Tag: yes or no tarot

Zombie Cat’s Short Summer Shamble ’22

Zombie Cat is shambling through again this summer with yes or no Tarot answers for you.

Zombie Cats don’t move quickly.

This one shuffles through each summer since he popped up out the confluence of ideas that was a Schrodinger’s Cat YouTube explainer and a 2015 Menage A Tarot podcast episode. I’ll put up the original “Meet Zombie Cat” blog post on Thursday if you are interested.

I’m incapable of mentioning Menage A Tarot podcast without saying how grateful I am to David S. Dear, voice actor extraordinaire, for bringing me in on the project back in the 2015 Modern Oracle days. I love his current podcast project, Ninth World Journal on Spotify and Kate continues to rock out loud over at Daily-Tarot-Girl dot com. I’ll put links below & in the episode description so you can check out their awesomeness for yourself.

But yeah – Zombie Cat

I’ve spent a LOT of time talking about movie-style predictions and predicting the future with Tarot and how it doesn’t really work and how its not all that useful anyway. Some people just aren’t in a good head space for that. High minded spiritual growth and personal development really is important, and all of that has its place, but sometimes you just want some short, sweet, kick-in-the-pants guidance.

Even though promises of “100% accuracy” a sure sign of a scam in my opinion, sometimes a little “wtf just do a prediction” can get to your intuition in ways thoughtful, careful “listening to your inner wisdom and higher self” can’t. Especially if you go into it knowing any little thing could change the prediction in a heartbeat. Cause and effect really is a thing, you know.

If you come over to the blog post, you’ll see a video of the last few seconds of a yes or no layout. I didn’t have a particular question in mind when I filmed the cards. I really just intended to demonstrate a little of what the yes or no layout process is (I’ll talk about that part tomorrow)

But me being me and me being Zombie Cat (over the years he’s become a fictional character zero flocks to give outlet for the Tony Stark wannabe side part of my personality) we can’t leave it at just a yes or a no. Oh no. No no.

It starts with an age-old yes/no card dealing pattern of who knows what origin.

Then I change the interpretation of the final three cards to align with the yin yang way three coins are interpreted in the Taoist related classic I Ching…which itself has been used for fortune telling for (no-joke) … millenia. The I ching is believed to have been written around 400 to 800 something ish BC in China. But that is also a topic for another day.

Just for fun, think of a question. Make it one that CAN be answered with a yes or with a no. If you are reading the blog, scroll back up to the video to get your test-case answer (If you want a real reading of your individual question, zombie cat readings are available by email, no appointment needed HERE on the blog website and in the ko-fi shop)

In all of these Zombie Cat readings, after we get the flat yes/no answer, I go through card by card with a few intuitive ideas to consider in addition to the yes no. If you don’t like the yes or no that you got, the cards might hint at ways you can nudge things in a different direction. If you like your answer, the cards might give you hints about how you can strengthen the path you are on.

In the video example we see the final cards are the four of swords, the queen of swords and the ace of pentacles. When you get just one ace, I read that as a flat no.

Four of swords asks you to think about where you need to rest and think. Is being overextended, exhausted, or inattentive part of the reason your answer is no? If you wanted a yes maybe a little rest and contemplation, a mental review of the details will show you a different path than the one you are on. If you like the no, is risking fatigue and inattention worth it to keep it that way?

The queen of swords asks you to think about where you are giving away your power. What are you ceeding to other people that makes this a no? If you like the no, what control are you willing to give to keep things going this way?

The Ace of Pentacles points to cost. What does the no cost you? What practical things can you change or do in order to change or keep your “no”?

This is all very vague and general because this is just a vague and general-audience example reading. It is pretty much the Tarot equivalent of wet spaghetti we’re throwing at the blog and pod walls to see what sticks in the hope that it is helpful to somebody somewhere.

Please come back tomorrow for another yes/no example and Thursday for the Zombie Cat post that started this whole thing.

Thank you for listening! See you at the next sip!

David S. Dear, voice actor, podcaster

Daily-Tarot-Girl (Kate)

Menage A Tarot podcast on TuneIn

Be careful what you ask for

TaoCraft Short Sip is Tarot for your day in the time it takes to sip from your coffee, Today The Lovers card reminds us to be careful what we ask for, we just might get it.

Hello and welcome to TaoCraft Tarot blog and podcast. I’m glad you are here.

A few days ago, I put a few announcements just in the print blog with summer hours and how things stand now, in essence it was a post for me to get my proverbial ducks in their proverbial row and that we should all read it quick because my ducks are a bunch of anarchists and lining them up is closer to herding cats.

It turns out that today is one of those crazy duck kind of days, so no reels, shorts, or tiktoks. It’s also a lesson in being careful what you ask for. It’s true that you just might get it.

That’s what the Lover’s card is really about. Sure, there is a lot of steamy romance misconceptions about the card out there, but that’s not the core of it. If you want the get-married card, look for the two of cups. If there is a relationship connection with the lovers card I’d put it in the realm of pure lust, playing the field as the saying goes, and figuring out what you really want from your love life but not about an enduring healthy relationship with any one particular person.

That being said, the Lovers card has application in any part of life. It is about deepest desires. Do you want a long term committed relationship or do you want insert-any-warm-body here companionship? What do you want from your job: a paycheck or fulfilling work or some combination of the two? The same thing applies to anything you want in any facet of life. Sometimes it is all one giant multiple choice test question. Do you want this, that, both or neither.

Deciding what you really want is a critical first step in getting it.

In my experience, it usually turns out to be one of those little bits of both , middle way, yin and yang together solutions. It’s what puts the Tao in Tao Craft Tarot.

There are, however, times when things get black and white. Usually it is the bald faced goodness, yes or the oh-heck-no answers that spark the strongest emotional response. That response can be as telling as the card or the reading.

If you get a white hot flare of anger or rejection when you see a card or get a particular answer in a reading, that tells you what you really want. That tells you that you already knew the answer to what you want or you wouldn’t instinctively reject the card so hard.

If you know what you want, it is easier to get it. If you know what you really deep-down want, then you can’t kid yourself about it. If you know what you really deep down want, you can’t sugar coat the hard parts or BS your way through it.

That’s why the Zombie Cat yes/no layout is far and away one of my favorites. I use it for myself as much as any other, maybe more than any other. It echos the I-ching three coin readings. It can be a clear frying pan to the face kind of reading. It lets you know when to stop screwing around and come face to face what you really want and the buried decisions that you have already made for yourself. The i-ching notion of “changing lines” which are lines that are SO yin or SO yang they can easily tip into their opposite. That’s what the dots in the yin yang symbol are about. Each thing, in its extreme holds the seed of its opposite.

If you read the cards individually in addition to the top level yes or no answer, you can get a lot of nuance and guidance out of the whole thing. The Zombie Cat part makes it light and fun and snarky and playful in the process. I use it all the time as an ice breaker when I am doing fortune teller entertainment at events, like the one at CMU recently. I’ll sit and do yes-no readings for any silly little thing that pops into my head, like will the Pens win the Stanley Cup this year. The answer is always yes to that one, by the way, whether the cards say it or not because this is Pittsburgh and they are the Pens, after all. On an energy level, it sets the right playful, entertainment vibe for a “fortune teller booth.”

The Lovers card asks us to take a hard, honest look at what we really want. The yes or no layout is a good tool to help gain that focus and clarity. That’s the be careful part.

If you tweek the old adage to say be CLEAR about what you want BECAUSE you are PROBABLY going to get it, then you are suddenly living in a whole different universe and it is a pretty good place to be.

Thank you so much for reading and listening. See you at the next sip!

The blog and the podcast are not monetized and depend on audience support. If you are enjoying these Tarot readings, please visit the Tao Craft Tarot page on ko-fi and consider becoming a Patron of the Tarot Arts to get exclusive content and members-only special offers. Peace Tarot is a short ebook about daily meditation Tarot. Proceeds from the sale of Peace Tarot in the ko-fi shop will be donated to Doctors Without Borders USA during 2022. Both ko-fi proceeds and private readings ordered on the blog website support the creation of the blog and podcast.

Of course, your likes, subs, shares, follows, questions and comments are always, always appreciated!

Announcements: MSTBT

spring/summer 2022 schecule, announcements and MSTBT (meat space throw back Thursdays)

Spring and summer are starting to take shape.

It is looking like Thursdays and Sundays are the days where meatspace has my attention and the blog/socials will be mostly if not totally quiet. When time allows, I’d like to do MSTBT…MeatSpaceThrowBackThursdays. I’ll pull something out of the TaoCraft archives to post here on the blog. Modern Oracle archives are going to close on April 30. That’s the plan, anyway, but you know how THOSE go around here.

The podcast definitely won’t be happening Thursdays and Sundays unless it is some sort of extra special bonus episode.

That being said:

EMAIL READINGS NEVER CLOSE! Order 24/7/365 no appointment needed. Delivery times are less than 12 hours on a typical business day, but may take a few days if you order during nights, weekends, US holidays, or announced vacations etc.

The NEW Ko-fi shop never closes! Ebook are always available for instant download. All proceeds from the sale of PeaceTarot through the k0-fi shop in 2022 will be donated to Doctors Without Borders, USA

The OLD Etsy shop never closes! Meditation beads and bead jewelry designed and handmade by me is still there and will be for the foreseeable future.

Scheduling by email never closes! In-person Tarot for both individual and parties require advance appointments (sorry – no same day appointments) BUT you can schedule any time by sending an email to TaoCraftTarot@gmail.com

The phone number never answers! Due to changes in the voip service I use, the phone number on the contact page only accepts voicemail and text messages. If you schedule an in-person reading or party, I will provide a number where you can call me the day of the appointment if needed. Call it more cost cutting so I don’t have to raise prices.

Meanwhile, I got meatspace stuff I gotta do so here is a YouTube video. See you at the next sip!

https://youtu.be/zpjgz4Qqbjs

Throw Back 2021: Ogres

It’s that retrospective, year-in-review time of, ahem, year.

I used to think it was fun and sentimental. You know, reflection, introspection, personal growth and all that. But now I’m older and wiser. It’s also easy content. Who am I to argue with that logic? (She says as she shuffles off for another cup of spiced coffed and a cranberry scone for breakfast)

Today we’re throwing back to April. If you are more in a mood to look forward, “Year Ahead” readings are available by email on the home page. Memberships get both an exclusive “month ahead reading” on the ko-fi blog and a private year ahead reading by email when you join.

That being said, here is “Growing Ogres” from April 2021.

Shrek: ….ogres are like onions

Donkey: They stink?

….

Shrek: No! Layers! Onions have layers. Ogres have layers. You get it? We both have layers

from “Shrek” copyright 2001 Dreamworks Pictures, quote via imdb.com

Layers mean complexity. Layers apply to all sorts of things that are actually more complex than they seem at first glance; ogres, onions, cakes and – you guessed it – Tarot.

Reading Tarot for yourself is actually quite simple. In a couple of hours I could teach you to do good DIY readings for yourself. (Related: PeaceTarot ebook)

Reading for other people is another story. High level professional readings are, like onions and ogres, more complex than it seems on the surface. That’s the whole point of them. A professional reading can gives you extra layers of insight and experience that you can’t get alone. Two heads are better than one. Two eyes give depth perception (related post: parallax) The two of us working together gives your reading another layer of understanding.

Sometimes layers talk about authenticity. Sometimes you have to peel back a few layers to get to the real heart of the matter. We’ve talked about authenticity and public Tarot practice before, after my Modern Oracle Tarot work was re-branded to TaoCraft Tarot (related: what’s in a name, Shakespear’s Roses, Spell Your Name)

That’s all well and good, but consider another aspect of layers: growing new ones. Interestingly, actual onions grow on the inside. New layers are added at the core while older outside layers get dry and thin and ultimately fall away. In this, onions give us another useful metaphor.

In the medical field, and no doubt many other professions, continuing education is a condition of licensure and employment. You have to keep learning and keep current if you want to keep working. Whether it is required or not, whether it is career related or not, lifelong learning is a respected mark of excellence. Learning isn’t just formal education. Learning comes from experience and experimentation and the living of life. Artists’ work evolves over time. Any person’s point of view can evolve over time.

And so, the “Modern Oracle” layout is evolving. I’m calling abort on the video / text hybrid format. It was an experiment that failed, and I’ve learned something important from it.

Remember how deeper layers are often perceived as more authentic and how old layers of growing onions turn papery and fall off? It’s time for the 5 and 7 card Modern Oracle layouts to evolve, to become more authentic, to show more of their inner complexity. The video hybrid isn’t the way for that to happen. The names of layout card positions are changing. It’s a tiny detail that you may not even notice from your side of the Tarot table. On my side of the table it is important shift in mindset. This allows me to fully and authentically follow what intuition and spirit shows me.

I wrote the initial layout meanings to create a bridge from old fashioned, predict-the-future, fortune telling layouts to a more modern advice, guidance and empowerment reading. I wrote the Modern Oracle layouts specifically to show the power of your choices over your future. Cards that once were called “past, present and future” in the old style became “lessons from the past, current situation, and moving forward.” Predicting the future evolved into making an action plan.

Now it will go one step further. I in my minds’s eye, I see a reading in terms of dynamic energy flows, not a concrete road through time. As Modern Oracle layouts become TaoCraft layouts, we will let go of time and predictions entirely. If the Modern Oracle layout was like GPS map for your path ahead, the TaoCraft layout is like a GPS traffic update with a weather report.

Card 1, lessons from the past, will become Fading Energies, symbolizing energies that are moving away from you. These are things that need less of your attention.

Card 2, current situation, will become Current Energies, the energies that are strongest, and deal with things that need your attention in this moment.

Card 3, moving forward will become Growing Energies, energies moving toward you, or gaining influence in the path you’ve currently chosen. It still isn’t predictive. It is still intended to guide you, help you prepare for possible conditions ahead. Think of it like a weather report. It doesn’t tell you exactly what will happen to you during your day, but it can give you the chance of rain or sun while it happens.

Card 4 will remain Choices. It is still placed under the current energies card and at the center of the layout because that is still the place of power. Empowering your choices is still the heart of the reading. The choices card will take on a more advisory tone than before. Instead of suggesting how to persist or how change your path, it focuses on whether changing or whether staying the course is the wisest thing to do.

Card 5 is still Alternative Path just like before, showing the most open alternative path you if you decide a change is needed.

Card 6 Helping Energies and card 7 Potential Challenges are the same as always, and speak to exactly what the name implies.

Long story short, if you are dead set on a specific “accurate” prediction, you aren’t going to like the new TaoCraft layouts. If that’s the case, you need the Zombie Cat yes/no readings like we did the other day. Even then, you have to realize it isn’t 100%.

,

10-23-21 Zombie Cat Still Shambles

Next weekend? Really? Well that month escalated fast.

Just a quick reminder that Zombie Cat yes/no readings are $5 off for only one more week before the price goes back to abnormal.

Zombie Cat yes/no readings used to be seasonal, but they are available year-round now on the “Special Layouts” section of the no-appointment email readings page.

What makes them “Zombie Cat” readings? They are written with fictional cartoon alter-ego Zombie Cat’s tongue in what’s left of his cheek mildly snarky dad joke level sense of humor . He’s a zombie. He’s a cat. He doesn’t care about how predictions do or don’t work. Zombie Cat doesn’t care about disclaimers (they still apply – ZC just doesn’t give a rat’s patootie about them) Ask ANYTHING. No promises it will be an answer you want to hear. Want a prediction? He’ll give it to you. It just might be dead wrong.

In other words, they are perfect fun for Halloween.

Or any other time of year.

Order yours HERE

Today’s Tarot: After the Fall

********

Zombie Cat is back! He lives year round on the ‘no appointment needed’ Tarot page, but he’s front page news during Spooky Season with $5 of a yes/no reading by email. STILL no appointment needed – order anytime, 24/7

Ask Zombie Cat ANYTHING. He’ll make it yes/no and give you the straight answer, not matter what it is. Zombie Cat’s yes/no readings have a 100% gaurantee of containing some words and 50% chance of being dead wrong.

Welcome to the Equinox: Zombie Cat Shambles 2021!

READ THE POST THAT STARTED IT ALL: MEET ZOMBIE CAT

Intention is everything in subtle energy work. Anything that isn’t covered by intention is usually covered by symbolism.

The YouChoose post this morning talked a little bit about liminal energies and transitional spaces. Some transitions are sharp and out of the blue, like walking through a narrow doorway. Others are slow and build gradually, like walking down a long hallway. At first I’d thought about making this post as a ginormous list of everything I’ve been working on, posting them today to honor the equinox and the beginning of my favorite season and that would be that.

That’s not today’s energy

I feel nudged to go with a slow roll-out instead of a terse list. That will let me give full attention to the intention and symbolism behind these things such as they are. Today….

ZOMBIE CAT IS BACK!

Zombie Cat is an alter-ego sort of character that came from the old blog, when I working under the name Modern Oracle Tarot, inspired by the famous Schrodinger’s cat experiment and an episode of Menage A Tarot podcast. Zombie Cat lives all year in the special & lower cost readings section of the no appointment email readings page. During Halloween, ZC comes out to play on the home page.

I enjoy Zombie Cat. I enjoy doing short, fun, anything goes yes-or-no readings from that slightly snarky frame of mind. Frame of mind and fun both count in this kind of work. That is why when I do a cutesy pants promotional price reductions anymore unless it has some sort of symbolic meaning for me. In this case, I’m reducing the price of Zombie Cat readings to give energy to all the fun that Zombie Cat gives and all that Halloween and Autumn mean for me.

But I’m hoping it will entice a bunch of you to get these holiday readings, too.

Zombie Cat yes/no readings are $5 off until Halloween. Get yours HERE

Zombie Cat

Something Completely Different

Dammit Jim, I’m a writer not a…..

At this point, low production value sucky YouTube videos and awkward podcasts are practically my BRAND in the social media Tarot world. This is no different.

But it IS different in base content. This shows you how I do my yes-or-no readings. The layout came up in conversation with a client and ever since it has been niggling at my attention.

Sooo….

After all these years (30 of them, remember?) I’ve learned to listen to the niggles when the capricious muses hit me over the head with a cosmic shillelagh if you’ll pardon the mixed metaphor.

I think Zombie Cat wants a summer shamble. The paws are itching to do some yes or no layouts for you good folks. No, this isn’t a cutesy pants special offer, this is something straight up NEW.

I’ve added a yes/no Tarot THREE QUESTION bundle in the special layouts section of email distance Tarot that is available to you to order 24/7/365.

Individual results and delivery times may vary, all policies and disclaimers apply, no lifeguard on duty, swim at your own risk, wash your hands, eat your vegetables and ffs consult with your doctor and get your friggin’ vaccine.

Q&A: Change or Persist?

yes or no career tarot reading with behind the scenes explanation

Yes or no questions seem predictive: Will X happen, yes or no?

Yes/no readings are a fun to play with. I could sit here, play Zombie Cat* and make predictions all day just as long as everyone realizes that it is all really coin-toss random-ass probabilities and not really a serious “prediction.”

Yes/no Tarot readings can be much more than a magic black ball entertainment prediction. They can give legit, genuinely helpful, short term guidance. It is all a matter of focus and application.

Tarot’s greatest value is overarching, big-picture, life path guidance. It is all about spiritual enrichment, spiritual expression, personal cultivation….you know – generally trying to be a better person and live a good life. Tarot readings, especially the bigger 3, 5 and 7 card layouts, are all about understanding the current situation, making better choices and moving ahead in the best way possible. Big readings are like GPS directions to where you ultimately want to go.

Instead of long term GPS, a yes/no reading is like a single sonar ping of any given moment. It gives a very helpful, but short term, close range nudge in the right direction when you are choosing between two seemingly equal things or want a quick follow up to a previous big reading. Yes/no readings help you deal with right here and right now, but not much else.

Today’s question is a little bit of both. It is one of those all-else-equal things, and also follows up a longer reading from a few weeks ago. It is about a fine tuning a current solo project, nothing to do with long term plans or that would affect other people. Considering all of that, a yes/no reading is ideal for this question.

Q: Should I switch _____ back to _____ or should I continue as it is?

Ok, to start with, a yes-or-no layout can’t answer a this-or-that question. I don’t mean for that to sound harsh. I get it. It is hard to distill things down to a yes-or-no question when you have all sorts of options and resources and different possibilities all swirling around in your head. If you could focus things down to a clear yes or no question, chances are you wouldn’t need a Tarot reading to help make up your mind.

In the early days of my professional practice, I would ask the questioner/sitter to rephrase the question, thinking that it was important for them to put the question into yes/no format in order to properly connect to their spirit message. Learning from experience, I don’t do it that way anymore. They’ve got enough on their mind. That’s why they are here. I convert the question into yes/no format and then proceed with their consent.

Today’s question has two main components; changing and continuing, which begs the question of which part do you ask yes or no about?

After all these years of experience, I’m totally comfortable with just following intuition, and focusing on the component part that seems to carry the greatest energy signature….in other words, which part seems to step forward to carry the weight of the question. If you are reading for yourself I suggest doing the same. If you don’t feel comfortable with shoot from the hip pure intuition, there are lots of different randomizing strategies you could use to help you pick between “Should I change yes or no?” and “Should I persist, yes or no?”

In a two option question like this one, it really doesn’t matter which you choose. A no on one automatically gives you a yes on the other and vice versa. If it is a multiple componant question, things get a lot more complicated. You could do a series of yes/no readings on each of the components, but that gets muddy, convoluted, contradictory and very confusing super fast.

Don’t.

Trust me, just don’t. Write down the components and pick them out of a hat. Triage, and take the most time critical piece first. Do eenie meenie miny moe….anything. Just don’t do strings of of yes/no readings in a row. If the question is too complex, either use a larger, more nuanced layout OR simplify the question and focus on one key part.

The process of dealing into 3 stacks until you either get an to an ace or to 13 cards (whichever comes first) is an old, common knowledge, nobody knows where it came Tarot reading. I like to take it one step further and interpret the final three cards together as if they were a pathway reading in order to get more guidance from the whole process than just a yes or no answer alone.

If that seems like a big, complicated, pain in the ass process to get a good result from a simple yes-or-no question…it is. If you don’t want to yes/no read for yourself, please, order a yes/no reading from me. It’s affordable and I could sort the whole thing out in half the time it took me to explain it all just now.

New Q: Should I change?

A: Maybe but lean yes. Probably yes, actually.

The Fool card speaks to the fresh start and a new infusion of energy and enthusiasm that the new direction would bring to the project. Being a major arcana card, the Fool lends an extra push in the “yes” direction.

The Ace of Swords speaks to the creative and intellectual energy a change could bring. There is a very upward, uplifting quality to the energy.

Of course, seeing the Ace of Pentacles is always a good sigh in any kind of work or career related reading, even a quick yes/no like this one.

All things considered, this hints that making the change in the project is a good idea. Intuitively I feel very positive about it. My attention is drawn to the gold color on the Pentacles card. It isn’t so much about the precious metal as it is the color psychology and the resonance with the solar plexus chakra which in turn has to do with confidence and optimism and personal power. Wear gold or gold tone jewelry if you can. Pyrite or Tiger Eye are also good crystal energies here. It feels temporary…not a long term alliance between you and the tiger eye, however. Again the gold tone feels like a better fit. Grounding, centering woody scents seem important, like sandalwood in particular comes to mind. Pretty standard kinds of recommendations. After a time, I get the sense the tiger eye energy will drift back to the light blue and blue lace agate for communication that we talked about before, but for now the sun / yang energy and warmth of the brown and gold feels more forward.

Thanks again for your permission to do your reading as an example. I’m pulling for you and hope this works out really well, especially for a financial and name recognition boost.

Best Wishes – Ronda

*AZCA is still a thing . You can ask Zombie Cat Anything for free. Use the contact form HERE to ask anything, even for a prediction. Your answer will come in a redacted-for-privacy blog post (like this one, but without the video.) All Zombie Cat answers are for entertainment only, 100% guaranteed to contain words, and have a 50% chance of being dead wrong.

The Answers You Don’t Like

I’m just going to let this video stand too.

BUT I would still very much like to know your thoughts about yes or no readings in general, this particular format, anything. Comments are open. If for some reason it gives you grief, email me at TaoCraftTarot@gmail.com and I’ll get it to the blog.

OR ask Zombie Cat anything.

Zombie Cat shambles off this weekend, but he’s willing to barter. If you have a yes or no question, he’ll answer it at no charge in return for answering publically on the YouTube channel. Don’t worry…no identifying details are ever used. Nobody has any interest in doxing anybody. It’s entertainment only, all disclaimers apply, wear a mask, wash your hands, swim at your own risk, no lifeguard on duty.