long-assed post, kudos. My name is Percival, and I'm beginning to like this place already.
