tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-217165532024-03-13T05:13:01.805-07:00Robert Pearson's Chess BlogThe question is, said Humpty Dumpty, which is to be master — that’s all.Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.comBlogger437125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-72381492766019017252015-09-09T17:37:00.002-07:002015-09-09T17:39:31.337-07:00My (Slighty Tattered) Chess CareerSo going on seven weeks ago I was happy to report that Derek Slater was back "And (Perhaps) Me Too" but there's been no follow-through, as such. A few times I logged in here thinking about what to write and nothing came, because looking back the events that really inspired my postings in the past, like glorious USCF-rated tournament victories and soul-crushing defeats, are currently on Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com57tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-88060593470107627702015-07-21T12:34:00.002-07:002015-07-21T12:34:54.039-07:00Derek Slater is BACK! And (Perhaps) Me Too...At Reassembler:
I think I will blog again here, and see what happens. Many an excellent conversation in the comments in years (strangely) gone by.
Almost exactly two years since i last posted.
It took us a long time to buy a house in California, and I changed not only jobs but professions—sort of. I’m sure I’ll belabor that point later.
Most of this applies to me, too, almost Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-45624089410624971212013-08-01T21:50:00.000-07:002013-08-01T21:50:00.600-07:00Recent Chess Improver PostsJust for now. I am working on some projects in a different field these days and may or may not continue regular articles at Grandmaster Davies Chess Improver.
But here is "What have you done for me lately?":
An All-Round Role Model (Euwe may be a good example to follow)
Loving Chess Reality (Includes a hard-fought, annotated game of mine)
On Embracing the Suck (Buddhist concepts that apply Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-5042078523316946082013-06-05T12:16:00.002-07:002013-06-05T12:16:42.393-07:00I'm Back (Yet Again)!After a professional odyssey more strange than can be described using terms suitable for this (PG-rated) blog, I have begun writing for "pleasure" again. I've posted Fischer and You at GM Nigel Davies' The Chess Improver and will be coming through here at home with some original content in the next few days.
Cheers!
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-55968529930556049852013-01-03T23:52:00.000-08:002013-01-04T11:53:00.615-08:00Recent Chess Improver ColumnsThe Chess Human Condition
Best Games v. Own Games
Simple Meditation That Works
All at GM Nigel Davies' The Chess Improver.
I haven't written anything original here for some time, but that will change shortly when I start to publish my own games that (hopefully) contain some instructive points. Also, amusing ones...
The King of two crowns - lenticular clouds over Mt. Shasta, California.
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-9778846790142944442012-11-14T22:07:00.000-08:002012-11-15T15:12:30.331-08:00Testing My Theories on MyselfI think you will find this of interest.
May have gotten a little out of sequence...Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-38558478118881379842012-11-07T23:39:00.000-08:002012-11-08T13:43:33.151-08:00The Genius of the Kibitzer, Part III think this is one of my better efforts ever. Here it is at The Chess Improver. My efforts to put this into practice, and the results, will be in some future columns. Hope you enjoy, comments here are much appreciated.Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-28749216356605433822012-10-31T22:37:00.000-07:002012-11-01T13:38:44.166-07:00The Genius of the KibitzerThe Genius of the Kibitzer, Part I. Now Playing at GM Nigel Davies' The Chess Improver. You can also comment here, if you are so inclined.
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-15280390158355798682012-10-24T21:28:00.000-07:002012-10-25T11:33:52.750-07:00Meetings With Remarkable Chess MastersMeetings With Remarkable Chess Masters, posted today at Nigel Davies' The Chess Improver.
IM Byron Nickoloff, a Remarkable Man
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-3496251612347446962012-10-18T23:34:00.000-07:002012-10-19T10:34:51.964-07:00Chess Master at Any Age? My latest at The Chess Improver is in part a reply to fellow columnist Tim Hanke's Is Age Relevant to Chess Improvement?. I have previously written about Rolf Wetzell's book Chess Master...at Any Age and I thought Nigel's site could use a little give and take. Maybe next week I'll do my best to really stir up some controversy, like saying that openings are important! That'll bring out the long Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-83894724546239309582012-10-11T21:49:00.000-07:002012-10-12T12:54:12.888-07:00Attention!My latest post is titled Attention! over at GM Nigel Davies' The Chess Improver. Given the lack of reaction to it on Nigel's Facebook page I am unsure if it's just borrring...
or so brilliant, so complete, that no one has anything to add. If you have thoughts on it please share here.
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-33952560790035226632012-10-03T21:57:00.000-07:002012-10-04T16:58:55.163-07:00Chess HumourMy latest posting at GM Nigel Davies' The Chess Improver.Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-88711770478329183512012-09-20T21:35:00.000-07:002012-09-21T15:37:55.013-07:00My Latest at GM Nigel Davies' The Chess ImproverCognitive Fluency: Easy Does Not Equal True.
All the great material at the The Chess Improver home page.
Coaching from GM Davies.
(A photo from a few years ago)
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-59783146246522787612012-09-12T21:47:00.000-07:002012-09-21T15:38:10.240-07:00I'm Now at GM Nigel Davies' "The Chess Improver"I have begun a weekly "column" at GM Nigel Davies site The Chess Improver. That will likely be my main venue for writing about chess in the near future, but there are some pretty good archives here, if you care to browse.
There are a few pretty bad ones, too, but your odds are good, even if the goods are odd.
My first post there is A Broad View of Improvement.
And remember, there are BIG Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-85168767649413323562012-06-20T22:38:00.000-07:002012-06-21T10:49:04.038-07:00Not Chess, Truly Brilliant
Original here.
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-34157912487251233512012-05-10T21:54:00.000-07:002012-05-18T15:58:13.326-07:00The Hunting of the Snark
ADDED May 18, 2012: Hi Everyone, I'll be on "break" for some time, I am not sure how long...if you'd like to read something about chess you can click on a "label" over on the right (scroll down a bit) for some subjects, or try someone on the blogroll. I'll be at work on some other projects and still playing chess, so I expect that someday I'll have something interesting to post. Meanwhile--
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-89266406481587662542012-05-04T21:46:00.000-07:002012-05-04T21:46:00.458-07:00Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the PawnsMake your own, for free!
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-35458279174872309252012-05-01T21:42:00.000-07:002012-05-01T21:42:00.457-07:00Study Hacks, Piano Player ConfessionsI ran across a terrific site called Study Hacks. While much of the material may be oriented toward students trying to ace their tests, there is a great deal of valuable and interesting stuff that might be applied to chess improvement. As the author says:
Recently, as I’ve moved beyond my student years, I’ve turned more of my attention toward decoding patterns of success Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-75447387139655741292012-04-19T21:56:00.000-07:002012-04-20T12:57:26.270-07:00Da Da DaIn honor of the 30th anniversary...if you don't remember this, well, here it is:
A translation of the chorus for the less German-proficient reader:
Ich liebe dich nicht, du liebst mich nicht
"I do not love you, you do not love me," or something like that.
Note the utter simplicity of the arrangement, the clever internal rhyme...there is more here than the surface. Or perhaps less. Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-76643697403285177792012-04-12T23:42:00.000-07:002012-04-12T23:44:13.652-07:00A Mantra for Chess ImproversI get feeds from a lot of sites, but rarely has something hit the inbox that struck me like this.
From this long and interesting post, a small nugget of pure gold for people striving to improve at chess:
[The girl asked] "How do I let go of this harsh false self, this ego, this part of me
that keeps beating myself up and comparing myself to others, yet still
keep striving to improve myself?Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-62666870398334506652012-04-09T23:13:00.000-07:002012-04-10T09:24:31.336-07:00Memorable Game 13: My First Tournament Game, J. Monaco-R. Pearson 1-0, Reno City Ch. 11.23.81It has been over 30 years since my first rated tournament game. For fun, I thought I'd share it. My play is actually not all that bad, considering that my first tournament was the city championship and I would go on to score one draw and 13 losses! I haven't annotated the game in detail like the previous "memorable" games but a few highlights and questions:
What am I doing playing the Sicilian?!Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-29896468196017209532012-03-30T21:48:00.000-07:002012-03-31T00:10:32.306-07:00Best of Chess Blogging Part III: What a Wonderful WorldAnd now, Part III of the Best of Chess Blogging! This incorporates everything that has been submitted that I didn't get into Part I and Part II. If I have missed someone's submission please let me know and I'll get it added.
I suggest for maximum enjoyment you play the song below and open the links in new tabs...it really is a wonderful world, that has such people in't!
***
For instanceRobert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-50785451132266600212012-03-27T21:33:00.000-07:002012-03-28T14:44:11.447-07:00Big, BIG Best of Chess Blogging Post Almost DonePart I on Openings was here. Part II.
Part III will be done in a couple of days. It is large, as befits the final summation of very heights of the mammoth field of chess blogging.
Here's something wonderful to keep you happy until then:
Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-24031531724127032292012-03-22T21:59:00.003-07:002012-03-23T17:57:01.581-07:00Edward Winter on "The Greatest"I have enjoyed the recent (Relatively) Strongest Player poll and analysis of the players (and here are my older posts on the "The Greatest" and Top Ten players). Below is a stimulating view from a slightly different perspective by the great chess historian Edward Winter of Chess Notes fame:
Chess: The Greatest
The first paragraphs:
In discussions of that hoary Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21716553.post-32962400060974804322012-03-19T22:27:00.003-07:002012-03-21T12:53:49.999-07:00(Relatively) Strongest Player Poll Results(Update 03.20.2012 - after I published this Fischer experienced a "surge" of 4 more votes to bring his total to 12, but that seems like a little ballot box stuffing after the fact. The text below remains the same.)
After 10 days of voting on the (relatively) strongest chess player, here are the results and some comments.
Thirty-one votes were cast (thank you to all who took the Robert Pearsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01357942424904415208noreply@blogger.com1