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Next up: Brendan Barrett of Brutal MMA and Joe Abouata of Wilkie’s Warriors in a heavyweight bout. Abouata is what you’d get if you crossed a human’s DNA with a Harley Davidson, but Barrett’s always been a tough, top-level guy. He comes out and establishes control early, getting the Wilkie Warrior down and grinding him throughout the first, and tapping him with a guillotine from mount in the second. The official time of the tap out is :45 of Round 2. The ever-popular Nabih Barakat of Serra/Longo takes to the cage to face the Armory’s Edson Barboza. Yikes. Barboza is definitely some kind of ringer, as he wades in and clips Barakat with a right and follows him down with some hellacious leather. Barakat is so messed up, he’s trying to work his guard even after the ref has pulled Barboza off, and Kevin Mulhall has to hold his ankles while Dr. Wulkan struggles to get him to snap out of it. The official time of the KO is 1:09 of the first round. It’s time for Brazil vs. Brazil, with Vagner Fernandes of Gold Team taking on Andre Gusmao of Ricardo Almeida’s School for Gifted Grapplers. As an aside, Gusmao is also a skilled capoeira practitioner, which enabled him to dominate when he fought in the IFL but availed him naught in his time in the UFC. It doesn’t avail him much here, either, as Fernandes rocks him with a right and proceeds to use his face as a punching bag. Yet Gusmao is tough, and he gains dominate position on the ground, flattens Fernandes out, and drops the hammer until the ref steps in at 3:25 of Round 1.

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J.D. Salinger died on Wednesday at age 91. Been a while since we’d heard from him.

Been a while also since I’d thought much about Salinger. Like most, I encountered The Catcher in the Rye as a young person, and like some I went on to read Nine Stories and everything else I could find. As a teen I suppose I identified somewhat with Holden Caulfield’s frustration. And puzzled over Seymour’s suicide in “A Perfect Day for Bananafish.”

But like I say, haven’t thought much about Salinger since, other than occasionally to wonder what he’s been up to, and whether he ever wrote anything again since 1965 when the last story of his to appear in print — the lengthy “Hapworth 16, 1924” — was published in The New Yorker. Perhaps now that he’s gone, we may find out more about what he’s exactly been up to these last 45 years. (Or not.)

Many have speculated about why Salinger — once a genuine literary celebrity, famous not just in academic circles but well beyond — stopped publishing and so thoroughly withdrew from the public eye. One oft-repeated story, appearing in The New York Times article from yesterday about Salinger’s death, concerns him having been interviewed by some high school students for what he thought was going to be an innocuous piece in the local paper. The interview wound up on the editorial page (not on the high school news page), and Salinger apparently was so upset he soon began refusing interview requests.

He also built a six-and-a-half foot fence around his property.

Publishing is a tricky business. One never knows exactly how others are going to receive your words and ideas. As in poker, there’s always an element of risk that must be weighed against whatever reward may come from putting yourself “out there.”

Just so happens that on Wednesday — the day I wrote about driving a lot — I was in the car listening to a National Public Radio segment that had to do with blogging and the way one potentially loses control of one’s message when putting one’s words and ideas on these here intertubes.

The story was about the Pope who is apparently considering whether or not to start some sort of blog. A few experts were asked for their thoughts, and there was some funny, irreverent humor in there with people giving the Pope advice about the need to blog every day, to use hot links (not footnotes), and so forth.

One such expert, David Weinberger (a technology pundit and blogger), came on to address this issue of what happens when one publishes online. “Putting a message out on the internet is exactly the same thing as losing total control of your message,” said Weinberger. “People take it up, they republish it, they make fun of it, they contextualize it, [and] the simple message becomes incredibly complex.”

As if to confirm what Weinberger was saying, there was another story about Apple announcing its new iPad in which the reporters noted that there probably weren’t any women involved in the naming of the new tablet computer. Without being specific, they were alluding to the instantaneous reaction on the internet to the name “iPad” which saw some associate it with a woman’s product. (Some may have noticed that “iTampon” became a “trending topic” on Twitter within an hour of Apple’s announcement.) I suppose you could call that another example of having (somewhat) lost control of the message, with the speed of the ’net significantly accelerating that process.

I’ve been well aware for a long time how keeping a blog — or writing and publishing, generally speaking — necessarily involves “losing total control” of one’s message. But really, who wants “total control”? If, that is, these are indeed “messages” we are delivering, with a hope that those messages might be heard and perhaps responded to in some fashion, and not just “broadcasts” (or sermons?) for which we neither expect or desire feedback.

No, publishing means being willing to share the “control” over one’s messages. Otherwise we’re just talking to ourselves. Like playing solitaire — no risk of losing, but not much to gain, either.

In a rare interview from 1974, Salinger told a reporter of how content he was not to be publishing. “It’s peaceful. Still. Publishing is a terrible invasion of my privacy. I like to write. I love to write. But I write just for myself and my own pleasure.”

I can respect that, but that’s about all I have to say about it. Not much one can say in response to someone who prefers sitting out to playing.

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The Country Club at Wynn Las Vegas brings a little of “The Big Easy” to Las Vegas each and every Sunday with their “Cookin’ with Jazz Brunch” by star chef Carlos Guia. This is a fun, jazzy way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon in Vegas with great food and music in a majestic atmosphere.

Visitors to the “Cookin’ with Jazz Brunch” will kick things off with the “Eye Opener” cocktail followed by New Orleans-inspired appetizers, entrees and grilling stations. A live jazz band will be on hand to add to the New Orleans vibe of the brunch at The Country Club at Wynn Las Vegas.

The “Cookin’ with Jazz Brunch” at Wynn is priced at $59 for adults and $24 for children. The brunch is every Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Here is the brunch menu:

“Eye Opener” Cocktail

(Choice Of)

Country Club Bloody Mary
Champagne
Kentucky Tea Cocktail

APPETIZER BUFFET

Shellfish Station
Red King Crab Legs, Shrimp Cocktail, Oysters (shucked to order), Traditional Cocktail Sauce, New Orleans Rémoulade Sauce, Cucumber Mignonette

Smoked Salmon and Orange-Tarragon Gravlax Carving Station
Mini Bagels, Traditional Accoutrements, House-made Créme Fraîche

Seasonal Fruit
Salad and Sliced

Breakfast Parfait
House-made Sun-dried Fruit Granola, Vanilla Bean Yogurt

Trio of Ceviche
Shrimp, Passion fruit, Chayote
King Crab, Blue Crab, Coconut, Mango
Red Snapper, Lime, Cilantro, Cucumber

Salumi Display
Aged Italian Provolone, Assorted Olives, Pepperoncini

Grilled Vegetables
Fennel, Baby Carrots, Lipstick Peppers, Squash, Asparagus, Red Onions, Roasted Garlic Cloves, Green Onions

Heirloom Tomato and Buffalo Mozzarella Salad
Basil Olive Oil, Balsamic Reduction

Soups
Sweet Corn Chowder, New Orleans Shrimp and Andouille Gumbo

Bread Display
Bread sticks, Lavosh, Assorted Rolls, Mini Pastries

ENTREES

From Our Kitchen

Eggs Versailles
Poached Eggs, Smoked Salmon, Brioche, American Caviar, Hollandaise Sauce

Poached Eggs with Barbecue Smoked Pork
Bacon-cheese Muffins, Charred Green Chile Hollandaise Sauce

Farm Eggs Any Style
Choice of Apple Wood Smoked Bacon or Grilled Ham

French Toast Bread Pudding
Vermont Maple Syrup, Berries, Candied Pecans, Apple Wood Smoked Bacon

Omelet of the Day

Shrimp and Grits
The Southern Classic; Sautéed Jumbo Shrimp, Smothered in a rich Gravy over Stone-ground Anson Mills Grits

Grilled Beef Hot Dog
Sauerkraut, Onions, House-made Spicy Pepper Relish

Free Range Chicken Paillard
Roasted Root Vegetables, Parmesan, Arugula, Apple Wood Smoked Bacon

Grilling On The Patio

Beef Tenderloin
Brown Sugar Brined Pork Chops
Creole Spice Rubbed Jumbo Shrimp
Chef’s Selection of Sausages
Chile Rubbed Turkey Breast

SIDES

Fire Roasted Corn Succotash
Creamy Southern Grits
Breakfast Potato Hash

DESSERT BUFFET

Chef’s Selection of Assorted Desserts

$59 per person (Inclusive of one complimentary Cocktail and Entertainment tax)

Radio listener’s promo price
$ 49 per person (Inclusive of one complimentary Cocktail and Entertainment Tax)

$24 (Kid’s Under 12 years)

(Excluding Beverages, Sales Tax and Gratuity)

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Not much time to write today, I am afraid. Of course, that makes me like most of the poker bloggers, actually.

Many of them have a better excuse, though, being in Las Vegas this weekend as they are for for the winter gathering of the World Poker Blogger Tour. Also known as the WPBT. Or the #wpbt.

Unlike my buds, I’m sadly mired under a heap of “real life” applesauce and will be for the next week at least, meaning I couldn’t make it out west to join in the revelry.

Speaking of poker blogs, the nominations for the 2009 Bluff Magazine Readers Choice Awards were announced earlier this week, and three of our faves — Tao of Poker, Pokerati, and Wicked Chops — were included on the “Top Poker Blog of 2009” list. The other nominee — Poker News Daily — is a site I frequent often as well, although I’m not sure it is correct to describe it as a blog.

There are 13 categories in all, some (best poker TV show, best poker podcast, best LV poker room) more interesting than others (favorite poker villain, favorite poker personality). You can find the full list of nominees and how to vote over at the Bluff site by clicking here.

Despite being a bit overwhelmed with work stuff, I did manage to find time to write a Betfair piece which went up this morning.

This one concerns an article by the journalist and best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell called “Open Secrets” that appears in his new collection of essays titled What the Dog Saw and Other Adventures. In the article Gladwell explains a distinction between “puzzles” and “mysteries” that I thought applied quite readily to poker. Kind of a “shots in the dark”-type post, I’d call it. Check it out.

Okay, time to get to work. Safe travels and good times, all you WPBTers! And be sure to write all about it. ’Cause, you know, cards get returned to the dealer, chips get cashed in, and limes get tossed away, but littera scripta manet.

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With holiday tech gift sales from companies like Apple hitting all-time highs, BetUS decided to dedicate their latest props to Steve Jobs, Apple and Twitter. “We always see a lot of action on holiday sales around this time of year,” stated BetUS.com spokesman Reed Richards. “And interestingly enough, the trend has been that people like to bet on Apple. In an effort to quench the public’s thirst for insight into the company, we had our oddsmakers craft some great predictions.”

Here are the latest Apple, Twitter and Steve Jobs props posted by BetUS Sportsbook:

Odds Apple will buy Twitter in 2010
•    Yes  4/1
•    No  1/7

Odds Apple stock will drop in 2010
•    Yes  5/6
•    No  5/6

Odds of Steve Jobs stepping down as CEO in 2010
•    Yes  5/6
•    No  5/6

To place your wager on these and many other props at BetUS, click here

View bestselling Apple products here

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