Most of you know me, some of you do not.  For those of you whom do not, I am Italian, I am from the Bronx (New York City) I have been trough ups and downs in life that would amaze many.  The message board in summation is a small part of my life/daily routine in many ways and I have kind made a home here at BetSlection for many reasons.  Yes, I have been on Sonya's 'Vegas Message Board' and The Wizard's WOV and Andrew's (Shifter) Vegas Forums, etc.  Yes I was banned from those at my own doing and not retreating when the BS hit the fan, as they say.  Mostly those boards are drama rooms and boards for the consumer or soap opera end of things, in so many ways.  It didn't phase me at the time and still does not.  As far as BetSelection, I have meet some really great people in various parts of the world and on the board type of relationships.  I have learned from many here and I have countless emails from some board members here as well as many that have never posted as I have helped them in their gambling ventures. 

I have expressed myself and I have used BetSelection as an avenue that allows me to write about baccarat and casinos.   do have a full time successful established business that has nothing to do with gambling.  Pictures and stories are posted within my Blog regarding that.  I have many facets to my life outside of the casino and gambling and this message board, unlike what many think.  Same as gambling for those negative or naysayers, etc.,  'small mind/closed mind' go nowhere types.  It's all good.

Fast forward a bit.  Vic is brought the board down for a couple/few days to reboot and re-do his forums.  That turns into a couple of months plus a couple f weeks.  Hey, it happened.  So many did email me and said they would never be back.  I guess it is the same as when a restaurant that is popular or say a bowling alley closes for a sale of the business or closes to renovate, etc.  Some leave and never return as a customer and yet, many new customers come on scene when it reopens. 

But hey, here we are.  It is a good place and IMO, better than all the other ones out there.  Sure I tried another one or two while Vic was down here at BeSelection.  The one that most of the rooms within itself require you to be a paid subscriber for like $50.00 a month is a total joke, I read many things on there and know a couple of the posters as well.  Total garbage, in fact, if you follow what some say and they preach--you will have your bankroll destroyed, all said IMO and nothing endorsed or asked of me to say by Vic or this board.  Just a sheer fact.  In fact one of their key players on that board was a friend and an endorse of another board where the boards admin went into the hole playing baccarat to the tune of about $500,000.00 of bad unpaid markers that he is or will be criminally prosecuted by Clark County Neveada's county attorney.  He disavows knowing the guy now o the new board and is preaching once again about playing baccarat, etc.  LOL to the max! 

I have done fairly well at baccarat.  Never claim fame to mechanical stems or being able to make millions and beat a - Negative expectation game, but I have won far greater than my losing sessions.  I even post pictures when I can.  And like most things, in business and life in general.  The longevity of anything, takes time, patience and due diligence of doing things day in and day out on a repetitive basis.  At times it sucks and other times it is great.  But it is me, you, Vic and all the rest of us that makes this board the greatest.  I joke around some and unless you actually know me, you might not understand what I write at times.  Something you have to follow.  But when I say, I have been there, I have been there.  I am not proud of everything I have done i life, but there are numerous things that far outweigh the bad things and those things I am extremely proud of.  I put my writings and my experiences here on BetSelection as one of those in the latter category. 

You know, I am currently up in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St Paul) for Superbowl 52 and a couple of days before I left last week I was at the casino.  I bought in for $900.00 playing baccarat.  I was up about $1,500.00 and I failed to apply my 1/3rd, 1/3rd, 1/3rd Money Management System I always do.  I don't k why I did not when I doubled my buy-in because my 1/3rd system has fueled my wins almost all the time and protected my buy-in from being lost.  Anyways, I get wiped out and I bought in with another $600.00.  Something I rarely do and out of 100 sessions with 100 buy-ins, I would say that I would buy-in a second time, once--maybe just once like I did last week.  It always leads to disaster and if I can't win on the initial buy-in or win and give it back and then lose my buy-in, I wind up pressured and losing the 2nd buy-in as well, just like everyone else.  I learned a long time ago, that all the repeat buy-ins will outweigh the wins if I do that.  Something else I have written about.  But I am hard headed and I am real and I know baccarat and casinos..........So........

Like I said, I am at the casino, lost $900.00 and bought back in for $600.00.  I had $2,000.00 pocket money for my little boy for the week and a half I would be at the Superbowl, for his movies, the Mall of America, Extreme Sand Box, etc., etc.,etc.  I set that aside a while back and although I have other funds available, that was his and for him.  Sure I could have left with $900.00 down, replaced it and lived happily ever after.  I do not chase.  Leave and reset and start again another day.  I learned years ago.  But something got into me and something was wrong.  The casino took my little boy's money!  My Italian and my NYC background came out all at once.

I bought back in.  I was down to right around $200.00 once again.  I looked around and realized I did everything I said not to do, so many times.  Oh well, that's life in so many real ways!  I said to myself I was unintelligent and past stupid and there was no need to stay any longer.  Take the $200.00 use it for food and gas and the trip to Minneapolis and replace the $1,500.00 I lost and call it a night.  Yeah right.  You know what???  I actually thought of this board, the things I have said and Vic, right then and there.  I would not have bought in again and I would have left if I lost that $200.00 by all means.  I almost got up, really.  Then the dealers switched, the one that took most of the $1,500.00 from me was just tapped out by one that I always win Fortune 7's with.  She sits down and I throw up $175.00 on the Banker and $25.00 on the Fortune 7 side wager.  Players hand shows 2 monkeys and the Banker has blackjack for a total of 1.  Players third card is a 6.  LOL, I actually broke out laughing as I saw a monkey or an Ace or a 2 coming for the Bankers side.  A few others are on the Fortune 7 as well for $25.00 or $50.00 thinking about that $1,000.00 or $2,000.00 win.  They are yelling and screaming for a 6.  I am doing nothing.  They hold the dealer up and tell me, 'hey that's not like you—what the heck man, we need a 6, give us some power here'.  So I join in and boom-yes a 6!  So naturally as always, the dealer says, 'back to back Fortunes coming here'.  It's happened in the past but very seldom.   

So I leave the $175.00 on the Banker and throw up another $25.00 on the Fortune 7 wager for a total of $50.00 hoping for $2,000.00 pay off.  I put a quarter off to the side for the dealer for a $1,025.00 tip which the dealers keep their own tips at this casino.  She calls the floor person and he says okay.  She pulls a monkey and 2 for the Player and a 10 and a monkey for the Bankers side.  She pulls an 8 for the players side reducing them to zero.  Saying, "nothing to beat now", so naturally we are all screaming, and I mean loud for a 7, everyone is coming over  to the baccarat table watching at this point.  She slides the card out and it is still face down.  She goes to flip it and I stop her.  I told her to slightly pick it up and let me see it.  So I put my head almost on the table and she picks it up a tiny bit.  I can see the 3 lines on it and say to put it back down.  She does and the floor person looks at me and asks what I saw.  I said three lines.  The table goes wild as everyone had a quarter or two out on the Fortune 7.  There was 3 other $5 chips out next to the quarters for the dealer.  If it was a 7 the dealer would get $1,640.00 tip.  I told her I did not want to see it first and for her to look at it.  It was at this point, 2 Asian girls playing throw a fit and wanted the players to see the card first and not the dealer.  The pit manager came over and told us we have to all agree or he will turn it over.  So we all said for the dealer to look at it and flip it so she sees it first, towards herself.  As she was flipping it, she screams and her right elbow hits the chip rack and numerous chips are on the floor now and all we know is it was a 7. 

I am up like $1,500.00 now and leave the $50.00 on the Fortune 7 wager and put it all on the Banker for a wager of $1,675.00.   Bankers get 7 over the players 6.  I leave with the $3,100.00 and change profit and as I pass the baccarat table on the way from the cashier's cage, say my goodbye.  The dealer told me with tears in her eyes, that I just made her little kid's birthday something she would never have been able to do otherwise. 

I remember lots of things I have wrote on here and although I am against buying in a second time to play catch up, I did it for reasons unknown to myself.  You know life brings us down many roads and it is up to ourselves to make those journeys something that we remember no matter if they are good or not so good.  Just when you think you have seen everything, something jumps out there and grabs you.  Just like when my little boy recently told me, "Daddy we are not going to celebrate your birthday any more".  I asked him why and he says, "Because when you have a birthday you get older and if you get older one day you will die and I don't want that so we have to stop your birthdays". 

Just like I say to Vic, don't stop this board.  Keep doing what you do, follow your feelings, don't pay attention to the other garbage boards out there and if you made a mistake, don't look back--just remember and don't make it again.   

Thanks for the encouraging words Glen , they are GREATLY appreciated

Unlike other fellow webmasters around, I can't just go download a forum software with our new feature-set, because it isn't on the market!

I'm that craftsman who has an end-product vision & is at the workshop bringing it to life. Once it's complete, people are going to understand. It's not "Yet another forum"; it's a change in paradigm on how our humble network of sites work. With more inclusion, where even the smallest voice is given a full-out community space to express views at ease while being in control

A true before & after for us; totally worth both the development effort and the wait

Vic