All information is useful…

I have been reading cards for over 25 years, both here and in the UK and in Australia. When I got to the US, I started reading for friends, and then friends of friends, but eventually that group started to wear thin. One day, in late 2009, I looked at the latest Groupon email and thought, maybe I could expand through them…

When I contacted them, their representative was not receptive. "No, we won’t consider you, you’re not professional."
What do you mean I’m not professional? I’ve been doing it for years.
"You’re not on Yelp, you’re not on City Search, we’re not interested."

And she hung up, leaving me feeling very unsettled and rather depressed. It took me a week or so, as I mulled over it, and I came to realize that she had given me really good information. So I looked up Yelp and Citysearch, and, shaking off any anxieties, I got myself listed on both of them.


In a full circle, about 7 months later someone from Groupon rang me - "We’ve seen your amazing reviews on Yelp and Citysearch, would you like to be on Groupon?" Their offer didn’t work out financially for me, but was I very pleased that they had rung!

That’s what I mean when I tell people all information is useful. Even when it is something you don’t expect or want to hear, once you know it, you can use it, and improve your situation.

Lots of 9’s

When we get 3 of one number, it usually intensifies the message of each card. If you get lots of 9’s, the end is within sight, but we are striving harder to get there.

The 9 of cups is contentment, striving towards the happy ever after of the 10 of cups. The 9 of wands is striving towards victory, but facing one battle after another. The 9 of swords is when the swords we carry turn against us, and the battle must be confronted before your anxieties ruin everything. The 9 of pentacles gaining entrance to the garden of luxury - the reward after the striving.


But if you get a lot of 9’s it means that there is an edge to your energy, a striving that isn’t being satisfied and isn’t complete yet. You need to go to the Hermit, the major arcana card associated with 9, and start to work through your own journey to get to the next state. 9’s are about figuring out what you are seeking and then finding it.



The first picture is by Ocean Surf Life by Gay Jefferson
And the second image is Striving for a Composed Image by Jason Altobelli

What is the difference between an astrologist and a tarot card reader?

Recently a few people have asked me what is the difference between astrologists and tarot card readers.


Both require in depth knowledge of their own particular field. I always say a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. I don’t know much about astrology, so I immediately tell people that I know nothing, rather than act on the small amount of knowledge that I do have. Essentially, both astrologists and tarot readers are looking at the patterns in your life, but astrologists are looking at it via the movements of the stars and sun and tarot card readers are looking at it through the energy revealed by the cards you draw.


I usually give the analogy that we are both musicians, but the tarot card reader is playing the piano while the astrologists is playing the violin. We can appreciate each other’s skills and don’t always replicate each other’s results, even though we are both making music…


I always like to credit the images if I can
The first image is Jack Frost by Christopher Mir the last image is from Alan Scheurman's CD cover Old Patterns and sadly I don't know who created the middle image.

Lots of 8’s

I've gone through all the individual cards and the suits, now I am looking at the numbers. What does it mean if we draw lots of 8's in our reading?


Whenever I think of the figure 8, I see it lie sideways, and make the shape of infinity… Eight in tarot is a number of karma and destiny. It also asks us to see things clearly.


I like the progression from the 8 of wands, energy wasted, to the 8 of swords, feeling trapped, to the 8 of cups, walking away with wisdom, to the 8 of pentacles, solidly back in the groove. The eights encourage us to evaluate our situation, let go of what doesn’t work, and make way for the new.

The image of the 8 in crop circles comes from psychedelic adventure
The beautiful quilt of the 8 of cups was made by Joyce Hartley

Independence Day

As people, we don’t have one day of suddenly becoming independent. We have independence moments – a college graduation, when you learn to fix the dishwasher yourself, when you organize a business loan... those moments are worth celebrating!

Of course independence means something different to each person. No one is truly independent, ‘no man is an island’. I always think of humans as a pack animal. We need other people around us, people we can rely on, people who rely on us; family, friends, work mates.


A 50 year old woman I read for recently lamented that since her grandparents death, she has no one to go home to, no one to give her shelter from the storm and allow her time to regroup.

A lot of the people in their mid twenties who come to me are also struggling with what does independence look like for them, some thought they would be further ahead than they are now, some still want to stay home.


A sense of independence comes when we find we can do certain things on our own, and carry certain burdens for those we love, and feel a sense of competence in the world. And that’s worth some fireworks!

Adding light to your life

I'm forever telling people to light candles. Lighting a candle is an ancient ritual and helps create a sacred space...

Well here is a beautiful idea - 365 candles, each inscribed with an inspirational word.

I'm far more likely to use one a week, so this will keep me going for years! :)



Now that I've had some time to think about it, I've decided on these candles - I will burn one a month till it goes, and then find the charm on the bottom of the candle... what could be more charming?

Steering through a tarot reading

Sometimes readings go in themes. I had two readings in a row the other week where three quarters way through the reading, the person confessed that they had been to a different tarot reader the week before (I know, it’s my fault, making people wait so long to see me!) But I wasn’t annoyed, instead I said, well, were the cards the same or different?


One, a man, said that both of us had given the exact same outcome, though my cold reading was better. Seeing that the outcome was that he should stop dating women and let himself recover from a broken relationship, he agreed that he indeed would stop torturing himself and those poor women and only hang with friends till the end of the summer.


The other, a woman, told me that both I and the other reader had told her that her ex, would not come back to her (she then told me that he had since moved in with another woman) But she didn’t see why that couldn’t happen and wanted to wait…


We are all the captains of our ship, and if we have our heart set on one direction, a tarot reading can warn of rocks ahead, but we can’t change the course, only you can…