O Captain! My Captain!

O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done, The ship has weather'd every rack, the prize we sought is won, The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting, While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring; But O heart! heart! heart!
O the bleeding drops of red,
Where on the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead.

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells; Rise up—for you the flag is flung—for you the bugle trills, For you bouquets and ribbon'd wreaths—for you the shores a-crowding, For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning; Here Captain! dear father!
This arm beneath your head!
It is some dream that on the deck, You've fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still, My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will, The ship is anchor'd safe and sound, its voyage closed and done, From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won; Exult O shores, and ring O bells!
But I with mournful tread,
Walk the deck my Captain lies, Fallen cold and dead.

— Walt Whitman

"The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step." ― Lao Tzu

"God has given you one face, and you make yourself another." ― William Shakespeare

"I started chess around the age of seven. I was inspired by the game, but soon legends like Kasparov, Karpov, Fischer, Anand and many other world champions captivated me." ― Anish Giri

"Chess is a game where all different sorts of people can come together, not a game in which people are divided because of their religion or country of origin." ― Hikaru Nakamura

"In chess, you have to bring all the pieces into the game. It is about development. In writing, you have to develop the story." ― Gza

"Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one." ― Albert Einstein

Richard the Lionheart only spent six months of his ten-year reign in England.

"Chess is a lot of fun for me. Football is a physical game, and in chess you can just beat someone mentally - you outwit somebody, outmaneuver them, think ahead of them." ― Larry Fitzgerald

"Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world." ― Archimedes

"The most powerful weapon in chess is to have the next move." ― David Bronstein

"Young men preen. Old men scheme." ― Mason Cooley

"Chess and me, it's hard to take them apart. It's like my alter ego." ― Bobby Fischer

"It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see." ― Henry David Thoreau

"Chess is the art of analysis." ― Mikhail Botvinnik

"Patience is the companion of wisdom." ― Saint Augustine

"Chess is a sport. The main object in the game of chess remains the achievement of victory." ― Max Euwe

"There are no adequate substitutes for father, mother, and children bound together in a loving commitment to nurture and protect. No government, no matter how well-intentioned, can take the place of the family in the scheme of things." ― Gerald R. Ford

"My biggest competitor was my mum. I used to try to beat her at Chinese chequers, chess, carrom, volleyball, badminton, football, wrestling." ― Sunil Chhetri

"Nothing gives one person so much advantage over another as to remain always cool and unruffled under all circumstances." ― Thomas Jefferson

"Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak." ― Alan Dundes

"The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits." ― Albert Einstein

"The human element, the human flaw and the human nobility - those are the reasons that chess matches are won or lost." ― Viktor Korchnoi

"In chess, you should be as cool as a cucumber." ― Yuliya Snigir

"O, what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive!" ― Walter Scott

"It is a profound mistake to imagine that the art of combination depends only on natural talent, and that it cannot be learned." ― Richard Reti

"To give anything less than your best, is to sacrifice the gift." ― Steve Prefontaine

"I love to play chess. The last time I was playing, I started to really see the board. I don't mean just seeing a few moves ahead - something else. My game started getting better. It's the patterns. The patterns are universal." ― Forest Whitaker

"God gave you a gift of 86,400 seconds today. Have you used one to say 'thank you?' " ― William Arthur Ward

"It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters." ― Epictetus

"I think a gentleman is someone who holds the comfort of other people above their own. The instinct to do that is inside every good man, I believe. The rules about opening doors and buying dinner and all of that other 'gentleman' stuff is a chess game, especially these days." ― Anna Kendrick

Never judge a book by its cover.

"You cannot say, 'Go! Go! Rah! Rah! Good move!' People want some emotion. Chess is an art and not a spectator sport." ― Garry Kasparov

"My passions were all gathered together like fingers that made a fist. Drive is considered aggression today; I knew it then as purpose." ― Bette Davis

"We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give." ― Winston Churchill

"I spend hours playing chess because I find it so much fun. The day it stops being fun is the day I give up." ― Magnus Carlsen

"Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter." ― Mark Twain

Napoleon took 187,600 horses with his army as he rode into Russia in 1812, only 1,600 came back.

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." ― Eleanor Roosevelt

"I may not be where I want to be, but thank God I am not where I used to be." ― Joyce Meyer

"Discipline is the bridge between goals and accomplishment." ― Jim Rohn

"I have a scheme for stopping war. It's this - no nation is allowed to enter a war till they have paid for the last one." ― Will Rogers

"Winning is about commitment, discipline, hard work, dedication, determination, courage and sometimes even luck!" ― Susan Polgar

"Every defeat is an opportunity to learn from our mistakes! Every victory is a confirmation of our hard work!" ― Susan Polgar

"A chess player uses his/her knowledge to prepare for next game while a passionate coach prepares for next generation!" ― Susan Polgar

* Early Vasily: Game Collection: Vasily Smyslov, the early years

* Extensive Spassky Collection:
Game Collection: Match Spassky!

* Russian Ruys: Game Collection: Chess in the USSR 1945 - 72, Part 2 (Leach)

* Alpha Glossary: https://www.chess-poster.com/englis...

* Best Games of 2018: Game Collection: Best Games of 2018

* Chessmaster 2000 Classic Games:
Game Collection: Chessmaster '86

* Del's: Game Collection: Del's hidden gems

* The Donner Party of Misery: https://www.chessgames.com/perl/che...

* Don't Steal: https://www.openbible.info/topics/s...

* Failing is a part of life: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nja...

* Fischer Wins: Game Collection: Bobby Fischer Wins With The King's Indian Attack

* Fried Fox is awful: https://allchessopenings.blogspot.c...

* French According to... Game Collection: The French According to ...

* Elo Rating System: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLX...

* Everything? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Igd...

* Fastest checkmates: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMe...

* It's a Fake: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cz2...

* Frenchmen Final: https://www.chess.com/news/view/202...

* Glossary P: https://www.peoriachess.com/Glossar...

* Aggressive Gambits: https://thechessworld.com/articles/...

* Against strange openings: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3p...

* Game changer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKL...

* Hans On French: Game Collection: French Defense

* HannahSayce: https://www.twitch.tv/hannahsayce/v...

* Happy Days! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slv...

* How to play by the rules: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ydn...

* How to play chess! http://www.serverchess.com/play.htm...

* How to play your first moves: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mb...

* How to play the center fork trick: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ms4...

* How to castle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4dL...

* How to play against the Vienna Gambit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVS...

* How to find tactics: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4c...

* How to attack the Queen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Liq...

* How to play touch-move OTB: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPM...

* How to trap pieces: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oaz...

* How to beat the London system: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8DU...

* How to simplify: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Fk...

* How to blunder less: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tis...

* How to break out of jail: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2gs...

* How to defend: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIq...

* How to draw: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neb...

* How to draw: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDg...

* How to play the C-K: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zE5...

* How to calculate deeper: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaU...

* How to create a plan: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMu...

* How to exchange sacrifice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYG...

* How to convert EG advantages: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91L...

* How dumb is it? Game Collection: Diemer-Duhm Gambit

* How to play the Englund Gambit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cCK...

* How to spot Knight forks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rB6...

* How to play fast chess reasonably: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xi...

* How to play the French Defense: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6b...

* How to combine your pieces: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyj...

* How Fischer beat the French Defense: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr5...

* How to give back material: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYd...

* How to play the Kitchen Sink Attack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qky...

* How to surprise: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzq...

* How to play the Scandinavian: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMS...

* How to trick 'em: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mtR...

* How to win: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_z...

* How to win in 12 moves: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zP7...

* How to lose: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpL...

* How to squeeze like Karpov: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eM...

* How high? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5M2...

* 1.h4?! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mva...

* h-file attacks: Game Collection: h-file Attacks, some Greek Gifts by Fredthebear

* Humans are smarter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d42...

* Imagination: Game Collection: Imagination in Chess

* Immortal Games: Game Collection: Immortal games

* Internet tracking: https://www.studysmarter.us/magazin...

* Javed's way: https://www.bing.com/videos/search?...

* Kostya Tszyu: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0n...

* King to King: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5R...

* King's Indian Attack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lr5...

* King Pawn Theory and Practice: Game Collection: Chess Openings: Theory and Practice, Section 1

* Surprise Knockouts: Game Collection: quick knockouts of greats

* King's Gambit start-up: Game Collection: Batsford's MCO 14 King's Gambit

* King Bishop's Gambit: Game Collection: rajat21's kings gambit

* KG Video: Game Collection: Foxy Openings - King's Gambit

* GM Gallagher is an author:
Game Collection: 0

* Uncommon KP Gambits: Game Collection: Unusual Gambits

* Volo plays the KP faithfully: Volodymyr Onyshchuk

* LG - White wins: Game Collection: Latvian Gambit-White wins

* The Lion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZgI...

* Lasker's Manual: Game Collection: Manual of Chess (Lasker)

* Mona Lisa: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJi...

* Nelson Mandela: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj0...

* Collection assembled by Fredthebear.

* Miniatures: Game Collection: 200 Miniature Games of Chess - Du Mont (III)

* Mosquitoes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iKu...

* Most common tactic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgA...

* Magic rubbers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=001...

* Masaka kids: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRm...

* Mountain Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=st9...

* Names and Places: Game Collection: Named Mates

* Nuremberg 1896: Nuremberg (1896)

* Nunn's Chess Course: Game Collection: Lasker JNCC

* NM Alice Lee's palace: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TO5...

* New 7 wonders: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcH...

* No more fraction confusion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hG...

* Opening Traps: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZm...

* Old P-K4 Miniatures: Game Collection: Games for Classes

* Top 5 Attacking Principles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9v...

* Become a Predator at the Chessboard: https://www.chesstactics.org/

* Monday Puzzles: Game Collection: Monday Puzzles, 2011-2017

* POTD 2023: Game Collection: Puzzle of the Day 2023

* Popeye: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCZ...

* Poisoned Pawn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aGV...

* Ponziani Games: Game Collection: PONZIANI OPENING

* Pawn Promotion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGI...

* Promotion Tactics: Game Collection: Promotion Tactics

* Pressure Points: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pnh...

* Queen puzzles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IfQ...

* Chess Records: https://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/record...

* Reach 1800: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrK...

* Katar's Repertoire: Game Collection: An Opium Repertoire for White

* 5 Ruy Lopez traps: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wG_...

* RL Minis: Game Collection: Ruy Lopez Miniatures

* Rook endgame: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkM...

* Kasparov talks Strategy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_l_...

* Smothered Mate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxJ...

* Sacrificing your bishop: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_t...

Sea's Serenade
A serenade of waves and wind,
A melody that's ever been.
In every sailor's heart it plays,
A song of seas, of olden days.

* Stafford Gambit tricks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eM9...

* Shorts: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/iDUA...

* Sidewalk playin': https://www.bing.com/videos/search?...

* Scandinavian Miniatures: http://www.chessgames.com/perl/ches...

* Seven Minutes: French Defense: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRU...

* Sicilian Alapins: Game Collection: Alapin

* GK Sicilians: Game Collection: Kasparov - The Sicilian Sheveningen

* Sicilian Trix: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2V...

* Slime recipes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X_V...

* Save the endgame: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGz...

* Terms: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6b...

* Tartakower Defense: https://www.chess.com/blog/MatBobul...

* TIP: Click on the e8 square to see a computer engine analysis of the position.

* Triangulation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oH3...

* Top 5 Bishop Endgames: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wX...

* 5 Pawn endings U must know: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bdU...

* Uni Knot: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xu...

* Ultimate K&P endings: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jab...

* Underpromotion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvW...

* Underpromotions: Game Collection: Underpromotions

* UnderStanding: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/dfvi...

* Psychic Uri Geller? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N3v...

* Best Walkoffs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBt...

* Wedgiez: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNG...

* When to not castle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cto...

* Women defend: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbF...

* World Records: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTz...

* Yaz vs Tiant: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oci...

* Zugzwang: Game Collection: Zugzwang!

* Zwischenzug: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6U9...

* 21st Century: Game Collection: 0

* King Registration: https://www.kingregistration.com/to...

* Make a Stand: https://www.history.com/topics/amer...

* Malaguena: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lxD...

* Notable Games: Game Collection: List of Notable Games (wiki)

* Online safety: https://www.entrepreneur.com/scienc...

* Opening Ideas/Novelties: Game Collection: Great opening ideas

* Sports Clichés: http://www.sportscliche.com/

* 107 battles: Game Collection: 107 Great Chess Battles: 1939-45 Alekhine

* 50 Games to Know: https://en.chessbase.com/post/50-ga...

* Best Games of 2018: Game Collection: Best Games of 2018

* Black ...d6 Resources: Game Collection: 1...d6. A very interesting opening with no name

* Common Checkmate Patterns:
http://gambiter.com/chess/Checkmate...

* Caviar: https://www.chess.com/article/view/...

* Famous Chess Photos: https://tr.pinterest.com/pin/585256...

* Fried Fox is awful: https://allchessopenings.blogspot.c...

* Fork OVerload (Remove the Defender): Game Collection: FORK-OVERLOAD OR HOOK-AND-LADDER TRICK

* Overloaded! Game Collection: OVERLOADED!

* tacticmania - Game Collection: tacticmania

* There are exceptions: https://academicchess.com/worksheet...

* Top Chessgames by ECO Code: http://schachsinn.de/gamelist.htm

* Glossary P: https://www.peoriachess.com/Glossar...

* Good historical links: https://www.saund.co.uk/britbase/in...

* Internet tracking: https://www.studysmarter.us/magazin...

* Miniatures: Game Collection: 200 Miniature Games of Chess - Du Mont (III)

* Monday Puzzles: Game Collection: Monday Puzzles, 2011-2017

* Online safety: https://www.entrepreneur.com/scienc...

* Simagin: Game Collection: Vladimir Simagin

* Women: https://www.thefamouspeople.com/wom...

* POTD 2023: Game Collection: Puzzle of the Day 2023

* 2023 in Review: https://www.chess.com/news/view/202...

* Wall's APCT Miniatures:
http://billwall.phpwebhosting.com/c...

* Mr. Harvey's Puzzle Challenge: https://wtharvey.com/

WTHarvey:
There once was a website named WTHarvey,
Where chess puzzles did daily delay,
The brain-teasers so tough,
They made us all huff and puff,
But solving them brought us great satisfaction today.

There once was a website named WTHarvey
Where chess puzzles were quite aplenty
With knight and rook and pawn
You'll sharpen your brain with a yawn
And become a master of chess entry

There once was a site for chess fun,
Wtharvey.com was the chosen one,
With puzzles galore,
It'll keep you in store,
For hours of brain-teasing, none done.

There once was a website named WTHarvey,
Where chess puzzles were posted daily,
You'd solve them with glee,
And in victory,
You'd feel like a true chess prodigy!

>Proverbs 29:25
Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.

‘May your Departures equal your Landfalls!'

Кто не рискует, тот не пьет шампанского Pronunciation: KTOH ni risKUyet, tot ni pyot shamPANSkava) Translation: He who doesn't take risks doesn't drink champagne Meaning: Fortune favours the brave

"Tal has a terrifying style. Soon even grandmasters will know of this." - Vladimir Saigin (after losing to 17-year-old Tal in a qualifying match for the master title) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5S...

"I like to grasp the initiative and not give my opponent peace of mind." — Mikhail Tal

In 1913 Stalin, Hitler, Trotsky, Tito all lived in Vienna for a couple of months.

Alabama: Mobile
Established in: 1702

The city of Mobile is a port city on the Gulf Coast in Alabama that has a lot of French influence (which makes sense, since it was founded by the French). Mardi Gras celebrations originated there, and you can experience the history of the holiday at the Mobile Carnival Museum.

* Chess History: https://www.britannica.com/topic/ch...

* Short history: Game Collection: A history of chess

* Chess Aps: https://www.wired.com/story/best-ch...

Here's a poem a dad wrote:

<ODE TO CHESS

Ten times I charged the grim, foreboding walls

and was pitched into the pit of defeat.

But, heedless of humiliating falls,

I clambered bravely back onto my feet

and charged again, again to be down thrust

onto the scrap heap of people who lose

onto the mound of mortifying dust

whilst my opponent sat without a bruise

upon his pedestal. We changed sides

and fought again, but I was defeated

whilst he with arrogant and haughty strides

took the throne upon which I had been seated.

Ha! Win or lose, it's how you play the game.

But I would like to beat him just the same.>

"Chess can be described as the movement of pieces eating one another." — Marcel Duchamp

"Chess is played with the mind and not with the hands." ― Renaud & Kahn

"Chess is a terrific way for kids to build self-image and self-esteem." ― Saudin Robovic

"Life is like a chess. If you lose your queen, you will probably lose the game." — Being Caballero

"If you wish to succeed, you must brave the risk of failure." — Garry Kasparov

"The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them." — Ernest Hemingway

"You win some, you lose some, you wreck some." — Dale Earnhardt

"In life, unlike chess the game continues after checkmate." ― Isaac Asimov

"Coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous." ― Albert Einstein

"When in doubt, don't." ― Benjamin Franklin

A Fallen Leaf
By Ella Wheeler Wilcox

A trusting little leaf of green,
A bold audacious frost;
A rendezvous, a kiss or two,
And youth for ever lost.
Ah, me!
The bitter, bitter cost.

A flaunting patch of vivid red,
That quivers in the sun;
A windy gust, a grave of dust,
The little race is run.
Ah, me!
Were that the only one.

Of the eight planets in the Solar System, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn were observed by Babylonian astronomers as early as the 2nd millennium BC. The Greek Aristarchus of Samos (310–230 bc) also correctly observed the position of Earth in relation to the planets – known as the heliocentric model.

Below is the acrostic poem by Mrs T.B. Rowland:

Tears now we sadly shed apart,
How keenly has death's sudden dart
E'en pierced a kingdom's loyal heart.

Dark lies the heavy gloomy pall
Upon our royal bower,
Kings, queens, and nations bow their heads,
Each mourn for England's flower.

Oh! God, to her speak peace divine,
For now no voice can soothe but thine.

Ah, why untimely snatched away,
Loved Prince – alas, we sigh –
Before thy sun its zenith reached
Athwart the noonday sky.
Noble in heart, in deed, and will,
Years hence thy name we'll cherish still.

That poem was published on pages 140-141 of Chess Fruits (Dublin, 1884)

Select a good chess move:

1. Is my king and queen safe? Am I absolutely sure?

2. Why did my opponent make that move?

3. What just changed?

4. What is now en prise / un/under-defended?

5. Any immediate risks / opportunities? (If no, go to default) - Opening: Develop
- Middle game: Improve, build attack, pawn breaks. - End game: Assure the best outcome

6. What are ALL the candidate moves?

7. For each, what is likely to happen? New risks/opportunities?

8. Which is best?

9. Does it improve my position?

10. Sanity check, sure it's not a mistake?

The Will Explained by Aesop

If what old story says of Aesop's true,
The oracle of Greece he was,
And more than Areopagus he knew,
With all its wisdom in the laws.
The following tale gives but a sample
Of what has made his fame so ample.
Three daughters shared a father's purse,
Of habits totally diverse.
The first, bewitched with drinks delicious;
The next, coquettish and capricious;
The third, supremely avaricious.
The sire, expectant of his fate,
Bequeathed his whole estate,
In equal shares, to them,
And to their mother just the same, –
To her then payable, and not before,
Each daughter should possess her part no more.
The father died. The females three
Were much in haste the will to see.
They read, and read, but still
Saw not the willer's will.
For could it well be understood
That each of this sweet sisterhood,
When she possessed her part no more,
Should to her mother pay it over?
It was surely not so easy saying
How lack of means would help the paying.
What meant their honoured father, then?
The affair was brought to legal men,
Who, after turning over the case
Some hundred thousand different ways,
Threw down the learned bonnet,
Unable to decide on it;
And then advised the heirs,
Without more thought, t" adjust affairs.
As to the widow's share, the counsel say,
"We hold it just the daughters each should pay
One third to her on demand,
Should she not choose to have it stand
Commuted as a life annuity,
Paid from her husband's death, with due congruity." The thing thus ordered, the estate
Is duly cut in portions three.
And in the first they all agree
To put the feasting-lodges, plate,
Luxurious cooling mugs,
Enormous liquor jugs,
Rich cupboards, – built beneath the trellised vine, – The stores of ancient, sweet Malvoisian wine,
The slaves to serve it at a sign;
In short, whatever, in a great house,
There is of feasting apparatus.
The second part is made
Of what might help the jilting trade –
The city house and furniture,
Exquisite and genteel, be sure,
The eunuchs, milliners, and laces,
The jewels, shawls, and costly dresses.
The third is made of household stuff,
More vulgar, rude, and rough –
Farms, fences, flocks, and fodder,
And men and beasts to turn the sod over.
This done, since it was thought
To give the parts by lot
Might suit, or it might not,
Each paid her share of fees dear,
And took the part that pleased her.
It was in great Athens town,
Such judgment gave the gown.
And there the public voice
Applauded both the judgment and the choice.
But Aesop well was satisfied
The learned men had set aside,
In judging thus the testament,
The very gist of its intent.
"The dead," Said he, "could he but know of it,
Would heap reproaches on such Attic wit.
What! men who proudly take their place
As sages of the human race,
Lack they the simple skill
To settle such a will?"
This said, he undertook himself
The task of portioning the pelf;
And straightway gave each maid the part
The least according to her heart –
The prim coquette, the drinking stuff,
The drinker, then, the farms and cattle;
And on the miser, rude and rough,
The robes and lace did Aesop settle;
For thus, he said, "an early date
Would see the sisters alienate
Their several shares of the estate.
No motive now in maidenhood to tarry,
They all would seek, post haste, to marry;
And, having each a splendid bait,
Each soon would find a well-bred mate;
And, leaving thus their father's goods intact,
Would to their mother pay them all, in fact," – Which of the testament
Was plainly the intent.
The people, who had thought a slave an ass,
Much wondered how it came to pass
That one alone should have more sense
Than all their men of most pretence.

'Ask no questions and hear no lies

* The Most Instructive Games of Chess Ever Played: 62 Masterpieces of Chess Strategy by Irving Chernev - https://lichess.org/study/KMMrJvE1

* Legendary: Game Collection: The 12 Legendary Games of the Century

* Knight Power: https://fmochess.com/the-power-of-t...

'Ask a silly question and you'll get a silly answer

The Words Of Socrates

A house was built by Socrates
That failed the public taste to please.
Some blamed the inside; some, the out; and all
Agreed that the apartments were too small.
Such rooms for him, the greatest sage of Greece!

"I ask," said he, "no greater bliss
Than real friends to fill even this."
And reason had good Socrates
To think his house too large for these.
A crowd to be your friends will claim,
Till some unhandsome test you bring.
There's nothing plentier than the name;
There's nothing rarer than the thing.

The human body is made up of 206 bones.
Surprisingly, babies are born with 300! Babies' bones only fuse together and harden as they get older.

Fools look to tomorrow. Wise men use tonight. ~ Scottish Proverb

Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER

Be slow in choosing a friend but slower in changing him. ~ Scottish Proverb

The Thieves and the Ass

Two thieves, pursuing their profession,
Had of a donkey got possession,
Whereon a strife arose,
Which went from words to blows.
The question was, to sell, or not to sell;
But while our sturdy champions fought it well,
Another thief, who chanced to pass,
With ready wit rode off the ass.

This ass is, by interpretation,
Some province poor, or prostrate nation.
The thieves are princes this and that,
On spoils and plunder prone to fat, –
As those of Austria, Turkey, Hungary.
(Instead of two, I have quoted three –
Enough of such commodity.)
These powers engaged in war all,
Some fourth thief stops the quarrel,
According all to one key,
By riding off the donkey.

Yue Fei Helped Save The Southern Song Dynasty
<Yue Fei> was a Han Chinese general during the Southern Song dynasty. He was the main commander of the Southern Song armies during the wars in the 12th century that were fought between the Southern Song and Jin dynasty. Fei grew up as an impoverished farmer and joined the military in 1122.

Proving his military prowess over the years, Yue Fei was named general of the Song military in 1133. He led numerous successful counter and offensive attacks against northern China, saving the Southern Song dynasty. He remained undefeated up until his death when he was executed in what was believed to be false charges.

"Risk" by Anais Nin

And then the day came,
when the risk
to remain tight
in a bud
was more painful
than the risk
it took
to blossom.

"....his countrymen, Kolisch and Steinitz, are greatly indebted for their later success to their having enjoyed early opportunities of practicing with the departed amateur whose death is also greatly deplored amongst all who knew him personally." — Wilhelm Steinitz, regarding Karl Hamppe

The first appearance of the (John) Cochrane gambit against Petrov's defense C42 was in the year 1848 against an Indian master Mohishunder Bannerjee.

"Sorry don't get it done, Dude!" — John Wayne, Rio Bravo

"Gossip is the devil's telephone. Best to just hang up." — Moira Rose

<chess writer and poet Henry Thomas Bland.

Another example of his way with words is the start of ‘Internal Fires', a poem published on page 57 of the March 1930 American Chess Bulletin:

I used to play chess with the dearest old chap,
Whom naught could upset whatever might hap.
He'd oft lose a game he might well have won
But made no excuse for what he had done.
If a piece he o'erlooked and got it snapped up

He took it quite calmly and ne'er ‘cut up rough'.>

"You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore." ― William Faulkner

"Sometimes in life, and in chess, you must take one step back to take two steps forward." — IM Levy Rozman, GothamChess

So much, much, much better to be an incurable optimist than deceitful and untrustworthy.

Old Russian Proverb: "Scythe over a stone." (Нашла коса на камень.) The force came over a stronger force.

"It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things." ― Leonardo da Vinci

Q: How do poets say hello?
A: "Hey, haven't we metaphor?"

The Italian chess player Carlo Cozio (1715-1780) was a writer and theorist with an opening named after him. The Cozio Defense to the Ruy Lopez (or Spanish Game) is 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 Nge7.

* Line Opening selection: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXr...

Max Lange (1832-1899) was a very successful German chess player and composer of chess problems. The opening 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bc4 Nf6 4 d4 exd4 5 O–O Bc5 6 e5 is called the Max Lange Attack.

Q: What do you call a cow jumping on a trampoline? A: A milkshake.

A Song of Heroes
by Anonymous

Our country calls for heroes,
And who is a hero now
With no fear in his eyes,
With no shade of disguise,
With a purpose upon his brow?
The wide world calls for heroes,
And who will a hero be.
With a love for the whole
And a clear, steady soul
And a spirit brave and free?
High heaven calls for heroes,
And who is a hero there,
With a will for the best,
And a mind for the test,
And a heart that knows to dare?
But never mind the heroes,
Nor herald the hero's worth:
For our land we will die
And for God on high,
And for all the groaning earth!

<There are distinct situations where a bishop is preferred (over a knight). For example, two bishops are better than two knights or one of each. Steven Mayer, the author of Bishop Versus Knight, contends, "A pair of bishops is usually considered to be worth six points, but common sense suggests that a pair of active bishops (that are very involved in the formation) must be accorded a value of almost nine under some circumstances." This is especially true if the player can plant the bishops in the center of the board, as two bishops working in tandem can span up to 26 squares and have the capacity to touch every square.

Bishops are also preferable to knights when queens have been exchanged because, Grandmaster Sergey Erenburg, who is ranked 11th in the U.S., explains, "Bishops and rooks complement each other, and when well-coordinated, act as a queen." Conversely, a knight is the preferred minor piece when the queen survives until the late-middlegame or the endgame. Mayer explains, "The queen and knight are able to work together smoothly and create a greater number of threats than the queen and bishop."

When forced to say one is better than the other, most anoint the bishop. Mayer concludes, "I think it's true that the bishops are better than the knights in a wider variety of positions than the knights are better than the bishops."

He continues, "Of course, I'm not sure this does us much good, as we only get to play one position at a time.">

Annabel Lee
by Edgar Allan Poe

It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.

I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea,
But we loved with a love that was more than love— I and my Annabel Lee—
With a love that the wingèd seraphs of Heaven
Coveted her and me.

And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsmen came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.

The angels, not half so happy in Heaven,
Went envying her and me—
Yes!—that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.

But our love it was stronger by far than the love Of those who were older than we—
Of many far wiser than we—
And neither the angels in Heaven above
Nor the demons down under the sea
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side Of my darling—my darling—my life and my bride, In her sepulchre there by the sea—
In her tomb by the sounding sea.

God is great and God is good,

Let us thank Him for our food;

By His blessings, we are fed,

Give us Lord, our daily bread.

Amen.

<greersome wrote:

There once was a woman from Mizes

Who had chess sets of two different sizes

One was quite small

Almost nothing at all

But the other was large and won prizes!>

"God has given us two hands, one to receive with and the other to give with." — Billy Graham

"I've read the last page of the Bible. It's all going to turn out all right." — Billy Graham

"Whatever you are doing in the game of life, give it all you've got." — Norman Vincent Peale

"What you do today can improve all your tomorrows." — Ralph Marston

Oct-04-10
I play the Fred: said...
You're distraught
because you're not
able to cope
feel like a dope
when Lasker hits
Puttin on (the Fritz)

* Riddle-xp-scree: https://www.briddles.com/riddles/ch...

"Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that." ― Martin Luther King Jr.

"Never reply to an anonymous letter." ― Yogi Berra, MLB Hall of Fame catcher

"Even Napoleon had his Watergate."
― Yogi Berra, 10-time World Series champion

"Fire and Ice" by Robert Frost

Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I've tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.

"One more dance along the razor's edge finished. Almost dead yesterday, maybe dead tomorrow, but alive, gloriously alive, today." ― Robert Jordan, Lord of Chaos

"Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude." ― Denis Waitley

Psalm 31:24
Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord!

"The wind cannot defeat a tree with strong roots." — The Revenant

Feb-09-12
ray keene: nimzos best endgames
v lasker zurich 1934
v spielmann carlsbad 1929
v lundin stockholm 1934
v maroczy bled 1931
v henneberger winterthur 1931
v thomas frankfurt 1930
v sultan khan liege 1930
v marshall berlin 1928
v reti berlin 1928
v alehine ny 1927
v tchigorin carlsbad 1907
and for a joke entry duras v nimzo san sebastian 1912 !!

"Chess is the gymnasium of the mind." — Blasie Pascal

"Sometimes in life, and in chess, you must take one step back to take two steps forward." — IM Levy Rozman, GothamChess

So much, much, much better to be an incurable optimist than deceitful and untrustworthy.

"Don't trust everything you see. Even salt looks like sugar." – Unknown

The Dancing Bear
by James Russell Lowell

Far over Elf-land poets stretch their sway,
And win their dearest crowns beyond the goal
Of their own conscious purpose; they control
With gossamer threads wide-flown our fancy's play, And so our action. On my walk to-day,
A wallowing bear begged clumsily his toll,
When straight a vision rose of Atta Troll,
And scenes ideal witched mine eyes away.
'Merci, Mossieu!' the astonished bear-ward cried, Grateful for thrice his hope to me, the slave
Of partial memory, seeing at his side
A bear immortal. The glad dole I gave
Was none of mine; poor Heine o'er the wide
Atlantic welter stretched it from his grave.

A quote from the link: https://www.libertarianism.org/what...

"Modern day politicians on the left and right sometimes pay lip service to these ideas, but in practice they reject them. Legislation is all about imposing an order from above, rather than letting one emerge from below. And in creating their schemes, politicians all too often fail to give citizens their due as people, treating them as pawns and running roughshod over their rights to decide and plan for themselves."

The Woman Drowned

I hate that saying, old and savage,
"It's nothing but a woman drowning."
That's much, I say. What grief more keen should have edge Than loss of her, of all our joys the crowning?
Thus much suggests the fable I am borrowing.
A woman perished in the water,
Where, anxiously, and sorrowing,
Her husband sought her,
To ease the grief he could not cure,
By honoured rites of sepulture.
It chanced that near the fatal spot,
Along the stream which had
Produced a death so sad,
There walked some men that knew it not.
The husband asked if they had seen
His wife, or anything that hers had been.
One promptly answered, "No!
But search the stream below:
It must nave borne her in its flow."
"No," said another; "search above.
In that direction
She would have floated, by the love
Of contradiction."
This joke was truly out of season; –
I don't propose to weigh its reason.
But whether such propensity
The sex's fault may be,
Or not, one thing is very sure,
Its own propensities endure.
Up to the end they'll have their will,
And, if it could be, further still.

French Proverb: "Il ne faut rien laisser au hasard." ― (Nothing should be left to chance.)

Deuteronomy 6:6-9: "These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates."

Isaiah 66:24
24 "And they will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me; the worms that eat them will not die, the fire that burns them will not be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind."

Matthew 19:26
But Jesus looked at them and said, 'With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.'

The Tide Rises, the Tide Falls
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - 1807-1882

The tide rises, the tide falls,
The twilight darkens, the curlew calls;
Along the sea-sands damp and brown
The traveller hastens toward the town,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.

Darkness settles on roofs and walls,
But the sea, the sea in darkness calls;
The little waves, with their soft, white hands,
Efface the footprints in the sands,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.

The morning breaks; the steeds in their stalls
Stamp and neigh, as the hostler calls;
The day returns, but nevermore
Returns the traveller to the shore,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.

"There are good ships, and there are wood ships, ships that sail the sea, but the best ships are friendships, and may they always be." — Anonymous

"Life is what you make it: If you snooze, you lose; and if you snore, you lose more." — Phyllis George

Galatians 6:7 in the Bible "Be not deceived, God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap."

"those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones" is often cited as originating in Chaucer's Troilus and Criseyde written in 1385.

"Friend, you don't have to earn God's love or try harder. You're precious in His sight, covered by the priceless blood of Jesus, and indwelt by His Holy Spirit. Don't hide your heart or fear you're not good enough for Him to care for you. Accept His love, obey Him, and allow Him to keep you in His wonderful freedom." — Charles F. Stanley

from the simpleton poet:

Roses are red.
Violets are blue.

Chess is creative.
And a journey too.

Good in the morning.
Or just before bed.

Play cheater_1, with engine.
Or OTB, all in your head.

"It's not how you start that matters, it's how you finish."

"Old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust, and old authors to read." — Francis Bacon

The cat's play is the mouse's death. ~ German Proverb

"Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground." ― Theodore Roosevelt

Ah, St. Marher, 1225:
"And te tide and te time þat tu iboren were, schal beon iblescet."

2pry Zeitnot Zshaa-Tichondrius - 601 Disc Priest 226 Ilvl - 27750 RBG zek247 dint undrstnd Ziyatdinov's planto ignore the LSB on deck of the carrier.

"Debt is dumb. Cash is king." — Dave Ramsey

A jester, court jester, fool or joker was a member of the household of a nobleman or a monarch employed to entertain guests during the medieval and Renaissance eras. Jesters were also itinerant performers who entertained common folk at fairs and town markets, and the discipline continues into the modern day, where jesters perform at historical-themed events.

During the Middle Ages, jesters are often thought to have worn brightly colored clothes and eccentric hats in a motley pattern. Their modern counterparts usually mimic this costume. Jesters entertained with a wide variety of skills: principal among them were song, music, and storytelling, but many also employed acrobatics, juggling, telling jokes (such as puns, stereotypes, and imitation), and performing magic tricks. Much of the entertainment was performed in a comic style. Many jesters made contemporary jokes in word or song about people or events well known to their audiences.

Silence is the best reply to a fool. ― Joker

Always Remember, the beginning is the hardest part. ― Joker

Did you hear about the mathematician who's afraid of negative numbers? He'll stop at nothing to avoid them.

Praseodymium Pr 59 140.908 1.1

.oo.