After four games of the World Chess Championship match in Moscow, which began on Friday, Viswanathan Anand, the titleholder, and his challenger, Boris Gelfand, have been unable to make a dent in each other.

All four games have been draws, and there has been little drama, as not one has lasted more than 40 moves. The game on Tuesday was 34 moves.

That’s right, folks – virtually nothing has happened.  Catch all the action by clicking the pic for the interactive chess viewer of one of the draws.

On the edge of our seats – Galfand tries his Gruenfeld, then batters our senses by “unleashing a laser beam of this bishop across the board”!  My sainted aunt!

Meanwhile, we cross to another scintillating sport:

You may need this:

One single word makes possible all civilisation. It’s a small word, a magic word, yet it transforms, frees everyone. You must whisper it to yourself.

The word is ‘no’.”

[Monkey]

Quiz

1 The lady shown on this headstone was portrayed in a film, name the film.
2 Name the actress who played.
3 What was the name of the area known as that they lived in.

Questions

1 Name of this stately home and which county is it in.

2 The name of the man who had this place built and where did his money come from.

3 Another stately home can be seen from the grounds, name the property and the county it’s in.

1.  This outfit is discussed below

The BuzzFeed page on “68 Photos Of Badly Dressed Celebrities, Large Hats, And Drunk People At The Kentucky Derby” came my way and allow me to point certain things out before starting.

I know those sites which exist to tear everything down and I don’t like them because that’s all they do. It would be nice to think that our site here puts up many positive things as well, although not shrinking from pointing out rank hypocrisy when it needs to.

Our site is also committed to aesthetics, especially JD’s posts and you’ve seen the panoramas and photo spreads of the other authors.  I’d like to think that they contribute something to the debate on aesthetics and that our political posts contribute something to the debate on politics.

The next thing is that, looking at those photos, I must have only a loose grasp of what is and isn’t goodlooking because some of those hats seemed fine to me, at least in the context of the Kentucky Derby.  Sure the ladies portrayed were … er … well fed … and shouldn’t have been wearing unflattering outfits and you’re entitled to ask why they “shouldn’t” have.

The reason is that they were making fashion statements themselves.  If they’d been in ordinary outfits, they’d be not making statements and wouldn’t have been noticed, except for their elegance and beauty.  So, in actually making big statements, they obviously must run the gauntlet of aesthetic criticism.

The next point is that it’s tough on women in so many ways.  Ever scrutinized, especially for hypocrisy, just what can a woman do?  Not taken seriously so often, why need she prove herself when there are so many women just as competent, just as intelligent and capable as any man.  I’d hope that women readers here do not get the idea that women are all painted with the same brush – they’re not.

This site castigates a certain type and that’s it.  It zeroes in on a type and clearly doesn’t see the ladies who frequent N.O. as being of that type.

So, let’s look at these outfits and see what’s wrong or right with them.  The one at the top – not everyone can be svelte or 23 but well done to her as she seems a pleasant lady.  What’s wrong with the outfit?  The only thing I can see is too much red below without bringing the hat colour in as an accessoire.

2.  Simple – prostitute, let alone that white does not flatter the fuller figure.  In other colours, she might have come over as curvaceous but in these, she comes over as butch.  He’s dressed sportingly and wisely leaves white below but the shoes, the shoes.  Goatee’s not bad.

3.  Hat’s OK, doesn’t say much with that white band, lipstick is appalling but I can’t stand bright red at the best of times anyway.  Hat’s too flat – should have a slight angle.  Hope her dress is dark.

4.  Awful, simply awful.  But why?  That’s what puzzles me.  The light colour on the fuller figure, the broad-beamed cut, the plainness, the wrong colour for her complexion, the shortening effect it has on an already short lady.  Not flattering.

5.  You’ll need to tell me what’s wrong.  The bow?  Too ostentatious, artificial?  Browny-grey not good on a woman?  Don’t know – looks OK to me on a Derby-goer.  She’s pretty enough.

6.  That’s easy – fuller figure, made to look obese by the flow of the dress or lack of it and that white colour.  Cheap-looking shoes.  Hairpiece and shoes don’t blend.  Bit of grey sticking out below too like a petticoat.

7.  Seems fine to me although mauve/lavender is an older woman’s colour, her complexion too light for it, hat looks cheap, bouquet is OK.  Tell me what you see.

8.  Aaaaaggghhh!!!  I’m not even going to discuss him.  Yuk!  For a start [I lied], his trousers are half-mast.  Her – is it the choice of colour?  The cut seems OK, she matches and can get away with the white watchband because of the waist trim.  It’s her complexion with that colour which gets me.

9.  A bit gloomy but then again, it’s in the shadows.  Older ladies – black and blue is a no-no to some but to me, it depends on the shades.  ‘Twould be nice if she smiled.  Cleavage perhaps wrong after a certain age – like men in trainers.  Your call.

10.  Matches, in kid’s terms but the hat is a bit too cute.  Still, it’s the Derby.

11.  Where do we start – the hips?  The Hawaiian lea?  The colour with that straw-blonde hair?  The pale, washed out complexion, those knees and scrawny lower legs?  In the end, she’s not obese but the hips look broad indeed – most unflattering altogether.  And tries too hard, a la PoMo.

12.  No.  Not sure why at first glance.  White again?  With polkadots and large ones at that?  Aqua wrist band?  Red hair?  Overall gaucheness in her deportment?  Awful.

13.  The body scarring, the body scarring!!!  When will women learn that disfiguring themselves, scarring their skin tissue is gross, revolting?  On a big mama like that, it’s even worse.  The red she chose is also completely wrong for a black lady.  The pomada is washed out.

14.  Go for it, ladies.  They’re enjoying themselves – let’s leave them alone.

15.  Seems OK to me, apart from the backdrop.  The shot’s not too good but her shoes go with the dress and hat.  I don’t personally like the colour but that’s not the issue – her complexion allows it and she likes that floral motif.  Cut is OK and delicate enough.  Your opinion?

16.  Look, blacks are allowed to be loud and crass – he can carry it off and it’s so completely not meant to blend that it’s OK.  His sunnies, shirt and tie are fine for a black guy.

17.  The one on the right – have you no shame, sir?  Even at the Derby.  The one on the left – no!  You simply can’t do that any more.  Sorry but at some stage in your life, you need to accept that fact that dressing young doesn’t wash, especially with that figure.  The one in the middle has already been mentioned above.

18.  Sad to say to most ladies but this one can carry anything off.  White hat with blonde – hmmmm.  The thing which is clearly wrong is the watch and wristband.  Perhaps this is just a young girl who knows no better but the thing is – everyone knows she knows no better.  I think nooky would be about the only thing on men’s minds here.

Your take on the 18 pics would be appreciated.

There is one other factor.  Look at the pic below.  As a fashion statement, it’s not – both are dressed plainly:

The one on the right has the better body, the one on the left is too pear-shaped and big but she has panache the other simply lacks.  Just the way they carry themselves really.  How much effect does culture have on appearance?

[H/T Chuckles]

Questions

1 This is one of Britain’s less well known canals – name the canal.
2 The termination point is shown in the phot0 – name the termination point and the nearest town.

# Depends on how hungry I was, how much was dropped, and on the food, and floor. 1
# It depends on if I was starving. 1
# Are you crazy? 1

Apologies for the fuzzy second pic but it is a 3D photo and I don’t have a 3D scanner (nor 3D internet)

Actually sent by Chuckles as part of some shots of the Space Shuttle.

while the allegedly boracic* Wapping-based Baroness will return after the Queen’s Speech in May

Woodsy: Google rate the Euro an “unsupported currency”.

Martin Kelly:

Seeing both Rangers Football Club and the Scottish National Party in such turmoil could almost make one think we are seeing could be called a ‘Scottish Spring’; like the Arab Spring, but with more rain.

*boracic lint = skint; the Tavern’s always ready for an anachronistic bit of rhyming slang.

A Cordwainer is someone who makes shoes. The distinction is that a Cobbler is someone who repairs shoes. Remember the information, as you will be able to impress your friends with that knowledge if you tuck it away, and use it at just the right time. The picture was taken in 1899 at a trade school.

[H/T Chuckles/haiku]

This little boy is the son of seven times World Professional Sprint Champion Antonio Maspes, he is standing at the bottom of the banking of the most iconic velodrome in the world, it was host to ten new world attempts at one event all successful between 1935-1986, it is also a renowned rock venue having hosted the Beatles in 1965 and almost everyone of note since.

Questions

1 The name of the velodrome.
2 In which city it is.
3 The cycling event that had its record broken ten times.

Questions

1 There was a famous race for seaplanes between the wars, name the race.

2 Name the aircraft.

And the question – what do all these actresses have in common? Obviously they have a nose, two ears and two eyes but we’re looking for something more interesting:

Jessica Alba, to Elle magazine
Rachel Bilson, to Playboy magazine
Hilary Duff, to The London Telegraph
Kirsten Dunst, to CrankyCritic.com
Isla Fisher, to The Sydney Morning Herald
Megan Fox, to MTV News
Mandy Moore, to USA Today
Julia Roberts, to E!
Jessica Simpson, to Allure magazine
Kate Winslet, who has changed her stance.
Emma Roberts, who says no thanks.

Questions

1 What is the name of the structure this canal boat is going over and who designed it.
2 The name of this flight of locks and what is the term for them.
3 This is all that remains of a very special form of boat lift , what is it called and how did it work.

Responsibility sits so hard on my shoulder – like a good wine, I’m better as I get older.

Susie Wong from Hong Kong commented today at the Mail but of course, as you and I know, Sam – Wong is Wrong:

I didn’t comment yesterday but today I cannot hold back. Even through the backlash she cannot reason that it isn’t jealousy that motivates so many to comment, but incredulity!

Sam, Sam, my balding pate is glistening – I’m sweating for you, girl – and my two and a half inch tadger is throbbing in anticipatory suspenders.

Oh, I’m all man, Ms Brick – these flaccid man boobs ache to bounce off yours, my paunch heaves up and down for you in concert – bounce yours off mine and let’s get this two-walruses-rutting thing going, in an explosion of ecstatic foreplay.

Join the women at this site, falling down at my feet avec nose plugs, crying: “James, James, one whiff of your garlic breath and unique, toe-crud foot aroma and I swoon.”

Sam, I swear, I’ve not had all that many rotted teeth removed and the black ones weren’t my fault anyway – that was down to discrimination in this cruel society which keeps you far away from me.

Tell me, turtle-dove, that you’ll be mine as soon as that hubby of yours shoots himself in error, doubled up as he must be with laughter and I promise I’ll trim some of my luxuriant nose hair and might even dewax my ears for your delectation – you can web-cam it and we’ll make a packet.

Sa-man-tha, light of my life, fire of my loins, my sin, my soul. Sa-man-tha: the tip of the tongue taking a tortuous trip of three steps round the mouth – abandon your pyriform womanhood to my atrophied arms and geriatric white flanks, lose yourself, enraptured, in gasping breath, hacking cough and deep expectoration, gift me a spiritual heart attack, Muse of the Mail and inherit my limitless estate!

Sam, Sam:

Here’s a stubbled cheek for your Cheshire cat lips, here’s a neck to gouge, let me grip those perfect love handles, give it to me today, woman, right here on this desktop!  Fear not, bewitching wench – embed those hickey fangs, let’s bathe in an abdominal-trampoline orgy of unfettered blood-lust.

Ooooooooh! [Aged pseudo-orgasmic cry of diminished faculties and forlorn hope, difficult to transcribe into prose and anyway, I only cleaned this keyboard yesterday]

Alas, ma Melpomine, you must remain eternally, for all men of maturity, not forgetting li’l old me, a wet-dream, a boys-own fantasy:

[P.S.  The Mail did that one very well actually and she seemed a good sport about it all.]