Image courtesy greetings-day.com

This column will appear on December 26, 2020, and we hope you are all enjoying the holiday season. Whatever holidays you may (or may not) celebrate, we do hope this time of year will bring you whatever you may wish for, be that time with family and friends or just a chance to have a little break from the usual.

We like to draw from our favorite historical composers at this time of year, and today we turn to a prolific composer of days past, L. J. Vair. Mr. Vair originally lived in Denver and was known as "The Kolorado Kowboy." He also lived in Ohio, and in his latter years in Auburndale, Florida. Here is a problem that is said to be of a type in which Mr. Vair specialized back in the day.

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Win

W:WK1,K2,K20,24,25:B9,K13,K15,18,K32

This problem is bound to give you holiday cheer, even if you don't live in Colorado, Ohio, or Florida, and even if you're not a "kowboy." Take the time to work it out; it's a real pleaser. When you're ready, click on Read More to see the solution.

The second Saturday in December would mark the last meeting of Bismarck's Coffee and Cake Checker Club until after the start of the New Year. The holidays were a busy time and The Beacon Cafe, where the Club met, would close down so that the proprietor, Deana, could visit her family out in Gackle, North Dakota.

Sal Westerman, the unofficial Club leader, arrived a minute or two after one o'clock and made his way to the big booth at the back of the Cafe. There was a good turnout, with Mike, Dan, Wayne, Sam, Louie, Tom, and seldom seen Old Frank on hand. Sal referred to the group as "the boys" even though they were all over fifty.

Old Frank

"I hear your daughter Joyce is visiting," Mike said as Sal took a seat.

"Yes, she is," Sal replied, "she hadn't taken any vacation in quite a while so she's here for a little over three weeks. It's really nice to see her."

"Washington must keep her busy," Dan said. "Isn't she working for some sort of fancy law firm?"

"Not only that, she just made partner!" Sal said with obvious pride. "Being a partner at Dark Darker & Darkest was something she'd always dreamed about, and she made it all come true!"

Joyce Westerman

Just then the door of the Cafe swung open, and a blast of cold air swept in a diminutive figure.

"Joyce! You made it!" Sal exclaimed. Then, turning to the boys, he explained, "Joyce used to play for the Bismarck High School checker team, though she hasn't had a lot of time to play out there in D.C. But she said she wanted to meet everyone at the Club."

The boys offered Joyce the best seat in the booth and introductions were made. "Pleased to meet you at long last," she said. "Dad speaks highly of you and loves his Saturday afternoons here."

Deana, over at her counter, called out, "Hey, aren't you going to introduce me too?"

Joyce got up at once and went over to greet Deana. "I've heard about your baking," Joyce said. "Everyone says there's nothing like it."

Deana pulled a plate from under the counter. "Here, on the house for our special guest," she said. "Holiday cinnamon bars." Deana made sure she said the latter loud enough for the boys to hear.

"Thank you," Joyce said. She carried her plate back over to the big booth and retook her seat.

"Cinnamon bars," Old Frank said. "I could use one of those. Why don't you show us what you have for this week, Sal? Then you'll be buying after we solve it!"

Sal smiled. "Something from Ed," he said. Ed was Sal's checker penpal out in Pennsylvania. "Not so easy. Cinnamon bars for me, I think."

"Lay it out," Tom said, "and we'll see about who buys!"

Sal arranged the checkers on a couple of the awaiting checkerboards. "Here you go," he said, "you can have half an hour."

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White to Play and Win

W:W9,K14,K17,20,K30:B5,11,K19,23,26

Deana's cinnamon bars look really good. Can you win a virtual one? See how you do and then click on Read More to see the solution and the rest of the story.

St. Maurice may or may not have been a real person, with the real truth buried by centuries of elapsed time. Whether fact or legend, the story goes that he was the commander of the Theban Legion in the late third century CE. The legion was stationed in Agaunum, which today is known as St. Maurice en Valais in Switzerland. As a testament to the reach of the Roman Empire, the legion was actually raised in Egypt. The story continues that this legion, itself made up of Christians, was martyred for refusing to persecute local Christians. Oddly enough, St. Maurice became more honored in Germany than in Switzerland although his supposed remains were eventually returned to present-day St. Maurice en Valais.

The composer of today's Checker School problem is one C. E. St. Maurice, about whom we could find no ready information. Is he in some way connected to the famed St. Maurice? With a gap of 16 centuries and a potentially mythical story, it seems unlikely, but one never knows.

What we do know is that Mr. St. Maurice's problem is clever and satisfying, and illustrates a couple of important tactical themes. We rate it as on the lower edge of medium difficulty.

C. E. St. Maurice, 1892
BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Win

W:WK14,15,22,26:B1,6,13,K30

The solution to the problem is real, not mythical, and neither do you need to be a saint to solve it. Some "real analysis"[1] will bless you with the solution. When you're ready, click on Read More to check your work.

[1] We're of course talking about checker analysis, not the "real analysis" branch of mathematics.

It's the 16th publication anniversary for The Checker Maven! And for this anniversary we have something very special: a master level problem composed by world-class champion checkerist Alex Moiseyev. You'll find it all just below.

But first, a big thank-you to all our readers. Without you, we never could have published for so long, and we invite you to look forward to as many more years of publication as health and wealth allow.

Yin and Yang. Opposites that are bound together as a whole. This ancient Chinese philosophy encapsulates the concept of dualism, wherein seeming opposites can actually be interconnected and interdependent, the one giving rise to the other. We'll leave it to you to explore the ideas of dialectical monism and how Yin and Yang are reflected in Taoist, Confucianist, and other philosophical realizations. It's a deep topic indeed and could form the basis for a lifetime of study.

Alex Moiseyev

Champion checkerist Alex Moiseyev has created a checker problem which he says embodies concepts of Yin and Yang. It's an amazing problem, itself deep and difficult. In fact, master problem composer Brian Hinkle has this to say about it, and it is through Brian's auspices that The Checker Maven is presenting the problem in its first-ever public appearance.

This 9x10 bridge with five Kings called 'Yin And Yang' composed by Alex Moiseyev is one of best checker problems I have ever seen. Master checker players may find it challenging to solve. I enjoyed the pretty solution so much that I looked at it about four times a day for a week!

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White to Play and Win

W:W6,7,10,11,12,K15,16,24,25,28:B1,3,4,9,K17,K19,K23,K26,27

No, it's not easy, but yes, it's really something and well worth taking the time to study and appreciate. See how far you can go with it. Search for its echoes of dialectical monism. Discover its inherent, interconnected dualism. Finally, click on Read More for the solution, notes, and some background on the problem's genesis.