I have lived in Los Angeles for 26 years now and up until last weekend I had never been to The Magic Castle. What is the Magic Castle? Just a Los Angeles institution! It’s a throw-back to old Hollywood, the kind of place that still requires a jacket and tie to get in. It’s so exclusive that you must be personally invited by one of their members to get in for an evening’s entertainment. That’s probably why I had never been before – I was never invited! But thanks to the magic of the internet, I now have a connection. Michael Vincent is a brilliant magician who lives in London. He happens to subscribe to my Daily Wisdom e-mail newsletter. When Michael was invited to perform at the Magic Castle in Los Angeles, he invited me to come see his show! Of course I jumped at the chance. The Magic Castle is an old mansion that has been converted into a restaurant and show rooms. Greg and I arrived for our 7:30 dinner reservation and had a lovely vegetarian meal. The service was excellent, the atmosphere very old school dignified. Everyone dressed up for an elegant evening. After dinner we explored the place, and were mesmerized by a bartender/magician doing card tricks. It turns out this was the anniversary of The Magic Circle in England, so it was British week at the castle, and all the shows featured British magicians. The first show we saw Greg laughed so hard I thought he was going to fall out of his seat! I think Aussies and Pommies share a similar sense of humor. In between shows we had a drink in the lounge, and were serenaded by Irma, the resident ghost who plays requests on the piano. You call out a song and it magically plays! Any song – it doesn’t matter, Irma knows it. Amazing! Finally we got to meet Michael Vincent himself. I had gotten to know Michael a little bit via e-mail and by visiting his website, so I knew already that he is a sweetie. But, oh, what a gentleman! Michael is very handsome, and gracious, and it was so good to connect with him in person. And talk about talented! We were absolutely astounded by the magic that Michael came up with. I think my jaw kept dropping open, and I kept looking at Greg to see if he was seeing what I was seeing. We had a great time – Michael is hilarious – so charming and at ease on the stage. You could really see that this is his dharma. Drop by and visit Michael’s site – and if anyone knows an agent in LA who handles magicians, let me or Michael know – I want him to come back and do Leno! http://www.magicofmagic.com

At the Chopra Foundation’s 2012 Sages and Scientists Symposium brilliant minds from all over the world gathered to share their thoughts about “The Merging of a New Future.”  It was a stimulating conversation, filled with revelations and sprinkled with optimism, with topics that ranged from medical research to leadership in business, and even some social media.  I can’t imagine any one other than Deepak who could bring together such a fascinating array of speakers and entertainers!  We heard from former President of Mexico Vincente Fox, General Wesley Clark, Chemist, Quantum Physicists, Corporate leaders, and more, and we were entertained by upcoming musical groups Black Opera, Caught A Ghost, kid’s dance troupe The Miniotics, Flamenco dancers and a group of male acrobats to performed on poles!

By the way, all of the volunteers at the Symposium looked fabulous wearing the Jnana Yoga tee-shirts from WearLuck.com.  Jnana Yoga is the path of knowledge, so it’s perfect for this conference!  Each of the speakers received a tee-shirt in their gift bags as well, and we got tons of great comments on them!

Here are some of the highlights of the conference that I caught on video:

Dr. Rudy “Rock Star” Tanzi accepted the Spirit of Rustum Roy Award for his contributions in Alzheimer’s Research.  I was fortunate to get an interview with the late Dr. Roy during the 2010 Symposium and you can see what he had to say about the “New Science” in this video:

Dr. Rustum Roy

http://youtu.be/MoI7TyLZQWs

This year I was delighted to interview Dr. Lothar Schafer – he had so many amazing things to say that I ended up making his interview into three videos!  Here’s one:

Lothar Schafer on Consciousness

http://youtu.be/-nqxd1OT3mE

All of the attendees, including me, were impressed by what two young men are accomplishing to help solve the world water crisis.  Here’s my interview with Mike Muniz from Generosity Water:

Mike Muniz, Generosity Water

http://youtu.be/sD9oBtNZ7JM

Leonard Mlodinow is Deepak Chopra’s co-author, their book is “War of the Worldviews.”  It was great speaking with him and getting a behind-the-scenes perspective.  Here’s what he had to say:

Leonard Mlodinow

http://youtu.be/HKJljfmDr6E

One of the most popular entertainers was poet/rapper J. Ivy.  He performed with his beautiful and talented wife.  You’ll be hearing a lot from this guy:

J. Ivy

http://youtu.be/xy1x9edjf2M

Carlos Dominguez gave a great talk.  He calls himself a “Tech Nowist.”  Find out exactly what that means in his interview:

Carlos Dominguez

http://youtu.be/Nkg6Ndz2dg4

My friend Dave, whom I’ve kept in touch with ever since high school, is getting married! I’m so excited for him and his fiance, Elizabeth. Dave is a great guy. The reason I’m sharing this on my blog is because Dave is also a most creative guy. He found a very interesting, and very original, way to propose! Check our his website and you’ll see what I mean: http://www.daveloveselizabeth.com