Thanks to Canva for sponsoring the illusionist. In the 10 years since Canva began, it has

grown to offer services in over 100 languages. And Canva is freemium, so there is plenty available

for zero pounds, including free libraries of video, audio, graphics, and their amazing

tools, magic write, and magic design, which use AI to help you with your first drafts,

get you through the creative block, whew, because it's easier to start from something than

from a blank page. I put in a few writing prompts and, well, if Canva learns to speak, I think

I can just hand over hosting this show to it entirely. Also, if you and your colleagues

are working together, your human colleagues, that is, you can design and collaborate with

Canva for teams. Right now, you can get a free 45 day extended trial when you go to Canva.me-illusionist.

This is the illusionist, in which I, Ellen Salzman, I'm not feeling so good, so you're

going to have to pull in close to hear me for a sec. I am recording somewhere, I have never

recorded a podcast before. Hospital, here's my IV. Here are some blips and bloops, there are

lots of those, over there behind the blue curtain is my roommate, Marge, and this is my voice

at the moment. The doctor is routinely asked, is that your normal voice? And I don't want

to get all, do you know who I am? But, anyway, it's obviously not business as usual from

me right now. So, instead, you're getting something special today, made by somebody who

still has the ability to speak. Right, instead of your usual illusionist

services today, you are getting an episode of a podcast which I love. It's called Imaginary

Advice, you'll find it at ImaginaryAdvice.com and it's made by Ross Sutherland, whose work

touches on fiction and theatre and memoir and comedy. The episode you're about to hear

is called S-E-I-N-F-E-L-D, in which Ross teaches a robot to do stand-up comedy. So, if you're

ticking off your language learning points, there's some antics in there, there's our language

...