Preview: Cell Oracle
Give readings based on someone's cell (mobile) phone
I’m working on a new way to give readings. You may know I’m a big fan of Lo Shu Numerology readings and have given a ton of those over the last few years, but I stumbled on an idea and have spent the last few weeks fleshing it out into Cell Oracle.
What is Cell Oracle?
You can give people psychic/personal readings based on tarot cards, lines on their palms, the date they were born, etc. But now with the Cell Reading System you can also give them a reading based on something that’s very personal to most people — their cell phone. The attributes of every phone include things such as:
What brand is it?
Is it a newer model or a few years old?
Does the phone have scratches or cracks, or is it in pristine condition?
What color is the phone, what kind of wallpaper is set on it, what does the ringtone sound like…
Taking the attributes of our phones and discovering the meanings that are almost obvious allows us to give personalized readings to anyone based on the device they have with them at all times.
Cell Oracle is not an app that runs on your phone — it’s a system for giving readings based on the choices someone else has made about the phone they carry.
Credit for the Germ of the Idea
Luca Volpe created a routine for his Multisensory Bags prop, and part of the routine has you giving a quick reading based on the cell phone the volunteer has secretly put into one of the bags. After the reading the mystery performer hands the phone back to the correct spectator (a version of the classic Pseudo Psychometry).
When I performed that routine at a local magic club meeting, the “readings” part of the routine got a big reaction (yes, from a room full of magicians!) and as someone who’s done lots of readings before, I decided to take that small piece of the performance and expand it into a complete system used to give someone a full reading.
The Core of the System
Your first reaction to the idea of using cell phones as the basis for readings might be, “It’s either an iPhone or an Android, but other than that it’s just a block of electronics!”
But there are attributes of every phone that mean my phone is going to be different from your phone — even if we both have an iPhone 13 Pro Max.
What colors are they? Using a case, or no case, and if there is a case, is it plain or fancy? Any scratches on the phone, or even a cracked screen, or is the phone meticulous? What wallpaper have you chosen for the lock screen? Do you have a special ringtone? Are the apps on your home screen organized by type, or just sitting where they landed when installed?
Maybe you didn’t choose the phone you carry — possibly it was free with a new line so that’s why you use it. But for most of those attributes you made specific choices, and those choices say something about you.
The Main Attributes We Care About
Following are a list of the attributes we’ll be looking at in order to give a full reading. If you want to give a short reading, just pick 3-4 of them and use those.
Brand of Phone
Model or Age
Physical Condition
Case or Not
Ringtone
Phone Color
Wallpaper on Lock Screen
App Organization
When I started looking at what meanings should go with each of those phone attributes, most of them kind of leapt out. For example, if you have a case on your phone, Responsibility makes sense. But no case? Carpe Diem, baby — whatever happens, you go with it!
Is the phone one of the newest brands? You’re probably a person who’s more spontaneous, so Proactive. But a phone a few years old? Maybe tradition and stability matter more to you, so Nostalgic.
The meanings for the attributes make sense in a way that make it much easier to remember than if the traits were picked from a hat, and which makes it much more likely that the trait actually matches the person who owns the phone.
There are more phone attributes that could be used, but I feel those are the major ones — and if you use all of them, you could give a really hefty reading as you flesh out the meanings for each of the attributes.
What’s Next?
I’m starting to work with some people who want to give this a try in order to get more feedback before releasing this onto the world.
I’m also creating a deck of cards that can be used both in the learning phase, and as a help while you’re giving an actual reading.
And, I’m putting together both a series of tick sheets you can print out to give a reading with as well as an app for your phone — so you can use your phone to give a phone reading. ;)
I’m hoping to release Cell Oracle by Summer 2024…