Right? Who can resist the opportunity to set up a queen sac for mate?

Thank you, <areknames>

<areknames>, i second that emotion

Perhaps a wealthy patron is involved, akin to Rex Sinquefield for US chess?>

I don't think so, in any case only about half of the Individual FIDE Senior Championships have been held in Italy since 2015, so I exaggerated a bit.

When I had turned 50, I seriously considered making a comeback and enrol in the Championships in Acqui Terme in the Fall of 2017 (the town also hosted the tournament in 2015). We were going to Europe anyway on vacation at around that time so it was definitely a possibility.

However, as lovely as Acqui Terme is, it's certainly no Florence, no Venice, no Milano, not even a Gallipoli. It wouldn't have been fair on my wife, so for that and other reasons (logistics etc) I shelved those plans.

True, there is growing resentment towards overtourism in Spain, France and Italy. It drives the price of everything up, among other drawbacks. In Florence and Barcelona rents are through the roof. In Venice most houses and <palazzi> are now owned by wealthy foreigners, most ordinary Venetians who still have a job in the city can only afford to live in neighbouring sleeper town Mestre.

A city is not made up by its palaces and cathedrals, no matter how grand.

I am white and it's my turn:

click for larger view

The computer says 15.b5 is ok but moving the f3 knight to safety is much better. Now, look at black's pieces. Do you think someone who handled the opening this way (...Bxc3, really?) is going to survive b5?

Also, I know no restraint in blitz.

15.b5 exf3 16.Bxf3 axb5 17.cxb5 Na5 18.Qd4

Of course this was the idea.

click for larger view

Black's only move here is 18...Kf7. There is no immediate mate, but look at black's position! Is <any> black piece good?

PSG v Bayern Munich this morning was a great match!

Sadly, I had a death in the family--sister in law (my wife's brother's wife). I also had to deal with troubles concerning the mobility scooter I bought last year and I <still> haven't managed to get it into operational form. Partly my fault, partly their horrible customer service.

Other than that, I've been doing well. Summer is the time to catch up with so many household/life tasks... Passport renewal, car shopping, MS treatment (one of my two annual infusion sessions), catching up with family/friends, gardening as usual, and the list goes on. And then there is the Vanderbilt work (research and prepping a new course), which is going slow.

Appreciate you and your forum. Oh, i have an article of yours bookmarked that was posted on Rogoff. Looking forward to it.

Hope you get the scooter issues worked out soon, but glad to hear things are going ok otherwise.

<Is anyone following the world cup of clubs?>

Not me!

* * * * *

<<CIO> - watering my tomatoes, peppers, basil etc but the garden is struggling...>

My gardening has provided enough garlic to last beyond the summer, and a lot of greens and herbs that end in our dinner plates, but I had to slow down because it got so hot. The heat is affecting me like never before.

Like <SFOD>, I also wonder what struggles you are referring to. Three things are odd this summer here. First, my marigold seeds (from last years' flowers, which were in turn from seeds from the previous year) produced marigold plants, but flowerless. I am puzzled about that. (I wonder if the original seeds were genetically modified to stop producing flowers after two seasons, but I'm pretty sure I bought organic seeds. I always buy organic.) Second, the dandelion patch (a small patch on top of the grave of a bunny we had), which we grew just to feed visiting rabbits, totally failed this season... Dandelion! Really? It's considered a weed because dandelion is a tough m.f. How can it totally fail to thrive? Third, but this is yet to be confirmed, my tomato plants seem to be a lot less prolific this year. I didn't do the work of cutting off the suckers regularly. Could it be that?

<SFOD> I can see light at the end of the tunnel for my struggles with my first scooter (I have gotten their customer service to wake up), but it will take weeks while they repair the battery, which I need to ship to them. In the meantime, yesterday I got myself a second scooter! I learned my lesson, and this time I bought the scooter at a local store, already assembled. And if I ever need help, they'll service it. It's also light enough (about 50lbs), which is fine for me. I weigh less than 160lbs, so I don't need a heavy duty one. And it's also foldabe, which makes it easy to transport.

https://goldentech.com/product/mobi...

For myself, I've suffered a few setbacks in the last months; I have more trouble walking because of problems with my feet and more frequent shortness of breath. But I soldier on and am confident that I'll be ok at the end of the day. Right now I am focussing on trying to get through the harshest winter I have ever experienced since moving to Australia. Anyone who thinks this is the land of sun, sand and surf should spend a month in one of our coldest states in the winter and they would soon change their minds!

And how often do you find Northern hemisphere people who are not aware that the seasons are opposite? (Over the years, I have found even <very> educated people unaware of it.)

Winters in Buenos Aires are not very cold. The temperature hardly ever goes below freezing. However, they are very humid, and that gets in your bones sometimes. The opposite seasons has always been a factor dissuading me from visiting Argentina during the Northern hemisphere's summer. I don't want to trade hot for cold, no matter how oppressively hot it may get here.

I remember the soccer Sundays growing up, listening to a game on the radio and being constantly updated on what was happening in other games. Especially exciting when you had played the "Prode"... short for "pronósticos deportivos" (sports forecast), the official betting system for Argentine soccer.

Getting close to 20 years now, almost a third of my life.

<I don't want to trade hot for cold, no matter how oppressively hot it may get here.>

I feel the same way. However my wife hates the heat and loves the cold (preferably with lots of snow), the opposite of me, so for her sake I'd agree to travel to the Northern Hemisphere in our summer. Tbh, it didn't really bother me when I was relatively healthy but now, even if I still were able to travel, I couldn't do it.

<Especially exciting when you had played the "Prode"... short for "pronósticos deportivos" (sports forecast), the official betting system for Argentine soccer.>