So, I kind of got wrapped up in life and writing about go took a back seat. I am hoping to be more regular from now on.
In the meantime, please enjoy watching me fumble around while trying to stream games. You always hear streamers mention how hard it is to play and communicate at the same time. They are not kidding.
Note: I did not figure out that the sound was off until about 25 minutes in. Whoops. There is a link in the description to the start of the sound.
Note: Some foul language at the end of this one, people with heart conditions might want to avoid the last 10 minutes or so...
That moment when you play a move too quickly and lose a chunk of stones... It's incredibly discouraging and makes you wonder why you evenplay this stupid game!?!!?!cos(0)?
Don't be too hard on yourself, we've all done it. I've done it recently. I played black in that game about a week ago. Check out move 225.
Moves like this happen because we get excited and swept up in the intensity the game. Had I taken a moment to stop and assess the situation I would have seen the correct move, but I was amped and my finger moved to place the stone before my brain was even aware that something needed its attention.
The discipline to stop and assess before placing a stone lets us grow stronger. This discipline is one of the lessons go teaches us. A lesson that is also useful off the go board. Even the little bit of patience (very little...) I have learned from go over the last four years has improved many of my relationships, both personal and professional.
So please, keep at it! The payoff for improving at this game is so much more than a higher ranking on some go server. As cheesy as it sounds, go teaches us about life. It's truly remarkable.
I'm going to leave you with a well known video in which a professional Japanese player puts himself into atari by accident. Remember, this man plays go for a living. But, as the title of this post says, we're only human. If Nakano Yasuhiro 9p is susceptible to mistakes like this, then you can forgive yourself for making similar ones.
