Recently Arwen started a Tarot Tag consisting of 15 really interesting questions, #tarottag15. You can watch her original video here. I’m still a blogger at heart, not a vlogger, so I’m going to join in on the tag via blog post.

1. What is your current favorite deck?

It’s hard to say what my “favorite” is. Above left to right: Golden Universal Tarot, an unpublished Rider-Waite-Smith replica in private collection, Azathoth Tarot by Nemo, and Tarot of the Holy Light (THL) by Christine Payne-Towler.

The Golden Universal is my “workhorse” working deck, which I use for my professional readings. The Rider-Waite-Smith replica was gifted to me and is currently the deck I’m using for mediumship work. I reserve this deck exclusively for mediumship tarot work. The Azathoth is my personal reading deck, as is the Tarot of the Holy Light.

2. What Tarot card do you think stands for who you are now?

The Queen of Swords continues to be my significator or signifier card. Pictured above is the Queen of Swords from the Golden Universal Tarot.

3. What Tarot card do you think stands for who you want to be?

Currently striving to embody qualities of The Star.

4. Draw a Tarot card and tell us how it answers the question, “What does the Universe want you to know right now?”

I drew the Seven of Wands. At the moment I’ve been feeling overwhelmed with work and feeling weak physically, so I see where this is going. Notice that I used the mediumship-only deck. Implying… I tweaked the question a bit and didn’t just ask “the Universe.” 🙂

5. Do you have any cards that you MUST love in order to work with a Tarot deck?

No, but I prefer working with decks that are a tempered balance between the dark and the light. Dark decks are a lot of fun to play with and look at, but I don’t read with them. Light decks can sometimes annoy me, so I definitely can’t read with one.

6. Why Tarot and not some other divination system?

Tarot came to me first. I guess technically if we’re being literal, the I Ching did, or maybe palmistry and tea leaf reading, I don’t know, but I was too young to understand the I Ching and palmistry and tea leaf reading were what my Taiwanese aunts and uncles, and Mom, were really into so on that count alone, pre-pubescent me was not going to be into it. I just feel closely attuned to the cosmos through tarot.

7. What’s the first book you can remember reading about Tarot (other than the LWB [Little White Book]?

Eden Gray’s Mastering the Tarot.

8. What Tarot person would you like to sit down with for a chat about Tarot

Wait, did you mean alive or dead?

Of the alive ones, I’ve been lucky and I’ve had the incredible privilege to meet my tarot heroes. Of the alive ones, basically I’d like to beam all of my tarot buddies into my home, bake up a big batch of cookies, brew some green tea, and talk tarot with them all.

Of the dead ones, Gerard Encausse (better known as Papus), Paul Foster Case, Eliphas Levi… Does W. B. Yeats count as a tarot person? Because if yes, then him, too. I mean, we all know he was way into the tarot… right? I would have also loved the opportunity to have met Eden Gray.

9. Tell me about one YouTube Tarot channel that you watch (and why.)

Arwen‘s. I swear I am not just saying that because this is her tag challenge. I also watch Ethony‘s channel, Wild Intuitive, Avalon, Joey Morris isn’t specific to tarot, but she’s got enough tarot content in there to count I say, Andrew Barker is so sweet, oh wait, how can I leave out Jessi Huntenburg, I also dig Áine Órga, of course YouTube tarot superstar Kelly-Ann Maddox, down-to-earth Tarot by Ania, and also not specific to tarot but enough tarot in there to count, Renee Yin.

Christiana Gaudet was hands down my favorite when she was still vlogging regularly. I subscribe to, like, a dozen more tarotists on YouTube, but those are the ones that come immediately to mind. Also– like literally an hour ago, I just discovered Luna Celeste‘s up and coming YouTube Tarot channel and I love her fresh vibes.

10. How many Tarot decks do you have?

I have no idea. A couple years ago I was telling everybody 100. Then last year I sat down and actually counted them all to log into an inventory and it was closer to 300. I was off by, um… 200 decks. My collection is diverse and I have a little bit of everything, from dark to fluff, esoteric tarot to Hello Kitty and love-and-light.

Oh–also, I’ve started giving them away, too, so it’s been a whole bunch of addition and subtraction. I really have no idea. I don’t even have a ballpark. Like I said, for a while I was saying 100 when really it was actually 300. That gives you a sense of how little idea I have.

11. Do you mix oracles and Tarot when you read?

Sometimes, but not often. When I’m reading for myself on a mundane matter, I like to draw three or four tarot cards, then a couple of cards from an oracle deck to help formulate an action plan, and maybe one of those message oracle decks. Above you see an oracle and tarot mix. I’m currently loving Ethony’s Awakened Soul Oracle and Nicole Piar’s Spirit Cats Inspirational Cards. By the way, Spirit Cats is one of my favorite and fun go-to oracle decks for tarot-oracle combination readings. Both Ethony’s and Piar’s decks are such inspirational pick-me-uppers, especially when you’re in a foul mood.

Expounding on a tarot card you’ve drawn by pulling an oracle card for the tarot card can also prove insightful. Sometimes when clients ask me follow-up questions after a tarot reading, I’ll reach for an oracle deck to pull a card or two.

However, in general, my integrative use of tarot and oracle is rare. I tend to stick with tarot only in my professional readings. Then when reading for myself, on occasion I’ll decide on a whim to reach only for an oracle deck rather than tarot. I speculate that the tarot and oracle deck combined reading approach is relatively new. I hadn’t heard much about the practice until recently.

12. Have you ever created your own Tarot card or deck?

I created a tarot card for a collaborative tarot project a while back, the Tarot Pink, a charity project that donated all sales proceeds to support breast cancer awareness. My card was the Two of Wands. You can spot my contribution in the top row above, second card from the left.

I am also in cahoots with U.S. Games to produce a keywords study deck for the RWS, but I didn’t create the deck. You know, Waite and Smith created it. I’m just helping put together a derivative of it that includes keywords for study.

There’s a Chinese oracle bone script divination deck you can download the digital files to for free by clicking on the below banner. It comes with a guidebook even. Everything is in the linked zip file.

13. Do you read for yourself?

Yes. My first readings were for myself, asking questions like “does he like me” and “will I get an A on my science test.” Hey now. At 13 years old, the answers to those questions were way more important to me than life purpose or magnum opus.

14. What are your favorite questions to be asked when you do a reading for someone else?

I don’t have favorite questions to get asked. I tend to have a neutral, open, receptive attitude for whatever walks through that figurative door.

15. What’s the craziest thing that’s happened to you during a reading?

Too much crazy to count. I have no idea which would be the “craziest,” or even which definition of “crazy” to go with, because all shades of crazy really have come through. Also, the craziest thing to have happened that I immediately think of was a client reading and there’s no way to tell the story without getting specific, and I’m not so sure the client would like that, so regrettably, I can’t share.

And now it’s your turn. =) If you haven’t joined in already, then do so! #tarottag15 Link me your responses in the comments below. I’d love to read!