Saturday, February 4, 2012

Painted Stone Dominoes

Now this is one clever idea from one of the "decorating/crafting" blogs I've been devouring lately that fits in perfectly with Goddesschess and our attachment to ancient games:

PAINTED STONE DOMINOES!

I found these at the cleverly named "Repeat Crafter Me" --


Learn more about the game of dominoes:

Wikipedia

From Domino-games, we learn that "Dominoes are believed to have originated in China (see Chinese Dominoes) in the 12th century, though Egyptian or Arabian origins are also theorized."

Getting Ready to Paint Kitchen Pulls - Gulp!

Hola darlings! I have been a shopping fool today!  But first, my buddy, Ann, and I headed out for sustenance to sustain ourselves during our upcoming shopping ordeal.  We visited our favorite restaurant, Olive Garden, and had a veritable feast!  Our waitress, Gina, was WONDERFUL!  She gave us free samples of a couple of different wines and we each bought a glass of the Roscato Rosso Dolce.  It was absolutely sweet, cold and delicious for our uneducated palattes.  In fact, nearly in unison, we each exclaimed "It tastes like Kool-aid!"  LOL!

So now you know what a low life I am, drinking kool-aid kinds of wine...  But it was gooooooood!

Salad, meal, dessert and coffee later, we were well-sustained and ready for either (1) a nap or (2) shopping.  We opted for shopping.  Off to Menard's (a Wisconsin tradition) to purchase whatever I could on my list of items.  We headed to Highway 100 north of National Avenue where there is a strip shopping center that contains a Menard's, a Kohl's (where I also wanted to stop), a Pick 'n Save supermarket, and a Home Goods/Marshall's that I have never visited - but mean to get to soon.  It's PERFECT!

Our weather was perfect today!  It's been unusually mild this winter and well below-normal snowfall too.  The last two days were mild (in the low 40's when it should be 20 degrees colder) but gloomy and foggy, too!  But today dawned sunny and bright and stayed that way all day. 

So, let me tell you about what I want to do.  I won't get it all done tomorrow but I will get a start on these projects:

(1) Repainting 31 cabinet and drawer handles from the kitchen. 
(2) Sanding and patch-painting areas around the top of the walls in the kitchen and dinette where the wallpaper border removal removed some paint.
(3) Priming and repainting entire border area around the top of the wall sin the kitchen and dinette to get rid of the "ring around the walls" syndrome that would NOT scrub off.

I purchased 23 items from Menard's for a total of - $129.68 before the addition of our 5.6% sales tax (total $136.94), and an additional 7 items from Kohl's right next store for a net of $36.92.  Many of the items I purchased were reduced 50% and I had a coupon for an extra 15% off.  My total bill would have been $63.08 but the net was, as I said, $36.92 for a savings of $29.00.  Plus, darlings, I paid for it with a GIFT CARD!  Oh Joy!

I will not bore you with all the (yawn) details of how I hemmed and hawed and had Ann looking too for just the perfect metallic finish spray paint, or how I went back and forth with the clerk about why -- when Dutch Boy Paint listed "white" as well as "ultra white" on its paint sample at the end of the shelf I could not find any plain white and had to purchase "ultra white" -- ach, as if any paint will match the white Dutch Boy semi-gloss I used in my kitchen and dinette area 21 years ago!  LOL!  But I had a fixation in my brain, what can I say...


Hello!  That's me (why do I look so sad?  Seriously, maybe I should start saving for that face-lift I vowed I would never ever do in a kazillion years) -- I was trying to take a photo of my latest hair color -- it's a gorgeous burgundy-red with dark brown undertones - and this is the 3/4 bath on the main floor that serves as a powder room and second bath (because it has a shower) for guests.  I suppose the olive green and purple color scheme is really dated but I LIKE IT.  Look at that - sponge painted accent walls above the border!  And another border at the ceiling!  Border overkill!  Eek!  Anyway - back to the point--


My haul!  Not shown is 20 pounds of premium birdseed :)  Yeah, that's a furnace filter, and five double-curtain rods that I scored for 40% off at Menards, two larger oiled bronze finish curtain rods to go over the patio door in the dinette and the large window in the adjoining family room; assorted sanding blocks and steel-wool substitute scrubbers, painters tape, a quart of "ultra white" semi-gloss Dutch Boy paint; touch-up pencil and touch-up pen for my dark furniture that always seems to acquire mysterious nicks and scratches; Old English dark finish oil furniture polish; and the bombs - Rustoleum Professional Primer (Fast Drying with High Output Tip/50% Faster Coverage) woo woo! and Rustomleum Hammered Finish in Oiled Bronze.  Oh, I also bought a little mini-roller and tray - it was so cute, I couldn't resist!  It's hiding in this photograph somewhere.

From Kohl's I purchased the "rug paid" (it works like rug tape but I have to cut it into my own strips - perfect!) -- greatly reduced I picked up 4 pads, and twelve pairs of socks.  Suddenly I noticed a day or two ago that just about every pair of socks I own has holes in them.  And not just small mini-type holes, but massive half the bottom of my foot holes.  I'm no darner but in any event I defy anyone to spend the time these days to mend those ginormous holes in my socks!  So I've been throwing my socks out, pair by pair.  And today I discovered I only had 1 pair of black, blue and grey socks left and they aren't in very good shape, either. How did this happen...  Well, whatever.  It was time to buy new socks.  Sigh.  So, that's what those sucking socks are doing in the photograph. 

Unfortunately, these photos didn't turn out so well -- a little blurry!  I was trying to do "brilliant" close-ups like the very best blogs do:



The can on the far right -- the cap shows the color my kitchen cabinet pulls will soon (I hope) be!  Maybe I should have stood this can of spray paint up on its own pedestal and photographed it from various angles to get the very best shot???

Oy!  My inspiration for attempting to paint my mostly still very bright brass kitchen cabinet handles (except the ones that have succumbed to rust and various stages of metal smut) came from DIY kinda gal (I hate you, by the way) who showed me, step by step how to paint those obnoxious 21 year old "silver" colored bathroom faucets and the shower/tub thingies (not even sure what they're called).  Being the cautious sort of femme I am, I am doing an "easy" project first.  If I have success with the cabinet handles, I will seriously think about spray painting my bathroom hardware and the bright brass 21 year old toilet-paper holders and towel racks I own...

By the way, if I do attempt the bathroom fixture paint job, I will not be removing the sink faucets! I know I'd probably give myself a concussion with a plyers if I even thought about it...  Nope, I will be taping, baby, taping, and taping, and taping, and hanging paper all over the second story, and taping some more...

2012 Moscow Open

Official website (in English).  Play wraps up tomorrow (February 5th).  There is the 190-player open in which some chess femmes are playing (including V. Gunina and D. Cory, among others), and a separate National Cup event for chess femmes.  There are also several other events but the Open and the Women's National Cup are the biggies that attract the highest-rated players and those who are ever-hopeful :)

I'll go through the labor of love tomorrow at the conclusion of the Open to separate out the information on the female participants and their final standings.  Right now, here's the top standings for the Women's National Cup -- there are 154 players and the table is gigantic, so only the top are

Moscow Open 2012 B
Rank after Round 8

Rk. Name FED Rtg Pts. TB1 TB2 TB3
1 WGM Huang Qian CHN 2389 6,5 45 5 31,5
2 IM Atalik Ekaterina TUR 2481 6,5 42 5 31
3 IM Romanko Marina RUS 2389 6,5 41,5 5 31
4 WIM Fominykh Maria RUS 2253 6,5 41 6 30,5
5 WGM Paikidze Nazi GEO 2411 6,5 39,5 6 31
6 WGM Charochkina Daria RUS 2358 6 44,5 5 30,5
7 WGM Kovanova Baira RUS 2383 6 42,5 4 30
8 WGM Mirzoeva Elmira RUS 2214 6 41,5 5 30
9 IM Bodnaruk Anastasia RUS 2419 6 39 6 25
10 WGM Karnaukhova Elmira RUS 2328 6 38,5 6 27
11 IM Galojan Lilit ARM 2366 6 38,5 5 26
12 WGM Manakova Maria SRB 2319 6 38 5 26,5
13 WGM Doluhanova Evgeniya ARM 2285 6 36 5 24,5
14 IM Savina Anastasia RUS 2337 6 34 6 24
15 WGM Ambartsumova Karina RUS 2315 5,5 39 4 28,5
16 WFM Cheremnova Tamara RUS 2260 5,5 38,5 4 27
17 WIM Tarasova Viktoriya RUS 2294 5,5 38,5 4 26,5
18 WFM Gvanceladze Anna RUS 2172 5,5 38,5 4 25,5
19 WGM Burtasova Anna RUS 2263 5,5 37,5 5 26,5
20 Makarenko Alexandra RUS 2078 5,5 37,5 5 26
21 WFM Bivol Alina RUS 2148 5,5 37 4 26
22 Xu Huahua CHN 2134 5,5 36,5 4 22
23 WGM Strutinskaya Galina N RUS 2298 5,5 34,5 5 23
24 WIM Ivakhinova Inna RUS 2291 5,5 33,5 5 25,5

I'm rooting for IM Ekaterina Atalik -- haven't seen her this competitive in awhile!  You go, girl! 

2012 Turkish Women's Chess Championship

WIM Betul Yildiz, back in 2012 to
defend her title.
There's a report from Chessbase by WGM Anastasiya Karlovich with, as always for Chessbase, lots of photographs including several lovely female players.

Here's the website for the Women's Championship, in Turkish.  Sorry, I can't read it!

According to WGM Karlovich's report, 69 women are participating.  Wow - a big championship!  About the prizes:

Turkey continues showing its growing support of chess, and especially of women's chess, by having impressive prize funds in both the men and women sections. The Turkish Chess Federation together with the general sponsor, Is Bank, have provided a prize fund of roughly €12,500 in the men's tournament. The women's event is being sponsored again by Arzum Small Home Appliances Company, who has been generous towards this event since 2009. Arzum has provided about TL 45,000 – which is roughly €20,000. The prizes include products (around €4300) as well as monetary prizes (around €7500). On top of that more than 20 of the women players received free accommodation in the 5-star Limra Hotel from this sponsorship.

The event was held January 29 - February 3, 2012.

There were 9 rounds.  Complete cross-table.  According to this report from Chessdom, Betul Yildiz and Kubra Ozturk finished with a tie-score and went to play-off, which Ozturk won in a final Armageddon game.  Here are the final standings:
Sıra SOYADI ADIUKDELOKategoriPts.BH.BH.SB
1WGMÖZTÜRK KÜBRA22002309 84943½47,00
2WIMYILDIZ BETUL CEMRE22782340 846½42½42,00
3 ARIĞ BÜŞRA18611820 50½45½36,75
4WCMCEMHAN KARDELEN20511952U1647½42½35,75
5 MENZİ NEZİHE EZGİ19671887U1446½41½33,25
6 AKSOY AYCA16681696U1243½39½31,75
7 ULUSOY NİSAN18191692U1339½3628,75
8 PATEL YEŞİM18901824U1564843½32,75
9 ÖZTÜRK HİLAL18411773U15643½38½30,00
10 FIRAT DENİZ17541632U156423827,50
11 ALEV GÖNÜLDEN SEDA17011617 6363324,25
12WCMKAYA EMEL20402005 50½45½29,50
13 YILMAZ EZGİ19721876 484329,00
14WFMSÜRAL YANIK EMINE18491972 484328,75
15 SAHIN HANDENUR17991729U154540½25,25
16 ABDİMANOĞLU BESTE BAŞAK17841741U154440½26,00
17 TULAY SERAY18391807 4338½25,75
18 ÖNEY GÜLÜMSER16311726 41½37½26,25
19 KOVAN NAZLI17011617 3935½22,25
20 ONUR ÇİĞDEM15481627U1137½3423,25
21 GÜLAY AYÇA NURİYE16061541 333019,75
22 DURMAZ AYÇA FATMA19831823 545½4124,00
23 AYAN BENGÜ SENA15491398U11543½39½22,75
24 VATANSEVER BUSE17551612U1354036½19,50
25 HEREKLİOĞLU SUDE15321637U10539½3621,25
26 ŞEN BERIL BERFIN15671598U16539½35½20,50
27 AYAZMALI GİZEM15501578U1253935½21,00
28 ŞİMŞEK MELTEM17911748 5393522,50
29 GÜNDOĞAN SİNEM ÇAĞLA17331492U12538½3519,00
30 AĞUN LÜTFIYE SELVA16761533U1353633½16,00
31 TEMEL BURCU MELİS16651593U13535½32½18,25
32WCMARDA ÇAĞIL IRMAK14791576U11532½3017,25
33 İPEKER MELDA15761450U1242½38½18,50
34 OKUYAZ DURU14541413U104036½17,75
35 KARGACI HÜMEYRA14101477U1038½3616,25
36 DAYAN CANSU1728 38½3517,75
37 ÖZBAY ECE14601336U113834½14,00
38 YILDIRAN NILHAN 1601U153733½15,50
39 ZENGİN HANDE1598 U1236½3318,00
40 MIHLADIZ DENİZ BURCU1693 312912,50
41 ARKAN YAREN16161633U144403616,50
42 EROĞLU DENİZ15761376U15439½3614,75
43 YASSIBAĞ ASLI14521430U124363313,00
44 HAKSAYAR AYŞEN 1767 43531½14,00
45 ÇAKANEL DİLARA1599 43431½12,50
46 ÇAM ESRA1435 4343112,50
47 GÜÇLÜ YAĞMUR1466 U12431½2911,75
48 AY USE ÇİSEM1249 U12431½2911,50
49 AKPINAR GÖRKEM1567 43128½10,00
50 SADE DEFNE1383 U943027½10,50
51 YURDAKUL DİDEM NURAY1429 U1243027½10,00
52 YILMAZEL SINEM1297 40½36½16,50
53 BURAN SEHER1513 U1540½3617,75
54 ÖNCÜ TUĞÇE14461463U1239½36½12,00
55 ALUÇ BULUT EVRİM1396 U1236½33½12,00
56 TURAN YASEMIN1196 U1330½28½8,00
57 YILDIZ GÜNEŞ1146 U93363211,00
58 CİHANGİR GÜLDEREN1480 U12335½338,75
59 İLCİ GOZDE ALEYNA1285 U1033330½7,00
60 AR LEYLAHAN1173 U113333010,50
61 YILDIZ AYBIKE GÜLBÜN1163 U1133128½9,50
62 YILDIRIM BÜŞRA1100 U13329½27½6,00
63 ŞENTÜRK GÖZDE1153 329½276,50
64 GÖNÜLTAŞ BAKRİYA ANASTASYA1121 U10327257,00
65 YAKABASAN GÖNÜL1612 32422½4,50
66 ESTİ KÜBRA SELENAY1427 U103532½9,00
67 GÖKBAŞ HİLAL U1627½255,25
68 KEÇECİ DİLARA1243 23128½5,00
69 AKÇALI SELIN1241 126½24½2,00
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