A Different Bubble

   So here we are, in the middle of  a global pandemic. As of today there have been over 5.5 million cases of Covid 19 worldwide, and nearly 350,000 deaths. And the death toll is rising every day. Here in New Zealand the government took swift action when the first cases appeared and as a result we are now in a much better position than most of the rest of the world. With a population of 5 million, New Zealand has had about 1500 cases, and just 21 deaths. That's 21 too many but it could have been a lot worse. A LOT worse. We went into lockdown in late March and now, 2 months later, we've had nearly a week with no new cases. So we are now working our way back towards some sort of normality, one cautious step at a time.
 

  Back in February, when the disease was confined to one province in China, it didn't seem to be something to be too concerned about. Then, when a few cases started appearing among incoming travelers, the government started tightening up the borders and urging us all to limit contact with others, to wash our hands frequently and so on. By mid March there was a ban on gatherings over 100 people, and as a result the annual Clubs NZ Poker Tournament, scheduled for late May, was cancelled. But we were still playing smaller games, although we were fist-pumping or elbow-touching rather than shaking hands.
   April was looking like a busy month for live games and I was planning on hosting a single table tournament at the club on Sunday 22nd March. Then on the Saturday the Prime Minister announced that we were now at 'Covid 19 Alert Level 2'. In light of this I decided to cancel my STT and our club poker organiser followed suit with regard to the Friday night games. Poker at the casino had already been suspended, so that was the end for live games. Meanwhile there was another announcement on Monday and by Thursday the country was in full lockdown.
   Within a day of these cancelations a player from a local cosmopolitan club had organised a 'home game' on the Pokerstars site. This was an online tournament to be played every evening at 8pm, involving local players from local clubs. My wife and I played in a couple of these (taking it in turns to play) but in the end I wasn't that impressed. I thought there might be a little chat going on, with people catching up with each other as they played. But nobody was talking and it seemed like just another Pokerstars tournament, with a bunch of anonymous strangers. As the lockdown progressed the number of players in this 'poker club' increased and the last time I looked there were over 150 members. In the end I gave it away, deciding I might just as well play in the regular online tournaments where I could choose my buy-in level and play when I felt like it.
   Our 'Level 4' lockdown lasted just over a month. My wife and I shared our 'bubble' during this time, taking walks, watching TV, video calling family, playing poker online; all the usual stuff. As my wife was unable to have her friend over for their weekly all day canasta game, I took over and we played this every Wednesday. On Fridays I would have a big day out and drive down to the supermarket and join the queue to do the shopping. What fun. You'd think, with all that time on my hands I'd be playing a lot of online poker, but that wasn't actually the case. I got into the same routine that I usually follow when I'm on holiday, playing poker every third day. This was fewer games than I was playing before lockdown, but that was okay with me.
   However I was able to play some live games during lockdown, in a limited sort of way. Every weekend my wife and I would have a 'heads up' poker session that would last most of the day. We'd put up $20 each and play a fixed limit 50c cash game. In these sessions we played dealer's choice: Texas Holdem, Omaha, 5 Card Draw, Pineapple, Crazy Pineapple, and several variants on 9 Card. I'd initially hoped to keep it limited to a few community card games, but somehow it just grew. These were mellow 'let's see the next street' type games that were unchallenging but fun. In the end, after four sessions we were exactly even. No winner, no loser.
   Playing these home games highlighted for me the difference between the my wife's and my playing styles. To her, poker is just another form of gambling, like housie or lotto. You get your cards, you turn over the next streets as cheaply as you can, and see who has the best hand at the end. Simple. This is not at all the way I like to play. But I knew this from the start so just went with the flow and had a relaxing day, listening to rock radio and drinking lots of coffee. If I wanted to play 'real poker', there was always my regular online game, even if it was at the micro level.
   As for my online games, I was mostly playing Sit and Go and regular freeze-out tournaments, on both 888 and Pokerstars. These were mostly losing sessions, as per my usual form. Around the middle of lockdown I had a rush of blood to the head and tried some other game types. I had a go at something called 'Spin and Go' on Pokerstars, with a singular lack of success. Then, for old times sake, I played in an Omaha cash game, managing to play for almost 30 minutes before losing my entire stack. But it wasn't all bad. I came out ahead in some of my Sit and Go sessions and I actually managed second place in one of the tournaments I played. Overall, I'm probably behind for the whole period, but that's the way the proverbial cookie crumbles.
   Playing online poker and 'funsies' live games with your wife is all very well, but nothing really beats a proper chip clicking, stack pushing, facing off across the table no limit poker tournament. By the time I headed back to work as we moved into Level 3 at the end of April I was hanging out for a live poker game. But the best I could do at that stage was to try and play in similar online game types in an effort to at least stay focused on the best live game strategy. So I just stuck to playing in low level online tournaments, because they were the nearest thing to the live games I was hoping to get back to. Loose and passive, that's the kind of game I was looking for.
   Two weeks ago we dropped back down to Level 2 and shops and restaurants re-opened; a week ago the kids went back to school, and late last week the bars re-opened. Things are looking up. We are still practicing social distancing and contact tracing and lots of hand washing, but we can actually gather together in small groups again (no more than 10 people). My wife and I went down to the club on Friday to see what was happening but there was very little going on. I even sent out a few texts to suggest a little get together and a small home poker game (7 players only), but there was no interest. I guess I'll just have to wait a little longer.
   There was another government announcement this afternoon. We are now allowed to congregate in groups of up to 100. And they're talking about going to Level 1 (whatever that means) within 4 weeks. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I don't know when the live poker is going to restart but we are headed out of town this weekend to re-connect with family. Among other things, we have some belated birthday presents to deliver. When we come back, the live games can't be too far away. But even if they're months away, things could be a lot worse. A LOT worse.