Still More Miracles in Mentalism and Psychic Experimentation

by Robert A. Nelson

Three outstanding effects excerpted from

ESP SYMBOL PREDICTION The Amazing Maurice

Effect: Six different ESP designs, painted on cards 7 by 9 inches in size, are displayed. Each card bears a different symbol, such as star, cross, wavy lines, square, circle and triangle. Cards on table, pick up one at a time and reveal design. Each card is placed in a large manila envelope, and flap closed. Repeat with all cards. Pick up a slate and draw your prediction on slate, but do not reveal. Place slate on chair in upright position, blank side to audience. The envelopes are mixed by the audience and one envelope freely selected. Performer withdraws chosen symbol and reveals same. A spectator is requested to turn the slate around and the selected design matches your prediction, as previously written, on the slate. Requirements: Six 8 by 10 inch manila envelopes, six white cards blank on both sides, a brush (or felt tip marking pen) and India ink. Ready. Draw the designs on the six cards, i.e., star, cross, wavy lines, square, circle and triangle. On the back of each of each of these card (except the triangle card, which is left blank) draw the TRIANGLE! Cards are inserted showing the faces (various designs), but when one envelope is selected, the card is merely withdrawn back side and TRIANGLE to audience. The selected card (triangle) is exhibited, dropped triangle side up on table and the prediction verified. In the event you get a break and the TRIANGLE is selected, it can be casually shown front and hack. Nelsons Notes: The Amazing Maurice says this is a good opener, can be made with little expense and well worth the effort. I concur...ESP Symbol Prediction is good.
BONUS READY-TO-PRINT ESP SYMBOL ARTWORK SECTION BEGINS PAGE 6! Effects re-published courtesy of Trickshop.com

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IMPROMPTU HEADLINE PREDICTION Dick Johnson

The Mayor or some prominent personage is selected to be the recipient of the Registered Letter Headline Prediction and arrangements are made for this person to be present at the opening of the prediction. The prediction can be that of an unpublished headline, the outcome of a sporting event or the total sales of the New York Stock Exchange for a future date. The Mayor appears with the Registered Letter, containing the prediction, sealed and intact. It is opened in the presence of witnesses and a smaller inner envelope is withdrawn. This is partially opened, given to any of the committeemen, who, themselves, remove the prediction, which is verified. Requirements: A standard size stationery envelope, a slightly smaller pay envelope and two identical pair of scissors. The scissors should have at least a six inch blade and should be of the wide variety. Use a dummy piece of paper, the same size as to be used for the prediction. Write some personal message to the person chosen to open the prediction. Fold this message in same manner as the prediction message and seal in the pay envelope. Prepared in this manner, the recipient of the registered letter will realize that the envelope contains a message. Preparation: After having ascertained your prediction, write this information on a piece of paper about one and a half inches by two inches. Fold the paper accordion style, so that the prediction paper can be forced down between the blades of one pair of scissors while in a closed position. The blades should be loosened a trifle to accommodate the paper to prevent sticking or cutting. Place the scissors containing the prediction in the left hand inside coat pocket. The fair pair in the shirt pocket on the left side. Presentation: When the envelope is turned over to you by the committee, have the recipient emphatically state it is the same one received by him, and that NO one has tampered or opened it. Attention can be called to the return receipt card, etc. Jog the mailing envelope so that the inner envelope is at the very end of the mailing envelope. Remove the innocent scissors, and cut off a small corner of the envelope. BE SURE TO MAKE A CUT SUFFICIENTLY LARGE AS TO CLIP A SMALL CORNER FROM THE INNER ENVELOPE. Replace scissors back in pocket and patter a moment. Realize no one knows about the inner envelope! NOW remove the inner envelope, lay aside (unhurriedly) the mailing envelope and get the prepared scissors from
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your pocket. Insert both blades of the scissors in the hole made by the first cut. Open blades of scissors slightly as you rip open the end of the envelope. As you do so, pinch the envelope slightly with fingers, between the scissor blades and hold the prediction paper in envelope, withdrawing scissors and freeing the prediction which then reposes in the envelope. This is a suggested precaution, as the paper may not always free itself! As a second thought, after the prediction is in the envelope, replace scissors on table and turn to the recipient of the letter and hand him the partially opened envelope with the prediction, which he removes and verifies. Nelsons Notes: The use of the scissors is perfectly natural, likewise the switch, provided the moves are done in an unhurried, natural manner. For the curious (if any are present) the scissors are on the table for examination, and all evidence of skullduggery has been eliminated.

PREMONITION, A PRIZE WINNER J. G. Thompson, Jr.

Bill McCaffreys Prize Winner never received the attention it deserved until the spotlight was thrown on it by the appearance of Premonition (Eddie Joseph) at $10.00. The similarity was discernible immediately and interest was once again shown in an effect that had appeared in several books and had been passed up by many magicians. Eddies version differed primarily from the original in the presentation, which made the trick one of the most baffling card mysteries in existence. The plot is delightfully simple and direct. Anyone calls out the name of a playing card. Another spectator is given a deck. He counts the cards. There are only 51. He looks for the named pasteboard. It is not there. Why? Because it is in your pocket, a statement you confirm by withdrawing it immediately. Since having my attention redirected to the trick, I have had several ideas which I think improve it, both from the standpoint of effect and also ease of presentation. Lets take a look. From two decks having the same back design, remove the 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and Q of Clubs and Hearts, and the A, 3, 5, 7, J and K of Diamonds and Spades. Discard one AS. Mix the set taken from one deck thoroughly and then arrange the second set in the same order as the first. Lay either set on top of the other and insert the remaining AS, so that it is the twenty-sixth from the top, which results in a deck of 51 cards with the duplicates as far apart as is possible. Put this deck in one of the cases and mark a small E on the outside for even. Remaining will be two sets, each consisting of the 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and Q of Diamonds and Spades, and the A, 3, 5, 7, 9, J and K of Clubs and Hearts. Discard one AH and prepare a deck of 51 cards in exactly the same manner as described in the preceding paragraph. On the outside of the case, mark a small O for odd. Arrange the third deck as follows: AD (top card), 2D, 3D, 4D, etc., up to and including the KD: Then KC, QC, JC, 10C, etc., down to and including the AC; next AS, 2S, 3S, etc., up to the KS, and finally KH, QH, etc., down to the AH.
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The cards are distributed as follows: the E Deck in your right coat pocket, the O deck in your left coat pocket, the Clubs and Diamonds from the third Pack in your left trousers pocket, and the Hearts and Spades in your right trousers pocket, Diamonds and Hearts being next to your body. Thus the suits are in ascending order across your body from left to right. Procure a sizable dart board on which there are reproductions of the fifty-two playing cards, or make one by gluing cards to a board. Fasten a couple of ribbons to the feathered end of a dart and you are set to present the feat before any size audience. Use of the dart for the selection is effective, because it is more spectacular and because your audience will appreciate the complete fairness of the choice. Allow a spectator to make a few practice throws, so that he will be able to gauge the distance properly, but, more important, so that the other persons see a different card pierced each time. Then tell him to make the throw. As soon as you know the name of the card, bring forth the deck from which it is missing, arriving at the correct one as follows: Every Club has a suit value of 1; Diamond, 2; Heart, 3; and a Spade 4. Quickly add the pip value to the suit value and, if the result is even, bring out the E pack from your right coat pocket. If the result is odd, the O deck from your left coat pocket is used. For example, suppose the QH were chosen. 12 (Q) plus (H) equals 15, an odd number. Out comes the O deck. On the other hand, if the card is the AC (1 plus 1 equals 2), the E deck is removed. The faster the packs are withdrawn the better. At this point I would like to break into the description to explain a worthwhile idea advanced by Bev Taylor, proprietor of Town House Magic. He suggests that you give one of the decks, prior to your performance, to a prominent person, who will be a member of your audience, explaining that you want him to keep it for you until needed. The other deck is placed somewhere on your table in full view. If it turns out that you must use the latter, make much of the fact that the cards have been there from the beginning, and that they have not been touched, nor will they be. If the planted deck is the one, state exactly what you did and ask the gentleman to come forward, all of which is quite effective. There are two outs in case you dont use the pack being held in the audience. Either call up the man and do another trick, or skip any reference to the matter, in which event you look him up later and explain that your time was running short, or simply that you had decided not to do that particular trick. Whether this ruse is used or not, the spectator gets the correct cards still in their case. Tell him to remove them, sit down at the table, and do two things; count the cards face up and, while he is doing this, also watch for the one that was just chosen. His mind will be occupied with the two matters and he will never notice the duplication of cards.
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After you have determined which is the correct deck to use, you can begin to think about the location of the card in your trousers pockets. I discovered early that it is much easier for me to count from the outside toward the inside, so, if either Diamonds or Hearts is the suit Im seeking, I merely turn over all the cards in my pocket, which sets them for a count beginning on the outside, and which cant be more than thirteen. Having arrived at the proper pocket, casually place your hand therein, count to the chosen card, remove it from the packet and place it on top, where it can he reached quickly. [A card index, like CardSource from Trickshop.com, is an invaluable tool when you need to quickly and precisely locate a duplicate of any card chosen.] Meanwhile the spectator is dealing, counting aloud and looking for the card. When he finishes, ask him two questions: (1) Did you find the (chosen) card? and (2) How many cards are there? Then say, In other words, the missing card is the (chosen one). Of course, it is, for I had a feeling that card would be selected, and I placed it in my pocket earlier in the evening. Reach into your pocket and quickly bring out the one you put on top of the packet. This trick has an astounding effect on an audience. I know, for I have presented it before quite a few numbering as high as five hundred persons.

Effects re-published courtesy of Trickshop.com

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ESP Symbol Prediction

Output to 8-1/2 x 11 or European A4.
PRINT OUT SIX SHEETS EACH WITH A DIFFERENT ESP SYMBOL. NEXT, ON THE BACK OF ALL EXCEPT THE TRIANGLE SHEET, PRINT THE TRIANGLE (FORCE SIDE). IF YOU PREFER, YOU CAN OF COURSE CHOOSE A DIFFERENT FORCE SYMBOL THAN THE TRIANGLE. If you are unable to print double-sided on completely opaque cardstock, print symbols on white bond and glue these sheets to front and back of cardstock as explained. NOTE: To print specific pages in Adobe Acrobat, you can specify only the Pages you want to output under Print Range in the print dialog box. Provided courtesy of

BONUS Ready-to-Print Artwork for the

TRICKSHOP.COM

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Strong Magic and Mentalism Delivered ON-DEMAND.

TRICKSHOP.COM

A Prediction from Bombay

At last, a solution for Paul Currys unresolved Open Prediction that is as clean and hands-off as his original concept itself. A card freely chosen by a spectator is the same card openly predicted by the performer at the beginning of the effect. Remember, the spectator is 100% FREE TO CHOOSE ANY CARD and HE SEES ALL OF THE FACES AND BACKS OF THE CARDS he does not choose. There are no extra cards. No repeating cards or repeating groups of cards. No counting. No complicated systems or memory work. No rough/ smooth. No double-sided cards. No magnets or shims. And there are NO SLEIGHTS! Virtually self-working, sets up in seconds, and is one youll be able to do within a few minutes of reading the instructions.

An excellent manuscript, this very clean demonstration of Extra Sensory Perception is clearly presented (and easy to do!). Top stuff, with real attention to detail as always, from www.trickshop.com. MagicWeek.com
You and a spectator each begin with a standard set of five different ESP symbol cards Circle, Cross, Wavy Lines, Square and Star. The spectator pockets one of his cards and then, one by one, attempts to match each card you lay face down on the table by placing one of his own symbol cards face up on top of it. When the cards are finally flipped over the symbols of every pair match exactly, including your last card and the spectators pocketed card! Use standard ESP cards or regular playing cards. Everything can be examined at the end. 19-page, photo-illustrated eManuscript; which includes David Britlands original Zennerism routine, plus ESP symbol artwork. 10-Card Zenner Effect ESP Card Sets with Bicycle backs also available (sold separately).

The ZennerEffect

A spectators thought of card is the only one missing from the deck when he counts the cards. The magician then reaches into his pocket and without the slightest delay brings out the very card named by the spectator. At no time does the magician touch the deck. There is no force of choice. This miracle works 100 percent of the time the element of chance plays no part. Use your own cards.

PREMONITION

Eddie Josephs

Real People. Real Numbers. No Forces, Switches or Gimmicked Pads.

HELLSTROMISM

ALMOST REAL PREDICTION

Also see our eManuscript on Eddie Josephs Bombay.

Download our eManuscript on Jack Londons legendary, original add-a-number effect. New BONUS section added with five additional London presentation ideas!

Pseudo Hypnosis. Real Entertainment.

Also available Fitzkees Contact Mind Reading Expanded.

Robert Nelsons authoritative treatise on the life and sensational mind reading feats of Axel Hellstrom. Every phase of Hellstromism is covered in detail from choosing and working with subjects to suggested performance routines. Youll learn everything you need to know to begin developing your own abilities; as well as what is required to take your performance to the next level.

Annemanns Complete One Man Mental and Psychic Routine

Complete Pseudo Stage Hypnotism Course
Annemanns routine remains a lesson in what can be achieved with some paper, a few markers, a swami gimmick, a borrowed phone book and a couple decks of cards. No pre-show work. No cumbersome apparatus. No assistants or confederates. Just 20 to 30 minutes of pure entertainment you can carry in a briefcase. A must-have resource for anyone who does mentalism. We cannot recommend this publication highly enough. Completely re-typeset with tips on updating the routine for contemporary performances. Quality, print-on-demand edition.

You dont have to learn real hypnosis to add a couple of entertaining pseudo-hypnotic demonstrations to your magic or mentalism program. Anyone who has ever seen John Calvert or Paul Daniels perform Pseudo Hypnosis will appreciate the tremendous entertainment potential and audience appeal of these feats. They are often the most talked about routines on the program. And the entire process is fully explained, including the real secrets of Cold Cuing or Cueing spectators on stage. This information along with the detailed explanation of The Sensational Hypnotic Rigid Test, where a hypnotized subjects body becomes so rigid that he can be suspended between two chairs makes this course invaluable to any working magician or mentalist.

Also availableAnnemanns One Man Mental Club Act from The JINX Magazine.

It is, in a word, excellent! MagicWeek.com

ENvision

MagicWeek.com

COLD READING TRADECRAFT

Imagine meeting someone for the very first time and being able to reveal not only some of their innermost thoughts, but details of personal events yet to come. It appears to be nothing less than a genuine demonstration of extrasensory perception, ESP. This is the power of COLD READING a process used by professional psychics, mind readers, fortune tellers, intuitive counselors and guides, and mentalists.

Royal Road to Card Magic

ENvision gives you the power to duplicate or describe any drawing or other design made on the back of your business card by a spectator. A card that you are free to leave with her as a souvenir at the end of this incredible demonstration of your telepathic abilities. No difficult moves or palming. Make in minutes with No. 3 coin envelopes.

Also availableThe Art of Cold Reading by Robert Nelson. ...a great version of the any card at any number effect... MentalismUK CardSource features the slimmest, lightest index that Ive ever seen allowing you to present many different effects quickly! Supplied complete with cards, index and a very well produced manuscript this is the stuff that reputations are made of. Highly recommended. Mr Duncan Trillo, MagicWeek.com

A must-have resource for anyone who performs with a deck of cards or aspires to do so. With Royal Road, your sleight of hand skill builds progressively. 212 pages, 20 chapters, 76 complete card tricks. New high quality ebook.

CARD INDEX SYSTEM Designed with todays performer in mind, CardSource puts one of magic and mentalisms most powerful secret weapons at your fingertips the card index. With CardSource, youll be able to quickly and covertly acquire a duplicate of ANY card selected, named or even thought of by a spectator.
CardSource isnt your fathers bulky, hard-to-use card index. Its compact, so it fits comfortably in your coat pockets. In fact, each CardSource index is thinner and only slightly larger than a deck of cards. Whats more, CardSource isnt just more streamlined than traditional card index designs its also vastly more efficient. By integrating an array of advanced design features, such as a unique, double-sided horizontal, tabbed layout and rotary filing system, CardSource offers you a level of speed and efficiency never before possible. As a result, CardSource takes just seconds to deliver any card. No fumbling. No guesswork. Just the precise card you need, at the moment you need it.

CardSource

How Many?

Do incredible street magic like David Blaine. Interested in strong, visual, in-your-face magic you can perform at school, on the street or in the clubs? Extreme Magic brings you over a dozen of todays most powerful street magic effects. The same effects that made David Blaine famous. Anyone who watched David Blaines Street Magic TV special knows the power of these street magic tricks to elicit gasps of amazement and make jaws drop. Concise explanations with large step-by-step photos. Give your Professors Nightmare routine, a strong VISUAL finish with our eManuscript Her Majestys Favorite!

EXTREMEMagic

The TWO IN THE HAND, ONE IN THE POCKET trick is a classic of magic. Three sponge balls are shown. Two are placed into your left hand and the third one goes in your pocket. Magically, the third ball travels from your pocket to join the other two in your left hand. This effect is repeated a second time. Finally, just when the audience thinks they are catching on and believe you have three balls you slowly open your hands to reveal you have none!

Seven Keys to Baldpate without switches, extra keys, gaffed locks, change bags, special envelopes, or any other gimmicks whatsoever. In fact, our new streamlined handling uses ONLY an ordinary paper bag, a genuine padlock and seven keys; one of which opens the lock and six that do not. Thats it! The same properties you would use if you actually had ESP and were able to do the effect for real! We supply the color photo-illustrated eManuscript, you supply the lock and keys; which will run you about $16 at your local hardware store.

Seven Keys to Baldpate

The Magic Business Book

Turn your passion into profit, start your own online magic business! The Magic Business Book puts the wholesale sources for todays hottest magic tricks, books, accessories, CDs and DVDs at your fingertips! Thats right, we show you the sources for everything from card and coin tricks to silks and stage illusions over 100 wholesale suppliers in all! This is a behind the scenes look at what may very well be magics most closely-guarded secret its wholesale supplier network. These are the very same wholesalers used by top magic dealers everywhere. Whether youre looking to supplement your performing income or just turn your hobby into a business, The Magic Business Book is packed with the information and expert advice you need to get started right in this fun and fascinating field.

A favorite of the man with the Million Dollar Hands, the late Frank Garcia. In our streamlined routine, the spectator continually guesses wrong as he tries to follow a black Ace as it is mixed with one or two red Queens. The effect culminates with the seemingly impossible transposition of the paper-clipped Ace into one of the Queens and back again! The magical purist will enjoy this routine, since there are no gimmicked cards or other gaffs. Nor are no difficult moves to worry about. Gambling-theme effects are more popular than ever and this is one youll be able to do anytime, anyplace even with borrowed items!

CLIP MONTE

SWINDLED! Three Card Monte

Finally, a guide that will help you master the Three Card Monte once and for all. Learn not only the how of each move, but the why as well. Whats more, once youve mastered the fundamentals, well show you how to build and script your own routine and give it a finish certain to add an exclamation point to your performance from powerful endings like the Torn Corner and Bent Corner dodges to ones which require a minimum of handling, but still look great. Photoillustrated guide.

EpiCard, a very clean triple prediction on the lines of the old classic Mental Epic (but without the dodgy looking blackboard). Very good, and 100% practical too. MagicWeek.com

Berlands Devil Dollar

EpiCard Triple Prediction

At last, a prediction effect that offers you all the impact of Hen Fetschs Mental Epic without the out-of-date slate! Like Mental Epic, EpiCard lets you PREDICT VIRTUALLY ANYTHINGpeople, places, numbers, colors, dates, playing cards, you name it! Whats more, the props are above suspicion: calling card-sized, numbered cards; envelopes; and wine glasses (which can be borrowed). This is elegant, professional mental magic at its finest. Absolutely no sleights, no carbons or image transfers, no gaffed envelopes, no mirrors, no palming, no extra cards, no gimmicked pens or markers, no nail writers, and you end COMPLETELY CLEAN.

One of the best and most convincing methods for the apparent burning of a signed borrowed bill ever devised. Works with any denomination US bill or international currency note. The bill is folded and placed inside of a window envelope and set ablaze. The audience sees the bill right up until the last moment! Reproduce the original marked bill from a cigarette, cigar, lemon, sealed envelope inside of a wallet, etc.

One of the most beautiful effects in close-up magic. A long length of thread is broken into a number of smaller pieces and then, visually restored. Photo-illustrated eManuscript. Proper cotton thread also available from Trickshop.com.

The HinduThread

Performers, such as Kuda Bux, have built this effect into a headline feature. An effect always leaves a profound impression upon an audience. This is probably due to the fact that to the uninitiated, it borders on the supernatural. To preclude the possibility of subterfuge, you now allow members of the audience to place heavy cotton wads against your eyes and then seal them with surgical tape. To make it even more conclusive, a dark heavy blindfold is placed around your head. However, despite your vision has been completely sealed off, you are able to walk into the audience and read money, credit and business cards, pick colors, name objects, etc. We supply Will Dexters definitive treatise on the subject in Acrobat PDF format.

SEALED VISION

LINKING Finger Rings

When Al Koran first performed this little miracle on television, it caused a sensation. The effect on the audience is pure magic. Three mens finger rings are borrowed and in the fairest manner possible LINKED TOGETHER to form a chain. The rings are then unlinked and returned to their respective owners. Our handling is smooth, direct and you end completely clean.

MagicWeek.com

Get our top-rated guide on The Matrix. Four cards, four coins and pure magic. Four coins each covered with a playing card assemble under a single card. The flight of each coin, as it vanishes from underneath one card and reappears under another, looks like real magic. If youre looking for a strong, visual coin effect this is it! Our clearly written instructions with over two dozen large, clear photos make learning this professional sleight of hand routine a breeze. In fact, youll probably pick it up with just a few hours practice.

MATRIX Visual Coin Assembly

Looking to add more laughs to your performances? Youre going to love this collection of OVER 125 STANDARD MAGIC LINES. Most of these are not jokes per se, but rather clever quips and ad-libs you can deliver tongue-in-cheek in various performance situations (working with a helper, female helper, working with children, examining props, cards tricks, and more) to keep your show running smoothly. Nothing original. In fact, most of these lines have been recycled by magicians for years. Why? Because they work and theyre easy to use, even if youre not a natural born comedian.

Standard Magic Comedy Lines

THE MODERN MINDREADER

Perform uncanny thought reading without clipboards, billet work, center tears, assistants, etc. All you require are a handful of blank business cards and small coin envelopes. These are handed out to selected audience members who jot down some personal information on their card before sealing it inside of an envelope. The envelopes are then gathered and the performer proceeds to dramatically reveal this information with vibrant detail. After each reading, the envelope is opened and returned with the card to the spectator. Photo-illustrated eManuscript with sample card and envelope set (by mail) to get you started.

Unleash the potential of magics most powerful card control system. While most magicians and mentalists are familiar with the Si Stebbins System, very few ever tap its true potential. In Si Stebbins Unplugged, youll learn how to perform miracles with any deck even if youre a newcomer to magic! Best of all, it will be a deck that you can use not just for one trick, but for an entire performance of entertaining, commercial card magic effects. And when youre done, the deck can be fully examined! Of how many other trick decks can the same be said? Clearly-written explanations and over 50 photographs detail every aspect of the system from basic handling to innovative concepts and techniques designed to elevate your work into the miracle class.

Si Stebbins Unplugged

MagicWeek.com

Now you can perform this classic effect virtually anytime, anywhere, without expensive props.
After five different drinks are covered and mixed by both you and a spectator, his mentally selected beverage is discovered at the exact location you predicted. You now bring out a glass and bottle opener, and invite your helper to enjoy some of his chosen beverage. Keep in mind, your prediction is placed in full view at the beginning of the effect. There are no switches. No duplicate bottles or fake shells. No multiple outs. Works with ordinary paper lunch bags and real bottled drinks of your choice.

Bewitched, Bottled and Bewildered

MASTERING HYPNOSIS
If youre interested in mastering the art and science of stage hypnosis, were confident youll find no better guide available today. This insightful, how-to guide will teach you everything you need to know to succeed in this fascinating and lucrative field.

I just wanted to let you know that this is the best e-book [Mastering Hypnosis] that I have got on this subject so farOnce I started reading I just couldnt put it down you kept the entire book so interesting. The only disappointing thing about the book was when I reached the end of it, so I just started over and Im reading it again. If you put out another book on this subject or a second volume to this book let me know I will be the first to buy it. Thanks for such a great book. Mr Thomas Bowling, USA