Chess

Chess Story

My Dad tought me to play chess, and I still have the chessboard he taght me on. I then largly stopped playing until moving to Long Beach when I'd frequent a coffee shop called Porfolio's and play an  man named Paul. Paul was always outside with his chess board drinking coffee and smoking cigarettes, he was fun to play and was always at the coffee shop at night. Eventually some other folks started to play there, and one of them would sometimes bring a clock, the games were fun but not serious or regular. It wasn't until November of 2022 on a the way back from a long work trip I read about the Magnus Carlsen and Hans Niemann cheating scandal, which got me playing chess on my phone during my flight back home.; watching Gotham Chess videos and Queens Gambit didn't hurt either. Since then I've mostly stopped playing any other game and joined Santa Cruz Chess Club and now help organize our club's weekly meetings. 

Things I think are cool about chess

• Chess is not a game of luck

• Every game is different

• Provides an opportunity to put put what I've learned about the game to the test  

• I think it's good for the brain and something that allows a person to engage in deep learning and get some competitive adrenaline for their whole life 

• Seeing my understanding of the game grow

• Meeting other chess players and learning from them

• The history of chess.

• I like the idea of being able to learn lessons from past great players and apply them in my games.

• The art of the chess pieces themselves

• The artistic expression of chess in photos and media

• Enjoying the growing chess content from talented makers

• Creating a chess community in my own town and making friends

Interesting Photos

Images of famous players I like