Yesterday I finished my 123rd session counting cards at BJ. A typical session lasts about 3 hours for me. I'm doing fine, making a small hourly profit, as expected. The comps, mostly free food, are nice as well. My problem is that lately, the game has become extremely boring. It doesn't matter if I'm winning or losing, big bets out or little ones, I'm just not having that much fun playing. What do you guys do to keep the game fun to play?
How to keep BJ fun?
- Thread starter actuary
- Start date
Automatic Monkey
Banned
Booze and whores
Really, it just isn't fun. It's not a game intended to be challenging or stimulating. Traveling to other casinos helps.
Really, it just isn't fun. It's not a game intended to be challenging or stimulating. Traveling to other casinos helps.
You’re the kind of person (and I’m getting that way, too) I had in mind while reading the first post of this thread, and thinking their description of the blackjack experience was mostly a bunch of hogwash.actuary said:
I go to the craps table which is the only other table game I enjoy. 
Changing casinos or going to share a drink or food break with my wife helps. Admittedly the older I get the less likely it is that I'm going to sit and grind for 3 hours so it's become as much physical as mental.
Changing casinos or going to share a drink or food break with my wife helps. Admittedly the older I get the less likely it is that I'm going to sit and grind for 3 hours so it's become as much physical as mental.cardcounter0
Well-Known Member
Up your stakes, and have fun with the money you win!actuary said:
<insert suggestions on rocks and rings, bling-bling, hookers and blow, etc. here>
Welcome to the grind.
sagefr0g
Well-Known Member
what would you buy with the money you won?
i took a long blackjack sabbatical and let it all sink in sort of. looked more at myself than anything about the game really but i did end up changing my approach in a non-rigid way. realized how yeah i knew a lot of stuff and i could do the counting thing but that i was really naive, sophmoric if you will about my own ideas, dreams and aspirations and even about what i cared about and what i was even doing. in the end i realized that over those 200 or so sessions i wasn't quite the AP i thought i was. tryed to put a yard stick up against what i did and found that was impossible because of my lack of knowing what it was i was doing in a specific enough way. but in the final analysis it was clear to me that i had been doing a lot more 'screwing around' than i had dreamed i was.
so what the boredom and a good bit of the 'screwing around' was for me was my real self in a sense 'acting out' against this machine i was tryin to be.
so but we're all differant a 'differant strokes for differant folks' sort of thing.
for me it was ok i realized i didn't have the fortituted to bear the risks involved to reach my goal of significantly enhancing my retirement funds and that infact what was more appealing to me was being a gambler with an edge sort of thing to where my activities would be a 'no big deal, nothing life changing' sort of philosophy. (i've got Kasi (the enigma) to thank for that mind set). so but i know that just flat betting and playing basic strategy one can go a long way and have a lot of fun. and i know i can push my luck a bit and have some fun fuzzy counting and fuzzy betting. and i know i can back that up with some serious counting if i want to. so that's pretty much what i do for now. who knows tomorrow i might change it all. lmao
some of this stuff in these links might be of interest:
http://www.blackjackinfo.com/bb/showpost.php?p=96640&postcount=73
same here. and i had a big down swing on winnings that made it feel even worse.actuary said:
i took a long blackjack sabbatical and let it all sink in sort of. looked more at myself than anything about the game really but i did end up changing my approach in a non-rigid way. realized how yeah i knew a lot of stuff and i could do the counting thing but that i was really naive, sophmoric if you will about my own ideas, dreams and aspirations and even about what i cared about and what i was even doing. in the end i realized that over those 200 or so sessions i wasn't quite the AP i thought i was. tryed to put a yard stick up against what i did and found that was impossible because of my lack of knowing what it was i was doing in a specific enough way. but in the final analysis it was clear to me that i had been doing a lot more 'screwing around' than i had dreamed i was.
so what the boredom and a good bit of the 'screwing around' was for me was my real self in a sense 'acting out' against this machine i was tryin to be.
so but we're all differant a 'differant strokes for differant folks' sort of thing.
for me it was ok i realized i didn't have the fortituted to bear the risks involved to reach my goal of significantly enhancing my retirement funds and that infact what was more appealing to me was being a gambler with an edge sort of thing to where my activities would be a 'no big deal, nothing life changing' sort of philosophy. (i've got Kasi (the enigma) to thank for that mind set). so but i know that just flat betting and playing basic strategy one can go a long way and have a lot of fun. and i know i can push my luck a bit and have some fun fuzzy counting and fuzzy betting. and i know i can back that up with some serious counting if i want to. so that's pretty much what i do for now. who knows tomorrow i might change it all. lmao
some of this stuff in these links might be of interest:
http://www.blackjackinfo.com/bb/showpost.php?p=96640&postcount=73
callipygian
Well-Known Member
Give yourself a challenge by playing drunk.
Ha, that one made me laugh. That would certainly shake things up.callipygian said:
All joking aside, it seems there isn't much that can be done to bring back the fun feeling of the game. I guess the honeymoon phase is over - I used to dream about moving to Vegas and playing all day and night. 8 hour sessions would go by in a flash.
Somebody mentioned they go to the casino with their wife. Actually, I think if I had a partner to play with, it might help with the boredom.
My ex and I used to play together quite a bit. She developed into a really good player with perfect basic skills and one of those memories for what cards had been played. Just taught my bride the basic rules and we're working on the other skills. Our last trip to Vegas, two weeks ago, was really the first time we've actively played together and it was fun. Quite frankly I don't know if I'll ever get back to my prime of 15 years ago. Part of that is age, part of it is that even back in my prime the game did lose some of the "fun" factor, and part is because I no longer have the bank roll. :grin:
mjbballar23
Well-Known Member
Exactly. Switch it up. Find other ways to beat the house and/or other casino patrons (poker).21forme said:
Casino poker gives me panic attacks! I played it once and that was enough. I know I will never have the advantage at that game.mjbballar23 said:
Learning how to get an edge at other games is good advice, though. I might look into Blackjack Switch, which seems to be gaining popularity in my area.
EyeHeartHalves
Well-Known Member
just another suggestion
For example, my wife and I once beat a slot machine out of $50 each (two-cent) that we swore was positive EV. That was months ago. To this day the machines are still roped off with CCC signs posted all over them.
Another example, I once spotted a consistent Big Six Wheel dealer/spinner. He wasn't touching it three times, he was always spinning from the same side and his floorman kept yelling at him for payout mistakes. Needless to say, the table was crowded (i.e.: very few spins per hour.) I figured the "probability outcome region" (POR) for a few minutes and started making $2 bets (I wish it was $25.) on one of the two jokers. On the third spin, I hit my joker for $90 and they changed the dealer. I walked away.
But all these things I've mentioned so far can basically described as "tricks". Now, back to blackjack...
There are other, more difficult, things that you can do to beat blackjack. You probably heard of "advanced techniques." Well, that is an excellent phrase. They are usually very difficult and/or time consuming to learn. However, once you do learn one and execute it successfully, YOU FEEL LIKE YOU DID WHEN YOU FIRST STARTED COUNTING CARDS. You feel like you can do something successfully to beat the casinos that very few other people can do. Who knows--you may even innovate a new AT? However, I theorize that you'll even get bored of this.
If I just showed you how much money I made at blackjack so far, in 2008, you'd think I was a pretty crappy player. However, if you looked at every single dollar that I made in 2008, you'd say that I am "doing okay" or "middle-class" by some standards.
Okay, my advice...
Stop thinking of blackjack as a part-time or full-time job (or a complete obsession!) and start thinking of it as "just another thing that you do to make money" and if it's "not enough money" (When is it enough?), start doing yet another thing that makes money, even if it's a very small amount of money. Always keep an open-mind as to the ignorance of casinos and other gamblers and keep an open-mind as to what you are personally capable of.
When I found out that my EV was once truely only about $10k per year from blackjack, I started getting really bored with the game. Then I thought, "I still like this game and if I make an extra $10k per year for the next 20 years, that's an extra $200k. So, what if I learn like a dozen other tricks that each make an extra $1k per year (without increasing bets)? Now, I'm up to $22k per year. Well, what if I work a couple part-time jobs that I enjoy. Now, I'm approaching $45k. What if I save some money and buy some well researched stocks at the right times? Now, I'm really getting close to $50k expected salary, without increasing bets and I ONLY WORK ABOUT 30 HOURS PER WEEK!
Now, I'm not bored!
Yes, Sp21 or poker but there's others as well. It's really "hard to make a living" off of any of them, including blackjack, poker and day trading but especially things like roulette or video poker. These latter two games are extremely difficult to live off of but "still possible to be beaten." The problem is that once you beat one of these things, they just change a physical mechanism as opposed to a "game procedure".mjbballar23 said:
For example, my wife and I once beat a slot machine out of $50 each (two-cent) that we swore was positive EV. That was months ago. To this day the machines are still roped off with CCC signs posted all over them.
Another example, I once spotted a consistent Big Six Wheel dealer/spinner. He wasn't touching it three times, he was always spinning from the same side and his floorman kept yelling at him for payout mistakes. Needless to say, the table was crowded (i.e.: very few spins per hour.) I figured the "probability outcome region" (POR) for a few minutes and started making $2 bets (I wish it was $25.) on one of the two jokers. On the third spin, I hit my joker for $90 and they changed the dealer. I walked away.
But all these things I've mentioned so far can basically described as "tricks". Now, back to blackjack...
There are other, more difficult, things that you can do to beat blackjack. You probably heard of "advanced techniques." Well, that is an excellent phrase. They are usually very difficult and/or time consuming to learn. However, once you do learn one and execute it successfully, YOU FEEL LIKE YOU DID WHEN YOU FIRST STARTED COUNTING CARDS. You feel like you can do something successfully to beat the casinos that very few other people can do. Who knows--you may even innovate a new AT? However, I theorize that you'll even get bored of this.
If I just showed you how much money I made at blackjack so far, in 2008, you'd think I was a pretty crappy player. However, if you looked at every single dollar that I made in 2008, you'd say that I am "doing okay" or "middle-class" by some standards.
Okay, my advice...
Stop thinking of blackjack as a part-time or full-time job (or a complete obsession!) and start thinking of it as "just another thing that you do to make money" and if it's "not enough money" (When is it enough?), start doing yet another thing that makes money, even if it's a very small amount of money. Always keep an open-mind as to the ignorance of casinos and other gamblers and keep an open-mind as to what you are personally capable of.
When I found out that my EV was once truely only about $10k per year from blackjack, I started getting really bored with the game. Then I thought, "I still like this game and if I make an extra $10k per year for the next 20 years, that's an extra $200k. So, what if I learn like a dozen other tricks that each make an extra $1k per year (without increasing bets)? Now, I'm up to $22k per year. Well, what if I work a couple part-time jobs that I enjoy. Now, I'm approaching $45k. What if I save some money and buy some well researched stocks at the right times? Now, I'm really getting close to $50k expected salary, without increasing bets and I ONLY WORK ABOUT 30 HOURS PER WEEK!
Now, I'm not bored!
cardcounter0
Well-Known Member
Or if you had bought LACO two months ago, you would be up nearly 50%
(with amazing upside potential still to come, or a great short to make another 50%, depending on the results of a certain election in Ohio come November).
Buy what you know. Pretty easy to see the 'inside' scoop on a lot of casino business.
(with amazing upside potential still to come, or a great short to make another 50%, depending on the results of a certain election in Ohio come November).
Buy what you know. Pretty easy to see the 'inside' scoop on a lot of casino business.
creeping panther
Banned
Never boring
even after all these years.
I specialize in DD and that keeps you on your toes with swings that come quick throughout the slipper.
I also like to play headsup, and that is anything but boring...it is truly going to war
When you know what you can do with information, and are willing to do IT, and can do it, boring...in a fine headsup DD, :laugh:
I have also gotten into VP which makes the experience of the casino more varied as well as travel to different casinos, new games, people, experiences.
After all these years BJ is still almost a sensory overload:grin:
CP
even after all these years.
I specialize in DD and that keeps you on your toes with swings that come quick throughout the slipper.
I also like to play headsup, and that is anything but boring...it is truly going to war
When you know what you can do with information, and are willing to do IT, and can do it, boring...in a fine headsup DD, :laugh:
I have also gotten into VP which makes the experience of the casino more varied as well as travel to different casinos, new games, people, experiences.
After all these years BJ is still almost a sensory overload:grin:
CP
zengrifter
Banned
Welcome to card counting. Try to have some fun with pit interaction,actuary said:
bigger spreads, alternate personas, etc. See ZGI, below. zg