YOUR SPACE: He knows the headlines before we do

It’s tough enough to call yourself a mind reader.

And if you do and your wallet gets ripped off from your gym locker, then what?

If you’re Benji Bruce, you send out a press release: “Mind reader doesn’t predict his stolen wallet ... But he will predict the headlines.”

Three weeks ago, he put three front-page predictions for the Oct. 3 edition of The Gazette in a jar and sealed it with duct tape.

I’m there on Sept. 14 when he does it. With a flick of a Sharpie, he gets me in the act while we stand on Tejon Street under the watchful fake eyes of the costumed mannequins at Zeezo’s. He has me write on the seal to rule out tampering when the jar is opened. I sign my name, draw a pumpkin. Only a 3-year-old could duplicate it.

Still, I suspect Benji has tricks up his sleeve. I want custody of the jar, but he says it must stay in the window of Zeezo’s for safekeeping.

A magic shop is safe?

I have a better idea, anyway. I ask Benji to use his clairvoyance to give me winning lottery numbers.

The charismatic 22-year-old smiles and nods obligingly. My mind races as I predict the headline of me winning millions. Hey, maybe it isn’t so hard to be a mentalist after all.

But I’ve misread his charm — he smiles and nods a lot. “My mom said if I was going to pick numbers for anyone, it would have to be for her,” he says. He turned her down, too.

Lottery picks don’t fit the cool, collective style of the longtime Springs resident who started doing stage shows as a kid. He aspires to be “the James Bond of mentalism.”

The recent college grad makes a living performing across the country. Local venues include brunches, where diners ask “Can you make the check disappear?” and bars, where girls ask “Can you take my bra off without me knowing it?”

Benji denies having special powers. “It’s a mix of suggestion, psychology, showmanship and magic. It’s like playing chess, I have to get in someone’s head, figure out how they think and create illusions,” he says.

“I’m not psychic. I can’t say a guy in blue jeans is coming around the corner.”

About this time, a guy in blue jeans comes around the corner.

Benji turns his back and has me write down my dog’s name, then spins around and says “Mario.” Bingo.

He has me think of a number in a deck of cards, then plucks out a 2. OMG!

“When I was talking to you I was gesturing and putting a 2 in the air,” he says, as if this explains it.

What about his Gazette predictions for Oct. 3?

At Saturday’s unveiling at Zeezo’s, he stood by while onlookers unsealed the jar and removed the headlines.

“Gas explosion: Boy Saved.” Sorry, Benji.

Next: “Llama Finished Odyssey” and “100th Birthday: Chow Time.”

Abracadabra-shazzam!

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Contact the writer at 636-0253.

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For more about Benji Bruce: www.benjibruce.com