Distortions

Time Warp

It's Texas Hold 'um; the ace of spades, the queen of hearts and the king of diamonds are on the table... you are holding an eight and a two. Still, for some reason it seemed like a good idea to bet the remainder of your chips anyway. You are bluffing, and your car payment depends on not your cards, but on your game.

We all get dealt different things, some laid out for all the world to see, others hidden in the closets of our minds; we all have secrets. Things anger us, things hurt us, but we all develop that face that makes everyone at the poker table believe, no matter what, that we are holding a straight flush.

At the same time, though, we all have tells: a nervous tap, a raspy tone,or a catch of air in our throats. We fight so hard to look like one thing, but find ourselves transparent despite our efforts. Doubt and fear ruin the best of us.

The thing I find most intriguing about poker is how rarely the best hand wins. More often than not the biggest winners are holding nothing better than a pair of twos.

When they saw the hand they must have been disappointed; questioned their luck, cursed it even. But then they saw past the numbers and thought, "fuck it, I'll win anyway." and played like there was nothing else better.

Tonight’s bluff may mean that you eat nothing but ramen for a while, or that you miss a payment on a car, but folding would have just put you right back where you started.

Don't get me wrong, we all want a royal flush...but "you play the hand you're dealt" ...and who is to say you won't win?