Layla

Once Upon a Time on the Moon

Thanks to Ester Marra, ballerina of Associazione Culturale “Il Delta della Luna”, for sending us a picture of when she was in her first dance steps – obviously, at our school!

Time passed by, but not in vain! Pictured above is Ester Marra performing in the Associazione Culturale “Il Delta della Luna”’s final dance showdown at the Teatro SMS of the People’s House in Grassina on Saturday, June 18, 2016. Photo: Stefano Marmino.

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The Importance of Not Being Arcovazzi

• Martin Pengelly and agencies, Corporate titans among 100 companies joining brief against Trump travel ban, The Guardian, February 6, 2017

Tech giants Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, Intel, eBay, Netflix and Uber were among the signatories to the companies’ brief. Photo: Josh Edelson/AFP/Getty Images.

A Window in the Wall

Kiev, Ukraine: A man walks on a snow covered street as temperatures got as low as minus 20 degrees celsius. Photo: Sergey Dolzhenko/EPA.

Three Stars and a Crow

The 2nd 海南 (Hǎinán) 三亚 (Sānyà) International Marathon will be held in 三亚 (Sānyà), China on February 26, 2017 organizers announced on Thursday. In its second year, the event will feature 20,000 runners in three disciplines – 5,000 in full marathon, 5,000 in half marathon and 10,000 in 5-kilometer mini run. But the news is that three stars and a crow will attend it: 许飞 (Xǔ Fēi), 黄征 (Huáng Zhēng), and, last but not least, accompanied by her own fiancé 张效诚 (Zhāng Xiàochéng), the only and one Olympic Goddess 吴敏霞 (Wú Mǐnxiá) (pictured above). Photo: ent.sina.com.cn.

Brick Lane

Yes, Arcovazzi rants, Arcovazzi roars, Arcovazzi grunts, but in the end nobody cares about his platitudes and marketing spin. Everything depends upon my mood, and the only award worth listing is an istant flight on the Associazione Culturale “Il Delta della Luna”’s carpet-dance! So don’t miss out on our classes!

Brick Lane, London. Photo: Christian Sinibaldi for The Guardian.

Divorce Mediation

Idaho, United States: A moose pictured indoors after she fell through an unlatched window into the basement of a home in Hailey. The animal was later tranquilised before being carried upstairs by eight men. Photo: Alex Head/AP.

Layla

The Importance of Not Being Arcovazzi

Torremolinos, Spain: A couple dressed in 1950s-style clothing kiss during the 23rd Rockin’ Race Jamboree International Festival. Photo: Jorge Guerrero/AFP/Getty Images.

Alternate paraphrase

Gens una sunt, and now, indeed, everyone knows what people they are.

Artwork © Neizen

Catch-22

Nigel David Short (@nigelshortchess)

Artwork © archaeopteryx-stocks

Trump Shuttle

Washington, D.C., United States: A protester outside the White House demonstrates against the travel ban on nationals from seven Muslim-majority countries. Photo: Molly Riley/AFP/Getty Images.

The Eighth Day of the Week

沈阳 (Shěnyáng), China: A sanitation worker cleans debris from firecrackers on the eighth day of the Lunar New Year. Photo: VCG/Getty Images.

Overbooked

• Martin Farrer and agencies, U.S. appeals court rejects White House request to reinstate travel ban, The Guardian, February 5, 2017

Cuban Graffiti Urban artwork on a wall in Havana. Photo: Salerio/GuardianWitness.

Horizon Effect

Olympic Goddess 吴敏霞 (Wú Mǐnxiá) must begin to think of how she will dress when she will appear in public after winning her sixth gold medal at the next Olympics. Photo: imgrum.net.

天佑女王 (God Save the Queen)

So we could surrealistically argue that four-time Women’s World Chess Champion 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)’s flashy protest in Gibraltar was not related to the pairings throughout the tournament, but rather to the “unbelievable and weird” dress pairings imposed on her by the contract, until, finally she revolted and, with the careful supervision of her mother, she succeeded in pairing the right colour combination to pierce the screen.

侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán). Photo: Sophie Triay.

Never Doubt A Lady’s Word

Diving Queen 吴敏霞 (Wú Mǐnxiá) (pictured above) offers today – through her 新浪微博 (Wēibó) account – an elaborate explanation of her innate sense of oneness: ”Hey, gave a look at the photo once again. I was born and grown up with a sense of fashion: red with green 😉. (Indeed, my mother set me up for the picture) 😂 [Silly husky]”. Photo: weibo.com/wuminxia.

Evocation

Montevideo, Uruguay: A woman lies face down in the water during a ritual honouring the African sea goddess. Thousands of worshippers come to the beach on Yemanja’s feast day, bearing candles, flowers, perfumes and fruit to show their gratitude for her blessings. Photo: Matilde Campodonico/AP.

Othello

Frankfurt, Germany: Black rhinoceros Kalusho, who was born in Zimbabwe and is celebrating his 30th birthday, walks in his enclosure. Photo: Michael Probst/AP.

Demarcation line

Avdiivka, Ukraine: A tank from the Ukrainian forces is stationed outside a building in the flashpoint eastern town of Avdiivka, just north of the pro-Russian rebels’ de facto capital of Donetsk. The Trump administration severely criticised Russia for the first time with its newly appointed ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, lambasting Moscow for its military intervention in Ukraine. Photo: Alexey Filippov/AFP/Getty Images.

The Importance of Not Being Arcovazzi

Seattle judge temporarily halts Trump’s travel ban after hearing arguments it unlawfully discriminated against Muslims and caused unreasonable harm. [Read more].

• Alan Yuhas, Travel ban in disarray as airlines told they can board barred passengers – reports, The Guardian, February 4, 2017

People march through downtown Seattle during a protest held in response to Donald Trump’s travel ban. Photo: David Ryder/Reuters.

The Moon and Twopence

It’s already Saturday, and finally it is time for Fischerandom chess! Tomorrow, we’ll discuss various issues, including the date of our secret Fischerandom Chess Tournament to be held here in secret, melancholic hours, and anyway, while Arcovazzi will be busy in other matters. So don’t miss the afternoon class at Associazione Culturale “Il Delta della Luna”, as usual starting at 16,00.

Garfield playing chess
Illustration: Jim Davis

Incantation

A newly discovered Karaavali skittering frog whose call was mistaken for a bird. Photo: Seshadri K. S./Birdlife.

The Wild Bunch

Sam Sloan, a long-time friend of Bobby Fischer, backed 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán)’s creative protest in Gibraltar and was critical of the establishment punitive policy against her: “I think 侯逸凡 (Hóu Yìfán) had a valid complaint. It is mathematically impossible for her to get all seven women opponents in a Swiss tournament with 90 men but only 7 other women. They must have set the pairing program as though it had a woman’s section. Probably since she refuses to compete in the World Woman’s Championship nowadays they rigged the pairings so it came out like this”.