My journey into Go began the same as many people; being a huge otaku. Ever since I saw students do a talent show to the tune of one of the English dub songs from Yu-Gi-Oh!, I have been a huge fan of anime and manga. I’m old enough to remember a time before streaming, when the best kids like me could do was tune in after school to see what was on Toonami. I was a huge fan of shows like Dragon Ball Z and G Gundam. We didn’t always have a choice between English dubs and Japanese subs. In my case, I didn’t even know that was an option. The point I’m trying to make is that I was into anime since I was a kid, and it wasn’t long before I branched out into other genres. I’d be happy to further discuss my journey into Go, but that can be done on another day. Long story short, I found Hikaru No Go as a result, and started playing Go from high school well into my working days. Now, I had been in a college club with my old computer science professor as an advisor, but we didn’t have many people in the club. I didn’t even have a proper board at the time, or even an OGS account. I mostly used KGS, and even then I didn’t have the kind of games that could really stimulate my interest. One day in 2017, however, I discovered an app for meeting new people called Meetup. Completely by accident, I found a go club that met every Monday around 6pm. I went over the first Monday I could at the Panera Bread on Kirk Road, and never looked back since. I went on and off that year and stopped after awhile. My job situation hadn’t been stabilized yet, but I eventually started going on a regular basis around 2022-2023. Since then, I’ve stopped by every Saturday I could (the club eventually moved to Saturday, so that helped in my decision to return) to play with whomever shows up that day. Anyone will tell you that I’m not the greatest Go player in the world. However, there is no greater peace I find than spending 2-3 hours every week getting immersed in a few games. My weeks can be pretty hectic, so having that time to myself brings unto me a peace I can’t even begin to describe has become so important to me. It isn’t even about the games so much as it is about the bonds I’ve forged with the people who come on a regular basis. I found where I belong, and I wouldn’t trade that for anything. I’d go on and on about how I got into Go and exactly what makes this group so great, but if you want to learn more about my life story and such, you know where to find me. Our address is at the Panera Bread on 2987 Kirk Rd, Aurora Illinois. We usually meet from 2-5 every Saturday whenever possible. Except of course when we head out to tournaments, like the time we all went to the 2024 Chicago Open on Memorial Day weekend as you can see in the picture above! We hope to see you at our club and hope you can make as many memories as possible playing the greatest game in the world! West Suburban Go/Weiqi/Baduk game Meetup | Meetup
