A live chess game, or “I Mighta Been Queen”

Where some people see a patio, Francis saw a chessboard.

A couple weeks ago he noticed an outdoor deck at a nearby building where all the patio tiles were square and just big enough for a person to stand on. It didn’t take long before a bunch of residents at the graduate college where I stay in Vancouver started hatching plans to play a chess game with live players standing in for the game pieces.

I don’t know much about chess (although it is my favorite musical) apart from the names of the pieces and the basic goal of the game (capture the king), but I was still game for it… as long as I could play the most powerful piece on the board.

Naturally, costumes would be required.

Sadly, I was not able to find a skirt that fit me (it turns out I’m more a size 16 than a 14), but I did find a great vest and a suitable pair of earrings, and my friend Rebecca let me borrow a fascinator accented with a big, tall feather—because a hat really does complete an outfit.

Check out all the photos here.

I’m always impressed by the ingenuity and creativity of the people I’m living among. In the end, I think I made a pretty good Black Queen. Brittany made an equally awesome White Queen, especially after she got my dagger away from me. (Well, okay, admittedly it was a letter opener, but still.)