the upcoming Mars/Pluto Opposition and more | pay attention to whatever you are dealing with on Friday and Saturday pt 1

16.365 by laauraa

We are building toward Mars (in Cancer) exact opposition with Pluto (in Capricorn) on Sunday then a week later immediately following a challenging Full Moon in Capricorn we will have the Sun opposing Pluto.

(I almost wrote - tighten your belt - but better advice would be to - loosen your belt - so you can breathe, the more room we give ourselves now to just breathe, the lighter the load on everyone)

Let's look at today's energy first. We have Mercury in this space (Cancer opposite Pluto in Capricorn) - I did a post about this yesterday HERE.  

The issues of family vs work could be at the center of whatever is happening. Or the power structure within the family or the familial structure within the workplace (outside world doesn't have to be paid work). 

Maybe a family secret has been revealed (what's that all about?). Maybe we have found ourselves talking over people or they are talking over us (what's that all about?). Maybe we are forced to agree to/with something (what's that all about?). Maybe we are the one forcing our point of view on someone else (what's that all about?).

If the emotion (anger, fear) within a conversation/communication is out of proportion to what is happening, think about what is really happening here - what is really being triggered. With oppositions we can't deal with something ourselves so we create (subconsciously) a situation outside ourselves to force us to deal with it.

Now Mercury (communications, conversation, ideas) gets this party started and moves on, to be replaced by Mars (action), who will be opposing Pluto by Sunday.

Then we will have the God of war opposing the God of the underworld. Pluto (the guy from down under and I'm not talking about Australia here) rules that deep stuff we buried long ago because we don't want to deal with it. In Capricorn he is working with power structures and security issues. Mars (the war guy) rules our passion, initiative, anger and violence. In Cancer he is working with family, home, country, roots, security themes.

Family problems (that might look like a fight with Verizon customer service - what is really being triggered when we are angered when made to wait, feel unseen, feel unheard, feel unappreciated), power struggles especially within groups that feel like family, security issues, childhood traumas will be unearthed, in uncomfortable ways

(I started to feel this energy last weekend and you might have felt it then, too, as these planets started to line up).

Friday and Saturday take note of what you are dealing with because Mars will be getting close enough to his exact opposition to Pluto to feel what this will all be about.

Collectively, this is hitting the U.S. and Trump's chart rather BIGLY. We'll talk about that, too.

We might be very determined to get something done now within some precise time-frame or in some precise way and stuff will line up to interfere with whatever we are trying to power through and force. Projects started many months ago will face stiff tests now. Manipulations will bite us in the ass. Enemies will be powerful. This is excellent energy to burn ourselves out or start a war we cannot win, so let's avoid that.

I think the best way to work with this kind of sustained pressure, especially with all this Cancer energy, is to take care of ourselves. Let some little stuff fall apart so the big stuff doesn't have to.

I'll write more about this tomorrow in Part ll - this energy is going to carry us through the Full Moon on July 9th and the Sun opposite Pluto on July 10th. Then the second week of July will be a much needed breather for most of us.  

xo all

Mars Conjunct Mercury | decisive action, words that open childhood wounds

untitled by sollenafotographie

Today's energy is fast and packs a wallop.

With Mercury (words, ideas, communication, siblings, transportation) meeting up with Mars (initiative, drive, passion, anger) at 15 degrees Cancer - words are our weapon.

Either we cut to the heart of the matter or we cut someone's heart out.

Happening in family, home, country and security oriented Cancer, conversations now could revolve around these themes or take us back to childhood (or past-life) issues.

That guy in your face in the post office will actually be yelling at his controlling mother and you will actually be listening to your demanding brother. Everything will be taken out of context and relate back to something else. Powder kegs are hidden in the most unlikeliest of spaces now. Tread cautiously.

Post internet comments at your own risk. Call your sister at your own risk. Arguments will be swift and passionate especially around issues of safety and our long-standing beliefs that, if changed or challenged, would rock our structure.

The best way through these energies is to blend this week's trine to Neptune and today's conjunction with Mars to find the courage to forgive or apologize. 

On a more positive note (yes, today there are lots of flies in the ointment, but also one nice fly-free zone the flies haven't noticed yet)

if an auspicious opportunity is presented now, the energy is available to take swift and decisive action. There won't be time to hedge our bets, manipulate the data into what feels comfortable or second guess ourselves - if our intuition says "make a move" then make the move.

If courageous words are needed we can find them.

xo all (drive safely)

Mercury Square Jupiter | over-sharing, over-promising, over-explaining, over-spending

glitter and stars by sollenafotografie

Today, Mercury (in Cancer) squares Jupiter (in Libra) at 13 degrees. Yesterday's trine is still in play, too.

Together these energies are a time of BIG ideas and conversations. Great for a group brain-storming session about a problem that appears to be unsolvable. Keep in mind that answers may not be totally practical - this energy can be "over-the-top" - and sometimes too much information is as troublesome as too little. But words have great power this week and our intention to solve things will factor into the results we achieve.

We could have a tendency to over-explain ourselves now. If "No" is a complete sentence then lots of other short and sweet (or short and sour) explanations are perfectly acceptable, too.

I said so many words yesterday I regret today. Knowing these energies are at play isn't enough if we don't act on our knowledge. Some cards are best played close to the chest. I tossed mine all over the table (still looking for that two of spades).

If it feels like other people are judging us, step back from the moment. Do we need to be right or do we want to be happy? Sometimes these things are at cross purposes. A whole heap of the sky is in Cancer now and Cancerian energy is very defensive. Defensiveness sometimes sounds judgemental. Let's give each other a break. We might also have to reel back in our own language. That square from Cancer to Libra (family vs something/someone else) creates tension.

We are in the NEW phase of the Cancer Moon cycle. Our emotions are probably all over the place. Let's not judge ourselves for our weaknesses and vulnerabilities now. It's the job of this cycle to bring this stuff up to slow us down. Tonight we will move into the Moon's crescent phase (creativity, growth) and while we are sleeping the Moon will move into grounded Virgo.

For today, avoid the "overs" and stick with the facts. No over-spending. No over-explaining. No over-promising. Avoid "over the top" schemes, sob stories and TALL TALES.

This energy reminds me of when my sister and I were kids and would get over-excited and giggling too much and falling all over the place and my grandmother would say "you are laughing now, but you'll be crying before the day is over" (ugh Grandma). Back then we usually were crying within the hour. And we might cry now, too. Let's not judge ourselves or anyone else as weak here. Cancer is about working with our vulnerabilities. It's pretty much the point of the whole thing ....

Tomorrow, Mercury is going to hook up with fiery, fiesty Mars. Of course it is exact enough to feel it now. We will have to work hard to outrun that family fight or those angry words. Break out the running shoes now. Or just be prepared to laugh until it hurts.

xo all

Mars Trine Neptune | our faith makes us stronger

faith by sollenafotographie

Here is the one gentle and steady aspect this week to hold onto.

Mars (in Cancer) is trine (brakes off) Neptune (in Pisces).

The energies this week will challenge (Mars) us to remain peaceful (Neptune). Neptune dissolves the boundaries between ourselves and others making it easier to feel what other people are feeling (yes, we are all loving and frightened inside) but can also be emotionally overwhelming.

Mars in Cancer is the divine masculine energy compelled to defend what we call "home" (hold close). This trine to Neptune (the mystical realms) tells us the way to that win-win for all of us is through compassion. We are all is this together. If our right hand forms a fist and throws a punch our left toe is compelled into action, too.

It is MUCH better to move through these times with hands open - the healing action, the compassionate gesture, the universally loving touch - moves all of us away from the circling sharks and into the smoothest waters. We don't have to fight to win. That's the dying patriarchal paradigm. In fact, if we fight we can't win. An open heart opens other hearts now. Pray for peace.

Heads up creatives - this aspect can also dissolve (Neptune) our initiative (Mars). We are only a few days into the summer season, maybe this is a good thing .... xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of June 26th - high emotions, drama, itching for a fight ....

pillow fight by sliwka

Most of this week is about Mercury (words, ideas, communication, conversations, siblings, neighbors, transportation).

He squares Jupiter and trines Neptune on Tuesday. He conjuncts Mars on Wednesday and opposes Pluto on Thursday. Then we end the week on Sunday with the grand-daddy of "win at all costs" fight aspects when Mars opposes Pluto.

Things could go something like this:

Travel plans will be a mess. TAKE EXTRA CARE DRIVING. Words will be BIG and exaggerated. Conversations will be emotional. We could be over-confident or over-commit. Boundaries will be crossed. People will be competitive. We could be over-loaded with information. Words could be heated. We could jump to the wrong conclusion. We could be pushed to make a fast decision we regret later. There could be power plays. Take safety precautions as needed.

Things will feel urgent and that sense of urgency and impatience will make us come on stronger than we intended to - "Did he just say that? Yes, he did." If we have to convince someone of something - well, good luck with that. Maybe something began with Jupiterian positivity and some sense of adventure now becomes fertile grounds for arguments and anxiety. We will be challenged.

If we push, someone else will push back HARDER.

Chiron is going to station retrograde on Saturday triggering whatever vulnerability he is activating within our Pisces natal houses.

The week will end on Sunday with that dreaded opposition between Pluto in Capricorn (power, karma, transformation, security, structure, government) and Mars in Cancer (violence, anger, initiative, passion, war, home, country) that kind of kicks off this summer's volatility and potential for world and personal violence.

I don't mean to sound so negative. I'll write the dailies, look at the Moons and we'll dig in deep and find the good stuff. It's here somewhere. The Moon is in Leo on Monday and Tuesday which is great creative energy and it will hit that North Node in Leo at some point - we need to be working from our heart. And we are, right?

If you can schedule light this week do that. We'll get through it.

xo all

Venus Trine Pluto | having our cake and eating it, too

 julkusiowa

This aspect has been building for a few days and reaches its exact alignment today with Venus at 18 degrees Taurus and Pluto at 18 degrees Capricorn. This is a goodie.

This is where we can take what we want/need/love (Venus) and go in deeper (Pluto). We go a step further. We push that outer limit of what feels comfortable.

With trines things fall smoothly into place. We won't have to push or force or manipulate anything.

With Venus in Taurus (what we already have, what we value) we attract what we want/need/love through what is already working - what comes naturally. With Pluto in industrious Capricorn trining this energy - it's a good time for something good to become something great.

Something we had hoped for gets the green light. An investment grows more profitable. A relationship more comfortable and stable. The value of what we already have increases now. Yes, our stock just went up.

Indulge in just a little bit ... more.

**********

My brother and sister-in-law welcomed their beautiful baby boy Joel Vincent to planet Earth last night. The doctor told them at 4:10PM that he would be born in 10 minutes, and of course, already a fellow who will not be told what to do, Joel made his appearance almost exactly 4 hours later (at the Cancer New Moon with that stellium in Cancer!).

I was planning to be in the hospital waiting room. But I am especially sensitive about my tendency to interject myself into my younger siblings' stories and my sister-in-law is a very private person, so when my brother texted, "Please don't come, I'll text you", those plans changed.

A few hours later he texted "doctor is coming in to deliver baby - doctor says 10 minutes!".

Seconds later my daughter called and we were talking about what was going on at the hospital as I paced around the house (the hospital was actually on fire on another floor, my brother could see three fire trucks from their hospital window and their doctor had been locked outside - it was a nailbiter).

wild turkey and baby?

My daughter, "why don't you just go out there even if you sit in the parking lot, you'll feel better."

At exactly that second I looked out my back door patio window and there was a giant bird, three foot tall, walking next to my pool. I hang up to take a picture with my phone and when I focus in on the giant bird - a type of bird we'd never had in our yard in over 20 years, what the hell kind of bird was this - I see that walking right behind the bird is her baby!

My mom used to send birds in the months after she died, so I knew exactly what this was. I'll just say 'tears flowed like wine' ... and then some wine flowed, too.

And of course, I will re-purpose the corks ...

xo all

what we really need | tonight's Moon can deliver whatever we ask of it ....

summer? by bestraw

We start the day with our early morning Moon opposing Saturn. We have this aspect every month that Saturn is in Sagittarius as the Moon lines up with its polarity sign in Gemini.

This can make sharing our emotions more difficult. We might be feeling more stubborn than usual or feeling the weight of pressing obligations. Issues with authority or our own responsibility could create opposing viewpoints or needs.

By late afternoon the Moon is sextiling Uranus providing opportunities to get ahead by making us more aware of what other people are thinking. 

Yes, we can read minds this afternoon (and yes, I will be thinking about a glass of iced tea right about then ... and George Clooney, yes, I'll be thinking about him, too - damn, you're good - although actually I'm not really feeling George anymore I've lost all my celebrity crushes now ... sniffle).

Unusual or out of the blue communications can go well or feel good.

The Moon goes void (2:45 PM EDT) after that sextile and a square to Chiron making the late afternoon an excellent time for release and meditation. Call it a day early. Unclutter. Organize.

When the Moon goes void after a couple days in noisy Gemini we will likely be feeling the need for some peace and quiet. It's a good time to ask, through prayer, to be released from any negative emotional impressions and dreams of the past that are no longer needed. The ancestors don't need us to carry this stuff anymore. It's usefulness to us is over. We have just grown used to carrying it!

Tonight we get a fresh new beginning with family drama/karma with a New Moon in Cancer

(we will have the Sun, Moon, Mercury and Mars all in Cancer - so all the personal planets except Venus!).

It's a time to honor and celebrate the heritage we do want to carry forward and 'think about/take action with' the new story we will pass to the next generation (and you do not have to have biological children to pass things to the next generation!).

Venus (in earthy Taurus) continues to trine (brakes off) powerful Pluto in Capricorn. This aspect is exact tomorrow. Prosperity and empowerment come from reworking those connections with other people.

Mars (in Cancer) is squaring Jupiter (in Libra). This could take us from confident and bold to shameless and pushy in zero to sixty. Check any impulses to let others know how wonderful we are for a couple more days - it will probably work out better for us then (or the urge will fade or they'll figure it out for themselves).

On the other hand if we really do need to be a courageous super-hero (especially when serving as protector of something vulnerable), the energy is here to assist us.

All these influences impact tonight's New Moon portal.

Cancerian strengths of family building, traditional wisdom, homemaking, compassion, business and structural savvy plus the ability to create a warm and nurturing space for ourselves and others are heightened for the next couple weeks and projects launched within these themes will continue to grow for at least the next six months. 

It will be easier to connect with our emotional needs now.

At 10:30PM EDT the Moon connects with the Sun in Cancer (New Moon). Our monthly creativity peaks and this month is focused on home and family (familial ties). Stability and security matter. Nurturing and comfort matter. 

The closest aspect to the New Moon is that trine from Venus to Pluto which is an excellent one. This Moon can deliver whatever we ask of it ... so let's ask.

xo all

New Moon in Cancer | part II - a new beginning

spirited by catliv

Cancer is all about looking back - family, country, home, our roots, history, real estate, security, mom and apple pie.

And with tomorrow night's Cancer New Moon conjuncting Mercury there is the possibility of important information coming in now within one of these themes or the theme of our natal Cancer house.

I'd say pay attention, but it's probably not the kind of thing you would be likely to miss. If you are affected there will almost certainly be an emotional impact (we will have four planets in Cancer!).

I'll tell you how all of this is playing out for me.

Hub's Cancer house is his 10th house of career and social status, yes, he's quite the little mother duck at work this man. So with all these planets in Cancer now, he has this pile up of Cancer energy in this area of his life. My Cancer house is my 8th house of 'other people's resources, other people's values' things like loans and spouse's income, so I have my little pile there.

This week he heard about a piece of property for sale that he thought would be the perfect place to move his business (we currently rent his shop space). I am not in agreement this is the right move (partly due to my natural ability to focus on the pitfalls and dragons, but for other more logical reasons also). But I'm not exactly in totally disagreement either - mostly because of the astrology. 

Cancer is all about real estate (and my husband's business is like his home to him - he has Capricorn 4th house) and we have his career and public life and my loan and spouse's income houses all lit up like Christmas trees.

Sooo, he set up an appointment with the realtor to meet us at the property today at 2PM  ... and ... we sat outside ... in the heat ... until 2:30PM when hubs called the realtor and she told him the seller didn't want to go through the hassle of dealing with us since we would need to work a contingency into the deal that the loan would be predicated on us getting a zoning change from the town (the change would probably not be that difficult).

Now George is angry because he was feeling the whole thing was "meant to be" because of all this invisible energy at play and the flashing Christmas tree lights he isn't even aware of. I am (secretly) a little bit relieved because the thought of starting this whole exhausting venture of his all over again in a new space makes me want to lie down ... like in a big mahogany box with a velvet liner.

Anyhoo, my point with sharing this story (the outcome is still uncertain) is that when things feel like they are 'meant to be' and then they fall apart before they even get off the ground, it is sometimes because that 'meant to be' feeling was really just a whole lot of universal energy focusing us in a certain direction.

It doesn't always mean the exact thing we are focused on is going to work out perfectly.

The flashing light can be more a "notice this", "think about this", "imagine what having/doing/being this would feel like" directional that will come into play later than it is a sign that this particular thing is for us. Of course, sometimes powerful energies merge to line that thing that is for us, up with us, at times like this, too. Whew, that story was a mouthful! Not sure why I wrote it. xo if you bothered to read it.

The stuff that is going to work out now, we will be emotionally charged about (Cancer) and it will unroll rapidly (Mercury).

The other thing that is happening this weekend, the really important thing, is that my brother and sister-in-law are having their baby. I am not sure if I will be the only person in the waiting room - because half my family lives on the West Coast now and my sister-in-law's family is spread out, too. I bought a book and a box of tissues. I charged my phone. I got some cash from the bank and a box of snacks from Target. I don't know if I will actually be sitting there when baby Joel makes his entrance, but I hope I will be. My mother sat in the waiting room when my daughter was born and she sat in the waiting room again when my sister's daughter was born.

She has been gone for 20 years now. It's feels like it's my turn to sit.

SETTING AFFIRMATIONS

This is a powerful energy to focus our intentions and make affirmations on Cancer stuff : mothers, motherhood, self-care, nurturing, home, family, real estate, home business, food, breast health, stomach and digestive health, gut health, security ...

AFFIRMATION TIPS: get into a positive frame of mind - always make affirmations from a  positive place (positive meaning both happy and certain) - write your affirmations down by hand in script, speak them out loud - then release your attention from them knowing that your intention is known. Know these things are already yours. Cancer is a water sign so this is a great weekend to be near and in water!

Wait until you see a little sliver of Moon in the sky to take any action related to the New Moon (including setting your affirmations), we want our actions to be visible in the world! But don't wait so long that the Moon moves out of Cancer - Saturday night/early Sunday looks good for intentions.

There was more about this New Moon in the weekly HERE

Wishing everyone a powerful, magical weekend of deep connections and familial memories. If you don't have actual family nearby, pull together the people you care about. Love is love.

xo all

(we'll talk more about all this Cancer and what it means next week!)

Solstice | New Moon in Cancer part I - soaking the ground

fearless mother by zoran photo

In preparation for tomorrow night's impactful New Moon in Cancer - let's take a step back a little.

Yesterday's solstice was the longest day in the Northern Hemisphere and the longest night in the Southern Hemisphere. The Sun moved into the cardinal water sign of Cancer launching us into a new season.

Astrologically speaking, the energies at play portend quite a bit about the months ahead (and maybe that's too ominous a word to use now that I google it, but I feel the need to let it stay) - the relationship between the planets on any "start date" establish the energies/points the "venture" will be working with throughout its life, in this case the summer (winter down under) season.

We've had an exalted Taurus Moon joining with Venus (in Taurus) and trining nicely with Pluto (power, karma, transformation).

Back on planet Earth (as above, so below) Melania Trump, an Earth Mother Taurus Sun with a Moon and stellium in heavy duty Capricorn (authority) has moved into the White House

(a Cancer country, her child is moving in with her, she is the first First Lady since John Quincy Adams' wife Louisa to be born outside the U.S. - reminding me of the current Saturn - authority - in Sagittarius - foreign - and also reminding me of Louisa's connection to Andrew Jackson, but that's a post for another time!).

I called her an Earth Mother in an astrology group posting a couple weeks back and got my head chewed off people didn't like it.

I understand why, but Taurus rules all the resources on planet Earth including money. We have two astrological mothers - Cancer energy nurtures and protects, Taurus energy gives birth and feeds (provides resources). Ideally, mama needs to provide nurturing and protection AND she needs to provide food and comfort. It's not called the 'hardest job in the world' for nothing, people.

Melania's not the Earth Mother many would hope for, but she's placed in the highest office in the land (think of all her natal Capricorn and Venus's current trine to Pluto) - she is what we've got, so in ways we might not be able to see clearly right now she is what we need.

Another powerful woman, singer Beyonce, gave birth to twins just as the 'twin season' of Gemini ended. She had some beautiful Earth Mother photography done while pregnant. I don't know anything about her efforts on behalf of the Planet either, but it could be a more comfortable image for many people to work with.

What we are really seeing in both these stories - Melania's move and Beyonce's birth - is the archetypal journey from Taurus/Gemini into Cancer.

How is your own personal Cancerian story playing out?

Back later today with Part II.

NOTE - by this weekend we will have the Sun, Moon, Mercury and Mars in Cancer. That is an amazing amount of Cancer energy (and my brother's son is about to be born!). With July 2nd's powerful Mars/Pluto opposition it almost feels like we are soaking the ground in the hopes of preventing a fire from spreading out of control ....

Sun into Cancer | Summer Solstice - home, family, roots - fresh new beginnings

Home by Cristiana Apostol

Mercury follows the Sun into Cancer today - joining together at 0 degrees.

With our North Node in Leo now and Leo ruled by the Sun, the Sun's monthly transitions become even more impactful

(is there a family issue that needs to be 'ironed out/worked with' before we can move forward).

Mercury carries a communication, news, information, an issue, contact with sibling or the local environment that sets the tone for the new summer season. It could refer back to something started around April 20th - the last Sun/Mercury culmination point (superior conjunction).

Today's revelation would be the prologue to a whole new chapter that launches after the New Moon on June 23rd. Post to follow.

Cancer season is about home and family, motherhood, real estate and roots, security and patriotism. It wouldn't be surprising if the message Mercury delivers comes from our ancestors. It would be a good time to pay them tribute with a space dedication in your home - be sure to include a photo of yourself as a child. Think about the ways your own story is woven in with theirs and how you carry your mother's emotional story and your father's physical story (and vice versa - it is way more complicated than this) forward.

That North Node in Leo - and our move into heart - has me thinking this Cancer season and Summer Solstice could be a great bit about looking backward into what took root and grew in our heart when we were a child. We'll talk more about this at the New Moon in a couple days.

In the meantime, the Moon is balsamic. Get enough rest. Go through your family albums. The good financial/resource vibes continue from yesterday. What are you mining?

xo all

Mercury Square Chiron, Venus Sextile Neptune, Mercury Sextile Uranus | multiple opportunities - connect, talk, think, forgive

The Crowd by uglybug

There are multiple energies at play today and of course, we still have that powerful Grand Fire Trine (stay careful with fire and away from angry people).

Mercury's square to Chiron makes this an excellent time for a healing conversation. Words can wound though (the kind of wounds that don't heal) - offer compassion, above all else. No one needs our judgement now. The best tone is set when we forget about sounding right and just speak from our heart.

It's time to forgive ourselves all those Mercury foibles.  

Yes, a lifetime's worth - our North Node is in majestic Leo now - think BIG. 

The wrong word we said at the wrong time. The conversation we didn't have. The email we didn't send or the one we did. The idea that didn't work out. The research we didn't do. The sibling crap. The crap car we bought when we knew better. The times we were less than neighborly.

Particularly if we have a strong Virgo or Gemini signature in our chart or packed 3rd or 6th houses. If we do, Mercury is one of our muses. She/he will not be neglected. Do a ceremony. Muses love ceremony. Then we'll use that sextile (opportunity) to "anything-can-happen, freedom loving, future-oriented, tehno-fearless" Uranus to work with this energy in a new way. We'll talk more about this later.
 
The Moon is exalted in Taurus now. This manifestation portal offers up two sextiles (both were exact late last night):

1. Venus, ruler of love, money, self-esteem and women, in Taurus, a sign she rules, sextiles imaginative Neptune in mystical Pisces, a sign he rules. This is excellent energy to attract what we want through imaginative/spiritual/healing work. Creative times with women can be particularly lucrative now. Mine for diamonds.
2. Mercury, ruler of ideas, communications, siblings, our local environment, our transportation, in Gemini, a sign he/she rules sextiles Uranus, ruler of invention, genius, freedom, in passionate Aries - what do we want to start? Think NEW with this one.

What can we make from this word soup within our own story? Sextiles offer opportunities. Today's tangle highly favors our mental and creative work, people connections and our resources.

The Sun is still in Gemini for a few more hours and Mercury is still here for some hours after that - keep talking, learning, looking at different sides of whatever issues are at play. The answers are out there.

xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of June 19th - new beginnings

Sand wings by Lileinaya

On Monday, the Moon is uber busy (we likely are, too) ... until she isn't anymore.

We start the day with the Moon in initiating, passionate, "me" and action-oriented Aries - get to work early. Best to put future gains ahead of present comfort this morning. Yes, even if the sun is shining (unless we are on vacation then this is good energy for vacation style action - get out there!). With an Aries Moon everyone will want what they want and they'll want it now. The Moon kicks off with a trine (brakes off) to Saturn in Sagittarius. This is a good time to work with Sagittarius themes - foreign, travel, weddings, politics, higher education, religious, media, politics and with structure and authority. With the Moon in Aries it's best to keep the focus on our own stuff even as we deal with 'big picture' themes.

The Moon is sextiling (opportunity) Mercury - good time to make a decision or come to an agreement. Ideas, communication, local activities, neighbors, siblings, transportation, interviews, writing - all get the green light early in the day. Later on the Moon conjuncts Uranus (also in Aries) and then sextiles (opportunity) the Gemini Sun. We are all feeling ambitious and probably a bit restless and scattered.

The Moon goes void at 3:42PM EST and then moves into Taurus a couple hours later. In Taurus the Moon is exalted. This would be a good day to close down early and enjoy some Taurean comfort - good food, nature, massage, etc. Summer is as close as our own fingertips ...

On Tuesday, we have the Moon exalted in Taurus and Venus (happy in Taurus) sextiling Neptune (in Pisces where she rules). Right brain activities are favored. What could be better for making money with imaginative work, attracting what we want with and through women and/or for compassionate, spiritual or healing activities. We will all be absorbing each other's energy now ... likely in a positive way - it will be easy to feel where other people are coming from (if we are patient enough to let ourselves go there) even when we disagree with them.

The rest of week - Wednesday onward, it is all CANCER all of the time (and there is alot of Cancer for the next few weeks actually). First the Sun moves into Cancer kicking off a new season with the Summer Solstice. Post to follow

The Sun quickly conjuncts Mercury (also making a move into Cancer this week) so the first day of summer brings important messages/information

or something involving a Mercurian theme - information, communication, sibling, transportation, local environment - that could involve us through the summer season.  

Family discussions will be sentimental. What we need and what other people need will be colored by our memories of how things used to be (or how we wished they had been). Comfort comes from people and situations that are familiar.

Then we have the New Moon in Cancer (Friday) - the entire end of the week is about NEW BEGINNINGS. We'll talk about this New Moon later, coming so near the Summer Solstice and sitting with Mercury - it's a big one.

Cancer is all about family and home and history and patriotism and security - about having our needs met and meeting the needs of others we are close to. It's about vulnerability and how we deal with that.

The Sun will shine a light on these areas as well as light up our natal Cancer house. Cancer is ruled by the Moon. Her emotional nature comes from the fact she changes signs every couple days - contrast that with the Sun who moves through one sign a month or Neptune who sits in the same sign for fifteen years. Can you imagine if the celestial body ruling our emotions stayed in the same place for fifteen years? We wouldn't be moody anymore that's for sure and certainly some people would be lucky enough to be smiling for over a decade, but we could be stuck in a bad mood through four presidents and three car loans. That's a whole lot of lemons!

Looked at it this way - the moody, changeable Moon is our friend, right?

By the end of the week, the Sun, Mercury and Mars will all be in emotional Cancer. Whatever is happening will feel deeply personal. Emotions will override logic. We will be feeling where we are most vulnerable. So will other people, so let's give each other a break.

On Sunday, Mars (in Cancer) will square Jupiter (in Libra) and then trine (brakes off) Neptune (now retrograde in Pisces).  This adds passion, excitement and ambition to whatever we are focused on. It could make something feel bigger than it actually is. New beginnings can seem overwhelming because we will be feeling the words we hear and speak, feeling our way through the actions we take (yes, this could slow us down a bit) and feeling what we need to feel safe. The further our current circumstances deviate from this space of safety and the feeling of "home" the more stress we will be dealing with over the next couple weeks.

xo all

Neptune Stations Retrograde | increased intuition, releasing fantasy, releasing guilt, the anesthetic wears off ...

The Whispering Lake by Mirish

Neptune retrogrades are subtle because Neptune is subtle. Think of the way rock is worn away by water - slowly and almost imperceptibly - but effectively and permanently.

This one takes Neptune from 14 to 11 degrees Pisces through late November. If you have planets or points in those degrees or in those degrees in any of the water signs (Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces) or mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces) you will feel this year's retrograde strongest. Neptune is retrograde about 40% of the time.

Neptune rules the ocean, the seas, sleep, our dreams (both the dreams when we are sleeping and the dreams when we are awake), the unconscious, the subconscious, our inter-connectedness, flow, imagination, compassion, meditation, medication, illusion, deception, lies, addiction, alcohol, exhaustion, escape, baptism, sacrifice, spirituality, detox, faith, psychology, mental health, mental illness, intuition, mysticism, fantasy, the ethereal realms (things that cannot be seen, touched, tasted or heard with our five senses), art, dance, music, film, chemicals, drugs, poison, ghosts, victim, martyr, saint, religion, Christ-like, fanaticism, hospitals, healing, research, confusion, retreats, release, isolation, orphans, nursing homes, retirement, our feet, vision, karma, hidden enemies, what is hidden, what we do in secret, lack of boundaries, the 12th house of our charts (things we do last, things that are put away, our subconscious, our self-undoing), the house that holds Pisces in our charts, the 12th house of our charts.

At first glance this might look like a list of unconnected things - but when you look closer can you see/feel the connections? And of course, even as we look for the connection we are using Neptune!

Something here is up for review which means situations, people, circumstances will come up that will re-focus our attention on one or more of these areas over the next few months.

This will be a time to reflect, re-do, re-evaluate, re-examine, release or re-visit what we are working with here. Neptune always turns us inward. Dream guidance and intuition will increase.

Remember when a big energy shifts like Neptune does today we will literally be "off" so things can just feel "off" - let's not push where we don’t need to push. Instead let's stay alert to the signs and feelings around us and take our cue from them. We might require extra (or less) sleep, more (or less) time alone or more (or less) meditation time.

Avoid mind altering chemicals and known addictions. Life's natural anesthetic is moving in reverse now, so the lure of outside numbing agents - that drink or shopping spree or pain pill will be stronger - keep this in mind.

Imagine we are standing at the shore line up to our knees in the cold ocean. When we look down into the water everything looks foggy. Our legs look two sizes too big, almost like one wide mermaid's tale (or this is how I imagine myself, clamshell bra and all). The shells and pebbles at our feet are not in exactly the place they appear to be when we reach for them. Even in the clearest water things are illusory and shifting.

Then the tide flows out. The shells at our feet look a lot more ordinary and less colorful and they are smaller than we thought they would be.

Instead of things being closer than they appear, they now appear to be exactly where they actually are. Stuff is a little less magical - the mermaid's tail/tale turns back into our ordinary legs; sunburned and spider-veined - but now that we have legs again we can do all kinds of things we couldn't do before. Maybe sometimes the tail/tale is needed to keep us sane and protected, but at some point it just gets in our way. And this is a sloppy, terrible metaphor, but you might see what I am getting at. Maybe.

Neptune retrogrades separate the illusion from reality. 

And what we will be left with next November will be the reality. Useless boundaries, lies, guilt, martyr and victim stories and other tall tale/tails will be left on the shoreline. What was vague will clear up. Draining dreams will dissolve. Reality shifts.

As Neptune stations she is sextiling (opportunity) Juno (partnership, commitment) in Capricorn (time, responsibility. structure, work). Since Juno is also retrograde - for some people this will be part of that partnership/commitment "re-view" we talked about HERE - also finishing up in November which I guess will be a big month for .. finishing up!

Also today if you have anything in your chart around 26 degrees of Aquarius, Leo or Gemini there is a nice trine (brakes off) between the Gemini Sun and the South Node in Aquarius and a nice sextile (opportunity) to the North Node in Leo. Communications, ideas, information - also siblings, local neighborhood, transportation - issues that come up now could have a positive impact on your future. If there is something you have been detached from (Aquarius) it could be time to put it in your spotlight (Leo) or maybe your bystander role in a group needs to move more front and center? See what develops. Write down words that catch your ear now.

xo all

Saturn Opposite Sun | pressure makes diamonds ... but pressure also creates depression

"People who have a creative side and do not live it out are most disagreeable. They make a mountain out of a molehill, fuss about unnecessary things, are too passionately in love with somebody who is not worth so much attention, and so on. There is a kind of floating charge of energy in them which is not attached to its right object and therefore tends to apply exaggerated dynamism to the wrong situation." ... M.L. von Franz

_ by nairafee

Once a year the Sun and Saturn line up in exact opposition. This happens today at 24 degrees Gemini and Sagittarius.

Our creative heart/life force (Sun) meets a limit (Saturn). Coincidentally (is there such a thing? I guess so ... maybe) Saturn also reaches the exact midpoint of its retrograde journey (retrograde through late August).

If we are encountering delays and obstacles this transit doesn't bring about a conclusion, but it can shine a light on what is limiting us and a light on what we need to do about it. Retrograde Saturn is focused - it creates the defined choices we need to look in a specific direction.

This energy might not feel good. Saturn can be depressing because it is quite literally like a weight pressing down on us.

I am not going to write again about the need to 'step into our responsibility', work hard, do the right thing, yada yada. We know this. And we are just as likely to get off course by stepping into someone else's responsibility, working too hard or neglecting the other muses. Saturn isn't everything and he doesn't run every show as much as he'd like to (although for today he kind of does).

In the Samuri tradition, warriors were expected to hone their skills in calligraphy, poetry and painting. This was to make sure their unlived creativity did not sour and devolve into an unintended/unattended mess.

These days we’re busy cutting creative outlets from our curriculum. They can’t be quantified and take too much effort. When would you ever need to play a clarinet? What use is a pen and ink drawing? Will writing a poem put food on the table?

I think quite a bit about effort these days because my body is tired. For life to be good lately it has to be easy.

We are all so busy that generally speaking our highest ideal is not to have to do anything. We work so we can take time off from working. We do it today to be free tomorrow. Something is very wrong here, but for today I am too tired (and stiff-necked - ugh) to think too long about this.

But maybe I am drifting away from Sun opposite Saturn. Of course, with a natal Sun/Saturn conjunction I do not often encounter Saturnian limits outside myself - I am much more likely to encounter a person/situation ready to hand off their own overloaded bag to me and/or to spend my time figuring out new ways to overburden/limit myself

(and if you are a person who was teacher's pet, got along with authority figures without even trying and gets out of traffic tickets easily I am talking to you, too).

Sigh ...

For now, let's give ourselves a break. We can honor our commitments. We can finish what we started. We can take responsibility for the situation we find ourselves in without judgement. And yes, this could be a good situation, too - it's report card time! We can resolve to move forward in a more responsible manner in whatever area of life we feel this pressure. And remember that 'in a more responsible manner' will have different meanings for different people. There's more info in the weekly HERE.

xo all

This is all part of a Grand Fire Trine encouraging us forward when we work courageously from our heart - it's tied into our Leo North Node, our collective way forward - so yes, there are report cards handed out now, but what we learn from our report card is ultimately what will move those mountains!

Mercury Trine Jupiter, Mercury Square Neptune | words get BIG and slippery ....

2-52 by Sturmideenkind

Today Mercury (mind, ideas, communication, learning, teaching, siblings, local community, transportation) in Gemini is very busy and in typical Gemini fashion going in multiple directions at once.

He/she has a trine (brakes off) with a recently full-steam-ahead Jupiter (in relationship oriented Libra) making this a good time for expanded thinking, big ideas and brainstorming. Jupiter rules our 9th house of higher thinking, higher education, foreign (which means different things to different people) travel and things foreign to us, weddings, legal issues, politics.

We get lucky (Jupiter) when we expand beyond our immediate boundaries.

It's a good time to share information, to think BIGGER, to imagine the possibilities. This is about optimism and lucky breaks - maybe we get good news now or have good news to share!

BIG ideas are floating in the wind to be picked like apples in the autumn. If you think you are never having any good ideas - which is not true, but just something you have convinced yourself of and once you believe it you start seeing it (kind of like when you buy a blue car and never see blue cars and then suddenly they are everywhere) - then you need to get yourself into a position to make use of good ideas. Thoughts are things and they flow to the people in the best position to bring them to life and give them legs.

Quiet the mental chatter, do more stuff you want to do - the more we are doing things we are passionate about the more we will line up with things that enhance that passion - stretch your brain with new ideas, new books, new websites, travel. Make stuff. Put time into what matters to you.

Now, here's where the Gemini propensity to bounce around comes in because immediately after Mercury trines Jupiter (at 13 degrees) he moves to 14 degrees and squares Neptune. And these degrees are so close together they are pretty much happening at the same time.

That square to Neptune really muddles things up. With Neptune, more words can just mean more confusion. Maybe the information we get now blows in and then drifts away like a storm that never happens (which can be good news now that I think about it). Maybe the story we tell reaches the wrong ears. Maybe someone is intentionally misleading us with inflated information. Maybe we are the one doing the misleading. Maybe we are misleading ourselves.

So what do we do now?

Well, first know this is not good energy to make a decision because our thinking (Mercury) is not clear - and yes, this week is a time of decisions for many people AND Neptune is going retrograde at the end of the week (through November), which isn't going to help us. At some point we will have to move forward with our heart (North Node in Leo) and/or our courage (North Node in Leo) - probably still unsure of all the facts.

But for today, if you can avoid making any major decisions push it off a bit. Give Mercury a couple days to move off that square to Neptune (lies, delusion, drifting off course) and that trine to Jupiter (expansion, big picture thinking, rose colored expectations).

It doesn't mean whatever comes up now will drift off course or turn out to be all about nothing but with that possibility on the table it's not the day to bet the farm.

Grab your idea apple if you can reach it (it's Gemini season we are stretchy) - you can totally stand on tippy toes or use your step stool or even that ladder from the garage (Venus is in Taurus so we are working with our existing resources). Write ideas/conversations/thoughts down. Work with it a bit. Feel it out.

Just don't head down to Home Depot and spend thousands of dollars on a cherry picker to reach that perfect looking apple way up top. Leave that apple for someone else - it will either be there for the someone who already owns a cherry picker or the someone willing to fall on his ass. Our asses are cushy, but maybe not that cushy.

Yes, think BIG. Just keep in mind the possibility we are hearing what we want to hear now. Save the big moves (if we are basing them on information that comes in now), choices and life changing decisions for a clearer day.

xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of June 12th - a test, another kite and lots of communication stuff

Downward Spiral by Mrs-White

This is another big week with some connections to that big week two weeks back - can anyone remember two weeks back? Am I the only one with a memory aging in dog years now? I'm serious. WTH.

This week there are alot of aspects with Mercury - so this is about us and how we relate to our local environment - how we communicate, what we say, what we don't say and what all of this saying and not saying actually says about us.

(Remember this weekly update is general and collectively focused - I can't see what your Mercury is doing - he could be out drinking in the pub or in the library studying like he said he was. Transitting Mercury was opposing Kathy Griffin's natal Mercury when she blew up her career. Transitting Mercury opposes Comey's natal Mercury this week. I guess his career is already blown up, but the transit isn't about that anyway. It's really about other people (transitting Mercury) giving their opinion about our opinion (natal Mercury). So what we say engages conversation by others, usually through arguments and tests. When Mercury enters Cancer in 10 days, this is something for me to think about since my natal Mercury is in Capricorn - Cancer's polarity sign. Do you know where your natal Mercury is? It's either in the same sign as your Sun or the sign before or after, since Mercury travels so close to the Sun - something to think about.)

On Monday morning the Moon is in "let's get to work" Capricorn, but the skies are lining up to get us off-track. We'll get up early and attend to our responsibilities. We'll get in early and schmooze with the boss. We'll get our proposal in early. We'll get our orders out early. Whatever we normally do by the end of the day Monday, we'll try to get it done by lunch - which might not happen because the Capricorn Moon is squaring Uranus (surprise) so the stars are stacked against things running smoothly - we'll try anyway, but expect the unexpected. Then at 2:45PM EST (that EDT last week just looked wrong to me, can't commit to it) the Moon goes void for five hours before popping into Aquarius. So, the day could start out going one way and end up in a totally different direction. People will be changing their minds today. It's Gemini season - we'll stay flexible. We'll stretch.

On Tuesday the Aquarius Moon is squaring Venus (in Taurus). Maybe someone is digging in their heels. Maybe it's us. By the time the workday starts on the East Coast, Mercury (in Gemini) is trining (brakes off) Jupiter (in Libra). This is great energy for communication - for broader, more optimistic thinking, to receive/give GOOD news, for partnership opportunities - be out and about! Make the call. Send the email. Good for presentations, planning, traveling and studying.

This is the 3rd trine between these guys since last October - we had one on 10/11 and another on 2/21 - maybe something from those dates expanded our voice in some way? If so, here could be another similar opportunity or more expansion of that same situation.

The fly in the ointment today (yes, same fly that's always dancing in the ointment, hopefully not the same ointment though - that stuff is lethal by now) is that tonight we have Mercury squaring Neptune (art, imagination, escape, delusion, healing, things put away and forgotten, addiction).

This is the square from the Neptune/Mercury transit that started back on March 4th. If you started something back then this is what is called - don't panic - the crisis point for that endeavor/situation. Now, the thing to watch out for here is our tendency, during this 'crisis', to surrender (Neptune) our thinking/ideas/voice (Mercury) to someone else. It's easy to be deluded or lied to now. It's easy to delude or lie to ourselves. Someone could be keeping secrets from us or we could be the one with our lips sealed - either way, it could lead to problems. Even this morning's good energy between Mercury and Jupiter could make this crisis point seem bigger or more over the top than it needs to be. Don't make any drastic moves now or go overboard with anything.

Give major decisions a couple days for things to shake out a bit.

On Wednesday, there are multiple aspects to our Aquarian Moon so this is a good day for community and humanitarian efforts, internet activities and anything new and cutting edge - opportunities come through legal, foreign, travel, higher education, religion, weddings, politics (sextile to Saturn in Sag) and opportunities are available to break out of a rut (sextile to Uranus in Aries), especially emotionally.

Thursday is a big day. The Sun is having its annual opposition to Saturn. Our creative energy meets opposition and limitations. We are tested. This is a good time to take an unbiased (those rose colored glasses from earlier in the week need to be firmly tucked into a drawer now) inventory of where we are now. It could appear that other people or outside circumstances are blocking our way forward. This is the mid-point of Saturn's retrograde transit that started in early April and the half-way point for the path we started on last December. Do we stay on this road, and that might not even be an option, or do we pivot now? It would be good to spend some time alone today sorting this out and allow others this same option. The information is available now to see what Saturn's retrograde (limits, delay, rules) is all about and to make decisions about what to do moving forward. This aspect can be depressing, so the blues today is NORMAL. Our energy could be low now so let's give ourselves (and others) a break.

Another aspect today relates back to the Kite formation pointing to Mars we talked about two weeks ago. Events now will take us back to that May 29th - June 3rd time frame. We have a new Kite with the Sun sextiling (opportunity) the North Node in Leo and trining (brakes off) the South Node in Aquarius.

The point of this Kite is Mercury so the actions, initiative, anger, passion - whatever the Mars focus had us experiencing two weeks ago - is leading to this week's decisions, choices, conversations, sibling issues, local community issues, transportation issues. The Kite will last through next Tuesday when Mercury sextiles Uranus (the unexpected). I'll do a post by sign later in the week about this!

On Friday, Neptune stations retrograde in Pisces. Some of us will feel this more than others. The Moon is also in Pisces on Friday and making multiple aspects. The weekend has some important stuff, too. We'll talk about all this later as we move through it.

All in all the week is a mixed bag. I'll do some dailies. Heads up that the end of the month has some challenges so let's enjoy the good moments as much as we can - I think we came to Planet Earth for those most of all!

xo

Jupiter Direct | Full Moon in Sagittarius - getting real so we can get on with what really matters

El camino by eulalievarenne

We have our annual Full Moon in Sagittarius at 9:09 EDT tomorrow morning (someone reminded me recently we are in daylight savings time and I should be writing EDT instead of EST, it looks weird but just means east coast time in the spring and summer). The Moon is followed, almost exactly one hour later by Jupiter, retrograde since February and ruler of Sagittarius, stationing direct in Libra.

The Sun will be at 18 degrees Gemini, the Moon at 18 degrees Gemini's polarity sign of Sagittarius.

Every month the Full Moon is a time of Sun opposite Moon. This is a time of what we need (Sun) vs what we want (Moon), ego/physical (Sun) vs emotion/intuition (Moon), dad (Sun) vs mom (Moon), work/our place in the spotlight (Sun) vs home/our place out of the spotlight (Moon) although with people posting so many public pics of families and home on Insta and Facebook I may have to rethink this one! - with an opposition there is internal pressure and external pressure. This is why emergency rooms fill up, paintings of wolves howling at Full Moons fill books and luna-tics' screams fill the day/night - really, stop and listen, you'll hear someone!

The Moon (our emotions and instincts) is at its monthly peak. The night sky is lit up. Something comes to light. Something comes to a conclusion

(although with Jupiter not covering completely new territory until autumn, conclusions could take some time to unwind themselves).

The fact that Jupiter, ruler of this Moon, stations direct an hour after the Moon reaches its peak tells us alot. I wrote about Jupiter retrograde HERE.

This Moon takes us back to the Sagittarius New Moon at 19 degrees back in December 2015. HERE is a post about that one. This would be a good read now.

To paraphrase that post - Sagittarius is a fun-loving sign that rules travel, freedom, adventure, legal stuff, higher education, good luck, faith, religion, prayer, optimism, problem solving, truth seekers, boldly going where no man has gone before, the quest  -

it also rules carelessness, taking shortcuts, thinking we are right, making assumptions, throwing pink paint on problems and hoping they will go away, overconfidence, impatience and superficial fluff.

Sagittarius is a mutable sign. The mutable signs prepare us for the change into the next season.

Mutable signs are service signs and Sagittarius is in service through the exploration of Truth - this could be legal truth or political truth but its most especially spiritual truth - its highest purpose is enlightenment and expanding what is known.

The lower level energies rule religious wars, legal battles and political bullshit.

(and if you live in the U.S., unless you are living under a rock you are probably thinking about Comey testifying today - for many months the rock thing may have felt somewhat appealing and believe me I have tried to tuck myself in there, it's just not possible - the pill bugs got there first ... although they do make for incredibly quiet neighbors plus they will almost certainly run away when we show up with the coffeecake for a chat up, so we'll have the cake all for ourselves so there's that, too - of course they are rather creepy looking although hubs insists they are somewhat helpful and related to shrimp (!)

The Moon is conjunct restrictive Saturn. The Sagittarian propensity for saying YES, and the Gemini smorgasbord of options, is forced into a more defined and honest space. See Friday's forecast in the weekly HERE.

None of our stories, lies, beliefs that are no longer needed, options that are just distracting us from what we really need to do - none of these paradigms are moving forward with us. Truth bombs are dropped.

Life is calling bullshit on our bullshit. Ideas, conversations, who we used to be, who we never were - whatever doesn't work anymore has to go. We are done with it. 

From this space we move forward (Jupiter direct) with what is real.

Now remember what Jupiter's retrograde has looked like - he stopped, he moved backward, now he stops, he moves forward - he is covering this ground for the THIRD time. And you know what they say about third times! Are you feeling third time lucky or three strikes you're out?

Also remember he won't be covering new ground until early September and he first walked these degrees last November. Saturn says "you learn patience by practicing patience".

The Moon is also squaring Neptune (strong in Pisces). This is the energy of the recent Saturn/Neptune square where we were working with dreams vs reality (and truth vs lies). Some of us let go of a dream. Some of us may be getting/living the dream come true now and will have to deal with the reality of that situation. Dreams coming true pushes us into the next thing in similar ways that letting go of dreams does. Life isn't static. There is no finish line. With Neptune involved with this Moon whatever is brought to light or whatever concludes - won't be crystal clear. Neptune dissolves but it also fogs things up.

The good news is Jupiter (expansion, good luck) will have us all moving forward! The flies in the ointment are : Saturn - time, hard work, responsibility, consequences - and Neptune - sacrifice, dissolution, escape, loss. Stuff is dropping away now so we can get real and get on with what really matters.

Losses now lead to something BETTER later if we take things seriously, and honestly, going forward. Gains can stick (Saturn) or drift away (Neptune) depending on whether or not we have honestly earned them. I think they are most likely to be earned if they come now and have some stickiness!

Faith moves mountains. For many people this Moon could likely tie in with the Venus retrograde themes (Jupiter is answering to Venus these days) of love and money.

Last night's Moon was beautiful. I hope you can get out and walk in the Full Moon tonight and tomorrow night. If there is any way to get naked in it - do that (it's not like being naked in the supermarket - or most dressing rooms - with that horrible lighting plus the only ones out there will be the wolves and our fellow lunatics).

xo all

with that conjunction to Saturn we will be able to see Saturn now, too, if the skies are clear - did you catch Jupiter with the Moon in the skies last week?

Venus into Taurus | accepting the best

Blossom by Aaron McPolin

Venus comes home to Taurus this morning. She is Mother Earth now. Ruler of our second house of everything money can buy and everything money can't - love, our values, our self-esteem, our resources.

Taurus Suns and risings get more attractive - both easy on the eye and able to attract what they need. All of us have Taurus ruling some space of our natal chart and the theme of that house gets more attractive, too.

In Taurus, this attraction is based on how we value ourselves and how we value our resources. If we take care of the things we value they grow. The better care we have taken of the things that are important to us the more those things (relationships, resources, money, comfort/health) will expand under this transit.

If we haven't, then this is the time to reinvest in what we already have by tending to it more carefully and lovingly.

How are we caring for our money? Are our books balanced? Sitting down and taking the time (what we really care about is not what we say we care about it is really what we give our time and attention to) to note our income and expenses in a ledger/register is becoming a lost art. Print out our computer bank statements. File them neatly. We can't pretend to tend to our money when we are not even looking at it.

What's in our wallet? HERE is a post about a Feng Shui class I took many years ago about money. Something here might be helpful. I get off track with this stuff all the time, maybe you have, too.

This is an excellent time (through the 4th of July) to take better care of our physical bodies. Self comfort can works miracles now. Let's get outdoors for an hour everyday - yes, rain or shine. Get a massage, take a nightly bath - it's time to invest (time and resources) in ourselves.

Think quality over quantity with purchases now. Don't buy the cheap bra. Don't spend more than you have (remember we are working with existing resources now), but don't skimp either. Better to have 3 great bras than a drawer full of tangled crap.

It's a time when "hands in the dirt" can work miracles beyond a beautiful garden or tasty tomato - although those things are highly valued now, too. Plant a garden.

As for our businesses Venus in Taurus isn't really about launching something brand new. It doesn't mean you can't do that now, of course you can - the moon is waxing! But, this transit is really about working with what you already have. If you have the needed resources to do what you want to do, this transit will be helpful. If you don't, this transit is best spent valuing the resources you have now by giving your time and attention to them.

Think of your business as you would a garden. What needs your time and attention now? What needs to be weeded out so something else can get more sunlight? What needs to be watered? What needs to be transplanted somewhere else?

There is no rush with Taurus. We can take this slow. Here Venus prefers simplicity over the complicated. She practices gratitude for what she already has.

Listen to your body. Does it get tense when you think about doing something? Can you do it another way that doesn't create that stress? Can you slow it down? Can you simplify it somehow?

My body has been stressing out about a presentation I have to give soon and as I am writing this I realize I would be much more comfortable if I prepared some visuals and lengthened the speaking part a little bit and reduced the question and answer time a little bit (since I am afraid no one will have any questions!).

Listening to our body's stress signals and changing what we are doing doesn't have to be some big ginormous thing ... until it does. Let's listen to the pebble so we don't get hit with the rock.

xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of June 5th - pretty much everything shifts

Lillium by Ginebra Siddal

This week really started on Sunday when Mars (action, initiative, anger, passion) moved into Cancer where he will hang his hat until July 20th. Mars is considered in his fall in Cancer.

This is because Mars can't be all Martian - fired up and passionate and out in the world testing his courage, running onto the battlefield thinking only of himself and how good it will feel to swing that sword - when he has these pesky emotional Cancerian things to contend with.

Things like feelings (it's harder to take the instinctive action he needs to take when he has to feel his way through what he is doing instead of just doing it). And home and family and security (harder to be putting himself first when he has a family depending on him and harder to fight most effectively when he needs to stay alive to come home at the end of the day).

This stuff can make Mars like a pot of hot water ready to boil over at any minute. Like the too-young father who wants to be out bar-hopping with his buds - he is trapped.

Collectively we will be more security and safety conscious. We will be more emotional. We could be more focused on home and family. We could be more patriotic. British Prime Minister Theresa May's announcement (following the London violence) that the internet needs to be regulated to prevent terrorism and that British values need to be established as superior is very Mars in Cancer (actions involving safety and patriotism). The murderers actions were at the very end of Mars in Gemini (violence involving transportation). Of course, I don't mean to imply these transits created these situations. This is just one piece of a very large puzzle.

Individually, our natal Cancer houses will experience more initiative, action, passion and anger. Where is Cancer in your natal chart? Wherever it is, Mars is not the usual way you deal with the things ruled by this house (unless of course, you have Mars there natally).

So, buckle up.

On Monday, the Moon is in Scorpio making us all a little moody and maybe a bit defensive. The Moon is trining (brakes off) Mars in the morning. This is good energy to tackle Scorpian and Cancer themes - home, family, real estate, renovations, other people's resources, taxes, research, debts, fertility issues, sex, death, birth. Both Cancer and Scorpio are water signs - sweating early in the day, or being near water could prevent tears (from being too emotional) later. This might sound crazy, but I'm a Cancer Moon with a Scorpio Rising and Neptune on my ascendant, and I think it works. Of course a good cry can be a good thing, too.

On Tuesday, the energy shifts. Venus comes home to Taurus and Mercury comes home to Gemini - I smell a HOME theme this week.

(and yes, I mean I actually smell it - what the hell is that thing growing legs in the back of your refrigerator?!)

Venus is uber comfy in Taurus, a sign she rules. She will be here until July 6th. Our money, relationships, self-esteem, dealings with women - can all benefit. We want beauty and harmony in our surroundings now. I'll write more in the dailies. The only drawbacks to Venus here is we tend to get a little lazy and a little too comfortable - also maybe a little too possessive and jealous since Taurus is a fixed sign and the polarity sign to Scorpio.

Taurus Suns and Taurus rising get more attractive now - both better looking (yes, this is a real thing) and able to attract what they want. Our own natal Taurus houses get more attractive, too! I don't see any challenging aspects with Venus while she is in Taurus - there is a sextile to Mars (opportunity through action or through a man) on the 9th and then a trine (brakes off) with Pluto on the 24th - another good aspect - we'll talk about these as we move through them.

Mercury is also uber comfortable in Gemini, a sign he rules. He is moving super-fast and will only be here for 15 days! This is a good time for improved communications, logic, short and to the point conversations, sibling interactions, short trips. community happenings, thinking on our feet, learning new things. If you have to take a test, try to take it before June 22nd.

Also note on Tuesday morning, the Moon (still in deep, moody and brooding Scorpio), is trining (brakes off) Neptune (in Pisces). This is excellent healing energy - especially good for healing old wounds. This could also be a time someone shows up to help us heal. Or we could be that healing energy for someone else.

On Wednesday, the Moon is void all day during work hours. This is not a good day to start something you want something to come of. This is not a good day to make a decision. Practiced, routine work is best.

The void ends with the Moon's move into Sagittarius at 6:59PM EST. This might turn our attention to legal issues, education, religion, foreign issues, grandchildren, travel, adventure or politics. The Moon is opposing mental Gemini - take care not to say something you might regret later - this is another good reason not to make any decisions today.

On Thursday, the Sagittarius Moon sextiles (opportunity) Jupiter (expansion) retrograde and preparing to station direct in Libra. This would be a good day for meetings and to be out and about and mixing it up with people. Thursday night the Moon is squaring Neptune (imagination, dreams, healing, addiction, escape) bringing some tension and stress to whatever is happening. We could be pressured to consider other people's feelings/needs and/or overcome some kind of limitation. Hidden issues or hidden agendas could be part of whatever is going on.

Friday is a BIG day. We have Venus sextile Mars - opportunities for men and women to work together or opportunities to take action on a creative project, financial or self-esteem issue. We have the Full Moon in Sagittarius peaking in the morning AND Jupiter stationing direct in Libra.

This Moon is challenging, but since Jupiter rules Sagittarius and so rules this Full Moon the challenges of this Moon are also BIG opportunities. The Moon is sandwiched between Saturn and Black Moon Lilith and squaring Neptune. And the Sun is adjusting to Pluto today. Did I say BIG day? I think I need to say BIGLY here. It's a BIGLY day.

This Full Moon is saying OK girlie girl, enough is enough here. This is your line in the sand. The spaces where we have been scattered or careless or unrooted (Gemini!) - the spaces we have pushed our luck or just been all over the place - those spaces are coming into a razor sharp focus here.

We are going to be pushed through the eye of that needle and we are going to be pushed through NAKED

(yes, due to those Hostess snack cakes that moved from our breadbox onto our hips last winter, we can't even take our favorite pair of Athleta capris with us).

None of our stories, lies, beliefs that are no longer needed, options that are just distracting us from what we really need to do - are going with us.  

Life is calling bullshit on our bullshit. Ideas, conversations, who we used to be, who we never were - whatever doesn't work anymore has to go. We are done with it. The eye of that needle is precise.

(my brother and sister-in-law's baby is due on the 24th but now that I wrote this I wonder if he is going to come closer to this Moon!)

This is VERY positive energy if we are ready to streamline whatever is going on, come clean, get real and truly focus. Are we ready for that? My head is throbbing just typing it. The Moon will then square Chiron and conjunct Saturn - this is about pressure making us into the diamonds we are meant to be. Yippee us.

Post to follow.

I am now going to eat a ridiculously large meal (I think I've lost 5 pounds sweating over this - I know you've lost 5 hours reading it), catch up on American Gods and get to bed early ... xo all