Simon's Musings

She's Going Home

2011-03-17T15:47:00.000Z

After six long weeks Isobel is going home! Needless to say this can be both exciting and scary for parents and grandparents. I dare say little Izzy will take it all in her stride in the way she seems to.

Here is a bonus photo - all the tubes have gone. Pretty in pink.

I am now grandad!

2011-01-26T14:29:00.003Z

I am very pleased to say that our eldest daughter gave birth today at 0251hrs to a baby girl. She was born at just under 30 weeks so quite small at 2lbs 12ozs. No name yet - but she is already very special to us all!

29/1/11 Edit: She now has the names of Isobel Hope. A name brings identity - at least to us humans - God of course knows the very number of hairs on her head, after all, he 'knit her together'.

Still the night, Holy the night

2010-12-24T09:22:00.001Z

What were Mary and Joseph thinking on this night? As Mary gave birth and this new life laid in her arms, what thoughts moved her as she gazed down at her son?

I think she remembered when the angel first came and told her who this child was:

He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. Luke 1:32-33

Become a part of His Kingdom today

Windows Live Writer

2010-11-14T15:30:00.002Z

I have just found Windows Live Writer which is a programme for writing posts then uploading directly to one’s blog. I am not sure how much it saves in time etc. We will see.

Here goes!

Lightsaber Duel

2010-11-06T17:01:00.003Z

I love film and I love to see others attempts at making their own film on a budget. Watch this video (at the end of the video you will see how some of the shots were made):

Now go here and watch the very cool Beyond Black Mesa trailer made by the same crew:

Beyond Black Mesa

The Great Train Robbery

2010-11-02T08:32:00.000Z

2pm Monday 1st November - Kerith Centre, Bracknell for BADHOGS

10.30am Tuesday 2nd November - Woodley Baptist Church for Cameo Club

7.30pm Tuesday 2nd November - Twyford URC Friendship Club

My list of talks can be found here http://www.simonwilliams.me.uk/speaking.html

Gloucestershire

2010-10-26T17:07:00.001+01:00

We are having a few days away in the beautiful county of Gloucestershire.
The picture shows the view from the viewing point at Birdlip.
We had an invigorating walk from here past the famous Air Balloon PH to Crickley Country Park. The second picture is of an ancient beech tree seen on the route.
I highly recommend this lovely part of the world.

Wisely RHS Gardens

2010-10-23T14:42:00.002+01:00

At Wisely today for a visit to their 'Taste of Autumn' weekend. Lots of stalls selling cheeses, sausages, chutneys etc.

They also have an apple tasting area where you can enjoy lots of varieties you never see in Tesco. My favourites are the Golden Russet and Adam Permain.

Last day is tomorrow, well worth a visit, but wrap up warm.

Site Hosting

2010-10-23T09:17:00.000+01:00

Up until yesterday I was hosting my website on my own server at home. This proved a little unreliable in that for some unknown reason, possibly to do with redirects, some friends could not access it for testing etc. I am hoping this will now work.

My home server is the Synology DS108J, and I cannot praise it high enough, as a NAS drive it is superb.

Steve Price - Lecture

2010-10-22T08:20:00.000+01:00

We had the pleasure of my good friend, Steve Price as our lecturer last night at the Home Counties Magical Society with his lecture entitled 'Not How, But Why'.

During the lecture Steve demonstrated and explained several items he performs including his 'Hydrostatic Glass' and his very own 'Omelette Roulette'.

Steve's explanations were a master class in how to properly explain an effect, including history and references as well as the why of each handling or move.

If you are a programme secretary of a magic club, book him.

The Rapid E-Learning Blog

2010-10-20T12:20:00.000+01:00

I have enjoyed this site for some time, and recommend it to you unreservedly if you have anything to do with producing Power Point slides. Tom Kuhlmann is a genius, and what is more he shares it with the likes of you and me. I have just got a great idea from his latest post - it will take a while but will Blog here when it's done.

Check out Tom's site, you won't regret it.

Real or Fake?

2010-10-20T09:24:00.003+01:00

I am sorely tempted to add to this post but there really is nothing I can add. Except to say the most common excuse I make (and I dare say you do as well) is it was a 'mistake'.

Sorry Dan, I added, I repent (that probably is fake!)

ESV Online

2010-10-20T09:06:00.001+01:00

I have just discovered this resource for any student of God's Word. The ESV is one of the best and reliable English translations of the original text. The ESV Online has all the resources one could want, the text itself, devotions and apps. Check it out.

Edit: I have also added RefTagger which helps with Bible verses - hover over this: John 3: 16 to see what happens.

Walk to Reading

2010-10-17T12:39:00.002+01:00

A lovely day for a walk into Reading after church.

The walk along the Kennet & Avon canal is very pleasant particularly today as the sun decided to shine. Lunch at Debenhams by the canal.

Just the usual trolleys amongst the swans!

Serif Forums

2010-10-16T08:41:00.002+01:00

If you have arrived here from the Serif forums please feel free to add any feedback to the comments here too.

My First Mobile Post

2010-10-15T09:07:00.002+01:00

This is test posting to my blog using my phone.

Don't expect anything profound right now (some would say ever!).

I've even tried adding a photo!

My New Website

2010-10-14T19:23:00.001+01:00

It has taken a little while but my new website is up and running. For those who are interested in these things I used WebPlus X4 to design the site and presently hosting it on my home server (the super Synology DS-108J).

The photos were taken by a friend Nicki, and I think they are rather good, thanks Nicki.

Anyway, pop over and take a look at the site and let me know what you think.

Women's Institute Audition

2010-10-12T11:08:00.005+01:00

I had a very enjoyable afternoon last Tuesday (5th October) taking part in a Speaker Audition at Thatcham for Berkshire WI.

I had to speak for about 20 minutes and gave part of my talk 'Is It Fun To Be Fooled?'. It did appear to be well received as I handed out lots of cards afterwards.

If you were there, thank you for the reception you gave me and I look forward to giving one of my talks to your meeting in the future.

Bizarre Bath - Magical Comedy Walk

2010-10-12T10:39:00.006+01:00

Together with some friends we went to Bath last Saturday (9th Oct) for a day out and to join the Bizarre Bath Comedy walk which I have wanted to take for some time. Particularly so since Noel Britten visited us at The Home Counties Magical Society in July (2010).

We had a very good day out in Bath enjoying a super meal at Wagamamma's which was the first time for me - loved it!

And so to the walk.

There must have been around 100 people (which felt a little unmanageable at times) on the walk, on what turned out to be a cool October evening. The talk was run by Dominic (he didn't give his last name). It took a little time to warm up the audience and I thought the Canadian woman used in the opening warm-up was a bit bizarre herself and didn't help. I think she thought she was funny!

On the whole I enjoyed the walk, though more than one of our party felt the use of 'religious' jokes was inappropriate. I won't say too much about the magical content of the walk as I wouldn't want to spoil the surprises, but there is a great bit with a rabbit which must be a lot of fun to perform.

The walk has obviously been refined over many hundreds of performances and I would recommend anyone go along and enjoy the fun.

Deja Vu - again!

2010-07-02T13:48:00.001+01:00

Tears as usual then.

Here We Go!

2010-06-27T14:16:00.002+01:00

Will it be penalties and tears?
Or rather, full time and England cheers!

Where does all the time go?

2008-05-30T19:56:00.001+01:00

How long it's been since last post.

Much has come, much has gone.

I might have to start again.

Free Bible Software

2005-03-06T16:30:00.000Z

Here is a great site for free Bible Study Software. It is all free but if you send a donation Rick will send you a CD with a lot of the software. Rick has obviously worked very hard to bring this to us so do the right thing!

E-Sword

Congratulations - Mark Shortland

2005-03-03T16:25:00.000Z

Mark Shortland won this year's British Magical Championships at the Blackpool Magical Convention last weekend (25-27/02/05). As well as pocketing the top prize, he also took home the Comedy Trophy!

My congratulations to Mark - well done mate!

(Mark is also a member of FCM UK)

Toby, the Spirit Table & The Magic Circle

2005-03-03T16:03:00.000Z

I was up at The Magic Circle last Monday (28/02/05). Toby Travis was giving a lecture and I wanted to say goodbye before he travelled back across the pond.

There was an interesting experience.

During his lecture Toby performed his Spirit Table. Now, the fact is, The Magic Circle is being renovated at the moment and so that evening's lecture was being held in a nearby hotel. There was a carpet covered staging of sorts and a borrowed pa system from a member. The lighting consisted of the rooms overhead fluorescent lighting. In other words, none of the usual set-up Toby would normally require for this performance.

What was interesting was that after the performance a prominent member commented (after Toby noted the lack of atmosphere), that she felt the performance was enhanced by the plainness of the surroundings. I thought this comment spot on, after all if a 'spirit' did 'possess' the table it would happen anytime.

Now I am not saying staging is not important and doesn't create the right mood, I thought it was an interesting observation and worth thinking about, that's all.

Fellowship of Christian Magicians UK Conference 2005

2005-03-02T11:05:00.000Z

Here is just a short report on last weeks (21 - 25/02/05) Conference. There are some photo's available here. Our guest lecturer this year from the USA was Toby Travis. He gave several lectures including 'Paranormal Lies & Wonders', and some from his lecture 'The Professional Amateur' as well as a lecture on Mentalism. Toby is the consummate professional. He has a very engaging style which is warm and friendly. I would love to see his full stage show. He did perform his wonderful Spirit Table routine which he has honed to perfection. If you get a chance to see him lecture or perform I would highly recommend you make every effort to do so.

We also had guest lecturers Marc Paul and Jon Allen.

Marc delivered his Mind 2 Mind lecture which included his Triple A Book Test. This is a superb any time, any book test which is usable. Suffice to say Marc demonstrated several versions of 'any card at any number' but declined to divulge his Parkinson Show version! (And who would blame him?) Marc is a very tolerant and patient lecturer, willing to answer questions and really help people to understand his work and routines. He also honoured us with a first public showing of a new routine he was working on then asked for feedback. It was a pleasure to be at this lecture, if you are a booker, book him if not, go see him. You will not be disappointed.

Jon's lecture was also very good, the highlight for me being his version of the Quadro Chick. What a wonderful routine which I could see would move the most hardened of souls! He also showed us his card on ceiling with a very innovative force. There were some new (really) moves for Professor's Nightmare as well as his effect Chomp. I thoroughly enjoyed his IT work too and presented his routine with a borrowed note which I feel has potential for me. Jon is obviously a very intelligent magician who thinks a lot about the why as well as the how in magic and it shows. Again, see him if you get the chance - that Chick was a killer!

On a personal note I won this year's Stage Competition and was also accepted as President of FCM UK.

I will post more thoughts on the Conference later and also I hope to write more on being a 'Christian Magician' and gospel magic in particular.

Conference Or Bust

2005-02-16T14:33:00.000Z

Only a few days to go to the Fellowship of Christian Magicians UK conference starting next Monday 21st February.

A whole week of late nights and wall to wall magic and fellowship - great!

We will of course miss dear ol' Pete McCahon but I hope we will make it a conference he would be proud of.

If you are coming - see you there, if not, they may still be time to book a place try here:
2005 Conference

I will let you know my thoughts after the conference.

Close Up - Too Personal?

2005-02-16T10:45:00.000Z

I think I am now ready to make the decision. I have been putting it off but maybe it's time. The decision?

No more close-up for me!

The thing is, I just don't feel comfortable in a close-up type performance. I like a little distance, even if it is a parlour type situation. This is not to say I don't enjoy fooling around with close-up magic it is the fact that most of what I perform is stand up type shows anyway. I like the audience management bit as much as anything. I'm not a comedian or anything like, but I enjoy having fun with my audience.

So, I have decided to sell off some of my close-up stuff (I've already started on Ebay) and I'm only going to look for stuff that I will do in my performance situations.

That's settled then.

Another Blog for You

2005-01-27T11:28:00.000Z

It has been a while I know. Sometimes it is hard to get the motivation to write. I have an appointment that pops up in Outlook to remind me to write each week. I end up postponing it several times before cancelling it with such feelings of guilt. Why is this? I haven't committed myself to anything have I? Yet still that pop-up pops up with remorseless efficiency.

Hah! I'm getting this in today so I won't feel the guilt tommorrow.

Anyway, the purpose of this post is to reveal another Blog worthy of your consideration. John van der Put's blog is updated regularly, is well written and I commend it to you. Also if you are into this magic stuff - he's an expert at the pasteboards. Check it out.

A Sad Loss To The World Of Magic

2004-12-15T20:36:00.000Z

I am so very sorry to report that following several massive heart attacks during the night of Tuesday 14th December 2004 Pete McCahon passed away.

Peter was a friend, a brother magician but most of all a brother in Christ. He is now with the Lord he served so well and no doubt already organising a 'kebab' trip as I write this!

He will be sadly missed by so many friends both in the world of magic and outside but most of all by his family who shared Peter with us for so short a time. I join with all those who send their heartfelt condolences to his Mum & Dad, brother, sister and the wider family.

Goodbye, for now, Peter.

Peter McCahon - Be At Peace.

Pete McCahon In Hospital

2004-12-12T14:15:00.000Z

I have been informed via the Magic Circle mail list that Pete was taken into hospital on Thursday (9th Dec.) evening with a suspected heart attack. I have spoken to Pete and he says it was 'not quite a heart attack' but he is under strict observations/monitoring to ensure it does not turn into one. He does not know how long he will be in hospital at present.

For those who don't know, Pete is the current President of The Fellowship of Christian Magicians UK, he is also a Member of The Inner Magic Circle and editor of The Magic Circular. He has been on TV recently as 'Papa' in the Monkey Magic series for UK's Channel 5 as well as on the History of Magic series for the BBC.

Apart from all that he's a top guy!

Please hold Pete in your prayers at this difficult and worrying time.

Magic Blogs for Your Delight (d'lite?)

2004-11-27T21:10:00.000Z

Here are some of the current Blogs I'm reading with my comments:

Magic Circle Jerk - Andy's ('Who is that guy?' - Misquote, I know, from one of the best westerns - Here) site that really started it all. Andy's blog is, shall we say, blunt and to the point with very colourful language at times. I can't help but feel guilty when reading it - but a guilty pleasure none the less. Still, he's having a 'Where Is The Love? Week' - so that's ok then. You will not find the same language here, but I hope forthright views none the less.

Magic Rants - Steve Pellegrino's super Blog which gets better and better. Sensible, objective posts from an obviously sensible, objective bloke!

Escamoteurettes - Jon Le Blanc's (cool name) intelligent observations are always worth a read. He has started experiments with audio streaming - unfortunately I'm having no luck with it at present. Still, the written word is king - and Jon is a certainly a member of the royal family in this regard.

The Magic Square - Katterfelto's really rather thoughtful postings have been a new discovery for me - and a very pleasent one at that.

Thank you to all the above for setting some benchmarks, I fear I am merely a coat tail clutcher at present, but I shall keep rambling for the time being in the hope that I will get better at this writng lark.

A Genii to Spain

2004-11-23T23:27:00.000Z

Just had a week in Spain which was pleasently warm. I fully intended to write a little here as access is possible from anywhere but what the heck - the side of the pool was a better place to be than at the computer.

Still, I borrowed some Genii Magazines from a friend. Now this is a great magazine, read from cover to cover. Excellent written articles, reviews, tricks, interviews etc. One of the highlights was the Ian Rowland article, with a really good version of the Trost Eight Card Brainwave. If you can check out the magazine, it was number Vol. 67 No. 1 - January 2004.

I think I'm going to have to subscribe.

Blogs – The End Of Civilisation?

2004-11-11T01:20:00.000Z

There have been some rumblings about the use of Blogs in the magic world of late. Take a look at Magic Rants and the Magic Circle Jerk regarding this thread (now locked I see) from the Magic Café.

I’ll wait for you to catch up……

Glad you’re back. So what do you think? It seems to me that the bare bones of all this heat (so often more heat than light) is the giving and receiving of feedback and how one responds.

I want to be a better magician, how do I go about this? At least in part I must ask others to tell me what they think of my performances. Now if I surround (cushion?) myself with people who don’t speak honestly then I am only fooling myself (in more ways than one) and that makes me a poor magician. So, how can I ensure I get the ‘right’ feedback, I mean the feedback that is going to help become a better magician?

Recently I changed positions at work to become a trainer. Part of the trainer’s role is giving feedback. Here are a few things I learnt:

1. Don’t sugarcoat feedback – in other words tell it like it is. Be honest, be frank.
2. Don’t give ‘negative’ feedback make it developmental. In other words give improvement points, things that the receiver can do something about (or not as they choose).
3. Own the feedback you give. Personalise the feedback – e.g. ‘When you did this or that, I felt you were putting me down.’
4. Try the developmental sandwich i.e. Positive – developmental – positive

When receiving feedback:

1. Listen with an open mind and ask questions to clarify, or reflect back what the person is saying so you understand correctly
2. Reflect on what is said – honestly consider what is being said, is this true?
3. Value all feedback given – even if it hurts, after all someone has taken the trouble to share something with you
4. If on reflection the other person was right in whole or in part, do something about it
5. If on honest reflection you don’t agree then move on – you have not lost anything

That’s all.

p.s. Any feedback on this blog is of course very welcome – comment below.

John Archer Visits Woodley

2004-11-08T14:18:00.000Z

What a terrific weekend we have just enjoyed!

John Archer MIMC visited my local church (Woodley Baptist Church, Reading) this weekend to perform as part of our church's 25th Anniversary. We had a reunion day on Saturday 6th at which John gave us a show, and what a show! In case you don't know John is a superb comedy magician who has worked as a professional for some 12 years or so. He is also a committed Christian and member of the Fellowship of Christian Magicians. He has worked some of the top venues in Britain as well as writing for television. He is currently filming with Sky a show due to air in the new year called Undercover Magic. If you get the chance go and see him.

On Saturday John performed some of his signature effects in his own inimitable style. He performed the Tossed Out Deck (previously shuffled & checked by an audience member). Also we had Bowling Ball production, Burnt Note to Zippered Wallet as well as his wonderful Magic Square routine. My favourite effect though was a new one he's just put in his show. I think he calls it Nana's Box. The story is he has a wooden box from his Nana which contains things he used to play with as a kid, like a crayon, a dice, chess piece etc. Three people come up open the box and remove a piece placing it in their pocket. The box is covered. John then divines what each spectator has in their pocket with the patter theme of first impressions. This was a beautiful piece of magic theatre. It is an effect which John says he's still honing but even now is wonderful magic and a great emotional hook.

On Sunday morning John spent some time with some of the youngsters of the church performing and answering questions about being a Christian and a Magician.

Sunday evening, John performed some more magic including his Blindfold Drawing Divination effect. again this is one of his signature pieces and had as all in stiches. Finally, John gave us his testimony of how he became a Christian all told with wonderful humour.

It was a real pleasure having John staying with us for the weekend, thanks John for giving us a weekend to remember.

You can reach John here John Archer. If you can, book him I assure you, you won't regret it.

At Last A New Post!

2004-11-05T21:51:00.000Z

Yes I know it has been a long time. I set this Blog up really to test it out and it has rather been on the back burner.

Ok that said what is new, well, I am now a member of The Magic Circle which has been a long held ambition of mine. I have been 'into' magic since I was about 12 years old when I was given a magic book for Christmas. It was a Burke's Pastime Series called 'Magic' (strangely). I still have this book, kept more for sentimental reasons rather than the magic it contains. It simply represents the book that started it all for me.

Which is a way of saying I love magic books. I find them more inspirational than video/DVD, the magic seems more 'magical' somehow - I guess it's because it has to start where the best magic starts in your imagination.

Maybe I'll write some more on the magic books I own.

Bob King at Home Counties Magical Society

2004-03-25T10:03:00.000Z

Last Thursday, 18th March 2004 at my magic club (Home Counties Magical Society) we had Bob KING giving a lecture. I must say it was a great evening with a variety of his effects (close-up). He was very entertaining both in style and the magic presented. If you ever get a chance to see him lecture then do so. I particularly liked the trick he based on the Gilbreath Principle, his Coin Matrix and his routine for the Three Shells and Pea. This last was a master class in misdirection and simply having fun with the audience.
You can reach Bob here - Bob King
I nearly forgot, he demoed 'Shinkansen' by Phil Goldstein, I really loved this effect and is on my 'must buy' wishlist. I will give a full review of this at a later date when I've 'worked' it a few times.

2004-03-19T13:31:00.000Z

Welcome to my Weblog. I intent to chat about things to do with my main hobby of magic. You are welcome to drop in anytime.