Friday, July 23, 2010

Answers to Your Questions!

Sorry this took so long - many things got in the way of me being able to respond to the answers and prepare this blog entry in the "deadlined two weeks" like I had planned. If you don't know what this blog entry is about, I asked people to send me questions and then I would reply to your inquiries about me, so that you can get to know me better.

Let the unveiling begin....


Pomegranate Martinis or Smirnoff Ice?
At dinner with great friends, Pomegranate Martinis are the perfect conversation attire. At the pool room or a special bar, Smirnoff Ice is a very nice treat.

BCAPL Vegas or BCAPL Reno?
Vegas, Baby!

Which accomplishment are you most proud of?
In life? Graduating from Texas A&M with my meteorology degree.

In pool? Two things stand out: (1) Helping players reach their dreams by running the OB Cues Ladies Tour for 9 years. (2) Getting Most Improved Player on the OB Cues Ladies Tour in 2008, during the toughest year of my life.

What can I do to screw you up when playing me? (I NEED AN EDGE DAMN IT!!)
Try to get into my mental game, of course! Or, just run out. :)

What is your least favorite piece of advice someone gave you? (you know you remember it)
Play the table. I know now that you need to familiarize yourself with your opponents' strengths and weaknesses, NOT just play the table.

What do you prefer: eating salsa or dancing it? (I stole that one....)
Eating! I LOVE good salsa!

If you wrote a book about your life, what would you name it?
It's All About Me(linda)

With your wealth of pool contacts, years of pool experience, etc. what are the top 3 or 5 means for achieving consistency?
I don't think I know this yet! Good question! I would offer this advice, though:
  • Practice routinely. Practice provides amazing confidence and allows you to work on areas of your game.
  • Get your mechanics sound. A solid pre-shot routine is KEY.
  • Play in as many weekly and regional events that you can, and
  • Set reachable goals. Goals are pointless unless they are detailed AND reachable.

What size bra do you wear?
None of your business! lol. I would say "average" ?

Love reading your blogs and the Love you have for the game. Are you single :)
I do not have a boyfriend or husband, so I guess I am!

Do you do the weather on TV or are only behind the scenes?
Good question! I work for the National Weather Service, which means technically we provide forecasts and warnings to the TV weather forecasters and to the public. So, in a way, I work behind the scenes, but not formally in a TV station at all.

Is there a person or incident in your life that you feel has had a large impact on making you the person that you are today? Someone or something that you can attribute to shaping your personality?
Yes! June Hager Walter, a well-known pool player in Texas from the 90s took me under her wing. We not only went to tournaments together and became good friends, but she also helped improve my self image, self esteem, and confidence.

I used to take everything wrong, see the worst in things, assume the worst, and didn't like myself at all. She literally made me who I am today - someone who is happy, confident and actually likes themselves! (she kinda created a monster, lol)

Whether it's pool related or just life itself.... or both. What has been that ahhahh moment, on something you have been struggling with, working on, or just through ignorance, etc... that helped you get over a specific hump.

Just something that you remember... really sticks out in your memory, as one of those " ya know I'm glad that happened" moments.
I think the very first ah-ha moment for me regarding pool was when my friend Shayla told me many, many years ago about three-ball shape. Then Phil Capelle several years ago helped me through my struggle of how to overcome nerves. And the latest ah-ha moment was learning that a smooth stroke can help my fundamentals so immensely.

How did you get the nickname "Trigger"?
For those that do not know, my nickname on AZBilliards.com Forums is "akaTrigger." I get asked this a lot, so I wrote a blog entry about it a while ago: Here is the link

I have a question. How do you get snot out of corduroy? It just leaves a big white spot when you try to clean it. Stuff like that just bothers the hell out of me.
I would just throw it away and not try to get it out!

I am an AZB lurker and I notice that you post a fair bit on AZB and also keep this blog. Just a couple of questions. Just looking to get some insight into Trigger!

1) How often do you play pool? Tournaments? practice ?
I practice ten-ball by myself at least once a week for 1-3 hours. I play in regional tournaments about twice a month. I also am on two leagues - an 8ball league and a Straight Pool League.

2) Are you married/single - any kids?
I am single, divorced, with no kids. I have a cat named Miss Q, though!

3) Do you work at a job/from home/retired
A have a full time job that I love, at the National Weather Service. I work 40+ hours per week.


What are the three most important things you have gained from playing pool and how have they affected your personal life?
Confidence, Leadership, and Learning from Every Experience.

The three important points above I learned mostly through competing in pool and because I am involved in the pool industry. They blend over nicely and wonderfully in my everyday life which has helped me be the person I am today - happy in life and confident. I have learned that experiences should be used to learn/improve/grow - I treasure all of life's experiences (good or bad) and they have defined who I am today. I wrote about how pool has made me who I am in one of the PoolSynergy monthly Topics. You can read many more details in the long post here, if you have time. Thank you for the question!

Is it bad form to play a safety in a 'low stakes' pool tournament or game? ie... $5.00 entry D/E tournament.
No, it's always good to practice your safes. :)

OK here is my question....If you could make one change to the world that did not benefit anyone or anything, and did not adversely affect anyone or thing....what would you ????
I don't know if there is such a thing? What a profound question...

1. Why do you write your -excellent by the way - blog ? What would you be missing if you were not allowed to do it anymore?
Thank you. I write it because I like to share and I hope people learn things that improve their own game. I would miss it if I could not write it anymore, but I would survive. :)

2. Being an - excellent by the way :)) - woman do you feel that your approach to pool differs from that of your male pool friends ? I do not believe that the excitement and the enthusiasm you radiate in your blog entries, is being felt by many men players..

Thank you again. I think that men do feel the same way in their excitement, but women just express our emotions more than men (sometimes too much!). Because men and women are so different, yes our approach to pool is definitely different. For the most part, most woman care and carry with them, what others think. Men on the other hand seem to be able to take tougher comments a lot easier than women. Furthermore, men are competitive naturally, imo, so it's tougher for women to just get up and easily compete.

When you practice, what do you spend your time on? Fundamentals, drills, what?
The short answer is that I play ten ball by myself and I focus mostly on conditioning my pre-shot routine. The long answer is here: http://pooljourney.blogspot.com/2009/09/my-practice-sessions.html

How much, if any, have you improved in the last few years? To what, specifically do you attribute this?
I would say that yes, I have improved in the last few years. I think it's because of two main things: My blog and because I am playing other pool games.

My blog has pushed me to write down my goals, which has helped me follow through on a lot of things I normally wouldn't do. For example, watching a DVD once a month is a goal this year that I now follow and that has improved my knowledge of many games/shots. Also, because I write down tips I learn, the blog allows me to go back and refresh any struggles I may be going through again.

Other billiard games has also helped me improved. I have joined a straight pool league and after four sessions, I can see new desires in pool in general in me! I have also been trying to pay more attention to one pocket - watching more matches online and playing more. Each of these two games have improved many aspects of my 9ball and 8ball games!


Thank you to all the questions!! I enjoyed responding and hope you all enjoy getting to know me better!

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