I landed at eleven in the evening at the Albany airport in upstate New York. I am here to help promote John Blowers book “Life on Tilt…Confessions of a Poker Dad.” As I round the corner towards baggage claim, through my blood shot eyes I see John much as I had envisioned. With black rimmed glasses and a black felt worn hat he has the look of Clark Kent or an old beat reporter from the 50’s or 60’s.

I’m exhausted from my all day cross country trip from Vancouver and am looking for a bed but John has other plans. We are to join some of his friends for a late night poker game. After a 45 minute drive through a heavy wooded area I begin wondering what I am doing here as we head up a driveway to a log cabin. This remote location is lighted by the bright stars that pierce a deep black night.

Geoffrey Dubiski and his wife graciously greet us into their home and lead us to a feast spread out on the kitchen table. Soon I have a plate of food in my hand and am meeting the nine men who have been waiting to separate me from my money in this low stakes midnight poker game. It seems a bit odd to be out in the middle of the woods at midnight with strangers in a log cabin having dinner and playing poker but heck, my life is anything but normal.

The game went on till three in the morning and resulted in a net loss of $248 for me. It was great to play with this group and as tired and as humbling as an experience it was, we all had a lot of fun. One of the guys I met is Chuck Griswold. He invited us to stay at his cabin in the Adirondacks the following night which was really an incredible experience. Such a serene setting as his cabin sits on a 100 acre lake in the middle of a deep forest. We then played golf the next day which was an unexpected treat. A creek ran through the course and fronted about 12 of the 18 holes which made it not only challenging but beautiful. My lack of playing over the last year has hurt my scoring as I penciled in a 94. I’ve dropped about 10 strokes from my average.

The next couple of days were filled with newspaper interviews and appearances from bookstores to grade schools, we kept running from one place to another for different promotions that John had sent up in his sharp marketing campaign. I was glad to help out but was exhausted when I boarded the plane for Florida. I’m hoping to get some rest there as there are only a couple of weeks before the World Series kicks off. Look forward to seeing what the big dance brings.  Till then,

Enjoy the Journey,

Kenna James