Overnight we got a snowstorm, very pretty if you don't have to go out in it. Local schools declared a snow day, not even virtual learning, a merciful decision. Snow days are good for your mental health.
7 am views from bedroom.
I've resumed my practice of opening the window first thing and just breathing in the air for a couple of calming minutes. It smells different every day. Today crisp.
I've been playing cards in the evening, to get away from screen time, and find I need to up my shuffling game.
I tried to learn to riff, but my hands just don't have the strength to bend the pack the way you need to. Even doing it with only a few cards in each hand is painful and the cards are slippery. I made a couple of pretty fountains, but no shuffling.
So I tried the faro shuffle, supposedly much harder than the riff, where you interleave the cards from a corner. Did it first time. Do that's my go to now.
Turns out new cards are difficult to riff, and the way the manufacturer cuts them determines how you shuffle, cards face up or down. Who knew?
I also found that shuffling leads you into two paths. One is the cardism beloved of card trick fans, manipulating cards into waterfalls and other configurations without spraying them all over. .
The other is the religion of statistics, where bearded guys can tell you exactly how many times you have to shuffle to get anything approaching a random array. Casinos have machines for this function. I notice the card shuffling world seems to be largely a boy's club.
Me, I'll be happy to just get a new array each time, rather than the ascending order bunch of spades, or solid block of hearts, etc you get when shuffling hasn't worked.
Who knew that there would be so much technical learning to do before I can have a quiet few minutes of patience.
