When in doubt, chuck it out. — George Demmy, Sr

When replacing, replace. — George Thomas

You owe reality nothing.

—Richard Hugo (a poet, and this works especially well with poetry, though I like to apply it whenever I like to apply it)

If you’re thinking “One more time won’t hurt” - it probably will.

Alternatively, when you’re in a grump, a handful of almonds (or nut of your choice) might help too. You may just need a protein bump.

Terry:

OT: “Degrees of Grey in Philipsburg” is one of my all-time favorite poems. :-)

Rule of thumb? The distance from the tip of your thumb to the first knuckle is about one inch.

in Texas Hold ‘Em, if you want to know the percentage of the time that you’ll win a hand which needs to hit certain cards, count the number of cards that would win the hand for you (e.g. with four to a spade-flush, it would be 9, for the 9 remaining spades). If two cards are left to come, multiply that number by four. If only one card is left to come, multiply by two.

This won’t give you an exact result, but it’s a good estimate for figuring whether or not you should call a bet.

Merlin, was the book you mentioned Rules of Thumb or Rules of Thumb 2 by Tom Parker, circa 1980’s? If so, Amazon and Abebooks still have cheap copies available.

From the introduction to Rules of Thumb 2:

“A rule of thumb is a homemade recipe for making a guess. It is an easy-to-remember guide that falls somewhere between a mathematical formula and a shot in the dark.”

GH

Hey, small world. I was the editor that found and published Tom Parker’s “Rules of Thumb,” “Rules of Thumb 2,” and ‘Never Trust a Calm Dog” [Rules of Thumb 3].

Get enough going on about this and I might be able to talk him into doing a print on demand Rules of Thumb omnibus.

No way, Vanderleun! I totally had I & II and adored them both.

The amount of time you’ll wait in line at the bank is equal to the number of people ahead of you * 2.6

(Or something like that—it’s from memory)