Day 11 (Which is mostly about Day 10)

So this one has been eventful. And it's only a few minutes old.

After playing Craps with Phil Ivey (I still am not sure if I'm spelling that right) I had a huge reception and dinner with 500 of my closest work friends. And by work friends I mean people who have my job all over the country. Our commonality is our brand...

The company was a bunch of phenominal people.

And dinner was amazing.

To start, lobster bisque with ostreta caviar and creme fraiche (sp? it's amazing how much I need spell check on my phone, and even in French, feel free to point out errors in the comments). Simply fantastic.
Wine: Sterling Napa Sauv Blanc

A mixed green salad with the thickest balsamic I have ever seen on the top. Just a light drizzle of vinegar easily twice my age. And a very small amount of good olive oil.
Scrumptious.
Wine:Canoe Ridge Chardonnay

Roasted Kobe beef tenderloin with demi glaze and baby vegetables.
Wow. That beef was capable of being cut with a fork. Perfect medium rare in the center. I'm getting worked up just thinking about it... Easily the best beef I have ever had, and well worth whatever it cost.
(UPDATE: OK, so I called and asked about the Kobe beef tenderloin at the steakhouse here. I had to know... $350 for the 10oz. portion we enjoyed.)
Wine: Sagelands Cabernet

For desert, the most incredible dark chocolate torte, with espresso ice cream. They went to the troble of having paper thin wafers (you could almost see through them) of very dark chocolate made in the shape of our company's logo on one side, and our names on the other... Somehow desert topped the tenderloin just because it was so cool.
Wine: Chateau Y'Quem Sauternes

And we thought that could not be topped...

After a speach about our hard work with the brand, the progress we had made, and our goals for next year (The speach may have been a bit corny, but it is a "work event" and we have to act like we shouldn't be required to pay the taxes), they pulled back the curtains that split the room to reveal the poker tournament.

GAME ON. I was amped.

500 people at 50 tables. The buy in was covered and we each started with $1500 in chips.

I made it through the first round. Go me right? I'm sure that half of the people at the tables had no clue what was going on. But hey, one down and a few to go.

I got a few good deals in a row, took down some big pots, and I was into the fourth round, with 7 tables remaining.

A little slow play by me to keep the chips in check while I got nothing better than a suited 5-8 (clubs, and I made my flush) and I'm down to the final three tables.

I look down at my next hand and I've got a pair of kings. I'm in for $3000 with 4 other guys at the table... The flop comes down King, Queen, Ten and I check back to one guy who's been trying to play agressive all night. I guess it had worked so far for him that night. He goes all in. The next guys folds, and the third guy is all in right away... Before the second players cards made it back to the dealer.

I'm thinking that I may have to worry a bit, but screw it, it's fun, and I'm all in. Three men betting, and I'm the only one who can afford to lose (my bet covered the other two by six grand, as they were tied with $15,000 each). First guy turns up two Tens... Second guy a pair of Queens... My Kings hit the table and one guy (a friend from Idaho) who was spectating by this point actually yells out "That's how you play that shit Stormin. You're my boy blue!" Everyone broke up laughing. The next two cards were a five and an eight, and I took down $45,000 in one hand. WOOOOOOHOOOOOO!!!!

That got a "When it's game time, it's pain time baby!" comment from my boss who was watching. The tables get condensed, and I'm part of the final ten with a good stack of chips. The final table... Sweet...

A few good hands, and I'm all in with pocket kings before the flop. $220,000 on the table... Son of a bitch catches running fives and I'm out. Motherfucker.

It was fun.