Learning a new job

Toxteth Jack. A name to create fear in the heart of any opponent. Until you see me play that is, I'm not that great. In fact I'm not even what I'd call good. For the first few months of playing online poker I was improving, I'd review played hands, I'd study and sometimes I'd use part of my bankroll on aggressive tables I knew I'd struggle at just to learn. Then I got lazy. The other players were so bad I didn't need to be good. I'd judge a session by how much I was up, not by how well I'd played or whether or not I'd learned to handle a new situation. I'm sure experienced players have gone through this. The early days are uncertain but as winning becomes normal it also becomes less interesting. Boredom = Tilt. To get me out of the rut I decided to treat poker like a job and I could certainly do with a job. I retired early for health reasons (arthritis) and if you NL players think limit is boring, try sitting in an armchair for a few years waiting for God. For all the criticism of gambling there are benefits to it apart from financial gain. I've read that no professional chess player has ever suffered from Alchzeimers and afaik, no pro poker player has either and there are plenty of old ones about. The qualities needed to be a good gambler are well worth having, patience, discipline, attention to detail etc. and occasionally, daring. Yeah, I'll have some of that. My financial target is to turn $500 into $5,000 within a year but it is secondary, personal development is my prime objective. We all need something to strive for, playing well online is now my goal and there is more to that than just winning cash. My recent play has been so bad I've put my 'Start with $500' plan on hold. For me to go onto a site full of bonus chasers without significant improvement would be folly. The game I'm most confident of being break even or better while bonus chasing is O/8 (Limit Omaha 8 or better) it appeals to the maths-head in me. Although I've won consistantly at microlimits HE every time I've gone higher I got crushed. I'm 60% confident of having a winning session at Pacifics $10 NL cash tables but I tire so quickly playing them. I love playing SnGs, shame I'm so very bad at them. I have a few $ on Stars and I grind away at the micros there just to get the entrance fee for yet another SnG. See, told you I was bad. So, a middle aged guy lacking physical fitness that can't remember the last time he felt sharp is attempting to make money playing online poker. In my favour I have plenty of time and I'm honest enough to admit when I'm playing bad. In fact I blame every losing session on me until proved otherwise. Also, I never get upset when handed a bad beat. I ordered some simulation software for O/8, the idea being to model my opponents and plug leaks. What arrived was a card telling me I owe £14 in Customs duty, an irritating delay. No point risking money until I've used it some so for tonight I'll be using Pacifics' history feature and replaying my hands, then after a week of simulation work I'll see how my cash game is. If that's reasonable I'll consider putting $500 into Party. You now know where I'm at and where I'm hoping to get to. All the experienced players say a reasonable amount of work and dedication will result in profits, let's see what happens.