What is the worst side effect you have experienced from being a gambler?
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33 members have voted
February 17th, 2011 at 10:12:03 AM
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What is the worst side effect you have experienced from being a gambler?
February 17th, 2011 at 10:22:51 AM
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No health or soul-related issues.
I had some gambling action-related money problems the first year or two in here Vegas.
Since then, little gambling, more work, I just get nice things and pay my bills.
I had some gambling action-related money problems the first year or two in here Vegas.
Since then, little gambling, more work, I just get nice things and pay my bills.
Beware of all enterprises that require new clothes - Henry David Thoreau. Like Dealers' uniforms - Dan.
February 17th, 2011 at 10:26:11 AM
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I do enjoy my hobby, I am trying to figure out what about gambling gets me excited. It isn't that much about the money, I am a low roller so I usually leave +/- $200, but I get a good amount of time for my play. I think I really enjoy the atmosphere: the sounds, lights, suspense, plus the free drinks are nice too. All my vacations for the past few years have been to gaming destinations, perhaps it is because I dislike paying a normal rate for a hotel room when I can get free/practically free ones in gaming destinations.
February 17th, 2011 at 11:59:27 AM
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Second Hand smoke, and occasionally obnoxious fellow patrons.
I love to gamble in Colorado, despite the terrible minimums.... smoking is prohibited by state law!
I love to gamble in Colorado, despite the terrible minimums.... smoking is prohibited by state law!
February 17th, 2011 at 12:18:50 PM
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Quote: clarkacalWhat is the worst side effect you have experienced from being a gambler?
mkl.
Other than that, the side effects have been:
Finding the Wizard's sites
Meeting the Wizard and teddys (we had a great time)
I learned to gamble better, and something more than I knew about math
I've found a place to spend a very pleasant, restful, vacation each year
That's pretty much it.
Donald Trump is a fucking criminal
February 17th, 2011 at 12:39:07 PM
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Not really a financial issue as I can still pay for everything I do, but the complete inability to put money away for a down payment on a house. Gambling however is not the only reason for this though. I like visiting friends across the country. When the choice is $5k in the bank or go on 5 vacations, at this point in my life, I'm picking the vacations. :)
February 17th, 2011 at 12:53:35 PM
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Taking a day off to hit the tables, then running into a coworker there.
February 17th, 2011 at 2:42:35 PM
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Quote: gogTaking a day off to hit the tables, then running into a coworker there.
At my last job, I was in HR. I'd see someone at the casino from work probably every other time I went. Every single time each person said to me "I'm not here gambling, I'm here to eat" or "I'm not gambling, I'm just sitting around and watching other people". I'd say to them "Well, it's Friday/Saturday night, and I'm here gambling"
There is a huge stigma to anyone who admits to stepping foot inside a casino, so I guess that's the biggest side effect that has happened to me. Reputation.
February 17th, 2011 at 4:00:54 PM
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I've made a fair amount of money from "gambling" over the years, but almost certainly, less than I would have had I spent an equivalent amount of time becoming skilled at almost anything else. So the worst side effect is that I've spent many, many hours essentially unproductively.
The fact that a believer is happier than a skeptic is no more to the point than the fact that a drunken man is happier than a sober one. The happiness of credulity is a cheap and dangerous quality.---George Bernard Shaw
February 17th, 2011 at 4:18:29 PM
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Quote: clarkacalWhat is the worst side effect you have experienced from being a gambler?
For me just the consuming passion of wanting to beat what can be beat; not being able to stop considering dealer school again for more than a month at a timne; having to find "the edge" in any game and anything I see.
Compared to people with real gambling problems, not a big deal. Though I can see one day helping my niece/nephew with their homework and they ask, "what is 5 and 2?" And I reply, "Depends on which line bet you have and if a point has been established."
All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others
February 17th, 2011 at 4:39:02 PM
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Every time I walk into a casino, I'm only looking for one thing... the craps table(s). As I walk down the aisles, I can sense where they are usually because that's where all the racket's coming from. As I turn the final corner and it finally enters my line of sight, I always feel a sharp pain in my gut.
One time I asked a craps dealer what that pain was. He said "that's the hook in your stomach".
One time I asked a craps dealer what that pain was. He said "that's the hook in your stomach".
The difference between zero and the smallest possible number? It doesn't matter; once you cross that edge, it might as well be the difference between zero and 1.
The difference between infinity and reality? They are mutually exclusive.
February 17th, 2011 at 6:48:38 PM
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I occasionally screw up my wake sleep cycles.
I once went to a small Indian casino in S. Texas, and I had no idea the place was going to close (I think it was 1am closing time) You guys close? What, I can go home?
It's more that I sometimes go past my usual deadline of around 3am.
i don't generally play at all until evening.
I once went to a small Indian casino in S. Texas, and I had no idea the place was going to close (I think it was 1am closing time) You guys close? What, I can go home?
It's more that I sometimes go past my usual deadline of around 3am.
i don't generally play at all until evening.
Sanitized for Your Protection
February 17th, 2011 at 8:01:39 PM
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Eh, don't beat yourself up over it. I've read this exact same sentiment from other "professional gamblers" and it is a downer. Becoming good at something is not unproductive -- who's to say a professional gambler is less admirable than a CEO of Exxon Mobil, or something like that (besides money, of course)?Quote: mkl654321I've made a fair amount of money from "gambling" over the years, but almost certainly, less than I would have had I spent an equivalent amount of time becoming skilled at almost anything else. So the worst side effect is that I've spent many, many hours essentially unproductively.
If what you are concerned about is personal growth and development, there is not much more to do than becoming really, really good at something, and then utilizing that skill to the best of your ability.
On the other hand, if you had the opportunity to do something else that was available and you might have been better at, than maybe... it's hard to say.
"Dice, verily, are armed with goads and driving-hooks, deceiving and tormenting, causing grievous woe." -Rig Veda 10.34.4
February 17th, 2011 at 8:11:09 PM
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Quote: rxwineI occasionally screw up my wake sleep cycles.
I once went to a small Indian casino in S. Texas, and I had no idea the place was going to close (I think it was 1am closing time) You guys close? What, I can go home?
It's more that I sometimes go past my usual deadline of around 3am.
i don't generally play at all until evening.
I am the total opposite, I usually wake up at 6 or 7 am play for a few hours then do other stuff for the rest of my day, I have always been sharpest first thing in the morning, my spouse on the other hand does not like to wake up until 10AM and he is groggy for awhile even after that!
February 17th, 2011 at 8:35:42 PM
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Quote: rxwineI occasionally screw up my wake sleep cycles.
I once went to a small Indian casino in S. Texas, and I had no idea the place was going to close (I think it was 1am closing time) You guys close? What, I can go home?
It's more that I sometimes go past my usual deadline of around 3am.
i don't generally play at all until evening.
I would say that the sleep aspect is also my biggest negative. I stay at the Horseshoe Southern Indiana whenever I'm in Louisville for business (about once a quarter). Last trip, I didn't get back to the property until about 11pm one night, and I didn't find my room til almost 4am. NOT a fun morning of meetings after that one...
"So as the clock ticked and the day passed, opportunity met preparation, and luck happened." - Maurice Clarett
February 18th, 2011 at 3:37:58 AM
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The real truth about being a gambler is that, it can make you an addict. Being a gambler can strain your relationships at home and work, and lead to financial calamity. It can make you do things which you have never thought of doing in your life like : stealing money to gamble. You may think you cannot control problem gambling and gambling addiction, but
if you’re ready to admit that you have a problem and need to seek help, then you can overcome your gambling problem and regain control of your life.
if you’re ready to admit that you have a problem and need to seek help, then you can overcome your gambling problem and regain control of your life.
February 18th, 2011 at 5:50:19 AM
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Quote: stinsonsmartYou may think you cannot control problem gambling and gambling addiction...
This may also be turned around to "You may think you can control [insert addiction] by yourself " when actually people with addictions generally need to get help.
As far as regret over wasted time, I think that depends. If that is absolutely something to fret about, then so are most avocations. It's hard to justify going fishing, for example, if it is to be all work and no play. I did select that category in my vote, but truthfully I hardly worry about that. I try to manage concern over problem gambling by avoiding behavior that fits into those "10 warning signs" things that go around.
the next time Dame Fortune toys with your heart, your soul and your wallet, raise your glass and praise her thus: “Thanks for nothing, you cold-hearted, evil, damnable, nefarious, low-life, malicious monster from Hell!” She is, after all, stone deaf. ... Arnold Snyder
February 18th, 2011 at 8:23:56 AM
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I vote strain on relationships. Overall I win pretty good so financially not a problem, I play a lot of poker and avoid the second hand smoke, and yeah it sucks to lose but I don't get depressed. However my parents and females are disappointed I'm no doctor or lawyer.
March 27th, 2011 at 9:52:27 AM
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I would say a bit of everything! When playing Baccarat I usually chain smoke cigarettes to keep myself relaxed. I have never lost a life-changing amount playing but I still gamble a lot for the money I make so when I win big I go into spending sprees and when I spent all my winnings it's difficult to get back to a cheaper regular lifestyle. My family doesn't know about any of that because I doubt they would be happy to know I sometimes bet two weeks of salary per hand. I wasted hundreds of hours reading online forums and information about gambling! I lost big for the first time not so long ago and it didn't help my mood.
March 27th, 2011 at 11:26:16 AM
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Quote: clarkacalWhat is the worst side effect you have experienced from being a gambler?
Making this post was perhaps one of the worst ways to waste my time.
Seriously speaking, I make a lot more per hour spent trading than playing poker (much less blackjack, where I'm not really ahead so far despite using a theoretically powerful count, and further much less anything else). On the other hand, the former is stressful and makes my head hurt, while the latter is like playing with a yo-yo in comparison.
Resist ANFO Boston PRISM Stormfront IRA Freedom CIA Obama
March 27th, 2011 at 12:42:11 PM
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1.) Absolutely having nothing to show for the past 8 years; OTHER than a lot of pictures of big winning vP hands and a 104 roll craps hands.
2.) The fact that women absolutely HATE gambling.
3.) Like someone else said, the "reputation"; when people hear that I'm a "gambler" it gives me an instant stigma of I must be an addicted gambler who loses all of their money and have no responsibility. (Actually, quite a few people at my work "hate" on me, because they ALSO love gambling, but their older so they can't go as much as me, so if I try to leave work early when it's slow to get a jump on the drive to Reno; they'll hate on me by saying "Where's Tim?!?")
2.) The fact that women absolutely HATE gambling.
3.) Like someone else said, the "reputation"; when people hear that I'm a "gambler" it gives me an instant stigma of I must be an addicted gambler who loses all of their money and have no responsibility. (Actually, quite a few people at my work "hate" on me, because they ALSO love gambling, but their older so they can't go as much as me, so if I try to leave work early when it's slow to get a jump on the drive to Reno; they'll hate on me by saying "Where's Tim?!?")
Gambling calls to me...like this ~> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Nap37mNSmQ
March 27th, 2011 at 3:25:12 PM
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Quote: P90Making this post was perhaps one of the worst ways to waste my time.
Seriously speaking, I make a lot more per hour spent trading than playing poker (much less blackjack, where I'm not really ahead so far despite using a theoretically powerful count, and further much less anything else). On the other hand, the former is stressful and makes my head hurt, while the latter is like playing with a yo-yo in comparison.
Actually, the latter is playing with several yo-yos at once (at least, ideally).
The fact that a believer is happier than a skeptic is no more to the point than the fact that a drunken man is happier than a sober one. The happiness of credulity is a cheap and dangerous quality.---George Bernard Shaw
March 27th, 2011 at 3:34:30 PM
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Quote: TIMSPEED2.) The fact that women absolutely HATE gambling.
I love gambling!
But I hate gamblers.
Okay, not all, but I think it's good my husband doesn't gamble. His hobbies are more expensive, though.
Each of us is entitled to his own opinion, but not to his own facts.
Preparing for a fight about your bad decision is not as smart as making a good decision.
