Saturday night

I've been watching Match of the Day [information for the ignorant, a round up of action from the English Premier League association football games played this Saturday].

I like watching football, and I'm very excited by the football I've seen. Lovely moves resulting in lovely goals.

I watch football. I used to enjoy playing football. I, like many other kids all over the world, would have liked to have been a professional footballer. My career was over before it started. What does one do after football?

I can play chess, and I think that I have a lot of chess years left in me yet. I did start playing early. Unlike Mozart's dad, my dad did not show off his little prodigy to the rest of the world. He made sure that I had the chance of getting a proper education, and I took it.

I suppose that a lot of people dream of having a career in chess. From what I've seen so far, being a professional chess player is hard work, but hard work with significant fringe benefits.

However when I told my dad that I was considering taking up chess as a career he told me that he disapproved of such a career choice.

I respect my father's cunning, because I'm not exactly in a zugswang [by zugswang I mean impossible situation]

I imagine that some of dad's cunning has rubbed off on me.