Fighting Fundamentals

Description: When it comes to fighting, many players are often confused with the principles behind fighting. In this book, Jasiek tries to answer all the essential questions about fighting. This book covers a wide array of material that is more suited for the very studious players.

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Friday Go Forward: Week 50

Overview

It’s been great getting to slowly have go pick up in my life again. Starting with the go workshop I volunteered at the mall last weekend, it’s been a little tumultuous since I’m dealing with old habits that have plagued me for quite some time; however, I’m glad to be back into it and trying to work through it. Just taking it one move at a time…

Training Regimen

• Step #1: Do 10 go problems a day. (Estimated time: 5-10 minutes)

Games

• KGS - 0 games
• DGS - 2 ongoing games
• OGS - 5 ongoing games + 3 finished games

Books

• Worked on Graded Go Problems for Dan Players - Volume One: 300 Life-and-Death Problems.
• Worked on Life and Death Problems 1 - Basics by Robert Jasiek.

Weekly Go Wednesday: Issue #31

For those who didn’t know, Gu Li and Lee Sedol had their first epic match of their ten match series jubango. And though many of you might have watched the game or checked out the game record later on, I wouldn’t be surprised if a number of weaker players like myself were left in bewilderment most of the time. After all, even though it was really exciting, it’s hard to learn from a game where so much is going on at once!

So I came up with the idea to team up with my sensei, frozensoul, and do a review together in order to provide a step-by-step review of every move in the game. Now granted, I’m sure that many strong dan players might refute some of my comments or argue that there is so much more to what I reviewed, but my goal is simply this: To provide a game record that would allow kyu players to easily follow the game and understand some of the most significant moments of the game. As a result, it should be no surprise that complicated variations and advanced theoretical discussions are intentionally avoided and left to other people who are much more qualified to speak to those things than I am (i.e., World Go Online and GoGameGuru). The following is the result of our efforts:

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I’ve been making a more active effort lately to play more. Although it has been good to play real games once again, I have been on a bit of a losing streak.

As most people might think, it’s been a bit frustrating and I almost thought about stopping again for a while; but then it dawned on me, I was caught up in being overly aggressive and trying to kill everything once again. Should an opponent play something I deemed “incorrect” or “improper,” I felt like it was my mission to punish them. However, it wasn’t enough to simply gain profit. No no, each time I would try to dominate my opponent and kill a group or two.

Sigh. This bloodlust is definitely taking a toll on my enjoyment of the game. That combined with the losing streak is not helping since I’m on tilt; but alas, this is part of the journey to getting another stone stronger. I’m sure there’s just a critical mistake I keep making in my games that keeps costing me the game (along with a poor mental state of mind). Anyhow, hope your games are going better than mine.

PS. Be sure to be on the lookout for tomorrow’s Weekly Go Wednesday! I’ll be featuring an exclusive duo review by frozensoul and I on the recent Gu Li vs Lee Sedol Jubango Game 1. In the review, there will be comment on E-V-E-R-Y move. I am hoping that this helps to allow players of all strength levels to appreciate the game. So till then!

Some of you already know, but I went to one of the local malls and volunteered to teach go for the Chinese New Year 2014 celebration. As you can see in the little collage I put together above, there were nice decorations along with performances in the center of the mall. Definitely felt like Chinese New Year! Haha. And of course, how could you have a Chinese New Year celebration without go? (I might be a little biased though xD)

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Slate and Shell Go Stones - Sample Pack - Size 36 Biconvex

Description: “This is a sample pack of our size 36 slate and shell Go stones, which are among the highest quality Go stones available. It contains three black stones and three white stones. Size 36 refers to the thickness of the stone (in this case 10.4 mm or 0.41 inches). The additional thickness and weight of these stones gives them a pleasant feeling in your hand and produces a sharp and satisfying snapping sound when the stones are played.” - GoGameGuru

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Friday Go Forward: Week 49

Overview

Another week has passed me by and man have I been swamped. On the upside, I am starting to be able to grasp my to-do list and really start cutting it down to size. It’s certainly been a big relief as I continue working on multiple aspects of my life. Once again, I must apologize for being so absent this week; but I am really hoping to be coming back full swing with real consistency soon. So until then, hope all is well with you and your journey to gaining the next stone!

PS. I’ve updated my Leather Goban Review to include information on how it was made. Be sure to check it out if you haven’t read it already!

Training Regimen

• Step #1: Do 5 go problems a day. (Estimated time: 5-10 minutes)

Games

• KGS - 0 games
• DGS - 1 ongoing game
• OGS - 5 ongoing games

Books

• Worked on Graded Go Problems for Dan Players - Volume One: 300 Life-and-Death Problems.
• Worked on Life and Death Problems 1 - Basics by Robert Jasiek.
• Finished Fighting Fundamentals by Robert Jasiek.