Hanging with GM David Howell, who was just lovely.

Hanging out with WFM Anna Cramling.

Fun times at the ChessCom SCC / FourCorner meetup.

I like my takebacks like I like my in-game chat: off by default.

In case people are looking for a list of chess accounts, there’s a good one here: go.bsky.app/6DLYrt6

Chess position from Bowles–Ainscow, Dec 2024. White is about to do something stupid. FEN: r3k2r/pp1n1p2/2p2q2/2Pppb2/1P1P2p1/2R1P1Q1/P2N1PBP/4K2R w Kkq - 0 18

Or the frankly unforgiveable dxe5 here, inviting Black to stomp all over me. (My opponent mercifully declined the invitation by playing …Qxe5 instead.)

Chess board: Hall–Bowles, Dec 2024. FEN: 1r2k3/5ppp/4n3/Pp1r4/1B1p4/7P/5PP1/R2R1K2 b. Black is about to do something stupid.

Let’s go with …Nc5 here, described in my scribbled post-game notes as ‘equalising‘ (!?) but that I would now describe as ‘just totally giving away one of my two passers due to either 1) apparent hallucinatory freakout or 2) as-yet-undiscovered passivity kink’

Upside of tackling your huge game review backlog - if you’ve improved in the meantime it’s almost amusing to see how bad your moves were back then.

Almost.

Giving up on the unwatchable World Blitz coverage. The live boards are so useless the commentators have to analyse a low-res sideways camera image. Pointless.

Magnus v Hans simultaneously the most exciting and tiresome pairing possible. Forced drama! r/chess must be losing its mind.

SwissManager with an experimental neomorphic interface inspired by the Nintendo Wii U eShop circa 2014

My dream is, like, Teenage Engineering taking on DGT’s monopoly. Live boards with optional arpeggiator modules. Clocks with increment and stereo drum sampler and triple low-frequency oscillators.

I was wondering about this. It’s got to be a setup, right? Like there are enough obvious differences that it’s not the same bg

Well, at the least the boards are transmitting live-ish this year. But chess tournaments still desperately better hardware and technical direction.

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Giveaway!

Final rated game of the season: good win vs slightly lower rated opponent. Cute intermezzo tactic to win. Think I’ll end the year on 1599 ECF.

😲

Natural order somewhat restored today with two losses to strong players. Finished the tournament joint eighth on 3/5. Still beyond my wildest dreams, and should see me heading towards 1600 ECF / 1700 FIDE.

I’ll tell you something: people DO NOT like losing to people 300 points below them.

uh, won another two games. both against 1860-rated players. leading the tournament. what the fuck is happening

Round 1 of the Central London Congress at Imperial: dropped a pawn in an exchange QGD but counterpunched well and caught my overpursuing opponent (1704) in a minor piece mating net.

Playing up in the 2000s so might not get much else from the tournament. But a great start.

Helping start a club is one of the most rewarding things I’ve done in chess. If you’re considering it, DO IT.

It takes persistence and a fair bit of work, but if you’re 1. dedicated to your community and 2. in possession of reasonable admin skills, you can do a good job.

More importantly than that, though: this was Walthamstow Chess Club’s first competitive outing! I’m happy with our overall performance and we had a ton of fun.

The club’s going great now: energising, relaxed, inclusive. Got a website and everything. www.walthamstowchess.com

First victory over a titled player last night! Albeit at 5+0 blitz. 2073-rated CM. I had pressure in a Catalan middlegame before my opponent dropped a queen, because blitz does horrible things to good people.

Finished the event with 7 wins and just 2 losses. Shame it wasn’t rated.

Spent some time rewatching this yesterday. It was already a moving video. Now even more so.

Ashes scoreline prediction?

Just wanted to say how much I enjoy your posts, Dawn. Always a pleasure to read.

First rated game of the season, last Sat: strong middlegame edge from Sielecki‘s anti-KID (6. b3) line, but I stumble and let my opponent force me into desperate defence. I hold on by my fingertips and lo, he misses the critical line. Draw accepted. Not quite robbery, but undeserved.

If you ever want a task to put you off both chess and life itself, volunteer to arrange a club’s league fixtures. Four teams, three divisions, a thousand regrets.

In Amsterdam. Didn’t take many photos at the Max Euwe museum. But this little paperback set is cute.