Here is a game that taught me a few painfull lessons. I cant even bear to annotate it. But here are some stories behind the scenes:

1. I was taking him too lightly. I was reading something and only turns my attention back to the game after he moves. I should have been focused. I was too arrogant. He is "just" 1631 I thought. I should have remembered that just one month ago I was "just" 1659. This is what you get when you become full of yourself.

2. I made a terrible blunder. Actually two terrible blunders. But after the last one, I immediately saw the mate and said "Oh no! What have I done!".

I blundered because I was too focused on doing something that I didnt notice the threat until it was too late. This has always been a weak point. Sometimes, I would calculate a variation, then proceed to carry it our, irregardless of what my opponent do. I should remember to always double check the moves - every move. Afterall, my calculating ability is not foolproof and is subject to errors.

3. The most painfull of all this is that - I actually have a mate in this game (Or my opponent has to give his queen to avert it). When you play through this game, pause after move 19...bxc6. Pause in that position and see if you can spot the tactical shot I missed.

When I was contemplating my 20th move, I didnt see the correct variation, but thought that his king can safely escape. Dang, I still had a lot of time then. I should have invested some more.

After the game, I immediately went back on that position, and suddenly the correct sequence popped out. Oh, why did my brain froze at a critical juncture. It would had been better if I didnt have a tactical shot. Missing the tactics is far more painfull than the loss. I mean the combination isnt really very complicated. Maybe a level 10 by CTArt standard, and yet - I still wasnt able to find it.

I dont know - my patter recognition skills and the tactical training I've done is still not enough I guess.

(And here I was hoping to tell tempo that I've gained nearly 100 points since completing the circles. We are over 100 points different so my rating drop is quite steep. =<)