Where were we?
Ah. Sunday. Time Change Day. I Ignored All The Advice, and went to bed late last night, because magic show, and slept past the new-normal waking time of 6 am by the Old Clock to 7 am OC, putting me well behind Everything.
For Calibration Purposes, it is as I write this sentence 9:21 am New Clock.
May I just say that it’s a good thing I don’t have to leave the house tomorrow. Or today.
Weather is currently cloudy, drizzly, and warm. I’m hoping today will be the coup for the ice field at the bottom of my front steps. I need to do something about that, though Exactly What escapes my imagination at the moment — it forms every year and it’s a death trap, getting deathier and trappier the older I get.
Last night’s magic show was enjoyable. I did meet the magician very briefly as he toured the house before-show, in his melant’i as “stage manager”. I had somehow failed to understand that I had a seat in the Very First Row, odd-side. I was in sort-of the middle, with a family of three sitting to my left and filling out the row.
The “stage manager” stopped by, hunkered down in front of our “group” of four, and asked us for our help. It seemed that a big part of Michael’s show was telepathy-based, including calling cards that people were thinking of. The Ace of Spades, according to the “stage manager” had been coming up in people’s thoughts just way too often, and our help was solicited in thinking about other cards.
He then pulled out a deck of cards, fanned them and offered them to me. “Pull a card, look at it, but don’t show it to anybody — put it inside the folds of your brain and just really think about it hard. Then give the card back to me. OK? OK!”
I chose a card (the ten of spades; I believe my prohibition against sharing that information expired at the end of the show), assured the “stage manager” that I had it firm in my mind, and he repeated the exercise with the people to my left. Then he left, telling us most earnestly to think hard about our card.
I mention here, because I noticed it, that those were very thin, slick cards.
When the magician came on-stage, and after a brief smoke, he called the daughter of the family to my left to think about her card. He then drew it on a pad of paper. The three of diamonds! Ta-Da!
And we were off.
A good time was, I believe, had by all, and I eventually wandered my way home to resuscitate my cats, who had all expired of hunger in my absence.
Today, I write, and do laundry. In fact, the first load is drying, and the second is washing. I wish I could say the same about the WIP.
I’m drinking my first of what I believe will be many cups of tea on the day, and I really ought to find something to eat.
How’s everybody doing today?
While my folks were living in Cornish they had ice problems at three critical doors (door near the driveway, back door towards firewood storage, and the firewood door). Front door fix was a bit of new gutter to divert melt coming off the roof to a side yard: back door got a slotted wood platform (kind of like a tall door mat made of wood) to raise it above the water level: firewood door had the grade adjusted to make the water run off to a different area.
(of course none of this helped during the big ice storm, and I still remember the heroic medical supply employee who hauled multiple 5 foot tall cylinders of oxygen across 400 feet of untreated driveway to keep Dad going until CMP could restore power)
Is your ice forming due to runoff from the roof?
I’m glad you enjoyed the magic. The pre-show card selection is a bone of contention for those in the know, precisely because it may weaken your experience.
As described, I suspect an example of “dual reality”. The audience thinks the card was merely thought of — wow! The selector thinks they freely looked at (and did not reveal) a card — still strong.
The late Max Maven famously wove pre-show into a larger effect:
Constructing imaginary worlds to entertain (touch, inspire?) people is a fascinating endeavor, is it not? 🙂
If only we really could re-embody those who live in our heads.
No, the ice is forming because the driveway slopes gently down, and then up again, to keep rain from running into the garage.
Ah. Is the ice covering the whole area along the driveway as well as the steps, or is it worse at the bottom of the steps? Is that area paved?