I've reached 2.5 years on this site (as of Jan 2017), so maybe I should add something here. I joined to relearn the game from scratch, having played in grade school and then very little in the 40 years since. My kid joined the chess club in first grade, so that reawakened my interest. By volunteering to assist the school team coach, I got to surreptitiously reinforce the basics for myself. When my daughter moved on to the art club in second grade, I shifted my chess focus online. I'd never even studied openings, so it has been great fun to dive in and make fair progress. Maybe not so good for the ego to encounter kids worldwide with higher ratings! But the social part of playing online is also a great boon. It's fantastic to have such an easy way to cross time zones and political boundaries and make friends. It helps, I've noticed, that the chess crowd is generally more thoughtful than most online crowds. I've had fun to spare and gained new perspectives every day while relearning chess. Much more to come. Cheers, all!

[Taken in 2005]

kcbarnes