Uhhhh ... Anyone Home?

Have still been removed from the online poker scene although I have got away and played live a couple of times. I played at Choctaw in southern OK most recently. I got there a little late and was put on a wait list for the 7:30 tournament which only has enough runners for 1 table. I sat at a cash table and proceeded to win $60 pretty quickly playing $1/$2. Now I am free-rolling in the tournament. I sit down and win a couple of pretty big hands quickly. Before I know it I am the chip leader and we are 4 handed. Unfortunately, I knock heads with the guy whose chip stack is a little smaller than mine (we are dominating the other two players). I have JJ and the flop comes 89J. I check and he bets. I call with a plan to slow play. The turn is the worst card possible for me as it is a Q. I still think I am OK because the guy called a pretty big raise pre-flop so I think the only hand he can call with that beats me is TT. He bets big on the turn and I am now concerned. I am hoping he has a lower set or maybe flopped two pair so I call. The river is a blank and he goes all in. I am pretty sure he has a 10 now but I make the call. Sure enough, he has TT and I am decimated. I only last a few more hands and go out on the bubble. I head back to the cash game and get put on a waitlist. I proceed to blow $60 at the roulette table and then head back to the game. I play for a couple hours and turn $200 into $350 - net $90 for the night. Could and should have been much more had I cashed in the tourney. I should know better than to mix it up with big stacks when we are on the bubble.

Regarding my plan - I am re-motivated now that I see the WSOP '10 schedule posted. My initial plan was to play one $1,500 tourney but now I see that they have 5 or 6 $1,000 tourneys planned and they will also have daily $550 non-bracelet tournaments. I may bypass the plan to play in the Venetian DSE tourneys if these $550 tourneys get as many runners. I have been reading that all the fish are at the WSOP and the skilled players are at the Venetian ... I would rather play with the fish.

Some other things I have read that get me excited.

- All the tourneys will be in two large ballrooms. I was always concerned that my WSOP experience would be diminished if I ended up in some small ballroom. I want to be in the middle of it all.

- Nightly tournaments at 7 and 11. These are probably going to be $100-like tourneys and might be nice if I get knocked out of a larger tourney.

- Expanded capacity - there will be 20% more tables than last year and I am guessing that this is because of the increased number of $1,000 tourneys.

I am starting the planning now and will be booking a hotel room shortly. As it relates to the online bankroll funding my trip ... I'll do my best to raise the $1,200 or so I have now to $5,000. I am going though ... regardless of the balance in May/June!