About me: Chess to me is like meditation, an effective way to prune thoughts and focus the mind. I am a 63+ years old, married, straight man, who plays chess as a hobby -- that's just the kind of hairpin I am!

------------------------------------------The Queen Arrives-------------------------------------

Impasse, or an army slain,
my Pawns shall take no prisoners nor flee from pain.
Gallant, skilled Knights mount-up, Rex Nemesis is nigh,
and steeds do charge to the front,
before the enemy hears the fierce Bishops' battle cry.

Opening campaign was a land grab,
center squares are all.
Whilst midgame pieces frantically grapple,
to find a winning combination or fall.

Castles herald the endgame;
anon the denouement is at hand.
Their liege has ordered them to battle,
now that few remain and stand.

Advance now the Rooks, adorned with the terrible aegis of old,
titanic towers laying claim to the open files with the war hammers they hold.

But now, o'now, a silence as deafening as raging thunder,
stills the troubled board.
For a majestic, ruthless Imperatrix has moved
to slay King and opposing hoard!