Poker truce as much about Mammon as God

It started as a piece of theoretical musing at church last Sunday. If I had to give something up for Lent that really hurt, what would it be?

Poker.

Yeah right.

Then I re-assessed my form post-Christmas on the profit and loss graph at Pokercharts. Let's just say that if my bankroll decline was a ski run, it would be black. The more I mulled it over, the more a break from the game seemed as much a matter of common sense as a religious gesture.

While playing has become akin to banging my head off a wall, without any immediately obvious leaks on which to blame my form, I continue to accumlate poker magazines, books and website links without ever actually sitting down to read them. Not to bang on with the Biblical theme but I suppose there's an hypocrisy about that that's pure Pharisee - all ornament and no substance.

So the tables fall silent; the lights fade to black and I embark upon a much-needed overhaul of my game between now and Easter Sunday.

Cold turkey updates will no doubt follow in abundance.