Derby Joe menagerie

Just two days before Halloween, things were crazy in downtown Salem.  Derby Joe, a chess-friendly café on Derby Street, was jam-packed with tourists, in particular Pennsylvanians.

After losing a game on time, the Gabridoodle proceeded to demolish the Chess Pirate in three brisk but non-clocked games.  As a result, he won three new friends, George the baboon, Garry the gibbon, and Bruce the lavender log cabin elephant.

The Gabridoodle poses with his dear new friend George

The whole gang.

A couple of amusing mates:

An odd variation at Derby Joe

Derby Joe, a funky little café near the House of Seven Gables in Salem hosts a chess gathering every Saturday at 11:00.   Today's shindig featured a battle for The Shiny.  In that blazing-fast 5 minute game, the Chess Pirate stripped her own king naked and soon paid the price: the Gabridoodle was able to thump his chest like a gorilla and keep possession of The Shiny.

After this excitement, which was followed by the usual indulgence of piratical vanity, the Pirate insisted on doing something "interesting."  "Interesting" turned out to mean a game with this crazy starting position:

A coin was flipped to determine who went first.  The Pirate won the toss but lost the game, the Gabridoodle being able to adjust to the variant's theoretical implications quickly enough.