Online poker is the new crack. It's probably costing me more to play poker than if I developed a crack habit. But at least with drugs, you feel good for a little while. With poker, you just get the fury.

But I think it's time I quit playing. It wasn't busting out with AA's in the $20 sit and go's twice in one day. It wasn't getting my Ah-Kh beat by Ks-4d when 4 diamonds showed up on the board (2 on the flop, 1 on the turn, 1 on the river). Bad beats are a part of poker and super bad beats are a staple for online play.

It's quitting time when you can predict your own death and still continue to drive toward it. (Nobody really cares about bad beat stories, but here's one anyways.) In a small cash game, I had Q-9 unsuited in the big blind. 4 callers, flop was J-8-4 with 2 hearts. I had no hearts. I did have an inside straight draw.

The bet was $2 or $3, and I said to myself (exact words): "Damn, I bet the ten of hearts will come up, giving me a straight and giving someone a flush to smash me with. Screw it, I'm going all in." So I clicked on the all-in button (about a $10 raise) and one guy calls.

Turn card: 10 of hearts.

Opponent's cards: 2 and 6 of hearts.

Status: full tilt.