Meridian Mer-Gyver

“Sorry, I don't mean to sound slow here, but who's Frank Nitty?” he asked.

Rose laughed. “Why, he was only the second feared man next to Capone. Nitty was Capone's second in command— his right hand man. His full name was, Francesco Raffaele Nitto.”

“Whoa!” Blake whispered.

“Drink your tea before it gets cold,” Rose insisted.

Blake picked up his cup, saluted her, and took a sip. “Yes, ma’am,” he said.

Rose sat back. It looked like she was deep in thought.

She took another drag of her cigarillo. “By the time I was twelve, I had more money than I knew what to do with. Then one day, just as quickly as I was recruited, Capone stopped asking me. He was only interested in the children that looked innocent and young. I guess I got too old to look innocent and young riding my bike around the hoods.”

“What did you do about it?” Blake asked, his curiosity piqued.

“There really wasn't anything I could do. So, I took up poker. I'd sneak out of my house at night and go meet up with Willy and his friends in the basement of an old apartment building on 35th street. I'd smoke cigars and drink beers with 'em. I got so good at playing, I'd lose on purpose sometimes. It didn't matter though. I had enough money to play around with at the time.”

Rose sat up straight with and with a sparkle in her eye when she said, “That's where I met Marv, the cutest boy at the game. He was the love of my life, blond hair, blue eyes, smart and handy. Marvin Munger, seventeen years old and he had my attention. Of course I didn't have his. I was only twelve,” she said, sipping some tea.

“That is until I turned fifteen. That's when things changed for us. The next thing I knew, I was pregnant with his child. My parents immediately marched us into the church and made us get married. Marv and I had to get our own apartment, and on September 27th, 1930 my son, Christopher Munger, was born.

“I thought the poker money I made would last us a long time. But children are expensive, and so I had to get a job. I became a mechanic over at Mike's mechanic shop. I took to fixing cars like a duck takes to water. I was so good at it, I fixed cars better than some of the men that had been doing it for years. They weren't too happy about that,” she said, refreshing her tea and lighting another cigarillo. “I worked on cars for five years. I became more agreeable around the shop as time went on.”

“More agreeable?” Blake asked.

“Yeah you know, slowed down, not being so obnoxious. It was to keep my job.”

Blake laughed. “Ah!”

“I was good at things, but I knew when I was crossing a line.”

Blake nodded.

“I remember one time, Jimmy, one of the mechanics, learned how to inflate truck tires with fire. It was especially useful when the tire had a hole in it. The fire would weld it right up. Well, one time, Jimmy forgot about a tire and it exploded. I think every single person in that shop was in the parking lot, just standing there scratching their head and jumpy as Mexican jumping beans toward any noise that followed.

“They were all trying to figure out what had just happened.” She took another drag of her cigarillo and laughed. “A cop pulled up. He had heard the noise from a mile away. He thought it was a gun that had gone off. That's how loud it was. Poor Jimmy—he sat there with his hands on his head, apologizing. He thought he had enough time to do a quick oil change while inflating the tire. He really didn't know what came over him.” Rose shook her head smiling. “It was something else, I'll tell ya. Anyways, working in a mechanic shop you learn a lot as it is.”

She looked down at the ground. “I worked there for five years before Mike, the owner, died. Sadly, the shop broke up. The guys all got jobs elsewhere. I thought my husband and I were going to have to move,” Rose said with sadness in her eyes. “That's when my best friend, Minnie, told me about an all-female skydiving team.”

“Wait! What? A female sky diving team?” Blake asked, adjusting himself in his chair. He reached out and picked up his cake and bit into it.

“Yeah, here look, I have a tattoo to prove it,” she said, lifting her sleeve to expose her shoulder.

Blake walked over and looked at it.

“It's a plane propeller with initials A.T. 1935,” she explained. “Aviation Temptations,” she said, sipping more tea. “We were the hottest female plane-jumpers around. People would come from miles just to watch us. Marv would take Christopher and wait for us in the open field we landed in. Christopher loved it. He’d always say how he liked seeing mommy flying high in the sky. The girls and I had a whole routine. We’d wear brightly colored uniforms and jump out at a certain spot. All of us would gracefully dance while plummeting toward the earth. Then pop! We'd pull our chutes. Where you landed is where you landed. We just tried to do it with finesse.” She took a drag of her cigarillo.

“Every Saturday night, Marv and I would go to the pump with the rest of the ladies and their husbands or boyfriends. My mother would watch Christopher. We lived it up while we were there—singing, dancing, playing games, and whatever else you could think of, we did. One night while we were at the pump, Marv cleared it out. He was sitting at the bar enjoying a beer, when this rancid smell appeared. Half the bar emptied, but I noticed that my husband didn't follow. All I could do was give him a nasty look 'cause of what he did, and I knew it was him.”

“What did he do?” Blake asked.

How mermaids take their tea

When considering the type of shot to use for the cover of this tea issue, we put out a call on Facebook for ‘tea party’ photos taken by (or taken of) the person submitting images for consideration. Our runner-up in the contest was professional mermaid Meridian Mer-Gyver of Southern California.

We were so enthralled with her whimsical photos that we decided to include them ... and since she’s of British decent and reads tea leaves, we thought we should ask her a few questions as well.

First off, what inspired you to invite a coterie of cephalopods to join you?

Well, they are my cu.e-pods. They live in the studio where I create and work. They are my inspira.on and daily companions. O=o is the largest and oldest of the bunch, and he is a mermaid’s best friend! The rest of the cu.e-pods have been adopted over the years, and O=o watches over them. It just did not seem right to have a party with O=o and not invite the rest of the pod!

What role does tea play in your life?

An everyday role—I cannot 'get on with my life without it' kinda role! No, seriously! I drink tea every morning, English Breakfast Tea, light honey (from my husband’s last beehive) and lots of cream! The real stuff, not powdered or flavored, just good old fashioned half and half! When the weather finally turns cool and the nights are crisp, it's another favorite .me to fire up the old tea ke=le. I drink tea like the Bri.sh; I have even been known to line-dry my old tea bags for reuse later! My friends say tea runs in my veins. I was given my love of tea from my very British grandparents, who were an integral part of my upbringing. I prefer Moroccan style tea in summer’s warm months, so I make Sun Tea with honey and fresh mint from the garden, instead of sugar. I have painted with tea, dyed fabric with tea, baked green tea cookies, and have used certain types of tea bags for calming puffy eyes or as a hot compress. I have even studied and taught the finer points of divining or fortune telling with tea leaves and different types of loose herbal teas.

What do you enjoy most about the tea room experience?

When I was younger and we first moved to California, it was a huge culture shock for my mom. She had a hard .me adjus.ng, but I, being a child, barely no.ced. As .me went by and we se=led into life in a new state, Mom found a quiet li=le Bri.sh Market with an a=ached Tea House. Inside was like being back in grandparents’ home. The smells and sights were all familiar and the taste of the food was something I had all but forgo=en. Spending .me in the Bri.sh Tea House with my mom was like reliving our life back east with my grandparents, and it filled us both with such joy and warmth. To this day, whenever I am in a Bri.sh tea house, those same feelings come rushing back to me. It’s a sense of home and the old world.

I hear your husband joins you on tea ou;ngs. Was it difficult to convince him to do so?

There is a Japanese style tea house that my husband LOVES. In fact, it was his idea to go there for the first .me! My husband also enjoys a good cup of tea on a cold night, or with his breakfast of fresh eggs and toast. We always have English Breakfast tea in the house, but his favorite tea in all the world is the Russian Caravan tea we get from our local tea house. It has a very heavy smoky scent and a thick robust black tea taste; ‘it’s a man’s tea’ as my husband would say! (He must be right because I do not care for it). On special nights or occasions, I will get down our Japanese tea pot and cups, and brew us a small pot of tea. Usually it's an herbal tea that we both enjoy; we

sip and relax in front in the fire while watching a movie. There is something so intimate about sharing a pot of tea. It soothes the souls of the couple and brings them together.

What do you do for a living?

I am a teacher by trade and an ar.st at heart. My daily life is teaching and working with children between the ages of 1 month to 8 years. I have been teaching for almost 15 years. I have seen countless first steps, heard countless first words, mended many a broken heart and scraped knee. Children are second nature to me, but I will not have any of my own. I have raised my fair share, and have made the decision not to have children of my own. At 32 years old, I don’t regret this decision, and it has given me the chance to chase my dreams of being an artist. I am a crea.ve, expressive person, and my art allows me the opportunity to show this to the world. I run a small Etsy shop— known as Ten Tickles Art—with my trusted octopus, O=o Bot. O=o is a large stuffed octopus who has been with me and a part of my mermaid persona for all most three years. I love Octopuses, well, cephalopods in general, but mostly the Octopus takes my heart. It only seemed natural to make O=o my business partner! I am also a performance ar.st. Not only am I a professional mermaid with lots of goals and ambi.ons, but I am also a Flow Ar.st. I dance and play with Hula Hoops, Poi Balls, and Levita.on wands; they all incorporate a form of juggling, dance, hand/eye coordina.on, and imagina.on. Without this type of dance and movement my life would be stagna.ng. I have trained in several forms of dance: Irish Hard Shoe (Riverdance Style), Ballet and Pointe, Salsa, Swing and I have spent plenty nights line dancing with my mom! I have always danced, but being a professional mermaid is s.ll a very new thing to me.

I have only been in the mermaid community for three years, but in that short .me I have found myself allied with some of the most amazing people. Because of my mermaid career I have met, interviewed and advised several authors, and helped run the internet side of Mermaid/ Merman Minerals. Paf Lynn, the owner of Mermaid Minerals, made me her Social Media Correspondent and over the years I have helped build up Merman Minerals, giving the men in our community a place to gather and to share their photos and experiences. I work for, and with, the incredible Thom Shouse, who gave me my start as a mermaid! Thom encouraged me to go further, be in the public eye and make a career out of my dreams. I have worked some amazing events and seen some amazing par.es. Mermaiding is fulfilling to me because it is something I have always dreamed of, and I want to help others reach their dreams. My best friend calls me the Fairy God Mother of the mermaid world because I want to help everyone get their tail and see their dreams come true! I want to make fabric tails and gift them to new merfolk in the community! I want to bring an entire pod of mermen together for a big meet-up and photo shoot! I want to open my own mermaid school so I can teach swimming, safety, and the skills of being a professional mermaid! These are just some of my goals. If I can keep on going, then maybe one day I can make these things happen, not only for myself, but for the merfolk community at large.

And what sorts of trinkets and treasures do you offer in your new TenTickles Art Etsy shop?

I've got gadgets and gizmos aplenty, I've got whozits and whatzits galore! You want thingamabobs? I've got at least twenty! Sorry, I could not resist! I really do have many things in my Etsy shop, lots of merfolk trinkets including home décor such as the Sunken Treasure Candles. Each candle has a sharks' tooth, sea glass, shells and more hidden within the blue soy wax. As the candle melts, the .ny treasures are revealed! You can salvage the treasure for your own personal art or décor! There's handmade jewelry featuring puka shell necklaces, sea shell bangles with real coral, shells, and sea beans to adorn your wrists, and also, .ny sea shell earrings, real starfish and sand dollar hair clips, and bobby pins for your flowing mermaid hair.

I also incorporate many aspects of my personal life into my art. I am a Pagan, and ojen.mes you can find trinkets, charms, or amulets that reflect my witchy side. I love working with the Evil Eye charm. I have several earrings made from blue, green, or red eyes to protect and watch your back! I also sell my Good Voodoo Dolls, made from Day of the Dead co=on print fabric with a super soj center ̶-great for cuddles or strangles! And let’s not forget that I am a total dork for Batman, LEGOs and Star Wars! If you are too, I’ve got some incredible, one-of-a-kind, handmade pieces to delight your geeky side. The Mario Mushroom Power Up pack is all hand-molded and hand-painted to be a realis.c version of the c a r t o o n mushrooms found in the popular video games. LEGO Mini-Figure Necklaces, Bracelets, and Earrings can be found within Ten Tickles Art, along with Gaming Dice bracelets and earrings, and goldfish cracker bobby pins. There's even a goldfish cracker, hand-sculptured and painted to look like someone has prepared a real life Goldfish Cracker Fish for dinner!

Last, I hear you are a prac;;oner of tasseography. What can you tell us about this age-old prac;ce?

Tasseography, also known as Tasseomancy, is in fact an age-old prac.ce of divining one’s future through the interpreta.on of the pa=erns lej in the cup from tea leaves or coffee grounds. That’s the clinical side of it—now comes the magickal side of (magick, in this case, is spelled with a ‘k’ to differen.ate from stage magic). I used to gather my students around my dinner table and brew a pot of tea while giving this lesson. It's set up to be a hands-on experience. I encourage you to try this prac.ce at home. You never know what your future will hold! Begin by choosing a simple black, white, oolong or green tea. Make sure it is loose leaf and not in a tea bag. Usually, you would use a tea infuser when making loose leaf teas, but in this case, just put the tea straight into the

water. You will need a teapot, ke=le, or electric ke=le to boil the water, a cup with a handle and a saucer to go along with your chosen tea. I would always burn incense and play medita.on music for my students. Doing this may be something that helps get you into a magickal frame of mind. As you start to boil your water, select your tea, and set out your cup and saucer, begin to think about your future and what ques.ons you would like answered. This is the start of your moving medita.on. The en.re process should put your mind into a working media.on or scrying mood. Everything you are doing is in prepara.on for your magickal work. Once the ke=le has boiled, make yourself a cup of tea. Add sugar or honey to sweeten it, but no cream or milk. Swirl, sip, and enjoy your tea all while concentra.ng on your magickal purpose. Con.nue to drink the tea un.l you are finished, being mindful of the loose tea leaves. Once there is only a small amount of liquid and concentrated tea leaves in the bo=om of the cup, the divining can begin. Place your saucer on top of the cup and .p it over, allowing the remaining liquid and tea leaves to fall, most of the leaves will slide down the side of the cup and the liquid will wash out on to the saucer. (If all of your tea leaves wash out, you lej too much liquid in the cup). As you return your

Bottom Feeders by ceramic artist Mary O’Malley cup to its normal posi.on, you should see the leaves coa.ng the inside of the cup. The leaves closest to the rim represents the near future, halfway down the side would be the mid-future, and the bo=om-most leaves represents the distant future. Now you must use your crea.ve eyes and mind to make out the images that appear within your tea leaves. You might see things like a tree, a house, a person, or an animal. Reading tea leaves is a lot like a Rorschach test—it’s all up to your interpreta.on. Each image has its own meaning. You can look online or purchase a book at your local bookstore to find the meanings. For example: if you see a person near the middle of the cup, it could mean a new friendship, lover, or child. A house near the top of the cup may indicate a move, a new home or business venture. It's up to you to decide which meaning applies to you and your life. If tea leaf reading is something that speaks to you, and you want to

con.nue learning and studying this art of divina.on, you can get into herbal teas and divina.on tea cups! While teaching this class one year, a student of mine asked about using herbal teas. I had not heard of such a thing and since I have a treasure trove worth of teas, we began to pull out and inspect the herbal teas for divina.on purposes. This what we discovered: if you are going to use herbal teas, choose teas with larger pieces that won’t disintegrate in the hot water. Also, be mindful of what herbs you are using, and what purpose or meaning they embody. For instance, if you are doing a reading about your love life or rela.onships, you might want to use a Rose Mint Herbal Tea. Remember, all plants have magickal and medita.onal proper.es. It would be wise to do some research before doing a reading with herbal teas. An herb like Yarrow is not only for love and divina.on, it's also good for things like colds and fevers. However, Yarrow is also used as a sleep aid and to encourage prophe.c dreams. So if you’re looking to do a reading with Yarrow, you may want to take a nap ajer drinking your tea, and write down your dreams to help you interpret the meanings later. I always recommend that my new students get a book about herbs and their proper.es. Sco= Cunningham is an author I have recommended .me and .me again. Divina.on Tea Cups are unlike any other cup and saucer you will ever see. They are surprisingly not that hard to find, once you know what you are looking for! Most people use plain, simple cups and saucers, as I do to for most readings, but now again you want something a little more ̶ witchy! There are three styles of Divination Tea Cup: the Zodiac, Playing Card and the Symbol Cups, so let’s start with the Zodiac Cup. The Zodiac Cups feature pictures and/or symbols of all 12 zodiacal characters inside the cup or saucer. My Zodiac cup has the zodiacal characters on the saucer, planetary symbols and images on the inside of the cup with an inscription on