well, this game - although technically decided a bit after the time trouble - is evidence in support of your theory, i guess:

click for larger view

I entered for the Challengers with the intention of (a) winning it, and (b) playing three FIDE-rated opponents to reach the magic number nine. But I may upgrade to the Open, as only 4 of the Challengers entries so far have FIDE ratings.

In '78, I moved to the top/masters section, and started with a win and a draw. My 16-game unbeaten Easter run was ended by one Keith Allen.

I don't think I've played an Eastertime event there since, but the staying unbeaten thing sounds like a good idea. As does winning.

i wonder who pays for all these excursions by (usually) young norwegian chess players. their parents?

'ntg' (the norwegian "high school" for top athletes) has made it a tradition to travel abroad a lot with its chess classes, but i doubt the school pays for these travels to any notable extent. i don't know, though.

As three of our most loyal and longstanding readers - no, scrap that, *the* top three most regular visitors - your custom is much appreciated. Likewise wit, and other such stuff. Praise for *moi* doesn't go amiss either.

A. Omtvedt looks like the most dangerous opponent in the Challengers, and I think he's in his early 20s.

The masters/open seems to have 11 entrants from Norway, just pipped by 12 from Ireland. The Norwegians range from the 1600s to the 2400s, with a large bloc around 2000.

My nightmare scenario is opting for the Challengers, being paired entirely with non-FIDE-rated opponents, and still dropping a couple of points. I hope some more FIDE-rated people enter the challengers ... if I can't win something, a rating would be a consolation.

Though I don't imagine you suffer any great insecurity as to whether people are noticing you or not. We do, and we appreciate the subtleties as well.

young, talented kids:
Hauge, Lars Oskar 2087
Mihajlov, Sebastian 2053

sebastian's father:
Mihajlov, Svetoslav 2093

the next two (together with another norwegian im, carlsen's first trainer ringdal hansen) run a full-time chess shop that offers chess courses for children and adults in addition to selling books and software - while currently alos editing/writing the official norwegian chess magazine:

Bae, Torstein 2413
Bjerke, Silje 2238

bae is also a former president of the norwegian chess federation, and wim bjerke has been the instructor for my son (and a bunch of other kids) in several multi-day "chess camps" during school holidays.

Kvisvik, Brede 2304

qualified to play for the norwegian championship in 2012 by winning the "challenger" group in 2011. he also is the doctor that correctly diagnosed my ripped achilles tendon some 5 minutes after it snapped during the football tournament of the 2011 norwegian chess championships.

<A. Omtvedt looks like the most dangerous opponent in the Challengers, and I think he's in his early 20s.>

yeah, young fellow. i lost to his father (i think) in the 2011 norw champs, and i played a game of (very) rapid chess against the young omtvedt during the pub chess event during same championships; i was losing in the middle game, but saved half a point by playing the end game significantly better than him despite being terribly low on time. of course, i ended up 4-5 minutes behind on the clock out of the opening being busy finishing the excellent burger i'd ordered from the pub/restaurant's kitchen in a break between rounds.

It's from 'Eire Apparent' ... mack's report from Galway 2009, when I mysteriously failed to show up...

<'The mere possibility that this could happen should be sufficient for us to consider other forms of the body's knowing itself as a consequence of planetary crisis and meltdown. It is when the machine begins to break down that you begin to see how it works. Likewise it is when authority is challenged that you begin to see the otherwise concealed workings of the power structure.'

M Taussig, 'What Color is the Sacred?' (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2009), p.14.

Despondently yours,
F.Stein

Not a bit, though I'm very upset on hms' behalf.

<Though we're just a tiny bit concerned about your apparent interest in the daily logins of He Who Casts The Second Stone. It's beneath you, and you know it.>

But I feel like trying to win something, rather than score 2.5/9 against an expected score of 2.3. Or whatever.

- <that would only be <national> rating points, of course.>

Eh, no, actually. I meant *game* points, not ratings. The kind you 'drop' a couple of by losing twice or drawing four times, thus finishing far away from the prizes. And probably dropping all sorts of rating points as well.

Speakina steins ... I read something by an unnamed journalist (*cough*) which seemed to be under the impression that the phrase went "Let whoever casts the first stone be without sin".

Somehow, I don't think this indicates repentance and a humble desire to examine the mote in his own eye. Nobody denies the, er, motility of his detractors' eyes.

We shall see.

It's ambiguous. Many excellent things are, of course, including several eminent Old Frogspawnians. But in this case the claim might be memetic (like a catchy tune) or psychoanalytic (like a quack, a cold reader, or perhaps an evolutionary psychologist).

I suppose both mean "I have penetrated", but one is lucubratory and the other lubricative. Neither is very luculent.

such things happen. for example, i am finding <domdaniel> very irritating at the moment . i am not going to verbalize those irritating thoughts here . however, these thoughts may become recurring and then it could be said that <domdaniel> is inside my head.

at this point there would be many options available to me :

1)trash the forum of Domdaniel angrily (that was done to <tpstar> forum by the way).

2)gossip with my 'friends' at cg.com about it especially with someone who can appear to be intellectual and wise.

3)take this as a good opportuntunity to evolve by taking responsibility - by recognizing that i am the cause in the matter. other steps that entail taking responsibility are not easy but i know all of them experientially and am well equipped . some others might need the help of counselling by a psychologist( or a wise spiritualist).