Updated:
RICK MACDONNELL
- Feb. 27/10
I'm not what you'd call a paranormal fan. I don't buy into ghosts, or spirits, or the netherworld. I regard clairvoyants in much the same way I do Criss Angel or David Copperfield: they're charlatans who trick the willfully ignorant into handing over hard earned money.
Given this preface, I did something strange today. I went to a psychic.
Although I put absolutely no faith in their wisdom or mystic understanding, psychics have always intrigued me. Maybe I've watched too many episodes of Carnivale, or maybe I'm just desperate for some sign that there is something out there that's greater than my understanding. I don't know.
All I know is that I've always wanted to experience a reading personally, and in light of the potentially life-changing adventure I'm on right now in Whistler, I thought that there was no better time than the present.
Pow, right in the kisser!
And so, at The Oracle at Whistler, I met with Brett MacDonald, who'd I'd normally call a "self-proclaimed" medium, but considering the amount of diplomas hanging on his wall declaring his qualifications, apparently there's some kind of governing body that oversees this sort of thing.
I have my doubts that it's Hogwarts, but it appears that such places do exist.
 Psychic Brett MacDonald buttered me up as much as he could have. What a guy. RICK MACDONNELL/SnowSeekers |
Brett (first name only, please) took me through your pretty standard tarot reading, where I first selected 10 cards from a stack of 78. After I chose my 10, Brett jumped right into things and hit me with a right hook to the jaw: "He is little known in his field."
Gee, thanks Brett. I'm not saying you're wrong, but you could have eased me into this thing.
I then discovered that my future will be defined by my past, that I will often look back with nostalgia on current events. I make my living through creativity, he said, and that at that very moment my mother was worried if I was doing okay.
Take my word for it, all three of those are true. Especially the last one, I'm sure.
Listen up, Doc Pow
I then asked Brett, specifically, how this whole Olympic experience will shape both me and my future. I chose 11 cards from the pack. After pulling out a card, Brett said, "They're not paying you enough."
Ahem ... are you reading this, Doc Pow, Barb? Brett says I'm awesome and you two should pay me more. Given that he's all in touch with higher powers and whatnot, I'd listen to him if I were you. You might wake up tomorrow as a turtle or ... a snowblader.
Hey, it wasn't me that said these things. It's the spirits, man. The spirits!
At this point I noticed something strange. In a 78-card deck (no two are identical), I managed to choose the same six or seven cards over again with only 10 chances to do so. Things were getting weird.
After reiterating my creativity and how my passions will shape my future, I was told that my strength is internal. Maybe Brett foresaw this, or maybe he just looked at my less-than-imposing physique, but regardless, apparently my strengths are character, courage, and conviction.
Just the beginning
The reading ended with my "positive" card. I chose the Burden, which is an odd "positive" card to choose. This indicated overload, Brett said. The burden of success.
He says that my company is sometimes overwhelmed with responsibilities, but at the same time they show our worth, that we're proving something to people.
You still reading this, you two? Brett says we kick ass. And that you need to give me money.
At the end of the day, do I believe in psychics more than I did before? Not really. But if the experience taught me anything, it's that if there really are spirits out there, then they're on my side.
Maybe it's all thanks to Doc Pow's meditation, but it sounded like, for myself and SnowSeekers, the Olympics are only the beginning.
Now give me my money!
