I’ve started getting books and decks that people want me to review, and Kickstarters and IndieGoGo campaign links sent to me for consideration. It’s weird, in that I don’t feel like even marginally well-known. I have been doing readings for a long time, and I’ve had this site up for four years (and my book is coming out soon!), but honestly, I feel like I’m on the sidewalk of famous street. It’s so flattering when folks ask me to look at their stuff. And so I review and I consider and I look at links because I like to share awesome things with my friends. 

I’m pretty particular about which Kickstarter accounts I back because Joe and I have agreed on a One Tarot Deck per Quarter ™ agreement, and what if I choose a deck that won’t work for me! I have to wait three more months to get a deck and the anxiety that that causes – the uncertainty – the possibility of spending time and money on a deck that’s Not Mine!  Augh!

But every once in a while, I’ll get a Kickstarter invite that is absolutely enchanting and I can’t say yes fast enough. I got a very sweet email from Peony Coin Archer about the lovely deck that she created with Olivia Pepper. First of all, their names sound like they’re creators of fairy tales. Secondly, this deck (The Little Monsters Tarot) isn’t the only thing they’ve done. You can see more of their beautiful work here. I backed the Kickstarter because I need to hold these cards in my hand. I was also able to get these beautiful Crystal Portrait cards in time for my son’s eleventh birthday (they were so sweet to send them early!)

Confession – I don’t like rounded tarot cards.  I also don’t like black and white decks. BUT – this oval shaped deck of black and white pictures is completely enchanting and I can’t wait to read with them. I’ll update you guys as soon as I get them, ok?  It could be that these aren’t my cards, and that the heartbreak of having a Not Mine Deck is coming my way. That’s possible. I don’t think that’s what will happen, though. I think this rounded, black and white deck covered in Little Monsters is going to fit beautifully into my hands and become a My Deck. And I’ve been told I have pretty good intuition.

Peony and Olivia were nice enough to fill out the questionnaire for us. Thanks, ladies. 

xo LFT

LFT Questionnaire Thinger

1.  What do you appreciate the most in your friends?

PA: Willingness to take things as they come; I love all my friends, but the brave adventurous ones willing to take risks (and laugh it off when those risks don’t always pay off) are particularly important.
OP: I love my friends’ kindness and their dedication to art & creativity. I’ve been diligent and lucky and have surrounded myself with people who inspire me deeply and are amazing creative partners.

2.  Your idea of happiness.

PA: A week alone in a country where I do not speak the language, with beautiful gardens full of interesting plants to learn.
OP: An afternoon of zero pressure and everything on the to-do list done or vanished, maybe finishing a beautiful novel and getting to rest in a hammock and savor the last words of it, drowsing in the sun, having big dreams and feeling momentarily released from the stranglehold of time.

3.  Your idea of misery.

PA: Becoming so busy that I lose sight of how lucky I am to be living the life I have chosen!
OP: Living a life untrue to oneself and knowing it deeply.

4.  Where would you like to live?

PA: I am always pining for the desert, particularly the salt flats of Utah.
OP: I enjoy a nomadic existence, but I’ve always said if I suddenly had money I would immediately buy an apartment in New York City, even if I only intended to live there a few months out of the year. There’s always something electric and remarkable about that city.

5.  Your favorite colors and flowers.
PA: I love wild violets more than anything. In my day-to-day life, I prefer wearing/using grays.
OP: I really do love all colors, though lately (surprisingly) I’ve been favoring a sort of neon salmon. My favorite flowers are stargazer lilies, bright orange roses, blue iris and purple lilacs.

6.  Your favorite poets.

PA: Emily Dickinson, Robert Haas,
OP: Anne Sexton, Pablo Neruda, Adrienne Rich

7.  Your heroes/heroines in fiction.

PA: Lyra from the Golden Compass,
OP: Same as Peony. Also Gandalf.

8.  What role does divination play in your life?

PA: I pull cards in the morning, especially on the cusp of travels and changes. They are a nice companion to begin the day.
OP: I have been reading cards for 25 years. It is my livelihood, my passion, and the only thing besides writing that I may have invested enough hours in to be considered a master.

9.  Your heroes/heroines in real life.

PA: Ursula K Le Guin, Joan of Ark, Beyonce.
OP: Hildegard von Bingen, Monica Lewinsky, Janet Mock, all struggling artists everywhere.

10.  What is your present state of mind?

PA: I am on an airplane, trying to remember that it is remarkable and startling that I am hurtling through the air at 30,000 feet up, regardless of the fact that I am in a middle seat, someone is kicking me, and I can’t see out of the window.
OP: Sleep-deprived in the San Francisco International Airport, pretty much in love with the world and taking a huge leap of faith and wondering what I’ll see as I tumble down this rabbit hole.

11.  What is your favorite tarot deck or divination tool?

PA: I use the Rider-Waite.
OP: I have many beloved decks, but I also enjoy dream interpretation and casting runes.

12.  Your favorite songs?

PA: Right now, I am listening to Grimes, Chvrches, Thomas Tallis, The Cure, and Dosh.
OP: I listen to a bunch of music by my friends, but I am also especially into the new James Blake, Rihanna, Son Lux, and a gorgeous concept record called Hannibal by my dear friend Cole Bee Wilson.

13.  What is your favorite word?

PA: Eft.
OP: Weird.

14.  What is your least favorite word?

PA: Tummy.
OP: Membrane.

15.  What sound or noise do you love?

PA: Rain on the roof of a parked car at night.
OP: The orchestra warming up before the symphony.

16.  What sound or noise do you hate?

PA: High-pitched TV hums.
OP: Metal screeching on metal.

17.  What turns you on?

PA: Openness, consent, conversation.
OP: Consent, authenticity, vulnerability.

18.  What turns you off?

PA: Patriarchy.
OP: Heteronormativity, automated pornography behaviors.

19.  What is your favorite curse word?

PA: I’m not sure if I have a favorite! I’m from Texas, so suppose living up north I miss the original ones.
OP: Bastards! The consonants are super satisfying.

20.  If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?

PA: It’s cool.
OP: High five, you did it!