04.15.15 We just updated you on the activities of Steve Abrahams, a former Maine player who has relocated to Florida. In this report, we catch up with another Mainer who has moved to warmer environs. Jim Dubois fills us in on sunny Southern Califonia, the San Diego Chess Club, and what's going on in his chess life.

Greetings from Sunny Southern California!
It's been just over six months since we arrived here near Laguna Beach in Orange County. We are very blessed to have such generous friends to have made relocating possible! My life partner (Oakley) and I drove across the US in 7 days with her dog Pip and cat Trouble via the "southern route" and passed through Crossville, TN - now home to the USCF; it was after business hours so we kept on trucking.

After unpacking, returning the Penske truck, resting and recuperating, we both found work relatively quickly. Oakley passed her state exam and is now a field agent for Bankers' Life and I handle business development for Benutech, a real estate data company located in Irvine.

My Benutech office in Irvine

I could not have moved to a more perfect and picturesque place, the two things I love most are here; sun and chess! This was my first winter without the need for a shovel; it has been pretty much shirt sleeves and sun bathing nonstop since last September! Terrific beaches with water at or above 62 degrees from San Diego to LA County and chess clubs to match!

The San Diego Chess Club is the one I choose to be my home club for several reasons, but mostly because we have rated play every Wednesday night and it is a fulltime club with the famous Gambito tournaments held every Saturday. The club has over 150 members and on any given Wednesday you can find yourself in a field that has a dozen or more players over 2000 including a couple of Masters. As a point of reference NM Bruce Baker continues his reign as club champion.

SDCC Chess friends at the Senior/Junior Open

My performance at the club has generally been on the plus side including one club event with a second place finish and another in which I yielded four draws including a stalemate in a completely won position, UGH! Currently the club is undergoing some major renovations so I am taking a month off from activities in San Diego.

Meantime I just tied for first overall in the U2000 section of the Senior/Junior Open held at the beautiful Irvine Hilton. I've included my best game from this event. Anyone that remembers me from tournament play in New England knows I was a lifelong e4 player, but I've converted to d4 and love this change as well. Here's a link to the crosstable.

Spacious and bright is the Irvine Hilton

Chess vendor at the Senior/Junior Open from The Chess Palace located in Anaheim, a terrific family owned business and sponsor of the American Open which I played in during the Thanksgiving holiday. Here is that crosstable.

With the recent rating increase, I've made this year to break 2000, so in keeping with my resolution I have hired a coach, IM Tim Taylor. He also took first in the Open section of the Senior/Junior tournament which was organized by the SDCC with a $13,000 guaranteed prize fund!

IM Tim Taylor on right drawing at the Senior/Junior Open

For all of the players that struggle to reach the next rating plateau, it seems the secret is to be in a rating pool with a vast number of higher rated players and simply play; which is of course the ideal situation here. The scholastic players are evident in droves at tournaments, many of them A players to Expert and well above. There are also seemingly dozens that have GMs for coaches. A very tough demographic!

High School All Americans in the top section of the Senior/Junior Open. Left is Joshua Sheng attacking Craig Hilby, calm and impressive defense by the second player secured a draw!

Downsides to living here? Driving in Southern California is very different from Maine and even Boston. There is a tremendous amount of traffic that moves at a much higher rate of speed with standstill congestion that can develop quicker than you can imagine, but overall the drivers get it and are more than courteous. Personally another drawback I have encountered is how easy it is to become distracted with everything to do, see and enjoy! I know that's tough! And it is true about Californians being laid back, flip flops are standard issue.

California IS a car state!

I have been keeping up with Maine chess though this Website and wanted to congratulate my former students from Medomak, especially Greg Wadsworth, keep it up! Everyone is welcome to contact me at mrjedubois@gmail.com

And of course yours truly receives a nice check from the SDCC Vice President Chuck Ensey!