Susan Fox Rogers

The Game of Go

OK, we're taking a break from the cold of Antarctica and the steep cliffs of the Gunks to report on the Game of Go. Turns out my nephew, Thomas--above--is a Go champion, which has our family both baffled and delighted. At the moment he is representing France in the 30th International Amateur Go Championships in Shizuoka. After Friday's games he is ranked 12th. The big news is that he beat a stronger player today: Ondrej Silt a 6d (that's 6 Dan) from the Czech Republic. Here is the commentary on the game:
Commentary by Michael Redmond 9p, transcribed by Chris Garlock.

Sixteen-year-old Thomas Debarre 5d comes up with a new variation on a  popular joseki played by top Japanese player Cho U in his 5th-round game against Ondrej Silt 6d of Czechia. “This is a completely new variation altogether,” says Michael Redmond 9P in his commentary on the game. “It’s very interesting.” But Debarre falls behind in the opening, playing “too many moves in the small area,” says Redmond.  Silt maintains his lead through move 89 when Debarre manages to generate a severe attack that threatens to either kill a large group or wipe out Silt’s side position. Silt rolls the dice, protects his  side and, seven moves later, his group is dead…

To learn more about Go, the world of Go and Thomas, read this overlong essay I wrote in 2004 when Thomas was ranked a 3 Kyu and Ondrej a 5d. At this early competition (for Thomas) Ondrej was the star of the event. To have Thomas now win against Ondrej seems somewhat miraculous.

Picking up Garbage

One day, when I was about five and my sister seven,  the two of us were floating on an inflatable raft on Long Pond (Cape Cod). Our father sat on the tiny sand beach and watched. It was a lazy, quiet moment of drifting.
“Susie, it’s your duty to keep America beautiful,” Becky said.
And we continued to drift.

My father loved this story, perhaps because he thought Becky had made up this great line. I’m pretty sure Becky had pulled it from a TV ad, though we did not have a TV in our own house. He told the story over and over again, emphasizing how the comment seemed to come out of nowhere and Becky’s seriousness in delivering this mandate. Whether it came from Becky, or from hearing the story so many times, I have taken it seriously. It’s my job to keep garbage from ruining the beauty of the Hudson River and of the Tivoli Bays in particular.