The Best And Brightest Are All On Wall Street

And in case you were wondering about that bailout:

There are hundreds of storefront clairvoyants and high-end spiritual advisers in the city ready to quench the thirst for insights into the forces that control one’s life.

And now with the turmoil engulfing the financial markets, some psychics say they have been experiencing a boom in business linked to deep worries about money.

. . .

In an apartment in the East Village, opposite Tompkins Square Park, another psychic, Rosanna Schaffer-Shaw, a former belly dancer, offers her insights under the name Fahrusha, which she translates from Arabic to mean butterfly or moth. “I prefer butterfly,” said Ms. Schaffer-Shaw, who specializes in tarot card reading and palmistry, as well as photograph interpretation and communicating with animals.

“People are concerned about their jobs,” said Ms. Schaffer-Shaw, sitting in her brightly painted pink room devoted to readings, where she charges $150 per session. On a shelf were a couple of crystal balls, candles and a feather. “I hear more questions about jobs lasting even if the person is not in the financial sector,” she said.

On a recent afternoon, Ms. Schaffer-Shaw advised three clients, all of whom requested that they be identified by a single initial, some because they worried that their turning to a psychic might cause problems at work.

Mr. S was an artist who said he hoped to reap a windfall from the stronger market for contemporary art. Ms. Schaffer-Shaw told him, “In the past, you have been neglectful of the business aspects of your career.” Mr. S laughed and replied, “Have I ever,” as Ms. Schaffer-Shaw conjured up the names of Manhattan galleries that might be interested in his artwork.

She pointed a lavender-painted fingernail to two tarot cards, the Six and the Nine of Pentacles: “This card says you are worried about your finances. You won’t want to spend money on luxury items. You also will not be able to be as generous to others as you would like.” She advised against buying stock in financial firms and urged him to consider investing in utilities or water purification systems.

Ms. E, who is planning a business venture with another client of Ms. Schaffer-Shaw’s, a Chinese investment banker, asked questions about the Shanghai economy, where the two plan to open a frozen yogurt company. She wanted to know whether the media stock she had bought on the Chinese market would go up after its recent loss, and even what flavors and toppings her company should offer.