Thing 5

My continued challlenge is to check Bloglines and see what's new on the blogs that I am following. I decided to follow some chess blogs in order to vet them for my chess club members and I find myself only reading through my blogline chess folder once a week ( or once every two weeks) . I am convinced that successful use of RSS requires a change in habit. I am used to thinking about chess by myself or with a small group of people. Subscribing to chess blogs opens up a wealth of knowledge, but also undermines the comfortable universe that chess has always been for me. Once I start reading, I realize how vast a network of chess players there are and it is somewhat overwhelming. RSS facilitates global chess awareness but threatens the sufficiency of my local chess universe. I am forever comparing what our team and our individual players have accomplished to the talented young men and women who have made chess their life. Blogs in this sense force one to take regular stock of one's affinity, talent and expertise. Each time I log into Bloglines and I placed my cursor over my chess folder, I confront my fear of inadequacy. I wrestle with my true commitment to the hobby that has for years been one facet of how I define myself.