November & December 2012

Today is Monday Dec. 31st, 2012 and I thought it would be nice to reflect on the past couple of months and some of the highlights for 2012.  I’ve had a few hardships this year but without them I wouldn’t appreciate all of the good things that I often take for granted.  Namely my family, my friends, my health, etc.

All in all it was a great year.  You know the saying, When one door closes another opens.”  I have found that to be remarkably true my entire life.

This year I knocked out several more states making 40 that I have performed in now.  My goal is to one day do all 50.  I’m in the homestretch now and feel it is easily obtainable.  Once I put my mind to something it typically gets done.  It’s funny how it always takes much longer than I planned though.

This year I reprinted Bamboozlers One, my Mirrors DVD, my DiaMonte DVD (see the new ad to the right), the Collateral DVD, my Pockets Full of Miracles DVD. Plus I am constantly having to reorder my Z.A.P. Wallets. I also released the trick titled Hydro.

Luckily the world didn’t end on 12-21-12 but all of the hoopla helped me to sell around 9000 of my Doomsday Deck printed by the United States Playing Card Company.  One of the highlights this year was touring the USPCC facility.

Seeing Ireland for the first time this year was amazing.  I also fell in love with the Isle of Man.  It was great seeing family and friends in England this year.  I was happy that my cousins from England, Russell & Paula, were able to come and stay with us at our home here in Texas as well.

This is a really tough business to keep afloat but I’ve managed to do so for 26 years now.  I feel so lucky, in a down economy, to be doing what I love for a living.  I think the world will always need entertainers, like myself, to help them escape their own reality for a short while.  There is nothing like live entertainment. Even more special is live entertainment done up close and personal.  I’m proud to be a wonder-worker and part of this clandestine art.  I’m just like everyone else in that I put my pants on one leg at a time.  The difference is, once my pants are on, I make magic happen! 🙂

November was a fun month.  The first Saturday I performed at a private event at a hotel where the power was off for the first hour of my performance.  I came prepared and and managed to entertain my audience regardless.  Later I flew to Salt Lake City, UT and stayed at a mansion at the foot of a mountain and lectured to an enthusiastic group.  My host was a very inspiring man.  See a picture of his home to the right.

Once home I performed for a billionaire and entertained his staff and friends.  The month continued with several more shows and my wife and I began renovations on our home.  First I sold all of my office furniture and we had the carpet pulled up in the front part of the house so the concrete could be stained.  We hated it!  So while the house was disarray we scrambled to find a solution and found a flooring company to put in some nice hard wood floors in all of the rooms downstairs that were once carpeted.  I have bad allergies so hopefully this well help with that.

We also had many of the rooms painted.  I redesigned my entire office.  I spent hours with a friend assembling IKEA furniture.  Plus Santa was good to me and I have lots of cool new electronic gadgets to play with in our media room.  This is ideal since we love to entertain and watch movies.

In December we finished up the remodel and I did 18 shows.  Plus we attended many family and friend get-togethers for our Christmas celebration.  I am also playing in more Texas Hold’em home games these days and enjoying them.  Tonight I have two parties for New Year’s Eve.  The first one is a private event at a home in Heath, TX near my parents and the last one of the night and year is at a hookah/belly-dancing club.  That should be fun!

It’s taken longer than planned but I am diligently working on Bamboozlers Three.  See a picture of one of the effects called Ten Forks on the right. Its ten forks balanced on one toothpick with the aid of two corks and three other toothpicks. My illustrator has already begun submitting his drawings and I am trying to wrap up the writing so I can begin the editing and layout.  My DVDs make more money but there is just something special about creating this book series.  It is truly a labor of love.  Plus I have some other exciting projects that I hope to finalize in 2013.

I wish a healthy and prosperous New Year to all of my readers, family, friends and fans.  And may you achieve all of your heart’s desires except for one.  This way you’ll always have something to strive for.

New Year’s day I am looking forward to having lunch with some friends as has become tradition.  Plus I look forward to all of the exciting things that 2013 has to throw at me.  I have made new friendships and I look forward to seeing those blossom. My life is never boring.