WELL TROPICAL STORM IRENE KICKED THE DAYLIGHTS OUT OF CONNECTICUT PRETTY BAD. MY DESTINATION LAST WEEKEND WAS GOING TO BE THE NORTHEAST CORNER OF THE STATE, TO VISIT A PLACE THAT I WAS TOLD WOULD MAKE A PRETTY GOOD POST. AS IT TURNED OUT, THAT SECTION OF THE STATE STILL HAD A LOT OF IMPASSABLE ROADS AND PLACES WITHOUT POWER SO I FIGURED THE LAST THING I SHOULD DO IS SHOW UP AND FIND THE PLACE STILL BAILING OUT WATER AND TRASHING WHAT WAS LEFT OF THE FURNITURE. THEN THE WEATHER FORECAST WAS NOT PROMISING-POP UP THUNDERSTORMS ETC. ETC.. CONSEQUENTLY MY BIKE AND I STAYED WITHIN TWENTY OR SO MILES FROM THE HOUSE.
NOW IT’S RAINING AGAIN AND ALL THE PREPARATIONS THAT WE WERE GOING TO DO AROUND HERE STILL HAVEN’T BEEN DONE. FEELS LIKE THE EAST COAST HAS HAD SO MUCH RAIN THAT IN ANOTHER MONTH OR TWO WE JUST MIGHT BE PART OF THE ATLANTIC OCEAN. SOOOOO HERE’S ANOTHER POST THAT I HAD TO PULL OUT OF THE BLUE JUST TO TRY AND STAY ON A WEEKLY SCHEDULE. WHAT BETTER TO POST THAN ANOTHER OF MY INTERESTS??--CHESS
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| LONG TIME FRIEND AND CHESS PLAYER-DALE MARTZ LOOKING OVER THE BATTLEFIELD |
I AM NOT A MAN WHO ENJOYS SCRABBLE-CARD GAMES-GAMES OF CHANCE-NOW THAT I THINK ABOUT IT A LITTLE BIT, I GUESS I’M NOT A GAME TYPE OF GUY, KIND OF LIKE TO BE DOING-MOVING-THINKING. IF I SIT DOWN TO WATCH A LITTLE TV WITH MY BETTER HALF (CAROL) I’M USUALLY ON THE BRINK OF EXHAUSTION AND END UP ASLEEP WITHIN A HALF HOUR. MY FAULT, I’VE BEEN TOLD MANY TIMES THAT I DON’T GET ENOUGH SLEEP (RELATES TO THE DOING-MOVING-THINKING HABIT). AS A MATTER OF FACT, IF I COULD, I WOULD ELIMINATE SLEEP FROM MY ROUTINE ENTIRELY. I GUESS IT’S PROBABLY A THING THAT GOD INSTALLED IN OUR SYSTEMS TO KEEP US FROM SPENDING A FULL 24 HOURS GETTING ON EACH OTHERS NERVES. BUT NOW I’M GETTING OFF TRACK..
CHESS IS MUCH MORE THAN JUST A GAME TO ME (AND MANY OTHERS). IT HAS BEEN DESCRIBED AS A BATTLE BETWEEN TWO MINDS—TWO MINDS THAT HAVE ONE COMMON GOAL-VICTORY ON THE BATTLEFIELD. IT’S A BLEND OF MATH-GEOMETRY-STRATEGY. FOR ME IT IS AS CLOSE AS YOU CAN GET TO A PHYSICAL CONFRONTATION WITHOUT ACTUALLY HITTING SOMEONE. I’VE PLAYED THE GAME SINCE I WAS TEN THEN FORGOT ABOUT IT UNTIL I RETURNED HOME FROM THE MARINES. A LONG TIME FRIEND (JAY MORIN) CHALLENGED ME TO A GAME ONE NIGHT WHILE A BUNCH OF US WERE HANGING OUT. HE BEAT ME SEVERELY AND REKINDLED MY LONG DORMANT INTEREST IN THE GAME. IT WAS TO BE QUITE A WHILE BEFORE I WAS FINALLY ABLE TO BEAT HIM. I REMEMBER THE GAME-IT TOOK PLACE IN THE PARKING LOT OF A COFFEE SHOP HERE IN BRISTOL ON A FRIDAY OR SATURDAY NIGHT. BACK IN THOSE DAYS WE WERE ALLOWED TO PLAY IN A LOCAL COFFEE SHOP (AS LONG AS WE DRANK COFFEE) AND AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT, WE DREW ANOTHER FRIEND INTO THE GAME (DALE MARTZ). DALE WANTED TO LEARN THE GAME AND IT WAS A PLEASURE TO TEACH HIM AND FAN HIS ENTHUSIASM. DALE HAS LONG SINCE STOPPED BEING THE STUDENT AND IS NOW A FORMIDABLE OPPONENT. WE TRY TO GET TOGETHER AS OFTEN AS WE CAN ON FRIDAYS AFTER WORK FOR A MATCH.
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| DALE HAS BEATEN ME IN A BAD WAY--BROUGHT THE GAME TO AN END DEEP IN MY TERRITORY SCORE SO FAR THIS YEAR ---DALE 7--ME 14 |
THE GAME IS BELIEVED TO HAVE ORIGINATED IN NORTHWEST INDIA IN THE SIXTH CENTURY AND HAD A PERIOD OF TIME WHERE RULES WERE CREATED THEN MODIFIED THEN REFINED TIME AND AGAIN. IN APPROXIMATELY 1475 THE GAME EVOLVED INTO ESSENTIALLY THE GAME WE KNOW TODAY. EACH PLAYER HAS TWO ROOKS-TWO KNIGHTS-TWO BISHOPS-EIGHT PAWNS-ONE QUEEN AND ONE KING. OBJECT OF THE GAME IS TO TRAP THE OPPONENT’S KING. IT ALL SOUNDS RATHER MUNDANE BUT SINCE THE 15th CENTURY THERE HAVE BEEN THOUSANDS OF BOOKS WRITTEN ABOUT CHESS THEORY, STRATEGY AND TACTICS. THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF FAMOUS GAMES THAT HAVE BEEN RECORDED SO THAT THE INTERESTED PLAYER MIGHT REVIEW AND GET A GLIMPSE INTO THE STYLES AND THOUGHT PROCESSES OF THE MASTERS. GAMES HAVE EVEN BEEN NAMED-‘PETROV’S IMMORTAL-PEARL OF ZANDVOORT-BLUE BIRD-EVERGREEN’ JUST TO NAME A VERY FEW. IN MY YOUNGER YEARS I REMEMBERED HEARING STORIES OF ROMAN OFFICIALS PLAYING OUT THEIR MOVES USING SLAVES AS THEIR PIECES ON GIGANTIC BOARDS AND IF A PIECE WAS CAPTURED THE UNLUCKY SLAVE WAS KILLED (I WOULD LIKE TO THINK THOSE STORIES WEREN’T TRUE-BUT).THE GAME IS ALOT LIKE LIFE ITSELF-AN OPENING-A MIDDLE-AND AN END GAME. ONE LEARNS TO DEVELOP A DEGREE OF FORETHOUGHT. JUST BECAUSE SOMETHING SEEMS LIKE A TERRIFIC MOVE OR AN EASY GRAB DOESN’T MEAN YOU JUMP AT IT. YOU MIGHT VERY WELL DISCOVER THAT EASY PRIZE WAS A WELL DISGUISED TRAP THAT HAS COST YOU MUCH MORE THAN YOU HAD ORIGINALLY THOUGHT…THE OLD “WISH I HADN’T DONE THAT” SYNDROME. LIKE A CAVE, CHESS CAN STRIKE AN INDIVIDUAL AS BORING—JUST A HOLE IN THE GROUND—YOU CANNOT SEE THE REAL BEAUTY UNTIL YOU DESCEND INTO THE DEPTHS AND EXPLORE WHAT IS HIDDEN FROM YOU. SAME WITH CHESS, IT ISN’T UNTIL YOU SIT AT THE TABLE AND BRING YOUR THOUGHTS TO LIFE ON THE CHESSBOARD-STRUGGLE WITH YOUR OPPONENT’S MIND AS HIS ARMY BRINGS HIS THOUGHTS INTO BEING AND CONFLICT EVOLVES FROM THE MIND TO THE REALITY OF THE CHESSBOARD.
IT WON’T BE LONG BEFORE WINTER IS BACK AND THE DAYS ARE SHORT AND THE NIGHTS ARE LONG. IF YOUR ONE OF THE ‘DOING-MOVING-THINKING’ TYPES THAT KIND OF WEATHER CAN WEIGH ON YOU. MIGHT BE A GOOD TIME TO PICK UP A BOOK-LEARN A FEW REALLY SIMPLE RULES THEN GO ON LINE AND KICK UP A GAME ON ONE OF THE MANY CHESS COMMUNITIES..MAYBE WE’LL EVEN PLAY A GAME OR TWO..
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AS PROMISED--A FEW MORE PICTURES OF SOME EYE-POPPERS AT THE MIDDLETOWN RALLY
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| AN OLDIE-ANYBODY KNOW WHAT YEAR THIS IS?? |
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| YEP!!--THE ONE PICTURE YOU GUYS WANT TO ENLARGE WON'T ENLARGE.. SORRY |
ANOTHER BEAUTY -IF YOU CAN MAKE THIS RALLY NEXT YEAR-DO IT-LOTS OF GREAT PEOPLE--SOME REALLY AWESOME SCOOTERS AND JUST GREAT SAUSAGE BURGERS-FRIED DOUGH-JAMMIN GOOD TIME..WELL HOPEFULLY THE WEATHER IS GOING TO LET UP AND I'LL BE ABLE TO GET OUT ON MY TRUSTY LOW-RIDER THIS WEEKEND AND BRING YOU A STORY BACK FOR NEXT WEEK..TILL THEN--STAY DRY--STAY SAFE--HAPPY TRAILS TO YOU AND YOURS ********************
JIM
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