it takes courage to play chess . i guess that s why so many people refuse to play it. i have had to have courage to keep playing those good players and getting beat, courage to play a 14 yr. old prodigy who kept beating me, courage to keep playing people whom i helped with their game and who passed me. now, i have to have the courage to face the fact that i am improving in my game. it takes a strange kind of courage to face those whom think they can easily beat you and show them you have improved. i will face this courage problem tonight, and tomorrow and everyday that i play chess now. i am not afraid to improve. it must be easier to have that courage than it was to face all that losing all the time. i have been working harder on my chess game and now expect to win when i play. i know that if others worked as hard at the game as i do, they would be better than me but they don t want to work that hard. i am the tortoise in that old fable of the tortoise and the hare. go joe.. take care..joe