I am sort of new around here, but I thought I would take a couple of moments of my time and yours to share why I come here. Thanks to nole47 to suggesting this ?place? to me? Some of this may be random rambling, and for that I apologize.
I have been gambling regularly for a little over 2 years now with some success. That is to say that I have not lost money, and also have not gambled with money I did not have. Last year I was pretty heavily involved in another forum, but found that after NCAA BB season it got very quiet and when MLB started it deteriorated (probably not the right word for it) into merely a weekly game picking contest and folks posting whom they were taking that day. There was no discussion of why games were good or bad, discussion of stats, theories or gambling ?practices?, or any non gambling discussions at all, just ?I am taking Philly today? sort of thing. There was also virtually no NHL forum aside from myself. I ended up going to the NHL wagerline forum for that (yes, I know I have bashed them on here). As an aside, that forum is actually nothing like the other garbage over there thanks to the efforts of myself and another individual. Anyway?told you I might ramble?
The reason I mentioned the above is to better explain why I read and occasionally post in this forum. I handicap my plays individually and use the information found in this forum to make my final decision. The key word there being information: things I did not take into consideration, trends, theories, systems, line moves, people on the other side of a game, etc. This type of stuff is just not found anywhere else on the net. And believe me, I have looked. I do not come here to post my plays, or to show how good a capper I am. I come here for information. Occasionally I will add my .02 on a game (ok, maybe only .01) and contribute to a discussion in the General forum, but I have not found a better resource on the net for sports handicapping information than this site. My thanks and congrats go out to Jack for facilitating all this. I also come here because in my work and home life there are very few people I come in contact with that gamble. My wife can?t relate to it other than the little extra cash she occasionally has, or if I stay up way to late waiting on a game I have $$ on to end.
The reason I mention this is I have come to find that this forum is kind of a support group, where we celebrate in victory and sympathize with defeats. There is a common interest in the ?hobby? of gambling (for some a business), and a common goal of beating the books. It is this last sentence that sometimes gets overlooked and is what prompts my outrage at individuals that bash others? picks, or revel in others? losses. What purpose does that serve? Perhaps I have a na?ve view on things, but I believe in treating people with grace, civility and respect, either face to face or ?hiding? behind a computer screen. It goes a long way in my everyday life. Maybe that is not how some folks were raised, or maybe they need to adopt a different persona online. Who knows, but I will say that in this forum the good far outweighs the bad. It polices it?s own so to speak, although sometimes it takes a while. Most everyone on here is ?good people? and there too many to mention by name.
To wrap this up, I appreciate everything that the folks on this forum have to offer, from the sports handicapping information, to relocation advice, to polls on favorite soft drinks, and even discussions on whether it is appropriate to save a pet vs. a stranger. It is informative, educational, interesting, sometimes entertaining, and also serves as a nice diversion. I am looking forward to the upcoming NFL season but not as much as the NHL season! I hope I have not droned on too much, and I probably have not captured everything I wanted to say, but you get the idea. Good luck one and all!
I have been gambling regularly for a little over 2 years now with some success. That is to say that I have not lost money, and also have not gambled with money I did not have. Last year I was pretty heavily involved in another forum, but found that after NCAA BB season it got very quiet and when MLB started it deteriorated (probably not the right word for it) into merely a weekly game picking contest and folks posting whom they were taking that day. There was no discussion of why games were good or bad, discussion of stats, theories or gambling ?practices?, or any non gambling discussions at all, just ?I am taking Philly today? sort of thing. There was also virtually no NHL forum aside from myself. I ended up going to the NHL wagerline forum for that (yes, I know I have bashed them on here). As an aside, that forum is actually nothing like the other garbage over there thanks to the efforts of myself and another individual. Anyway?told you I might ramble?
The reason I mentioned the above is to better explain why I read and occasionally post in this forum. I handicap my plays individually and use the information found in this forum to make my final decision. The key word there being information: things I did not take into consideration, trends, theories, systems, line moves, people on the other side of a game, etc. This type of stuff is just not found anywhere else on the net. And believe me, I have looked. I do not come here to post my plays, or to show how good a capper I am. I come here for information. Occasionally I will add my .02 on a game (ok, maybe only .01) and contribute to a discussion in the General forum, but I have not found a better resource on the net for sports handicapping information than this site. My thanks and congrats go out to Jack for facilitating all this. I also come here because in my work and home life there are very few people I come in contact with that gamble. My wife can?t relate to it other than the little extra cash she occasionally has, or if I stay up way to late waiting on a game I have $$ on to end.
To wrap this up, I appreciate everything that the folks on this forum have to offer, from the sports handicapping information, to relocation advice, to polls on favorite soft drinks, and even discussions on whether it is appropriate to save a pet vs. a stranger. It is informative, educational, interesting, sometimes entertaining, and also serves as a nice diversion. I am looking forward to the upcoming NFL season but not as much as the NHL season! I hope I have not droned on too much, and I probably have not captured everything I wanted to say, but you get the idea. Good luck one and all!
