Has it really been that long?

I knew I’d been away for a while, but it doesn’t seem like months. Seems every time I tell someone about this blog, I write another post. Maybe I should begin talking to more people… Anyway, a lot has happened in a few months between me and magic.

You see, one evening (it was a Wednesday, of that I’m sure) I was at the Joker’s Wild visiting Mark King, a magical friend of mine who has performed for birthday night for years and years. Ask him how many sometime, he’ll be glad to tell you no doubt. This particular evening I asked Mark about practicing and how to best eliminate shyness. You see, no matter how encouraging my family is, I was still very very nervous about performing in front of anybody aside from the cats. The cats were a rapt and approving audience, but not really what I thought of as a proper audience.

 Mark suggested I get in touch with the Farmer’s Market folks and perform there. He said that performing in front of live strangers would help the shyness and also give me heaps of practice time, not to mention practical experience. This was ten minutes after I had performed an effect for him while shaking… I was really not too sure about this idea. But, he seemed confident that it was the thing to do, so I made a phone call.

A very polite lady greeted me on the other end of the line, saying she could only pay a little right now, but would be able to pay more in the future. I was beside myself wondering what to say. I wasn’t sure I was even capable of pulling this thing off and here someone was offering to pay me! I politely refused payment, saying that I wasn’t as good as all that yet and I was doing it for the practice more than anything.

I only had a few days to prepare before it began, which turned out to be a blessing. No time to waste worrying about whether I could do it or not. Had to get ready. The first day was unexpectedly wonderful. I went in without any expectations except that I would do my best and roll with the punches. The most incredible thing happened… my magic worked! People were amazed! At first I thought they were humoring me, trying not to hurt my feelings, but then it dawned on me… the magic was working. I’m sure I didn’t ‘fool’ everyone, but I’m just as sure that a few saw exactly what I wanted them to see. Maybe more than just a few… What a kick!

That was about a month ago. I’ve been there every Saturday morning, except Memorial Day Weekend, of course… Miscon was awesome as usual. Tons of gaming and a complete break from magic. Next year I plan on holding a workshop or something. I’m still thinking about exactly what to do with that. More later…

 Meanwhile, Saturdays are magical! I’ve been gaining confidence, meeting some great people, finding out what works and what doesn’t, and just flat havin a great time. Come down to the Clark Fork Valley Market Saturday morning and say hi. I’ll try and make sure you’re glad you did!

Real Magic

About a year ago, I was at a local used bookstore searching for a book on magic. I was excited about the new resources I had found on the web. I was thrilled at the prospect of talking to someone person-to-person who knew about magic. I wandered around, lost in the shelves, when a store employee asked me what I was looking for. I replied that I was searching for books on magic. Her eyes lit up as though she had been waiting for such a request and she pointed me toward the New Age section without hesitation. I shook my head and told her that what I meant was books on card magic, coin magic, and so on. Her expression changed to one of disappointment as she said, “Oh, you want the hobby section.” Apparently I wasn’t there for real magic, or at least that’s what she thought.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that New Age Paganism and Occultism aren’t Real Magic. They most certainly can be. Notice that I didn’t say – They Are. I said they can be. It’s not about the system, it’s about what one does with the system. Marion Weinstien’s Positive Magic can be a powerful tool for personal development and life change, or it can be a powerful tool for collecting dust and disturbing one’s straight-laced friends. It’s about what ya do with it.

So it is with stage magic, card magic, coin magic, and so on. As a child my eyes were openned to a vast world of wondrous mysteries by a guy wearing a top hat who sawed a woman in half. There was clearly more to this world than met my eye. In fact, this early inflammation of wonderment is what led me years later to explore the histories of witches, magicians, secret societies, and such. Here’s irony for you, the search started with stage magic, led me through all sorts of strange mysteries and ancient texts (well, at least the language was ancient sounding) and has brought me around full circle to prestidigitation again. But this time, on a higher level.

You see, magic is all about transformation. All magic, whether performed by Evan Disney (a local magician) or Aliester Crowley (a decidedly non-local magickian), carries in its core a sense of transformation. It’s not just card tricks, smoke and mirrors, bats and belfries. There’s more to it, and that’s what makes it worthwhile. Maybe it’s as simple as changing a scowl to a smile. Maybe the change is a deeper understanding of one’s self.

 Either way, it’s all Real Magic.

First Post!

That’s right! This is the exciting, thrilling, laugh-a-minute, first post ever on my new magic blog.  I’ve never done a blog before. Not once. So, I chose magic for the topic of my maiden voyage.I’ve been fascinated with magic for as long as I can remember. My parents took me to see a stage magician when I was a kid and I was blown away. Seeing wasn’t enough for me. I wanted to be doing. Sadly, I had few research skills at my disposal. Probably something to do with the fact that I was 8 years old. So, I learned nothing about magic for a long long time…A few years ago I was talking with a friend at work. I don’t have permission to use his real name, so I’ll call him Bunji. (There is absolutely no reason for this. Yes that was a lie). Bunji and I were chatting and the topic turned to magic. He showed me a few quick coin effects and I was entranced. Just like that, I was an 8 year old kid again, wondering how I could learn how to do that amazing stuff! So, I asked him.

Bunji loaned me a couple of books complete with illustrations and some Jeff McBride videos. It was seriously daunting. You know that old addage: “Be careful what you wish for, you might get it.” Well, I had gotten it. Too much of it. I didn’t know where to start, and so I didn’t. Oh, I learned how to cut the deck one-handed, but that was about it.

Fast forward to last year. I was quitting smoking for the fourth time (or fifth, I’m not exactly sure) and needed something to do with my hands. Inspiration struck and I picked up a deck of cards. I soon realized that the reason I didn’t get started last time was that I felt like my personal resources were limited. I doubted my ability to learn from books and videos without some sort of mentor, instructor, or even a peer!

Dat da na na!

The Internet to the rescue!

It’s amazing how quickly one can do things when one is withdrawing from Nicotine. I started at Google and found some magic forums, which led me to other magic forums, which led me to You Tube, and all sorts of other places. I’ll talk about all that stuff later. For right now, just know that I had found thousands of others who were also passionate about magic.

I started learning. I certainly haven’t finished learning, not by a long shot. Heck I’m not even in a place where I can perform comfortably for my family or friends. So, there’s still much to do. But, in magic, just as in this blog here, I have made a start. Let’s see where this ride leads.