The King of Chess Island

The Cast

Date: 16 June 2020

FILLERBUSTER’S ELEVEN

BACKGROUND:  This started as a long-winded numbered blog.  It transformed into an organized long-winded category blog.  Now, it is a quick-hitter to ease your pain.  I lack time.  So, the preparation of the blog actually made me procrastinate from writing the thing.  Let’s see who makes the cut.  Barely edited as usual unfortunately, so please excuse any mistakes during my stream of consciousness.  I feel the need…the need for speed.  Let’s turn and burn.

SETTING: This is written on Monday night while my wife finishes catching up on Billions.  Edited and released on Tuesday morning first thing before work time. I went past 11 this week.  Sorry. Lots to cover.

1. EVERGREEN 1:  All sports are being embarrassing right now.  We get it.  They are businesses, and fans’ feelings can’t be weighed into any decisions right now.  It is all about safety and protocols and money.  But, let’s communicate the progress to the fans in a better way.  Football is at least trying to inch there, but they have the advantage of TIME, so you know they don’t have everything hashed out yet in detail.  NBA was being the poster child of planning, but now players are saying they don’t want to go to the bubble for that period of time.  You can’t go away for that long? Do you know that military personnel go away for that long all the time?  Others think it will distract them from the BLM cause.  You are disinterested in the season suddenly because of this?  Don’t you know that the bubble IS your platform if you want to deliver messaging on BLM?  Think you will deliver that messaging to a global audience better when you’re your home?  Maybe you are embarrassed about your quarantine prep suddenly, but we need a victor, guys.  Finish what you started, and know that you WANT to be one of the sports that gets society back to some type of normalcy.   And when Kyrie Irving, a guy who may or may not believe the Earth is actually flat, is the voice of reason from the players’ side, that is a problem.  Baseball?  They look jealous and juvenile.  The owners and players are publicly arguing about the solution, and they seem to forget that part of negotiation is giving up something you want personally.  You have to give a little.  Sad to watch, and they appear very selfish at this point.  Hockey has set training camp dates, but no plan or location has been revealed, so who knows about them.  I have faith that they will end up with one of the better solutions.  The players in the NHL are classier and smarter than most of the other sports from a starting point anyway.  Tennis players don’t need to tell us NOW about how they don’t like US Open protocol.  Wait and see how this thing pans out first.  Golfers are golfing without fans, and that sport will be fine because of natural distancing.  We will wait and see on the others.
2. EVERGREEN 2:  HOTELS.  Lindsey and I have decided to get away in Colorado for July 4^th.  We want to get out of our house, but not mess with airports and airlines.  We are heading to the one town we have both never been to and have yearned for.  Telluride.  We were supposed to attend the Bluegrass Festival this year, but obviously that was canceled.  So, we are picking out the hotel for the trip.  Three nights.  When searching, I got curious on something.  HOW are they charging the same relative price for the hotel experience?  I even work in the industry and don’t fully understand the concept.  How are the expensive $800 ones even trying to get that amount?  And shouldn’t the $300 plateau be down to $200 because of present circumstances?  Isn’t there an overall downward curve we need to recognize across the board?  For example, when I go to a hotel, I look at the pool first.  Bonus amenities are hot tubs, steam rooms, and fitness facilities.  But, if these are limited and closed due to COVID, then how am I still paying normal amount for my visit?  My experience has a new high level, which will be lower and more awkward than the hotel’s initial intentions no matter how they slice it.  I think every single one should lower rate accordingly.  Unfair.  We are not able to enjoy community amenities, we are wearing masks half the time and not “relaxing,” and walking around awkwardly in general.  My wallet should feel that.
3. EVERGREEN EXTRA: FATHER’S DAY.  Just a few notes on my Dad as I probably won’t get another blog out before the holiday.  He was a respected teacher and principal in my hometown in New Jersey, and did everything he could to give me what I needed to succeed.  He gave time.  He gave money.  He gave guidance.  He took me fishing.  He taught me horseshoes.  He took me fishing more at a freshly stocked trout lake.  He attended hundreds of swim meets without complaint.  He took me fishing some more in the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean.  He beat me at chess and made me earn my first tie and then win.  He taught me hoops and made me earn those wins too.  He was stern but gave me freedom.  He taught me things, but allowed me to learn most of the rest on my own as I should.  He allowed me to switch sports focus every other year without complaining.  He allowed me to continue my piano lessons no matter what the cost.  He accepted some pretty odd stories in explaining incidents with a smirk.  He helped me get what I needed for my scholarship to Virginia.  And he didn’t pull the rug when I became a frat guy at college.  I learned patience while fishing, real world stuff while playing hoops, intelligence and planning during chess, method during horseshoes, preparation during swimming, more real world stuff in my initial jobs, etc.  He supplemented all of this with daily guidance that I still treasure and remember and use today.  He delivered everything and more that a Dad could, and I am lucky to have the best Dad a kid could get.  Thanks, Dad.  You are the best.
4. EVERGREEN 3: COVID.  Just my random notes.  Odd life continues with a new normalcy.  In Colorado, stay at home gatherings have to be 12 or less.  But, you can have a protest of up to 100.  So, if you are having a party, just call it a protest.  States are spiking, and from what I heard weeks ago, we should have expected Arizona to.  They were being pretty normal weeks ago.  We seem to still be confused about asymptomatic and symptomatic spreading.  Fauci and WHO are disagreeing about things, and that isn’t good.  Two hairstylists who were positive for COVID somehow didn’t spread it to one of 140 people they came into contact with.  Why?  Starbucks is closing 400 stores as they shift to takeout only.  Coachella and Stagecoach have canceled their legendary festivals.  The Oscars, which aren’t until next FEBRUARY, have already moved the event until April of 2021.  A Ghanaian soccer player spent the entire 74 days of quarantine in an airport, so I guess he has a new definition of airport food.  Disneyland will open July 17^th, and reason #1548 why I am glad I don’t have kids, as that would be the last place I would want to be post-COVID.  And, when picking a Father’s Day card, I noticed another new normal.  I didn’t want to touch too many cards, so my selection process was the opposite of my previous method, which was reading pretty much every single one.  And when are we going to run out of movies and shows?  When is the big break coming where nothing could be made because it couldn’t be made because everyone was quarantined?  Billions is just one example of a show having to be cut off in the middle.  It is sad.  Life is confusing, and people are insane.
5. EVERGREEN 4: FLOYD.  Just my random notes.  Ex-Clemson football players are pushing for name changes at the university in between them needing to defend the coaches there for racial language.  Police defunding and reform are the talk of the media, and I don’t think that is the answer either.  Trump is still prematurely lauding drugs that cure, and calling out Buffalo citizens for setups on the street.  He is opposing Confederate statue removal, and changing asylum rules.  A Missouri woman took the time to write Merriam Webster to change their definition of racism, and she was successful.  Gone With The Wind has been pulled from HBO max for racist foundations.  The Panthers moved Jerry Richardson’s statue.  Statues of Columbus are coming down right and left.  Juneteenth is an item these days, and many need reminded what it is in the first place.  The military might be changing names of bases, which is a major overhaul.  The NFL is pledging $250 million over ten years towards racism education.  PTI had a conversation about Boston racists that was pretty personal and historic.  Wayne Brady from Whose Line Is It? is getting involved.  Seattle has oddly become the most stubborn group of protesters.  Good stories like this are still out there.  https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/14/us/tattoo-shop-hate-gang-symbol-cover-up-kentucky-trnd/index.html   Mike Gundy still doesn’t get it and wears a poorly timed OAN shirt to workouts.  Sounds like that team just needs to have the talk that everyone apparently needs around the globe.  And, now, we have ANOTHER incident between a black man and white cop that ended in death in Atlanta.  The show Cops has been discontinued, as this is probably not the time to be glorifying them as badasses I guess.  Life is confusing, and people are insane.
6. NFL:  Now that he is back in the news, WHY do we shorten Kaepernick to Kap and not Kaep?  Makes no sense, and don’t get the change of spelling.  And now we are in dangerous territory as far as Kaep (I am going to keep my spelling, folks).  Players are demanding that Kaep needs a job for full closure and progress, and Goodell is recommending a team do it.  I think that pressuring one single team to make that leap of faith as far as offering a position on the team is unfair.  That involves an assumption of his present skills being the same as his former skills years ago as equal.  That involves a perfect situation on that team’s QB depth chart.  Years ago, I definitely knew he should have been on a team, as he was easily better than the worst QB’s on rosters.  Now could be different though.  BUT.  Issuing a public statement is another thing though, and should be done.  Forced employment is tough, but big release of emotional statement would be beneficial.  Dalvin Cook is holding out for more money from the Vikings.  Dalvin is a decent RB and it is nice to have him.  But, running backs are not as valuable and easier to replace, and 13 TD’s and 1100 yards last season doesn’t holler more money to me.  Settle down, Dalvin.  You are good, but still somewhat expendable.  Not sure why I laughed at the Lynn Bowden, Jr. story, but think it was because a Raider getting raided.  Antonio Brown plead guilty to assault and burglary, and since he showed a few moments of awareness about how idiotic he has been at least in one incident, I fully expect a new idiotic incident coming down the pike soon.  Baker Mayfield says he will kneel, and I like this statement.  Simple, to the point, and not trying to overexplain his feelings and thoughts on racism.  He is just simply saying he will kneel.  Well done.  Cowboys and Texans players are already getting COVID and we haven’t even started anything really for team activities.  Christian Hackenberg has failed at football, and will try out baseball.  He is another guy who is good at multiple sports.  Apparently, he throws about 90 MPH.  I hear he was erratic with that heat as a reliver, which replicates his QB career in college and the pros.  But, in today’s new MLB, relievers ARE needed, so probably not a horrible idea.  He is only 25.  Alvin Kamara went to a NASCAR race, so I assume his assumptions about what goes on at those things are complete now.  He probably immediately just went to the closest protest right after.
7. COLLEGE FOOTBALL:  USC might reestablish ties with Reggie Bush, and this is yet another example that time heals all wounds, payments, cheating, and free stuff.  Neither has had much success since the other left them, so partnering up probably is more advantageous.  And in other news, Charlie Weis would be proud, but still understand that he outdid everyone.  When Bret Bielema laterally (no advantage gained) transferred from Wisconsin to this job, he went 29-34 before the $12 million buyout, is being fought because he wasn’t searching for a job, is “only” asking for $7 million now, and who WOULD search for a job when the former team overpays your exit?  As I said, Weis is still the king of buyouts, but he would be proud regardless.
8. NBA:  Russell Westbrook will produce a documentary on the Tulsa massacre, and it shows he still misses OKC.  Bradley Beal is loving quarantine, since we lack live action enough to talk about trade rumors involving him.  Reaching… Apparently, the Miami Heat will make a serious run on Giannis and Oladipo in 2021, and you tend to believe Pat Riley trade and free agent rumors, as he firmly does NOT believe in rebuilding…ever.  Have you SEEN Nikola Jokic?  He is slim as heck.  The Nuggets were already going to be one of the contenders when play resumed.  Him looking faster and quicker like he does might take them from second tier to top tier if combined with a revved up Jamal Murray.  Jokic’s ONLY flaw was his physique and speed, and that might be solved now.  Well done, sir.
9. MLB: I have already hit on the selfishness of the baseball players and owners.  They are trading proposals and sending each back to the other side with lack of public counters.  Meanwhile, the draft occurred.  Fun trivia.  Spencer Torkelson became the first ever right handed first baseman ever taken with the first pick in the draft.  That sounds like a Bill Walton statement, but still is pretty interesting.  Torii Hunter’s comments on Boston racism took me by surprise, but post-Floyd realities are coming from all over right now, which they should.  Sad story.  Again, it was interesting to hear PTI cover this story last week.
10. MISCELLANEOUS: Bubba Wallace might have been the one that voiced it (as he IS the only black driver), but those Confederate flags needed to come down anyway in NASCAR, and kind of a shame it takes a guy dying in both Minneapolis and Atlanta to get it done.  And thanks for Ray Ciccarelli being the deleted tweet embarrassed guy who indicated that he is leaving NASCAR BECAUSE of the flag being removed.  Whoops.  Fight Island is Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, and the UFC fighting bubble sounds a lot more fun than any other bubbles in conversation.  Just in case we doubted Michael Jordan’s skills at odd sports like fishing, he goes out and catches a 442.3 lb Marlin to be good at that too.  Catch 23.  Clever boat name.  The CrossFit CEO resigned, and some people are made to just workout and not be near any sort of microphone, I guess.  Joshua and Fury have reached tentatively a two-fight deal for 2021, and I would be up for watching that one.  Athleticism again pure boxing skill with Fury.  The Basketball Tournament will have their bubble in Columbus.  This is ironic because the defending champion are the Ohio State kids, but they won’t be able to have any fans in house.  Guess the home court advantage will have to be loud enough to get through the walls.  The PGA had its first tournament, and things went just fine without fans.  That sport will be fine.  Bryson DeChambeau spent quarantine bulking up and we admire that initiative, but he should have just focused on playing a little faster.  Trump says he won’t be watching soccer this year because of the kneeling repeal, and WHY do you have to volunteer information we don’t care about your opinion on?  There is no need for you to volunteer this info unless you are simply trying to stir up some stuff on your idiotic Twitter account.  I have no intentions of watching the McGwire-Sosa documentary, but luckily heard that it sucks.  New Zealand is back to their normal, since they have no COVID cases, and therefore rugby matches can have that thing we remember called “crowds.”
11. THIS AND THAT:  First of all, on Saturday Linds and I went to our first restaurant since quarantine, and man, we were happy with our selection.  Highly recommend American Elm for brunch.  On 38^th in the Highlands.  And everyone was nice and spread out.  And if you are questioning the uplifted price on the steak and eggs, pay it.  You haven’t been out in a while, right?  Not sure I am proud of this.  New Jersey has some surprising redneck spots, and here is the list, with Mike Trout’s hometown coming in first, and mine coming in at #3.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7mHGzvxCB8&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR3QzmYgBCiD6MDtS2e-gEGh_086zwXPtmJzHK0M92_2DGyJSmjQ2hYUIFA  Watch The King of Staten Island.  I recommend.  Dark comedy for the first hour, with it turning into a surprisingly good movie for the second hour.  Pete Davidson puts on a great performance and this movie is a hidden treasure.  Or, maybe I am just a Pete Davidson fan.  A minus.  Quarantines can give people time for ideas of odd partnerships, and I think Pringles getting together with Wendy’s to make the Baconator potato chip is a GREAT idea.  I am holding out on the final Billions (shown this past Sunday) until the wife catches up, so we can watch ONE episode together before radio silence occurs on the show sadly.  Fantastic show that is a constant chess match.  An Arizona resident hit the lottery for $440 million, and that will dull any COVID pain or anxiety.  Panic is a song by From Ashes to New that is on the rock (Octane) charts presently, and not only is it a really good workout song, but one of the first ones I have personally seen with COVID masks in the delivery.  Kelly Clarkson filed for divorce with her husband, and that explains the massive glasses of wine that she was drinking on The Voice final episodes in Montana.  I admit to not knowing WHO the Arby’s voice is…Ving Rhames.  No idea.  My wife loaded an app on her phone where she can see a fake 3D Golden Retriever in our surroundings.  Pretty trippy.  You might not listen to Jim Rome as frequently as you should, but this Friday (6/19) is the Jungle Smackoff, and you should clear out your lunchtime and take a listen.  Best callers, by invite only, get to compete for a winning call in the three-hour period.  You will hear some of the most funny and knowledgeable call-in people you have ever heard.  Only 14 winners in 25 editions, so you HAVE to be good to get on that list.  Check it out.  10-1 Mountain on 221 on DirectTV (have to figure it out for Comcast but I think it is Fox Sports something).  Sony just released PlayStation 5, and I know that scheduling is scheduling, but they probably missed a window where they could have sold a few more of those things during quarantine life.  The Motley Crue concert is officially postponed, and this is going to be the most live music-less summer I have had since I was out of college.  Linger is a great restaurant, but didn’t travel as well as we hoped for when getting it take-out.  The Wagu sliders though were as good as I remembered.  Robot Chicken is such a perfect late night show.  I watched a little Missing In Action the other night, and Chuck Norris was such a badass back in the day.  Exploding Kittens is a card game that requires more thought than you think once you get good at it.  Pretty fun, but we recommend more than the two people we are trying to play with.  A woman hatched ducklings from supermarket eggs, and that woman has been quarantined for too long.  A New Hampshire high school did their graduation on a ski lift to keep social distancing, but have some sort of procession, and that is sort of clever.  24 Hour Fitness filed for Chapter 11 and will close many locations. 
12. THE FILLERBUSTER:  Nothing excited to report once again, and miss telling everyone about world travels.  As I mentioned earlier, Telluride is now on the docket for the Fourth.  Aspen at the end of the year.  Linds and I are actively trying to buy a pool for our yard, and we are very disappointed on how late to the party we are on this.  Just didn’t fully register how it would be needed and almost every site is sold out.  Spanish lessons continue.  Guitar lessons continue.  Starting a list of piano songs I will always know off the top of my head, and MY, did my Mom agree to buy me a LOT of piano sheet music.  Thanks, Mom, and know I still have ALL of it.  Workout is still just TRX and running.  Refunds on Motet, Bluesfest, and Steel Panther cashed in.  Cirque de Soleil in Denver moved to 2021, so that is now the farthest away event on our calendar.  I did my emissions on Thursday, and I got there at 7am and still was 7^th in line.  They don’t get IN your vehicle, but also don’t gun the engine, so I wonder how that affects the overall results.  It would be ironic if air got cleaner because no one was driving, but then air got worse because of social distancing during emission tests.  Got some new great workout songs recruited and will pass that along next time.  I was proud to beat a much better cornhole player than me on Saturday for some cash while my wife was at a girls’ pool party.  He brought over his Golden Retriever also, so we temporarily were a dog owner.  Lots of porch games again this weekend, as we love our porch.  We listened to a few minutes of the Never Miss a Sunday Show Widespread Panic stream also.  We are going camping next weekend at Jackson’s Lake, and that will be different and fun.  We received our “hammock” that my wife ordered from China, and it was just a small envelope with a couple of masks in it.  Not the hammock we expected lol, but how nice of them.  Still doing the grocery store pickup, as I don’t feel like wandering around a store yet.  It is back to doing yardwork, as our landscaper basically just was mowing our lawn, and I can do that for free.  I got stuck on Top Gun again the other night, and decided to quickly jot down the movies that “get me.”  Top Gun, Hoosiers, Gladiator, Princess Bride, Hoosiers, Rounders, Tombstone, Caddyshack, Airplane, Animal House, Training Day, Karate Kid, For the Love of the Game, The Rookie, Usual Suspects, and Tin Cup was my brainstorm, although I could probably add 30 more in a few minutes if I wanted to.  Finally, two other chess things.  One, I have a colleague, Anthony, who has expressed he is the same kind of chess player as I am.  We don’t do classic “strategies,” but we are no pushovers at the game.  I look forward to starting on that.  I am not the best nor the king, but, in the words of Maverick from Top Gun, I can “hold my own.” Two, my new favorite book, Man’s Search For Meaning, has one lesson that is my favorite.  There is no “best” chess move.  It is situational.  Like life.  You need to adjust and then make your move, give your response.  Brilliant.
13. TWEET OF THE WEEK

ALTERNATE CATEGORIES THAT DIDN’T MAKE THE CUT:

1. THE BEST WORKOUT SONG EVER FOR THIS WEEK (because the best song this week IS the best song ever…for now):
2. QUOTE OF THE WEEK
3. LINKS TO SAVE YOU TIME IN LIFE
4. TRAVEL
5. THIS WEEK’S LIST
6. MY NUMBERS
7. GONE FISHING (the riddle for money):
8. PICS BY MY PIXEL (pictures from my phone):
9. LIFEGUARD ENTRY:
10. COLLEGE BASKETBALL
11. NHL

The theme?  Chess.  I mentioned it while talking about how much fun I had playing chess with my Dad, how Billions is a constant chess match, how I am starting to play soon with a colleague, and how it is mentioned in Man’s Search for Meaning. No theme before writing, and it just kind of happened like that.

And our weekly reminder of the greatest sequel ever made coming out next summer… Top Gun 2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epgkqPJ_bc0&vl=en

Talk to you after I camp next week, all.

That’s it for today.  Hope you enjoyed or are at least more informed.  Remember three things.  First, feed yourself, feed your family, but always, always remember to…feed the wolf.  Second, if you can’t spot the sucker in your first half hour at the table, then you are the sucker.  Third, life is confusing and people are insane.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4fNwPLMRqY  Will I blog again?  That is a CLOWN question, bro.  As one shepherd said to the other shepherd, let’s get the flock out of here.

BONUS:  Man’s Search For Meaning notes (probably my new favorite book ever, and a quick read…and chess is mentioned again)

LESSONS OVERALL:

• The meaning of your life is to help others find the meaning of theirs.
  • Last page
  • The more one forgets himself-by giving himself to a cause to serve another to love-the more human he is and the more he actualizes himself.
  • Life is not primarily a quest for pleasure, as Freud believed, or a quest for power, as Alfred Adler taught, but a question for meaning.
• It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us.
• Our situation was not the most terrible we could think of.
  • I always say this.
  • What matters is to make the best of any given situation.
  • Negative happiness, freedom from suffering, smallest things give pleasure.
    • Page 47
  • Four things
    • Turning suffering into achievement
    • Deriving from guilt the opportunity to change oneself for the better
    • Deriving from life’s transitoriness an incentive to take responsible action.
• Tension is needed for the meaning of life.
  • Man’s search for meaning may arouse inner tension rather than inner equilibrium.
  • Dangerous misconception of mental hygiene to assume that what a man needs in the first place is equilibrium or homestasis.
  • Suffering is not necessary to find meaning, but meaning is possible in spite of suffering.
  • Page 105
• If there is a meaning in life at all, then there must be a meaning in suffering.
• Live as if you are living already for the second time, and acting as wrongly as you are now.
  • The present is past
  • Past may yet be changed and amended.
• Love is the ultimate and the highest goal to which man can aspire.
  • Page 37
  • Man can through loving contemplation of the image he carries of his beloved, achieve fulfillment.
  • The angels are lost in perpetual contemplation of an infinite glory.
  • Want to make wife proud, whether there or not.  Someone looking down on us in difficult times would not want us to disappoint them.
  • Love goes very far beyond the physical person of the beloved.  It finds its deepest meaning in his spiritual being, his inner self.  Whether or not he is actually present, whether or not he is still alive at all, ceases somehow to be of importance.
  • The salvation of man is through love and in love.
• Chess Analogy that there is no best move.
  • It is situation to situation
  • What matters is not the meaning of life in general but the meaning of a person’s life in that moment.
  • Page 108
• Sense of humor when confronting biggest fear
  • The neurotic who laughs at himself may be on the way to self-management, perhaps to cure.
  • Detaching oneself through humor is paradoxical intention applied through logotherapeutic technique.
  • Humor is the defiant nature of the human spirit, we can transcend.
  • Page 43
• Things determine each other, but man is self-determining.
  • Page 131
• Until movie is seen to the end, it makes no sense
  • Each one is 1000’s of individual pictures
• You cannot control what happens to you in life, but you can always control what you will feel and do about what happens to you.
  • Last of the human freedoms:  to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.
  • The sort of person the prisoner became was the result of an inner decision, and not the result of camp influences alone.
  • When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.
• Nietzsche references
  • He who has a Why to live for can bear almost any how
  • That which does not kill me makes me stronger.
• No man should judge unless he asks himself in absolute honesty whether in a similar situation he might not have done the same.
• Man CAN preserve a vestige of spiritual freedom, of independence of mind, even in such terrible conditions of psychic and physical stress.
• Emotion, which is suffering, ceases to be suffering as soon as we form a clear and precise picture of it.
  • Page 77 
• No man and no destiny can be compared with any other man or any other destiny.

nhl training camps for july 10^th