WTF Court Cards: Bridget Jones - Queen of Cups

It's been a while since I've blogged about pop culture tarot but don't freak out! I'm dedicating the first part of 2015 to finishing off the WTF Court Cards series! Yay!

For those not already in the know - when you first start out with the Tarot there are quite a lot of 'easy' cards. A man in a boat - hello you are going somewhere. A man looking sad because he spilled his drink - OK, this is about disappointment. Easy peasy lemon squeezy let's all be professional tarot readers and quit our day jobs wheeeee! And then you find yourself in the middle of an intense reading for your Mum or someone who's game enough to be your guinea pig, like your cat, and you pull the Queen of Cups, well WTF? It's just a chic on a chair with a cup. Is this about a person? Is this telling you to go to IKEA and get some new mugs? I mean seriously, it's not that helpful. These damn court cards are tricky, even for people who've been reading tarot for a gazillion years. But never fear - WTF Court Cards is here helping make tarot accessible to even the newest of new age hipsters.

Today in Pop Culture Tarot we are learning all about Bridget Jones - Queen of Cups.

Bridget Jones is probably not the first pop culture princess that comes to mind when you think of the Queen of Cups, but stay with me here. We know the Cups suit is all about emotions right? And who is more emotional than Bridget Jones, I mean really?

So the vodka shooting Bridget is probably more like a Queen of Cups reversed card. The emotional wreck. The stalker. The girl who obsesses compulsively about romance, love, has crushes on six guys at once and can't get a proper date with any of them. She drinks too much and this is totally a reversed cups issue, along with depression and all those 'upside down emotions'. The cups people are super emo and their watery vibes are not only symbolic - tears, crying in the bath, wine, beer and vodka. It's all very reversed cups.

The Queen of Cups has a huge tendency to get obsessive about stuff. Men, women, relationships, friendships, family, any of the emotional stuff. They thrive on relationships, and when things aren't going well in that area of their lives it feels as if their lives are falling apart. And this Queen without her King?! OMG please don't even get her started.

While the Queen of Pentacles is going about her business making a career and a life for herself and the Queen of Wands is off saving her family from anything or anyone that gets in the way, the Queen of Cups is most likely to be complaining about how she doesn't have a boyfriend. Career?! She only goes to work because she fancies her boss!

But the Queen of Cups has a hell of a lot of redeeming features and when she's got her shit together she is one of the most sweetest, warmest, friendliest, charming, kindest, loveliest women you'll ever meet. She'll always help you if you ask for it, and even if you don't! She'd do anything for her friends and family and put up with a serious amount of crap to keep the peace. She's a brilliant peace keeper and her greatest desire in life (apart from getting married) is that everyone gets along. She's a hugger. You won't get away without a huge hug and maybe even a pink cover-stay lipstick print on your cheek. As a friend she's adorable and worth her weight in gold. In a relationship she puts it above anything in the world and will do anything to keep her partner happy. Although this means she can be clingy and a little crazy at times, when she's with someone who gets her, every day is like walking on clouds for the both of you. 

The Queen of Cups is the Queen of intuition. Does she think with her head?! Does she use logic? Oh no, hell no! This girl thinks with her gut all the time, making her intuition bang on as long as she's not drunk. When the love of her life is walking out of her flat she has two choices - let him go and talk to him later, or listen to her gut and run the hell after him now (even in pants).

So whenever you see the Queen of Cups come up in your readings be sure to think of Bridget Jones. Remember how even though she's an emotional wreck she is lovely, warm, friendly, romantic and super intuitive even if she doesn't even know it yet.

Queen of Cups/Bridget Jones Cheat Sheet:

<3 intuitive <3 friendly <3 romantic <3 has a crush on everyone <3 life purpose is to find true love (or so it seems) <3 could have a drinking problem <3 obsessive <3 hugger <3 helpful <3 sweet <3 kind <3 cries a lot <3 loves bubble baths <3 clingy <3 puts up with a lot of crap <3 wants everyone to get a long <3 nothing is more important than love! <3 emotional wreck

So how does this work when reading about a situation? OK, you want to know if you should pursue a relationship? Queen of Cups (upright!) says yes. Want to know if your crush fancies you? Queen of Cups reversed - maybe they would if you weren't so damn obsessed about them! Asking about work? Maybe you need to stop obsessing over one element of your job and get a change in perspective. What if your question was about your spirituality and connection to the Universe? Well, hello! You have awesome intuition so work it!

There are a gazillion ways to read the Tarot, and thinking of Bridge as the Queen of Cups is just one way I've used to get really clear on who the Queen of Cups is and what she's about. I'd love to hear about who you think of when you see the Queen of Cups come up in your spreads! Come over to Facebook and let me know how you see this gorgeous ga of the Tarot! x

<3 Sending you so much love, light and intuitive romantic vibes with a tub of ice-cream on the side <3

Vix

Molly Weasley - Queen of Wands

These damn Tarot court cards can be so confusing! What's up with just people just standing there or siting in a chair? How the hell does that help me when it comes up in a reading?! Never fear tarot enthusiasts! Vix from New Age Hipster is here to solve all your tarot card meanings problems - in particular those darn court cards - by doing some simple Tarot/Pop Culture mash-ups!

And today in Pop Culture Tarot - Mrs Weasley as the Queen of Wands!

Everyone loves Molly Weasley. She's the coolest Mum around, and if you don't have a Mum around for whatever reason (Muggle/killed by Voldemort etc.) she'll happily take you in and bake you a bunch of banana muffins. She's warm and sweet and kind, but if you cross her or keep the flying car out too late - WOAH Nellie! - you'll be seeing her flashing around her Elemental fire balls like Wowzah! But then like two seconds later she'll make you a tea.

The Queen of Wands is the Elemental Queen - Elemental as in Fairies. The elementals are fiery, red headed, passionate creatures who live in a world of animals, nature and all that is wholesome. Think fairy houses, tiny doors in century old trees and oh, hey, The Burrow! They don't dig fast paced city life, concrete sky scrapers or fancy Asian fusion restaurants. Give them a pie and a hug and they're as happy as Larry.

Now you might be getting confused at this point - isn't Pentacles the Earth suit? Well, er, yes, technically, but Wands is the Fire suit! It's all about action, adventure, passion and not sitting around on your butt but no matter how comfy your hand knitted throw cushions are, if someone you love is in danger to hell with the muffins! Wands people grab the closest broomstick and beat the bad guy down! Fire spreads through Earth like... well, fire. While the Earth signs are solid, earthy and dependable, these Wands women will bake the best cake at the Hogwarts fair and tomorrow - save you from certain death! And do you know why? Because the Queen of Wands bloody well cares. She cares about nature, animals, family and she cares about those people in the world who are good, and she'll fight for what's right and good while other queens sit on their thrones delegating, making decisions or sending their boys to war. Not this Queen, she's out on the front line, protecting the realm of her Wands people.

Uh, OK, so every time you see the Queen of Wands are you going to read it as Mrs Weasley's coming over for tea? Not exactly, but you are going to have a pretty darn good idea of the archetype and what this card represents. All you need to do when the Queen of Wands pops up in your Tarot spread is think of Molly Weasley.

Queen of Wands/Mrs Weasley cheat sheet:

<3 loyal <3 warm <3 honest <3 family oriented <3 fiery <3 passionate <3 loving <3 loves nature and animals <3 keeps a cosy home <3 adopts children officially or unofficially <3 shouts a lot, but is never mean <3 has a temper! <3 looks like a fairy <3 possible red hair <3 fiery eyes! <3 bakes cookies <3 beats down baddies

So now you're probably thinking about of a bunch of people you know that could be a Queen of Wands type; your Mum, your cool boss at work, yourself, but what about the dreaded 'court card as a situation/outcome' meaning? OK - so you pull the Molly Weasley card when you're thinking about travelling - YES, buy your ticket! You pick the Molly Weasley card when you ask about a relationship - hrm, maybe stop throwing those fireballs huh?! The Molly Weasley card appears when you're asking about work stuff - hello, follow your passion! Doing a spread about your life purpose - easy peasy; the animals and the environment need you, get a job you believe in. Get it?!

Reversed I read her as too fiery or she's lost her passion. Totally unbalanced and unstable. Streaks of meanness may be present in a reversed Queen of Wands, or else she can sometimes be so busy looking after everyone in the end she forgets to look after herself and burns out.

Now you're cooking with gas! You'll never go blank on your Queen of Wands again!

Love, light and trouble-free tarot!

Vix

x

Indiana Jones - Knight of Wands

He comes riding in on his horse to steal the golden crucifix because 'it belongs in a museum'! Here is your Knight in shining armour - the star of the Adventure genre!

Wands are the action cards and this Knight will do anything but sit at home like a potato on the couch. He has a day job but his evenings are spent researching, working or doing physical training while his weekends are mad adrenaline packed adventures! Relationships aren't really his forte, but that doesn't mean his heart isn't as good as gold, he's just busy looking for ancient artifacts, try not to take it personally. I'm sure you are pretty, but you aren't the Holy Grail.

His relationships with his family can be difficult, mostly because he doesn't stick around long enough to actually deal with any issues, not because he doesn't love them to bits really and he'd lay down his life to protect those he loves.

He's a quick mover, but he rides with purpose and in the direction of his goal. If you look at the other Knights in the tarot (we'll get to those guys I promise!) you'll see none of them has the same level of determination as this fiery, passionate Knight! He protects the realm, and he won't budge on what he believes to be good and right.

If you are in a relationship with this Knight, go easy on him. He's got a lot going on in that gorgeous head of his. He's got mysteries to solve and adventures to have and a nagging partner is going to send this guy packing quicker than you say 'ultimatum'. He's looking for an equal - someone who can share his adventures but also be just as content out having their own adventures!

If this card comes up in a reading for yourself it could be time to get a little more adventurous. Instead of planning another beach holiday look into volunteering in South America, or taking a vacay in the Amazon Rainforest! Shake up your life a little when you're in a rut and this card comes up. Do something crazy. Go out for impromptu mid-week drinks or say yes to that date with the weird guy.

This card tells you to channel your inner Indiana and re-ignite your passion! What are you really passionate about? Is there a cause or charity you want to advocate for? Are you passionate about the environment, history, spirituality, cup cakes?! Whatever it is, stick a stick under it and set it on fire!

Reversed this card can mean either Indiana Jones gone bad, or it could be a suggestion for you to calm down a little. Reversed the Knight of Wands suggests you need to find balance, or relates to someone who is unbalanced and flaky.

Adventures are great, but even Indiana Jones has a day job.

There are so many ways to read the tarot cards, and this is just one interpretation that works for me. I'd love to hear about how you read the Knight of Wands when it comes up for you in a reading. :-)

Love, light and archaeological adventures!

Vix

x

Mr Big - King of Pentacles

This one is so blindlingly obvious I really don't even know if it needs to be said. But just in case - Mr Big is the King of Pentacles.

Wanna talk about powerful dudes? Go talk about Mr Big. Not only is he powerful in the office, he's powerful in social situations, and in the bedroom. He ooooozes sex appeal (if you're into like, rich guys) and he's handsome as hell! And he's not just like a regular rich guy with a good job, this guy owns the place. He's a tycoon, a banker, he's got a yacht and it's big enough to live on while his schmucks at the office keep things under control for a month or so.

He's rich, he's smooth, he's damn charming and oh yeah, totally smug about it. Who the hell else in the world could have 'abso-fucking-luely' as their catch phrase and still have women swoon?! I mean it's so cringy really...

In regular life (hey, we don't all hang out with people who own yachts) he might turn up as a an entrepreneur, a guy who studied business, real estate agents, guys who drive expensive cars, CEOs, bankers, investors, conservative guys who spend money on suits and big TVs, corporate guys, OK you get it. Also this guy is kind of predictable; you know when he's gonna cancel cocktails because something always comes up at work. He's an Earth sign, but he's no way not a hippy. He's not out hugging trees he's planning cities from his penthouse office.

So who's this guy when he's reversed? Oh yeah, he's the guy who's having an affair, making dodgy business deals, cheating on his wife and not turning up to your wedding. You seriously don't want to see this guy reversed in a reading (especially about weddings), but upright - girls and boys - you'll be in for the ride of your life! And guys if the King of Pentacles is you - WOAH - keep doing what you're doing and don't say you're going to marry anyone if you don't really feel like it.

Love, light and Sex and the City marathons,

x

Beyonce - Queen of Pentacles

Who runs the world? You might be mistaken in thinking it's 'girls' who run the world, but actually, it's Beyonce. That's right, when the Queen of Pentacles shows up, it's time to let out your inner Beyonce!

What is it about Beyonce? She's hard working, powerful, strong, rich, intelligent, confident, talented, etc. etc. I could go on for days, and yet there's something about her that makes you feel like underneath all that, or even blended in with it is this real softness and a heart of gold. Beyonce is not the kind of women other women compete with, she's the woman we look up to, the woman we try to embody when we want to stand in our power. But she's also the kind of chic you just really want to go clubbing with. You're not even worried about her getting all the attention while you stand in the corner like some kind of droopy drunk wallflower, hell no! Beyonce will take you by the hand and pull onto the dance floor and she will kind of seem like... your equal. How is that even possible!?

Let's take a look at the images (Rider Waite/Pamela Coleman Smith deck above) and traditional meanings for the Beyonce, I mean Queen of Pentacles card. First up she's got a bunny. I can so see Beyonce with a pet bunny, can't you? And how about the way she's looking at that coin? She's got this real look on her face that she just loves that coin, not that she loves money exactly, but she is just totally focused on that thing. You can't be Beyonce without having that kind of focus on what you want! The Queen of Pentacles is a warm, caring, wealthy authority figure who sure as heck did not make it by marrying into the right family, oh hell no. She made it on her own terms with her own blood, sweat and tears. She is so all about the 'if you liked it then you should've put a ring on it, see you later loser' mentality. She's not waiting for Prince Charming, she's too busy building her own empire! Her Prince has to fit in with her life, not the other way around!

What I love most about the Beyonce card is the real blend of powerful focus, integrity and strength and kind nurturing softness which we don't really see with the other Queens.

So ladies, whenever you pull this card in a reading for yourself remember to channel your inner Beyonce! And for all you blokes out there  who are trying to get in touch with their feminine side - the Beyonce/Queen of Pentacles is the epitome of the feminine side so work it! 

Love, light and booty shakes,

x

Eric Northman - King of Swords

If Nick Miller is the King of Cups and Matthew McConaughey is the Page of Swords, Eric Northman is SO King of Swords.

The King of Swords has that sharp edge and silver tongue (see what I did there?!) that the other Kings don't. The King of Cups is like a free jelly beans for all kind of dude, the King of Pentacles is all about doing it for the moola and the King of Wands is a guy who will up and beat you with a stick but maybe not at Scrabble.

But do you really want to play Scrabble with Eric Northman?!

Hello no, he's like a thousand years old and speaks like every European language, he's going to be pretty good at Scrabble. Also, he's probably going to slice you if you you use his triple word score square.

He's the Sheriff of Area 5, owner of Fangtasia (OK, maybe not so much in the current episodes), he oozes authority over everyone in town and beyond and is basically what is known as The Man. He's sharp, quick (physically and mentally!) although emotions aren't really so much his thing. Why couldn't he just love Sookie?! Eric is the ultimate alpha male, but not in that - 'oh gross that guy thinks he is sooooo all that' kind of way. This guy so alpha male you won't even realise until after six weeks of stalking and crying over him your friends surprise you with another one of those intervention parties.

Traditionally the King of Swords is aggressive, ambitious, distrusting, and even a little conservative. You may think Eric Northman is so not conservative, but it's not like he wears colours.

This is the guy that rips off a werewolf's head and then gives you a sparkly grin that makes you weak at the knees when usually you can't even stomach looking at a rare steak. He's scary, powerful, exciting and you could learn a hell of a lot from him. A little King of Swords confidence and energy can go a long way!

I pulled this card from the Tarot of White Cats deck this #Caturday as a reminder that you have the power. When you see this card in a spread and it doesn't relate to a hot date with a Alexander Skarsgaard look-a-like, remember to channel your inner Eric Northman!

Oh and PS - don't forget to contact me here if you'd like a limited time only free reading!

Love, light and sexy vampires,

x

Matthew McConaughey - Page of Swords

I can't be the only person to ever have been taken aback by the striking resemblance between the Page of Swords and Matthew McConaughey, can I? It's insanely obvious, and if you didn't think it was insanely obviously, after reading this post you just may never be able to look at the Page of Swords the same way again!

I was working through The Easiest Way to Learn the Tarot with my brand new Rider Waite/Pamela Coleman Smith deck when I had the epiphany. The first exercise in the book goes along the lines of looking at the cards and imagining you are like, inside the card. It's an awesome way to spend an afternoon, but when I got to the Page of Swords all I could see was Matthew McConaughey. My intuition had clearly gone for a coffee, because seriously, WTF does Matthew McConaughey have to do with anything?!! And every time I see this card all I see is still Matthew McConaughey!

Eventually instead of trying to convince my brain that this card has nothing to do with Matthew McConaughey I wondered if maybe I should try to work out what Matthew McConaughey does have to do with this card.

So I sat down and watched my all time favourite Matthew McConaughey movie; Contact. Released in 1997, written by Carl Sagan who wrote the book, directed by Robert Zemeckis and Jodie Foster wearing Mom jeans, there's seriously nothing it doesn't have going for it. I'm probably starting to sound like some kind of member of the Matthew McConaughey fandom - I'm really not, but I am a HUGE fan of the movie Contact. If you haven't seen it and you are into stuff about the universe, outer space and are basically human you will probably love it. The premise is that Jodie Foster is a scientist and she's searching for messages from aliens basically, and along comes MM playing some kind of priest with a thousand theology degrees who constantly plays devil's advocate with Jodie Foster in this movie...

Oh wait a second... devil's advocate? A guy who always takes the higher ground, he's written a best seller and can totally hold his own in a conversation about God and the universe so he must be intelligent, he's a student of theology, and he's super fit and active - hello traditional meanings! MM spends the whole movie trying to convince Jodie Foster there is a God, he's always arguing his point, talking to her like she's his congregation and taking off his shirt. There's even a couple of scenes in the movie where he's bringing her some important news too!

(OK, so I'm not really talking about Matthew McConaughey. I'm talking about the character in this movie - Joss Palmer. But if I had named this post - Joss Palmer - Page of Swords it wouldn't have quite had the same ring to it.)

This guy sounds kind of annoying, but he's not a bad guy, he's super charismatic, he just has opinions about stuff and thinks his opinions are right. Well, don't we all think our opinions are right? He doesn't sugar coat or mince words, he just tells it like it is. He's so Swords right now!

Seriously, just go watch the movie. Even if you think what I'm talking about here is nuts, it's a great movie anyway!

And stay tuned for more court cards coming to life through pop culture!

Love, light and Matthew McConaughey tarot look-a-likes,

x

Frodo - Ten of Wands

What was Frodo's biggest problem? Was it that he had to carry something really far? Was it that he couldn't find any shoes to fit his big Hobbit feet? Or was it that the thing he had to carry was just so darn heavy? It's not like he was just bringing his Tesco shopping back from down the road after he'd bought way too many bottles of sparkling water. This kid was seriously burdened. And I think that's what's going on in the Ten of Wands.

The Ten of Wands isn't just some guy with his groceries either. He's got sticks, lots and lots of sticks. How did he get them all? What are they? Well that all of course depends on the reading, but as a single card in the context of this blog post let's go with the Frodo thing. He's been given a job to do, and he is the only one who can do it. No one else can carry those sticks for him and he has to deliver them in one piece (ten pieces).

This card might seem like kind of a downer at first glance - oh crap, I've got a lot of stuff to carry/deal with/do. When will this shit be over? That feeling of having a huge weight on your shoulders. But if you're feeling like the Ten of Wands remember Frodo. He's walking, he's going somewhere, he's moving and he's on a quest to save humanity! And quests always end eventually. This feels like a card of getting somewhere with your burden. Frodo walked for 558 minutes all up. That's a long walk, but he got there in the end. He made some amazing friends on the way, had an adventure that most Hobbitses couldn't even dream of and his journey of self discovery was pretty darn epic!

The Ten of Wands is said to be the 'back pain' card, which it could totally be in a certain context. But I wonder... if he just changed the way he was carrying those sticks he could end up with some pretty sweet muscles from all that carrying!

Love light and long quests,

x

*Disclaimer - all thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own and you may or may not resonate with them and that is totally OK!

Remember - the tarot speaks to us all differently. x

Nick Miller - King of Cups

nick-miller

Hands up who struggles sometimes with the court cards? (*Hand goes up*) I mean, what even are they? They are just, like, people sitting or standing around. There's nothing really happening and so it's kind of hard to always make sense of them, especially when you are first starting out with the Tarot. The other cards are easy - 3 of Swords - ah! My heart! 2 of Coins? Sort it out man. 10 of Cups? Wheeeeee! But these court card guys are a little harder to suss out.

I was watching the new episode of New Girl after doing some Tarot practice this week and I was like - OMG Nick Miller is the King of Cups! I totally get the King of Cups card now!

photo (17)

The King of Cups has that look in his eye like he's thinking about something else, something happening in the past, or the future, where is he?! He's super emotional, artistic (Nick wrote half a book about Zombies!), loyal, friendly and creative. And also, don't forget he's a water element!

tumblr_mr3ohfkqMD1rg4wqfo1_500

Reversed he's an emotional wreck who drinks too much, is totally unstable and doesn't fulfill his potential at all. but upright he's the hard working king of hearts, a warm, loyal guy who just wants to make Jess the happiest girl in the world! And she just loves him so much for that exact reason. She sees his full King of Cups potential even when he's grumpy and reversed. Naaaw!

So here's to Nick Miller, King of Cups sorting his shit out and staying upright!

And if you needed a little more inspiration get out your King of Cups and watch the video below, I'd love to hear what you think!

Love, light and watering cans,

x

*Disclaimer - I totally think that whatever definitions you have for the King of Cups are right for you,

and I'm just sharing my own personal ideas about the tarot here. :-)