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I had a few bad sessions in a row the last couple of days-- nothing crushing, but enough to make me pause and rethink what I was doing. The loss could be attributed to a number of things-- sloppy, unfocused play; complacency; losing 3 different pots for stacks where I had >90% equity when the money was committed; any resultant tilt from trying to win back those pots; poor physical and mental maintenance. Whatever the case, I decided to review my play a little and see what I thought the best option for retooling my leaks would be.

And that's when I realized, in my review, that I'd played for twenty-four days in a row.

You think it might be time for a break?

I decide to make myself not play poker today. I realized I'd been holed up in here, occasionally taking breaks to stretch or watch something, but still hardly leaving my room. I needed to get out.

I didn't do anything fancy. I went for a little jog in the late afternoon. I cooked myself a nice little dinner. I went out for a couple of beers with some friends I hadn't seen in a while. It was a nice reminder that there's more to life than poker, than my goals I'm working for. A reminder that life is happening right now, and it's good to just stop and experience it every once in a while. A reminder that, most of all, I really do enjoy a wide variety of experiences and need them all to feel happy and fulfilled in my life.

I'll probably get back to playing as soon as tomorrow-- I couldn't totally get away from the game, as evidenced by this blog entry-- but I want to have a clear head and a proper frame of mind first. I've been happy with my progress in those 24 days, but it's showed signs of slowing (and even reversing course), and I don't want to wait any longer to address that.