I am sure that it must be time to wish everyone a Happy New Year. After the period of excessive eating over Christmas, it's time for everyone to make a New Year Resolution to be quickly forgotten once the New Year is well into it's swing, which is usually the 2nd January, at least for me, when I go back to work after an extended Christmas and New Year break when the Council closes' its administrative offices down. I know many people think that if the Council closed its administrative offices down permanently, no one would notice. But I have to differ there, I would for one, as I wouldn't be getting paid on a regular basis! Talking of which, I do enjoy the pre-Christmas period, as far as magic goes, as it is the busiest time of the year for me as far as childrens magic shows are concerned. I have been performing at childrens parties, etc., for some 30 years now, with the last 15 or so being extremely busy. I can say that during that time I can count on one hand the number of times I have been ill and unable to perform at a childrens party. I have lucky that on every occasion when I have been poorly, I have always been able to get someone to do the show for me. That is until this Christmas. I woke up during the night on the Monday before Christmas with sickness and diarrhea (and I won't go into the full details). Not surprisingly on the Tuesday morning I could not have got out of bed to do a show if the you had paid me £1m. Also not surprisingly I could not get anyone to do the three shows that I had that day for me, and I had no option but to let the schools concerned (for they were all school parties) down. Luckily I had done the-schools before and they were all most understanding. However, what should we do in these circumstances? There was nothing I could do. As I said, I could not have got out of bed to do the shows. What do other people do in these circumstances? Or is it just me who gets sick from time to time (luckily not very often, although as Pam has pointed out, this is the second Christmas on the run - is that the correct word to use in these circumstances! - and am I taking on too many shows at this time of the year)? I do remember being extremely unwell several years ago when I entertained at a DIY store in Pontefract with Jack Allen during a bank holiday Monday. Luckily it was very quiet and Jack did most of the performing, but when you are on your own, that is not an option. I nearly sent Pam to do the shows as she has seen me perform on so many occasions, I am sure she would be able to do it! However, not surprisingly, she declined!! So what do you do in these circumstances - please let me know, we may all learn some tricks of the trade! |
