Flowers in Spring

Bethany Road is a suburban street near my home. The road has a large median strip. Every Spring Texas bluebonnets bloom there. North Texas lacks much in the way of mountains, and lacks an ocean altogether. But a small sea of wildflowers provides some consolation. All weekend I saw parents and children and cameras and bluebonnets on the Bethany Road median strip.

One of my favorite Spring flowers is also out--Blue-Eyed Grass. Today I walked under a bridge in Breckinridge Park and saw my first Cliff Swallows of the year. I love those little birds.

Tonight I played in my first "official" United States Chess Federation on-line tournament at chess.com. I play regular blitz chess at chess.com frequently. But I never played a rated on-line game. The tournament turned out to be very nice. I scored 3.5 out of 7 points. My first round game was my best. It was a draw because I ran out of time and my opponent lacked sufficient material for checkmate. My opponent was rated several hundred points higher than my chess.com rating. In my second round game, I blundered in a won position, but it was a fun blunder.

My chess.com rating rose from the high 1400s to 1512, so overall I played a little above my rating level,but only a little. But my USCF rating will be a new discovery, as the chess.com rating is not necessarily the only influence on my opponents--and hence, indirectly my own--rating.

I have a lot to do tomorrow.

I am going to aim for fewer dystopian novels.