Post 3
Saw my old friend today, best friend even. We talked for more than three hours over a cup or two of coffee. I would trust this man with my life, we've been friends for over twenty years. He's doing well, and I'm doing well too. I was happy to hear that, after about a year and a half of volunteering, he finally got a job offer. Two job offers, in fact! And in the span of a few days. So he's in a bit of a pickle, but he will work things out for sure.
My parents will be visiting next week, I'm not thrilled about that, but not particularly displeased either. It's the archetypal parental nagging everyone experiences, nothing special.
I should get back to translating that book; I started work on it about four years ago, but grew tired as I lost interest in the game of Go. It's a mentally draining game, requiring much studying for even amateur play, unlike e.g. Chess. You can't play blitz go; you could try, but it makes no sense. With Chess, amateur blitz is a blast. The thing which really separates Chess from Go is of course the checkmate present in Chess, there is no such game ending move in Go, at least not formally. The player who is in an unwinnable position must realize this and concede, but an amateur player will overlook such a position frequently.
In any case it would be good to finish what I started, if not for me then for others who would play that good game. I would not recommend you play it if you desire to play at a casual level. It's a rare thing for games, other deep and complex games -- such as Bridge or Chess -- can be played casually, but I'd argue Go cannot be played that way.