Magical Monday --- Magicians-In-Training

This week we have to say goodbye to 2 of our neighbors --- Victor and Victoria (pictured above playing a board game in our apartment on Saturday). They are from Cambodia and their dad just graduated from seminary last week. They have been in our building for the past 3 1/2 years.

Both of them are aspiring magicians! Every time I see them, they want to learn a new trick. I have been impressed with Victor and how quickly he can learn a trick and begin to fool people. Unlike most kids, a single trick can keep his interest for a long time. After we practice together and he gets a trick down, he'll go knocking door-to-door to show anyone who is willing to watch.

Victoria is younger (only 4 when they moved here, but now she is 8), and she also learns fairly quickly...although she has a REALLY hard time not telling everyone how she did it hahaha. Every time I would go out on my Trikke, sit outside, take a walk, play tennis, etc --- she would always appear out of the blue and be ready to participate in whatever it was I was doing no matter how dull. She was even excited to help fix our burnt out headlight in the car!

They are great kids and we'll miss them a lot! But who knows...we may see them again someday on stage!

Magical Monday --- The Sword-Thru-Neck

Those of you that have seen my show probably remember my head box...the box that an assistant would place their head in and 9 swords would be thrust into the box with the finale of having the person's head disappear. Well, that trick is on its last leg (and hopefully someday I can pass it down if any of our nieces or nephews really get into magic), so I have replaced it with a "Sword-Thru-Neck" trick. It is much smaller and easier to carry...I am just looking for the right jokes and ways to make it fun. Here is a clip from yesterday's show...if you are wondering what happened to the boy that starts the trick out, he had second thoughts about midway through the trick...

Magical Monday --- Another Bag of Crap

We were able to win another "Bag of Crap" from Woot for $3.00...if you've missed previous posts, you can get anywhere from a Big Screen TV to complete junk. Most people get a box full of stuff worth about $100 (last time we received about $25 worth of stuff...a "GoDuster" worth $20 and bath salts worth $5). I happened to be in front of the computer when this item came up a few weeks ago and it sold out in less than 3 seconds (as always). Here is what we received...

***Please pray for my dad this week as he fell while he was hunting and broke his knee (he just had both replaced last year). He is currently in State College waiting for surgery (probably tomorrow). I will update on "What's Up Wednesday".

Magical Monday --- The Long Distance Trick

Here is the "old" version of the trick. We updated it to have someone select an "invisible card" (basically just naming any card they want) and by calling my uncle Mike (also a magician) he is able to name the card.

Magical Monday --- A New Trick

Well, I was hoping to post a video of "The Long Distance Trick" my uncle and I came up with last week, but we haven't had a chance to film it in action yet (hopefully sometime this week so I can post it next week!). So instead, I played around with a new trick. When I was younger, I used to challenge myself to learn 1 new trick per week (many of them I would invent using my imagination). When I got into high school, I read a book called, "The Professional Amature" which probably had the most influence on my magical career than any other book. It premise is that most magicians know and can do 1,000 different tricks at an average skill level. The mark of a professional is they focus on 20-30 tricks that they can do to perfection. That started me down a path of perfecting my favorite handful of tricks to the point I could do it better than the vast majority of other magicians (my magic club in Pittsburgh was my standard --- and when I won Magician of the Year there twice, I knew I was on the right path!) and it has served me very well! It did however de-motivate me from learning new things (unless they were really good!). So instead of learning something once a week, its been more like once a year. I missed those old days of learning new stuff (just for fun), so here is something new I played around with. It won't make my act, but it was fun!

Magical Monday --- A Long Distance Trick

My uncle Mikey (who taught me my first magic tricks) and I used to do shows together. We would volunteer for youth groups, nursing homes, etc...but it has been many years since we've worked together. As I was thinking about that, I figured with the way technology is today that we could still do magic together...long distance!

Magic is only limited by your imagination, so I came up with an idea that I thought might work and gave him a call. He liked the idea and we worked out some details and we decided to give it a shot yesterday. So I did the Sunday Service as usual at the County Detention Home. As always, I show the teens a magic trick before I leave. So here is how the trick went:

I pulled out a deck of cards and shuffled them. One of the teens randomly picked a card, and we placed it faced down on the table (I didn't look at it, nor did he, or anyone else in the room). I pulled out my cell phone and gave Mikey a call. I told him someone just picked a card, the card was face down on the table, nobody (including me) had looked at it yet, and before we looked, I asked him to try and guess what it was.

In the room with us is always 2 guards...there is also one watching us on camera from down the hall. At this point in the trick, the guard watching on video came sprinting down the hall as they had to "see this in person". After a few jokes and playing around with the kids over the phone (that's Mikey!) he named a card. We flipped it over, and believe it or not, it was the card Mikey predicted! The teens (and the guards) all went nuts...they couldn't believe it!

It was great to work with my uncle again! We decided to keep this trick going (and who knows, maybe get it published in a magic book)...so anyone who wants to see it, hand me a deck of cards, and as long as Mikey's home to take our call, he'll do it. I'll try to do it again some day this week for our neighbors, and have Jen videotape our new "Long Distance Magic Trick" and post the video next week.

Magical Monday --- A Bag of Crap

A couple months ago, I became a fan of Woot, a website that sells electronics at very discounted prices (http://www.woot.com). It lists only 1 product per day (starting at midnight), and it gets frustrating because I don't stay up that late and if it is a "great deal", the product is sold out by the time I check first thing in the morning (some items sell out within 10 seconds!).

Every few months they have whats called a "woot off day" where they sell more than 1 product in a day at even a higher discounted price. They put on one item after another until it sells out (ranging from 2 seconds up to 1 hour). You can download a little alarm that goes off when a product sells out to warn you a new item is coming. On a "woot off day" a few months ago we were able to buy a recordable DVD player that sells on Amazon for $250 for only $35 and a leather Nike ipod case that sells on Amazon for $30 for $0.99 for 2!

All this brings me to the point of one item they sell. It's called a "Bag of Crap". Basically they are trying to clean out all the "leftovers" from items that never sold out. People have gotten boxes full of ipods, computers, big screen TV's, while others have gotten random wires and junk. A "Bag of Crap" is only $0.99 so it is worth the risk...however it sells out immediately (less than 2 seconds) cause everyone wants one. Well, last "woot off day", my alarm went off and the "Bag of Crap" showed up and I immediately hit the "buy" button and was able to get one! As I tracked the package while it was being shipped, it was taking several days as it went slowly from state to state. Well, I had visions of my shipment being on an "Oversize Load" truck with police escorts. Jen and I were excited when it finally showed up on Friday. So what was it?...check it out...

Magical Monday --- The Magic of Pictures

Jen has wondered if the two of us had been born and met at a different time in history, if we still would have dated. Well, with the "Magic" of technology (and special thanks to Jill from work for telling me about the site), we can get an idea of what we may have each looked like in different decades. So check it out:

THE 1950's



THE 1960's

THE 1970's

THE 1980's

THE 1990's

Make your own at http://www.yearbookyourself.com/

What's your favorite year in these pictures?

Magical Monday --- Among the Stars (Part 2)

Last week I discussed a quote from a fellow magician (Andre Kole: Take your dreams and shoot for the moon...for even if you miss, you'll still be among the stars. As promised, I said I would include several entertainers I have worked with at different events over the years. Here are a few of the ones that stick out the most for me:

Dustin Diamond - Most well-known for being Screech on Saved by the Bell. If you are under the age of 40, I am sure you know exactly what I am talking about. We got to perform together in Indianapolis, Indiana. Beware however as he is far from "Screech" these days with very profane language and jokes in his acts and a recent addition of a pornographic film to his credits.

Dave Coulier - Most well-known for being Joey on the show Full House. We got to perform together at a National Association of Campus Activities event in Grand Rapid, Michigan. All he had to do was walk out, do his signature "Cut...It...Out" phrase (while making scissors with his fingers) and the crowd went nuts. Must be nice to be able to entertain a crowd so easily!

Mike Super - Most well-known as the winner of the NBC show Phenomenon. He is a great guy (also from the Pittsburgh area) and we were able to perform together during "Mike Week" at Marshall University in West Virginia. The only show I ever got simply because my name was Mike!

Jerry Valley - Most well-known as a cruise ship entertainer and a guest on shows such as 20/20. We got to perform together on the Las Vegas Strip back in 2001. We used to e-mail each other frequently, but he is currently winding down his career and holding many training seminars to pass on to the next generation.

Mr. McFeely - Most well-known as the "Speedy Delivery Guy" on Mr. Rodgers Neighborhood. We had the same agent in Pittsburgh, so we worked together many times over the years in the Pittsburgh area.

Thanks Andre for your words of wisdom!

Magical Monday --- Among the Stars (Part 1)

When I was a teenager, I met a magician named Andre Kole (pictured above). He traveled the world performing magic shows and proclaiming the Gospel. One of his quotes to me has always been a guiding force during my career in magic. It went like this:

Take your dreams and shoot for the moon...for even if you miss, you'll still be among the stars.

Only a few years after meeting with Andre, I would be following my dream and performing all over the nation. I will always thank God for the opportunity to have those years of meeting my childhood dream - but my dream now is far better and far more important...serving God in any way He wants. Who knows where that dream will take me?!?

But back to the quote...Andre was certainly right --- shooting for the moon would take me among many stars (I am also very thankful that he included the word for in his quote...some of you will get that!). In addition to meeting pretty much every well-known magician over the years, I have also had the privilege to perform on stage with other well-known entertainers, comedians, etc. As I made this post today, it turned out to be way longer than expected, so I am splitting it into two (I guess I got carried away having the past 2-weeks off!). Next week, I will share several of the celebrities I have had the honor of performing with at various events with nationwide.

Magical Monday --- Tighty Whities

Above is a video of one of my newer tricks which creates the illusion that I am stealing someone's underwear (sorry for the bad quality...the lighting at this show was really bad and I had to brighten the video 5X just to see it). I went through many creative ideas of how to best utilize this trick...and currently it is used as the finale to end my show. I tie it in with another one of my tricks (rope thru the body). After cutting myself in half with a rope, I call on a volunteer to be cut in half in the same way using a scarf. But the kicker is, instead of being cut in half, their underwear (which happens to be tighty whities) comes off.

So I was ending my show recently at the county fair with this trick. Normally I use someone that is at least a teenager (as you can imagine how embarrassing this could be for a child), but there was a little boy about 8-years-old that was sitting up front the entire show that I knew would be perfect for the trick. So after he watched me cut myself in half with the rope, he did volunteer to come up and let me attempt the same to him with the rope. When the underwear came flying out there was the funniest look of shock on this kids face which made the audience erupt in laughter. As I turned to put the trick away, I heard everyone burst out in even more laughter...but didn't see what happened. What could it have been?

Turns out the little kid pulled out his waistband and took a peek to see whether or not it was really his underwear!

Magical Monday --- September 11th, 2001

September 11th affected us all whether it be a job loss, a hit in the stock market, loss of a loved one, or a renewed appreciation for family and friends. The week before September 11th, I filled in as the after school detention teacher and received 1/2 day of comp time that I was using that morning. So I got to watch all the events unfold at home...ultimately the kids were sent home from school that day so I never had to go to work.

Several of my magic shows over the next few weeks were canceled as well. One show that remained was a birthday party the following Saturday for a 6-year-old boy. There were about 25 kids and their parents. The show was a hit and many of the parents thanked me for bringing some fun into a very sobering week.

After the show the boy's mom asked to talk with me. She said business had been really bad that week and she didn't have the money to pay me right now. I asked her what she did, and she was a dancer at a downtown Gentleman's Club and the events of the week were preventing men from coming to see her strip (hopefully they were at home with their families where they should be!). She asked if there was any way to delay payment or any other arrangements we could make such as several front row passes to her club.

Ultimately I have no control over payment for my shows. That belongs to the agents at my entertainment agency. This did however give me a great opening to share a little of my testimony (without being judgmental towards her) and why I didn't go to places like that...out of my love for my Savior! She opened up a bit and shared a little of her faith background and we parted ways by me giving her the name of the "nice agent" to work out the payment and that I would be praying for her.

About 2 weeks later I got a call back from this girl who thanked me for our conversation. She decided she was going to go back to college and find a better line of work. What ever happened with her...I don't know. But God does, and this may have been a great example of how God can use a tragic event (this wouldn't have happened otherwise) for His glory!

Magical Monday --- Kids Say the Darndest Things

Back when I lived in Pittsburgh I did a magic show for a 2nd grade class at an area elementary school. The class had been reading and doing lessons and worksheets on magic because it was an interesting topic for the class. To end the series of lessons with a bang, they hired me to come in and do a show and answer all of the kids questions about magic and being a magician.

So I did my show and asked if anyone had any questions about magic, and of course pretty much every hand went up. I got many of the usual questions such as: How did you do that one trick? How much money do you get paid? Where did you learn to do magic? How much do you have to practice? Do you have a rabbit? Etc, etc, etc.

But one little boy's question caught me a little off guard. He raised his hand and asked, "What do you think about Bush's plan to eliminate Social Security?"

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I know the picture with this post today doesn't exactly fit, but hey, it's funny!

Magical Monday --- Impromptu Lines

The hardest part of adding comedy to any show is being able to come up with impromptu lines and jokes...but they are also the funniest. It is one thing to have several jokes and lines memorized for a show, but when you can make people laugh from "on the spot" comedy, it takes it to a whole new level. I first learned about this at a David Copperfield show I went to. He was introducing a trick and a baby in the audience started crying. David said, "So sit back, relax, and please, SHUT THAT KID UP!!!"...and the audience erupted in laughter! However I soon lost some respect for him when I watched his next TV special and as he introduced the same trick, a baby started crying...and, you guessed it...he said, "So sit back, relax..." The baby crying was just an audio recording so Copperfield would appear to have some impromptu comedy in his act. What it shows, is that even the top professionals know the value of this type of comedy and will even "fake it" to have it in their show.

Later on, I met a guy names "Amazing Johnathan" (pictured above). He was my favorite magician and his act was 2% magic and 98% comedy. And he is funny!!! Mainly because most of his comedy is impromptu with volunteers he brings on stage. I met him when he was a professional at my level (traveling around doing fairs and colleges), but now he is a headliner at several vegas hotels and casinos.

So how does this play out in my show? I have 3 tricks in my act that I try to leave space for some fun and laughs with volunteers that are not planned. You must leave some space, or it will never happen. Some magicians will say word-for-word the same thing EVERY show without fail. But I think that leaves out a component that can help make them more respected (just don't cheat like David!).

My favorite memory of an impromptu line in my show was at a corporate event I was doing. I was going to slice a volunteer's head off with my head box. I had one of the swords in my hand and asked for the CEO to come on stage with me. As the audience cheered him on, he made his way up front. I reached out to shake his hand, but when he raised his...he did not have a hand, he had a hook. You could tell it was a tense moment as everyone got quiet and wondered what I would do next. So I looked at his "hook", glanced over at my sword, looked out toward the audience and said, "Oh, I see you've helped me with this trick once before". Of course the audience laughed for a LONG time, and several commented on that moment after the show. Of course I was invited back the following year as well.

Magical Monday --- Henrietta

Henrietta (pictured above) is my "Magical Assistant". I have been doing a comedy magic routine in my show with a rubber chicken since 1999. I entered our routine into the "Magician of the Year" contest through the International Brotherhood of Magicians in December of 1999. The following is the story behind the creation of this original routine and how the competition went:

Shortly after I moved to Pittsburgh in 1998, I joined a local branch of the International Brotherhood of Magicians. This club really made me take my magic to the next level (as it is VERY difficult performing and impressing other magicians). One of the things I loved about the club is its mission to spark creativity. We met monthly and would always be given an idea we had to work out for the next meeting...things like, "invent a new trick using a pair of socks" or "create a trick using just 2 cards". I have always been very creative with ideas, so I quickly gained a lot of respect with the tricks I created (and some of the guys still use them in their shows!).

We would have a "Magician of the Month" contest every 2 months. You would compete against about a dozen other men and women and be judged by the magicians. Every year I was in Pittsburgh I won one of these awards. At the end of the year, all the monthly winners (6) would compete for "Magician of the Year" in front of the public. As the competition in 1999 rolled around, at that point in my career, I was far less skilled than the other winners, so I needed my creativity to pull me over the top.

I had been at a conference a few months before the big year-end competition, and learned my most valuable lesson about magic...it is FAR more important to entertain than to amaze. This has be so true! People rarely remember how I blew them away with an awesome trick, but always remember how I brought their boss on stage and stole his underwear! I have seen awesome magicians far more talented than me do terrible shows, and magicians with hardly any magical ability put on a top-notch show. If I had to put it in numbers, a successful show probably consists of 20% great magic and 80% great entertainment.

With that in mind (and knowing I would be judged by the public and not other magicians) I used my creativity to come up with a routine that would make people laugh first, and impress them with my magic second. So came the e-bay purchase of Henrietta, and many "trial runs" with the routine until I had it perfected and it was the hit of my show (which it still is today). At the end of the night, I became the club's youngest (age 25) "Magician of the Year". I also won again in 2003.

Tomorrow I will be performing this trick for a Community Event here in Ashland and promoting my show at the county fair later this month. Below is a short clip of the routine...

Magical Monday --- Juggling

At some point in elementary school I decided I would learn to juggle. I am not sure how I learned...I just remember picking up 3 balls and teaching myself. Over the years I also taught myself a lot of tricks with 3 balls...one of them is so difficult that some of the professional jugglers I've done shows with couldn't do it (and I never realized it was that hard!). Recently we've had 2 new neighbors move in below us...Nate and Sharon. They also know how to juggle, so we've decided to practice and learn some more stuff. They even do a Gospel presentation while they juggle, and I've ordered a book on it too (so maybe we can do some children's church groups in town when we polish our act). This past weekend I was determined to learn to juggle 4 balls at once. There are a lot of people that can handle 3, but hardly anyone that can do 4...and through some research found that many people would never be able to juggle 4 no matter how much they practiced (it takes a certain amount of hand/eye gifting). So by the end of the weekend, I was juggling 4 balls pretty well, although still far from perfect. You'll see it in the video, as well as a trick where I throw all 3 ball behind my back (that's the one that stumps the pros)...Nate and Sharon are also included practicing in our apartment. We invented all these tricks together....

Magical Monday --- Watch Out!

Back in 2002 I decided I wanted to learn how to steal someone's watch. A good magician friend of mine used it as a regular part of his act and suggested a video by "Chappy Brazil" (pictured above). So I ordered the video and learned how to steal watches (for entertainment purposes of course...unless it's REALLY nice).

The video is very good and teaches how to steal every type of watch from steel clasps, to velcro, to a regular buckle. It taught a difficult way of stealing watches (just randomly taking one) and an easy way of taking watches (by holding someone's wrists as part of another magic routine). Well, believe me, the "easy" method is still FAR from easy. But I do have a rubber band trick in which I can hold someone's wrist as part of the routine...so that was my plan.

My roommate Steve used to laugh at my practice method...I had an old golf club with a pair of shorts taped to the handle to simulate someone's wrist and a watch band strapped around it. I got really good at stealing a watch from my golf club (in under a second!), but I had no clue if I was applying the right amount of pressure to actually fool someone (since my golf club didn't give me much feedback!), so I started practicing on some friends. I got to the point where they couldn't feel me taking the watch, so it was time to try this thing out!

I didn't want to press my luck with a stranger so I thought I would try it on a friend. Our Bible study group went on a Gateway Clipper Cruise together. I started showing some magic and did the rubber band trick with a girl in our group named Heidi --- and as I grabbed her wrists as part of a different trick, her watch came off just as I had practiced and I slipped it into my pocket without her noticing.

So here I was thinking I had just pulled off one of my best tricks and was ready to stun everyone that I had stolen someone's watch. I thought a funny way to produce the watch would be to ask Heidi if she knew what time it was...then she would notice her watch was gone! So I asked and Heidi looks at her wrist and says, "Oh, I guess I didn't wear my watch today". She forgot she had it on!!! So when the watch was produced from my pocket people weren't sure if I stole it off her dresser at home or what. I even had to convince Heidi that she was in fact wearing a watch that day. Oh well, so it wasn't as successful the first time as I would have liked it...but it went much better than some of my other "first attempt" tricks that I will tell you about in the future.

Magical Monday --- The Hardest Trick

One of the great ironies of magic is the better you get, the less skill you need. The tricks you start out with as a beginning magician using cards, coins, etc require far more skill than the stage magician making his or her assistant float, cutting people in half, etc. Most of the skill for the large illusions are from the assistant, and the magician gets to stand on stage, look good, and take all the credit!
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Many times people will ask me about the hardest trick I am able to perform. Without a doubt it is a trick called "prison bands" in which 2 rubber bands create the illusion of melting through each other. It took many months to perfect, and really is a great trick (David Copperfield performed it on one of his TV specials). Here is a video of me performing prison bands, the hardest trick I know...
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Magical Monday --- If Money Grew on Trees

If money really did grow on trees, I think I got a glimpse of what our world might be like. In 2001, I was hired (through my agent) to do a magic show at the Hyatt ballroom in the Pittsburgh airport. All I knew is that I should expect around 400 adults and 100 kids. My show was at 6:00 and I arrived around 5:15 to set up and the place was empty, with the exception of 3 other entertainers (a clown, a juggler, and a comedian) that worked for the same agent as I did. Nobody seemed to know what was going on. The serving staff that had set up for dinner were clueless as to where all the people were as well since they had rented the ballroom and said they would arrive around 4:00.

So we all sat there for another 1/2 hour or so and were about to give up and take off (I had an 8:00 show to get to) when this lady comes in and says the guests would be arriving soon. The family organizing the event was from India and we were told, "It is customary for their culture to arrive late" and we could just shorten our shows to 15 minutes each while people were having dinner. As people began to arrive, so did many other entertainers from my agent (a puppeteer, a caricature artist, a mime, etc). I also noted that the meals being served were top-of-the-line...and from our wedding planning, we knew the base price to have an event there was $55.00 per person. So as the 500 people began to show up, we all started to perform...and as we performed more and more entertainers kept showing up!

After I was done, I went to thank the host and was handed a wad of cash. Even though I only did about 1/4 of my show they gave me more in a tip than the cost of my entire show (and I later found out all the other entertainers got something similar as well). To top it all off, an announcement was made that the band they had flown in from India had arrived with all their instruments. It ended up being a 10-person band!

So to sum up what was going on at this party...my estimates would be:

1) 500 dinners at $100 each = $50,000

2) 20 entertainers at $200 each + $300 tips = $10,000

3) 10 people flown in from India = $15,000

4) 10 instruments flown in from India = $2,000

5) Accommodations for many of the guests = $10,000

6) Miscellaneous (decorations, gifts, etc) = $10,000

TOTAL = $97,000

So why would someone have a $100,000 party? I figured it had to be someones wedding reception (but I saw no bride), or a 50th anniversary (but I saw no guests of honor), or perhaps a lottery winner (but I didn't see Ed McMahon and his prize patrol). So I asked the host what the big celebration was about --- The man throwing the party was a well-known brain surgeon, and this whole thing was for their daughter's FIRST BIRTHDAY! So we must add a number seven:

7) Spending 100 grand on an event your kid will never remember: PRICELESS

Magical Monday --- My Best Trick Ever?

Back when I lived in Pittsburgh, I had a contract with Max and Ermas (a chain restaurant) to perform magic at the tables for 2 hours every week. Since Pittsburgh is a big place, in general every week it would be completely new customers. But there were a few faithful families who would dine there almost every week and come during my hours so they could see some magic. Because of these families, I would always be sure to carry 1 or 2 new tricks with me so I had something unique to show them each week.

Throughout my years of magic, I have always been hesitant to use invisible string (I'll tell you a story about my uncle and an invisible string tragedy one of these Mondays) because it is so unpredictable with breaks, twists, etc. I did however own what's called an "invisible thread reel" that would allow me to make small objects float.

Since the technology and genius behind making objects float has increased greatly over the past decade, the invisible thread reel is rarely used today (there is something better now called the "spider"). Because it is outdated, it is ok for me to tell you a little bit about it (to better understand this story). The reel was an electric spool pinned inside my jacket. The end of the string was inside a ball of wax which you would stick to the wall, table, chair, or pretty much anything. You could place a light object on the thread (the string runs from the ball of wax to your jacket) and with the electric spool you can cause the object to float up and down about a foot or two.

One week I decide to take my reel to Max and Ermas for some of the regulars. One of the families I was used to seeing did show up and the table next to them was empty which gave me a perfect opportunity to plant the ball of wax. So I did that and went to their table and did a card trick or two and then asked to borrow a $20 bill so I could do this floating routine.

So I hook the guys $20 bill to the string and start to make it float up and down. The family was pretty impressed...especially the kids. However, something happened next that astonished the adults (including me). The bill suddenly started to float across the restaurant all by itself! The bill floated straight down the aisle of the restaurant and people at each table watched in silent amazement as the bill floated right passed their table.

OK, you're probably thinking at this point that I must be nuts...but it really did happen! Obviously there is a logical explanation, so what happened? As I followed the line of the path the bill was floating on, I saw how this miracle was occurring...one of the waitresses who saw my ball of wax attached to the empty table thought it was trash and was carrying it across the restaurant. Once she got to the trash can on the other side, she dropped the wax in. All I had to do was run my electric reel and the bill came right back up the aisle past everyone's table again (now it is running on the floor since the wax is no longer being carried or attached to anything) and floated right back up into my hands. The entire section of the restaurant erupted in applause (and the guy let me keep the $20 as a tip).

Of course the rest of the night all I heard was, "I want to see you make that bill float across the restaurant again". Don't think so!