We can’t gather in person, but casual chess by the Rudolf Rocker Chess Club is back.

Join us at noon (Winnipeg time) on Saturday November 28st for a virtual afternoon of casual games hosted by Mark Jenkins, club co-founder.

Help spread the word to current and former Manitoba chess players. Even though this is a “virtual” event, internet access is not required! If that describes a chess enthusiast you know, tell them they can set up a board or two at home and communicate with us by text message by calling us and leaving us a phone number for a call back into our conference call.

(no long distance cost when we call you back!)

Internet connected players can join the 2020-11-28 conference call at https://meet.google.com/ckd-tyza-xom, no Google account required! If your computer lacks a microphone you can ask it to connect sound by calling you by phone and still take in the on-screen aspects.

Conference call games will be casual and untimed.

How do you share chess moves over a conference call? You will be assigned a board number and a side (white/black). When you’ve decided on a move, wait for silence and jump in with your board number, colour, move number and move.

For example, the board, colour and move number might be: “Board six, white, move 2”

Please keep a written record of the moves from your game and assigned board number.

Moves are to be conveyed with algebraic notation. Because the letters b, c, d, e, and g can be hard to tell apart when heard, we ask that you use the NATO phonetic alphabet for the letters a-h: ALPHA (a), BRAVO (b), CHARLIE (c), DELTA (D), ECHO (e), FOXTROT (f), GOLF (g), and HOTEL (h).

After your opponent moves, reply with an acknowledgement that you heard their move “board 6 acknowledged”.

So for example, here’s a transcript of the Benoni Defense (1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5) on board 6 spoken by white (W) and black (B):

W: Board 6, white, move 1; DELTA four (1. d4)
B: Board 6 acknowledged
…
B: Board 6, black, move 1; Knight FOXTROT six (1. …Nf6)
W: Board 6 acknowledged
…
W: Board 6, white, move 2; CHARLIE four (2. c4)
B: Board 6 acknowledged
…
B: Board 6, black, move 2; CHARLIE five (2. … c5)
W: Board 6 acknowledged

The host will track all conference call boards as lichess study boards, will link them at online.rockerchess.ca for spectator viewing, and will screen share this update process on the video conference.

The conference call and the host screen with board updates will be broadcast into the Rudolf Rocker Chess Club Facebook group as a live stream. The live stream video will be deleted after the event and not archived. (The games I’ll leave archived)

All conference call games must start between noon and 2pm. The host will stay on the call up until 5pm to help games finish. Games beyond that will be adjourned until our next session or players can arrange to communicate it outside the conference call or to just stay on the conference call without the host. The Facebook livestream will be cut off at 4pm.

Participation on the main conference call will be limited to Manitoba residents and former Manitoba residents who were once part of the chess community in Manitoba.

As an exception, we would consider a player from anywhere in the world with an NM title from a national federation or a FIDE title of FM, WIM, WGM, IM, or GM or who wanted to simul to be a guest of honour.

In order to keep the conference call open for the conveying of moves, we won’t be able to kibitz or analyze on the conference call when there is a game in progress. To support postmortems, we will post a https://meet.jit.si/ link on http://online.rockerchess.ca where the internet connected players can gather for that kind of thing, including with their own screen sharing. This secondary, kibitzing video conference room won’t be moderated, parents take note of that. Stick to the main conference room at https://meet.google.com/ckd-tyza-xom for a moderated experience.

Any two people can also start their own private https://meet.jit.si video conference or use another platform they agree on as an alternative for smaller group analysis.

You may also be interested in using the opportunity to meet Manitoba players for casual games played directly by way of challenge/invitation on online platforms like lichess.org and chess.com . Let it be known if you’re looking to pair up for that kind of game and we’ll let you know when there is someone else looking too. The default platform for online games outside the conference call will be lichess.org, but other options like chess.com can be negotiated between players.

To support pairing up, we will also operate a internet relay chat (IRC) (text) room where you can meet, arrange to play and kibitz. The IRC server, channel, and a web client will be posted day of at online.rockerchess.ca, no account required. Similar to the Jitsi meet secondary/kibitz video conference, the IRC channel will not be moderated. Non Manitoba folks will also be welcome there, so perhaps this can become the beginning of an international Saturday casual chess meetup, feel free to spread the word.

The IRC server supports filtering out and ignoring anyone you don’t want to hear from.

If you’re too shy to put your voice on the conference call or dealing with a limited internet connection where even just voice isn’t feasible, but would still like to play with a conference call participant, you can indicate your interest on IRC, write your board number, move number and move in algebraic notation into IRC and the host will relay that into the conference call. The conference call chat feature can also be used in this way.

Welcome to my series of articles on the chess aesthetics and culture in the Netflix seven episode miniseries, The Queens Gambit. I will also share some of my own perspectives on the world of chess the show has prompted.

I’d recommend seeing the series before reading. I’m not always going to have spoilers, but I’d say, watch it without my judgments, then come back to see what I was struck by.

For the most part, don’t expect me to cover the very well done on-board technicals, this is covered well elsewhere.

In every way, this series pays a lot of attention to detail and shines for that.

When you start watching a show for the third time, one thing you start to really notice is the chess aesthetic throughout with the sets and costumes.

The show opens with a preview forward, 1967 Paris.

The adult version of Elizabeth (Beth) Harmon (Anya Taylor-Joy) appears at the chess board wearing a white dress with a black collar and the dress includes a bow with hints of black.

These costuming choices are no accident.

Other things of importance get the black and white treatment as well.

The benzodiazepines are green and white, common colours found on cheap vinyl tournament chess boards, a perfect metaphor for the orphanage’s cheap trick in behavior control.

In the second episode there is background dialog where Beth’s brown shoes with brown laces are made fun of, and we get a shot of the shoes that are trending at Beth’s high school, all of them with the same black and white design.

Beth and her adoptive mother go for shopping the first time and end up pairing a black dress with her white shirt. It’s a black and white bus that gets them there.

When we meet Townes on day one of the Kentucky State Championship, he’s wearing a white shirt, no jacket, dark pants and a black tie.

Day 2, where he is facing harder games, Townes brings the seriousness of a suit jacket. Yet, the contrast of a white shirt is avoided, instead his shirt has some colour and subtle plaid/checkerboard pattern. This is fitting as he he as become more familiar and comfortable to both Beth and us by day two.

(As an aside, it was nice the see the jacket come off during his end game, something I’ve personally done to keep my arms limber and ready for a time scramble)

We see this in several other places, and I assume the intention is draw our eyes to characters and settings, but in less striking ways. The plaid people and places are softer.

Starting with Beth, she has a checkered orphanage blanket and an orphanage supplied dress pattern worn at some point.

She yearns for two of the dresses in the department store that are not on sale, one with striking black and white contrasts and the other with a checkered pattern which seems to be her favorite.

Charles Levy, the high school simul board #1 stands out from the others with his flannel shirt. The teacher’s chair rocks this same aesthetic.

Returning to the second episode, Annette Parker, Beth’s first tournament pairing and day two bathroom angel has a skirt patterned this way too.

Long before Beth has the chance to redecorate her adoptive parents house, there’s already a checker pattern in the wallpaper.

Even the janitor’s chess dungeon basement has tiled walls going on.

These are all very interesting, but I’m saving for last the following appearance of the plaid from the first episode: a fence separates the orphanage from some other institution, perhaps a high school or middle school. Beth, age 9 stares at an older boy over the fence and he waves back. Does she perhaps notice him because of his checkered jacket?

We return to the boy outside during a montage sequence where Beth is upping her game and also showing a curiosity about male anatomy. On his second appearance, the boy is having an animated conversation and smoke with a girl his age. This is all a set up for the third appearance, the boy and the other girl are kissing passionately and Beth is disappointed.

Forgive the stretched analogy, but this is like a bad game of chess, an okay opening, bad signs in the mid game, and devastation in the end game.

The writers may not have intended to land a 3 phase analogy, but the function of these scenes is clear: as Beth’s chess obsession grows we see there are other sides to her, including the infatuations and disappointment experienced by most children.

In this way, the show establishes from the 1st episode that Beth is going to be more multidimensional character than just a chess prodigy and substance abuser. She is attracted to boys and men, able to have her heart broken, concerned with her appearance and surrounded by a chess aesthetic.

— Mark Jenkins

The previously announced casual chess meetup for Saturday November 2, 2019 has been cancelled due to facilitator availability.

A new casual meetup at Millennium Library 2nd floor games tables has been scheduled for Saturday November 9, noon-4pm. Facilitator Mark Jenkins with free beginner lessons on offer.

You may very well find other casual players on Saturday the 2nd as is often the case on any given Saturday (often an expert level player among them). Nobody is guaranteed to be there, but you can bring your own equipment and see what happens.

On Canada Day (Monday July 1, 2019), Sinclair Park Community Centre (490 Sinclair Street) will have a large outdoor chess set available from 9am to 5pm in addition to other Canada Day festivities. There isn’t guaranteed to be a facilitator present the whole day, but this will probably be popular enough that you’ll have no trouble getting a game in. Bring a friend if you want to be sure.

We’ll have live coverage coverage of round 11 of the 2018 World Championship between Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana at our November 24th casual meetup. Start time of the meetup has been extended to 11am.

There will still be time for plenty of casual chess and free beginner lessons.

Starting October 26, 2018 a casual chess meetup is held at Weston Community Centre, 1625 Logan Ave 5pm-8pm.

Bring sets and clocks if you can.

Starting in November, Rudolf Rocker Chess Club meetups with an equipped facilitator and free beginner lessons will be once a month  (instead of almost every week) at the Millennium Library 2nd floor games tables. This reduction in schedule is due to facilitator availability.

(contact us if you’d like to be the host a beginner friendly, publicly advertised, casual chess meetup at any location in Winnipeg using our equipment, Rudolf Rocker brand, and marketing facilities)

Normally our meetup will be the first Saturday of the month, but November will be an exception this year. We previously posted that Saturday November 17th would be our November meetup day, but the Aron Kapstan Memorial Chess Tournament has been announced for Saturday November 17 and Sunday November 18, 2018 at the University of Winnipeg (room TBA), so we encourage attending that. This open, two day, five round tournament will be using a small, 6 or less player section format similar to the Manitoba Scholastic Chess Association tournaments, but its for everyone so its an awesome opportunity to play tournament chess against folks closer to your level.

Our November casual meetup at the library has been rescheduled for Saturday November 24. Our October 20 and 27th meetups are still going ahead. In December we will meet on the first Saturday, December 1st.

On all other Saturdays where the library is open but where no facilitator is available, there are almost always other chess players at the library games tables in the afternoon, usually with  an expert level player amoung them.

Sorry for the short notice.

Casual chess at 91 Albert St. is canceled on June 30, 2018.

Like many of the upcoming days in July and August, you can try to get a casual game in by visiting the games tables on the 2nd floor of the Millennium library noon to 5pm where some players are often seen. In case nobody shows, you might want to bring your own chess set and grab a chess book from section 794.1 on the forth floor. The games tables on the 2nd floor include taped down boards.

A reminder that our casual chess meetup will always be at the library games tables in July and August.

The following days in July and August will have a facilitator present with sets and mechanical clocks at the library:

• July 14, 2018, Mark Jenkins, free beginner lessons available
• July 21, 2018, Mark Jenkins, free beginner lessons available
• July 28, 2018,  Mark Jenkins, free beginner lessons available
• August 18, 2018, Mark Jenkins, free beginner lessons available

The remaining days, July 7, August 4, August 11, and August 25, 2018, are not facilitated. Bring your own set and hope someone else comes by.

Sorry for the short notice.

Casual chess at our club is canceled on April 21, 2018, as we don’t have backup personnel that day.

We would encourage players of all levels to attend the Mind Sports Manitoba tournament at Sinclair Park Community Centre 9am to 5pm, 5 round rapid, $20 includes raffle, udarbest@gmail.com or call 204-996-2509 to register in advance.

If you’re just looking a casual game, check out the games tables on the 2nd floor of the Millennium library 1pm to 5pm where some players are often seen. In case nobody shows, you might want to bring your own set and grab a chess book from section 794.1 on the forth floor.

The tournament previously announced for March 24th has been cancelled.

But, casual chess is still happening as a backup crew has come through. Come on down to 3rd floor 91 Albert noon-4pm as usual on Saturday March 24th for casual chess.