Monday, May 23, 2005
HB Global Chess Challenge
We are very proud of our son Jonathan too. This past weekend, he participated in the HB Global Chess Challenge in Milwaukee, MN. He competed in the under-1400 group, with his tournament rating at 1307. There were 215 entrants in his division, and he came in 22nd place (which means he also won a little $$$!), and his record was 6-2-1, not too shabby for our boy from Tennessee. He's been playing since he was in junior high, and he tries to enter tournaments every chance he gets.
These national tournaments draw a wide variety of participants, ranging in age from kindergarden students to the very elderly. Marvin and I took Jonathan to an World Chess Federation tournament a few years ago in Philadelphia. The hotel meeting rooms were filled with tables and table of people playing chess. Tournament play uses chess timers, which means a game has to be played within a certain time limit. Jonathan actually won a game during this current tournament because his opponent ran out of time. During the Philadelphia tournament, I actually got to see Josh Waitzkin (of the movie "Searching for Bobby Fisher" fame) play. He was in the Grand Masters division, a very impressive room.
I admire anyone who has the patience to learn the strategy involved in chess. There are so many different approaches to the game, that I was amazed when I visited the gift shop at the WCF tournament. There are books and books written on the subject. I guess that you could say that chess is another one of those games that takes just a few minutes to learn but a lifetime to master. Salute!
These national tournaments draw a wide variety of participants, ranging in age from kindergarden students to the very elderly. Marvin and I took Jonathan to an World Chess Federation tournament a few years ago in Philadelphia. The hotel meeting rooms were filled with tables and table of people playing chess. Tournament play uses chess timers, which means a game has to be played within a certain time limit. Jonathan actually won a game during this current tournament because his opponent ran out of time. During the Philadelphia tournament, I actually got to see Josh Waitzkin (of the movie "Searching for Bobby Fisher" fame) play. He was in the Grand Masters division, a very impressive room.
I admire anyone who has the patience to learn the strategy involved in chess. There are so many different approaches to the game, that I was amazed when I visited the gift shop at the WCF tournament. There are books and books written on the subject. I guess that you could say that chess is another one of those games that takes just a few minutes to learn but a lifetime to master. Salute!
Saturday, May 21, 2005
More Baby Hannah
Baby Hannah is now home and doing just fine. Jason and Beth returned home on Thursday evening. Marvin and I went to their house after work to see everyone. She was sleeping peacefully in her crib. Garrett was also back home after spending a few days with cousins. He was a little perturbed because his Playstation 2 was not playing games. So, after visiting a few minutes, we left to find Garrett a Playstation cleaning kit, and to pick up a few odds and ends groceries that Jason and Beth needed. Marvin's ex-wife Susan was there cooking dinner (and helping to keep a close eye on Hannah), and by the time we got back from shopping, dinner was ready. She made fried chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, spinach with eggs, and rolls. It was all good. When we got to the house, Garrett was sitting in a glider, and Susan was teaching him how to hold Hannah. He is nine, and a very good big brother so far. He is trying his best to help out too, but balks at changing diapers at the moment. You can tell that he is just crazy about his new little sister. She has mostly been sleeping a lot and eating every couple of hours. She has this cute little cry that she makes to let everyone know that she's hungry. She is just the sweetest little girl, and I'm sure that you can't tell that she is going to be spoiled rotten by her grandparents. Marvin and I went out and got her some pink onesies last night, along with pink socks to match, and a little lullaby teddy bear.
It's amazing how the arrival of just one little girl can change everyone's lives so drastically. I feel so happy, and I'm showing photos of Hannah to all of my customers. I'm very proud of her. We already can imagine her playing all sorts of sports and going hunting with her daddy and fishing with her granddaddy. I'll be somewhere too, probably taking lots more pictures.
It's amazing how the arrival of just one little girl can change everyone's lives so drastically. I feel so happy, and I'm showing photos of Hannah to all of my customers. I'm very proud of her. We already can imagine her playing all sorts of sports and going hunting with her daddy and fishing with her granddaddy. I'll be somewhere too, probably taking lots more pictures.
Tuesday, May 17, 2005
Hannah Daisy Scearce, born 05/17/05!
Baby Hannah
We got up early this morning and drove to the Baptist Women's Hospital, where we waited a couple of hours for Jason and Beth's baby to be born. At around 10AM we were pleasantly surprised with the arrival of Hannah Daisy, weighing 8 lb. 4 oz. She's a real sweet baby and we are very proud of her.
Tuesday, May 10, 2005
baby alert
On our way back from Baton Rouge, we checked in with our daughter-in-law. She went to the doctor for her 35th week checkup. At first they were going to have her come back tomorrow and they were going to induce labor. A couple of hours later they called us back and we found out that if she doesn't go into labor before next Tuesday, May 17th, then they will do a C-section on her that day. She will have to be there at 5:30am, so that means that we will be there with her too, waiting patiently in the delivery waiting room. The baby had its legs crossed at the ultrasound, so we're not sure about the sex yet, and are mainly just praying for a healthy baby. If it's a boy, the name is Gaven Murphy. If it's a boy, the name is Hannah Daisy. Only time will tell on whether we'll be holding a Gaven or a Hannah. Anyway, I'm excited about having a step grandchild. I think it's even more special, because this is a child that is not biologically connected to you. The only strings holding you together are your heartstrings.
Baton Rouge, Part III
This is my last post from Baton Rouge. We are leaving this morning after eating a great breakfast at Chase Suites, a place that I highly recommend. Our guys did great bowling last night. Marvin had a really great second game in his single series, 234. This is is third highest game ever. He wound up with 7 strikes in a row. You can't ask for anything better than that! He will wind up winning a little money. He also had the highest score in his squad. I am Tennessee-bound now! Later Dudes!
Monday, May 09, 2005
Baton Rouge, Part II
Yesterday was a pretty sunny day, temps in the 80s. We did a little sightseeing. We toured the USS Kidd, a WWII battleship that was hit by a Japanese kamikaze pilot, which is a memorial to the 38 men killed in action. We got to see the actual living quarters and everything on the entire ship. If these living quarters are the same for military men now, those guys are really packed in like sardines, and it's a very tight space. We also saw the officer's quarters, which was not quite so bad. Near a radar room, there was even an engineer's bunk that still had the picture of his sweetheart, a few bottles of painkillers (circa 1945), and the books and maps needed for his job. Whoever put this memorial together went to a lot of trouble to recreate the actual wartime scenario. There was also a great museum inside that had a lot of other Navy history, complete with uniforms, ship replicas, and weaponry.
The teams also bowled last night and did good. The highest team score at the moment for the Classified Division is 3972, a very tough score to beat. Our men are trying though and usually do better in the doubles and singles. They bowl again tonight at 11:30.
Today we got up really late and ate brunch at IHOP. Then we went over to the River Center, where the bowling is going on and verified tonight's times. We walked along the riverfront (Mississipppi River) and the downtown area. We stopped at the Old State Capitol and toured it. They have an excellent Huey Long display. There is a statue of him behind a podium, and he delivers six different speeches ranging from LSU, a college he really loved, to the new state capitol. There was a lot of historical information there too, the Lousiana Purchase, all of the different state governors, people in the state who have made a difference, why you should vote, and numerous other topics were displayed in various rooms. There was a very grand staircase that you climbed to go to the second level. On the ceiling of the capitol was elaborate stained glass windows. It was truly awesome to see.
After all that walking, we are back at the hotel now chilling out. We're ordering Domino's pizza, hot wings, Cinnasticks, and cheesy bread and resting before the 11:30 bowling session. We won't get back in until after 2am, so we will be going to bed really "early" tomorrow morning. Maybe the guys will do better today since they had a chance to bowl on the lanes yesterday. Bowling is strange that way. You may throw the same ball and wear the same shoes, but each set of lanes is made of different materials and balls react differently in different places when thrown on them. Sometimes they may go straight and other times they may hook. A good bowler knows how to react in each set of circumstances, while other bowlers try to do the same thing in each place, which will result in disaster.
The teams also bowled last night and did good. The highest team score at the moment for the Classified Division is 3972, a very tough score to beat. Our men are trying though and usually do better in the doubles and singles. They bowl again tonight at 11:30.
Today we got up really late and ate brunch at IHOP. Then we went over to the River Center, where the bowling is going on and verified tonight's times. We walked along the riverfront (Mississipppi River) and the downtown area. We stopped at the Old State Capitol and toured it. They have an excellent Huey Long display. There is a statue of him behind a podium, and he delivers six different speeches ranging from LSU, a college he really loved, to the new state capitol. There was a lot of historical information there too, the Lousiana Purchase, all of the different state governors, people in the state who have made a difference, why you should vote, and numerous other topics were displayed in various rooms. There was a very grand staircase that you climbed to go to the second level. On the ceiling of the capitol was elaborate stained glass windows. It was truly awesome to see.
After all that walking, we are back at the hotel now chilling out. We're ordering Domino's pizza, hot wings, Cinnasticks, and cheesy bread and resting before the 11:30 bowling session. We won't get back in until after 2am, so we will be going to bed really "early" tomorrow morning. Maybe the guys will do better today since they had a chance to bowl on the lanes yesterday. Bowling is strange that way. You may throw the same ball and wear the same shoes, but each set of lanes is made of different materials and balls react differently in different places when thrown on them. Sometimes they may go straight and other times they may hook. A good bowler knows how to react in each set of circumstances, while other bowlers try to do the same thing in each place, which will result in disaster.
Sunday, May 08, 2005
Baton Rouge
I writing this blog a computer at our hotel in Baton Rouge. We are staying at Chase Suites, a very nice place. The two bedroom suite has a room upstairs and a room downstairs. There is a fireplace (not needed this time of the year), nice dining room, living room with big TV, couch, and armchair, and a fully-equipped kitchen. Marvin is in the National ABC Bowling Tournament here. He bowls late tonight and then again sometime tomorrow morning. We rode down from Tennessee early yesterday morning with another couple. It took about eight hours to get here. We ate breakfast at Cracker Barrel in Horn Lake, MS. An interesting thing that happened while we were there was one of the ladies who was eating in the restaurant had this big pink bow in her hair. What was unique about this was that the bow was one like you would put on a present. She had what I would call "really big hair", and this pink bow was seated on the right side of her head in the front. One of those things that make you go "Hmmm". We ate lunch in Yazoo City, MS at a Wendy's. There was this guy in there who evidently was travelling the country on foot. He had a walking stick and a bunch of duffel bags. He also looked (and smelled!) like he hadn't had a bath in several days.
We got here and checked in the hotel, and then decided to find the convention center where the guys would be bowling. Then we had a nice dinner at Ruby Tuesdays. I had Cajun-spiced tilapia with shrimp and a salad and veggies. We had potstickers for an appetizer. Then we went back to the hotel where I relaxed in the hot tub and went swimming. I was so tired after swimming that I went to sleep and slept for about 10 hours. We just finished eating breakfast here at the hotel. You can make your own waffles, and they have a variety of cereals, yogurt, breads, cofffe, milk, and juices. We are going to go sightseeing now. I will report back later...Abbeygrape
We got here and checked in the hotel, and then decided to find the convention center where the guys would be bowling. Then we had a nice dinner at Ruby Tuesdays. I had Cajun-spiced tilapia with shrimp and a salad and veggies. We had potstickers for an appetizer. Then we went back to the hotel where I relaxed in the hot tub and went swimming. I was so tired after swimming that I went to sleep and slept for about 10 hours. We just finished eating breakfast here at the hotel. You can make your own waffles, and they have a variety of cereals, yogurt, breads, cofffe, milk, and juices. We are going to go sightseeing now. I will report back later...Abbeygrape
