April showers

I think every student in the English-speaking world knows the following proverb: "April showers bring May flowers." Wiktionary.com explains this proverb as follows: "April, traditionally a rainy period, gives way to May, when flowers will bloom because of the water provided to them by the April rains. By extension, that a period of discomfort can provide the basis for a period of happiness."

As far as we know the first appearance of this proverb was in Thomas Tusser's collection of writings "A Hundred Good Points of Husbandry" published in 1557. (B4Tea.com)

The great English poet T.S. Eliot opened his brilliant poem "The Wasteland" with this phrase: "April is the cruellist month…" (The spelling is Eliot's.)

So what does April have to do with playing the slot machines? Dear readers, April is playing the slot machines! There are no aficionados of slot play who have not weathered the discomforting rains and pains of loss in the Aprils of their defeats. It comes with the territory. April is the slot players' season of discontent.

Playing slot machines requires an understanding that those April showers will sometimes pour down on you -- and you have little choice in the matter. You can head indoors, which means to stop playing, but if you decide to continue, those showers can and will drench you. It's the price you pay for the inevitable pleasures of May.

However, experiencing such bad April soakings does another thing for us, a good thing: It makes us truly appreciate the beautiful May flowers of victory. Having experienced loss, our victories are that much sweeter. Slot players know "the thrill of victory" because they have also experienced "the agony of defeat" (ABC's "Wide World of Sports"). Consider this: If everything were good, if everything were perfect, there would be no understanding that everything is good and everything is perfect. The ability to contrast, to experience a multitude of distinctions, allows us to understand the nature of good and the nature of not-so-good. There is no compare and contrast if there is nothing to compare and contrast.

In the Garden of Eden, there was one forbidden tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Eat the fruit from that tree and Adam and Eve would truly experience life's April showers and May's beautiful flowers as well. Obviously, these two ate from the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and that's why slot play has inherently both good and bad experiences. (OK, OK, I am pushing this analogy a little!)

Knowing in advance that you must experience the bad of slot play, are there steps you can take to limit the damage of those April showers? Indeed there are several things a slot player can do to take the sting out of those losing storms.

You can never predict at any given time that the next spins will be winners and, knowing that fact, you must take care that you bet within your bankroll. That's the equivalent of carrying an umbrella on a rainy day. Always assume that April is going to hang around more than 30 days. Keep your betting in check so that you don't blow all your money in a short period of time.

Now, when glorious May arrives and you are in the midst of hammering the house, that's the time to take your big shot at the casino. Once you have a substantial profit -- and I will let you decide what the word "substantial" means here -- then take half of it, put it away, and play with the other half. With each win, keep half the win, play the other half of the win. In this way, you have assured yourself of a good win and given yourself money to continue your attempt to keep your winning May around for a long period of time.

This is an aggressive strategy for sure, in fact a little too aggressive for my tastes, but if you are looking for an overflowing May garden then there comes a time when you might just want to go for it. I know that many slot players are not content with just a small winning night; they want a forest of wins, a Babylonian hanging garden of triumph, and such an aggressive strategy just might do that for them. If you like aggression, then give this strategy a try.

You could also take the big leap and jump up to the next level of slot denomination to go for the winning wreath. If you are a quarter player, jump to dollar machines; if you are a dollar player, jump to five-dollar machines. If May continues, your wins will be quite wonderful. If April appears again, you still have half of your previous substantial win.

Certainly, except for players who can find advantage-play slot machines which are in my book Slots Conquest: How to Beat the Slot Machines!, the long-term results of slot play will more than likely reflect April rather than May, but playing intelligently will give you enough of those sweet-smelling May flowers to make your slot-playing experience enjoyable.

In truth, no month and no season of nature will last for prolonged periods of time. Knowing the nature of good and evil has fully prepared you to understand and enjoy your slot playing experience. But I do wish that from this point on all your slot playing will be in the month of May.