There's something about the way books about gambling are written that draws me in. One i picked up at a yard sale or thrift store in the 90s, "How to Win At Cards ("21" and Poker), Dice, Races, Roulette" by Mike Goodman (1967) has a similar feel, although Goodman's book could have used an editor to make sure the storytelling went in a straight line.

as an "ok" poker player (Texas hold'em being my favorite), i would host 2 table poker games with $5-$20 buy ins a couple times a month, and I'd generally win. I had clay chips, proper felt, snacks, booze, the works.

What i always found funny, though, is if you quizzed me right now about the ranks of hands i'd probably get it wrong. I don't know the odds of an inside vs an outside straight (although with a regular 4 function calculator i could work it out directly), nor do i know what the exact odds are of any hand, really. In person, most of the time, i can tell if someone's holding or bluffing. I even took my game on the road a few times to hang out with dealers from atlantic city in vegas, toured the "Indian Casinos" like Agua Caliente in California, the river boats in Louisiana. But i don't really understand the game. I just like it. So i would get cleaned out in a hurry in any "real" tournament.

I don't play poker anymore, no one to play with. I haven't been to a casino since late 2019, even though they've been open; but not because of fear of catching something. I saw a picture of what the casino nearest me had done to their craps tables (my preferred casino game when i'm not too lazy to stand up), they went fully digital! Just give me a pair of dice, not some touchscreen shenanigans.

this went long. Oops. I'm gunna find that book and read the rest of it, for sure.