Never let it be said that all the magic has gone away. While trying to change the fuses in a string of outdoor lights this evening, I managed to drop my pocketknife, with which I was prying the nasty little suckers out. I was in my front courtyard, in a patch of dirt. I saw the knife fall at my feet.
And then it disappeared. Not into thin air, but into hard ground. I searched, but it was gone.
It was a smallish knife, but all in stainless steel, and you'd think you could spot something like that using a diver's flashlight bright enough to take the paint off a passing jet airliner, but, you'd be wrong ...
And the damned string of lights didn't work after that anyhow.
I hope Vulcan enjoys the little knife as much as I did.
The picture is of special palming coins made for a turn-of-the-twentieth-century sleight-of-hand expert, T. Nelson Downs, aka the King of Koins. You can read about him in the book The New Modern Coin Magic, by J.B. Bobo. First published in 1952, it has been revised a whole bunch of times since. I have the 1966 edition, which was a gift some thirty-eight years ago yesterday. Bobo's book, a collection of sleights and tricks from various stage magicians, is still the standard by which all other coin-magic books are judged, and rightfully so.
And then it disappeared. Not into thin air, but into hard ground. I searched, but it was gone.
It was a smallish knife, but all in stainless steel, and you'd think you could spot something like that using a diver's flashlight bright enough to take the paint off a passing jet airliner, but, you'd be wrong ...
And the damned string of lights didn't work after that anyhow.
I hope Vulcan enjoys the little knife as much as I did.
The picture is of special palming coins made for a turn-of-the-twentieth-century sleight-of-hand expert, T. Nelson Downs, aka the King of Koins. You can read about him in the book The New Modern Coin Magic, by J.B. Bobo. First published in 1952, it has been revised a whole bunch of times since. I have the 1966 edition, which was a gift some thirty-eight years ago yesterday. Bobo's book, a collection of sleights and tricks from various stage magicians, is still the standard by which all other coin-magic books are judged, and rightfully so.
No comments:
Post a Comment