[killakev]

Not that this thread isn't long enough already, but I think with what has been said so far that I should show Shannon some love and give him my respect.

I started playing poker about three years ago and not too long after started reading DN's blog. I enjoyed it thoroughly and somehow found Shannon's blog. Since then I have started my own blog and friends/readers of my blog have started their own based on my blog. However that sounds, it just shows that someone like Shannon can have a greater effect on others than he probably realizes due to the hate and ill words that naysayers show him.

Since then I have been reading his blog and following him in his success and struggle like a sports team. Why? Because he posts his wins and his losses. He shows us (the public) what he's going through and a huge part of that is what he's going through now.

For every (decent) poker player, they have to look at their flaws when they are losing. What Shannon is noticing right now seems to be that he has lost his passion for the game of poker and that is what needs to be adjusted. He obviously mentioned that he has tried to play tight and tried to play loose and neither has worked, but on a much higher level he has lost his love for the game.

Does losing have to do with it? Undoubtedly. But for some of us who have lost and gone busto, we continue to yearn for the game and have a hunger to learn more and correct our missteps.

For Shannon, that means exploring other options in life, which he is lucky enough to have.

So why not explore them? Poker will always be there. Youth will not.

Also -- it's funny that people always remember one hand where you failed miserably and forget the hundreds of hands that you played perfectly. In this case it's the straight flush hand. I'm sure that the people mentioning that hand have never overlooked a hand or made a horrible read.

Good luck Shannon and just realize that your supporters will take you a lot further than your haters can ever hold you down.

Also -- Tex, great post, well stated.