End of Times | Fall 2025

Light reading for a dark era

No. 3, Fall 2025

The ‘zine is printed with a Risograph printer, and the inks used in this issue are a rich royal blue and and neon orange on a cream paper. The header reading ‘End of Times’ is in a newspaper-y font, nodding to the ‘zines satirical nature.

Page One

A Letter from the Editor:

Dear Reader, if you are reading this now you have the timely knowledge that Fall has already passed for this I’m sincerely sorry!! I hope you can still enjoy the sentiments of the fall seas as the snow falls.

I fell victim to the rot this fall - and in a way it was kind of exactly what I needed.- to decompose and be broken down in essential parts. Now I feel ready to rest, regrow, and bloom again in the spring. I wish the same for you all! *heart* Jenny,itsjenny.ca

Image: a hand drawn tarot card with a pumpkin, “The Jack” is written in bubble letters above the pumpkin, the face is slightly haunted, menacing, but a little goofy, the skin of the pumpkin is wrinkled. A garland of pumpkin vines with broad leaves acts as the border of the “card”

The Practice
By: Jenny Dickieson

I don't come from a family of cherished recipes, heirloom jewelry, or worn-in traditions, in fact, my connection with my family can be a little fraught and threadbare at times. But I did inherit something from the women in my family: Tarot.

Every once in a while, grandma, mom, and aunties would all gather around candles and wine, laying out large cards in neat arrangements on scarves or cloth to do readings for one another, to talk about their lives. Each had her own style. My mom’s deck came in a gold flat box that always looked like it was going to collapse. I only remember the images a little — loose, evocative watercolors. My auntie used a more standard Rider-Waite deck — the one you see in movies, with gold stars on the back.

It wasn’t until I was older that I was allowed into these occasional gatherings, but the secrecy only made them more enchanting to me.

Maybe because of this, as a kid I wanted tarot cards more than anything. My first deck was a novelty set: Madame Bosky’s Fortune Telling Cards, which promised to amaze friends and family. I suspect now the name was a play on Madame Blavatsky — the infamous 19th-century spiritualist. Based on Russian puzzle cards called ‘Pasyans’ the deck had images split in two along each card edge that mis/matched as you laid them out. Their ‘Global Village Coffeehouse’ vibe alongside friendly but often blunt divinations did entertain - but lacked the allure of my mom and aunties cards. My second deck was more serious, bought out of guilt during one of my many early evening hours spent at Chapters bookstore. My mom worked on her writing in the Starbucks café and I wandered the shelves, books acting as babysitter. It was there I found and subsequently begged for the purchase of The Mythic Tarot, which came with a little guidebook. 

My auntie helped teach me my first spreads — she had her own ways of doing things that I had not learned about in the guidebook. She showed me her altar, strewn with meaningful stones, small candles, and objects. She told me to always keep my cards wrapped in a scarf or protective piece of fabric to help shield their energy. She believed a tarot deck should always be gifted and I silently worried I’d cursed myself, that coercing my mom to buy them for me didn’t really count as a gift. She took me outside to collect stones at the wetlands near her house, and then we wrote the names of each Major Arcana card on them with a Sharpie. We sealed them with clear nail polish. I still have them. I loved being part of her world.

As I grew into an angsty teen, I craved a grand spiritual awakening. A revelation, a spooky occurrence, something that proved I had a connection to the beyond, to… something special. I loved shows like Charmed, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Sailor Moon. Magical girls in magical worlds, living their lives, crying about bad grades, heartbreaks, surrounded by friends, and fighting for good. At the same time, I felt embarrassed about claiming any kind of witchiness or spirituality as a part of who I was. Unfortunately, in all things I did, even the things I was good at and enjoyed, I felt like a phony. An imposter playing a part, who was always on the cusp of being discovered.

I went to college in the heyday of the “obnoxious atheist debate bro”. Their confident, dismissive tone had a lot of sway over how I thought about the world. And I, desperate for attention, with the flickering self-esteem of a restaurant birthday candle being joylessly hustled across a dining room, adopted this way of thinking. It reassured me to relax into the chaos and randomness of the world. I wasn’t abandoning any deeply held faith. 

At first, being friends with atheists made me feel smarter—like I was in on a cosmic joke. But it soured. I watched other friends be mocked for reading horoscopes, keeping their childhood faith, or even just finding meaning in coincidences. Eventually, the reply-guys came for me, appearing at parties to “play devil’s advocate,” or turning friendly beers into ambush debates about any deeply held belief I had that didn’t fit their ‘superior’ worldview. Each time I left those conversations, I felt completely drained while they seemed invigorated. The longer I stayed in those circles, I realized I had mistaken their confidence as fuelled by their intellect, not understanding that their confidence really came from their intellectual harassment of other people engaging in harmless hobbies, cherished cultural practices, and personal political beliefs.

I moved on. I made new friends. I missed my teenage-self. I re-watched Buffy. I broke the “gifted only” Tarot cards rule again and bought a new Rider-Waite Tarot deck from a local witch shop on 16th Ave in Calgary. I figured, this was the kind of gift I was giving to myself. I started small — mostly just enjoying the artwork and practicing reading on myself. I used the Celtic Cross spread, the one described in the little booklet that came with the cards. Over time, tarot became a way for me to ask myself difficult questions about my life, what I wanted, what I feared.

Without the pressure for some childlike, earth-shattering spiritual revelation, I began to develop my own simple traditions for my cards. Each card holds an illustration, a story, a set of symbols. Each suit has its own narrative arc. As I got to know these symbolic stories better, I started to understand my own story more deeply, too. Eventually, I started to share readings for close friends, and after yearning since childhood to be in the circle, I realized I had finally arrived there. Sitting with my friends, sharing wine in candlelight, laying out the cards, and talking about our lives.

I start every reading with a disclaimer that honors my atheist deviation. Even if you don’t believe in anything grander, greater, god-like, or divine when you shuffle a deck, there are so many mathematical possibilities for the order they land in that it is unique every single time. For each person, something new can be noticed or interpreted. This is the magic of cards, no matter what your beliefs are. And once you start talking about their symbols, stories, numbers, you’ll begin to reveal something about yourself. The cards and their stories may not predict the future, but reflect something back to you like a mirror, revealing something new about the present.

Page Two + Three

Page Two + Three is a loose insert that acts as an informative handout about Tarot!

The Year | A Tarot Guide
This guide will teach you an easy, pragmatic tarot card spread. It’s something that has offered clarity and structure to me, and I find it brilliantly pragmatic for beginners and seasoned readers alike. I usually lay it down in the Fall/Winter season as the weather shifts and puts me into a cosy reflective mood, but there is no wrong time to start.

This spread was originally taught to me by the generous artist and mystic Cindy Mochizuki, and it rekindled my love for Tarot when I needed it most. I call it: ‘The Year’ but I’ve seen it done by other readers and online in many different names and versions. This is my variation which has 13 cards. 

The Year Card
Start by reflecting on the past year. What were the highs and lows? What are you hoping for in the year ahead? What are your goals, your intentions? Shuffle the deck while you think about these questions, and even better, focus on questions about the coming year in particular.

When the deck feels “ready,” draw a single card to represent your upcoming year. There is no wrong time to do this, it’s simply a (((vibe)))

This card can be read as the overall energy for the next annual cycle. It might represent a challenge you are overcoming, a goal you want to achieve or a mood you are bringing into the year. Think of it in context to the questions you were thinking about as you shuffled the deck.

This card can support your interpretation of your monthly cards - but doesn't always have to be the main focus.

Monthly Cards
You can either shuffle again or continue drawing the remaining twelve cards — one for each month in your calendar cycle. You could choose to interpret each month as you draw it, or draw them all and interpret them together. 

I draw them all at once and lay them out in a grid under the year card — four rows of three, echoing the seasons. Each monthly card acts as a meditation, advice, predictions, or prompts for reflection. 

Interpret them in a way that works for you. I use a mix of the guidebook, my own memory of card meanings, and online resources to help deepen my understanding.

As I interpret, I usually write my interpretations into my annual planner or journal on the month page. I use bullet points, and note any interesting thoughts or responses I had to the cards as I read them. Don’t be afraid to revisit your readings throughout the year and reinterpret them. You’re allowed to change your mind. The cards are a dialogue, not a diagnosis.

And finally… maybe something spooky does happen. I know that for me, over the years, my cards have come to feel like they have their own voice. She kinda gets me. And when it comes to predicting my year — or even the years of others — she’s often eerily accurate -- coincidence or spookiness? I’ll let you decide for yourself.

Interpreting the Cards | A Tarot Guide
Interpreting cards can feel intimidating for a beginner, there is so much to look at and perceive! Here are my recommendations for getting started, but it's like wine tasting - there is literally no ‘wrong’ way to read the cards, but some people are really intense about their way.

Minor or Major?
There are two types of cards in *most* 78 card tarot decks, recognizing which cards are which can help set the tone for reading broader themes and connections.

The Minor Arcana represents 56/78 cards and is structured like a deck of playing cards with 1-10 suited cards each with their own king, queen, knight, and page.

The Major Arcana are 22/78 represent strong themes and broader ideas.

Looking at the Image
Allowing yourself to think about each card without influence is a great starting point, it might feel intimidating at first but just observing the image and seeing how you feel about it is a great exercise.

What’s happening in this picture? Are there people in the image, what are they saying or doing?Are there symbols, words, or objects I recognize in the image? Where have I seen them before? Where do they show up in my life??

For non-seeing folk, there are braille decks, as well as Chris and Kay Slater’s “the End Game” which is a fun descriptive way to have fun with cards!

Cards in Connection
As you read a few cards, take a birds eye view and see if there are any connections that you can make between the stories unfolding - are there recurring symbols that point towards themes or similar situations?

How do you feel about what you are reading into them? Do they feel accurate to where you are or unfamiliar? When you read the description of the card in the guide, does it align with what you thought it would be?

Using the Guidebook and Outside Help
It is always okay and encouraged to check out the guidebook that came with your deck or other resources you like and that resonate with you that support your interpretations!

Over the years I’ve built up knowledge of the cards, but I still use my guidebooks, and most often the internet! I particularly like biddytarot.com interpretations, I find them super accessible and helpful, though disclaimer, I have not tried the courses offered on their website, I just use the readings as a jumping off point. 

Page Four

Catch Them Before They Catch You
A Comic by: Jennifer Dickieson

One half of the last page of the ‘zine is a 5 panel comic by Jenny Dickieson. Dickieson’s style is cartoonish and simple, with moments of line based shading and texture that offers contrast.

Panel One: A person with a long ponytail appears in the foreground of an image, they look ready to engage. They face a strange humanoid figure in the distance, the figure wears jeans, a belt, and a cowboy hat and boots. The figure looks surprised. Text in the style of vintage Pokemon video games, says “wild lil-cowboy has appeared!”

Panel Two: a hand with painted fingernails holds a pokeball, a spherical object the size of a baseball with a light top and dark bottom, and band around the middle.

Narrative text appears under both panels One and Two: “I’ve been catching pokemon lately… I like the satisfaction of a collection…”

Panel Three: A close up of little cowboy’s face indicates surprise and rage, clouds and lightning bolts set the tone for his defiance, and his speech bubble says: “!@?#) NO!”

Panel Four: A close up of lil cowboy’s two fingered hand-like appendage reaching into his Jean’s pocket.

Narrative text appears under panels Three and Four: “But the last time I went out… Something strange happened…”

Panel Five: Lil cowboy fills the frame looking angry and determined hold holds a pokeball of a different style in his own hand and says “ YOU GET IN HERE”

Summer’s Lost and Found:
A collection of oddities, scraps, and unresolved anecdotes

The remaining half of the back page of the ‘zine is a collection of scanned objects, each object has a small handwritten anecdotes about how they were lost or found circling around the scanned image.

A 8.5” x 11” print out of stock images of crows folded in four:
I found this in front of my apartment folded into quarters - crows had gathered around the area - unknown if it belonged to or if the crows appeared before or after it was dropped.

A shell: My fiance gave me this shell and I found it in the laundry

A round brewery creek liquor store sticker: This sticker was stuck to my dog after a walk up main street.

A sword pendant: I ordered this pendant in the summer and someone in my building signed for it. The post office sent me a copy of the signature and so I went to the buildings facebook group and threatened to post their name if it was not returned - it appeared outside my door the next day.

A mad math minute test, completed: outside an apartment on robson - way to go drake

A watermelon sticker with Arabic text on it:lost from my sweater, found pressed into a notebook - free palestine!

A small label reading “expecting tomorrow”: stuck to shoe, origin unknown

A crocheted frog wearing overalls: This little guy went missing after xmas 2024, he was found in a box labelled ‘frog’ in my studio this summer.