Romantic chess was alive and well.

"My will is mine...I shall not make it soft for you." ― Aeschylus, Agamemnon

"Chess is life in miniature. Chess is a struggle, chess battles." ― Garry Kasparov

"After we have paid our dutiful respects to such frigid virtues as calculation, foresight, self-control and the like, we always come back to the thought that speculative attack is the lifeblood of chess." — Fred Reinfeld

"Age brings wisdom to some men, and to others chess." ― Evan Esar

"There is no jewel in the world comparable to learning; no learning so excellent both for Prince and subject, as knowledge of laws; and no knowledge of any laws so necessary for all estates and for all causes, concerning goods, lands or life, as the common laws of England." ― Sir Edward Coke

"Without integrity and honor, having everything means nothing." ― Robin Sharma

"I am no longer cursed by poverty because I took possession of my own mind, and that mind has yielded me every material thing I want, and much more than I need. But this power of mind is a universal one, available to the humblest person as it is to the greatest." ― Andrew Carnegie

"Luckily, there is a way to be happy. It involves changing the emphasis of our thinking from what we want to what we have." ― Richard Carlson

"Enthusiasm is one of the most powerful engines of success. When you do a thing, do it with all your might. Put your whole soul into it. Stamp it with your own personality. Be active, be energetic, be enthusiastic and faithful, and you will accomplish your object. Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm." ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

"It's a lot of things that I consider (what opening to play). Obviously, my opponent's rating—I don't want to play an equal game where I don't have many winning chances. But also, my mood is important, and my opponent's styles themselves." ― 13-year-old FM Brewington Hardaway from New York

"Let a man play chess, and tell him that every pawn is his friend; Let him think both bishops are holy. Let him remember happy days in the shadows of his castles. Let him love his queen. Watch him love his queen." ― Mark Lawrence (Prince of Thorn)

"...It is a proud privilege to be a soldier – a good soldier … with discipline, self-respect, pride in his unit and his country, a high sense of duty and obligation to comrades and to his superiors, and a self confidence born of demonstrated ability." ― George S. Patton Jr.

* Chess Step-by-Step: https://www.chess.com/learn-how-to-...

* Basic Rules: https://thechessworld.com/basic-che...

* Common Checkmate Patterns:
http://gambiter.com/chess/Checkmate...

* Caviar: https://www.chess.com/article/view/...

* Chessmaster 2000 Classic Games:
Game Collection: Chessmaster '86

* Chess - The Art of the Mind
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3P...

* For the one: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/KXuw...

* One hitters: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ANb7...

* 5 Beginner Blunders: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJq...

* 5 ways in 51 seconds: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/hrWv...

* 6 hours: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SP7L...

* 10 Tips: https://www.uschess.org/index.php/L...

* 10 Crazy Gambits: https://www.chess.com/blog/yola6655...

* 13-year-old searching: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/zPQd...

* 25 Opening Traps: https://www.chess.com/blog/ChessLor...

* 50 classics: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKF...

* 50 gone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GK_...

* Art: Game Collection: Art of Checkmate

* Attack: Game Collection: Chess Secrets - Attackers (Crouch)

* 19-year-old Andrew Hong: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkA...

* 1919 electric car?!?! https://www.youtube.com/shorts/eRWq...

* 1956 RIP OPEN THE CENTER!! https://www.youtube.com/shorts/QMjr...

* 1965 (Freddie & the Dreamers): https://www.youtube.com/shorts/fCN4...

* 1966 KIA: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/-YO4...

* 1972 title match: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCk...

* 1974 nothing: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/3sx_...

* 1980 where is Springstein?? https://www.youtube.com/shorts/4jU5...

* 1980 lady, I'm your knight in shining armor: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Lhf5...

* 1998 don't wanna miss a thing: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/4jQx...

* 1999 smooth: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/O8F0...

* Athens 2004: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/qEfY...

* Baby love: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Fe2C...

* Billie Jean's buddiez: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/eBd4...

* Best Games of 2018: Game Collection: Best Games of 2018

* B20s: Game Collection: Grand Prix (Ginger's Models)

* 21st Century: Game Collection: 0

* Chess is cold-steel calculation, not emotion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-T...

* Check to the Queen! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkA...

* CFN: https://www.youtube.com/@CFNChannel

* Close encounters of 3 kinds: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/1Dmy...

* Del's: Game Collection: Del's hidden gems

* 4...g5! becomes a diamond: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sem...

* 1.d4 some Panov Attack: Game Collection: Rick Prep

* 1.d4 various: Game Collection: d2-d4 and win

* Starting Out 1d4: Game Collection: Starting Out: 1 d4!

* Do they play chess on K2 18 B? https://www.youtube.com/shorts/iBu6...

* Don't do this at home: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/GKlB...

* Lekhika Dhariyal Chess Ops: https://www.zupee.com/blog/category... Zucci

* Slow but deadly: https://www.bing.com/videos/rivervi...

* More deadly: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/nxhR...

* Malagueña: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pz2...

* Modern Masterpieces: Game Collection: Instructive Modern Chess Masterpieces ~ Stohl

* Matovinsky Gambit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EF7...

* MC Move-by-Move: Game Collection: Move by Move - Carlsen (Lakdawala)

* Masterful: Game Collection: FRENCH DEFENSE MASTERPIECES

* Miniatures: Game Collection: 200 Miniature Games of Chess - Du Mont (III)

* Lasker's Manual: Game Collection: Manual of Chess (Lasker)

* Miniatures: Game Collection: 200 Miniature Games of Chess - Du Mont (III)

* Monday Puzzles: Game Collection: Monday Puzzles, 2011-2017

* Nunn's Chess Course: Game Collection: Lasker JNCC

* Pinch of... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oU_...

* POTD 2023: Game Collection: Puzzle of the Day 2023

* Not so simple: Game Collection: Simple Chess by Michael Stean

* N vs RPs: Game Collection: KNIGHTS *HATE* ROOK PAWNS!

* Winning w/1.d4: Game Collection: Winning with 1 d4!

* Against 1.d4: Game Collection: Against d4 favs

* 1500 psi: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/IaRq...

* Dawg gone it: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/DV4t...

* Dr. Edmund Adam Miniatures: Edmund Adam

* Ergosphere: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Jw27... In astrophysics, the ergosphere is a region located outside a rotating black hole's outer event horizon. Its name was proposed by Remo Ruffini and John Archibald Wheeler during the Les Houches lectures in 1971 and is derived from Ancient Greek ἔργον (ergon) 'work'. -- Wikipedia

* Excavation: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/kT9a...

* Exposing the K: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tH...

* Extinguish the Dragon: Game Collection: 1.e4 explorations

* Everyday people should play tabletop games: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUU...

* Famous Chess Photos: https://tr.pinterest.com/pin/585256...

* Fades: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/mmlK...

* Fails: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/D-sx...

* First-ever selfie: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/xUc1...

* Fischer Wins: Game Collection: Bobby Fischer Wins With The King's Indian Attack

* Find a way: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/3JX_...

* fran's favs: Game Collection: franskfranz's favorite games as white

* Frenchmen playing the Spanish game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74J...

* Forbidden: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/kUVY...

* Get 'er done! https://www.youtube.com/shorts/LCCo...

* Glossary P: https://www.peoriachess.com/Glossar...

* Golden Treasury of Chess (Wellmuth/Horowitz): Game Collection: Golden Treasury of Chess (Wellmuth/Horowitz)

* The new guy: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/rVXN...

* GM Avetik Grigoryan: https://chessmood.com/blog/improve-...

* GPA: https://chesstier.com/grand-prix-at...

* GK Sicil: Game Collection: Kasparov - The Sicilian Sheveningen

* Glossary W: Wikipedia article: Glossary of chess

* Heart stopping: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/U9W5...

* Hela cells: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/k8Ra...

* High expectations: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/JxVz...

* That's how it's done: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/69C4...

* Intuition: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JJ...

* Inconceivable: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/6yTd...

* keistering: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/755P...

* A few KIAs: Game Collection: Opening Ideas

* KID 0-1s: Game Collection: K.I.D B wins E98

* Tips for Knights & More: http://www.chesssets.co.uk/blog/tip...

* Unleash the Knight: https://cardclashgames.com/blog/che...

* Keep this in mind: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/bHmL...

* Selected K-K games: Game Collection: Great WCC games

* 1984 out of touch: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/socI...

* 1985 WC: Game Collection: 1985 World Chess Championship

* Highlights: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsD...

* All K-K matches in the database:
http://www.chessgames.com/perl/ches...

search "Kasparov vs Karpov"

* Love happens: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/-seS...

* The Man of Бравада: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pv5...

* Malaguena: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxD...

* Masterful: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/WmGb...

* MC Move-by-Move: Game Collection: Move by Move - Carlsen (Lakdawala)

* Meet Theordore: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/-MSy...

* More than a feeling: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4Q...

* Numb the pain! https://www.youtube.com/shorts/H4NS...

* Napoleon's castling: https://www.chess.com/blog/MatiMati...

* Newbiez: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/KToI...

* Norwegian youngsters: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uw5...

* Nothing to it: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/vt44...

* No favorites: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/rRgf...

* Oh No, My Queen! https://www.youtube.com/shorts/xUpR...

* Online safety: https://www.entrepreneur.com/scienc...

* On the job training: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/liXx...

* Overloaded! Game Collection: OVERLOADED!

* Overwhelming: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/cfHA...

* Pawn Instruction: http://www.logicalchess.com/learn/l...

* Pawn Structures: Game Collection: Chess Structures: A Grandmaster Guide

* Part 11: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/8vdZ...

* Passing time: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/pWcL...

* Persuasive perpetual: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lUAz...

* Pop goes the weazel!?? https://www.youtube.com/shorts/8c6P...

* Prophylaxis or child payments: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/_TSg...

* Pirc Defense, Classical: Game Collection: Pirc, Classical Variation

* 3rd Rank vs 6th Rank: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkA...

* It's gotta B raw: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/LZGY...

* Relationship-less: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/C33x...

* Rhiannon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_a...

* Ruy Lopez ML: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/v4ix...

* Safety last: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/2O5y...

* Sam Shamoun or Dennis Hopper? https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Vvh4...

* Shattered: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/6M0z...

* Stunts: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/VByq...

* Sunlight as a source of energy: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/V4Ba...

* Take it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mJ...

* Take it again: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T42...

* Trapped: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/o7uT...

* Threes company: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/uVy5...

* Thumps: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SxDX...

* They know not: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SE97...

* Time: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/wj2e...

* The Chess Portal will broaden your horizons: http://schackportalen.nu/English/es...

* Parking lot footage: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/5h6E...

* Passive, but playable in the Russian Game: Game Collection: Alpha Russian (White)

* Petroff 0-0-0 vs 0-0: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qK7...

* Practical Chess Exercises: 600 Lessons from Tactics to Strategy by Ray Cheng

* Promotions, Preventions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Co...

* Queen Pawn Games: Game Collection: ANIL RAJ.R'S QUEEN PAWN GAMES

* QGD D06: Queen's Gambit Declined (D06)

* QGDs: Game Collection: QUEEN'S GAMBIT DECLINED

* He flopped quads. Bet. Raise. All in and snap call.

* Rajnish Das Tips: https://enthu.com/blog/chess/chess-...

* Reasonable 1.d4 Repertoire: Game Collection: d4 repertoire for white

* Reza vs Rouda: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ihi...

* Roger that: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9S...

* Separation: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/Vzjr...

* She's a pawn grabber: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ARly...

* Sounding off: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/bike...

* tacticmania - Game Collection: tacticmania

* Tactical Games: Game Collection: Yasser Seirawan's Winning Chess Tactics

* Tricky: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/O6_g...

* Trolling: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5l...

* It takes me back where, when and who: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wh2...

* Unreal!! https://www.youtube.com/shorts/siUZ...

* Spruce Variety: https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/che...

* Vera Menchick: https://www.chess.com/article/view/...

* get vertical: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ZHtG...

* Very busy: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/iQGZ...

* View from the top: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ENen...

* Watch your step: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/DMZ0...

* Wish upon a star: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/NKji...

* Wikipedia on Computer Chess: Wikipedia article: Computer chess

* Who? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PNb...

* What goes up... https://www.youtube.com/shorts/l6Vd...

* When you've got the hang of it: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/65sS...

* Women: https://www.thefamouspeople.com/wom...

* Wired for sound: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/RuYK...

Place your knights in the center for greater mobility; avoid edges and the corners.

Alaska: Kodiak
Established in: 1792

Kodiak is the main city in Kodiak Island and was founded in 1792 by Aleksandr Andreyevich Baranov. It was first called Pavlovsk Gavan, which is Russian for Paul's Harbor, and was the first capital of Russian Alaska. You can still find a large Russian Orthodox church there, as well as plenty of beautiful views.

* Chess History: https://www.britannica.com/topic/ch...

* Chess History: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YeB...

* Three Simple Chess Tips: https://www.premierchesscoaching.co...

* Mr. Harvey's Puzzle Challenge: https://wtharvey.com/

WTHarvey:
There once was a website named WTHarvey,
Where chess puzzles did daily delay,
The brain-teasers so tough,
They made us all huff and puff,
But solving them brought us great satisfaction today.

There once was a website named WTHarvey
Where chess puzzles were quite aplenty
With knight and rook and pawn
You'll sharpen your brain with a yawn
And become a master of chess entry

There once was a site for chess fun,
Wtharvey.com was the chosen one,
With puzzles galore,
It'll keep you in store,
For hours of brain-teasing, none done.

There once was a website named WTHarvey,
Where chess puzzles were posted daily,
You'd solve them with glee,
And in victory,
You'd feel like a true chess prodigy!

"Chess is played with the mind and not with the hands." ― Renaud & Kahn

"Chess is a terrific way for kids to build self-image and self-esteem." ― Saudin Robovic

"Chess is a sport. The main object in the game of chess remains the achievement of victory." ― Max Euwe

"Life is like a chess. If you lose your queen, you will probably lose the game." ― Being Caballero

"If you wish to succeed, you must brave the risk of failure." — Garry Kasparov

"You win some, you lose some, you wreck some." — Dale Earnhardt

"In life, unlike chess the game continues after checkmate." ― Isaac Asimov

Кто не рискует, тот не пьет шампанского Pronunciation: KTOH ni risKUyet, tot ni pyot shamPANSkava) Translation: He who doesn't take risks doesn't drink champagne Meaning: Fortune favours the brave

"Tal has a terrifying style. Soon even grandmasters will know of this." - Vladimir Saigin (after losing to 17-year-old Tal in a qualifying match for the master title) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5S...

"I like to grasp the initiative and not give my opponent peace of mind." — Mikhail Tal

Maximo wrote:

My Forking Knight's Mare
Gracefully over the squares, as a blonde or a brunette, she makes moves that not even a queen can imitate. Always active and taking the initiative,
she likes to fork.
She does it across the board,
taking with ease not only pawns, but also kings, and a bad bishop or two.
Sometimes she feels like making
quiet moves,
at other times, she adopts romantic moods,
and makes great sacrifices.
But, being hers a zero-sum game,
she often forks just out of spite.
An expert at prophylaxis, she can be a swindler, and utter threats,
skewering men to make some gains.
Playing with her risks a conundrum,
and also catching Kotov's syndrome.
Nonetheless, despite having been trampled
by her strutting ways
my trust in her remains,
unwavering,
until the endgame.

I have a fear of speed bumps. But I am slowly getting over it.

* Riddle-e-dee: https://chessimprover.com/chess-rid...

I was wondering why the frisbee was getting bigger, then it hit me.

I do not know how old I was when I learned to play chess. I could not have been older than eight, because I still have a chessboard on whose side my father inscribed, with a soldering iron, "Saša Hemon 1972." I loved the board more than chess—it was one of the first things I owned. Its materiality was enchanting to me: the smell of burnt wood that lingered long after my father had branded it; the rattle of the thickly varnished pieces inside, the smacking sound they made when I put them down, the board's hollow wooden echo. I can even recall the taste—the queen's tip was pleasantly suckable; the pawns' round heads, not unlike nipples, were sweet. The board is still at our place in Sarajevo, and, even if I haven't played a game on it in decades, it is still my most cherished possession, providing incontrovertible evidence that there once lived a boy who used to be me." ― Aleksandar Hemon, The Book of My Lives

Matthew 17:20
Our faith can move mountains.

'Finders keepers, losers weepers'
No, turn it over to Lost and Found.

Drive sober or get pulled over.

"For surely of all the drugs in the world, chess must be the most permanently pleasurable." — Assiac

Two artists had an art contest. It ended in a draw.

FACTRETRIEVER: Gummy bears were originally called "dancing bears." Sea otters have the thickest fur of any mammal, at 1 million hairs per square inch.

Golf clubs

Select a good chess move:

1. Is my king and queen safe? Am I absolutely sure?

2. Why did my opponent make that move?

3. What just changed?

4. What is now en prise / un/under-defended?

5. Any immediate risks / opportunities? (If no, go to default) - Opening: Develop
- Middle game: Improve, build attack, pawn breaks. - End game: Assure the best outcome

6. What are ALL the candidate moves?

7. For each, what is likely to happen? New risks/opportunities?

8. Which is best?

9. Does it improve my position?

10. Sanity check, sure it's not a mistake?

InkHarted wrote:

Checkmate.
I started off as an equal
I have everything that they do
my life was one and the same as my foe
childish battles of lesser
I won baring cost of a little
but as time outgrew my conscience
I found that the pieces were moving against me
with time my company reduced
they left one by one
all in time forgetting me
my castles collapsed
my religion dissuaded
my protectors in hiding
I could not run anymore
I have been cornered to a wall
as the queen left silently
without saying goodbye
I could not live any longer
she was most precious to me
I could not win without her by my side
so the king knelt down and died.

They that sow the wind, shall reap the whirlwind. ― Scottish Proverb

Mark 3:25 And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.

'Finders keepers, losers weepers'
No, turn it over to Lost and Found.

Drive sober or get pulled over.

"For surely of all the drugs in the world, chess must be the most permanently pleasurable." — Assiac

Once I asked Pillsbury whether he used any formula for castling. He said his rule was absolute and vital: castle because you will or because you must; but not because you can.' — W.E. Napier (1881-1952)

Song of the Storm-Swept Plain
William D. Hodjkiss

The wind shrills forth
From the white cold North
Where the gates of the Storm-god are;
And ragged clouds,
Like mantling shrouds,
Engulf the last, dim star.

Through naked trees,
In low coulees,
The night-voice moans and sighs;
And sings of deep,
Warm cradled sleep,
With wind-crooned lullabies.

He stands alone
Where the storm's weird tone
In mocking swells;
And the snow-sharp breath
Of cruel Death
The tales of its coming tells.

The frightened plaint
Of his sheep sound faint
Then the choking wall of white—
Then is heard no more,
In the deep-toned roar,
Of the blinding, pathless night.

No light nor guide,
Save a mighty tide
Of mad fear drives him on;
‘Till his cold-numbed form
Grows strangely warm;
And the strength of his limbs is gone.

Through the storm and night
A strange, soft light
O'er the sleeping shepherd gleams;
And he hears the word
Of the Shepherd Lord
Called out from the bourne of dreams.

Come, leave the strife
Of your weary life;
Come unto Me and rest
From the night and cold,
To the sheltered fold,
By the hand of love caressed.

The storm shrieks on,
But its work is done—
A soul to its God has fled;
And the wild refrain
Of the wind-swept plain,
Sings requiem for the dead.

"Encouragement is like water to the soul, it makes everything grow." ― Chris Burkmenn

Be slow in choosing a friend but slower in changing him. ~ Scottish Proverb

Q. How can you tell when Bill Clinton is lying? A. His lips are moving

Q. What's the difference between Bill Clinton and a dog? A. A dog chases his own tail.

Friendship Limerick by Steve Mckee
If a person would have several friends,
here's the thing upon which it depends;
are you willing to share
when there isn't much there
and burn up your day from both ends.

"It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters." ― Epictetus

"I think a gentleman is someone who holds the comfort of other people above their own. The instinct to do that is inside every good man, I believe. The rules about opening doors and buying dinner and all of that other 'gentleman' stuff is a chess game, especially these days." ― Anna Kendrick

Never judge a book by its cover (especially a chess book).

* Dover publishers: https://store.doverpublications.com...

Dover publishers have downsized their chess book offerings as decades have passed, but many of the all-time classics written in English descriptive notation remain available at affordable prices: https://doverpublications.ecomm-sea... Those who pitch their tent on the Rogoff page having no use for classic chess books can find adult coloring books at Dover publishers. It's a great, versatile publishing company!

For club players, I would recommend "Chess Master vs. Chess Amateur" by Max Euwe and Walter Meiden (as well as Max Euwe's "The Logical Approach to Chess," "Strategy & Tactics in Chess," and "The Road to Chess Mastery" from other book dealers, likely used) before reading James Mason's "The Art of Chess" which is 340 pages! Mason does not spoon-feed the reader as much as Euwe does IMHO.

Those readers demanding an algebraic notation offering from Dover Publishers would do well to buy any book by Tim Harding. Also, if memory serves correctly, there are two tournament books published in algebraic notation: Carlsbad International Chess Tournament 1929 by Aron Nimzovich, translated by Jim Marfia (30 games) and Zurich International Chess Tournament, 1953 by David Bronstein (210 games).

The sign says "free shipping" on orders over $25.00. Several chess offerings are available as e-books. You can bundle -- get both versions and save a bunch. For those wondering about adult coloring e-books, well... I'll have to get back to you on that one, the pace of new technology being what it is.

A Game of Chess -
by T. S. Eliot
II. A GAME OF CHESS

The Chair she sat in, like a burnished throne,
Glowed on the marble, where the glass
Held up by standards wrought with fruited vines
From which a golden Cupidon peeped out
(Another hid his eyes behind his wing)
Doubled the flames of sevenbranched candelabra
Reflecting light upon the table as
The glitter of her jewels rose to meet it,
From satin cases poured in rich profusion;
In vials of ivory and coloured glass
Unstoppered, lurked her strange synthetic perfumes, Unguent, powdered, or liquid — troubled, confused And drowned the sense in odours; stirred by the air That freshened from the window, these ascended
In fattening the prolonged candle-flames,
Flung their smoke into the laquearia,
Stirring the pattern on the coffered ceiling.
Huge sea-wood fed with copper
Burned green and orange, framed by the coloured stone, In which sad light a carved dolphin swam.
Above the antique mantel was displayed
As though a window gave upon the sylvan scene
The change of Philomel, by the barbarous king
So rudely forced; yet there the nightingale
Filled all the desert with inviolable voice
And still she cried, and still the world pursues, " Jug Jug " to dirty ears.
And other withered stumps of time
Were told upon the walls; staring forms
Leaned out, leaning, hushing the room enclosed.
Footsteps shuffled on the stair.
Under the firelight, under the brush, her hair
Spread out in fiery points
Glowed into words, then would be savagely still. " My nerves are bad to-night. Yes, bad. Stay with me. " Speak to me. Why do you never speak. Speak.
— " What are you thinking of? What thinking? What? " I never know what you are thinking. Think. "

I think we are in rats' alley
Where the dead men lost their bones.

" What is that noise? "
The wind under the door.
" What is that noise now? What is the wind doing? " Nothing again nothing.
" Do
" You know nothing? Do you see nothing? Do you remember " Nothing? "

— I remember
Those are pearls that were his eyes.
" Are you alive, or not? Is there nothing in your head? " But
O O O O that Shakespeherian Rag —
It's so elegant
So intelligent
" What shall I do now? What shall I do? "
" I shall rush out as I am, and walk the street
" With my hair down, so. What shall we do to-morrow? " What shall we ever do? "
The hot water at ten.
And if it rains, a closed car at four.
And we shall play a game of chess,
Pressing lidless eyes and waiting for a knock upon the door.

When Lil's husband got demobbed, I said —
I didn't mince my words, I said to her myself,
H URRY UP PLEASE ITS TIME
Now Albert's coming back, make yourself a bit smart. He'll want to know what you done with that money he gave you To get yourself some teeth. He did, I was there. You have them all out, Lil, and get a nice set,
He said, I swear, I can't bear to look at you.
And no more can't I, I said, and think of poor Albert, He's been in the army four years, he wants a good time, And if you don't give it him, there's others will, I said. Oh is there, she said. Something o' that, I said. Then I'll know who to thank, she said, and give me a straight look. H URRY UP PLEASE ITS TIME
If you don't like it you can get on with it, I said. Others can pick and choose if you can't.
But if Albert makes off, it won't be for lack of telling. You ought to be ashamed, I said, to look so antique. (And her only thirty-one.)
I can't help it, she said, pulling a long face,
It's them pills I took, to bring it off, she said. (She's had five already, and nearly died of young George.) The chemist said it would be all right, but I've never been the same. You are a proper fool, I said.
Well, if Albert won't leave you alone, there it is, I said, What you get married for if you don't want children? H URRY UP PLEASE ITS TIME
Well, that Sunday Albert was home, they had a hot gammon, And they asked me in to dinner, to get the beauty of it hot — H URRY UP PLEASE ITS TIME
H URRY UP PLEASE ITS TIME
Goonight Bill. Goonight Lou. Goonight May. Goonight. Ta ta. Goonight. Goonight.
Good night, ladies, good night, sweet ladies, good night, good night.

Jun-12-24
Check It Out: <WannaBe> Thanks. So FIDE uses zeros 0-0 and PGN uses capital letters O-O. My wife and I are playing a game by text and today she coincidentally asked me how to notate castling. I sent O-O and she asked me why I sent eyes looking at her :D

Oct-09-11 FSR: After 1.e4 e5, 2.Ba6?? is the worst move by a country mile. After that, probably 2.b4 and 2.Ke2 are the worst. 2.Qg4 and 2.g4 are also pretty bad. White still has equality after 2.Qh5, so it's actually not a <terrible> move.

The Feeding of Four Thousand

(Matthew 15:29-39)

Mark 8:1-10
1In those days the multitude being very great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and saith unto them, 2I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat: 3And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way: for divers of them came from far. 4And his disciples answered him, From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness? 5And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven. 6And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people. 7And they had a few small fishes: and he blessed, and commanded to set them also before them. 8So they did eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets. 9And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and he sent them away. 10And straightway he entered into a ship with his disciples, and came into the parts of Dalmanutha.

"Believe in yourself. Have faith in your abilities. Without humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers, you cannot be successful or happy." ― Norman Vincent Peale

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." ― Martin Luther King Jr.

Psalm 107:1
Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; his love endures forever.

"To what greater inspiration and counsel can we turn than to the imperishable truth to be found in this treasure house, the Bible?" — Queen Elizabeth II

"Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters." ― Benjamin Franklin

The Sick Lion and the Fox

Sick in his den, we understand,
The king of beasts sent out command
That of his vassals every sort
Should send some deputies to court –
With promise well to treat
Each deputy and suite;
On faith of lion, duly written,
None should be scratched, much less be bitten.
The royal will was executed,
And some from every tribe deputed;
The foxes, only, would not come.
One thus explained their choice of home:
"Of those who seek the court, we learn,
The trackz on the sand
Have one direction, and
Not one betokenz a return.
This fact begetting some diztrust,
His majesty at prezent must
Excuze us from his great levee.
His plighted word is good, no doubt;
But while how beasts get in we see,
We do not see how they get out."

"Zeitnot" is German for "time pressure."

"....his countrymen, Kolisch and Steinitz, are greatly indebted for their later success to their having enjoyed early opportunities of practicing with the departed amateur whose death is also greatly deplored amongst all who knew him personally." — Wilhelm Steinitz, regarding Karl Hamppe

The first appearance of the (John) Cochrane gambit against Petrov's defense C42 was in the year 1848 against an Indian master Mohishunder Bannerjee.

"Sorry don't get it done, Dude!" — John Wayne, Rio Bravo

"Gossip is the devil's telephone. Best to just hang up." — Moira Rose

The Curate and the Corpse

A dead man going slowly, sadly,
To occupy his last abode,
A curate by him, rather gladly,
Did holy service on the road.
Within a coach the dead was borne,
A robe around him duly worn,
Of which I wot he was not proud –
That ghostly garment called a shroud.
In summer's blaze and winter's blast,
That robe is changeless – It's the last.
The curate, with his priestly dress on,
Recited all the church's prayers,
The psalm, the verse, response, and lesson,
In fullest style of such affairs.
Sir Corpse, we beg you, do not fear
A lack of such things on your bier;
They'll give abundance every way,
Provided only that you pay.
The Reverend John Cabbagepate
Watched over the corpse as if it were
A treasure needing guardian care;
And all the while, his looks elate,
This language seemed to hold:
"The dead will pay so much in gold,
So much in lights of molten wax,
So much in other sorts of tax:"
With all he hoped to buy a cask of wine,
The best which thereabouts produced the vine.
A pretty niece, on whom he doted,
And eke his chambermaid, should be promoted,
By being newly petticoated.
The coach upset, and dashed to pieces,
Cut short these thoughts of wine and nieces!
There lay poor John with broken head,
Beneath the coffin of the dead!
His rich, parishioner in lead
Drew on the priest the doom
Of riding with him to the tomb!

The Pot of Milk, and fate
Of Curate Cabbagepate,
As emblems, do but give
The history of most that live.

"Chess is life in miniature. Chess is a struggle, chess battles." — Garry Kasparov

"Sometimes in life, and in chess, you must take one step back to take two steps forward." — IM Levy Rozman, GothamChess

So much, much, much better to be an incurable optimist than deceitful and untrustworthy.

"Don't blow your own trumpet." — Australian Proverb

The Blossom
by William Blake

Merry, merry sparrow!
Under leaves so green
A happy blossom
Sees you, swift as arrow,
Seek your cradle narrow,
Near my bosom.
Pretty, pretty robin!
Under leaves so green
A happy blossom
Hears you sobbing, sobbing,
Pretty, pretty robin,
Near my bosom.

Riddle Question: The one who has it does not keep it. It is large and small. It is any shape.

Thank you, Qindarka!

Riddle Answer: A gift.

This collection was hacked by the underhanded Chessgames operator.

1 Corinthians 13
King James Version

13 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.

10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.

11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.

12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

<chess writer and poet Henry Thomas Bland.

Another example of his way with words is the start of ‘Internal Fires', a poem published on page 57 of the March 1930 American Chess Bulletin:

I used to play chess with the dearest old chap,
Whom naught could upset whatever might hap.
He'd oft lose a game he might well have won
But made no excuse for what he had done.
If a piece he o'erlooked and got it snapped up

He took it quite calmly and ne'er ‘cut up rough'.>

Drive sober or get pulled over.

"For surely of all the drugs in the world, chess must be the most permanently pleasurable." — Assiac

"No one has ever won a game of chess by taking only forward moves (what about Scholar's Mate?). Sometimes you have to move backwards in order to be able to take better steps forward. That is life." – Anonymous

"You can only get good at chess if you love the game." ― Bobby Fischer

"As long as you can still grab a breath, you fight." — The Revenant

Missing by Anne Scott

I've hunted near, I've hunted far
I even looked inside my car.
I've lost my glasses, I'm in need,
To have them now so I can read.
I loudly swear and I curse
Did I leave them in my purse?
Are they behind the sofa, under the bed?
Oh, there they are - on my head!

"There just isn't enough televised chess." — David Letterman

"Do the things that interest you and do them with all your heart. Don't be concerned about whether people are watching you or criticizing you. The chances are that they aren't paying any attention to you. It's your attention to yourself that is so stultifying. But you have to disregard yourself as completely as possible. If you fail the first time then you'll just have to try harder the second time. After all, there's no real reason why you should fail. Just stop thinking about yourself." — Eleanor Roosevelt

"Many have become chess masters, no one has become the master of chess." — Siegbert Tarrasch

wordy fun:
zeruption Zatonskih and Krushr both adopted from Ukrn promotion. Karn was on brain salad surgery not Tarkus or Ed Van Halena on keyboard #2. It's all but over now in Tokyo, Jakarta. "I should have shot the horse," was his only comment. Z72db Zachariah went five beetlez hands won again of sandstone.

Chess For Children Step by Step by William Lombardy. Chess and Children by George Francis Kane.
Chess in a Nutshell by Fred Reinfeld.
Chess Tactics for Beginners, edited by Fred Reinfeld. Chess for Beginners by I.A. Horowitz.
Attack and Counterattack in Chess by Fred Reinfeld. How To Force Checkmate by Fred Reinfeld.
How To Win Chess Games Quickly by Fred Reinfeld. Learn Chess Quickly by I.A. Horowitz.
Modern Ideas in the Chess Openings by I.A. Horowitz. How Not to Play Chess by Eugene A. Znosko-Borovsky. How to Improve Your Chess by by I.A. Horowitz and Fred Reinfeld. How to Play Chess Endings by I.A. Horowitz.
Logical Chess, Move by Move by Irving Chernev.
The Logical Approach to Chess by Dr. Max Euwe, et. al. The Art of the Checkmate by Georges Renaud and Victor Kahn. The King Hunt by W.H. Cozens.
Chess The Easy Way by Reuben Fine.
Chess in Ten Easy Lessons by Larry Evans.
What's the Best Move? by Larry Evans.
The Complete Chess Player by Fred Reinfeld.
The Art of Chess Combination by Eugene A. Znosko-Borovsky. How to Play Chess Endings by Eugene A. Znosko-Borovsky. Win at Chess by Fred Reinfeld.
Dynamic Chess by R.N. Coles.
Common Sense in Chess by Emanuel Lasker.
1000 Short Games of Chess by Irving Chernev.
Chess Master vs Chess Amateur by Euwe and Meiden. Morphy's Games of Chess by Hans Kmoch.
How Good is Your Chess? by Leonard Barden.
How to Play the Chess Openings by Eugene A. Znosko-Borovsky. The Middle Game in Chess by Eugene A. Znosko-Borovsky. The Art of Sacrifice by Rudolf Spielmann.
The Game of Chess by Siegbert Tarrasch.
The Golden Treasury of Chess by Welmuth and Horowitz. Lasker's Manual of Chess by Emanuel Lasker.
Chess For Fun and Chess For Blood by Edward Lasker. 200 Open Games by David Bronstein.
Winning Chess Traps by Irving Chernev.
The Art of Attack by Vukovic
The Chess-Player's Handbook by Howard Staunton.
The Art of the Middle Game by Paul Keres and Alexander Kotov. Modern Chess Strategy by Ludek Pachman.
A Guide to Chess Endings by Dr. Max Euwe and David Hooper. The Art of Chess by James Mason