Changes

I'm playing around with the blog format--this isn't a final product, but it's lively!

Any feedback in the comments on what readers like (and, especially, don't like) is much appreciated.

UPDATE 07/02/07: Still futzing around. Actual posts of substance instead of this sort of thing, coming soon.

A Quick Health-Related Note

A few days ago I posted about a little health problem I was having--the great news is that it turns out this is just some viral infection of the thyroid and my immune system will eventually kick its ass--it will just take awhile. No pills, no worries! So it should gradually get better and better, and I can resume my upward path through the Reno CC, then the world.

Also--the title "The Best Excuse for a Loss, EVER" was meant to be a little joke, but I firmly believe the theory that taking total responsibility for your losses is the only way to have less of them.

Therefore, any excuses, express or implied in that post are officially WITHDRAWN.

A Delightful Sample from the Recent Chess Blogosphere

Excellence is everywhere:

Blue Devil Knight points us to this scientific paper on chess training, and provides some highlights so that we don't necessarily have to read the whole thing. Being the geek I am, I'm reading it all anyway.

Grandpatzer has an excellent piece on preparing an opening repertoire--and it's only the prelude! This guy can pack more useful, concise information into a few well-written paragraphs than some people put in a book.

David at Chess Improvement has commenced a series on chess bloggers--he's got one post and just keeps adding entries to it. He's already profiled BDK and Grandpatzer and uh-oh, it looks as if I may be next!

Mark Weeks at Chess for All Ages is doing a series of posts on Smyslov, who I admire greatly. Mark seems to have found some interesting discrepancies and differences in the annotations of the games he's covering, and you might find these of interest. The games are fascinating and beautiful, in any case.

You know, there are many other great bloggers and posts I could mention but my stage training taught me an important point:

Always leave 'em wanting more.

Chess Images II

Jennifer Shahade is doing some good blogging over at the USCF site--you have to be a member to see the majority of it, though. Meanwhile, here's the interview from where this photo was retrieved.

The image, however, speaks for itself.

The Best Excuse for a Loss, EVER

Well, I lost my game at the Reno CC Summer Swiss last night to Ricardo Arteaga (1543) but at least it was quite exciting--he played the Philidor Defense (look Ma, I'm a king pawn player now!) and I sacrificed a bishop at f7 on move 6! It was all very tricky as I won an exchange, but would the knight escape (we've all been there before)? And every move was tactics, tactics without a break until move 31, when I blundered a piece. And in the interest of full disclosure I must report that my opponent used about 30 minutes for the entire game. He looked like he was a fish in water, while I agonized and calculated away.

Anyhow, just a few hours before the game my Dr. called with the news that a series of blood tests have revealed that I'm suffering from a pretty big deficit in thyroid function--which may go a long way toward explaining why I haven't had any stamina lately, and after about 20 well-played moves I begin to make so many errors. In a couple of days they're going to try me on some pills, which are expected to boost my functioning.

Seriously, I don't think I can blame all my losses on this--last night's game only lasted two hours! Eighty minutes used for me, 30 for him. Anyway, I'm probably going to take two or three weeks away from the grind of tournament play and just study, do some internet chess and have fun. Then we'll see how it's going, and I expect to get back into the serious "chess for blood."

Meanwhile, the blog will be more interesting because readers won't have to wade through my mediocre tournament efforts--after I post the three that haven't made it up here yet...(and just when will that be? ed.)

I'm pretty excited about the future, plus I have the best excuse ever for any recent errors in the past! Talk about the best of both worlds...