House of multi-woo in Catonsville

In Catonsville, you can be advised by a psychic or by the "Crystal & Aura Advisor" or, apparently, shop for a horoscope.

Decisions decisions.

Is one woo better than another? Will each give me the same results?

A woo-der-full weekend

I'm afraid I missed the Friday, June 4, beginning of the 6th Annual Reiki & Wellness Retreat in Reisterstown, Md., which looks like a woo-der-full weekend. I also missed retreats 1 through 5, and actually, will miss the rest of number 6, which continues through Sunday.

And just look what I'm missing! 

There's a workshop: "The Art of Prophecy: Courage, Imagination, and Humility: An Experiential Workshop in Intuition."

Indeed, I'm sure that believing that one has the gift of prophecy involves a lot of imagination. And humility. "Yeah, I know the future. I'm divinely inspired. But, shucks, I'm very humble about having that as my superpower."

In addition to that workshop, there's a veritable cornucopia of woo offered. There's "Introduction to Animal Communication"; "Casting Your Slice of LIfe: An Interpretive Card Reading Experience"; yoga; Qigong; "Find Your Inner Voice & Connect with Your Inner Rhythm" by The Sound of Healing; and--if those weren't enough--a "Grand Circle of Healing!" Woo-hoo!!

But the woo doesn't stop there! If you're fortunate, you may be able to schedule a "fabulous one of a kind healing session," and/or the readings offered by at least two women.

And, of course, what would a woo weekend be without woo merchandise so you can take some woo home with you? 

You can buy "smudge spray" which will allow you to clear away negative energy--without burning sage. Imagine! Plus energy healing bracelets, energy healing charging coasters, and energy infused mats and squares. Why after this weekend, you'll have energy to spare!

And that's not all!! You can buy "Solid Grounding oils," which, as best I can determine, are used in aromatherapy; phone stones, which will keep your cell phone from frying your brain. The secret is in the coating. "It's infused." Just stick one on your cell phone--they're adhesive!--and you're protected the natural way; pet charms; and more!

Of course, no woo weekend worth its weight in wooziness would be complete without crystals. So, naturally (word play intentional), they'll be on sale too. And not just crystals! You can also buy a variety of "crystal infused" products including Crystal Sage "crystal infused essentials" such as Cord Cutter, "specially formulated to help prevent and remove negative attachments from people, past events and material possessions." Who doesn't need a product like that?! Everyone has emotional baggage he/she needs to jettison. So yeah, an essential (heh, more word play) product.

Also available from Crystal Sage is Psychic Traveler which "may assist in all types of psychic work...[and] works great with all types of healing therapies such as Reiki, self hypnosis, and astral travel. It may cause a quicker and clearer connection with spiritual guides." Sounds perfect for just about anyone,"(f)rom people who are having trouble learning how to meditate to the experienced psychic." But be careful! "Psychic Traveler is to be used only when attempting a meditative state, pyschic (sic) work or healing therapies and not for casual use." But if you'd like to make your astral travel a smoother flight, I'm sure it's worth the risk.

And all this woofulness for only $450, double occupancy! $225 if you commute. Woo merchandise is extra, but worth it, I'm sure.

More community college woo

The Community College of Baltimore County's Continuing Education program offers a wide range of excellent,  beneficial classes to its adult and child students such as GED prep, vocational training,  technology skills, and recreational activities.

So, what the hell, CCBC, with also offering a goodly number of classes teaching people woo, quackery, and pseudoscience?!

Not classes teaching about these subjects. Not classes warning people of the dangers of medical quackery and health scams. Not critical thinking classes teaching healthy skepticism about the paranormal and non-science based healing techniques. Not classes debunking beliefs in the paranormal, supernatural, and pseudoscience. Those types of classes would be perfectly fine, valuable to CCBC students and the community. Teaching those types of classes would be laudable.

No, what CCBC is offering are classes that present pseudoscience, health and wellness quackery, and frauds and hoaxes involving the supernatural and paranormal as true and factual, subjects worthy of being taught by a respected community college.

In addition to some of the same classes I wrote about in yesterday's post: Kundalini Reiki I; Dreams--Self Healing through Dream Analysis; and Understanding Traditional Chinese Medicine, CCBC is offering the following Continuing Education courses for its spring session:

Ghost Studies: Identify the different types of ghosts, spirits, and entities among us. If you've ever felt that you are not alone, learn how to find and investigate suspected haunted areas and sightings. You will apply what you learn and undertake a special investigation.

Advanced Studies in Reflexology: Gain additional tools and skills to use as a reflexologist. Practice ear  reflexology and energy balancing techniques. Unlock personality and health cues with foot analysis. Utilize referral and helper areas. Learn to synthesize technique to create a cohesive treatment plan.

Egyptian Reflexology: [Me: Ooooh, Egyptian reflexology. The exotic Egyptians built those magical, mystical, power-emitting/absorbing pyramids. So this must be more potent and effective than the other type of reflexology. Unless there's a class in, perhaps, ancient Indian reflexology.] Discover how to unlock your body's own natural ability to heal itself through Egyptian reflexology. Learn through touch and pressure techniques how to alleviate mental and emotional stress and tension painlessly. Experience the benefits of improved breathing, balance, and relaxation.

Awaken Your Purpose through Numerology: Discover the world of modern numerology, spiritual awareness, and universal and personal life energy patterns. Understand life's lessons and your inner desires and learn how to fulfill them physically, mentally, emotionally and intuitively.

Healing with Gemstones and Crystals: Discover the benefits of gemstones and crystals for first aid, emotional healing, mediation, space clearing and psychic protection. Learn ways to program, cleanse, charge and intuitively select personal healing stones. Topics include a hands-on introduction to over 20 different gemstones and crystals and their function based on mineral composition and structure.

CCBC, are you so hard up for cash that you are willing to sell your educational integrity to teach these scams, frauds, and hoaxes?

Is no one at CCBC embarrassed that their school is offering instruction in pseudoscience and the paranormal?  Is no one at CCBC concerned that courses are being offered that aren't based in reality and on rationality?

These are not beneficial classes; they are of no value. They are scams, flim-flams, preying on the gullible. By taking the money of students who take these courses, CCBC is complicit in an educational scam. Instead of teaching students to be rational thinkers, instead of offering its students reality-based information, instead of offering courses that benefit its students and the community, CCBC is harming its students and the community by teaching misinformation, magical thinking, and educational garbage. This is a scandal that needs to be stopped. Now!