Interesting times here in Tampa. As I type this I'm chilling out in my king suite at the Hilton Garden Inn, which I got for next to nothing due to my mate working for the Hilton offices here. I just extended my flight a further month to October 18th due to the condo hunting getting underway. I'd have started much sooner, but another nightmare run put me in no mood to discuss parting with $200k as I had a run of 29 6-handed SNGs without a win, by far my worst ever run. But I've managed to turn it around so, ho-hum.
I spoke with a realtor today and I've lined up ten properties I like the look of in Central/Downtown Tampa. My mate Jason who is a land surveyor drove me around the area, ironically called SOHO of all names, and it was everything I am looking for. It is literally a stone's throw from the action, all the major sporting arenas and a short drive to all the beaches in the area e.g. Clearwater, St. Petersburg.
There was really no decision in deciding I wanted to plump for a stylish 1 bed-1 bath condo in an affluent area rather than a 2 bed-2 bath for $150k on the outskirts, factoring in I am a lazy bastard and the smaller the better (that's what she said) in terms of maintenance and the fact I can't legally live here (I could probably get away with staying here 6 months per year coming and going).
What's great about the condos here is that the complexes come with gyms, swimming pools, saunas, tennis courts and hot tubs as standard. it's really quite something. I am eyeing up a condo for around the $175k mark in an affluent, central area with all these key amenities, and it's a NICE place. What could $175k get you in the UK? A bucket of shit, is my guess. I would perhaps be able to buy a scummy place in somewhere like Blackburn, but why the fuck would I want to do that when Florida is so ridiculously cheap (before you factor in the shithot exchange rate), with so much to do you can never get bored. For example, next week I am spending a few days in Orlando to do the theme parks, then I am going to watch some NHL at Tampa Bay lightning, and a week on Sunday I'm going to see the Buccaneers vs. Rams in the NFL. I've already watched MLB (Devil Rays, cost a whopping $8), and NBA is over otherwise I'd be checking out Orlando Magic or Miami Heat. The beaches, nightlife, restaurants, just amazing.
On the health front I am better than ever. Eating well is not a problem here and I mean well as eating healthy. 24 hours a day, whatever you want. I have been hitting the gym pretty hard and I am up to 12st now and packing some muscle. The aim is to get upto 13st, 10% bodyfat in 12 months.
Poker, well, it's chugging along, and I guess I'll need to hit the grind so I can pay off my prospective condo ASAP.
Best,
JPK
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3 comments:
Hey JPK, long time reader, first time poster. How did you get a visa to move to the US? Or have you already got dual citizenship or something? I'd consider moving to the states if I thought it was at all possible for a pro poker player to get a visa. But then again, I wouldn't want to start paying taxes on my winnings!
Ok, I didn't read it very carefully. So you haven't got a visa. I guess if you travel around enough, the 90 day visa waiver is good for a few times a year. Who knows? It seems they don't have any actual rules on how many times you can come and go.
hi mate, yep I'm here on the visa waiver 90 day program - immigration actually asked me what my job was and I told them I play poker online.. they didn't really care. Since I can always move about as and when I need to (as I'm sure you could) I can suit myself. It's a very good investment in the current climate.
The law prevents US citizens moving money about, although if you try to use NETELLER and Moneybookers from a USA IP it tracks it; it also tracks IP masks. This has proved an annoyance but there's not much I can do about it.
Thanks for stopping by
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