My highest rating !

I started playing chess February 26th 2023. I played 11 rapid games on February 26 winning 3 games (I didn't win until my 3rd game) 3 draws and 5 losses. My first game the rating showed 221 and I hit a low on February 26  of 159 which goes to show I have zero natural ability. I basically knew how the pieces moved but didn't understand any strategy or openings. 

Like many I found some youtube videos and started learning the basics. I would not say that my rise has been meteoric but it has been slow and steady and after 8 months of playing I hit my high I broke 825 in rapid on October 29th 2023 which is my highest rating I have achieved.  My last opponent opened their account April 2019 and was as high as 830 September 11 2023 which goes to show that while it feels nice to not be on the bottom side of the 50% percentile I likely will get beat back down over time. The thing with chess is unlikely many games you lose what you gain and almost as fast. I recently hit a high in blitz only to go on an epic 7 game winless streak.

I find that I'm still seeing one move threats and making a number of very damaging blunders. I struggle to make long term plans and find myself more reactive to my opponent's movements more so than creating attacks of my own.  I have learned 3 openings 2 with white and 1 with black and while I have had some success it's not like I have a great win percentage with any of them. Still looking for what might become my opening and what might propel me to a higher level. I would like to make it into the 1000's which is on the high end of beginner or low end of an intermediate player. 

It's been an entertaining and frustrating game to learn to play !