Since the subject has come up, let's talk about tools.

Yes, I know that technically a properly disciplined mind doesn't need tools to perform magick. After all, the power and ability is not in the tool, it's in the spell caster. Well, technically (again) the power is in the universe and the intent is in the caster. And if you wanted to make an argument about that intent, we could get technical there too.

Technically, you don't even need a toolbox. With sufficient skill, you could make each tool as you needed it. But having the tools ready to go means I don't have to spend effort in making the tools, I can focus on the job at hand.

The point is, if you are rested, disciplined, and focused, the magick is there without tools. But that is the rub. I've got chronic insomnia, and I am not rested or focused. I'm not making many promises about my discipline right now either. And while 99.9% of the time, it's perfectly possible to get through life without magick, it's that one time in a thousand that can make your life interesting. It's one of those paradoxes, those who have the easiest access have the least reason to use it. It's true without the esoteric aspects as well.

Most people have their little rituals that help them get through that one-tenth of one percent.

Me? I'll admit one of my coping mechanisms is tools. I've said before that borders on a fetish in several senses of the word. It's one of the reasons why I call myself a technopagan.

That brings us to the other bit, what I may be trying to do with the magick. Sometimes I have to rely on the theatrical aspects to get people's attention, at least enough so I can do what needs to be done. When the time comes to pull something off the shelf or out of pouch on my belt, it needs to be unusual so it looks sufficiently unearthly to get the job done. A clear plastic bag may not work, but an amber flask will. And it is that belief combined with my own focus that finishes the job. Or at least gets me through their barriers so I can do the rest fairly quickly.