How come people who play chess act so weird and strange?

I went to a tournament one time in a big hotel; people acted really
strange.. I saw players who would slam the pieces down. I don't
understand how slamming a piece down makes their move stronger than
placing it gently.

I saw one player screw the piece into the board as he placed them on
their new squares.

I saw a player playing chess in his pajamas.

I saw players who had no social skills. They won't even look at
someone's face when they have a conversation. I one time saw a guy use
a chess to demonstrate his supremacy over enough. He was saying
claiming that he has a higher rating then that makes him a better
individual. To me it sounds like the guy has a low self-esteem issue.

Even today I went to a chess tournament. There was some old master
and he keeps talking in some weird Russian phrases while playing. I
also see chess players who have a strong body odor like they haven't
showered in weeks.

Even former world champions act so weired. Nimzowich did headstands
and exercises during his events. Alekhine was drunk and crazy.
Rubinstein decided to being a pooor chess player instead of going to
medical school like his family suggested and lead a normal life.
Karpov likes to have his knights point to the right on the board (like
it is some sort of superstitiion).

When I play monopoly or scrabble with famil or friends, people don't
act so strange. I don't understand why it has to be this way at chess
tournaments.

On 2006-05-14, Zero wrote:
How come people who play chess act so weird and strange?

How come some members of any group of people act strange?

I went to a tournament one time in a big hotel; people acted really
strange.. I saw players who would slam the pieces down. I don't
understand how slamming a piece down makes their move stronger than
placing it gently.

Perhaps you should try it and see?

I saw one player screw the piece into the board as he placed them on
their new squares.

So?

I saw a player playing chess in his pajamas.

That's better than being late and forfeting a game.

I saw players who had no social skills.

I see that all the time, everywhere.

They won't even look at someone's face when they have a
conversation. I one time saw a guy use a chess to demonstrate his
supremacy over enough. He was saying claiming that he has a higher
rating then that makes him a better individual. To me it sounds like
the guy has a low self-esteem issue.

That's hardly unique to chessplayers.

Even today I went to a chess tournament. There was some old master
and he keeps talking in some weird Russian phrases while playing.

Do you understand Russian? If not, how do you know they were weird
(or even Russian)?

I also see chess players who have a strong body odor like they
haven't showered in weeks.

I see people like that in many places.

Even former world champions act so weired. Nimzowich did headstands
and exercises during his events. Alekhine was drunk and crazy.
Rubinstein decided to being a pooor chess player instead of going to
medical school like his family suggested and lead a normal life.
Karpov likes to have his knights point to the right on the board (like
it is some sort of superstitiion).

When I play monopoly or scrabble with famil or friends, people don't
act so strange. I don't understand why it has to be this way at chess
tournaments.

Have you ever been to a Monopoly or Scrabble tournament?

--
Chris F.A. Johnson http://cfaj.freeshell.org
================================================== =================
Author:
Shell Scripting Recipes: A Problem-Solution Approach (2005, Apress)

Zero wrote:
Even former world champions act so weired.
Nimzowich did headstands
and exercises during his events.

Please tell us exactly at which events he did this. And BTW,
Nimzowitsch was never world champion.

Alekhine was drunk and crazy.

The former sometimes, but I have never heard that he was the latter
at any time.

Rubinstein decided to being a pooor chess player instead of going to
medical school like his family suggested and lead a normal life.

I believe the family's wish was for Rubinstein to be a rabbi, not a
doctor.

Karpov likes to have his knights point to the right on the board (like
it is some sort of superstitiion).

And I prefer to have mine point left, since that is how they appear
in a diagram. What of it?

When I play monopoly or scrabble with famil or friends, people don't
act so strange. I don't understand why it has to be this way at chess
tournaments.

Because there is no such piece as the knight in Monopoly or Scrabble.

Chris F.A. Johnson wrote:

I also see chess players who have a strong body odor like they
haven't showered in weeks.

I see people like that in many places.

Personally I've never seen an odour.
Perhaps I'm a weird chess player.

Martin S

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Zero wrote:

I saw a player playing chess in his pajamas.

In another forum someone suggested using a dress code for chess players (at
least in team matches). I'm in favour of that - but otherwise haven't seen
normal clothing as a problem (although pyjamas might be a bit unnormal).

Martin S

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"Zero" wrote in message
oups.com...
How come people who play chess act so weird and strange?

Snip

Asperger's Syndrome

Not that that's a bad thing.

Many believe Bill Gates has Asperger's.

"... I went to a tournament one time in a big hotel; people acted
really strange.." (Zero)
================
My wife claims to be able to tell if a chess tournament is afoot by the
nerdy looks of guests milling abount in the lobby.

Old Haasie

"Hmmm. Very defensive." Notes this amateur psychiatrist.

:-)

I have to say I put off joining a chess club for several years for fear of
what real chess players looked like but when I did eventually join I
realised my prejudice (like most prejudices) was ridiculous. A question I
used to ask myself was: "If I didn't know this lot were a group of chess
players would I be able to tell by looking at them?" And the answer was
invariably, "No." Try it yourself. Look at a group of chess players eg the
photo half way down this page (some of the others are a bit of a giveaway
with the boards etc) http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3101 if
you didn't know they were Topalov Anand etc could you tell they were chess
players? What about here http://www.chessbase.com/newsdetail.asp?newsid=3087
These were literally the first two sets of pictures I could find and this is
how I see chess and chess players.

I've never played in a tournament but I've been a spectator at World
Championship matches etc and again you would have been hard pushed to tell
what the event was by looking at the spectators. They were just normal. I'm
not saying you don't meet the occasional person who fits the stereotype but
they are a collector's item in my experience.

cheers

dd

Funny you should mention that...

At my last tournament, the 1987 Amateur Team Ch in Chicago, one of my team
mates kept up a lively conversation with himself. It was most disturbing...

Just as the last round was starting, 3 Paramedics and two Police Officers
came to the table and escored him out. The story was that he had escaped
from some type of low security Mental Treatment facility.....

To this day I still think they took the wrong person. They missed my then
wife.

Ya just never know....


"Zero" wrote in message
oups.com...
How come people who play chess act so weird and strange?

I went to a tournament one time in a big hotel; people acted really
strange.. I saw players who would slam the pieces down. I don't
understand how slamming a piece down makes their move stronger than
placing it gently.

I saw one player screw the piece into the board as he placed them on
their new squares.

I saw a player playing chess in his pajamas.

I saw players who had no social skills. They won't even look at
someone's face when they have a conversation. I one time saw a guy use
a chess to demonstrate his supremacy over enough. He was saying
claiming that he has a higher rating then that makes him a better
individual. To me it sounds like the guy has a low self-esteem issue.

Even today I went to a chess tournament. There was some old master
and he keeps talking in some weird Russian phrases while playing. I
also see chess players who have a strong body odor like they haven't
showered in weeks.

Even former world champions act so weired. Nimzowich did headstands
and exercises during his events. Alekhine was drunk and crazy.
Rubinstein decided to being a pooor chess player instead of going to
medical school like his family suggested and lead a normal life.
Karpov likes to have his knights point to the right on the board (like
it is some sort of superstitiion).

When I play monopoly or scrabble with famil or friends, people don't
act so strange. I don't understand why it has to be this way at chess
tournaments.