Past Week, James Van Praagh & Atlantic City

Without a doubt we are all experiencing the effects of the Mercury Retrograde, some a little more then others. One of the effects it has been having on myself is that I feel overwhelmed and it seems like there is just one thing after another. This past week I barely found time to sit and relax, just too much to do. It also seems as if the projects I was attempting to complete just took forever to get finished. And of course the Retrograde started off with a bang in our house with the washer breaking down first. Then my email crashed and I could not get it to work for two days. We have to put up with the Mercury Retrograde until mid June. The actually retrograde ends on May 31 and then the return is June 14. So you could feel the effects through early June, so hang in there.

After my busy week Bob and I headed out to Atlantic City around 3PM Friday. For some reason I went another way and it took us two hours to get to AC rather then the normal Hour and a half. Thanks again to the retrograde. Then for some reason I thought we were staying at the Tropicana and at the last minute I realized I made our reservation for Resorts. We hit a little rain on the way down the AC expressway and once we arrived Atlantic City had a blanket of thick fog. We checked into out hotel and headed to our room to upload our bags. Then we went and played slots for just a bit while having a drink, or two. Then Bob and I began our journey down the boardwalk to find a restaurant for dinner before going further down the boardwalk to the Hilton to see James Van Praagh.

We stumbled upon the Rain Forest Cafe' and decided to go with them for dinner. We have eaten there in the past and it was really good. This time I went with the steak, ribs and coconut shrimp combo and it was excellent. Bob had the primal steak and said it was excellent. I love the atmosphere at the Rain Forest Cafe' with its jungle feeling surroundings along with the huge fish tanks with all the beautiful fish. After dinner we headed to the Hilton. We did not realize until we left Saturday how far we actually walked Friday night. It was somewhere around 4 miles or more from our hotel to the Hilton. Once we arrived at the Hilton we had a few drinks and played a little on the slots before going into the theater to see James Van Praagh. Unfortunately we were unable to have dinner with James this time because of his crazy schedule & book tour.

We sat pretty close to the stage and there was music playing. Then James came out on stage dancing all around as the audience began clapping to the beat. That was fun. James talked a little bit and brought out a woman by the name of Fran who is the fastest talker in the world. She is in the Guinness Book Of World Records and has been on Ripley's and dozen of other shows. She also had a great sense of humor and James was just down right hysterical. A very funny guy in deed. After Fran came up on stage James took everyone into a meditation and was about to go into doing readings. At some point he brought up my name when he was on stage. I was stunned and did not expect that at all. He told people all about me and actually mentioned me several times throughout the event. What an honor it was to have James mention me in front of hundreds of people. Totally awesome.

A friend of mine, Alison, had just sent me an email telling me that she just went and saw James for a book signing in Exton, PA. She said a guy asked James if he would do a reading and then James mentioned his web site and my name. He recommended me to the group at the bookstore. Wow. Even though James is a friend and I'm listed on his site, I would never expect him to mention me at a book signing or event. I'm just honored that he has done that for me. I had done a reading for James in order to get listed on his site. He is a person I have always looked up to and has been like a mentor to me throughout my life.

So going back to the event, James made a few really good connections. Some of the things he says are so funny and at times you would catch yourself thinking "I can not believe he just said that". He has a great presence on stage and comes across really well in his readings. Even being a medium myself it is still amazing to watch a medium like James at work. After the event I was immediately approached by people that were sitting near me. I could not talk to everyone at once, it was kind of crazy. Beings James mentioned me and many people recognized me from TV. There had to be at least a half of dozen people who asked if I would take a photo with them. That was a very nice feeling and James really made my night. We met up with James afterwards and I got a copy of his new book "Unfinished Business". Looking forward to reading that on the plane trip to Florida Monday.

James introduced us to his friends, including Fran, the worlds fastest talker. We talked to her for a while and I really liked her. She had a good personality and great humor. Well she should, she is also a comedian. Would love to see her perform some time. We hung out for a little while and then headed out. I was not about to endure that walk back to our hotel, so we grabbed a cab outside the Hilton. Once back at the hotel we hit the casino and spend the evening in there before going to eat again. I had a craving for breakfast, so that is exactly what we did, at breakfast at about 1AM in the morning. Saturday morning we heading out of Atlantic City and went home to catch up on things before out Disney trip Monday.

We spent the entire day in the yard doing yard work, like mowing the lawn and getting the vegetable garden tilled. I tilled the garden, added some manure and put the plants and seeds in. The Bob and I put up the fences I made for certain vines plants to climb like cucumbers, watermelon and cantaloupe. I'm looking forward to fresh fruits and vegetables this summer. Nothing like veggies picked fresh out of your own back yard. I'm even more excited about Disney and having some time off. So folks, that is my past week pretty much summed up and our trip to Atlantic City. Be sure to check out James Van Praagh's new book "Unfinished Business and check his web site for up-coming book signings, events and TV appearances. I just finished watching him on Larry King Live. Very good topic. Thank you for taking the time to read my blog. Hope you all have a wonderful day.
Blessings
Joseph Tittel