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Any Way You
Count 'Em
Trick Courtesy of: The
Flaming Lemon (Paul Peterson)
(tvtom@chelmsford.com)
Original Author: Unknown
Shuffle the cards well. Holding them face down, turn over
the top card and place it face up on the table. Think of it as
a stack. Starting with its face value, deal face up on top of
it as many more cards as needed to reach 10. For instance if
it's a 3, deal seven cards on top of it; if it's a 5, deal
five cards. Face cards count as 10, so no more cards are
needed. An ace counts as 1 and needs nine more cards.
Continue making stacks as above, keeping them separate,
until the deck is exhausted. If there are not enough cards to
complete a final stack, keep that incomplete stack in your
hand. Now choose at random any three stacks that contain at
least four cards each, and turn these stacks face down.
Gather all the remaining cards in any order and add them to
the cards (if any) in your hand. Pick any two of the three
face-down stacks on the table, and turn up the top card on
each of those two piles. Add their values together. Discard
that many cards from those in your hand, and then discard 19
additional cards.
Count the remaining cards in your hand. Now turn up the top
card of the third stack. Its value will equal the number of
cards in your hand.
Counted Cards
1. Tell a spectator that each card represents a
number--A is 1, J is 11, Q is 12, K is 13, and the rest have
their face value.
2. Tell the person to pick up the top card and place
it face up on the table.
3. State its number and then count onto it enough
cards to reach 13. For example, if the card is a Jack, say
"Eleven..." and then deal two cards onto it while you say,
"...twelve, thirteen."
4. Flip over this stack and set it aside.
5. Repeat Steps 2-4 until 13 cannot be reached with
the remaining cards. Set these aside (if the count works out
evenly, don't worry).
6. Have the spectator choose 3 piles. Remove all of
the other piles and add them to the cards (if any) remaining
from step 5.
7. Pick up the pile of cards remaining from steps
5-6, count off 10 cards and set them aside.
8. Have the spectator choose 2 of the remaining 3
piles. Turn the top cards on these 2 piles face up.
9. Add together the values of the two face-up cards,
count out their sum from the cards you're holding and set them
aside.
10. Have the spectator count the number of cards
left in your hand.
11. Tell him or her to flip over the top card on the
remaining pile. It is equal to the number of cards left in
your hand.
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