what else do you do besides playing chess?

chess,chess.com,chess.com on the I pod, Chess.com on mobile phones

That is a good question, and your previous post is making me rethink some of my basic premises about modernity and specifically what I mean by it when referring to works of lit.

Totally agree.  Shakespeare mostly dumbed down Greek and Roman works while throwing in a dirty joke here and there.  He may well be the greatest soap opera writer ever.  King Lear, though, was damned fine work.

Cervantes?  The ingenious hidalgo is not only full of clever wordplay, it is actually original.

i don't mind the borrowing that "will s" did.  lord knows the earl of oxford had enough on his mind without having to come up with ALL original material.

well, I mainly have to do school, but I love to play the piano, and if you want to hear the piece that I am working on, just do a google search on "the moonlight sonata". I love sports, and I will play just about anything. I have around 200 chickens, and taking care of them, washing eggs, and taking them to the 2 health food stores that we supply with them takes up most of my day. I love shopping, working (I like getting paid the best ), and I LOVE to sleep.

that summarizes StupidDrip95

Does that help?

You've a point, no doubt.  All the great writers stole from somebody.

Hobbies?! Eating, sleeping, playing both clarinet and violin, objecting, drawing, and probably when I get Ace Attorney Investigations, play it.

bit of a sweeping statement, bigpoison , define your descriptive criteria of 'great writers' - there are plenty of original works out there in the centuries, and I'd be delighted to know if you could tell me where Dickens, Austen or Dostoevsky stole their material from - not to mention Hardy or Conrad - but, hey, u probly ain't read 'em - probly stick to the National Enquirer an' the tv guide the words 'arrogant' and 'twerp' spring to mind

shudda somewhere added summink about 'ill considered comment' but it ddn seem worth the time

I have many different interests in my life. Because of this, it took me a long time to choose a major in college. My freshman year, I was a music major, but I never wanted to pursue music as a career. It was not that I did not like music, I loved it, but it was something I wanted to do as a hobby instead. I really like astronomy, and thought of majoring in physics and astronomy; I found it was something I also enjoyed a lot, but I decided to have those be hobbies as well. I ended up majoring in Political Science, with minors in Russian and Business. For some people, what I studied in college is a hobby for them. Some people love to participate in politics as a hobby; others love to learn foreign languages as a hobby or personal interest; and some people like to pursue business as a hobby - this is especially evident by those who follow the stock market and invest their money as a hobby. Investing in the stock market is a hobby I enjoy myself.

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Pictures on Canvas | Print on Canvas is silent poetry. 
~Plutarch, Moralia: How to Study Poetry

Wow, man.  Who killed Fyodor Pavlovich?  Arrogant, I've been called.  Twerp, not so much.

You have trouble with context don't you sir?  Do you think the idea of Raskolnikov sprung full blown to the great Russian writers mind?  Or do you suppose he had read Cervantes?  Maybe you should pick up "Diary of a Writer" before you start calling folk arrogant twerps.

I'm sure though, that your library is much larger than mine, your mind is much sharper, your muscles much stronger, and your...well, never mind.

Go ahead on with your simple affected style of "speech".  It is very impressive.

My main pastime is to flit like a butterfly between a variety of interests. So, at various times:

Juggling: have done >100 catches with 5 balls. Probably the equivalent of entering serious chess. Actually not a good juggler--I just was determined to learn the trick.

Astronomy/Solar System astrophotography: Some of the prettiest things can be seen through an eyepiece.

Video Games: A longstanding hobby. RPG, RTS, FPS, Strategy. No game as fascinating as chess though.

Reading and Writing (esp. poetry): Less so these days but always a fan of literature with a capital L, and SF and Fantasy.

Bike riding: Great hills hereabouts. A few hundred feet or a thousand or four thousand feet--you can take your pick. Love the warm weather outings.

Listening to music: Mainly "classical" and jazz but some pop and rock too.

Gardening: This means a summer "vegetable" garden. The usual tasty suspects like tomatoes and cucumbers and peas and beans, plus exceptional green fleshed melons, perfumy and sweet. On a related note I am a chili head and grow habaneros which get used in many of my favorite spicy dishes like Curry, Chili con Carne, and Kung Pao chicken/shrimp.

Keeping my dog convinced she is special: She is convinced and wags her tail at everyone now, even passing cars (formerly a very shy rescue dog).

Darn, Iwas busy - it 3.30 a.m. here - missed the reply but, yeah, it probly is

 "The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."  Albert Einstein

Yeah Dostoevsky so picks up his material from elsewhere.  He was big on newspaper stories of the time, for one.  Doesn't make him any less of a great writer.  No art is made in a vacuum.

And while I'm here, the idea that Dickens and Austen don't have precedents is so baffling, I'm tempted to give it a wharrgarbl.

Concerning Zippo lighter's:

http://www.zlighters.com/Knight-Chess-Piece-Emblem-Zippo-Lighter-200-p/20869.htm

 Thanks for reminding me to reread Conrad. I really like him.