[Event "1 b3 Open - 1"]
[Site "SchemingMind.com"]
[Date "2013.02.08"]
[Round "-"]
[White "John Hamer"]
[Black "white bishop"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A01"]
[WhiteCountry "ENG"]
[BlackCountry "PHI"]
[WhiteElo "2012"]
[WhiteRD "65"]
[BlackElo "2139"]
[BlackRD "107"]
[GameID "326679"]

1. b3 c5
{
white bishop: Thank you, sir, for your advice! Although I am aware that 1. e4 and 1. d4 are the most commonly used openings, as I was preparing for my OTB tournament, I was initially thinking of surprising the other party on an opening that he or she may not be familiar with, and thereby be unprepared for. 
}
{
white bishop: Of the 14 boards that I am now playing in this site, 7 of them are with "1 b3 Open - 1", & of the 7 remaining games, I play white in 4 and black in 3.  
}
{
white bishop: In my 4 games as white, I use 1. e4 once, 1. c4 once, and 1. Nf3 twice. The game I refer to wherein 1. e4 is used is actually not my original game, but a game wherein a participant from Scotland played with another participant from the USA in the MT for New Members [#77] in which I also participated in. FYI, the participant from Scotland abandoned all his 8 games. I told the player from the USA that it would be interesting to continue that game of his to see how it develops, because only 10 full moves were completed. Also, it is a Sicilian Najdorf. Sicilian Defense happen to be the opening which this USA player used often as black. It would indeed make the game interesting and challenging for me!
}
{
white bishop: So based on your suggestion, I will no longer consider the 1. b3 as white.
}
2. Bb2
{
John Hamer: I have used b3 on occasion in club matches with sucess but would not use in tournaments 
}
2... d5
{
John Hamer: b3 could be used as surprise value on occasion 
}
{
white bishop: I think I have found myself a true Magi from England! You not only have much experience in life because of your age, but also have quite a considerable experience in chess. I would be very honored to have you as my chess teacher! Would you be kind enough to accept me as your chess student? 
}
3. e3 Nc6
{
John Hamer: I am not a god chess teacher but I can reccomend yelena dembo who teaches on www.playchess.com 
}
{
John Hamer: I might make  a mess trying to teach you how to play well and you would blame me if you lose too many  games 
}
4. Bb5 Nf6
{
white bishop: I have clicked the site you suggested, but I can't find her (Yelena). Of course, I wouldn't blame you if I lost many games. You are being too humble!
}
{
white bishop: OTB chess is quite different from correspondence chess (CC). In CC, you have much more time to think over each move deeply, and after every move, you are given an add'l hour. In OTB chess, you will be more under time pressure and are forced to think and make your moves right away, and your time gets lesser as the game progresses.
}
{
white bishop: Well, my point is that a person may not necessarily show the same stellar performance for both CC and OTB chess, as they will be more pressured in OTB chess. I, for one, do not perform well under pressure!
}
{
John Hamer:  Iam afraid I transposed  this opening in to a Birds opening:sorry
}
5. f4 g6
{
white bishop: In Kalajzic vs Brumen at the 2nd Chess Sommer - rapid, Opatija on 2012-07-22, the position we arrived at after your 5th move is the same as the position of their game after white's fifth move, and their Opening is listed as Nimzo-Larsen Attack, Classical Variation (A01).  
}
{
white bishop: However, in Beltz vs Burchardt at R Berlin-Leipzig in 1993, the position we arrived at after your 5th move is exactly the same as the position they have after white's 5th move. The Opening in this game is listed as Bird Opening, Dutch Variation (A03).
}
{
white bishop: So whether this Opening is a Bird Opening or not, doesn't matter that much to me, as we haven't violated any tournament rules. What's important to me is that we both try to do our best in our games.
}
{
white bishop: I just mated Mr. Swain today in one of our games.
}
{
John Hamer: in reference to Yelena Dembo  if you have a  account with facebook find her name and invite her to be your friend 
}
6. Nf3 Bg7 7. O-O
{
white bishop: I tried to find information about her online, and her accomplishments at a young age were impressive. Her mother is a chess journalist and trainer. In fact, I read that her mother has represented Israel in the 1992 Chess Olympiad in Manila, Philippines.
}
7... Bd7
{
white bishop: Have you read Yelena's books or was trained by her before?
}
{
John Hamer: no but i have chatted with her on Facebook
}
8. d3 O-O
{
white bishop: I see. I have to wake up the kids and we have to prepare for church this Sunday morning.
}
{
John Hamer: how many hour's are you ahead of us Its 7;38 am here 
}
9. Qe1 Qc7
{
white bishop: It's Sunday, 6:23 pm here now. 
}
{
white bishop: What do you do before your retirement?  I hope you don't mind my asking.
}
{
John Hamer: Various Jobs in the admin field 
}
{
white bishop: Seems that there's a lot to see and do there in Nottingham for the tourist or visitor. I was just checking it out through the internet. I'm sure you've been to these places a number of times. Of interest to me are the Caves of Nottingham, Nottingham Castle (does any royalty live there?), and shopping at Victoria Centre (is it expensive there?). :)
}
{
John Hamer: no royalty lives there in fact it just a tourist attraction been there once or twice I live about a mile from the the tow centre and I purchase from Tesco the supermarket at the Victoria  centre 
}
10. c4 Nb4
{
white bishop: Do you usually cook your own meals or do you eat out?
}
{
white bishop: Here in Philippines, those aged 60 and above are called "senior citizens". My parents are in their early 80's. They each have a senior citizens card. This entitles them to 20% discount when dining in restaurants or take-outs, 20% discount on purchase of medicines from drug stores, 5% discount on selected items in groceries, etc. They saved a lot from use of the senior citizens card. I don't know if in your country or city the seniors receive any such privileges.  
}
{
John Hamer: i eat out most of the time:maim meal in the afternoon and do sandwiches in the evening Nothing like the Seniors card we have bus passes winter fuel payments every year and I have a small pension
}
{
white bishop: You eat only twice a day? No wonder you looked very thin in the photo I saw from your profile. The bus passes you mentioned, are they given by the government to seniors for free (so you can just hop on to any bus you want for free rides)? What are the winter fuel payments for? Are these for your car? Also, do you live alone? Do any family members keep you company at home or look after your well-being?  
}
{
white bishop: I live with my parents, with the intention to look after them, their needs, their health and their general well-being. I have to attend to their numerous errands, because at their age, they can't do everything they used to do before. I accompany them to the doctor and dentist. At their age, their energy levels are low, so they get tired easily.  
}
{
white bishop: In the Asian setting, it is supposed to be the son, who MUST or is expected, to look after his parents, not the daughter. My brother and his family now lives in Canada and they are Canadian citizens.
}
{
white bishop: When my brother and sister-in-law informed my parents that they are migrating to Canada, my parents were really very, very, very disappointed at that time! They expect my brother to look after them in their old age, but my brother and sister-in-law had other plans. They thought that if they migrated to Canada, their children will have a better future there. 
}
{
white bishop: At that time, I overheard my mom talking over the phone one day. She told whomever she was talking to that both she and my dad had to finally accept the reality that their only son is no longer a boy whom they can dictate their wishes upon, but a grown man with a family of his own. So whatever he has decided is best for his own family, then so be it.
}
{
white bishop: I know that there are cultural differences in the west regarding this issue of looking after one's elderly parents. In our part of the world, looking after one's elderly parents is considered an obligation, not an option.
}
{
white bishop: You live too far from where I am based! Otherwise, I would have dropped by your place to greet you "hello" during my free time, and bring you some fruits or any of your favorite dishes, or a good book to read. And if I have more time to spare, play an OTB game of chess with you.
}
{
white bishop: I know what it is like to be a senior after hearing or learning about the experiences of some of them here. Oftentimes with spouse gone, and children moving out of the home for work far from home, or settling down to start and raise a family, seniors may sometimes felt that suddenly they are left alone, and hence they experience loneliness, unless they still maintain close contact with their group of friends, who are most likely to be seniors also like them.
Since most of them are retired persons, they are suddenly left with a lot of free time, because they no longer have to go to work.
}
{
white bishop: Is this also true of your experience?  
}
{
white bishop: Sorry for being too chatty! I just noticed that what I wrote occupied a whole lot of space here. 
}
{
John Hamer: I live alone but the bus passes are given to you when you are 65 Winter fuelpayments  are given to you to pay for your heating hot waterand electric You can use your bus passes after 9:30 am I have no relative at all  All my cleaning and washing i do my self I have friends to check on me 
}
11. Qe2 dxc4
{
white bishop: How is it possible that you do not have even 1 relative? Either you grew up in the orphanage or you are the only child of your parents who already passed away. Also, you didn't marry, so didn't have a wife and any children.
}
{
white bishop: Are you presently happy with your life? Or do you still have any unfulfilled dreams?
}
12. dxc4
{
John Hamer: only child My parents are dead Not married and no issue no unfullfilled dream to speak Just a humdrum life at the moment 
}
12... Bf5 13. Be5 Qb6 14. Ne1 Rad8 15. Nc3 Ne4
{
white bishop: Is there such a thing as a typical English cuisine, or are there regional specialties in different parts of England? Can you give some examples or names of English dishes? I love to cook, and am often challenging myself to create new dishes at home. 
}
{
white bishop: It is Tuesday, 4:16 pm now. For dinner tonight, I plan to make (1) Quick Polynesian Chicken; and (2) Beef & Rotini Skillet. It will be my 2nd time to prepare (1), while it will be my 1st time to cook (2).
}
{
John Hamer: It looks appetising Roast beef and yorkshire pudding or fish and chips Chips are chipped potatoes and the fish is coated with batter flour and water is basic batter Google them up if you are not too sure 
}
16. Bxg7 Kxg7
{
white bishop: Just finished dinner! Bon appetit! Roast Beef is a common dish here, and restaurants that specialize in Western fare have Fish and Chips as a regular item in their menu, but Yorkshire Pudding is not known here.
}
17. Nxe4 Bxe4
{
white bishop: It's 3:20 am (Wednesday morning) here while it's 7:20 am there in your area.
Do you sleep early?
}
{
John Hamer: It's 8;20 pm here i think you are 8 hour in front of us  here I go to bed between 10 and 11pm depending on state of games on this site 
}
18. a3 Qf6
{
white bishop: It's almost Valentine's Day. Have your friends tried to arrange a blind date for you in the past?
}
{
John Hamer:  I dont what's happening on Valentine Day to tell you the truth i have no interest in it at all nothing like that has happened to me 
}
19. Rd1
{
white bishop: Aside from the daily household cleaning, doing your own laundry and playing correspondence chess, do you like to read books, watch regular or cable programs on television (I believe it's called "telly" in your country), listen to music whether from radio, DVDs or concerts?   
}
{
white bishop: Find some pen friends to correspond to with or try to go out of town to see different parts of England while you can still walk. Perhaps these which I have suggested can reverse the humdrumness in your life.
}
19... Rxd1
{
white bishop: Be an advocate of something you believe in. Try to make this world a better place to live in. 
}
{
John Hamer: Yes i do go on occasion depending on finances
}
{
John Hamer: Can you slow down please I am getting a bit of backlog of games here and trying to catch up  I am having to put you back a bit Hope you don't mind 
}
{
white bishop: Since you have plenty of time, perhaps you can volunteer yourself for some charitable work. In other words, I'm telling you to go out of your comfort zone. If you do so, you will find that life is full of meaning and purpose.
}
{
John Hamer: I like watching football Wrestling and reading 
}
20. Qxd1 Nd3
{
white bishop: What types of books do you prefer? My eldest daughter likes the type of fiction books for young adolescents & loves reading fashion magazines. At one time she liked to read about Princess Diana. After having acquired a lot of books and knowing a lot about her, my daughter shifted her interest on reading about other royals, so I bought her a book about Princes William and Harry.  
}
{
white bishop: My youngest daughter likes to read science books aside from the fiction books for young adolescents which her eldest sister reads. My husband and I are more interested in nonfiction, although we also read fiction books. My husband's areas of interest from the books he's buying are about business, finance and leadership, while mine are mostly about Christian living, cookbooks and health.
}
21. Nf3 Rd8
{
John Hamer:  I read alot of pre war children's litature namely Charles hamilton who was the creator of greyfriars Go to www.friardale.co.uk to find out more 
}
22. Nd2 Bf5 23. Qf3 Qb2 24. Ne4 Qxb3
{
white bishop: Have never heard of Charles Hamilton. I am more familiar with Charles Dickens, an English writer and generally regarded as the greatest novelist of the Victorian period. Anyway, thanks for sharing the website, will try to read the writing of Charles Hamilton if I have more time. Right now, I need to finish my final paper first.  
}
{
white bishop: I wanted to be a writer someday during my retirement years, but I don't think I can rival the likes of C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien & J.K. Rowling
}
{
white bishop: I have also written poems and lyrics for songs. 
}
25. g4 Bc8 26. f5 f6
{
white bishop: I'll recommend a site wherein you'll find a lot of free e-books to download and read. Go to http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/ to browse through the Online Book Catalog.
}
{
white bishop: If undecided, you can go to its lists of Top 100 Ebooks and choose from there. Go direct to http://www.gutenberg.org/browse/scores/top 
}
{
white bishop: Happy reading at no cost! :) 
}
{
John Hamer: Reading one of your statements about the Royals, I am not interested in the Royal Family: To tell you the truth, they bore me to tears..
}
27. g5 Ne5
{
white bishop: I get the impression from reading the newspapers and from watching TV that the British generally are very fond of the royal family. They treat the royals like celebrities! 
}
{
John Hamer: nearly all of them have had divorces and had affairs with other women 
}
{
John Hamer: Thanks for the link I will use it when I have sorted out my other reading 
}
28. Qf4 Rd1
{
white bishop: Actually, the royals don't have any executive or legislative powers anymore, as Parliament has taken over for many centuries. I think the state is giving the royals an allowance or something. Their public appearances, aside from personal and family reasons, are mostly ceremonial, like ribbon-cutting or fund-raising for charity.
}
{
white bishop: Hi, Project Gutenberg Australia has a separate website and different books in its domain. You can go to http://gutenberg.net.au/plusfifty.html to read all the books in its site for free! Happy reading once again! :)
}
{
white bishop: Here's another one! Find it on http://openlibrary.org/
}
{
white bishop: There are more than 400000 titles to choose from in http://www.readanybook.com/
}
{
white bishop: I'll be playing in a bowling tournament this afternoon, so wish me luck! Btw, did you receive Pompey's private message about our team's Challenge Match with The Swarm? He needs 4 more players for our team. Can you play?
}
{
white bishop: I'm having stomach problems since Thursday. I've been having diarrhea on and off. Don't know what I ate or drank, as I'm the only one at home who is currently suffering from diarrhea. 
}
{
John Hamer: sorry to hear that hope you get well soon Yes I think I can play 
}
{
John Hamer: hape responded to pompey's message for players so will be playing in the match
}
29. Nxc5 Rxf1+
{
white bishop: I arrived home a while ago. After the bowling tournament, as my husband and two daughters went to watch me play, we had dinner first in a Chinese restaurant before we came home. My whole back is still aching from the games. I went to bed, but then remembered that I must check on my games. So far, only you have made your moves. 
}
{
white bishop: I'm happy to know that you have contacted Pompey on your availability to participate in the Challenge Match games. This will be my first time to join a team event. See you there! :)
}
{
white bishop: John, I need some advice from you on my openings. Since the OTB chess event I'm looking forward to playing in will be next Sunday already, I plan to use 1. e4 on my first game as white. Based on my research, the most popular responses of black to white's 1. e4 are the ff.: (1) c5; (2) e5; (3) e6; and (4) c6, in that particular order.
}
{
white bishop: If black responds with 1... c5, then that's a Sicilian Defense. Which particular variations and sub-variations should I use as white?   
}
{
John Hamer:  i try to avoid the Siclian I have a bad record against it I try to avoid the main systems against it by playing d4 for my second move 
}
{
John Hamer:  i would try a caro can 1 ..c6
}
{
John Hamer: *kann*
}
30. Kxf1 Qb1+
{
white bishop: No matter how you respond to black's 1... c5, it is still a Sicilian once black makes his well-known 1st move. So if you as white made 2. d4, isn't that the Smith-Morra Gambit of the Sicilian Defense? It will depend if black will accept or decline the gambit, depending on how experienced a player he is. If black accepts the gambit, you as white already lost 2 pawns early in the opening but will be able to capture a black pawn after 2... cxd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Nxc3.  
}
{
white bishop: Refer to Langner vs Taborsky at the Tatry Open 2012 on 2012-09-24 where the Opening is stated as "Sicilian Defense, Smith-Morra Gambit, Accepted, Classical Formation (B21)" with the following moves made in the game by both players: 1. e4 c5 2. d4 cxd4 3. c3 dxc3 4. Nxc3 Nc6 5. Nf3 d6 6. Bc4 a6 7. O-O Nf6 8. Be3 e6 9. Qe2 Be7 10. Rfd1 Bd7 11. Bf4 Qb8 12. Qd2 b5 13. Bb3 b4 14. Na4 Ne5 15. Nxe5 dxe5 16. Bg5 Bc6 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. Rac1 Bxe4 19. Qe3 Qb7 20. Nc5 Bxc5 21. Qxc5 Bd5 22. Ba4+ Kd8 23. Qd6+ 1-0
}
{
white bishop: I'm also looking at variations wherein black declined the gambit. In trying to research about the theory behind the Smith-Morra Gambit, I found this very brief but interesting video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOoMs-m-Sso So the Smith-Morra Gambit may not necessarily be risk-free for white, as shown in this Siberian Trap made by black.  
}
{
white bishop: In doing more research about the Sicilian, I found "Understanding the Sicilian Defense B21-B99" in http://www.ez-net.com/~mephisto/Understanding%20The%20Sicilian%20Defense.html
}
{
John Hamer: it is the only varition that i use against but I dont open up with e4 all that often 
}
31. Kg2 Bxf5
{
white bishop: Well, hmmm..., I don't think I can confidently use the Smith-Morra Gambit, as there are risks, especially when playing with an experienced player. Anyway, I must still be prepared if black responds with 1... c5 to my 1 e4. If black responds with 1...e5, then most likely I have to prepare for a Ruy Lopez (Spanish Game) or a Philidor.  
}
{
white bishop: As black, I may likely use the Pirc in my 1st board game as black.
}
{
white bishop: Hi, did you see the match pairings in the challenge match with The Swarm? 7 boards in all.
}
{
John Hamer: yes I am playing vermonty from the USA
}
32. Qf2 a6 33. Be8 Qd1
{
John Hamer: dont know why they put you on board1
}
34. h3 Bxh3+
{
white bishop: I think each team ranked its players from highest to lowest. Look at the CS ratings of the players on both teams and observe how they are assigned.
}
{
John Hamer: well you won this game I am going to lose my Q so thank you 
}
0-1

