This is the final post in September. The first Monday in October isn’t until the 7th, so there’s a bit of break until then, but you’ll manage just fine. The next issue of the newsletter will come out on Sunday, the 6th. Some follow-up housekeeping… The only sizes of the GLOMM shirts remaining are Small and Large and the remaining membership kits with those shirts will sell out before this site returns in October, I would guess. So if you’re interested in one of those sizes, snag it now. Also, the Amateur at the Kitchen Table hardcover monograph is shipping out by the end of the month. If you ..read more

Rotational Housing In addition to the Houses I mentioned in Tuesday’s post, I have three Rotational Houses as well. A “Rotational House” is a location that houses a single trick, but I have many tricks that could be held there. So I hold a trick in that location until I perform it, and then I rotate in a different trick. Here are my current Rotational Houses: The coin pocket in my pants, which holds any small gimmick (And today holds Double Deception.) Inside whatever book I’m reading, where I keep a trick as a bookmark. (Which is currently Random Card Generator.) Under the cellophane of ..read more

“Have you seen this app? It’s pretty cool. If you get your Rubik’s Cube mixed up and can’t solve it, you can use this. I’ll show you. Do you have like a paper bag or plastic bag or something?” So, yeah, you know what’s happening here. You download any Rubik’s solving app, combine that with a one-handed solve, and there you go. In real life, I have the person reach in and grab out the phone and then reach in and grab out the cube for themselves. It’s shocking stuff. But with a charmingly absurd premise—the idea that there’s an app that physically solves a Rubik’s cube—that I think is much more ..read more

Last week I wrote about the steps to building a repertoire. Those steps were pretty straightforward, but one of the concepts I wanted to introduce with that post is that every trick in your repertoire should have a “home.” Every trick should be kept in a place where it can be deployed somewhat seamlessly on your end. You should be like an irresponsible gun owner who leaves a loaded gun in his end table. If an intruder comes in, you just open the drawer and unload on him. Yes, responsible gun ownership involves keeping your gun in a locked gun-safe high up in your bedroom closet, so your kid do ..read more

[As mentioned earlier this year, The GLOMM “Elite” Membership Kit is not being re-run. While there will likely be other GLOMM apparel in the future, the membership kit version with this shirt and the enamel pin and membership card will not be reprinted. As sizes sell out, they’re gone. The sizes remaining are Small, X-Large (just a couple, I think) [Update: XL is gone now too], and XX--Large. If you’re one of those sizes and want the membership kit, jump on it soon. If you want the membership kit and you’re not one of those sizes… I don’t know what to tell you. You had eight years to buy it. Y ..read more

I’m currently in the process of rebuilding my repertoire with the Carefree Philosophy in mind. Building a repertoire is a simple process. So simple that it probably doesn’t require a post walking you through it. I’m writing this post because it’s so simple. I hear from people who are overwhelmed by the process, and I think they’re making it needlessly complex. I’m going to walk you through the steps of building a repertoire, and the one unique step to my process which is super helpful to me and I think could be useful to you as well. Steps to Building a Repertoire Find tricks you like in boo ..read more

Re: Last week’s Cross-Cut Tweak Tweak My tweak on the cross-cut force.  The participant is asked to hold the deck and is instructed as follows:  ‘I’m going to snap my fingers (or count to three), and when I do I want you to grab a bunch of cards—any amount—and put them on the table.  And I want you to do this without thinking.  No thinking,ust grab a bunch and put them on the table.”  The participant complies.  “Great, now put the rest on top crosswise.”  I mime the replacement, just to be clear. “We’ll get back to that.” I think the “no thinking” instruction ..read more

I like performing stuff, but it’s usually when I feel like it. There are contexts where for whatever reason it feels off. And I usually decline. I have noticed a few things and situations that make this happen: - if there are other people around (not part of the group) and my friends ask specifically for some card tricks. I think I feel self-conscious of the magiciany look of pulling a deck of cards out and people seeing. Or even... getting outside people seeing us and asking for more tricks. There is something about doing more than 1 or 2 tricks one after the other that feels weird to me ..read more

For the first time in a long time, I got called out on the Cross Cut Force a couple of months ago. And then 10 days later, it happened again. Now, normally if someone were to question the Cross Cut Force—if they were to say, “Wait, that’s the bottom card, not the card from the middle”—I would just play stupid. “Huh? Wait… what are you saying? Oh…I see… yeah, it doesn’t really matter, but go ahead and look at whatever card you want.” And then I’d change course and go into a different trick. This is one of the good things about the Cross Cut Force. If they are ever to question if they’re really ..read more

Letterman’s youtube channel recently posted Penn and Teller’s first appearance on the show. I’m so glad I grew up in the era that I did. With so little magic to consume on TV, every appearance became something to record and obsess over. Penn and Teller on Letterman or on their PBS special, Copperfield’s annual CBS shows, up through Blaine who was kind of the last vestige of that era of excitement. It was really a lesson in pacing. And I try to remember it when I’m performing. If you show someone something just a few times a year, I don’t think they will ever get tired of magic. But start show ..read more