Playing With a Full Deck Now

Tonight was a Board meeting and it included our annual employee service recognition. I am truly lucky to have amazing coworkers that demonstrate an exemplary commitment to both the library and to our community every day.

The picture is of a deck of playing cards from the Magic Castle in Los Angeles. I would love to visit one day. When I was working on my MLIS, for one assignment, I interviewed Bill Goodwin, the Magic Castle Librarian. He was very generous with his time and talked to me about his duties and the magic collection that he curates. It was a real fan moment for me. There is a beautiful night shot of the building by photographer Joe Pugliese in this article about the Magic Castle http://www.lamag.com/culturefiles/magic-castle/.

It was also Robbie Burns night and it was nice to end the evening sipping a Benriach that was waiting when I arrived home. I finished the evening with some more magic cataloging. A very nice birthday!

More Magic This Year

“Learn as much as you can, as widely as you can, for the joy of it, for the sheer sake of learning. Seek excellence in your own work and also in the people with whom you surround yourself. Seek mentors.” – Jamy Ian Swiss

It have some learning goals for 2018. I want to spend more time on my magical studies. The quote above is part of a Q and A with magician Jamy Ian Swiss. He recommends Books Every Magician Should Read in this article at http://conjuror.community/jamy-ian-swiss-creativity/. Definitely, some for me to seek out. One of the things that I am doing is orgazinzing and cataloging my magic collection. I find it very relaxing to spend time this way. A librarian at work and a librarian at home.

The pic above is from a visit on Craig Ferguson on December 15, 2010. Here is the clip:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqoz7MwDaAo. I am fascinated by magic that is performed with playing cards. Time to read and practise.