Dreaming and Doing

I have been inactive because I forgot my password. And I didn't think I had much to say. And I don't think anyone is really interested anyway.

Every day I sign on and check out Elizabeth Vicary's Chess blog. I check out the Chess Vibes site. And I am delighted that Chessloser is writing again.

Chessloser brings a raw honesty to his chess. He writes things that many of us have thought but would not say. His wonderful love affair and occasional hate affair mirrors the experience of many with the mistress Caissa. Even Ivanchuk after a bad tournament was ready to walk away.
We all have felt like that and even done that. Tell it like it is Chessloser!

I have been tooling around with openings instead of playing. It is like a story from Mullah Nasrudin.

Nasrudin is on a train. The conductor walks up and asks for his ticket. He looks in his bag. He looks under the seat. He even looks in the trash.

The conductor asks, "Why don't you check your coat pocket?"
"Oh, I couldn't do that!" says Nasrudin, "Because if it is not in there I would have no hope."

It is like, as long as I don't play, I can imagine I'll do well. But once I play and screw up, I will have no hope.

I tell this story because I am like Nasrudin. I diddle around with my opening studies. I have a combination book in the Bathroom. I have chessbase, bookup, and a library of books, but I don't seem to get around to actually playing.

Chess opening study is to chess playing as pornography is to actual sex.

Chess opening study is to chess playing as anorexia is to eating.

So I have been making myself hang out on FICS. I look to play a fairly slow game G-30 or like last night G15:15. I do my best, then write it all down, and see where the mistakes were so I can do better next time.

My opening history does pay off from time to time. As White I have played 1.e4 c5 2.c3, 1.e4 e5 Scotch four knights (no Petroff), 1.d4 Colle-Barry-150 from Summerscale, as well as Trompowsky, I dabbled with 1d4 2c4 and now am playing 1.c4.

So on FICS as black when I faced 1.e3 e5 2.e4 (he or she likes to defend the open game) My scotch four knights worked out just fine. Of course it was not the opening but the tactics that made a difference. But familiarity with the opening brings a kind of internal equilibrium that makes chess sight stronger.

Peace