It was the big celebrity WSOPoker thing last night. There were a lot of people there at the Rio. I was at a table with Mac, Amazing Jonathan, that hypnotist guy named Kools or something, Bud Friedman, and Vinnie, the comic that Close opened for. I never recognize Vinnie, even though I've met him a few times and he really seems to get mad and hurt by it. I had no choice, I apologized and he kept doing shtick, so I had to go the other way and make fun of no one knowing who he is.

I got all the press I needed to get and made it worth being there. I did the same "I'm playing for the KKK, so the moral thing is to play badly" joke over and over and it's a fine joke that seems to do what I need it to do. The very first hand I played really badly. I wasn't tired, I wasn't bored, it wasn't bad luck or a bad beat, I just played badly. That tilted me a bit and made me play a bit too tight. I felt it was over after the first hand.

Mac can actually play. Everyone else at the table seemed to just about know the rules (except for the women next to me, who was stupid and claimed to never have played before and . . . beat me fair and square.). Vinnie and Bud seem to have that macho "it's natural for real men to pay Poker" thing; they play like they would smoke a cigar. But, Mac has a cool style. He doesn't play any system, but he plays really smart. He also plays with charm and fun. Mac has a great combination of style, skill, and charm at the poker table. He's fun.

I didn't last long and then a bunch of us went out to the Indian place at the Rio, had a great meal and then all headed over to our place to play poker for real fun. Mac lasted so much longer than me, that we were able to eat and hang and walk around, and get another game started and he just made it. He plays well.

But, you know, I'm getting some mileage out of learning to play. Andy, Paul, Howard, and the gang really did me a solid. I wish I did them a little prouder.

Penn

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