Would You Rather? - my answers

Aren't these fun?

1. Would you rather lose one tournament game to someone half your rating or lose two tournament games to your younger sibling/younger family member?

Hmmm...I would take a hit to my rating in either case, but I would never hear the end of it if I lost to my sister twice.

Who's the lucky 1000 rated??

2. Would you rather break a tie using checkers or Chinese chess?

Checkers!!! When I was younger, my mom intentionally kept me from learning how to play Chinese chess because she was afraid it would get in the way of my standard chess competitions.

"King me!"

3. Would you rather play first board on a team of upcoming stars or last board on a team of established players?

Both very tempting, but I would have to go with the established team. Upcoming stars can be full of energy, and definitely a force to look out for; however, established players provide a great learning opportunity (can learn from your teammates and usually play against other well-known teams). It's also be a lot of pressure playing first board.

4. Would you rather write a chess book on openings, endgames, tactics, or strategy?

Openings - too many out there already

Endgames - super complex stuff & difficult to come up with something new

Tactics - enjoyable, but again, many positions already available in store and online

Strategy - my favourite! I like the many aspects of strategy - how it varies by situation, personality, skill level, etc. Again, not easy to write, but you can never get enough :)

5. Would you rather be an amateur chess player everyone likes or a GM everyone hates?

I could never pull off a hateful demeanour. It would be extremely depressing.

6. Would you rather play a game on live television or on a stage in front of thousands of people?

Probably live TV. There's so much technology nowadays that I would be more likely to tune out my surroundings. I would get distracted by all the people.

7. Would you rather lose a game on time or lose a game due to significant miscalculation?

I would rather play a full game than lose on time, even if an error occurs.

8. Would you rather sit next to someone who chews gum or eats nuts (during a game)?

Maybe someone who eats nuts and chews gum at the same time...then the nuts would get stuck in the gum and force the person to spit it all out (into the garbage of course). But if I had to choose one of the other, I would choose gum. Again, it would be more of a "what can I tune out better?" situation.

9. Would you rather have a spectator leaning over your shoulder or leaning over the board?

As long as I can still see, better over the board. There's a creepy feeling people get when others lean over their shoulders.

10. Would you rather eat only lettuce between games or eat only twinkies?

It would be a horrible tournament...only lettuce...yet better than feeling sick from eating twinkies all day. People say the little cakes can survive nuclear radiation. That's just not right.