There is a certain queasiness in tarot circles about use of the term "fortune-teller" to describe what we do, as if we're contemplating the commission of a scurrilous or unclean act. The rational-sounding "psychological" approach to the tarot is usually trotted out to dispel any taint of moral impropriety that the mere mention of prognostication … Continue reading The “Opportunity Spotter”
The Gestalt Overview and the Hierarchy of Significance
A question came up recently on the r/tarot subreddit regarding the most effective way to build an overarching "big-picture" synopsis from the individual cards in a tarot spread. I prefer to think of the goal as avoiding the "Lego-block" mentality of simply stacking up keywords that often fail to jell into a convincing summary. Once … Continue reading The Gestalt Overview and the Hierarchy of Significance
Necessity, Convenience or Just Plain Ignorance?
AUTHOR'S NOTE: The "curmudgeon" has entered the building! "Snowflakes" should find the exit A few years ago, not too long after the fateful day when character limits were imposed on messaging by Twitter, I began to observe what seemed like a steep decline in the grammatical proficiency of English-language users. Punctuation appeared to have gone … Continue reading Necessity, Convenience or Just Plain Ignorance?
A 2022 U.S. Congressional Election “Majority” Forecast, Part 2
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here is the "tarot" segment of my two-part analysis of the 2022 Congressional mid-term election. It turned out to be a nuanced and tricky reading. (I apologize in advance for the seemingly gratuitous use of quotes and parenthetical asides, but they're intended to season my rhetoric with anecdotal aptness.) Full Disclosure: For most … Continue reading A 2022 U.S. Congressional Election “Majority” Forecast, Part 2
A 2022 U.S. Congressional Election “Majority” Forecast, Part 1
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Although this horary forecast is scheduled to appear in a future issue of the online AstroLogic magazine, I wanted to present it here first since I'm working on Part 2 and didn't want to wind up in a "cart > horse" situation when I publish it. The success of my Sarah Palin prediction … Continue reading A 2022 U.S. Congressional Election “Majority” Forecast, Part 1
We Can But Should We?
Lately I've been thinking about the unchecked acceleration of two trends in modern life that speak to the title of this essay: the thoughtless advancement of technology for its own sake, and the equally unthinking embrace of social and cultural directives for their own sake. As a devotee of the ancient mystical arts, I often … Continue reading We Can But Should We?
A 2022 NFL Tarot Prediction: Los Angeles Rams vs Buffalo Bills
UPDATE: Although the point-spread prediction was inaccurate, this reading did get three things right: 1) the Bills won (by a larger margin than expected); 2) the score was tied at halftime; and 3) the Bills defense shut down the Rams offense during the entire second half. The Bills didn't exactly "break it wide open," but … Continue reading A 2022 NFL Tarot Prediction: Los Angeles Rams vs Buffalo Bills
The Tyranny of the Familiar
I presently own just over 70 tarot, Lenormand and and oracle decks and, although I've made great strides in my battle with "Deck Acquisition Syndrome," I despair of ever completely conquering it. But I just had an epiphany regarding the nature of my addiction. I've come to realize that, at least in the realm of … Continue reading The Tyranny of the Familiar
Another Milestone
Just a brief aside before I finish the daily essay I started working on last night. Yesterday I finally passed 1,500 posts on this blog that I launched in August of 2017. I took the better part of a year off, so it seems I've come fairly close to my original goal of writing something … Continue reading Another Milestone
Cards of “Quiet Anticipation”
AUTHOR'S NOTE: It could be said with ample justification that Aleister Crowley had a rather uncharitable view of many of the Minor Arcana, often giving them ominous or sullen titles. But my focus here will be on the Waite-Smith (aka "RWS") deck, which is more approachable from a nonpartisan perspective. I labored long and hard … Continue reading Cards of “Quiet Anticipation”
Parsifal's Wheel Tarot & Astrology 