CHESS, ANYONE?

[wolfy]

Any of you guys play?   Heather & I have been playing a game every couple of knights after we finish supper.  We're far from Boris or Bobby in our strategies, but we have a basic knowledge of how the pawns & pieces are supposed to move.  What prompted us to begin playing was a couple of good movies that we watched on those cold winter knights when there was not much else to watch.  No masking was required and we've really enjoyed a spirited game....since I am a ruthless strategist, I'm ahead, so far, but when Heather starts beating me on a regular basis, I'll quit altogether.

We continue to leave the board all set up on the island in the kitchen....a ruse that impresses visitors to see how refined we are in our choice of pastimes!

[wsdstan]

Forty or more years ago I played quite a bit.  Never developed a good strategy though but still thought I could play okay.  My Insurance man played and we sat down and about eight moves later the game was over.  That SOB checkmated me. 

As the guy in Chariots of Fire said (paraphrasing)  "if I can't win I won't play"

[wolfy]

    I completely understand, Stan.....sounds like you will be victorious in our motel-room matches, later this summer.  No worries...I might even learn something.

I don't know anything about the game really, but it intrigues me.....and gives me something to think about when I'm not sleeping at 3 bells in the AM.. 

[madmaxine]

Kelly's more of a checkers girl.  When she was teaching she simply decompressed at home.  Now she does crossword puzzles and browses girly makeup and clothing catalogs.  But mostly watches stories on instagram(?).    We do hike the dogs every day in the woods.

I guess I'm not much better watching youtube vids about gun building and ham radio projects.  When that fills up my head,  I watch a zombie apocalypse movie to blow out all the reality junk swirling around my mind.  Although sometimes I think ham radio is as much science fiction black magic as reality.

I played chess from junior high through high school.  I never had much of a strategy beyond a few moves.  Kinda played it fast and loose.  I have several inexpensive chess sets around here  somewheres. 

I think I'll dig one out and teach Kelly to play if she'll tolerate it. She likes cards too.  Any mind exercises that'll stave off dementia (her side of the family) and the crazies (my side).

This could be a deep long rabbit hole here wolfy.  lol

[Moe M.]

   Well, like Stan,  many moons ago I played briefly,  I think it was along the time that I wore my hair long, wore flowered shirts, bell bottom pants, and side zipper dress boots, I may have been drinking allot then also.
 Anyhow, I do remember that the warden and I were shopping for a gift for someone special (when 'P' shops for a gift everyone is special) well we're in this higher than usual end store and I spotted a chess set, a game board actually, it was on short legs, was made of fancy grade Walnut, and had a drawer that held the chess pieces and a set of ebony and Ivory (fake of course) checkers.
 The board itself was inlayed with walnut and ivory colored squares, the chess pieces were made of the same ebony and imitation ivory as were the checkers, in all it was a rather simple but elegant set and it impressed the hell out of me, I don't remember what 'P' bought for a gift nor who it was for,  but the chess set did follow me home.
 To be honest I wasn't a very good chess player,  and checkers bored the crap out of me,  the kids  as they came along got the most use out of the chess/checkers set,  it followed us to several other homes and always did look impressive where ever it happened to be in the house, it did please me to look at it occasionally, I haven't seen it for quite a few years now, maybe one of the kids inherited it.
 Anyhow,  the short answer to your question Craig  is no, I don't play chess, checkers, or parlor games as a rule,  I'd much rather read a good book,  engage in a spirited conversation,  or search out information about any number of interests than I might have at the moment, many of which we share in common, but not chess.     
 However there have been times in my life that a enjoyed playing Pitch, poker, I was hooked on Monopoly for a short while, and for a year or so we (my chief, myself, and a country band leader who played a local C&W bar we frequented quite often and the wives) had a small group that got together at the band leaders house once a week and played UNO until he had a heart attack and died.   

[madmaxine]

I just recalled a chess game I had at depth during a deco stop from a deep cave dive.  Actually it was a lesson in humility and a series of games (It was a LOONG deco).  He schooled me relentlessly for hours(really really deep dive).  I went home and debriefed myself on the dive.  But the only "mistake" I could nail down was that this guy (I assume no smarter than myself) gleefully kicked my ass for hours when that time should have been spent reminiscing about a colossal check off on my lifetime bucket list.  Deep cave cruising around on a James Bondesque scooter in a very exclusive permitted cave.  You had to know somebody who knows somebody... 

But no.  has to get all Alpha with the time passer game.

So I go home with the intent to learn high end chess.  That lasted a few weeks.  I not only lost the interest in gaming but also the passion of cave diving.

I sold or gave away all my cave diving stuff,  I have a coupla pairs of fins.  2 real good masks.  And assorted snorkels.  Some nice spearguns.  And (I just checked) ZERO chess sets.

Gee Moe.  Thanks for the therapy.  That could've cost me a grand at the shrink.  LOL.

[wsdstan]

I live the last lines of that post Tony.  It is why there are motorcycles in my shop.

[boomer]

When the kids were little we played chess regularly. For a while I coached the elementary school chess club and team. It was always surprising to see a bunch of kids ( and parents) sitting and concentrating wrapped up in the game. Some of them were quite good and all had a good time. That was along time ago but they still remember the trophy we took home from the state meet one year. It was clearly no substitute for running and jumping stuff but it did open a few eyes and maybe some lessons stuck with them. I was always a middling player but it was great watching the kids.