Introduce Yourself : Last Icebreaker of the Summer by Maurice Vaughan

Hi Maurice! As an Italian to me summer memories are about the Mediterranean see and the “pasta al pesto”… still growing my organic basil to make it :)

This summer? :) I think it's movie nights! I have two friends who have created an amazing event and once a month we meet at whomever is hosting that month and they set up a screen in the backyard, a table of concessions and depending on the movie, perhaps a themed beverage or snack. This summer's movies were The Greatest Showman, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Breakfast Club and Free Guy! So a wide variety. It was a always a good time and I look forward to next summer.

Outdoor movie night on the island of Kaui. 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Watched it under a full moon, near lapping waves, through the smoke of burning mosquito coils.

That sounds like an incredible summer vacation, Elena Maro.

That's great, Xochi Blymyer! I saw someone post about something similar the other day, but they were watching a movie in a parking lot. I've seen "The Breakfast Club" and "Free Guy," but I haven't seen "The Greatest Showman" and "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." I'm way behind with seeing "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid"! Haha

That sounds like a great way to watch "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea," Robin Gregory. Another movie I'm way behind on seeing. Maybe this weekend will be my classic movies weekend.

Maurice, I hadn’t ever seen Butch Cassidy all the quay through. It’s definitely one to watch, really good.

I've heard a lot about "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" over the years, Xochi Blymyer. It's at the top of my classic movies watchlist now. I also want to watch "Gone with the Wind."

I used to live one hour drive from Cinque Terre, in a wine region and on a farmhouse surrounded by vineyards on top of a hill... it was enchanting, and I miss those places so much, but my love for Film Scoring was bigger than that and so I left ;)

Sounds like great locations for a script, Elena Maro. Or the inspiration for a film score.

Maurice Vaughan OMG, you haven't seen Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid yet??? I had the poster. I think I've seen every Paul Newman movie ever made. But I've seen that one as much as Raiders of the Lost Ark -- enough to recite the entire screenplay in one sitting. BTW, my fave summer memory might be interviewing the Doobie Brothers at the Calgary Folk Festival.

Hi Maurice! I might have to message you regarding this whole pitch deck thing because quite frankly I have not a clue!!!

As for my favourite summertime memories.... ooh so many... being out riding my horse in an evening time during harvest. Baling hay/ straw bales and having fish and chips out in the field. I love summer, so many good times :-)

One of my favorite summer memories is the summer thunderstorms in Minnesota.

Hey Maurice Vaughan - my favorite memories are with my family at the beach. Hope to some day have a place there to go write as I listen to the soothing waves in the background.

Hangs head I know, Debbie Elicksen. I'm WAY behind. I have seen " Raiders of the Lost Ark." I'll probably watch the new one when it's available to rent. And it drops to $5.99. :)

Ok, Rachel White. You're welcome to message me. Those sound like fantastic summertime memories. What's your horse's name?

I love when it rains and thunderstorms, Niki H. Does Minnesota get a lot of thunderstorms?

That'll be a great place to write, Leonardo Ramirez. I'd probably fall asleep listening to the waves and seagulls.

My uncle and his family used to own a spot in a campground about 4 hours away. One year when we visited, the fair happened to be in town. It was the first time any of us kids had been to one and it was a ton of fun.

That must've been great, Lisa Lee. Camping and the fair! What's your favorite fair food?

MN gets a fair amount of storms and there can be some truly epic thunder.

Does MN get a lot of snow, Niki H? And I liked the MN Timberwolves growing up.

@Maurice Vaughan thank you I'll message you directly. My horses are called Arthur and Clive. They are completely different in every way which makes life with them very interesting!!

Maurice Vaughan There are lots of memories, a great holiday in Crete and lots of family ones too (I now have a second grandson!), but I’ll share the most recent memory from yesterday.

I had spent a couple of hours at the hospital undergoing tests. I get home feeling a bit weary and then my son and first grandson walk through the door and Alexander (g/son) hands me a little tuppaware box with some chocolate cake in it, that he made with his Mummy. We sat on the sofa eating our cake - he always has to sit in the middle between his daddy and granda and pats the sofa so you know where to sit - and he looks up at me with a beaming smile and says, “Cake is good for you!”

It was just the tonic that I needed. Sometimes, it’s the littlest of happenings that make all the difference. The cake by the way, was delicious.

You're welcome, Rachel White. Love those names. "Arthur and Clive" could be the title of a cartoon or show. A cartoon or show about two horses who are completely different in every way. I'm about to reply to your message.

Congratulations on your second grandson, Geoff Hall!!! Sorry to hear you weren't feeling well. Your grandson Alexander sounds like a great little boy. You'll have to write him into one of your stories one day. You're right. Sometimes it’s the littlest of happenings that make all the difference.

Maurice Vaughan thank you Maurice. You sound like you should be my brother!

Writing Alexander into a story? Now that would be interesting, that’s got me scratching my head. Which story? What kind of character?

Yes, he is such a soul-lifter. We have a very empathetic relationship, which is amazing considering the 62 year age-gap! He knows when I’m sad and try to hide it and just says to me, “Granda, why are you sad?” That kinda knocked me sideways, because I thought I’d hidden it really well! I cherish this relationship so much.

And thanks for the ice-breaker Maurice, you are such an inspiration to this community.

Maurice Vaughan , for me it will be interacting with "Chess" community! Seeing the minds of the young, being harnessed and nurtured, with the appropriate entertainment, in an "international tournament" and seeing them enjoying themselves. All part of criteria and subjects, for my film! Thanks for post and "Ice Breaker", Maurice, at this point we need this, I enjoyed it the last time! Enthusiastic for such! Best!

You're welcome, Geoff Hall. And thanks. I appreciate the kind words.

Maybe an adventure story where Alexander's character is the lead. A lower-budget version of "Indiana Jones" or "The Adventures of Tintin."

You're welcome, @Eon C. Rambally. Wow, a Chess community. That sounds great! I've wanted to learn chess for a long time. I've played chess, but I didn't know the rules. Haha

Maurice Vaughan I really love lemonade at the fair. Oh, and corndogs.

One of my favorite American summer memories is late evening after a long picnic with friends, watching - and trying to catch - fireflies. In Sudan we only had wet and dry seasons. American Summer would correlate with the Rainy Season. So, sitting around Dad as he told us of his adventures as a Pioneer Missionary while the rain pounded on the tin roof and the lighting flashed and the thunder pounded. And shadows flickered that could have been made by anything from a lion to a murderous man with a spear!

One of my favorite memories happened when I was in high school.. I had an epic Dungeons and Dragons session at a friend's house, with a couple of other friends. The mortality rate among our characters was appalling -- the module was for characters of higher level than ours -- but man! It as fun! And our surviving characters leveled up, too.

That sounds delicious, Lisa Lee. My favorite fair food is French fries. And corndogs. :)

Those sound like wonderful memories, Marian Betts. I remember trying to catch fireflies. We called them lightning bugs sometimes.

Sounds fun, @Jeffrey Evans. Did "Stranger Things" get the D&D scenes right?

Maurice Vaughan I really couldn't say, to be honest. I haven't watched Stranger Things. From what I've heard the D&D scenes are pretty accurate, from my friends I've played with who have seen it.

Have you seen the movie, @Jeffrey Evans? It was better than I thought it'd be.

Maurice Vaughan Not yet. A friend of mine who is usually the DM when I play saw it and he loved it.

Thanks, Maurice Vaughan! When you learn the game and enthusiastic mind, it’s complexities and rules, reflects mystically on “The Matrix”! Subjects inclusive, for one of my films! To see hundreds of young people, that came from around the world, in our “International Chess Tournament”, to compete with ultimate enthusiasm, resonates with what entertainment should be inclusive of! Btw, also certainly enjoyed the "lounge discussions", just as engaging, whilst worked on my Animations, talent, also part of my film, I’ve posted! Best to all!

I'm not sure why I thought the movie would be bad, @Jeffrey Evans. Chris Pine was hilarious. Michelle Rodriguez was great too.

You're welcome, @Eon C. Rambally. Is the "International Chess Tournament" filmed? I'll like to watch the tournament if it is. Maybe I'll learn the rules and pick up some tips.

Certainly, Maurice Vaughan ! It's international, it has to be! Check the links:

https://www.facebook.com/ttcachess/ (For the actual tournament, videos, photos, computerized recorded games etc.,)

Also

https://www.chesstt.org/ ...Trinidad and Tobago Chess Association (TTCA) for general info on local affiliations, including international trainers and training programs. Of course you can simply google "Chess Training", for other international trainers. I'm also an international trainer, for beginners, (check my bio)!

I'm not on Facebook (Meta), Eon C. Rambally, but I'll check out the Chess TT website. Thanks.

Nice to meet you, @Gift Rogers. Thanks for the invite to connect on Instagram, but I'm not on there. I've wanted to write a Psychological Thriller for a while. Are any of your films online?

Maurice Vaughan I am a fan of William Goldman, so I have seen several of his films and read 2 of his books. No worries! There is SO much to see. I recently signed up for Criterion Channel. More to watch.

As far as favorite summer memory - I was maybe 8 years old and there was a summer day camp not too far from where I lived. My brother and I went there for what was supposed to be 1 or 2 weeks and we spent the entire summer there! Not sure if it was 6-8 weeks, but my parents saw how much we enjoyed it - and it was relatively cheap for them - and they decided to let us go the entire summer. Win-Win for everyone!

Yes Maurice!! Absolute legend and great question, with some great answers on here. My favourite (recent) summer memory is last year; I was driving past one of my favourite mountains with no particular plans for the day. It looked so inviting I thought, what the heck, why not? And spontaneously climbed it. It was a gorgeous day and it's an absolutely perfect memory :) What's your favourite summer memory?

All-summer camp sounds like a lotta fun, David Horton! Do you remember any activities that you and your brother did? What's your favorite William Goldman film?

Thanks for the compliment, @Joanna Karselis. :)

Wow, that's an incredible summer memory! You might be the only mountain climber I know! What's the name of the mountain?

One of my favorite summer memories is during daycare with my older brother. There was a big party at daycare. We were part of the party, but we didn't bring swimming trunks, so we couldn't do the water activity, but it was ok because we got to hang out inside. It was like we had the entire daycare to ourselves.

Maurice Vaughan summer camp included lots of outdoor activities, so I was happy just being outside. As far as Wm Goldman films - I've seen Butch Cassidy many times. Big fan of Newman and Redford. So many to count. Princess Bride is another one I enjoy.

Thanks again, Maurice Vaughan. Your welcome to view and comment on the Chess website, it certainly will be good for future public relations. Best!

Summers in New Jersey are always a blast. Especially as a kid but still even now!

I remember being a kid, David Horton. We couldn't wait to go outside. We had video games, but they weren't like going outside.

I haven't seen "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." I'm behind! I have seen "The Princess Bride" though! My favorite William Goldman film is "Misery."

You're welcome, Eon C. Rambally. Ok, thanks for letting me know.

Always nice to see you here too, Rebecca Ann Bentley. Congratulations on getting married! :D

Hey, @Ryan Greenberg. What are some fun things to do during summer in New Jersey?

New Jersey boardwalks have mini golf, water parks, arcades, fudge, pizza....I love it

You're welcome, Rebecca Ann Bentley.

Cool, @Ryan Greenberg. I've never been to a boardwalk. I loved going to the arcades (mainly the ones in movie theaters) and mini golf growing up. And bumper cars.