Party with the freaks, you get what you deserve

I worked the Fenix last night and broke out a few routines I haven't done in a while. The Shrinking Pin, The Spirit Nut (with the Judah pin ending where the nut ends up o the wrong side of the safety pin, making it impossible to remove the nut from the pin), and the linking bar straws an original routine I came up years ago.

It was a crazy night, alive with booze and swaying bodies. Around 11PM or so they strung up one of their own. First time I had ever seen live, the piercing of human flesh with giant hooks and the suspension of a tattooed clad, nipple pierced Generation Xer. Fuck'em, that's what I say. String em all up by their nuts for all I care. It's good family entertainment. I only wish Buster was there to see this sort of demented shit. As a normal teenager, I'm sure this sort of action would have been right up his sick and twisted alley.





The rest of the night only got weirder, so much so that I stayed an extra hour and partied with the freaks. Something happened in that last hour that has never happened in my 30+ years of performing the cups and balls. A heavy set chick from Hawaii named Kilani, grabbed one of my loads, a fresh and firm lime about the size of a pool ball and took a big bite out of it. She then gave me a lime wet kiss, a big hug and staggered back into the crowd. At that, I knew it was time to leave.

More Golf Pics From Riverbend

Tim Flynn just emailed me these pics our of day of golf.



Tim & Tom - TNT







Check out Mt. Rainier in the background. (below)



On one of my drives, I 'm not sure what happened; but I broke my club. The club head flew off and went further than my ball; so I played the ball from where the club head landed. I play an ugly game of golf (on a good day), but love the sport and look forward top getting better at it.

Double Shot of BULLSHIT

Today I was informed by Market Master Marlene that I was no longer allowed to perform on top of the newspaper box I have grown so fond of. She said that it was an insurance issue. I complied immediately during my show and finished the performance on the ground. I later asked her if I could sign a "Hold's Harmless" agreement. She said no. She said if I fell on a kid they would be responsible. Wonder why it took them two years to address this. As an optimist, I have not given up hope. I like to think that there is a win / win here somewhere. I wonder If there is a policy I could buy from their carrier that might handle this risk.

The second shot of bullshit came in the form of a certified letter from the ex. I wasn't home and Buster signed for it. How many times have I told him "NOTHING EVER GOOD COMES CERTIFIED".



Oh, poor Moira, still living in a log journal of divorce bullshit. It's really quite humorous. She must not like me wishing her and her live in lover a good day. I'm sure she is saving all of my messages for future court action. She doesn't even answer her phone when I call regardless of the time or day. She needs that evidence. Well, I will continue to call for the children; and I will continue to wish her well, wheather she likes it or not.

Comfort

There is something quite comforting, possibly freeing by burning my divorce papers. As I begin to initiate the fight to see my kids more, I am almost certain that there will be more paperwork to burn in the future. This is good because our oil furnace ran dry last night and the house is chilly.

The kids call me and tell me they miss me. I miss them too. I am not deluded with any sense of righteousness or any real confidence in the system that justice will prevail. So, in the mean time, I'll do what I have been doing. Living my life, trying to be happy and doing the best that I can for myself and my children. I guess that's all I can do.

Staying Warm

Movies

Buster went to work with me today. We had 45 minutes to kill befor my slot at the market. So we grabbed the chess board, a cigar and went to the park where we played an ugly game that I won. I worked my hour making about $45. Wasn't enough action for me to want to wait another hour before working again. So I said fuck it and we went to see Constanitine at the Cinerama. We dug the flick. Good and evil all around us. Heaven and hell on earth all wrapped up into an entertaining evening with popcon and soda pop. We took this picture on the way home.



Turkey pot pie for dinner at home and another movie we rented. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. In memory of the late great Dr. Hunter S. Thompson.



We enjoyed a full evening of cinematic entertainment. Tomorrow I'll work the market again and then the Fenix Underground in the evening. It's been a good week and I feel better having my rent money together.

Another One Bites The Dust

Golfing!!!

Tim Flynn was kind enough to invite me out for a day of golf at Riverbend in Kent. Tim's generosity in treating me to a round of golf was heart felt and appreciated. Tim has been a good friend to me and I hope I can be as good a friend to him.



The beautiful day and the view of Mt. Rainier was a hell of a lot better than the game I shot. But hey, I had a great time. One of the things I like about golf is, that it is one of the few sports where you can smoke a cigar the entire game. . . you got to like that!!



Here is the man himself Mr. Tim Flynn. Incidently he made the clubs I played with. We sawpped out for a set of Phoenix Cups. I hope he likes his cups as much as I like my clubs.



I took this photo, because I was struck by the simple beauty of the reflection of the bridge in the water. What a game, where you are surrounded by friends, beauty and cigar smoke. Love it!



Here is Tim putting a hurt on the ball.



Me, I killed a duck by accident.

Tuesday Night Session

Buster and I are dumb asses. We leave Monday Night Magic, blowing off the festivities at Roosters afterwards; so that we can go home to study for a vocabulary test. We go to bed, get up at 6AM, send him out the door after breakfast and some last minute quizzing. He comes back 20 minutes later. I asked him if he missed the bus, he said, "I don't think I have school". We had both heard of this mid winter break, but didn't realize it was this week! Buster says to me, "You know what that means. . . . LATE NIGHT JAM SESSION!" So, I guess he's right. Tonight's tuesday night session will be a late one. 8PM - Whenever.

If you come. . . bring cigars and booze. . . I'm running low :-)

More Street Pics Taken By An Audience Member

This weekend marked the first real weekend of street hustling ALL WINTER! I guess the need to come up with rent 10 days before it is due is a real motivating force. POWERFUL



The sun was out, the sky was blue and the temperature in the low 50's not bad for the end of February.



A signature piece, "Bill The Hot Dog Vendor". Silly but effective. Always get a laugh.



Another signature routine, Edgar Allen Poe's the Raven to the Mystery of the Linking Rings. Click to see video clip.



My favorite shot of the bunch. This shot shows how magic transends the ages and races. A multicultural entertainment extravaganza!

A Day In The Life Of A Street Performer

Step 1 - Get the crowd. I use card tricks to stop the first person. Sometimes this can be the hardest part. . . getting that first person to stop. Once they do, you start building your audience.



Step 2 - Keep the crowd. This is imprtant, you continue to build your crowd. You keep bringing them in, making it harder for the others to leave.



This is what it looks like from my vantage point. As I shot this picture I asked the audience to wave. Asking the audience to do things together is a proven way to motivate their unified response. This is crucial to achieve this, when it's time to pass the hat, they must act as a group.




Step 3 - GET THE MONEY. The most important part of the street show. THE PITCH. Having an audience care enough to cough up some of their hard earned cash is the final phase of Street Theater. Good luck figuring this out. I was lucky enough to have Cellini as a teacher 21 years ago. But the real learning came from the school of hard knocks.




3 days ago I was broke. In another day or so, I should have the $1,250 I need for rent. Then comes utilities, cable, phone, gas, insurance bla. . . bla. . . bla. . .