ZUGZWANG

When I was still a semi-active chess player (thirty years ago) my rating managed to hover around 1600.  That means I was a fairly decent club player (who usually concentrated for about twenty moves then offered draws when I might well have either coasted to or toughed out a win -- because I didn't really the enjoy the two-hour hard slog.  What I wanted were two or three quick games, win or lose, then off to the pub.)  These days, my attention span has shrunk even further.  When I play on the computer, it's usually a five-minute blitz game -- ten at the most --  then back to the novel.  My rating now is a rather dismal 1430 and I have difficulty beating any player on Chessmaster with a rating within 40 points of mine (plus or minus).  I have forgotten most of the opening lines I memorized years ago (except for the Sicilian, which I play a lot, and a couple of its variants).  It's weird, but I get a bigger kick from teaching the game to kids than I ever really got from playing it. (Those who can't...etc, I guess.)  My last real game was online about three years ago.  I managed a draw against a player rated @1900+.  That's when I packed it in.  The game was excruciating. Sixty-eight moves.  When it was over, it felt as though I were missing some organs.

Don't get me wrong; I still love to play.  But only for fun.  And only if I'm allowed to kibitz.  I did all my serious playing back in high school and university. (And Kee-rist, I must have been fucking insufferable back then.)

I don't know why it seemed important to tell you all this, but it helped to kill a half hour while the beer was chilling.

And the beer is cold enough now.

Cheers.