Chess and Music
Making this Wednesday the best day of the week (so far) I've decided to spend this afternoon working on my Correspondence Chess games with relaxing Boomer music playing in the background.
And with the exception of a gameshow break mid-afternoon (she and I have gotten into the habit of watching Lets Make a Deal together), this THIS is how I intend to spend the next several hours!
The adventure continues.
Published on 18 November 2020, ~12:50 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #Wednesday #chess #music
by Roscoe
Merry Christmas to me.
Yes, I've started my Christmas gift shopping early. Why? Because I want to!
Some items are now on their way for the wife, things I know she'll like. And for Roscoe, because he's been a very good boy this year, a new computer is coming.
This won't be my first Raspberry Pi. Many rears ago I had one of the earliest models and had great fun working with it.
But when my lifestyle changed (work situation, living situation) I no longer had the time nor the physical space to devote to that particular hobby. And that tiny computer in its little case now sits on a shelf in my room, reminding me of the fun we had together.
Now that my working computer, a nearly ten year old laptop (running a Linux OS, of course) is showing its age, it's time to think seriously about replacing it. And since Christmas is approaching, well...
The adventure continues.
Published on 15 November 2020, ~12:10 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #Sunday #computer #Christmas
by Roscoe
A BIG Deal!
Remember that “mini-stampede” of folks I blogged about yesterday? About folks leaving the big social networks of Facebook and Twitter, looking for other places where they can speak freely, where they can post without fear of being censored for not being politically correct?
I'd say 10 MILLION folks leaving in two weeks qualifies as more than a “mini-stampede”. I'd say it looks more like a mass migration. I'd say it's a big deal.
And the adventure continues.
Published on 14 November 2020, ~13:10 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #Saturday
by Roscoe
Following the herd?
The past few weeks have seen, and the weeks ahead will continue to see, a mini-stampede of conservative folks leaving the giant social networks of Facebook and Twitter, looking for places on the Internet where they can speak more freely, without fear of censorship.
Given the fact that much of my family seems to be permanently stuck there, and so many folks I personally know from the Philippines use Facebook almost exclusively and will continue to do so, I'll keep my account active there. I already cancelled my Twitter account many weeks (months?) ago, and have no interest in ever going back.
The social networks where I keep an active presence can be found listed in the sidebar of my primary website. Folks leaving Facebook will probably find MeWe their most comfortable landing spot. Probably.
As for me, I'm satisfied with the social sites I haunt, and have no plans to look for any more.
And the adventure continues.
Published on 13 November 2020, ~21:10 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #Friday #socialsites
by Roscoe
It is discovered that...
... that the great-grandbabies love hot cocoa!
And thank God that children and grandchildren post pictures on the Internet so that grandparents and great-grandparents who live far away can share in the joy and happiness of such moments!
That means SO MUCH to us, especially in these times of forced lockdown and separation!
And the adventure continues.
Published on 12 November 2020, ~11:00 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #Thursday #greatgrandbabies
by Roscoe
A 54-Day “Get Strong” Novena
Today begins a 54-Day Novena which will end on 01 Janury 2021, a feast day celebrated by the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church: The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God.
More information about Fr. Richard Heilman's “Get Strong” Novena can be found here. Special meditations and Bible readings will be offered for each day of the Novena, but the most important part will be daily recitation of 5 Decades of the Rosary.
I've done several of Fr. Heilman's 54-Day Novenas and have found each one to be an edifying and worthwhile experience. I'll be doing this one, too.
And the adventure continues.
Published on 09 November 2020, ~09:40 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #Monday #Catholic #prayer
by Roscoe
Another CC Win with White
Logging onto the site of one of my server-based Correspondence Chess Clubs this afternoon I found that I'd won another game with the White pieces. Though my 34. Nd4e6+ had placed the Black King in check, it was an attack from which he could easily escape in two ways. But however he did it, my next move would have been to capture his last remaining Rook, giving me an overwhelming material advantage. Faced with this inevitability, Black rightly resigned.
Position of pieces at game's end is shown at the top of this post, and our full move record is below:
1. d4 d5 2. Ng1f3 Nb8c6 3. c3 Bc8g4 4. h3 Bg4xf3 5. exf3 e5 6. dxe5 Nc6xe5 7. Bc1f4 Qd8d6 8. Bf4xe5 Qd6xe5 9. Qd1e2 Qe5xe2 10. Bf1xe2 Ng8f6 11. O-O Bf8c5 12. b4 O-O 13. bxc5 Rf8e8 14. Rf1e1 c6 15. Nb1d2 b6 16. Nd2b3 Nf6d7 17. Nb3d4 bxc5 18. Nd4xc6 a6 19. f4 c4 20. Nc6b4 Nd7b6 21. Be2f3 Re8d8 22. Nb4c6 Rd8d6 23. Nc6e7 Kg8f8 24. Ne7f5 Rd6f6 25. Re1e5 Rf6e6 26. Re5xe6 fxe6 27. Nf5d4 Kf8f7 28. a4 Kf7f6 29. a5 Nb6d7 30. Ra1b1 Nd7c5 31. g4 e5 32. Rb1b6 Kf6f7 33. Bf3xd5 Kf7f8 34. Nd4e6+
1-0
And the adventure continues.
Published on 08 November 2020, ~14:00 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #chess
by Roscoe
Good news / bad news
First the good news: This is probably meaningless to anyone other than me and my doctor, but the bathroom scales were surprisingly kind to me this morning. The body weight has finally, for the first time in many weeks (months? I may check that.) dropped down into what I consider my healthy, feel-good range! Yay! Go me!
Then the bad news: It's really not so terribly bad, and not that unusual. But at 06:20 I'm up from one of the most insomnia-filled nights to come my way in a long time. This particular insomnia was most likely due to my disappointment at watching so many folks falling blindly for the psy op (psychological operation) and shenanigans being perpetrated by those attempting a coup against America.
That coup will collapse of course, in time. I suspect weeks, maybe months for the legal aspects to straighten out. But my disappointment and sadness at so many shallow-minded people falling for it will linger. And my tendency toward misanthropy finds justification.
At least my body weight is headed in the right direction. There is that.
And the adventure continues.
Published on 08 November 2020, ~06:50 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #health
by Roscoe
Welcome to the world, Guinevere!
This new little great-granddaughter, born just two days ago in the Philippines, brings our total great-grandchild count to seven. We have three in the US, two girls and a boy, and now four in SE Asia, four boys and one girl.
Due to travel restrictions caused by the Communist Chinese flu, and lockdown/quarantine measures and related economic tightening in place world-wide, we have yet to see any of our great-grandbabies face to face or hold any of them in our arms. Our hearts ache at that.
But we love them all dearly, as do their parents, their brothers and sisters and cousins, and their grandparents who are fortunate to live near them. Each one of our great-grandbabies is surrounded by a loving, caring family. That is a great blessing for which we are so thankful! And we look forward with eager anticipation to the day when we can be together with them.
It's interesting to note here a cultural difference between America and the Philippines. Statistics show that as a result of the forced lockdown under which much of the world has been living for nearly a year, the US divorce and domestic violence rate has skyrocketed. While in PH we're seeing a major baby boom right now.
Life does go on and...
The adventure continues.
Published on 05 November 2020, ~09:30 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #Friday #babies
by Roscoe
Social sites?
Yeah, I visit a few.
These are the ones saved in a folder of my phone. Some I visit much more regularly than others. Some I visit for different reasons than others.
When we're mostly quarantined under this plandemic we get our socializing from where we can, ya know.
I imagine many of you visit at least some of these places, too.
The chess clubs and websites I belong to are saved in another folder, and I often spend as much time or more with my games there than I do with the social sites pictured above. And honestly, I find the chess-heavy days healthier and more edifying than the days spent largely on the social sites.
And so the adventure continues.
Published on 05 November 2020, ~16:15 Central Time.
#RoscoeEllis #blog #SeniorLiving #Thursday #technology #social
by Roscoe