In the beginning…. (What’s in a name?)

I’ve wanted to start a blog for quite some time now, but I could never find the right name. I wanted a chess related theme, but this is not going to be the typical chess improvement (celebrate success, drown in failures) type of blog. Last Tuesday at a planning meeting for the St. Mary Fall Festival, my fellow committee member Eldon took an 18 inch pawn out of a bag, thundered out “Look what I found for you at a garage sale!”, and banged the big pawn on the table. When I picked it up, it broke into only 3 pieces. I say only because it was just a piece of pottery and could easily have been a pile of powder. Eldon apologized, and I accepted, telling him “It’s the thought that counts, Eldon, and I’m glad you thought enough of me to give me a broken pawn”. A blog is born!!

If I’d waited a day, I might have named this blog ‘Broken Car’. When driving back from our Thursday Night Chess Club, I went over some railroad tracks, the car stalled, and the check engine light went on. I finished my trip fine, but the car was stalling out every block the next day. The shop says it is a bad O2 sensor. I called the White House for help, but they won’t reclassify my car as a clunker. Till my car get’s fixed, I’m walking the 3/4 miles back and forth to work and lunch each day. I suppose I could commandeer the 2002 Cavalier I let my 16 year old son Matt drive, but it’s not worth the hassle until it starts snowing…