Texas Holdem Garage Style

Like millions of Americans, one of my favorite hobbies is Texas Holdem. I started out, like many other, watching someone else play it, whether on TV, or at a family gathering. Now it has become a true love of mine, and to me, there is really only one way to enjoy it, and that's a nice evening with good friends and a deck of cards.

Every Wednesday evening I and some of "The guys" get together at my house for poker night. It consists of a few drinks, some cigars, potato chips, and a whole lot of fun. We have now played together for almost two years, and the one thing that we thought would ruin the event would actually contribute to the fun. You see, my wife didn't like the idea of a house full of my friends every week, so she banished us to the garage right from the start. It took some getting use to. Making room for the table every night and getting the place suitable for the gang, but it has become home to us every Wednesday, and we have a great time.

There was one night last spring when the power was out at my house, and poker night was just about cancelled. However, it was our pal jimmy to the rescue. He offered up his living room, and we moved the event to his house. It didn't take long though, and we soon realized that it just wasn't the same. Don couldn't just throw his cigars on the floor when he was done, and we had to keep our voices down so not to wake Jimmy's kids. We missed the garage. We missed the atmosphere, and we missed the loud laughter that could be made when someone would lose a bad beat and throw their cards across the room. We missed the wood stove in the winter, and we missed just being able to carry on the way we could at our normal spot. It wasn't the same, and was just not as much fun.

There is something to be said about playing poker the way it was meant to be played. Not in some fancy casino hall, but with friends that we can enjoy, and in a place that resembles where poker came from. It's not in some cozy little living room, and it isn't on the river boat two cities over. It's every Wednesday night at six pm, at my house in the garage.