Playing chess is one of those good habits that I use on a regular basis.
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I joined Chess.com at the end of 2021 and I've been playing multiple games of chess with random users all around the world every single day since then, and I love it.
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I love the game's strategic nature, predicting moves that are one or two steps ahead, the counter attacks, and the general competitive nature of it. But chess is just a game. I know it's serious at times and some people base their entire existence through it but I'm certainly not one of them. I will however give respect to those who study the classic openings and follow the known techniques that can help develop attack patterns during mid-game play, and because of that I'll tolerate the backlash of criticism that's sometimes given to me from being so unpredictable and anti-institutional to the sport.
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On here there's a global audience which is exciting because I'll never truly know who I am playing against. Playing chess online it is a great way to learn because there's always someone else out there that's available to play against. Playing against a program doesn't do the trick for me and that's mostly because I like to interact with real people. Plus, having a conversation about a dramatic move that turns a game completely upside down is often amusing.
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In general, I'm open to having conversations, but whenever they go off topic I will always keep them respectable.