Summertime Blues Remedy chess tournament--a small success

The tournament began an hour earlier then usual, so I wound up getting to it just a little before the first round began, as I hadn't noted the time change. Still, it was of no major consequence.

The first game started quiet, but suddenly caught fire in the middle game. The result was an unbalanced position, and with time running low, we agreed to a draw. My opponent was more highly rated then I was, and while I suppose pushing the game further may have resulted in a win, but it wasn't clear, so I was pretty happy with the draw.

The second is a game I need to look at again more close, as I think I had chances. I had lines to his king, and my pieces were bearing on him, but I couldn't find it, and in the end my opponent held me off and won.

The third was a hard game. I think I mishandled the opening, and in order to get any kind of counter-play, I had to sacrifice some material. It probably shouldn't have worked well, and I'm sure that my opponent was winning, but I was able to make things difficult, and he started getting short of time. In the end, it was his lack of time and a materially unbalance position that led to a him accepting my draw offer.

The fourth game was almost quiet compared to the first three. There was a bit of excitement in the middle game, but I entered the endgame a pawn up. Then my opponent sacrificed some material in hopes of getting to my king, but I was able to hold him off, and in the end I had a rook and and he no other pieces except his king, and our pawns were soon to be of equal number.

So, after the dust had cleared, I had 2 points out of 4 games--two draws, a win, and a lose. That was enough to put me in a tie for first place in my section. So, it wasn't a bad tournament. I was playing opponents who were stronger then I had played in the past few tournaments, and the games were difficult ones, and if I had pressed on in the games that were draws they might have been won, if for no other reason then because my opponents likely would have ran out of time.