Art Appreciation Monday

Chess Pieces

    Really now.  How come?!

Sunday Sermon - Chess Edition

The Queen's Gambit

    First of all, it's not a true gambit.  White can, and does, win back the pawn.  Always.

    Secondly, Black has a whole bunch of great options for beating the Queen 's Gambit.  I've used the Leningrad (Dutch) Defense, the Grunfeld Defense, and the Benoni Defense in tournaments.  I had good results with all of them.

Chess on Television

    Once upon a time, back in the 80's or 90's, PBS televised a major chess match.  I don't recall now who the two players were, but they had commentators (not at the actual site of the game, of course, but back at the studio) and everything.

    Full Disclosure I've been a chess fanatic all my life.  So believe me when I say, there is NOTHING more boring than watching a chess game on TV.

Chess By Mail

    Not only do I not 'get' this comic at all, but I'm also a bit miffed that Arlo is dissing those (like me) who play chess by mail.

Realistic Chess

    IIRC, 3-man chess is a real thing, although I don't believe I've ever played it.  Still, the idea of two players ganging up on a stronger third player (a similar strategy is standard fare in the game of Risk), is kind of intriguing.

Punny Sunday

    Admittedly, if helps if you're an avid chess player.  

Quote For The Day

Three-Person Chess

    I have played chess almost my entire life.  And a number of variations of it - Kriegspiel, Giveaway, Dark Chess, King's Fortress, 3-D, etc.

    But I'd never seen a 3-person chess set before, and after googling it, this is apparently legitimate.  I have to say I'm very intrigued by it.

Uzi Takes King. Checkmate.

    I did win one (rated) chess game when the opponent played "Uzi Kills Everything".  He was rated 400 points higher than me, and I beat him with an unsound opening, while his friend, the state champion looked on.

    I have also seen several Risk games end this way.

Chess, Chemistry, Xmas, and Dorkiness

    Yes, I'm an avid chess player.  Yes, I'm a chemist.  And yes, I'm a dork.  That's why I want Santa to bring this for Christmas.

    FWIW, it would be for decorative purposes only.  Trying to play with anything other than the classical "Staunton" chessmen f*cks up your game to an incredible degree.

Chess and Pigeons

"Arguing with idiots is like playing chess with a pigeon. As good as I am, the bird is going to sh*t on the board and strut around like it won anyway."

     There are a couple variations of this quote floating around in cyberspace.  Quite often "idiots" is replaced by either "Republicans" or "Creationists". 

    Those work, but I kinda like the more generic "idiots".  It allows Republicans and Creationists to read the quote  without being aware that it's aimed at them.

Extreme Chess

    FWIW, White is winning.  Big time.  Black's only hope is that the pieces aren't magnetized.

Chess for Puppies

   
    Well, Castling is a two-step process, so as long as the puppy remembers to pick up the King first and move it over two squares, and then pick up the Castle, there is no need for opposable thumbs.

    Beyond that, White is much better developed than Black, who seems to have done nothing but move her Knight(s) back and forth.  Indeed, one can say the puppy has a superior, perhaps even a winning position already.

    I could turn this into a blonde joke, but I shall resist the temptation.  And FWIW, I have seen human chess players forget the necessity for moving the King before the Rook when castling.  So the puppy is in good company.

My secret chess weapon

Yeah, I'm a chess geek...

... so I found this Baby Blues strip to be hilarious.

Bambi Chess

and I just hate it when someone kills my Bambi's mother before I kill their Bambi's mother.

RIP - Bent Larsen

Bent Larsen

Nationality : Danish

International Grandmaster

b. : 04 March 1935

d. : 09 September 2010

. Bent Larsen passed away last week in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He became a (Chess) International Grandmaster in 1956, and back in those days, that title meant something. . His best playing days were in the 1960's and 70's, back when I was breaking into chess. His opening repertoire was unique for a top-flight chessplayer in that it included a lot of offbeat and rarely-played lines. This made a major influence upon me, and affects my choices of openings even to this day. . Those openings, and his wide-open, risk-taking middle-game play, often flummoxed the legions of Russian grandmasters. Indeed, in those days, Larsen and a skinny American kid named Bobby Fischer were the only Western players that were a threat to beat up on the Soviet players. .

He was also a great annotator. I enjoyed reading his comments because he gave you real, honest remarks. If his opponent was outplaying him, he'd tell you. If he caught a lucky break, he'd admit it. Most annotators want you to believe their opponents just rolled over and begged for mercy. I'm sorry, Walter Browne. My opponents don't do that.

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So God's team now consists of Bobby Fischer, Vassily Smyslov, and Bent Larsen. Look out for Heaven at the next Olympiad.

New Chess Strategy

The good news is : I have somehow made it to the third round in a chess tournament where I play online. Out of 152 players at the start, only 14 are left, and I'm one of them.

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The bad news is : I now have to play someone named Vidas, a Lithuanian whiz who wins about 95% of the chess tournaments he enters at the site.

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I have no chance against him with Black. But with White, I plan to employ the subtle opening shown above. I figure I can at least get a draw.