It snow picnic around these parts of the Midwest. I understand our minor inconvenience of slush and ice has nothing on the 20 inches they got back home in Milwaukee, stranded cars around Madison, or the six thousand tornadoes that whipped the south. Considering all that, I’m not too bummed out about the weather.
News
January segues into February and my state participated in Super Tuesday. My voting experience was a characterized once again by my abuse of the principles of democracy. I voted blindly for circuit court judges. If I ever wind up in front of a circuit court judges, I’ll make sure to remind them him or her that “I might have voted for your appointment” followed by either: “and now I know why I shouldn’t have” or “and I’m glad I did.” Yes, I’m a bad citizen…but at least I showed up.
Also: Realizing that I’ve been in the same voting precinct since the last presidential election makes me feel a lot older.
In other news, my bosses rewarded me and my co-workers with a very nice token of appreciation and our said our annual bonuses are supposed to show up in two weeks. Once again, I’m duped into the mindset that settling for paychecks at a job with absolutely no self-fulfillment is more appealing than actually determining if I should start over in a new industry. It’s a tough trade to contemplate.
Weather
I’m still not sure what weather should mean when I write a newsy post. Any suggestions?
Sports
Still going strong with the YMCA routine (3 months and counting). The motivation for bi-weekly six am workouts is easier to drum up and I’ve shed five pounds while converting fat into muscle. Thirty minutes of repeatedly picking things up and setting them down followed by thirty minutes of fake-running in place is does the trick.
Also: during a workout this week I eavesdropped on another classic conversation where one person tries to explain to another that more snow does not mean Global Warming doesn’t exist. Gah.
…and finally
From me to you, my you tube account has been updated with numerous short videos shot with my digital camera. Random highlights of 2005 - 2007 range from Don King’s awesome command of the English language to footage of me crossing the Mississippi River in my car with the windows rolled up. Compelling stuff, I tells ya.
Reading books about the game of chess are a challenge…especially on the train. I find it damn near impossible to envision a chess board in my head. When the author rattles off a series of moves without a corresponding diagram, I’m expected to know exactly what he is talking about? Sheesh. I’m lucky if I can see an angle in real life, let alone in my head.
I’ve had the linked book since 1997 and this is the 3rd or 4th attempt to read and actually absorb the lessons. Perhaps regurgitating what I read will help some of the lessons stick and help you get better.
A passage I read today discussed the power of the Knight. The ability to move to open squares around the board without having to worry about being blocked make it a versatile and therefore valuable piece. The main point of the passage was that a Knight has more value when it’s positioned away from an edge. As you can see in the board above, my lone White Knight sits trapped on the right side. Any of the spaces available to it leave it unprotected from capture. So as it stands on the set-up, my knight is pretty useless beyond offering protection to the Queen.
As for the game, you’ll see that my opponent advanced pawns deep inside my territory and is on the verge of gaining a second queen. Having to shift my focus from attacking Black’s king, I backed my Queen to a more defensive position so as to apply pressure on the pawns (Qc2). My opponent saw my threat on the trailing pawn and moved its Queen accordingly (Qd4).
A favorable situation unfolded as I was able to move my Knight (Nf5+) to a center position. This illustrates what the book was trying to teach me. From that position, I have seven of eight possible moves. Out of those seven, four would net me valuable pieces (this is called a ‘Fork’). That’s a much better place to be than on the edge where I had only 4 undesirable options.
My move put my opponent in check. Black can do nothing to protect its powerful rook and queen. After the King was moved to safety (Kd5), I was able to capture the opponents most valuable piece (Nxd4). Though the capture sacrificed my knight (Kxd4), it was a trade happily made.
Hey look. I’m awake at 6:00 am. They’re expecting up to a foot by noon. Ms. B called in and I already planned to work from home. Look at all that snow.
My snowday gift to you, dear reader: The Mid 90’s alternative rock band Better than Ezra’s hit album Deluxe!
