reading in bars

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 01 Dec 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

gypsy	01 Dec 2004
a post about reading in public places prompted me to ask this. do you feel that bars can inhibit your ability to do good readings? i ask because my husband recently began bartending down the road from our apartment, and i just hang around there while he's working. i thought it would be a great place to do some readings since it's a very laid back place. so far, i haven't done any, i haven't even taken out my cards, just because it seems like i can't concentrate when i'm there. almost as if i feel slightly drunk, even without drinking anything. i never paid attention to this feeling in other bars (never even thought about it!) so i don't know if it's universal for me, or just something about that particular place. i've never had problems reading in public before. i constantly read for my co-workers in the break room, where there is bad music over the pa, people walking through, interrupting and asking questions, etc. so far, i've been blaming it on the atmosphere of a place where people come to blur their thoughts and forget their troubles. any thoughts on this? any ideas to remedy the situation?

Ace	02 Dec 2004
I would say don't read in the bar! you are very sensitive and picking up on others without even trying. I would say unless you can throughly shield yourself (imagine a membrane around yourself or something) you can't function well there. And if you read, you must let the querent within your shield. You must also work at dumping the querent's energy after a reading. If you still feel the same way when the bar is empty or closed, then it might be pattern matching past stuff in the bar, but a bar (this bar at least) sounds like a bad place for you to work in. IMHO.

Pook	02 Dec 2004
From an ex-bartender, I would recommend to you that a bar is not a good place to do a reading if you are expecting to actually give someone a reading that they will remember and consider when making decisions. I used to work in a bar on a very slow laid back morning shift...yes, people, morning....I opened the place up at 8 am.....anyway, some issues that I would expect to encounter: 1) skeptics...always, there are skeptics. Even when you try and find a quiet spot to do the reading, someone who is drinking will shout something, trying to amuse the rest of the drunk idiots sitting around the bar counter. Or before you even get to the reading, someone will say something negative about tarot and the sitter will inevitably have that on his mind. 2) noise...as mentioned before, there is the radio, others peoples conversations, a knocked over glass of beer. You never know what will happen in a bar. 3)bar owner...my boss had a fit when he saw me on the survailance camera with a deck of tarot cards once. Said it wasnt appropriate for a bar. I guess I didnt know that there was anything not appropriate for a bar. 4)rowdiness.....even though I never had anything happen to them, I was always worried that something would happen and a fight would break out, the fighters would stumble over to where I was sitting and knock over a drink on my precious cards. Just a few things that could damper a bar reading. I could think of more, but its late and im bout to hit the sack.

Mesara	02 Dec 2004
Bar reading is very risky. Most patrons are drunk, so although they worship your readings at the time, they won't remember them come tomorrow. Also, drunk patrons are clumsy, and apt to spill their drinks on your precious cards, and then a big bar brawl will ensue (if it were me) over the mishap. Also, it's hard to concentrate over the loud music and the shouting, and the sounds of merry drunkenness, and it makes meaningful conversation impossible to attempt. I also have trouble seeing my cards in the darkness of bars, which adds another challenge to giving good readings in a bar setting, because no way in hell am I wearing my geek glasses while Im out bar hopping. HELL NO. I just wouldn't recommend it. If you do go through with it, then I would suggest bringing one of your expendable decks in case it gets drenched in booze or stolen or destroyed by unruly and unpleased drunks.

Teranar	02 Dec 2004
Two words: Bar Fight.

Keslynn	02 Dec 2004
I have only read in a bar once, and it was with a group of friends. We had been drinking a little and chatting and one of my friends really wanted a reading. It was a good experience for me. They enjoyed the readings as did I. The only downside was that a few of my cards got a little sticky from the table and I had to air out the smoke smell. I don't know if I could read for strangers in a bar, but it's not a totally bad place if you're hanging out with friends and end up doing a reading. I also think it greatly depends on the atmosphere of the bar. Is it usually rowdy? Is it a pick up bar? If so, it might not be the best place. If it's more of a pub kind of atmosphere, it might not be a problem. :) Kes PS - I think some members here have read in bars and enjoyed it. Maybe you could search talking tarot? Or my memory could be going.

The reading in bars thread was originally posted on 01 Dec 2004 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.