Remembering 2...Ne4

Whilst in Kuala Lumpur for the 11th Malaysian Chess Festival (today is the last day, actually!) I caught up with an old chess pal whom I've not met in person for almost 22 years. He's from Seremban but somehow from the late 80s till 1992, he has transplanted his family to Penang. Then he moved back to his hometown, where he has stayed ever since.

But during those years in Penang, we developed a friendship through chess and also from computers. He was a programmer and he had helped the Penang Chess Association develop a fledgling chess rating program at a time when the Malaysian Chess Federation's national rating system was still non-existent. It wasn't entirely accurate but at least, we in Penang had something to rely on when there was no other source for reference.

After Sonny Kow returned to Seremban, I would believe that I had met him only once more, and it was in Kuala Lumpur. Then we really lost contact with one another. A few months ago, I managed to flush him out when I discovered the name of the company that he was last attached to. Luckily for me, the company still had his contact number, and that was exactly when I was able to re-establish contact with him.

Yesterday, he travelled up from Seremban to meet me at the Cititel Midvalley in Kuala Lumpur. He was pretty excited to watch a chess tournament again. No, he told me, he hadn't touched a single piece since he moved back to his himetown. Wow, that was more than 20 years ago already...

Anyway, it was good to have met him again. We exchanged news on many fronts, not least about our families. Our own kids have grown up and flown the coop. Mine are in Kuala Lumpur and Penang, whereas his are in Seremban and Singapore. Our wives are still working but circumstances can change at any time. We promised not to let a further 20 more years to pass by before meeting up again. I don't know about Sonny, but I'm pretty sure that my own physical system would allow it to happen.

BTW, the title of this post, "Remembering 2...Ne4" is just a little private joke which only Sonny and I will understand. Don't get too worked up over it. Nothing sinister.