-Poker Fiend-

I've always been wary of card games, and fascinated, too. Ours was not a card playing family, though I'm certain we did on rare occasions.

Then came summer camp, and those giddy teenage hormones. Before we knew it, we're staying up late at night playing Asshole and Egyptian Rat Screw by flashlight, strip poker to follow.

In humiliation, cardplay goes underground until college peer pressure links the deck to drinking games. Disrobing is part of some hands at some parties, but generally, it's about making ourselves sick.

And then..

Poker championships are televised. Celebrities are brought in, especially James Woods.

Everyone wants to play Texas Hold'em.

Hey, me too.

The Christmas poker tournament pitted me against eight relatives, all but one succumbing to my dumb luck and honest play. I say "honest play" because I don't bluff, not really. With every hand I raise, I really believe I'm capable of taking it. My relatives are a pack of bluffers, and once I'd taken a few hands, they believed in my honesty. For telling the truth, I had a high reputation.

I won the next tournament handily.

And that worries me a bit - what if I start to enjoy it way too much? It's a heady thing, victory, even if my winnings are less than half a day's pay. If you want to extrapolate my fears, go to This American Life, and search for "Poker" or "Jim McManus." Then you'll understand.