Seek a Higher Power
The spirited guide to psychic Boston - from
aura-cams and tea-leaf readings to astrology, demonology and beyond*
By Erin Hagedorn
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| Left: Hermetic scientist/psychic Robert Jones. Right: psychic/medium Alex Palermo |
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I wasn't looking for advice. I wasn't out to expose the posers. And I definitely wasn't looking to commune with my long- dead Aunt Ruble. I was simply intrigued. After all, how many times can you walk by a glowing palm- or tarot-reading sign without giving it a shot?
So after years of nagging curiosity, I embarked on a psychic tour of Boston armed with many questions. Are psychics a bunch of charlatans feeding on the gullibility ' of the masses? Does the stereotype of psychic-goers as lovelorn housewives ring true ?
Early On, I discovered that the stereotypes were hopelessly inaccurate. For the most part, psychics are down-to-earth individuals who take their jobs (and calling) very seriously. And in this city, it certainly doesn't require magical powers to find them. Boston offers a wealth of psychic-related offerings whether it's a past life regression, spirit channeling, medical intuitives or to hex your ex.
While investigating Boston's extensive psychic menu, I noted the equally extensive range of psychic clients. Sure there's a constituency of SUV-driving morns looking to add a spiritual flavor to their lives. But I also saw plenty of laptop-toting business men.
While eavesdropping, I overheard more than one New Ager lament, "I just don't think my mirror's edges are feng shui!" Another just wanted a sympathetic ear: "But you don't understand how many phone calls I get at work! The point is you can't stereotype a psychic client as someone, say, who eats only organic food or who doesn't need a telephone to talk to a sister in Indiana. Most psychic businesses draw a strong corporate clientele. In fact, a February survey done by the Original Tremont Tea Room in the Financial District showed that of 1,056 polled clients, 38 percent were attorneys, and the average client age was 36. As Alex Palermo, the exuberant manager of the Original Tremont Tea Room, puts it, "We don't get the typical New Age clientele-- your stereotypical crystal-wearing wackos who went to Woodstock, are vegetarian and have colonics every week."
Most local psychics claim a strong corporate following. Some even act as business consultants, giving insights on competing companies and possible hires. The most well-known psychic in this category is Lynn Robinson, M.Ed., an articulate seminar leader and author of The Idiot's Guide to Being Psychic. It may sound bizarre to seek corporate wisdom of this nature (imagine getting turned down for a job because a prospective employer's psychic didn't get good vibes from your business card), but, as the saying goes, don't knock it until you've tried it. When I gave Robin- son a name of a co-worker, she spat back a shockingly accurate description. I'll simply say "porcupine-like" and "remarkably difficult" were the nicer adjectives.
Most psychics are in good spirits these days due to a surge in business. There's al- ways been plenty of psychics and paranormal activity in these parts, due to our proximity to Salem's witch history and Boston's dark past (think the Boston Strangler and haunted Copps Hill in the North End). But lately, a bigger and more diverse group of people are shedding their inhibitions and checking out what psychics have to offer.
Reverend Rita Berkowitz of The First Spiritualist Church in Quincy--a hotbed for local workshops in spiritual alchemy, chakras and spirit communication--says attendance at this year's open-to-the-public fall meeting was double what it was last year. "I've been amazed," she says. "People are really seeking it out right now."
One explanation for this interest in all things psychic: It provides quick answers for those living in an age when people seem to have everything but still feel unfulfilled.
During periods of transition--whether personal or social--people look for guidance. As Alex Palermo says, "It's a presidential election year. It happens every time."
Media sensationalization is also driving the current psychic hype. Flip through the cable channels and you'll find more toll- free psychic sages than ever before, and any magazine editor will tell you that horoscopes are essential. What's really got local psychics talking is Crossing Over with John Edward, the Scifi Channel's new psychic talk show. A medium with a best-selling book, One Last Time, Edward channels spirits in front of a studio audience, thus garnering much-needed attention (and, some say, respect) to the profession: For a short time, we had our own psychic show: The Others, a supernatural drama series about a Boston-based secret society of psychics aired on NBC, but it didn't make the cut.
Before diving into our bustling psychic city, I called the major sages in the business, received plenty of advice and recommendations and eventually selected five top spots to investigate. I also got a rapid education.
There are the clairvoyants (they see energy fields and images), the clairaudients (they hear stuff), psychic mediums (they commune with the dead), medical intuitives (psychics who "see" illness and disease) and a slew of palmists and tarot-card readers. I also learned that there aren't many fortunetellers around thanks to a state-man-dated fortuneteller license fee of $200.
Ultimately, I sat down with several psychics from each place to see what they had to say about the biz--and to find out how their advice stacked up. Some fed back generalizations while others seemed to know me in- side out, bordering on the total spook-out.
The Original Tremont Tearoom
When I nervously walked into Boston's oldest psychic boite, I absorbed the sultry, spooky ambiance: a darkly illuminated salon-like room replete with cosmic-themed decor. I was promptly handed a menu and told to choose from a past-life reading, psychometry (messages from holding objects), dream interpretation and a slew of specials like fire and wax readings. The motley group of a dozen or so staffers was eager to chat.
Alex Palermo explains how much the Tearoom has expanded since its inception in 1936, when it flourished as a hope-dispenser for the down-and-outers of the Depression. "It's changed to meet the needs of the people. It's evolved from its tawdry, carnival-like beginning to what it is today--more of a New Age, sort of meta- physical place for learning." They now offer online readings, Reiki (Japanese energy healings), marriage ceremonies and Wicca classes, and are gearing up for a big Halloween bash Oct. 28. It isn't unusual for staffers to stay for decades. "We know each other pretty well," he says. "When you take a room full of people who make their living from what's called 'hypersensitive,' there are bound to be issues."
I opted for a tarot reading with Peter, a former public school teacher and Reiki master who specializes in an integrative method of tarot (a tricky method that used multiple decks of cards). As he whipped through the cards, looking like a croupier of sorts, he instructed me to pick those that "felt right" using my left hand--the intuitive one, apparently. After I shuffled and chose, (trying to somehow avoid the Death card), he flipped them over and nearly jumped out of his chair, shouting, "You're looking for love in all the wrong places? And then with sad a head shake, "You're way more attracted to him than he is to you. Stop selling yourself so short."
PERSONAL "You're coming up on a moody period." (Always likely.) "1 see a car." (I want one.) "I'm seeing a television camera." (I have a TV?).
FAMILY "Your sister hates her managerial job and is having commitment issues." (Dead on.) ROMANCE I'd be shocked if your relationship lasted the year." (Bummer.) FORECAST "There's a wedding coming up or maybe a baby." (News to me.)
PRICE $20 for 20 minutes; $30 for 30 minutes; combos (runes, tarot) $50; past-life reading, $60.
BOTTOM LINE Unnerving, but some dead-on insights. Very entertaining.