I'm fairly certain I have gone over my allotted quotient of posts talking about my boring ass craps class (not boring to me because I'm going through it, but boring to all y'all because it doesn't really add up to a whole lot of interesting to read) but here we go again.
Today I got stuck being the dealer (second time for the day) when a "hot roll" occurred. I'm fairly certain that the moment I went to the back to be the dealer Mariko set me up to test me.
Here is why. We have one older Asian guy who has showed up randomly and he obviously knows what he is doing. I have never seen him get on stick or even deal, he usually places bets and helps instruct people on what they are doing wrong or what they should be doing. Today when I went to deal he mysteriously ended up on stick and ushered the game along at a pace we have not dealt with during class yet.
He was quick to make his calls, he was quick to get the dice back out again. He went efficiently and briskly and he kept me working like a son-of-a-bitch.
I started with 3 players on my side of the table who all were playing place bets and come bets and field bets - the usual. Not too hard to keep up with. Then Mariko ended up on my side of the table and threw out some more bets and another student came up beside me and threw out some bets that we had never "practiced" before but I was able to catch on. So, now I was up to 5 bets, people were pressing, throwing me odds, throwing other bets out there. Playing the don't come just to f'me up, etc.
For the most part I kept up pretty well. Once or twice I accidentally paid money to a wrong player. Once (maybe twice) I put odds on the wrong persons come bet and I did not pay one player for one bet though I acknowledged it at the time I missed and I know 100% why it happened and how to avoid it in the future.
During this "hot roll" with the quick stick man I think I was dealing for about 35-40 minutes before a 7-out which let me clean up the rest of the bets, pay the don'ts and the last comes and then clean up to be tapped out.
I was tired, I was sweating a bit from being worked so hard and I needed a small break to get a drink.
As I walked away to get my water Mariko followed me and pulled me over to a Black Jack table and had me practice shuffling cards for my last 15 or so minutes. She gave me pointers on how to do it properly and sent me on my way with two decks so that I could practice and get used to shuffling up to two decks.
I believe over the next couple of classes she will probably be giving me a crash course on how to deal Black Jack so that when I do go for an audition (next week or the week after) I'll have another game up my sleeve and won't be limited to just Craps. That is all 100% speculation right now but I don't see any other reason why she would now, randomly, show me how to shuffle cards when I have never signed up to learn to deal any other game than craps. Either way I appreciate it and getting lessons on anything else is a huge bonus.
As far as my job situation I'm approaching a snafu and I'm not entirely sure if it's going to work itself out properly or not.
My co-worker is going to be going for surgery on the 30th (yes, Next Friday - but not staring Ice Cube) and she will be out for probably 2-3 weeks.
It is impossible for the office to run itself during the day without someone being there. Me coming in at night will not allow things to get done properly and timely - Somebody has to be there during the day.
Installers call during the day, customers call during the day. All the issues are generally reported during the day. All of the installs leave the building between 7 am and 2pm most of the time and I don't show up until 3pm right now. This is a problem without a currently solution and I don't get the sense that management is taking it seriously.
Yesterday my Store Manager asked me how much longer I need to keep this availability because of the situation approaching and I reminded her that she signed of for two months and I haven't even completed 3 weeks of it yet. Though I did say that if things work out well I might be able to go back to mornings quicker - but no promises.
I just have a feeling that sometime next week they will be asking me to change my schedule and work the mornings again with the other person going on a temporary leave of absence to take care of her issues. Not really looking forward to that conversation!
I still don't own proper "audition" clothing. I really need to go out this weekend to buy the white button up shirt. I should have black dress pants and dress shoes, but I might also need to pick up some black dress socks. Also, I'm probably going to have to shave which I hate. Hoping that after I get hired they at least allow me to keep a nice trim beard because I sure do hates-a-shavin'!
I said this on Tuesday, just don't look like a bum.
ReplyDeleteThere should be a casino that employ's all scruffy bum looking dealers
DeleteDon't cheap out on the shoes. That's a lot of standing.
ReplyDeleteSplitter
No worries Splitter - been working retail for over a decade now - used to standing for long hours.
DeleteVery disappointing post. I was expecting ... nevermind ...
ReplyDeleteLightning, I'm sorry if you thought I was going to be introducing my friends Neil and Bob in this post.
DeleteGood luck on the audition, Grrouchie. You'll do fine.
ReplyDeleteI remember my first dice audition, years ago downtown at the Golden Gate. I was a nervous wreck. My hands would not stop shaking.
As smooth as I was at school, a live game is a totally different animal.
Plus, somebody had "placed the point on the line," which we hadn't covered in class. So I stood there and stared at it and prayed for a 7. "Winner 6." Damn. And then someone else made a two-way don't come bet, which we hadn't covered either.
But I got hired anyway. The casino knows you are nervous.
Had another audition, just a few days ago actually, after dealing dice in Vegas on and off the strip for about 7 years. My hands still got a little shaky from the nerves despite people able to deal craps in my sleep.
I don't say this to rattle you, but just to let you know that your heart is gonna race, your hands are gonna shake and it feels like you might sweat through your shirt. Two minutes will feel like 40 minutes. But remember, ain't nobody ever died at an audition. You'll make it through.
My advice is to just smile, be friendly, look people in the eyes and say "good luck, everyone" when you clap out. (Don't forget to clap out.)
If nothing else, the shift boss will think, "that guy deals like shit, but he's got a good personality. Let's give him a shot." In Vegas these days, that's half the battle.
Oh, and they WILL ask you if you know blackjack. Depending how the dice audition went, you might want to say yes. If dice went well and you think they might hire you on dice, say no. You don't really want to deal BJ anyway if you can get dice.
Good luck.
12Craps12
Are you still in Vegas?
DeleteI know you don't say any of that to make me nervous, it's all just facts. This is how the human body reacts to being put on the spot in a professional situation and until it's repeated over and over again that is how one will react every time.
I'm looking forward to it and in reality under no circumstances do I want to deal anything other than Craps (except maybe, down the road, poker). This is why Craps is the only game I have decided to learn.
It helps that I do have another job to fall back on until I get myself into a situation where a casino (or 3) takes me on for what it is I really want to do.
Thanks for stopping by, it's nice to have someone who understands and has gone through exactly what I am doing now.
The title to this blog is very misleading...I wake up to get ready for work and see this title...Bad Grrouchie...I will go to work now with low expectations for the day
ReplyDeleteI have low expectations every day I go to work.
DeleteI hate shaving too! Except I do it now because my beard became this rainbow colored monster with White, Red, Brown, Black, who the fuck knows what other colors and it started pissing me off. So now I am baby faced. :).
ReplyDeleteI was the kid that grew facial hair earlier than the rest - had the mustache in 6th grade.
DeleteWhen I started shaving I hated it because my neck breaks out and I end up with ingrown hairs and it's all sore and rashy and it just f'n blows.
So, I decided the best way around this was to just avoid shaving at all costs.
Usually when I do shave I just use a beard trimmer to the smallest setting - so that I never actually get a true shave.
However, things like Job interviews and shit I go the whole 9 yards and do the shave thing to show them what they'll never see again!
Get an electric razor. Lessens the ingrown hairs and razor burn and other unpleasantness that goes along with shaving. Also using a after shave balm will help keep the skin soft so you *should* get less ingrown hairs because it will be able to come up through the skin easier if it (the skin) is soft.
DeleteNothing works for me.
DeleteStraight razors, Electric razors, they all end up with the same scenario - me annoyed and in pain for a week while the hairs grow back out.
Also, I have generally avoided after shave type stuff because of my asthma and when I was younger I had a horrible intolerance to smells (perfumes, dyes, etc).
Several days I had to leave early because I could smell the bleach that they washed the floors with in H.S.
I thought about that when reading his response.
Delete"hmmm, my beard is grey, brown, black, red and probably something else as well"
The obvious answer is that waffles and I share superior genetic code
My kid lived in Vegas for quite a while. If you need cheap nice white shirts check out the Goodwill in Summerlin.
ReplyDeleteAhhh, good idea.
DeleteTomorrow I'll be checking around - I need to get one just to have one so that I'm always prepared, but I'll be sure to check there as well so that I can have a few backups on reserve.
Thanks for sharing!
Doesn't look like anyone commented on your job situation, hope that works out. Surely the can't be dependent on just two people. What if you got sick when the other person was out or on vacation?
ReplyDeleteWhen you practice in class, are the other students the "players" or do they have other people for that?
Also an audition....that's live in the casino with real players and real money right? Not some backroom with folks pretending to be players and fake money?
Again, good luck.
Job - I'm sure everything will work out, It generally does.
DeleteClass - When you are not dealing you are a player, making bets and punishing the feeble.
I really want to make a bitch post about this but I have held off for now.
Audition - After your application you hit up the casino and go to HR for an interview. Then they send you out to the pitboss or whatever who throws you into the middle of a live game with paying customers to sink or swim.
I have heard of some people getting an audtion where they are only put on the stick, or only dealing and I have heard where they have you do both.
I have heard that sometimes they just give you a few minutes and I have heard of places that have you go for the full 20 in position.
But, it is all live, in living color and with real money on the line. Everyone watching your every move to see how you are going to mess up. To see if you have potential or not.
I think it's going to be fun.