Chess update

The last remaining game has finished in my correspondence chess tournament. Although I concluded my games at the end of June, my final tournament standing was not definite until the other players had finished too. Now it's clear that, as predicted, I tied for second place and picked up eleven correspondence chess rating points. I was seeded sixth out of seven players at the start of the event, so I'm pleased with the result overall (although I made poor moves at critical moments in my two losses and ought to have put up a tougher fight). All the games were fun and instructional, however, and I'm looking forward to playing in another correspondence chess tournament soon.

There isn't much in New Hampshire in terms of over-the-board chess tournaments. Many of the tournaments that do exist are scheduled for holiday weekends, which often makes it difficult to attend. In recent years, though, Alex Relyea has done an admirable job of organizing new events across the state. Hopefully I'll be able to attend more of his tournaments in the coming years (my lone participation in one of his tournaments was the 2008 South Burlington Plus-Score, which I won with a 4-0 score). For now, however, my priority is preparing for the wedding and then settling into married life.

For those of you not keeping up with Icelandic paternity litigation, the DNA test results have come back in the Bobby Fischer paternity case. The former World Chess Champion was exhumed from his grave in Selfoss, Iceland earlier this year to settle a suit brought by his former partner, Marilyn Young. Ms. Young alleged that Fischer fathered her daughter Jinky; the DNA testing proved that he did not.

In other news, the Ben & Jerry's store in Hanover closed over the weekend. Its replacement, Carnival I Scream, is slated to open tomorrow. While I'll be sorry to see Ben & Jerry's (and especially Free Cone Day) go, I'm looking forward to visiting its successor!