running poker games

So, how do I meet such people in the first place?

Well, First of all I use my BS detector to weed out all the people I don't want to talk to, i.e. the bad and the ugly. Second, I maintain some kind or correspondence with those others, to get a better feel for them. Of course, I am fully aware of the fact that impressions can be (and often are) quite deceiving, over written messages. So, if there are no red flags it may eventually lead to a personal meeting. infrared contact lenses


I once had a meeting with a guy that was running poker games in several joints in and around his city. I will not tell you which city this is, or even in which country, but I will share a few details form this meeting.

First of all, the guy never really said that he was running crooked games. But I knew very well that this was a very likely possibility. He was hooked up with folks that operate gambling joints in (and around) that city (folks I've never met) but his domain were just the poker games in those joints.

He was a very friendly guy and also an excellent host. On my first day visiting this city he took me for a tour of all the gambling joints. We met in the afternoon and started with all the joints that were situated in and around the central area. This was all quite interesting. It was also apparent that this guy was really who he said he was. Basically, no matter which casino we went to, everyone knew him. In some places we also went to the back and I was introduced to people that were in charge, in one way or another.

After visiting a few of those joints he asked me if I wanted to visit a place that was a few minutes out of town. He would drive me there and back. I was already pretty tired by then, but I still accepted the invitation.

So, some 15 or 20 minutes later I found myself in a car, in a foreign country, being driven by a total stranger, not having a clue where I was or where he was taking me. And at that time it was already dark. All I knew about that guy was that he was involved in gambling, running some shady games, and was now taking me to a place unknown. I couldn't help but think how stupid it was to go for a ride.

It took about an hour to get off the main road. Then he eventually pulled into some parking lot and invited me to follow him. I also noticed that he was carrying a plastic bag.

He was still very friendly, but it was dark, I was alone with a total stranger and I still had absolutely no idea where I was or where exactly we were going.

Our destination, it turned out, was less than a minute's walk from where he parked his car. The door opened and we stepped in. He was greeted by people that were obviously staff and after exchanging a few words he handed off the bag to one of the guys. It was at that time that I noticed that there was a safe, under the counter, near the entrance. The safe was unlocked and the door was not even closed shut. So, the guy swung the door open and the first thing I saw was a gun that looked pretty menacing. I don't know much about guns but this one was a big revolver with signs of wear and tear. It had the patina of time that cannot be faked on a new piece that hasn't been carried or (I guess) used. But, nothing to it, the guy just put the bag inside the safe and swung the door. He left the door open a crack, the same way it was before.  marked cards

So, we went in and he showed me around. We stayed there for about an hour and then he suggested to drive me back. On our way out he picked up his bag, from the safe, and we headed to the parking lot.