The Art of Happiness

Happiness truly is an art which we must practice to perfect. I am lucky because I have a naturally sunny disposition. It does not make me a happy person all the time, but it helps me see the brighter side of things. I like being happy and I surround myself with things that make me smile or laugh when I see them. That is just one of the ways I bring happiness into my life. If I am going to be upset or angry about something it tends to be about my career and I find that success as a magician is fleeting and I always want more. So if I am going to be upset, miserable, whinny and down right ornery, it is because something is not right in my career. Still, most of the time I choose to be happy. That's right I "choose" to be happy and I can find happiness in almost anything.  

My pets bring me such great joy and happiness. They are so funny in the way they express themselves. I love artwork so have photos and paintings in my home that are beautiful and remind me of pleasant things. Even a hot cup of tea can put a positive spin on the day.

Sometime it is being able to stop and look at everything around me and think, Wow! I am really happy right now and I'm going to remember this moment. I seldom dwell in the past or on unpleasant memories. I know I have many more happy days ahead of me.

When making choices in my life I stop and think: Will this make me happy in the long run. If the answer is YES, then I jump in without looking and trust in myself that happiness will come. And generally it does.

Bringing happiness to other people makes me happy too. It is the kind of contagion that is meant to be spread to others. Trying smiling at a stranger and more often than not they will smile back. That simple smile might be the nicest thing to happen to them all day and costs me nothing to share it. When I go for walks I can't help smiling at people. They always smile back and in return it fills my soul with sheer joy.

My sister and I 

There are so many ways to find happiness in the world around you. Take the time to look, notice and enjoy this beautiful world. It will lead you to brighter days. The search for happiness might be a little daunting at first, but little by little joy will enter your world. You will wake up one morning to discover you are living a felicitous life.

The Lying Game

Everybody lies... Most people tell white lies in order not to hurt others feelings. Some people tell lies to look better at work or with friends. Others tell lies that are meant to move blame to another person, and there are a few people who only know how to lie. I love the whopper fish tale which we all know as a lie. Then there are the worst of all lies, which are the lies we tell ourselves.

There are three professions who lie. Grifters, politicians, and magicians.

As a magician I am paid to lie. It is part of the art of deception to tell people you are doing something when really as the magician you are doing something completely different. But there is so much more involved to the deception than just the lie, there is the skill, performance and most importantly the misdirection. There is a whole psychology to the art of magic that is over looked by many performers. Magicians play the lying game to entertain.

Most lies when discovered ultimately hurt the people involved. With magic it means the illusion had been uncovered and people know how it is done. Once the secret is out, I find a lot of people become disappointed as the mystery that magic brings into a persons life is far more appealing than the truth. Remember that the next time you ask a magician to tell you the secret. You will be far more happy wondering how the magician made the rabbit appear, than knowing where it truly came from. At the end of a show magicians rely on the whopper tale. More often than not a trick is remembered as being far more magical than any magician in the world could ever make it. What performer doesn't like to hear about their presentation of an illusion become larger than life. I use to correct people with what really happened and now I let them tell the whopper magic tale. You should hear the stories of my rope escape, and how I let the guy tie me up, or that I steal everything from him while tied up. Doesn't happen, but it makes for a great story and makes others want to come see the show. But it's little things that push people in the direction of these tales that have been crafted into the act. For example: I steal the jacket and hat, or jacket and glasses to give the impression of stealing many things from him. I also send him back to his seat with things in his hands so it leaves the impression of giving things back not just giving him things. The reason people think the audience member ties me up is because .... Well I can't give that away. Some of these little pushes I stumble across, and others I methodically think them through and work them into the routines. It is through this process that my whopper magic stories get bigger and bigger.

In real life I happen to be the worst lier you will ever meet. But if you pick a card and put it back anywhere, no matter what I say, I'm lying because I always know where your card is in the deck.

Transformations

The ability to transform ourselves is an amazing ability. As human beings we can become whatever we desire. But as a human transforming ourselves is different for all of us. There are people who look inside transforming spiritually. For others it's as simple as cutting their hair and putting on different clothing that makes them feel amazing. Some people cover themselves with body art, using their own body as a canvas to express themselves to the outer world. There are also people who physically change their body believing that a boob job or other forms of plastic surgery will transform them. And then there are some over the top people who change their entire personality, even taking the time to rewrite their past (FYI: don't trust anyone who does that kind of transformation they are just lying).

My sister and I at 8 years old.

 

 Whether you go to extremes or use something simple we have all transformed ourselves at some point in our lives.  Most people transform because they want a change in their lives. I know for me a great hair cut makes me feel strong and beautiful. When I was a kid I was a quiet shy tomboy. It wasn't until I was finished with college that I realized a tomboy was not the look I wanted for stage, so I slowly started to change little things about me. I did a photo shoot where they did an amazing job on my make-up so I put the photo on my mirror and copied the make-up. It took a couple weeks to get it right but now I knew how to put on make-up and do it right.  The hair is a different thing. I am still not great with hair but hair styles change all the time I now embrace that thought and let my hair change with the times. The same with clothing, I am not a fashion forward person, but I am lucky enough to have wonderful people in my life who are and I let them help me find clothes for on stage and off. The tomboy element still comes in as I don't like to wear dresses, but I have had a friendly intervention and have become a better clothing shopper.

 

The photo I used when copying my make-up

 

I am who I am and that I never want to transform, but making changes to become a better me or even the best me I will embrace everyday.  Try it yourself you don't need to make big changes. Think of all the little things you can do to transform your life and the world around you. It is these little steps that will make the world a better place and eventually lead you to your goals.

 

Who I am today.

 

Top ten not so obvious things I am thankful for

Here are the top ten not so obvious things I am truly thankful for:

1) How our brains work. Whether it is a normal, average or slightly off kilter. The brain makes us who we are and it is just as amazing as we are and for that I am thankful.

2) The ability to make our dreams come true.

3) Passion, my passion for life, love and magic are all a gift I am thankful for.

4) The magic in my life, the real magic in my life.

5) I am thankful for the wonderful ability that plants have to take carbon monoxide and turn it in to oxygen. An amazing feat of nature, and plants look beautiful doing it.

6) I am thankful for my resilience. No matter what adversity I face I know I will bounce back. I always do.

7) I am thankful for patience. All be it strained, frayed and stretched to its breaking point.

8) I am so very thankful for genetics and feel extremely blessed with the genes I have been given.

9) The ability to read. Books have the power to take me to wonderful new mysterious places other books have taught me so much, all because I can read.

10) My home, and all the things it contains from my travels to just the things I love and bring me comfort. My house to truly my home.

What are you thankful for?

What you can't un-see.

I was talking to my friend Kristen the other day about the fact that you can't un-see some things in life. Once you see it with your own eyes you never forget. As a kid I never understood what people who were really sick meant when they would say I don't want to be remembered this way. Now that I am older I truly understand. But it's not just that... It's porn pop-up that use to come up on computers. Whether you wanted to see it or not it is now embedded in your brain. That auto accident you passed with the covered body. The ASPCA extended commercial with the abused animals. These images that we can no longer un-see generally became the first image we think of when we remember that person, place, or thing.

For me these images have a very strong emotional attachment which is part of the reason they are images I will never un-see. I was passing an accident several years ago on my way home. I saw a car on the wrong side of the road with a motorcycle stuck in the front end there was a body that was on the roadside and police everywhere. That image is stuck in my mind forever because the guy on the motorcycle happened to be a friend of mine. Whenever people mention him the first thought is of that accident then it is followed by happier memories. But the first memory is now an image that I can never un-see.

With technology we can take photos or videos and immediately upload the images to the world wide web where everyone can see them. Because of this, I select what I want to see and what I don't ever want to see. For example the video of the Rodney King beating is all over the Internet. The little bit I saw on the news was more than enough to become forever embedded in my brain, I don't need to see anymore of that man or any person being beaten. Then there are TV show like Animal Cops, Kardashians, Animal Hoarders, plus crime drama re-enactments, that I just don't want to see. I'm not saying I want to ignore it, I just don't want to see it. So when people send me links to videos I don't watch all of them because I don't want to see something I might never be able to un-see. Remember that the next time a person sends you a video of something bad happening to a friend. Do you really want to watch a video of something you will never be able to un-see? I don't.

Top ten things my dog and cat say.

Ten things my dog says without using words:
1) Look at my happy dog cookie dance.
2) I love you
3) Ride in the car, ride in the CAR....
4) Bad touch (said to cat & vet)
5) Grandma has better yummys.
6) Walk? Walk, walk, walk.
7) No brush, no brushing?
8) Oh Yes! Scratchies right there.
9) Potty, I have to go potty, potty, potty.
10) It was the cat.


Ten things my cat says without using words:
1) Mine! It's all mine.
2) Give me tuna
3) Look at meeeeee.
4) Pet me, pet me NOW!
5) Stop touching me.
6) Pick me up, now put me down
7) I'm cute, I'll do what I want!
8) Wake up I want to sleep where you are.
9) I will make you suffer.
10) It was the dog.

What makes your house a home?

It doesn't matter where I am in the world I like to make the place I am living feel like a home. I am a home body and enjoy my home. There is something to be said for a long day of meetings or shows, to finally come home and are hit with that feeling of sheer happiness at being home. My home is not perfect, nor it it decorated like my version of a dream home, but it's mine and I love it. I have a collection of tea pots from around the world with a couple that are very old. I like looking at them and using them occasionally. I love my bedroom, I have two paintings on the wall that bring me so much joy to look at. My house is definitely not cold but one that is well lived in. I don't have a family of my own, but I look at my show as a family and the office reflects the love I have for magic and the people in my show. There is a special memory that goes with each poster, award, and photo on the office walls. I wrap myself in these things like a security blanket that keeps me safe and warm. My friends also help to make my house a home. I am not good about having people over to my house, and I apologize to everyone in advance for that personality trait. But the few friends who do make it past the garage or front door are truly welcomed into my home.

The biggest thing that makes my home so special are the two furry faces who manage to tell me over and over again just how much they love me. The dog has issues from years of abuse before he was adopted, but he is so loving and affectionate towards me. He makes me smile when he does the "I'm so happy you are home dance." there is nothing quite like a dog as big as a person doing his happy spinning, bouncing dance with the occasional pause to see if I am watching. And there is the cat... According to him I make his house comfy and homey just for him. He loves snuggling up to me on the couch where he throws his furriness against me and demands attention. I am lucky as they fill my life with love. And for me where there is this kind of love there is a home.

What makes your house a home?