PokerStars: Real Poker or Roulette

I know that the spades are the swords of a soldier
I know that the clubs are weapons of war
I know that diamonds mean money for this art
But that’s not the shape of my heart

                                                                 Sting

Small benefit from PokerStars

"In poker you never play your hand.

You play the man across from you"

                       James Bond

There might be something queer about a female poker player. She may excite wonder or interest, criticism or mistrust. Actually it's not easy to understand women, especially women in poker. But it makes them even more attractive, doesn't it?

My husband and me have nothing complicated in our relationships, as we got used to each other's unpredictable decisionmaking. Jokes aside, we just have a bit different playing styles in poker. He plays Texas Hold'em & Omaha, I prefer Hold'em. He plays tournaments as well as micro-stakes cash games, I choose rather the latter. We're both tight poker players, but his game is more aggressive (Alex makes higher bets, few calls and has many all-in hands).

PokerStars Random Number 

Generator in one picture

You have big pocket pairs (Aces, Kings, Queens or Jacks),  or suited Ace-King, and find them the best starting hands for Texas Hold'em? Good news, you are right here. Bad news, it's not quite common for PokerStars, the fishiest poker site, where good pocket hand doesn't equal more bucks. Your opponent's hand range is much wider you can assume. To win with big pairs against offsuited fishes' hands, e.g. 7♣2♦, K♥4♠, 9♦3♣, appears magic-like. Just bad luck, something wrong with your play or an unfair poker room?

There're many comments on PokerStars service: "rigged", "scam", "not random","house always wins", and so on. Rightly so a lot of players call it 'JokerStars' or 'RiverStars'.

What's not clear with PokerStars:

• lengthy sessions of luck and bad luck;
• fortune favors fish;
• big stake rarely fails to win the pot;
• the 'nuts' on the flop often turns into a losing hand on the river. 

Poker room, unlike its players, isn't in need of luck. They always have 100 per cent cash in and never are out of pocket.

Playing real poker, as a matter of probability and odds,  could probably equal playing chess requiring great intelligence, experience and skills. But this is not an issue for online poker where a game is almost similar to roulette. 

Delicious Anniversary

There's nothing better than a good friend, except a good friend with chocolate

Linda Grayson

With a visit from the stork, spouses can scarcely find much time for intimacy. That is precisely why it's so important to spring pleasant surprises to each other for blossoming partnership. 

Scepticism about restaurants, or

Why I'm not a restaurant goer

My husband prepared for me a creative and impressive gift to our fourth wedding anniversary. Frankly speaking, I was never comfortable with ideas about restaurants. Being a provident young lady I used to make lame or good excuses even if it supposed to go to fast food restaurant, affordable for us, two students. Now as a careful housewife I prefer cooking myself too.  

Nine times out of ten the key lies in unreasonably high prices. Accountering my scepticism, Alex did not decide in favour of trendy hotspots. It was a quiet and cosy basement place within walking distance of Palats Ukraina Metro Station. 

Mechanical drawing

Leonardo da Vinci's invention ideas

Engineer Restobar interior design represents the subject of its name. There're three dining rooms with distinctive drawings, illustrative formulas, and other engineering inventions on the walls. 

Tablesetting with graph paper instead of the usual tablecloth makes the atmosphere inside even more interesting. You'll not have to feel bored waiting for your order. By the way, your tempting dish is never cooked beforehand and is served hot and hot, so you'd wait awhile enjoying luscious music, drawing and a warm talk. 

I'd rather post our impressions than pictures of that fine cuisine if I could. It was sensational, knocking our socks off. Bright flavour and unspeakably gentle aftertaste of the main course can't leave you cold.  Special citrus tea was the best I have ever had. And my paradisaical dessert, pumpkin pie with ice-cream that melts in the mouth, was unforgettable. That's love at first bite. 

Duck breast with caramelized apple
in berry sauce

Charbroilled chicken 

with garnish potato

There was not many visitors in Restobar that pleased me as I prefer peaceful rest. Warm welcome, high-level service with smile, original interior design, fancy cuisine and reasonable prices – all of that assure the fondest memories about Engineer. We had a dose of hospitality, fine taste and good cheer there that turned around my dislikes about restaurants. 

I'm truly grateful to my honey for our fairy-tale-ish and delicious anniversary. 

Home Sweet Home

Home is where the heart is

Pliny the Elder

A sudden inspiration flashed into my mind with the suggestive moment from The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien: "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: it was a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort". 

Comfort is probably the keyword when we speak about dwelling. In my childhood memories I knew comfort as softness of blanket, dad's bergamote perfume, wall-to-wall carpet in tones of sandybrown, mom's violets on window sill, and adorable teddy bear.

Now I dream of comfort in the flat of our own rather than in rented one. Certainly, I've used to feel like home there, but can't help thinking this space isn't our. 

"Home contains food and fire for the mind as well as the body", - Benjamin Franklin said. Home is the place where we feel our best and know we'll be heared. It's where we make decisions and find our rest. It's where the family meets and where we meet the ones we love. It's the location of childhood memories; a light place occupied by happiness and peace. It is where we want to be... Where Wi-Fi connects automatically and twenty-four-hours hot water supply is :).

For me home is my heartland where people I love and who love me are. The place filled with familiar noise and flavours, native eyes and happy mess. It's where my daughter plays and sings. Where my husband embraсes me. I'm at home, because my heart is and will always be with them. 

"I know my kingdom awaits 

And the've forgiven my mistakes.

I'm coming home", - Skylar Grey sings.

May your own fortress have distinctive design, peachy interior color schemes, rooms with ample score to work and rest, welcome guests as the ornament of its walls, and square meters of happiness and warmth, not only from heaters :). 

Enough To Make a Dog Laugh: Favourite Comedies

Comedy is an escape, not from truth but from despair; a narrow escape into faith

Christopher Fry

If what scientists say is true, laughing triggers healthy physical changes in our body: it can prolong our life. When we laugh chemicals in our brain called endorphins are released which boosts our mood and energy, strengthens our immune system and protects  us from damaging affects of stress. Humor helps us to stay both emotionally and physically healthy.

Comedy is my favourite genre of movies because it makes me feel good. It is simply a funny way of being serious. It just pokes at problems. As Moliere said, comedy "corrects men by amusing them". A positive bond when our laugh is shared with somebody acts as a strong buffer against stress, disagreements, and disappointment.
If I and my husband go to the movies I would rather choose romantic or family comedy film, and he would prefer some action movie that combine a comic element (such as "Rush Hour", "Iron Man" and so on). I'd like to share some highlights of a few impressive funny films that provide moments of a good belly laugh.

"Ace Ventura: Pet Detective" is the great movie with the great actor Jim Carrey playing a genuine weirdo who happens to be stunningly competent at his job. No matter how many times you've seen this film, everything he does, every situation he is in is hilarious. Ace's humorous body actions, falling into a shark tank, searching for a missing jewel are only tiny portion of hilarious things about this film.

KEVIN! 8 year old boy defending his home from failed 'wet bandits' is amongst favourite heroes both of kids and adults. His clever and funny labyrinth of traps outsmarting adult rubbers Harry and Marv provides us with non-stop laughter. The plot is unbeleivable, but who cares - it's funny! It will just suffice to mention the scenes with Little Nero's Pizza boy and Marv scared with the gangster film:). "Home alone" became an enjoyable and warmhearted Christmass tradition.  

If you like Eddie-Movies, "Coming to America" is just the thing to watch. Sceens like the wedding ceremony of an African prince Akeem of Zamunda, abusive neighbors in New York, "interwieving" prospective brides in a Queens' bar, old men at the barber shop offer plenty of laughs. It's an awesome comedy and romance mixed together.

Rowan Atkinson's brilliant performance in "Johnny English Reborn", as well as in Mr. Bean Collection, relies more on visual gags. Be extremely careful: wheelchair racing down the streets of London, agent's fight sceens and opening scenes imitating parkour one in James Bond are above your expectations and may cause excessive laughter. :)

Bill Murray with his humor will never go out of style. The weatherman in "Groundhog Day" becomes trapped by some weird supernatural fate: he can't escape the same day of his life. Phill's annoying high school buddy, his robbing of armored truck filled with cash, his attempts to seduce Rita by his "hokus-pocus" powers "to predict" the future are quite funny.

I'd be happy you to share impressions from these or any other сomedies - light-hearted 'feel good' films crafted to amuse, entertain and enjoy providing merriment and a momentary escape from day-to-day life. 

What Drives: Forces of Motivation at Work

The only way to do great works is to love what you do

Steve Jobs

When we think about labor, we usually think about motivation and payment as the same thing, but the reality is that we should probably add at least such kinds of things to it: meaning, creation, challenges, ownership, identity, pride, etc. Except of money, we are also driven by meaningful work, by others' ackowledgement, by the amount of effort we've put in: the harder the task is, the prouder we are. What really drives depends on our hierarchy of needs.

The significance of payment motivation depends on whether it gives means to live or to survive. In the latter case money is more than an important - it is crucial motivation. Each person has different standart of 'enough' which involves in his line of needs.

I'd like to cite a passage of post "What motivates you at work" from linkedin:

"Is money why you go to work? If your boss doubled your salary, would you work twice as hard? I didn't think so".

But I was much more interested in one of the comments to this post: 

"If your boss cut off 20% from your work, would you have the same paycheck? I didn't think so :)".

It is hard to escape the conclusion that money definitely exerts a considerable impact to our motivation at work. Thus there is the rub: this motivator is short-lived. There should be another sense that stays with you much longer.

When my husband was just beginning his career of C# Developer - it was more than 5 years ago - he got about $200 a month. Student's hierarchy of needs differed from the necessities of a family man's life :). Alexandr always says he is able to make money our family needs. One he is passionate about is personal and professional growth. He is motivated with his job because the opportunity of being he truly is, and the best he can be. Work, along with family, is his source of being, his path. My husband loves programming not only as his job, but also as his hobby. As the way of thinking. Frankly speaking, I'd be pleased to land him a job if I was an employer.

My profession, putting it middly, is not such financially rewarded one as my husband's. My best work experience is connected with English teacher's job at the lyceum. I was passionate about preparing an interesting material for my students and to see feedback interest in their eyes while working crossword puzzles, guessing riddles and playing linguistic games. 

My further jobs were associated with disrespect of my rights and mistreatment in terms of working hours and loads of work. For one, being a proofreader at the editorial office, I used to discharge responsibilities of layout designer, sales manager, messenger, organizer, bookkeeper and even a cleaner. Working hours were flexible only in terms of ordinary overtimes. Level of work done didn't have an impact on my salary. It was $250 a month, 3 years ago.

Honestly, appreciation and recognition for my efforts - that's just the thing that motivates me. The best bet is to make both dollars and sense :).

A Frenzy For Travelling

To move, to breath, to fly, to float, 

To gain all while you give, 

To roam the roads of lands remote, 

To travel is to live 

Hans Christian Andersen

Our passion for adventure is perhaps an essential core of our living spirit. There is a moment in everybody's life when we aren't satisfied in a world by ourselves and become bored with 'living in' and turn it into 'moving to' energy. Somebody feels certain relief in change. People feel some adrenaline rush in being off balance: losing sight of familiar comfort of home and friends. We have only essential things tending towards the eternal, - air, sky, our dreams and memories as a travel-bag. We loose ourselves, and next we find ourselves. We travel to open our eyes and hearts, to see the world, to know the world.

"You'll have to manage without pocket handkerchiefs, and many other
good things, Bilbo Baggins, before we reach our journey's end...
Home is now behind you. The world is ahead"
(Gandalf, "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey")

The desire to move is characteristically human. Travelling is a form of self-education. It is a way to clear and broaden our mind, to enrich our life with new experiences. It gives us a filling of possibility, a new perspective of a new world. These experiences are not always pleasant, but the best things can come from the worst experiences. Many lessons learned on the road can be applied to everyday life too. 

We may come back and find out how belowed our starting point is, or see it with new eyes and extra colours. People enjoy the variety that the world has to offer. But though we pass and repass to find something beautiful, we should carry it with us. We see amazing sights, meet interesting people and learn a lot about ourselves.

As for me, what I like in travelling best of all is changing circumstances and acting in a haphazard way. The worst sides of travelling, in  my opinion, are disgusting toilets I sometimes have to use, comfortless beds and impolite fellow travellers. 

First and utmost, it really doesn't matter where we go or what our external circumstances are finally; it will always depend on our state of mind whether we experience happiness or not. 

Alter Ego. A Friend Indeed

What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies

Aristotle

Barbara Rush, "The Tao of Friendship"

Long-awaited weekend... The afternoon is well along, and you're still at home, online in social media, invaded by sense of loneliness. You have more than one hundred friends in Twitter or Facebook, but have you ever wondered what knits you together? Are your pen-pals true or digital friends? We cherish the illusion of intimacy, but deny ourselves a pleasure of real life and communication with true friends, whom we can't simply make online. Stephen Marche, Esquire columnist, gives evidence of the epidemic of loneliness, and insists on disconnection as a ticket to a happier world ("Is Facebook Making Us Lonely?"). 

'Friend' associations cocktail

As we go through life, we encounter many people, most of which are acquaintances. Genuine friends are rare. They know all your faults, mistakes and problems and still like you for no other reason than you are YOU, and have no need to pretend. They got a million ways to make you laugh. They give without expecting anything from you in return. Sincere friendship allows both people to embrace and accept each other's differences and use them to enhance the relationship.

I did not have true friendships in my childhood. Some folks helped to relieve the gloom of my dark hours but were not ready to enjoy with me the sunshine of my prosperity.

Now I feel my needs answered with by sincere friends, my dear husband and our daughter. They give me total freedom to be my unique self. We can always turn to each other in a time of need and have a safety net for our deepest secrets in our trusting hearts. We feel growing and learning from each other.

Friendship is precious. Let's treasure the time we have together with our friends. 

Happy (?) Meal. Fast Food: Niceties & Neccessities

The problem is when that fun stuff becomes the habit. And I think that's what's happened in our culture. Fast food has become the everyday meal

Michelle Obama

What is better for us: a food item from a bottle, a can or a box, or a cellophane bag ‒ or fresh from the garden food? Sometimes it makes me wonder. Food preferences of mankind have always been and will always be determined by a complex interplay of social, economic, and technological forces. Great number of people tend to beleive that fast food is phony, and balanced food is real. Some of us consider chain of fast food outlets to be a manifestation of the commodification of time coupled with relatively low food prices.

Anyhow, fast food takes every nook and cranny in the life of modern civilization. Being a commonplace, it is served at drive-throughs, restaurants and cafeterias, stadiums and zoos, airports and railway stations, schools and universities. Fast food has made its own world, and its impact is hard to overstate. The Golden Arches are extremely widely recognized all over the world, as the symbol of globalization. We can even speak about Mcdonaldazition of some countries, such as America (Eric Schlosser, "Fast Food Nation").

Do we reach elegant sufficiency or only damp appetite? Let's weigh pros and cons of fast food.

Visit to McDonald's is justified when we are in a hurry and need to grab a bite, and it is tough to maintain a healthy diet. Fast food is convenient, cheap and tasty, but what is its real price which does not appear on the menu? 

To my mind, fat aspect is connected not only with fast food. It is not solely responsible for every social problem. The major point is that we should don't let fast food transformate our everyday diet. I don't stand on fast food, but I think no harm in a bite of pizza or cheeseburger, when we keep it to minimum. My weight is 47 kg with 164 sm height. We're our own masters and creators of our lifestyle, so what's wrong with a glass of Coca-Cola, when we try to keep healthy way of life? 
In conclusion I'd like to cite a quotation from Bengamin Franklin: "One should eat to live, not live to eat".

At the Mercy of the Sea

The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever

Jacques Yves Cousteau

The magic of the Sea... Admire a breathtaking extreme vastness and dive into captivating, gorgeous and incredible natural beauty, unspoiled by the life of modern civilization. Gaze on glorious three-shade seawater, walk along the beach, let the soft white sands run through your toes and the waves gently touch your feet, listen to their thrilling lullaby whisper. Embrace gravity-free among them.

Powerful and fantastic, the sea is larger than life. It stirs our emotions making us to wear our heart in our sleeve, making us to think things we like to think. The sea is like a friend with a thousand faces: never monotonous, never repetitive, never the same. Diving into another world, we solve a mystery of inner world.

The sea inspires ordinary and famous people. The idea of sea names for boys (Dylan "Son of the sea", Merlin "Sea fortress", Muriel "Sparkling sea", Orman "Sea man", and others) and girls (Earwine "Friend of the sea", Marella "Shining sea", Morgan "Dweller of the sea", Molly "Star of the sea", and others) come into the world.

Sea World is the source of decorating ideas, related motives in jewelry and fashion design, life breath to artists, poets and knights of the pen. Maritime myths and legends, seafaring tales and adventure stories - spirits of the sea pass all bounds.

The Sea's heathfullness is true to expanding thalassotherapy (origin from Greek talassa "sea"), the therapeutic use of marine environment benefits (seawater, algae, seaweed, mud, and others) for the body and skin with toning, moisturizing, detoxifying, nourishing and revitalizing effect.

Listen to the sea, touch it, smell it, feel it. Drop into its secrets. Discover your live dream.

Beyond the sea, beyond the sea,

My heart is gone, far, far from me;

And ever on its track will flee

My thoughts, my dreams, beyond the sea.

                         Thomas Love Peacock