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The
Happy Squirrel has become a bit of an in-joke in the tarot
community since it first appeared in the Simpsons episode Lisa's
Wedding in the mid 1990's.
As
the episode of Simpsons is pretty hard to get hold of, here's
a storyboard of the Fortune Teller scene. As far as I can guess,
the writer of this episode Greg
Daniels created the Happy Squirrel card for this episode.
Yay for popular culture!
From
Simpsons Series 6, Episode 17
Lisa's
Wedding - Fortune Teller scene
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If
you bought a copy of Touchstone Tarot, you may have been a bit
puzzled at the inclusion of an extra card - the Happy Squirrel.
I
didn't really intend people to keep the HS card in their deck,
but it turns out that many people ARE leaving it in when using
the cards! If you want to do that, then here's the 'meaning'
that I'll be including in the companion book with the Kunati kit:
Lighten
up. Do not take yourself, or anything, too seriously. There
are no simple answers, life is very complicated and the most
important thing is to take joy in the journey.
The
first deck to include a Happy Squirrel card to my knowledge
was one of my favourite decks, sadly now out of print - the Victoria
Regina Tarot by Sarah Ovenall. The Happy Squirrel card
unfortunately wasn't included as a 'real' card in that deck,
it was just available as a digital download. You can still
see it at theFool.com.
The
first deck to include the Happy Squirrel as an actual, printed
card in the deck was, I believe, the quirky International
Icon Tarot by Robin Ator. You can see the card in an interview
with Dan Pelletier on the wonderful TarotGarden.com site.
If
you know of any others, let me know and I will happily link
them. I think every deck should have one!
I
love the idea of a Happy Squirrel card for so many reasons,
and was determined to include one in Touchstone.
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The
Simpsons go to a Medieval Faire.
Lisa
chases an escaped rabbit Alice-in-Wonderland style into a dark
wood.
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She
comes upon a Fortune Teller's tent in a forest from which an
unearthly light glows.
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"I've
been waiting for you Lisa..."
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(Gasp!) "How
did you know my name?"
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"Your
name tag..."
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"Would
you like to know your future?"
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"Sorry,
I don't believe in Fortune Telling. I should go".
She
pulls back the curtain to leave.
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"What's
your hurry? Bart, Maggie and Marge are at the joust and Homer
is heckling the puppet show..."
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"Wow,
you can see into the... present".
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"Now
we'll see what the future holds..."
The
fortune teller holds up a tarot deck.
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Dramatic
music as she tosses down the Death card.
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"The
Death card?" says Lisa nervously.
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"No,
that's good! It means transition, change..."
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Lisa
sighs in relief. The fortune teller then throws down a mythical
card - XXIII The Happy Squirrel.
Lisa
giggles and says "Aw, that's cute!"
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The
fortune teller throws her head back and gasps. "The Happy
Squirrel!"
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"That's
bad?"
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The
dramatic music stops.
"Possibly,
the cards are vague and mysterious" the fortune teller
says dismissively, with a shrug.
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"They
seem to be revealing the story of your first love. Do you
want me to continue?".
Lisa
gulps. "I guess so..."
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"It's
coming to me.... yessss.... I see an Eastern university in the
year 2010. The world has become a very different place...."
[Main
plot of episode goes here]
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The
fortune teller deals another mythical card, XXV - The Fiance.
"The
next day, Hugh goes back to England, and you never see him
again."
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"Wow,
now that I know all this, isn't there any way to change the future?"
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"No,
but try to look surprised" replies the fortune teller smugly.
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"I
thought you said you'd tell me about my true love?"
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"Oh,
you'll have a true love, but I specialise in foretelling
the relationships where you get jerked around."
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She
laughs maniacally...
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Throws
a smoke bomb...
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| Which
clears, leaving them both looking uncomfortable. Lisa backs
away out of the tent. |
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