Hello. My name is Mike and I am a new student of the art of Chess. I began playing in mid November of 2012. Chess was a game I was interested in since being a young guy growing up in Western Pennsylvania. Since I never had anyone to play with, my interest stagnated until the end of last year.

I am an organic chemist. I will be graduating this year with my PhD. However, my interests are broader and include theoretical physics, history, art, and classical music.

As soon as I started playing, I knew I had found one of my life’s most important passions. Chess is a beautiful form of art to me. I approach chess the same way I approach any challenge. I am determined, focused, and passionate. My typical week includes about 60h of work in a laboratory synthesizing potentially new anti-cancer drugs. I spend about 3 h a day M-Sat on chess, and at least 14 to 16 h on Sundays. I find chess to be very similar to my work as an organic chemist. It is logical but creative, demanding, yet rewarding, and most importantly, it gives my life a great calmness and sense of direction. I am a very anxious person and my wife has commented on how much chess has done for me in improving my quality of life. For that reason, I owe the game serious attention, and I study and work very hard to improve my game. Since I am a teacher as well, I want to be able to help others learn the game as well (when I become good enough). Until that time I formed the Slow Standard Chess Group. A group dedicated to encouraging one another, mentoring our peers, and playing slower time control games.

While I am 31, I am positive that I will be able to reach a USCF rating of at least 2000 in my life. This is my long-term ambition. For now, I am working with a couple coaches to improve my game in order to prepare for OTB tournaments. If you are a passionate student of this game, please feel free to add me to your friends list.

All the best in your chess careers!

Mike

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