Re: questions to Billb

"Peaches" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 1.   What are the dealers really thinking?  On the surface they seem
> to wish the players well, but really . . .?

In no particular order of importance:

1) I signed in for the EO, when am I out of here?
2) Now there's a nice looking set of...
3) Yay! A toke! 6 hours to go....
4) Breaktime (Five more to go)
5) Now what'd I do?
6) 16, Stand (moron.) 15, Surrender (with a dealer's 8 up?)(moron), Aces,
split (good luck!) 12, 12. (Sigh) Dealer has 18, lock-em up, sweep the
cards, smile, place your bets. (Repeat)
7) Last pass, hopefully the next shift shows up ontime.

I once told my players that dealing cards is a whole lot like being a lawn
sprinkler.  You know:

Thpt, thpt, thpt, thpt, thpt, thpt, thpt pthpthpthpthpppppppp.

Sigh.  Just once of those nights where I'm trying to right a seriously
negative defecit in my Karmic balance...  I must have made some headway. ;)

> 2.   Assume for this question that I bring a pleasant demeaner to the
> table, play basic stratagy, and make a small toke (I have been in the
> habit of placing a nickle bet for dealer on the first hand.)
>      Now, If I look down and find that I am being paid for a push.
> Is it more likely an error or not?   Should I say something or keep my
> mouth shut?   This has happened twice, so it can't be that rare.  I
> did not say anything, because I did not want to make the dealer look
> foolish, especially if he were really trying to cut me a break.

And yes, I have two minds about this, invariably I side with the dealer on
this one.

If I bring his attention to a mistake in my favor, he's more apt to
appreciate my honesty, and be a bit more pleasant to me.  If I don't and he
gets jammed up by the eye, it's more chaos, and slightly more heat from the
pit critters (who WILL find a way of inflicting retribution (shorted points,
a flag on the account, etc.))

What's the dealer thinking?  Unless you've talked to him or her on the
outside and are in some form of collusion, it's an honest mistake.  Refer to
line 6 from the above.  Dealers are a whole lot like goldfish.  They spend
the next 45 seconds forgetting what happened in the previous 45 seconds.

> 3.   I have not really become a good counter yet but I am working on
> it.   As a dealer you see the tell-tale signs before anyone . .  what
> does the casino expect you to do about it?  What do most dealers
> actually do?

To be honest, it's not my problem.  Fair play, jive with the players, ask
the waitresses for the drinks they NEVER seem to give me, follow procedures,
keep a neat rack.  If I've got someone taking shots at me, you'll never see
me mention it in front of you, unless its flagrant.  Once I'm off my game, I
let my floor know in a 60 second conversation, and hustle down to my break.
my job is to be honest, despite how much it might pain me.  If I'm not
honest, I haven't got a job.

> 4.   Is it safe to think that if I am playing a bet spread of 10-50
> and my winning per session are under $1000 I will be too small a fish
> to attract attention?

It all depends on what pond your swimming in.  Down in the $5 pits and your
betting Green, you get noticed.  Bet the green in a sea of black, and your a
flea.  You can't spread well enough without getting a cheques play call in
anything but the nickel pits, and again, your you're a small fish in a small
pond.

And when all is said and done, the eye still is watching your action and not
giving you any feedback, until they have you, and suddenly you're on the
outside.

> 5.   What is the dealer thinking when he slides the shuffle card in -
> why do some dealers routinely go only 65% while others go much deeper?

No dealer is interested in shuffling more, unless he wants to kill the
table.  If you have a pile of fleas on your table (no tokes, minimum bets,
and basically clueless) they might be tempted to try and off you to get to
better players (ones who pay attention, toke, and play something other than
the minimum.)

> any other thoughts you - or anyone else - has about the player/dealer
> relationship would be welcome.    thanks

Tokes are a curious thing.  In all honesty, I'd rather take the toke
straight-up, than to have it in play.  First it indicates that I've done an
honest good job, and there are no strings attached to the toke. (It's not a
bribe for good cards, an attempt to get me interested in your hand, etc.)
Besides, I hate locking up toke bets in the rack because the house DOES have
an advantage after all...

If I want to go play my tokes, I cash my check and head for the other side
of the table in some other casino.

Other than that, dealers hate people taking shots on them.  Pit critters
hate players that take shots too.  If you want to incite heat, collude with
a player taking shots.  See how quickly you get noticed after that.

I pulled a paying bet back into the rack once.  Guy was betting x on 1st,
and I locked it up and went to sweep the cards, when he cried out that he
should have been paid. (I looked, he was right... oops!)  So I call the
floor over and set him up to pay $x on his bet.  He then proceeds to tell me
that it was $4x, he always bets $4x, and half the table chimed in that it
was $4x.  Eye gets called, and play proceeds.  Eye comes back, $x.  So I pay
him, and the floor notes each player as taking a shot, and lowers their
rated play.  Moral?  Don't piss on the pit critters, they're trying to get
through the night just like everyone else...

IN the end I get tipped $15 from 1st base.  And despite the shot, I'd be
pleasant to him again on my table, but might watch my play a bit more.

-Zzzzzzz.....