For a few years now, I've been searching for a chess set that I really like, and at a cost I was willing to pay. I saw these at a recent tournament, offered to buy them from the player, and they are now paired with a board I've had for some time.
My new chess set
Made by House of Staunton, the pieces are wood, nicely weighted, and have leather pads instead of the usual felt. Each piece also has a particular look I like, something not easy to find with all the variety available. Can't get much better than that.
Now I can play in style! One thing that I really like about Chess is the aesthetics of the board and pieces, and having a nice set to play on makes it that much more fun.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you, our friends, family, and readers! We are enjoying the holiday season with our family, and taking some time away from the usual activity to relax and enjoy each others company.
Click to see full size image.
Wishing you all the best as we head towards the New Year, and for all of 2012!
I am happy to announce a brand new app in the Little Scribes series that was just launched in time for Christmas!
This clever game features an object, person, or place along with three others, one of which is related somehow. Some are simple relationships, such as a fish and a river, while others require some story knowledge, such as pairing Moses with the burning bush.
Once again, much credit is deserved by the artist, Susanna Holdren, who did a great job with this app. An app can be great on its own, but the artwork can make it awesome!
I played in a local chess tournament that ran for a number of weeks during November and December. With fifteen players, it was an above average turnout, and I had a great time, and some really good games.
Tournament Results
The tournament set a few new milestones for me. First, you'll notice that my new rating is also the highest I've achieved to date. Second, I'm no longer the lowest rated player in the club, something that was the case for quite a while. And third and probably most importantly, it's the first time I've scored two wins in a single tournament.
2011 has been a good year for me in terms of chess, and I've been able to play in a number of tournaments. My plan for 2012 is to continue to play in tournaments regularly, keep improving my play, and keep my performance and rating on an upward trend.
It's the first of November and the chilly breeze of autumn has set in. The leaves are turning colors, and everyone is enjoying the beautiful transition between summer and winter.
We recently had photos taken of our family, and we wanted to share a few with you here.
The Hoyer Family!
Charlotte, our big girl!
William going for a swing!
Cutie!
Little man.
Peek-a-boo!
All the best from our family to yours this autumn! Get out and enjoy the sights and sounds while they last.
As it turns out, it was a great choice and we were highly impressed.
The building exterior -- impressive in itself.
It's located in downtown Seattle, not too far from Pikes Place Market. If you want to take a virtual tour around the block, check out the street view!
On entering the library, you're in a huge open area with elevators and escalators to take you to other parts of the library, as well as a seating area, and a coffee and souvenir shop.
Where would you like to go?
We chose the up escalator.
It seemed like the most obvious way forward, so up we went. Behind the escalators you can see the Fiction section, which despite spending an hour and a half looking around, we totally missed.
The long ride up!
Two escalators take you almost all the way to the top -- a long way! You can see on either side the floors you pass on your way up. It's something of a sloped spiral, so you can make your way down just by following the floor one level at a time. If you need to, you can jump into the escalator at certain points.
A very different feel.
The library's design isn't the warm and cozy type we've grown up with. There's a lot of glass and metal, which gives a very cool feeling. However, it doesn't seem to deter anyone, and the place had a lot of people here and there. If you do need a taste of the warm and cozy, head over to the children's section, which is as you would expect.
The next stop was the highest point in the library. Once you reach the highest point on the 10th floor, you can walk down a narrow walkway beside the elevator shaft and peek over the edge all the way to the main floor where you come in.
That's a long way down.
Note the escalators that you can see in the third photo.
And lastly, we visited the Seattle Room. The library has a number of special areas that feature specific types of information. I'm pretty sure I saw a Map Room too, but we didn't get to tour it. In the Seattle Room are all kinds of building plans, layouts, building models, books, and more -- all having to do with Seattle.
Natasha in the Seattle Room.
We took the elevator down part of the way, toured some of the book levels, then took the elevator down again to see the children's section. We'll take our kids back there for sure next time were in the area.
All in all, a really neat place to visit, and with no cost attached, the entertainment value is unbeatable. Go check it out next time you're in Seattle!
For our anniversary this year, we took a short trip to Seattle to see a few of our favourite sights, stay the night, and of course, eat some delicious food.
We stayed at our usual accommodations, Hotel Sierra. If you're ever in the Seattle area and want to stay somewhere outside of the main city, we highly recommend it. I actually don't think we've stayed in another hotel in the area since discovering it. After checking in and having a little down time, we drove over to another of our usuals, Claim Jumper, where we enjoyed their overly large portions and great rustic atmosphere.
Natasha did some research to find out what things there were to see in Seattle in hopes of discovering something new. We selected a list of things that fit our schedule, which included: Pike Place Market, the Seattle Central Library, Kerry Park, and a recommendation from our family: Chipotle! Here are the details of our trip to these places.
Seattle Central Library
When Natasha told me that the Central Library was on the list of top attractions, I was pretty skeptical. We recently blogged about the new library in Surrey which was very impressive but not what I would call an attraction. Let me tell you, I was mistaken.
Seattle Central Library
I really think that this library is something nobody should miss when visiting Seattle. It has something for everyone, and when you consider that it's easy to access and is totally free, you can't go wrong. First, there's some great architecture for those who like to look at unique buildings. Everywhere you look are glass and metallic designs, and exploring it for the first time has the feeling of walking through a real life maze. And for those who want to test their fear of heights, you can go up to the highest viewpoint and peer down ten floors to the main level. Seriously, go check it out.
Kerry Park
A park? Yes, I was skeptical of this one too. What could be so interesting about a park? As it turns out, it's more than just a grassy area with trees. Kerry Park is quite a small area high on a hill with an expansive view over the city and nearby water.
The view from Kerry Park.
All smiles from this viewpoint!
Pike Place Market
No trip to Seattle is complete without a visit to this market. You can buy everything from art, to produce, seafood, flowers, and in the lower levels are all kinds of shops, including one where I found an interesting LIFE Magazine for my chess collection. If you're there, don't forget to explore the streets around the market too, which are full of unique and interesting shops.
We did find something new this time though, a street band with an early 1900's kind of sound and an interesting mix of instruments.
The Millionaire's Club
Chipotle
Last but not least, Chipotle Mexican Grill! Our family has been raving about this place for years, but with no restaurants in Canada, we haven't been able to try it very easily. However, we made a special trip this time and were rewarded for our efforts.
Entering Chipotle's for the first time!
Our first experience is one that will have us coming back again. The food was great, and the staff even threw in some free chips and salsa for us first time customers!
Tacos, tacos, tacos!
If you want to kick it up a notch next time you are hungry for Mexican food, don't hesitate -- go straight to the nearest Chipotles.
Overall, our trip was great. We both agree that we really got to like Seattle this trip, probably because we were able to explore more of what it has to offer, and had some really nice weather to go along with it. All we need to figure out is when we can go again!
In a recent trip to Seattle, we made our usual trip through Pike Place Market. One of my favorite stores there is Old Seattle Paperworks, which offers a large collection of collectible magazines going back to the early 1900's. Their LIFE Magazine collection appears to be one of the largest, and on this trip there was a particular issue I was after.
LIFE Magazine - November 12, 1971
Yes, this is one I have seen in a number of photos but never in person. It features Bobby Fischer on the front cover, just prior to him becoming the World Chess Champion.
The writer covers a period of a few days spent with Bobby, and describes him much the same as numerous writers have. The one thing that caught my attention, however, was his reported appetite. Big meals with multiple glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice, and selzer water, and a couple of banana and whip cream desserts.
It's nice to remember him during his good years, and this magazine is a great addition to my Chess collection.
We heard there was a new library in Surrey, so earlier this week we took the kids for an evening outing to take a look. The library is located near the Surrey Central skytrain station in a really modern-looking building. The inside of the library is very large, with a number of meeting rooms, study areas, and even a coffee shop.
A view from the top floor.
As you can see, the library has a very modern theme. It's very clean looking, a lot of white -- one might even say it's a bit cold.
William trying out a cozy chair.
Scattered throughout the library are various chairs and benches, many of them quite unique. The fact that the library has 77,000 sq ft of space means there should be ample room to relax, browse, and read.
Charlotte and William in the kids area.
The kids section has some nice reading areas, a number of computers to play with, and a bit of a play area. As seen in the above photo, lining the walls are interesting displays for kids to peek into.
Overall I was pretty impressed. I really like the idea of a library having a coffee shop, which I hope brings in revenue for the library system. Instead of being a place to simply read or get books, this library feels more like a place to spend some time.
The area directly around the Surrey Central skytrain station is a bit sketchy, but hopefully with the new city hall being built nearby, and more improvements throughout the area, it should really start becoming a great place to go.
William is 18 months old today! That's 1.5 years for those who aren't in the baby stage and aren't counting in months.
So, what's new with William? He's picking up a few words, which is really nice. He's daring, active, full of personality, and is always wearing a smile.
He also loves, loves, loves to eat! Rumor has it he ate 3 hot dog wieners, a cheese slice, and half a dozen marshmallows in a single sitting.
Here are three photos specially selected to show you what he's like these days!
Big boy.
Really getting active these days!
In the studio.
Watch for the next post for William in March 2012!
The photo albums keep coming, and we have finally caught up after getting behind by quite a few months.
We are happy to share our August 2011 Slideshow! What you will notice about this album is that it is loaded with children and family activities. Due to the fact that I was off work, we had a lot more opportunity to get out and do things during the days and really enjoy the summer. August had some really nice weather too, so it made for a lot of great adventures and photos.
As I write my yearly blog post for September 11th, I wonder what other bloggers will be writing, and what people will be talking about or thinking. The usual "Can you believe it's been ten years?" or "Where were you on Sept 11, 2001?" no doubt, but there are other things on my mind.
Did the world learn its lesson from the terrorist attack ten years ago today? Have we acted on what we know? And what are we doing about it today?
Ask yourself these questions, and if you aren't satisfied with the way things are, what are you going to do about it? It doesn't take a lot of effort. Vote for someone who believes in protecting what we have and isn't afraid to stand up or speak out. Make a plan for protecting you and your family. Boycott the people, products, businesses, or anything else related to those who continue hostility towards freedom, whether on a global scale or in your own neighbourhood.
I'm moving on. I don't mean I'm forgetting about 9/11. I'm just going to stop looking backwards and start looking forward at what I can do to make things better, and I hope you'll do the same.
A few weeks ago, Natasha took Charlotte and William to the zoo, along with a few friends. The kids really enjoyed the zoo in Edmonton, and we thought it would be nice to see what the Greater Vancouver Zoo was like. As it turns out, it rather exceeded expectations!
We bring you a mainly pictorial report, with a few comments. Enjoy!
Smiles all around -- the zoo is fun!
The zoo train.
This train is top quality and takes you around the entire zoo for a good tour. It also comes with a price tag, and you need to book a specific time. They didn't make it onto the train this time, but next time we'll ride it.
Buffalo
Charlotte likes to get close!
The cheetah, Charlotte's favorite!
Giraffes! Natasha's favorite zoo animal.
Cutie giraffe!
Charlotte sitting on the elephant statue.
William sitting on the gorilla statue.
Up next, we have the birds of prey! They put on some very impressive shows, and we have some videos to go along with the photos. Be sure to watch the owl video!
Owl.
Zoo not exciting? Watch this video!
Another bird of prey...
... and a video of it!
All the Mom's and kids. Good time had by all.
So that's the Greater Vancouver Zoo in twelve pictures and two videos. If you're wondering whether or not it's worth it, hopefully these give you a good idea. As for us, we'll probably end up buying a yearly pass and take the kids there on a more regular basis. It's an inexpensive, enjoyable, and educational outing!
Summer is coming to a close, and we are working on quite a bit of content over the next while to share with you. We always want to keep our photo albums up to date, so here are two more for your viewing enjoyment. These albums are absolutely stuffed with great pictures that really give a good insight into our travels, and times with friends and family.
Also note that we have updated Charlotte's Corner and William's Wall, both to be found in the sidebar. There are now 182 photos of Charlotte and 72 for William, and they rotate randomly.
We've fallen behind on our monthly photo album slideshows but are catching up and have two ready from earlier this year. April and May 2011 were full of activity and you're in for a real treat. Enjoy!
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