Dear Readers,

What? A newsletter on a Tuesday? What's up with that? Well, this is the second installment of three concerning my escapades in Toronto. We'll be back on schedule (as if we're off schedule) this Thursday. Thursday we'll honor the routine, for you creatures of habit. I don't want to upset any of my obsessive-compulsive readers.

Habitually yours

Bryan

Fish 'n Chips. I love Fish 'n Chips; especially downed with a light beer. When I say light beer, I don't mean the American light "water Beer", I mean something that is light in color. But nevertheless, this is what I was dining on as we discussed what the Online Players Association role is for the gaming community. Good stuff (not the food, but that was good as well), there will some very interesting and productive developments in the near future.

Later, Spearmaster (Ted Loh of Got2bet.com) and I (half-crocked) met and meandered to some bar (Rodney's Oyster Bar) where we met some guys (hosted by Casino Rewards) who bought us more food and beer. The rest of the night was a blur.

Tuesday morning was great. I was fully recovered by 0730 (my years of training as a US Paratrooper prepped me for mornings like these). I met with the people behind "Crazy Vegas Casino" and yes, they will be sponsoring Casinomeister's Bierfest in July. Watch this spot, or one like it, for further details. Anyway, they are giving away double loyalty points only to visitors who sign up through Got2Bet or Casinomeister. You ought to check them out and open an account if you haven't done so already. More info here. Deadline is 31 May!

I made my way through several cups of coffee and back to the Convention.

The Exhibition floor was concise and most every major turn-key solution provider was there. Noticeably absent was Boss Media; I guess the Swedes are getting a little travel weary. Real Time Gaming was present, and I was going to ask them about their policies, if any, that they hold their licensees to concerning spam. Dear reader, if you remember, before I left there were several RTG casinos that were spamming nice people like you and me with deceptive ads. One which can be found here. Anyway, I like to look and browse and pick-up the freebies; the Antigua Directorate of Offshore Gaming was giving away some cool calculators. JackpotMadness.com was giving away some cool coffee cups. Clubdice Casino was giving away some funky round dice; still can't figure them out.

It was pointed out by one of my illustrious colleagues that curiously enough, the small land-based casinos don't participate in conferences. She said, "Lasseter's in Australia has had their online casino match and surpass their land casino's action some time ago. You'd think that's the kind of success that the online software providers would want to really publicize." Interesting observation.

That evening turned adventurous with a bash at the "Hockey Hall of Fame" and another at the "Indian Motorcycle Club". But I was preoccupied with my search for Sushi. I couldn't find anyone to go with me, and when I did, the restaurant was closed. Bummer. Anyway, I had a chance to BS with the Winneronline guys. I have no idea what we talked about but it probably revolved around my far-fetched war stories (sometimes I can't shut up) and Spiderman, what an awesome movie that was. Took a cab back to the hotel with Marc Lesnick from Startcasino, Marianne from GambleGoddess.com , and Michael Caselli from Onlinecasinonews.com. I think the cab driver was from Lebanon or someplace similar, and the photo on his cabbie licence belonged to someone else, probably his brother. Michael (who was sitting up front) pointed this out and interrogated the poor bemused cabdriver. The cabbie just wanted to get us to the hotel, out of the cab, and be paid.

Wednesday was another eventful day, the highlight was meeting Ronald Maginley, the Director of Offshore Gaming of St. John's Antigua & Barbuda. He assured me that he would personally look into any complaint, minor or major, generated from a casino liscenced in his jurisdiction. His authority has teeth, he explained. Not too long ago he had a sportsbook operator jailed for violations. director@antiguagaming.gov.ag This is good news for those of us who want to instill a sense of regualtion into this industry.

Finally, the show was over. Everybody began to pack up their showcases and began to make arrangements to say farewell. The River City Group was putting on a party and I had RSVPd, but I was invited to Microgaming's party as well. Hmmm, well I figured I could fit both into one evening, which was pleasantly true.

Spearmaster and I boarded the bus (yes they were busing us there) at the Royal York Hotel. All the nice Microgaming casino people were there, and we were on our way. The bus snaked its way up, down, through and around downtown Toronto until we ended up at the "Steam Whistle Brewerey". Once inside, we were treated to a nice quiet bar with pleasant waitresses and polite barkeeps. I talked with the guys from UKcasinoclub.com (it sure seems that there a lot of blokes from the UK at these functions), and it was very nice. I forgot to mention that the rest of the nightclub was cordoned off with a big curtain. I felt a little like a kid Christmas morning. I could have looked and spoiled the surprise, but I didn't. Julian Perry (from Microgaming) was all hyped up about the party for the last couple of days, so I new something was up>

Then it happened. Salsa music, amplified by a live band, began to blast out from behind the curtain which was being pulled aside. "Everyone, c'mon in!" somebody yelled (probably Julian). Like cattle, we moped our way into the main club area. And to our delight, there were nineteen (yes, I counted them) young ladies gyrating to the rapid beat, doing all that dirty dancing stuff. Uh oh. (There was one guy dancer, but who was watching him?) The first thing I thought about was that my wife was missing out on all this stuff, she loves to dance, you know. I began to feel a little guilty, but then I remembered what she said before I left. "Have fun," she said. Well, she probably didn't mean this much fun, so I focused my attention on the food. And what food there was.

Microgaming must be doing well; the chow was magnificent. It was all catered to include a chef slicing big chunks of beef. Lest we forget most Europeans (and those of us who live there) don't get beef too often unless it's from Argentina. Most of the dishes looked Cuban, lots of rice and yummy vegetables. And of course all drinks, including well drinks, were on the house. Man, I couldn't get enough Bailey's (not me, the drink!). They even had a dude rolling Cuban cigars. Too bad I don't smoke tobacco, since that would have been something else to distract me from the dancing.

But nonetheless, it was time to show face at The River City Group party. Ted and I and a few others grabbed a cab, and we were off to a club by the convention center. Everyone was there, and it was great finally putting some faces to emails. It was my final chance to catch up with some of the people I had missed in the past brief few days. And before we knew it, the party was over. We still had time to make it back to the Microgaming Party, and we did thanks to a sharp eyed cabbie who spotted us waving in the dark.

Back at the Microgaming party, it was nice watching everyone enjoy themselves on the dance floor. And it you were there and wondered why I wasn't dancing, especially after turning down several of the ladies, is that I felt it wouldn't have been fair to my wife at home. Besides, someone might have been taking pictures.

Stay tuned for Thursday: Part III A Final Thought Why It's Important for Guys Like Me to Go to Conventions Like This

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