Monday, October 14, 2002

Light at the end of the tunnel

Only two more chapters to go till I finish book #1 on my journey to become Master! I've got a little ritual planned to celebrate the occasion. I'll reveal what it is when I actually finish... don't want to count my chickens before they hatch. If all goes as planned, I'll be done on Tuesday.

I've rearranged my computer work area to make it more comfortable for when I start playing STC chess on the servers. On a 5-foot folding table set at a right angle to my computer table, I now have a full-size one-piece wooden board and a wood version of USCF's Club Special set (item S471 in their catalog). Now I need to locate a swivel chair to replace the one with legs.

It's also time to give a little thought to what comes after Chess Tactics for Students. I'll continue my tactical training with Al Woolum's The Chess Tactics Workbook, available from his website. Additionally, I want to start studying chess strategy and positional concepts. For this, I've chosen Jeremy Silman's The Amateur's Mind. Silman is a highly acclaimed chess author and is best known for his book How to Reassess Your Chess. For anyone under Class A (1800), I recommend starting with The Amateur's Mind before graduating to HTRYC.

As I'll be studying two books simultaneously, things will be slower going. I aim to be finished with both by mid-December.

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