Fun Episodes let's start with....Episode 4

#1
OK, so this is my first post. Most of the time I can't really share these stories with the exception of the few card counters that I know. I thought I'd post some of the funny/sad/ridiculous encounters I've had over the years. If they appear out of order, it's just cause I've posted only the most entertaining from my logs.


Episode 4: The Fun Table - Side bets and shenanigans

Store E in AC has the LL tables which is a side bet I like to play "every now and then". I sit down at a table full of ploppies, mostly from Jersey, I hear the charming accent and I know it'll be fun. We talk about the Eagles, and how the waitresses have to card everyone, there was an incident involving minors coming into the casino so everyone gets carded now. There's a jolly old couple over at third base, enjoying their wine, betting away at the Lucky Ladies side bet on every hand. I have a seat at second base, gives me the best view of the shuffle and discard tray, so I can reference this later. To my left two women are talking about how hectic it's getting in the casino and how they don't want the table minimum raised. Enter Laura, who has a seat at first base to my right. Now she's a looker and seems like the fun type, but obviously has been drinking before she got there so her fun is significantly magnified. She sits down. "Waitress!" She yells and smiles. We go on about how the casino is in need of more waitstaff, she and I start bantering about the cards, cheering for faces and aces, hitting the table, it's getting to be charming. The waitress comes around and Laura tries to order two drinks, cause she figures she should make up for what she looses on the table in the alcohol consumption. The waitress tells her she can't because she has to serve her one drink at a time. Laura gives her a tip, and tells her to "Come back soon, OK?" in the most endearing of voices. Now Laura can play basic strategy but chooses not to, doing things like standing on 16 vs. a 7, it's a "feel game" for her as it is with most. Laura and I start talking about the dealer upcard, trying to guess what it will be. Eventually I proposition a little side bet with Laura, we both put up a white chip and whoever guesses the dealer up card wins. The count is mildly positive so I bet on a jack, she bets on a 2, the dealer up card is an 8. The bet goes nowhere we go again for the next round. A few hands later the deck is slightly negative so I start betting on the smaller cards which I win a few side bets from Laura. Now I ask her if she wants to stop because I'm starting to take her stash, although I have no intention of keeping her white chips. She declines and I proposition that we use them to tip the waitress get some water, we also use the pot to occasionally tip the dealer. We call this going into bribery mode. The pot never really went anywhere since we both guessed wrong most of the time but the action was better than watching grass grow. All of a sudden the count shoots up, and it's time to actually bet something. Now the table is really starting to cheer, I pull the trigger and win a few bets sliding some color other than red out, and bounce before I have to watch grass grow again.W!+$$$
 
#2
Episode 5: The Gangster Gambler

Store G is a dump. They don't take care of this property at all. I find a 5$ blackjack table, with some mediocre to sometimes good pen. I see a gangster type gambler who is shielding three empty spots as others pass by he places bets on them preventing anyone else from playing at the table. Gangster Gambler is sitting next to two ploppies that eventually take there money elsewhere. I take a walk and come back a few minutes later to see the dealer shuffling. The pen is acceptable and decide to have a seat at the same table as Gangster Gambler. Now if I could pull off an act similar to Gangster Gambler, with the attire, hat, and jewelry I think it could get fun. Maybe I'll take some acting classes for kicks sometime. I break the ice and we talk a bit about the dealer and the "flow" of cards as the first shoe goes nowhere, I think I'm going to be watching the grass grow again. The second and third shoes do the same. Then on the fourth shoe, I find something to bet on. The count shoots up so I start greening, my initial bet of 5 is now at 40. I get an Ace 8 against a dealer 6 my indice is good so I double, I win the hand. Angry gambler pushes his hand resulting in neither a loss or a win. He makes note of this and says in an angry tone, "You just cost me money". I point out that he pushed and didn't loose any money, he's telling me I shouldn't "be greedy" and should have stayed. I say it'll be OK, meanwhile the count is climbing while we're having this fun conversation, and Gangster Gambler has now lost quite a few hands. So he decides to sit out because I "ruined the flow". The count is ballistic, I bet away and spike a couple blackjacks, and continue on for several rounds of getting face cards and aces, I'm now betting 2 x 40 to make up for him not "playing his spot" I tell the dealer. The count comes crashing down, along with aces popping out all over. The deck is more or less cold by the time Gangster Gambler decides to jump back in now playing 3 hands all stacked fairly high with red chips. I go back to my neutral bet of one $5 unit. I stay to watch the Gangster Gambler split sevens get a 5 on both and then double both his hard 12s against a dealer 8 only to bust twice. I've seen crazy but this was beyond that, this was masochistic. I pocket my chips and get to the cage before the deck gets any colder. I look over as I'm leaving and see Gangster Gambler buying in for more. W!=$$$
 
#3
Episode 6: Green Ladies Green Ladies!

The one thing about Atlantic City has is that it's driving distance for me. Most games are terrible and you really have to hunt for good dealer pen. The LL side bet is one game I don't mind playing, cause if I can catch QHQH with a dealer Blackjack, what a story that will make! When I do I'm still taking the insurance, hey might as well if the TC is at the right number. Other payouts are more profitable than getting a natural, but the count has to be right to justify making the bet. Seldom do I see the count get there in the eight deck AC monster shoes, but when it does, I really do get excited. Like the guy who hasn't played blackjack in years sits down at a singledeck 3:2 with a 95% pen no preferential shuffle, double on any two cards, double after split including aces, split as many times as you want with late surrender and no pit boss or surveilance with a sizeable roll. WAKE UP! OK so not that great, but I still get excited about spiking the LL bet.

Store E has a decent amount of LL tables so it should get interesting. Full table again I'm at seat three, across from me are three Jersey business men on holiday. They dress their color betting green to black for the most part and are really having a good time ragging on each other. I'm sitting next to a couple this time, Rita and Steve. At first base is a gentleman who is on vacation with his wife and often seems to make the desperation bets known as "Plungers" when you push the rest of your remaining chips on to the table. He's a jovial fellow who the dealers know by first name, and I'm guessing is a regular. The count really never goes anywhere for the first hour so I flat bet and start talking to the table. The table has taken on it's own vernacular thanks to the the Jersey brothers when they win they exclaim righteously in chorus "Successssssssssss!" In addition to the "Successsssssssssss!" There is a "Yaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyy!" which comes courtesy of Rita. "Yaaaaaayyyyy!" is reserved for blackjacks while "Successsssss!" is reserved for winning anything, especially doubles, or doubles that cannot loose (21). When multiple blackjacks are dealt "Yaaaayyyy!" also precedes a golf style clap for the dealer(my own addition to the table character), this followed by the Jersey brothers tipping, and then the dealer making the tip toke sounds banged before dropping them into the box. Now Rita and Steve are blackjack newbies, and they are not shy about mentioning it to me. I like to see people win so I advise them as they ask, and in 5 minutes we are high five buddies. Rita and Steve also implore an excellent money management system. One of them plays and asks me what to do while the other is the chip holder. Now chip holder's sole responsibility is to keep track of the money and disperse if needed for doubles, or for new bets. Chip holder also acts as receiver of the chips holding the entire roll in his/her pockets, hands or purse. When new money is needed, chip holder quickly passes the bet to player in a timely precise manner. This is an awesome act I'd like to explore later, not only does it hide your chips without you appearing to rat hole, but makes you appear like a new-to-blackjack couple as my friends Rita and Steve. They alternate between chip holder and player Rita obviously being the more verbal of the two and Steve more of a "Come on big money" attitude.

The dealers are encouraging us too. First dealer is Mike, a heavy set fellow, who reminds me of Charlie Brown the cartoon character. Mike has a silent style and every time he breaks he takes his arms extended above his head and using his thumbs and points toward himself nodding and smiling followed by "Successsssss!" and the sound of golf claps. The next dealer, Jean, a female, pretty blonde who quickly picks up the table sayings and plays them to a-T. The Jersey brothers tip her reds, so much so that the table doesn't have any more because they are all in the toke box, they even have to order a fill, serious tippers over there. Now Jean is speedy and smooth, both her and Mike give the best pen, and throughout the shoes I manage to grind out a small win even after dropping $$$ early on. Then enter Mr. Sunny, this is the actual title on his name tag, I don't know who gave him the title, but this guy is the exact opposite of that name. He's a portly fellow, balding, with glasses, and just talking to him you get the idea that his idea of fun might actually be reading the dictionary. He gives mediocre pen and at one time I get a greenie up on the LL side bet he calls "Green Ladies!" Sounds like a football presnap audible when I think about it. Joell and Mike never did that, maybe he's following protocol, but either way I spike it a small one, but good enough for me, I was happy to just be able to make the bet. Now the gentleman over at first base decides to take a "Plunger Bet" pushing about $40 worth of reds out into his spot, this happens during a plus count. He pulls a 5 and 6 against a dealer 6 and before he makes his decision he's gracious enough to ask the table if anyone wants the action. I'm all over it like white on rice. I quickly place my $40 worth of chips up next to his chips and say "I'm in!" with a big grin. We pull a face card, and Mr. Sunny goes on to bust. Note, I will never buy into a split, after all it's more of a defensive play, and splitting things always makes me sick (more on this later). Needless to say Mr. Sunny is not as fast as Jean or entertaining like Mike, so the table sort of starts to entertain itself with more bantering and cheering of its own. This doesn't help when Mike returns because the Jersey brothers are now pretty plastered, and Rita and Steve have been downing the budlights, like the company wasn't going to make them anymore. On one instance, one of the Jersey brothers walks a way to smoke. The other two decide it would be fun to play for him, now they put him in for a green chip, he'd been the only one playing reds all night so they thought it would be funny. Eventually the Jersey brother who went to smoke comes back to a smaller stack, "Schmucks!" he addresses the other two. This got me thinking about playing with civvies or other card counters who I could trust or they could trust me with their money. Two or three of us sit down at a table just like Jersey bros. but when the count goes positive the other two would disappear while one of us would play the other hands at a significantly higher stake, maybe even covering four hands, this would be a great way to cover play your spread, cause hey you are playing with your "buddies" money, when maybe it really is yours or part of a collective bank. The things you can learn from ploppies. Either way it was more entertaining than profit. I scrape by with a small win, and some good ideas for extending my long term play. W! +$$.
 
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