Another Quick Poker Odyssey Update

[jasonHoldEm]

Hi everyone,

I've made some difficult decisions in the last week, but now that they've been made, things seem (somewhat) easier.

The job that I applied for a few weeks ago has been looking less and less promising. The company has a "no calls" policy, but does allow email. I've contacted them twice so far, and both times I've met with the, "Your resume is in our database and is being considered" form-letter response. Not a good sign for a position that has been advertised for over a month.

To make things worse for that job they will need to do a background investigation on me (or rather a re-investigation since I formerly worked for them). These usually take 2 months+ which means even if I got an offer tomorrow it would be putting me dangerously close to when I need to start paying on my student loans.

In other words, I've pretty much given up on this job (go figure they'll probably call me tomorrow and my head will explode).

My parents have been sending me employment ads from back home; trying to talk me into moving back into their house. Originally, I had no desire to do this, but recently there has been a wave of pretty decent looking jobs and it has made me reconsider (and start applying).

Now, I guess most of you have been through this already, but for those who haven't let me say that this is not an easy decision. I'm 25, I've been on my own for six years, and I have no desire to be back under my parent's roof. I don't think they're going to jump back into "parent mode" (gawd, I hope not), but there's just something about living with them that seems foreign anymore. Besides the repercussions this will have on other areas of my life (like dating..."You live with your parents??"), I'm VERY independent and moving home at this point (in some ways) seems like giving up.

I also have concerns that poker might cause a problem. I actually started talking to my mom about it a few weeks ago (before moving home was even being considered)...her first reaction was pretty much what I expected, but she has tried to understand the game (and why the game can be beaten). Basically, she's implied that she's ok with it as long as I'm playing with my winnings ("other people's money") and I plan to be doing that very soon. I could do it right now, but it would mean dropping down a level to be "safe" I'd prefer to top myself out at this level and then cashout my initial deposit...I would still have enough to continue playing the same limit I am now (1/2) without any fear of busting out.

Unfortunately, she says my Dad would freak out if he knew I was "gambling" (I disagree, but she DOES know him better than I do). This creates a problem because I don't want to be sneaking around behind my dad's back playing at home, have him find out after the fact, and then have the problem of my apparent "gambling" while they are helping me out with a place to live and saving me money.

I'm not sure what to do about it. In the long run I think its best if I just come out and explain things to him (I personally think he'd be cooler about it than my mom has been...I might even get him interested in playing). If he does end up freaking out about it then I'll just cashout and wait until I move back out...poker will always be there (but I'd sure like to keep playing).

Anyways, I've been talking to some friends, and they've made me see that the possibility of a cheap living situation is "+EV" because I can live cheaply and (hopefully) get a job in my field since my parents live in a bigger area than I do currently (the job I applied for locally was not in my field). Even if I only do this for a year, I'm probably saving upwards of 5-7k on living expenses and that will make a big dent in my student loans...well, actually 5-7k would only make a small dent in my student loans, but it's money I would have been paying to someone else...you get the picture.

So, for better or worse, that's where I'm headed. My plan is to quit my job as a waiter on Aug 1st and then move home sometime in mid to late August. Taking some time off will give me time to pack and hang out with my friends here. Once I get to my parents house I'll have to start pounding the pavement to find something, but as I said before they live in a bigger area so I'm pretty confident I can pick something up fast.

Hopefully if all goes well (and I can work things out poker-wise) the Odyssey should be starting back up sometime in September.

Hope everyone is having a good summer.

Peace,
jHE