Pearlie

Texas Hold'em...minutes to learn, life time to master. One of the most important things that you need to do in order to win, is to be patient. Most people that are unsuccessful are the ones that like to play every hand and chase cards. Be selective on the hands you play and you will increase your odds greatly. Get an understanding of how the other players at the table are playing, loose....tight? This is important to know because the person playing loose is very hard to bet out of a hand and the players that are tight usually only play when they have a monster hand.

A few tips to remember. A loose player likes to bluff alot, one way to feel a loose player out is to raise his bet or check raise him and watch how they react. Remember mentally how they reacted in each betting round, so if it does come to the show down and you see their cards, you have just been given a great read on their style of play. A tight player generally only plays the "nuts" early on, but then they know you have a read on them and their style of play, so in the later rounds they try stealing the pot with a big bet. If you have a feeling they might be trying to steal the pot, again raise their bet. If a tight player is quick to call, more than likely they have a hand so fold. Otherwise with your raise, a tight player will put you on a higher hand, fold and wait until their hand comes along.

Watch how players are betting and remember that, so if it comes to a show down and cards are turned over, you'll get a good read on their betting sytle. What I mean here is; did they have a made hand or were they on a draw? Did they bet on the flop, turn and river, or slow play their hand? It's very important to learn how others play in order to win in the later rounds when the blinds are higher.

Playing Pocket Pairs. a couple things I suggest, if its early in a game wait to see a flop. The more players at the table, the riskier it is to go all-in. Wait until you see the flop and then if you pocket pair is higher than the board, bet aggressivly and see how others react. If over cards come out and someone bets big, do not be affraid to fold. Be cautious to what the board gives you, does it give other players an opportunity at a straight or flush? Several times I have had my Aces cracked going all in pre-flop. Later in the game and with less players, pocket pairs increase in strength, becasue you are not on a draw, unless someone else has a pocket pair that is higher than yours.

Bluffing, this is a big part of the game. Alot of players seem to be bluffing more (more so online). Here again, you need to get a feel on others playing styles in order to get a read on them to determine if it is a bluff or strong hand. All players bluff to win a pot, you have to. I think you need to bluff a win, maybe one an hour. If you are a player that doesn't get caught in bluffs early on, it makes it that much easier to bluff a win once the pot is larger in the later rounds. If you do get caught early and often, players are more than likely to call your bets and get tells that you may not know you have.

On TILT? Another important part of this game is to control your emotions. We all take bad beats or fold a winning hand, it's a part of the game, but if you get upset or go on tilt, you will not win! Stand up for a minute, sit out a hand, get your thoughts together, put it behind you and get re-focused.

Always remember to be patient and play solid hands. It's a marathon not a sprint. A Thought to play by; it's aways better to rake a small pot than to lose a big one.

Philip Perkins
http://www.thatsnolimit.com

A potential problem with learning ceramics is that you must have some experience with pottery to be able to learn ceramics. But, unless you have a pottery expert to teach you, or unless you enroll in a pottery class, there is really no easy way to learn how to do ceramics. It can be difficult to find the right person to help you through the learning process if you don't know where to look, but these tips below should help you to get started with pottery, and then once you gain some experience, with ceramics.

• You can get help from a local community collage or recreational center. Many offer Saturday classes that are good for people who work 9-5 during the week. Hands on learning with a qualified teacher is the best way to learn pottery.
• The internet is a great source of information about pottery. You can find ceramic designs, tools, and materials that you need to create your own pottery. You will have to purchase some of these, but others are free of cost to help you learn. Also, you can find a network of people online who can help guide you through your learning experience by giving you information and helpful tips.
• Local art schools often offer evening and weekend classes. A large amount of materials are needed for the complete pottery process, so a class at an art school will give you access to important tools, such as the kiln.

Although it is important to learn pottery hands-on with an experienced person, through the internet or through local classes or schools, it is entirely possible to learn how to create beautiful pottery and ceramics.

Once you begin to learn and are trained, you can do much of the work at home if you buy the right supplies. It may be possible to do most of your work at home, and then network with other artists to find a kiln to use. Clay is a fun medium to work with, so dont give up just because it takes a little more effort to get started than it does with other areas of art.

Read Keith Markensen as he discusses backyard landscaping ideas. Join Keith as he shares his landscape experience at www.Plant-Care.com where practical professional advice is always online.

There is nothing like combining business with pleasure. This week's blog post mingles the two subjects and notes the advantages of being a small business owner when it comes to vacations.

The subject springs to mind because, well, that is what we are in the process of doing right now. My husband, Michael, was offered a one month job with hourly pay that we couldn't turn down. The client offered to pay for fuel, hotels, and $25/day for food, along with paying for the work to be done. How could we turn that down? We packed our bags and left town for the next month.

We are in an intriguing position because we are subcontracting to his business, rather than simply making a bid for a job. The difference, of course, is that generally as a small business owner, you are expected to pay for your own accomodations, travel, and food, though your bill may reflect accordingly. Still, the basic plot twist remains the same. As a small business owner, you are given more flexibility in your contacts and your hours.

For instance, suppose you legitimately - and I stress legitimately - wanted to expand your business to Hawaii. You needed to go out and make the appropriate contacts (I stress 'needed', as well). The opportunity arises in your work schedule for you to stay an extra day or two, or perhaps conduct your business in the daytime and make the most of the evenings (or even, vacation in the daytime and attend various social functions at night). By the same token, I know a man who attended a national conference each year in Las Vegas. He took the opportunity to fly his family there, as well, and made the most of the time away from home.

There is good reason to stress the 'legitimately' portion of the statement. As a small business owner, you will be more likely already to attract your friendly neighborhood IRS auditor to your accounts. You want to make sure that all of the numbers come up squeaky clean.

Some things that might pass the muster:

Flying yourself and your employees on a trip to a conference or meeting of some sort

Limited food allowance - the IRS no longer allows you to deduct full meals and sets limits. Make sure you check the updated information

Billing long distance calls made to your office

Reasonable trips that are necessary to the life and growth of your company

Things that will most likely upset the IRS:

Listing your wife and your 3 month old child as an employee. If they really are (perhaps your baby models for ads for your company?), make sure that position needs to attend said meeting. If you are using it to shoot more ads and need your baby model, fine. If you're not, and just want to bring the kids, don't try to deduct them.

Lobster and cavier every night

Phone calls made to your parents

A trip to Aculpoco in which you talk to one 'potential client' briefly at the pool for three minutes

Use common sense, good judgement, and, most of all, common sense. Don't try to disguise your vacations as business trips. But if you can bring your family with you on your business trip and perhaps extend it (without deducting it) a few days, then go for it.

Nola Redd maintains a blog for small business owners on the website for her Atlanta-based low voltage wiring business, Redd Infinity. She is also an author on http://www.Writing.Com/ which is a site for Fiction Writing.