Shot In The Dark: Things That Bore Me

August 10, 2004

Things That Bore Me

My latest eruption in online spam is for a site pimping "Texas Holdem". It's some sort of poker game.

Which reminds me - the current wave of Poker-mania is easily the most irritating fad since the heyday of Lounge Music, 8-10 years ago.

Note to the new wave of poker fans: hunching over a table pushing huge piles of chips about and acting like you're in an endgame with Boris Spasskii isn't fooling anyone, any more than your martini glasses, cigars and smoking jackets did back in the nineties, or your temporary fling with Sinatra records before that.

The, er, fad among fads, at least adult fads, lately seems to be to defer to the golden age of American adulthood, the fifties; I fear Sammy Davis-style glass eyes may be the next arbiter of fake cool, and it frightens me.

Posted by Mitch at August 10, 2004 04:07 AM | TrackBack

Comments

Geez, Mitch. Some of us play Hold'em because it's fun, not because it's popular. But I guess I should stop if you think I'm "trying to be cool" but not "fooling anyone" with this new "fad."

Posted by: Kris at August 10, 2004 09:30 AM

Hey, nothing wrong with having fun; I think ANYONE who does something because they like it is onto something. You go!

BUT - Poker on TV?

Erm, no.

Posted by: mitch at August 10, 2004 09:36 AM

just wait til you see teens wearing butterfly collar polyester print shirts and pantsuits *shudder*

its coming man. . .its coming.

Posted by: jasonDL at August 10, 2004 10:38 AM

But I thought you had one 13-inch TV that you never watched anyway.

Or is that Captain Ed?

There are a lot worse things on TV. Poker is a game of skill; I find it fun to watch. Celebrity poker is a guilty pleasure of mine.

Besides, they've been broadcasting the World Series of Poker on ESPN2 for quite a few years now -- there's nothing really new about it.

Posted by: Kris at August 10, 2004 10:43 AM

I've got to say, this is one trend that I can REALLY appreciate. As someone who's been playing poker in casinos since the day I turned 21, having this new influx of money laden fish is a real boon. I'll happily scrape their dead money off the table to satisfy their urge to get with a fad. I'm sure that Harley Davidson appreciates fad lovers... So do I.

As for poker on TV, I watch it almost religiously. If you are into it for the strategy and mindgame, it's worth tuning in.

Posted by: Chumley Wonderbar at August 10, 2004 12:14 PM

It makes as much sense as the magic the gathering shows or the giant scandinavians curling subarus do I suppose.

Posted by: JasonDL at August 10, 2004 06:59 PM

If you want to see heavyweight card playing, show Bridge on TV. Let's see Omar Sharif make a grand-slam doubled. Woo hoo!

Posted by: Gideon at August 11, 2004 01:57 AM