Almost a month ago I had a car accident coming home from a fair.  I was a bit shaken, but the car was messed up and insurance declared it dead.  Thus began one of those months were every little flaw, flub, and flailing in your spiritual practice is thrown into a glaring spotlight.  So, ok, I still have first chakra issues.

John Michael Thornton 2002I've been dreaming about New York again.  Nothing profound this time – There was a time when I would dream about packing to leave NYC when I would get overly stressed – these are dreams of walking through my old neighborhood.  Shopping at Big Jin's market for fruits and vegetables, eating at Rice Avenue or just walking out to where I used to park my car; everyday activities that I used to love.

These are the things I miss most about living in New York City – the quite, every day moments of life.  It's what I always love best about were I live.  I love walking around the yard, poking at the garden or the compost pile, taking empty side streets and looking at my crumbling town, being alone and quite in the space.  Soaking in the energy of a place and becoming a part of it.

It's why I resist going back to visit places I used to live, especially if I no longer have real roots there.  Coming back to Ohio I could still walk the same paths because my family lived there.  For a while it was easy to go back to Virginia and hang around the A.R.E. and stay with friends, but NYC... is different.  Especially as a visitor, it can be hard to move slowly there.  To visit the markets and not buy fresh produce, what would I do with it?  To just absorb the sounds of life.

I turn 33 this month and it has me looking back at the last year.  What were the ups, the downs and the level patches.  There was a lot of good this past year as I changed my focus to that of a full time psychic 

The SeerIt's a very weird job and can be hard to explain, I mean, if you introduce yourself as a carpenter no one replies, "Carpenter huh?  Idunno, I'm a skeptic.  Prove it, build be something right now!"  You get variations on that all the time as a psychic.  Also, as a younger member of the community I get a lot of un-asked for advice.  Some good, some bad, some just plain strange.  I've been told: I change too much, I charge too little, my readings are too long, I need to wear costumes or outfits, I need to wear suits, I need to be more professional, I should stand on my head at fairs more often (I did that once), I need to relax and enjoy the ride, I shouldn't put my pictures on everything, I need to be more sensitive (screw that), I need to open a shop or hang out my shingle, and best of all – I need to stop doing readings my way and start doing them your way or I'll "destroy my gift."  Strangely, no one's told me to cut my hair or respect my elders.  I think what I really need for my birthday is a shirt with that old line Elvira used to say, "When I want your opinion I'll beat it out of ya."

As you can see, I've decided to keep my own council on most of that.  The one thing I have learned is that the more people see and hear me the better I do.  Whether it be readings, lectures, teaching or just talking, passive advertising doesn’t work for me.  They need to see my face and hear my voice, so this year is all about getting as much exposure as I can with fairs, lectures and teaching.  There's a lot I want to say and a lot I want to do, so many people are wandering around and anything I can do, We can do, to help them along their perfect path would be my honor.
squatIf you haven't seen my newly redesigned website over at johnmichaelthornton.com you have to check it out.  I've been working on this for a few weeks now and I'm really excited about both the new look and the expanded possibilities the new framework provides. 

Right now most of the content is about the same as the old site, but you will find the Events page easier to navigate, the gallery prettier and the banner at the top changes depending on the time of day… which I think is very cool.

Over the next few months I have some other ideas I want to add, and you can help – are there any features or additions you would like to see?  Upcoming projects include more videos, Guided Meditations for sale, and lots more articles.  Let me know what you think!
This month I mark my first year as a full time psychic.
John Michael ThorntonIt has been an amazing year with all the ups and down you could expect with a new business but also some amazing highs that I never could have expected.  Teaching at LilyDale, finding water, lecturing for the Columbus A.R.E. and just traveling around meeting people at fairs has made for an incredible year.

This month I'll also be teaching my first psychic intensive workshop – Your Spiritual Toolkit.  The class is definitely a go and there is very little space left.  To all you wonderful people who e-mailed to say you will be coming, but haven't made payment or called to confirm – Please Do As Soon As Possible!  I can only reserve space for those who have paid in advance.  I love you!  Please call!

For those wondering what I am talking about, Your Spiritual Toolkit is a 6 week workshop, Wednesday 7-9:30ish, designed to teach you how to give psychic readings for yourself and others.  We will be working with guided imagery, meditation, gentle yoga, and various partner exercises to help open your mind and access your natural psychic abilities.  All students will get an accompanying workbook and a short psychic reading.  The reading must be completed before class so I can tailor the curriculum.
sittingsmilingup
I'm also setting new goals and ideas for the coming year.  My goal last year was to average one reading a day for the year and I came very close with nearly 300 readings.  This year I want to take it a bit further, my goal is to average one non-Psychic Fair reading a day.  Fairs can be fun and all, but I get so much more satisfaction from the detail and attention I can give in a private session – it's really where I want to take my practice in the future.

This is already shaping up to be a great year, January first I did seven readings, and I already have more events booked for 2009 than I did in all of 2008.  The next few months I'll be traveling a lot with fairs in Buffalo, Rochester, Sandusky and Toledo – you can check the dates on my new Events!