“Crossing the Bridge” Spirit Contact Spread

I occasionally see requests for "spirit contact" spreads. Here is one that focuses on facilitating psychic readiness. This won't do much for you if you don't assume the existence of an "Astral Plane."

The Can-Opener and the Nutcracker

For a long time now I've considered the number Five in the numerical sequence to be a figurative can-opener or nutcracker that releases the stale atmosphere of the Four, the idea being that it represents reactionary change in response to a stalled state of affairs. But today I was thinking that this "can-opener" function is …

“Spin of the Day” Card-Drawing Method

I had a minor brainstorm this morning. I have a board-game spinner that I bought to use with what I call my "multi-media" spreads. I discovered that it is an almost perfect fit for the Golden Dawn's Chaldean correspondence wheel that I employ in my work with the Thoth deck. Spinning the pointer will indicate …

“You Can’t Always Get What You Want” – A Needs-Analysis Spread

The premise behind this spread is that what we want may not be what we need, but what we need may not be something we deserve (the "karmic" perspective), while what we get may be something entirely different. The title is based on the bombastic Rolling Stones song. Tarot de Marseille author Paul Marteau believed …

Another Milestone

I have now passed 1,400 posts on this blog. I want to take a moment to thank those regular readers who make doing this stuff worthwhile (even if I don't hear much from you, the stats tell the tale). This has turned into the "training ground" for my book-publishing aspirations. My goal has been to …

“Woo” Are You?

Excuse the rather clumsy allusion to The Who's song; it was the first thing that came to mind that would work as one of my trademark quirky titles. Although I've been involved with natal astrology, tarot and other esoteric practices since 1972, I had never heard the expression "woo-woo" until I joined the Aeclectic Tarot …

“The Kettle’s On Boil!”

I've written in the past with curmudgeonly intent about the practice of adding "clarifers" (extra cards) to a positional spread when the meaning of the original cards is unclear, as if that is going to brighten the waters instead of muddy them further. In my opinion, an artist with too many colors on the palette …

Tarot and the Nature of Desire

The tarot reader is often tasked with divining "what someone wants" in a situation. In natal astrology the answer is much simpler: Venus and Mars rule the realm of basic human appetites and their interaction goes to the heart of the matter. Boston astrologer Isabel Hickey once said "Mars goes out and gets what Venus …

The Fun Factor

Let's be honest. As solemn as we can be about our sacred mission of helping people with our divining skills, reading the tarot cards for others can be just plain fun! Ideally, my sitters will get enjoyment as well as useful insights out of the experience, so I hope the pleasure is mutual (unless they're …

Missing Person Case Closure: “Dewey” Poulin

Back in 2018 when I had just begun working on missing-person cases, I tackled the disappearance of Dwain "Dewey" Poulin from Tamworth, NH. Today while browsing a local news feed I found an article from February of this year noting that his remains (which were discovered in Ossipee, NH in 2020) had finally been identified. …