Greetings from Northern California

[flashcards]

Hello all. I've been a Cardist for all of two months now. I used to do magic when I was in high school (even worked professionally a couple of summers) but probably haven't even touched a deck of cards in thirty-five years. This summer I watched some of the Penn and Teller shows that seemed to be everywhere and found that I had forgotten enough to actually enjoy watching magic again. For Halloween, my sister-in-law put on a haunted carnival and I went as a magician. I never knew that many card tricks anyway but found I could only remember one; the first I had ever learned. I thought it was a shame to lose that knowledge so I began using the power of the Interwebs to try and relearn the tricks I once knew. While checking out some of the magic shops online and came across the Ellusionist Shadow Masters deck. I'd always liked the look and feel of cards, so I put a deck on my Christmas wish list. Well, Santa was generous. I got the deck and fell in love with it. I only knew a few slights when I was doing magic and thought that it wouldn't hurt to learn a few more. I really should learn a few cool moves to justify having such awesome cards. Then I discovered Cardistry. Finding some instructional videos and trying out a few basic moves, I discovered I could, with a lot of practice, actually do them. Due to some illness and medication issues, my hand dexterity was very poor. When I got my Shadow Masters I found that I could barely do a riffle shuffle. However, after practicing some of the Cardistry moves, I found that my dexterity began to improve, which was a real confidence builder. I found that doing card manipulations for their own sake, without having to have an audience as in magic, to be really enjoyable. I could learn at my own pace and practice as much or as little as I wanted.

And then there were the cards. Pretty, shiny cards. And so many of them. And they were cheap. There was no reason not to buy a few more... and a few more...and a few... Well, I don't have to tell you guys what happened next.

Thanks to this site, and others, I'm learning a lot about card collecting and cardistry. So far, I'm finding it very enjoyable; a happy place to go to in times of stress. I just learned the table faro shuffle and I find it incredibly relaxing. I love the way the cards cascade one on top of the other and I can do it over and over again for hours.

I have some pretty severe anxiety issues so I'll probably never perform for any one. Still, it's great to get back in touch with something I enjoyed in my youth. The Cardistry is great therapy physically and mentally, and the collecting is an exciting and relatively guilt free new hobby.

That's probably way more than you wanted to know about me. I'll probably lurk far more than I will post. Thanks in advance to all of you for sharing your knowledge and support with a newbie like me. Cheers.

[dazzleguts]

Hello Flash

It is sweet to rediscover something which really fired your engines in the past, especially when it has more depth than you realized. Don't know about "guilt-free", but the playing cards, in all their history and beauty, are intriguing little objects that so many of us here are hooked on. Welcome to the Looney Bin.