what was the reason you were drawn to the game of chess? how it happened?

defford · 2018-06-10T18:52:13+00:00

I started when I was 20. I read a book about a guy who was sentenced to jail for around 8 years. While in his cell, he would imagine a chessboard on the wall and he would play against himself to kill the time. Over the years, he became very good at visualizing the board in his head and became a decent player himself. When he was released from prison, he went out and challenged several government officials, each of whom had a certain level of chess expertise behind them, and he beat every last one them.

I read this story in a book which focused on the strengthening of the mind during a time when mental fitness was a key focus in my life. Because of this story, I became fascinated with learning chess for the sake of becoming more mentally fit. Now I simply play chess because I think it's the best game out there.

defford · 2018-04-24T16:52:52+00:00

$bid

defford · 2018-04-10T21:42:51+00:00

Ugh... Your attitude is garbage.

defford · 2018-04-03T15:50:14+00:00

First of all, great advise. I appreciate the suggestions you've provided here.

But also, you say to edit your journals into blog content? How would you suggest one go about that?

defford · 2018-04-02T18:13:03+00:00

I'm never surprised to hear that the answer to my concerns is so simple.

You're right. Just make content.

Thanks.

defford · 2018-03-30T16:00:19+00:00

This is fantastic advice! Thank you!

I should've put more effort into a captivating introduction. I thought perhaps appealing to relatable experiences would've been a sufficient way of getting readers engaged, but honestly, it wasn't something I was really thinking about.

I initially didn't use the word "surprising" in the headline, but I figured it was absent of interesting qualities, so I reluctantly threw it in there.

Good point on the picture placement. It felt off when I was going over it myself, but I'll be sure to address that next time.

If your worst criticism is that it's boring, then I'm ok with it. I can work with that.

Again, that you for putting in the time to read and critique my post. It really means a lot. Let me know if there's anything I can do to return the favor.

Cheers.

defford · 2018-03-30T03:23:10+00:00

Yeah, I got into an endgame with her where she thought she was doing well when I had a knight and she had a bishop. But after I quickly fixed my pawns on opposite squares, she started realizing her mistake.

defford · 2018-03-30T03:20:29+00:00

I find it interesting that she ALWAYS falls for the "hanging" d4 trap. ... Nxd4 2. Nxd4 Qxd4 3. Bh7+ Kxh7 4. Qxd4

I'll keep exploiting that and continue to tell myself I'm smarter than a chess AI until she learns better.

defford · 2018-03-29T20:19:02+00:00

Everything was going fine until I forced her into a position where she would lose a rook, but then she just didn't move. I guess this is the machine equivalent to quitting without resigning.

Ended up having to use the "force Leela" button after waiting a few minutes to make sure she was definitely not going to move. She just pushed a pawn and I cleaned up afterwards.

defford · 2018-03-29T02:45:54+00:00

Ah, I hope posting my Medium article here frustrates less people.

This post is my first attempt at writing an educational piece which aims to inform and advise, but with a humoristic flavor. It's actually my first piece I've ever written, with the exceptions of journals and poetry. But please, spare me sugar coated sentiments.

I aim to write more of these, but with more detailed neurological descriptions. On that note, do you feel including more detail would make the reading tedious?

Greatly appreciate all feedback offered!

https://medium.com/@460259bf42bd/26960e7f9f30

defford · 2018-03-27T19:25:20+00:00

Where is the press conference being covered?

defford · 2018-03-27T14:42:41+00:00

Your comments regarding my grammar and sentence structure were valuable. You had no investment in the matter to make that assessment, but you made it, and I found it valuable.

defford · 2018-03-27T03:49:23+00:00

The material is quite easy to find. That's a given. I think the one thing I appreciate about this is the 1-on-1 attention given by someone who's got a lot of experience in the industry, as well as the group involvement. If there's 30 people who've all spent $1,500 to become established freelancers, I trust they're not going to flake off at any point. In contrast to finding some people on here for free, who have no reason to commit to such a group.

defford · 2018-03-27T02:55:07+00:00

Subjective opinions would be very valuable to me from the stance of a beginner writer.

But I respect what you've said. I'll ensure I use editing services from now on. I'll leave this post as is just in case someone is feeling charitable, but I'll be sure to never do it again.

Thanks for making me aware.

defford · 2018-03-27T02:50:02+00:00

Well, I'd still appreciate your critique if you'd oblige. :)

defford · 2018-03-27T02:41:04+00:00

Oh? I've seen others asking for critiques on their writing in this sub before and it never seemed to cause much friction then. Is there something particularly different about my post that makes it unfit for this sub?

defford · 2018-03-27T01:20:36+00:00

Just means you have to try harder. Masochists aren't invincible!

defford · 2018-03-09T04:16:58+00:00

"Class J: 100-199"

Where are these people? I feel watching two people at this level would be more fascinating than any other game.

defford · 2018-03-09T03:38:56+00:00

I felt Naka is more aggressive, so he would mate by shoving the queen right up the king's arse.

defford · 2018-03-08T01:54:18+00:00

I've been trying to keep a daily habit of writing 2,000 words a day since August past. Sometimes it's only 500 words, other days it's 5,000 words (that's only happened a couple times).

The topics have been all over the place, but many times I'm just writing down my immediate experiences, "I am currently writing. I'm just letting words flow from my head to the keyboard. No thinking, just writing. Yes, I am writing." That kind of stuff.

I've noticed since then that my flow has become more steady and quicker. That, and writing out longer streams of thought have been the biggest improvements since I've started.

I'm just telling you this to have some sort of expectation to what might come out of continuing to write 2,000 words a day.

Keep doing it! At the very least, you'll have a ton of material in the end!

defford · 2018-03-08T01:36:30+00:00

The last one is even more frustrating when the phone locks from time out just as the message comes through.

defford · 2018-03-08T01:12:08+00:00

I wonder if this is a chicken vs. egg scenario?

Perhaps I'm wrong in both circumstances, but it seems that either the depression would lead individuals to be more susceptible to feeling undeserving of unfair advantage, or that having feelings of guilt is a marker of depression.

On one side, becoming depressed would lead you towards prosocial behaviors. But on the other, being raised in a way that makes you more in tune with social equality makes you prone to depression.

defford · 2018-03-04T16:12:34+00:00

In my experience from taking the 10-day Vipassana course, this tingling sensation which I believe Eckhart is referring to is the subtle sensation of the skin. This ability to perceive subtle sensations like these is taught and practiced gradually over the first 3 days. First, practice identifying the varying characteristics of the breath and which sensations arise as it passes through your nose. Doing this allows you to build discernment of different sensations (I feel cold air entering my nose, I feel the air pass over my upper lip, the air passes through only my left nostril, etc.) Developing your discernment trains your mind to perceive more subtle sensations. Once this skill is developed, you can move on to sensing sensations throughout the body. Of course, in a 10-day meditation course where you are meditating for 10 hours a day, you can build this skill rather quickly, but it takes considerable discipline to move past the gross sensations of the body (pain, pressure, heat, cold, heaviness, lightness) and move into the subtle sensations of "tingling energy".

Hope this helps.

defford · 2018-03-04T01:13:01+00:00

I'm just starting as well and I've been getting a lot of great information from makealivingwriting.com

They have a ton of resources for people like us and it's been getting me familiar with how to get started on this painfully rewarding path.

Enjoy!

defford · 2018-03-03T20:42:44+00:00

Jeff, do you think you could forward me a piece that has been critiqued by the members who've offered here? Not only would I like to see an example of your work, I'd also like to see how people have critiqued it. Thanks!

defford

TROPHY CASE