New Moon in Leo | July 31, 2019 - BLAST OFF!

On Wednesday, July 31, at 11:10PM EDT the Leo Moon meets the Leo Sun (8 degrees) giving us this month's NEW MOON.

The Leo New Moon is a time that IGNITES a new passion/confidence. Happening within minutes of Mercury's direct station in Leo will give it an even greater boost at take-off.

Turbo fuel in this baby!

Let's unpack the chart.

The Sun and Moon are just past (the Sun within a couple days, the Moon a couple hours) their square to Uranus - still in play. Surprises/disruptions are part of the process with this one. They are conjunct loving and generous (in Leo) Venus. They have moved past the trine to Chiron (the ego smackdown we talked about in the weekly, the hurting/healing around how we shine and show up in the world) - still in play - and are moving TOWARD a trine to expansive Jupiter (very positive) - the Moon will get there on Thursday morning, the Sun will get there on August 7th. The Sun/Moon are inconjunct (rock and hard place) 'the outsider energy - ignore at our peril' Black Moon Lilith.

The squares to Uranus suggest the fresh start from this fiery New Moon comes after a shock or surprise or disruption. With Uranus in Taurus it could change our values - what really matters to us, no longer really matters. What we were luke-warm to earlier is suddenly IMPORTANT. Our physical space/resources could be impacted somehow.

The trine to Chiron (in independent Aries) suggests what we have to do on our own, or the way we express passion/anger, our wounding/vulnerability will factor into what starts over the next couple weeks.

The trine to Jupiter - and we will get a glimpse of this on Thursday morning and then the direct hit around August 7th - speaks of expansion/growth. So what better than a New Moon in passionate Leo (conjunct Venus - we haven't talked about that yet!) that will move us into a smooth flow of expansion and growth. Uranus pushes us outside our comfort zone, but Jupiter tells us the way to the tastiest fruit is out on the limb AND that's where we are headed!

The connection to Venus (Sun/Venus will be exact on August 14th at 21 degrees, will inconjunct Pluto at the same time) reinforces the New Moon in Leo's mission - igniting a new passion and tells us our relationships. money and self-esteem are along for the ride!

With Mercury stationing direct within the hour - the home/family/home business/real estate/family business/mothering situation starts moving forward - our New Moon fresh start will gain even more momentum. And when Mercury gets back into Leo on August 11th - our Leo fresh start gets another push forward.

Mercury direct will bring clarity. Answers. Decisions.

So the Uranian chaos/surprise gets things started - this might have already happened. Mercury brings information and greater certainty. Communications/conversations energize us and clear things up. We know where we stand. The stuck stuff starts moving forward. Chiron gives us the courage to face the pain of whatever we are giving up/losing or the risk we are facing as we stand on our own two feet. The Sun/Moon/Venus are offering a fresh start toward our heart's desire and Jupiter will expand this fresh start beyond our current reach, maybe beyond our wildest dreams.

So what do we do now?

First, we survive the storm. Whatever is tossed at us and yes, it could poke our eye out (but likely won't), and yes, it will trigger other times our eyes have been poked out (how many eyes do we have anyway?) - the change is GOOD. Disruptive, but good. Maybe seeing with only one eye means we can't be looking backward all the time - GOOD. Maybe seeing with one eye means we get eyeglasses are half price for life - GOOD. You get the idea here. We can trust that the change is to our benefit.

We have to take action in the two weeks after this Moon as the Moon is waxing. Start quickly because this Moon is fast acting. SET YOUR NEW MOON INTENTIONS. Never miss a fire Moon - we only get three a year! Take physical action - maybe Thursday morning when the Moon trines Jupiter (keep in mind we still have Friday's Venus/Uranus square, so maybe more unexpected tension). Some things we will have to do on our own with this. We will have to have courage.

We need to keep a clear head because Mercury will be very strong at station. This isn't a Full Moon - no howling!

Keep in mind Venus (conjunct the Moon/Sun) is heading toward a square to Uranus at the end of the week, so some unexpected tension is likely still ahead of us. That's OK. Squares are uber useful. Nothing gets done without them.

Leo goes big and those trines to Jupiter will require some risk, so in some part of our life, in some way we will have to GO BIG.

August looks way better than July. And this eclipse closes out a stressful Eclipse season.

This New Moon is a GO. So what are we going to do with it?

If you need help figuring out what area of life this is activating for you just give me an email or leave a comment with your birth date, time and birthplace. Collective Leo themes include creative projects, children, games, romance, sport, hobbies, pleasure, our heart, our heart's desire, the space we are meant to shine, our center stage.

This is a fiery new beginning.

INTENTION TIPS:

Let your heart guide you, forget logic with this one, clear your head, write what your heart wants not what you think you should write, write your intentions down by hand in script on a blank piece of paper, speak the words out loud, burn the paper - release your attention from these things knowing your intention is known.

Life has heard you. 

Know these things are already yours.

xo all

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 30, 2019 - emotional stress, getting some extra rest, going with the flow, lying low, miscommunications more likely, a devotion to the dream

Today the dark Moon in emotional Cancer is kind of stressed out and challenged as she (as us) faces that Cappy line-up.

She will have to oppose Saturn (external limits, authority) this morning and oppose Pluto this evening (power struggles. compulsions, manipulations). Both retrograde, so old storylines. Not great energy for important meetings or negotiations. She does get a nice trine to a retrograde Neptune (imagination, dreams, creativity, healing, spirituality) around lunchtime EDT and goes void after meeting up with a retrograde Mercury (strong and still and preparing to turn direct tomorrow night) at 11:32PM EDT. She will then be void until 9:18AM EDT tomorrow when she moves into Leo and heads toward our fiery Sun and tomorrow's New Moon.

So we have the Moon preparing the leave her home sign and meet the Sun and Mercury preparing to go direct. If you are tired/emotional/frazzled - this is why!

July was exhausting and challenging and she goes out with a bang.

The Moon is in her closing cycle.

The tide is out. We are going to have to go with the flow today.

The Sun square Uranus is still in play and Uranus is very active this week. Expect disruptions and wake-up calls. Comfort zones are not so comfortable.

The North Node is in Cancer (plus the Moon today) - prioritize self-care. Give yourself (and other people) a break. Current circumstances are not an indicator of future circumstances. We are evolving.

Keep in mind the Moon's trine to Neptune - strong in Pisces - pray, meditate, listen to music, paint, dance, get into some water.

Mars will be inconjunct Neptune at the same time, so our actions are kind of dissolved now. Or our ambitions need to adjust to our dreams and vice-versa. Neptune is sextile (opportunity) Vesta in Taurus at 18 degrees, so there is an opportunity here to ground (Taurus) the dream (Neptune/Pisces) with our devotion/focus (Vesta). Remember this is the year of Neptune sextile Saturn - the dream being made real.

Sometimes we might find these planetary interactions represented by specific people in our lives. A person with a strong Taurus energy or a particularly active Taurus energy stabilizing a Pisces person or the Pisces person (or strong Neptunian energy) elevating the Taurus now.

With yesterday's (still in play) Sun/Uranus square, I had tension (Aquarius Sun, Aquarius ruled by Uranus) with a strong Leo Moon person (Leo ruled by the Sun and the transiting Moon at home in Cancer activating everyone's natal Moon energy). It felt, to me, like she wanted me to "mother" her, my natal Moon is in Cancer and I'm sure to her my Aquarius energy felt detached and dispassionate since I wasn't giving her what she wanted.

Anyhoo, for today I would give my "lie low" advice again and with Neptune so active shore up your boundaries and bullshit detector. Avoid confrontations if possible. Sometimes we need a big blow up to clear the air, but things are going to look and feel very different, very soon anyway. The Moon is dark - there is stuff we can't see. Slow down, so you don't stub your toes (or something worse). Mars is rowing against the tide. Mercury is liable to mouth off and feel misunderstood. Nobody wins.

Focus on the dream/the healing. Double check before you hit "send". Use the energy around lunchtime/mid-day EDT for best results.

Take care of yourself.


xo all

photo by the talented empreinte

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of July 29, 2019 - shake, rattle and roll, disruption, changes, clarity and answers, changing our mind, no more looking backward we turn our attention to something new and innovative and near and dear to our heart

Some disruptions, shake-ups and surprises this week as change-maker/revolutionary Uranus squares the Sun, Moon and Venus!

We also have a BOLD New Moon in Leo - here's where we start moving toward what our heart wants (even as Uranus is shaking us these very things!) AND Mercury stations direct (YAY!) bringing CLARITY and ANSWERS. We know. We decide.

MONDAY - Sun squares Uranus and trines Chiron, Mercury squares Eris
WEDNESDAY - Super New Moon in Leo (8 degrees), Mercury stations direct
FRIDAY - Venus squares Uranus

On MONDAY - the Sun (in Leo) squares Uranus (in Taurus) and trines Chiron. Mars is inconjunct the South Node. Our ego/pride could take a sudden hit. This hit could touch on a very old, very sore spot and trigger other times our ego/pride has been walloped. The best way to use this energy is we adjust (the square) our ego AWAY from old choices toward something that offers greater freedom. The Mars/South Node inconjunct is a second indication the old ways are not working and we don't really want to go back there.

On WEDNESDAY - the Leo Moon meets the Leo Sun at 8 degrees giving us this month's fiery New Moon. There is alot of other action around this Moon. It is re-activating the July 16th eclipse, so issues now will connect to then. Maybe some unfinished business with that home/family situation. A Grand Fire Trine means mega-creativity. I will get the post up tomorrow. At the same time Mercury - strong and unstable right now - stations direct. Leo themes (and the theme of your natal Leo house) could dominate - children, creative projects, romance, recreation, heart issues, our heart's desire, our need for attention and with Mercury direct in Cancer that home/family/home business/family business/mothering situation will start moving forward. Sudden new beginnings. Fresh endeavors will start FAST.

We have the New Moon's fresh start coupled with Mercury's clarity. I will link to the post HERE when it is up. The Leo New Moon wraps up eclipse season - don't let the door hit ya' eclipse season!

On FRIDAY - Venus, following the Sun, will square Uranus and trine Chiron. This might all factor in with the energy earlier in the week and not be some other thing, but with Uranus you never know! The ego/pride/way we shine "hit" impacts our relationships, our wallet, our values, our self-esteem. Maybe our "security" is somehow disrupted. There is tension/frustration. Again there is a trine to Chiron (life will never let us down folks)  - something old and deep is being healed.

Back with the dailies - where we factor in the Moon (the Moon looks pretty good) and get into the juicy stuff! And check out the shooting stars this week - Mercury is the magician and very powerful at station - make that wish!

xo all

photo by the talented Metiu

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 29, 2019 - our pride takes an unexpected hit, the hit lands on an already sore spot which is somehow healing if we own up to it, freak flags fly, how far will we go to get attention, is it time for a radical solution to a chronic problem

There is LOTS of Uranus action this week which means - change, disruptions, surprises.

Today we have the Moon (in lunar-ruled home and family and roots oriented Cancer) sextiling Uranus at 6:35PM EDT - here is an opportunity for something new - maybe a change to that home/family/home business/family business/mothering/real estate situation - to feel comfortable. Maybe breaking free from family conditioning makes us feel more at home. Unexpected familial (or familiar feeling) connections - smooth flow.

The big news today and we'll talk about this in the weekly after I finish it up - we have the Sun (in Leo) squaring Uranus (in Taurus) while trining Chiron.

The Sun square Uranus could be some tension/frustration around being ourselves/liberation. Our Leo pride could get trampled somehow. Our ego might take an unexpected hit. A spotlight is tossed on how we are different/how our place on center stage isn't what we thought it was.

Squares to Uranus push us toward sudden change/burning bridges.

Trining healing/hurting Chiron there is a method to life's madness now. We are healing something very old and very deep. This is a good time to find new/radical solutions to chronic problems.

Maybe the Uranian "surprise" is actually the door being blown open to healing. To being able to live a more authentic life. Nothing is shining for long these days that isn't "real", because THAT is what we are all craving.

Some people will go pretty far this week to get attention.

And keep in mind Venus is following the Sun, so we are going to do this again with our money, relationships, values, self-esteem, women issues.

Step back. Think about where we are now. Both powerhouse planets in Capricorn are retrograde as well as Jupiter and Neptune. Some areas of our life are moving slowly. Pluto and Saturn are holding our feet to the fire with old obligations/responsibilities. Jupiter retrograde in Sag is testing our faith. Neptune is keeping certain stuff under wraps until fall. We HAVE to believe in ourselves, stand on our own two feet, KNOW we will have justice.

This week's disruptive Uranian energy is right on time.

We also have a bold New Moon (Supermoon) in Leo with Mercury stationing direct at almost the exact same time - we are about to be alot more clear about something!

Back with the weekly after I take care of the pup and get some orders out.

xo all

photo by the talented NightSkunk

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 26, 2019 - feeling nurtured by our resources, good for business, socializing, nice date night, an instinctual knowing, meeting some kind of reality check

The Moon continues through Taurus - we are nurtured through, and likely focused on - what we own, our money, how we love, what we value.

Exalted in Taurus, she trined Saturn while we slept and then moved on to sextile (opportunity) Neptune at 4:58AM EDT, trines (brakes off) a retrograde Pluto at 10:57AM EDT, sextiles Mercury at 5:43PM EDT and finally goes void at 12:28AM EDT tonight off a sextile with Venus (Venus rules Taurus, so this is very nice - good date night, good for socializing).

Void for two hours she moves into busy Gemini and our focus turns to communications, conversations, errands, our local community, our siblings, our transportation and electronics (for the next couple days).

All good aspects for our Taurean themes today - our resources, what we value (ie put our time, energy and money into), our money, the stuff that makes us stable.

The Moon in Taurus is answering to Venus and she is sextiling Sedna now. We talked about Sedna a couple months ago. In Sedna's story there was stuff that looked too good to be true and she wanted it to be true (and easy) and didn't look too closely and it was the end of her. With the sextile now looking more fortuitous it could be something along the lines of "what we know, but don't know" that aids us somehow. An instinct.

We also have Mars (in Leo's) inconjunct to a retrograde Saturn (this one is in play for a day or so on either side of today also, after today it starts unwinding itself).

We talked about this "reality check" yesterday and in the weekly. This is activity influenced by a burdensome responsibility, in this case likely an old responsibility. With Mars in Leo, maybe we want acknowledgement for our efforts. We need to be taken seriously, so we act with more discipline and restraint than Mars in Leo is usually capable of. That's the upside of Mars/Saturn. We have to watch that we don't bog ourselves down with other people's responsibilities now - that's a downside. Also the boss/authority taking credit for our work - another downside. Responsibility can also straight-jacket us into acting against our own desires.

Most likely this aspect creates a delay/limit - some kind of bad timing.

Inconjuncts are tricky. With this one we might have to balance between jumping into something prematurely and sitting on our ass watching it grow wider.

Keep this in mind.

Tonight looks lovely with that Venus/Moon. Friday night looks like a Friday night!

xo all

photo by the talented ant0n

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 25, 2019 - that gold nugget we missed the first time through, bold action expands our reach and makes us more optimistic, cleaning up the mess, finishing something, getting lucky

We had a storm blow through here on Monday night knocking down trees (four of our trees dropped major branches - one on our front porch, and two others on our fence, and yes, a couple of these are trees I am trying to save from hub's hope to clear the backyard for his "garage", so double ugh) and knocking out our electric and cable - finally back on this morning - YAY!

So, let's see where we are - the Moon is in comfy cozy (Mother Nature!) Taurus. She will connect with Uranus at 6:16AM EDT (surprise, we have internet!) and go on to square Mars at 1:11 (!) PM EDT.

We also have the best aspect of the week perfecting today.

Mars (in Leo) trining a retrograde Jupiter (in Sagittarius). Now, I said in the weekly he'd be inconjunct Saturn (exact tomorrow) at the same time and now we can see he is also squaring the Moon today. So, there will be some rules that have to be followed and Mars square the Moon could bring some frustration and challenges BUT could also help us power through whatever we have to get through now.

Mars in Leo gives all of us courage and confidence (yes, everyone!).

Jupiter is retrograde, so we are either taking action on something from the past (with the Moon waning and Mercury retrograde this could be a good time to finish something and the finishing of it expands our reach somehow or our vision of our future will be more optimistic once this thing is finished), an opportunity from the past is coming back around or with Jupiter retrograde our moves are very concentrated - normally Jupiter goes wide and big-picture, but retrograde he is more like a laser beam, a "lucky" laser beam.

Saturn could create delays or some hoops we have to jump through (also the ability to see the dragons and pitfalls ahead for this journey) - these can't be avoided and also connect to the past somehow, but they ARE NOT stop signs - bold action (Mars in Leo) EXPANDS our reach/makes us more optimistic.

The Sun is home in Leo. The Moon is exalted in Taurus.

We are making our own luck here!

Better sign off and get my shipping labels printed, in case this cable blinks off again!

xo all

photo by the talented u-n-s-e-e-n

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of July 22, 2019 - the pressure starts to ease up, we all get a little more shiny, another look at that home/family/real estate situation, fortune favors the bold

Eclipse season continues (until the New Moon in Leo at the end of the month) BUT unless your chart is directly challenged, the dust starts to settle now. Hang in there folks, August (and easier energies for most people) is coming.

We should feel the pressure start to ease up as the Sun and Venus move into generous and big-hearted Leo. This week offers some fresh, fiery energy, some eye-openers and lucky and expansive opportunities if we are willing to work for them, wait for them AND play by the rules!

Heads up there could be some challenges mid-week (we will talk about these in the dailies) as the Moon moves through Aries and early Taurus.

MONDAY - Sun moves home to Leo
WEDNESDAY - Venus conjuncts a retrograde Mercury
THURSDAY - Mars trines a retrograde Jupiter and inconjuncts a retrograde Saturn
SATURDAY - Venus moves into Leo

On MONDAY - the Sun (ruler of Leo) moves into fiery, proud and performance-focused Leo. This offers multiple layers of good news. The Sun (our life force) gets out of the firing range of that Capricorn opposition. He exits lunar ruled Cancer and moves into the sign he rules. In Leo, we focus on what our heart wants, children (our inner child), romance, fun, creative projects - we (and everyone else) want attention. Your Leo house (like the house of your natal Sun) is the space you are meant to SHINE. Prepare to get very shiny.

On WEDNESDAY - Venus meets a retrograde Mercury in Cancer. Mercury is taking another look at that home/family situation/mothering/home business/family business/real estate situation via conversations, information, contracts, etc - when he/she meets up with Venus we toss relationships/money/our self-esteem and values into the mix. What we want and what we are talking/communicating about are working together. This would be a good time for negotiations. Our feelings could be re-kindled for something/someone we used to love/want. It's a good time to give someone a compliment. Offer words of appreciation and love. If you need to make peace with someone, especially over an old family issue that needs to be put to bed - this would be good energy to reach out.

On THURSDAY (and this kind of starts Wednesday night and runs into Friday) - Mars in brave and proud and look-at-me Leo trines (brakes off) lucky Jupiter (retrograde in Sagittarius) and inconjuncts (rock and hard place) Saturn (retrograde in Capricorn).

These planets are all pretty happy in these signs. Saturn rules Capricorn, Jupiter rules Sag and Mars loves Leo. Everyone is functioning as they should be - keep in mind both Jupiter and Saturn are retrograde, so this could be about an old opportunity/old restrictions.

So we are taking action that makes us lucky/expands our reach BUT there are rules that have to be followed at the same time. The rules/limits/authority could mean a delay, extra work or the needfor us to jump through a few hoops to get what we want here. This isn't a stop sign, but it isn't something we can just ignore either. Keep in mind we are playing the long game and want to be building things that are going to last. Mars inconjunct Saturn could also show up as us feeling guilty about our actions or ambitions. This would maybe need to be worked through/taken into consideration, but it's not a stop sign. Also keep in mind - what Mars is doing now with Saturn - adjusting to the rules - he is going to do next week with Pluto in a Plutonian way- adjusting through power struggles or to what is ending/purging/cleaning up the mess.

The trine to expansive/optimistic Jupiter might be the BEST NEWS this week. This is an excellent aspect for success (keep in mind Saturn will require us to play by the rules and live up to our responsibilities).

Good for decisive action/decisions/TAKING A RISK.

On FRIDAY - Venus leaves Cancer (now we just have Mercury reworking that home/family issue) and moves into passionate Leo.

Venus (love, money, values) had been somewhat comfy, although quite restrained, in Cancer for the last few weeks. She prioritized security over all else and this kept her safe, but also a wee bit bored.

Cancer rules the Moon and a Venus/Moon natal opposition is considered the Madonna/Whore complex in a man's chart - so Venus has probably felt like she was living with her mother-in-law!

With her move into Leo she gets to spread her wings a little (maybe a lot, maybe a whole lot and we do, too!).

She leaves her mother-in-law's safe little house with the shuttered windows, central air conditioning, and alarm system where her mother-in-law was paying the rent. What more could Venus want, Cancer asks as Venus heads for the door?

"Quite a bit MORE", Venus answers.

She moves into a noisy apartment on the other side of town with curtain-less windows, a fan that wakes the neighbors when their fan isn't waking her, a deadbolt that doesn't quite latch properly and the rent only gets paid if she pays it.

Standing on her own two feet (and what lovely feet they are - this is Venus we are talking about!), Venus is more confident. She is also more competitive. She has to be to make it on her own (cue Mary Tyler Moore tossing that damn hat).

We will be, too.

So, what does this mean to us? First, our Leo house, hosting the lovely Venus, becomes more attractive. Leo Suns and rising signs are more naturally attractive (ie easy on the eye and able to attract). We attract what we want and need (Venus) through Leo - so by standing out, standing up, being passionate, taking the world by storm - you get the idea.

We could, of course, go overboard with all of this. Leo (ruled by the Sun) doesn't really like others blocking their light. Competition can get ugly. We could become downright diva-like. Being in love with being in love fits here, too.

Wanting to be adored will make being ignored harder to handle.

We are more likely to gamble with our resources (even risk our reputation or relationships) for the next few weeks. We'll look to other influences to see how that will go!

In Leo, Venus wants FUN (she meets all her new neighbors and is invited to all the best parties) and romance (there is surely some renewed passion without her mother-in-law in the next room) and creativity (she has a new apartment to decorate!) and passion. 

Our passion and confidence will be what attracts others to us and what we are attracted to in others now.

xo all

It's Eclipse season which is mentally/physically/psychically exhausting - get some extra sleep, rest, hydrate and have some (it's Leo season!) FUN.

photo by the talented monster donut

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 19, 2019 - one more time with feeling, back into that home/family situation now older and wiser, making time for rejuvenation and relaxation

The Moon is void until 5:19PM EDT when she moves into imaginative and elusive Pisces. This is a good day for group activities, causes, tech/online stuff - just don't launch anything brand new you want something to "come of". If you start the weekend early or take the early part of the day off - you shouldn't miss much that amounts to anything.

A retrograde Mercury backs into emotional and home/family oriented Cancer bringing us back to an issue from the past here (or our natal Cancer house theme). With the Moon in detached and intellectual Aquarius maybe we can step back a little bit and re-look at the situation - something has changed since we were here before; maybe some new information has come in - and get into the re-do, re-vise, re-view mode.

Mercury will station direct at the same time (July 31st) as the bold, New Moon in Leo that officially closes out this July Eclipse cycle. And we will be right back where we are now on August 11th.

What needs to happen (the re's) between now and then?

With the Moon in Pisces and Mercury back into Cancer for the weekend - time to pencil in some serious self-care and re-laxation!

xo all

photo by the talented nine9nine9

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 18, 2019 - accepting what we can't change, letting go gracefully, taking a break, tuning into our instincts and intuition, forgiving and connecting, re-thinking how and what we are nurturing, long void begins

The waning Moon continues her journey through Aquarius - opposing Mars (in  Leo) at 1:49AM EDT and going void off an opportunistic sextile to a retrograde Jupiter at 11:53AM EDT.

She is void for the rest of the day and through 5:19PM EDT tomorrow. 

Get things done early. The long void Moon says expect some twists and turns and do-overs. Don't start anything important. Best for practiced work or even rest. Time gets stretchy.

Venus trines Neptune (today/tomorrow) - both in emotional, compassionate and empathetic water signs.

This is an artistic/spiritual/healing flow. Lots of water/movement. We are more easily tuned into our instincts/intuition now. Meditate. Pray.

Venus (our love. relationships, money,. values, resources, beauty. women, self-esteem) is working a complicated story-line this week. This is the part where we get to cut loose a little bit (one glass of wine only please). We want (Venus) an escape (Neptune).

If there is some kind of slippery way around (be careful of this one Venus is still on path to oppose Pluto) or positive side to the Venus/Saturn ending/limit  HERE is where we will find it - in our heart, in our ability to know what we don't know. We can relax. We let go. We accept what we cannot change. We forgive. We connect.

The caveats here would be something like watching that money doesn't slip through our fingers, hold onto your phone/keys/wallet/valueables, fantasies around love, escapes with drugs and alcohol.

Venus/Neptune moves us closer to our ideal.

xo all

Backing again into my puppy saga (Mercury IS retrograde after all), I noted yesterday since I had somehow lost track of Ceres (!) that on the day I got Rosie (the name Rosie seems to be sticking for day two) Ceres moved into Sagittarius. So she came up from the depths of Scorpio (Pluto's realm) and into the bluer skies of Sag. My solar return chart - such a conundrum with so much focused on the 8th house that I considered traveling to change it, but noting Jupiter and Venus in my 6th house in Sagittarius and thinking this looked fortuitous for a new and important pet, decided to stay put. Today as Mercury (collective ruler of pets and our 6th house) returns to 0 degrees Leo on his/her way back into Cancer she trines (brakes off) Ceres. Just as I am re-thinking/re-doing nurturing (maybe you are re-thinking a Ceres theme, too now - nurturing, the seasons of life, things that feel outside your control, grief).

My memory of my last dog Olive was that she didn't bite (wishful thinking or swiss-cheesy memory)  - and that although I called my studio Olive Bites, that was just a catchy name, not an actual situation. This morning I went back and re-read my very first post on this blog 11 years ago when I wrote I was re-naming my studio "for a fresh start, a new year, a new adventure and a new puppy named Olive ... who ... you guessed it ... tends to BITE ...".

There was a comment on that post that included the advice to YIPE! loudly and ignore her for 30 seconds after a bite - that seems to be helping ... :)

Today is Venus (in Cancer - mothering)/Neptune and Mercury/Ceres (mothering) - mega creative energy - what are you nurturing? 

photo by the talented Deliszja

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 17, 2019 - we feel the weight of it all and then we keep going, moving on, fated meetings, saying yes to something new

The Moon moves into detached Aquarius at 5:19AM EDT. We might find ourselves focused on and nurtured through Aquarius themes for the next couple days (or the theme of our natal Aquarius house) - groups, friendships, the internet, astrology, technology, the goals that bring us into connection with other people, our causes.

She will oppose Mercury retrograde (12:38PM EDT) and square Aquarius's ruling planet Uranus (10:44PM EDT) and then move on to oppose Mars. People, including us, could start arguments just to see what is going to happen! Expect change and disruptions. Unless the people around you are Aquarians/Aquarian-types, this would be a better day for solitary work. This is good energy to step back and get a little distance from something.

We could have an emotional (Moon) breakthrough (Aquarius) about how to proceed because we also have - Venus meeting the North Node of destiny.

She gets past her opposition to Saturn - maybe we get serious about something, are really feeling the pressure of an old (or new) responsibility or commitment, hear a "no", reach a completion/culmination - this is the reality bites thing with the responsibilities we talked about in the Eclipse post.

Limits/boundaries can be a good thing, but they probably won't feel good. At least we know where we stand. Keep in mind the Plutonian eclipse is bringing up alot of fears that our body is carrying, so our emotions (and the Aquarius Moon will help cool this down) could be more intense than the situation calls for.

(I got a new puppy last weekend and am feeling like I opened a kennel and am responsible for 100 new puppies - the weight of this responsibility/commitment added to what I already have on my plate is overwhelming me right now - this is where astro wisdom can help us to know we aren't losing our mind, of course with Pluto sitting on my natal Mercury, I could be, and that transit are transitory)

As Venus meets and crosses the North Node we are moving on.

With Mercury retrograde we might not be clear on exactly what that means and that's ok - something will be illuminated within the next couple days - but the Venus/Saturn reality check (we do or do not have the resources to do this thing, we do or do not still love this person/situation, we do or do not get what we want, etc) gives us some kind of solid ground. It may or may not be exactly where we hoped to be standing, but it's where we are standing (and, yes, the solid ground could include a nipping puppy with teeth like sewing needles attached to our ankle).

Her contact with the North Node tells us this is unfolding exactly as it should be. Venus is in Cancer - so yes, we could be a little more needy than usual, but Venus in Cancer is also where we merge what we want (Venus) with what we need (Cancer). And happening opposite that Capricorn karmic line-up we are required to take responsibility for it.

Watch for synchronicities around Venus themes - love, relationships, balance, money, resources, our values, our self-esteem, beauty and women. Fated meetings. Fated encounters. Fated investments. Fated choices are being made about what we really value.

More in the weekly HERE

xo all

A couple weeks before Christmas, our beautiful pup Olive died. Her loss hit us (hubs also lost his mother shortly after) like a freight train. It's been overwhelming. I have lost both parents, had multiple miscarriages and lost several other pets, but have never experienced this kind of grief. This continued throughout the time Mercury was back and forth through Pisces in the spring - I knew this grief was very old and very deep. I felt literally empty. When Olive died, transiting Ceres (mothering, loss) was sitting exactly conjunct my natal Neptune (which conjuncts my Ascendant) and transiting Pluto was exactly conjunct my husband's natal Ceres. I had also had a near death experience in May 2018 (exactly as Pluto conjuncted my natal Mercury, Mercury rules pets - I will have to see what Ceres was doing then, I just realized I never looked) which immediately preceded the onset of Olive's illness.

And I know this is alot of astro babble, but I know many people who read this blog study astrology and might be interested. Also for the astro babble people - I am a Capricorn South Node/ Cancer North Node. It would create less anxiety in me to help you start a business than to help you watch your toddler.

Last week- exactly one week prior to the Eclipse - after registering with five local rescues in mid-May and never getting a call back, although two people I knew registered and had dogs within a couple weeks - I got a call about a puppy coming up from Georgia.

She, and her two siblings, had been abandoned at a construction site. She was found dragging a hurt leg, fifty feet from the other puppies. A recent x-ray had shown two possible pelvic fractures. The fractures, which might or might not even be fractures, might or might not require surgery at some point. I was told she was probably about nine weeks old and a Beagle-mix. The woman at the rescue told me she wouldn't be going on any long hikes, but if I was looking for a pup to cuddle in my lap and love she might be my girl.

I told her I would call her back the next morning. She asked if I could call her at 10AM precisely because she had a busy day packing pups for her trip up to New Jersey. Tossing and turning all night I decided to go and meet this pup at a local Pet Smart on Saturday. I called the woman at 10AM, but got a recording and she didn't call me back until 12:30PM - at exactly the start of a Grand Water Trine in effect for just a couple hours - that spoke of fast change that created a big commitment/work, and had some magical/spiritual support. I knew as soon as the phone rang I would be getting this dog.

Anyhoo, she sits, although I am not sure we would call this squirming thing where I try to protect my belly from becoming her second breakfast "sitting",  in my lap right now trying to bite my shirt - not the loving little lap cuddler I had envisioned, but her pelvis injury doesn't seem to stop her from running around like a maniac and I can't imagine it not healing up just fine. Her name has been Belle, Ellie, Nellie, Lily, Ripley and Rosie, maybe the Rosie will stick, we'll see .... maybe she'll settle a bit once we settle on her name. And I settle down a bit from this Eclipse energy ....

photo by the talented beyond impression

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of July 15, 2019 - the past is over but that home/family situation isn't, trusting in what is difficult, letting go of what we built, feeling the fear and knowing you will survive it, aligning ourselves with our values

"Most people have (with the help of conventions) turned their solutions toward what is easy and toward the easiest side of the easy; but it is clear that we must trust in what is difficult; everything alive trusts in it, everything in Nature grows and defends itself any way it can and is spontaneously itself, tries to be itself at all costs and against all opposition. We know little, but that we must trust in what is difficult is a certainty that will never abandon us; it is good to be solitary, for solitude is difficult; that something is difficult must be one more reason for us to do it." -
                                                                                                                                 Rainer Maria Rilke

HUGE WEEK ahead including the Lunar Eclipse Full Moon conjunct Pluto - another strong harbinger of the January 2020 mega-energy shifts.

TUESDAY - Lunar Eclipse Full Moon conjunct Pluto, Venus opposes Saturn
THURSDAY - Venus trines Neptune and conjuncts North Node
FRIDAY - Mercury retrograde moves back into Cancer
SATURDAY - Mercury (retrograde) conjuncts the Sun
SUNDAY - Venus opposes Pluto

We talked about TUESDAY and the Eclipse energy HERE and HERE

On WEDNESDAY/THURSDAY, we have lots of Venus (love, money, our resources, values, self-esteem, beauty, women) action. She will inconjunct Jupiter, oppose Saturn, meet the North Node and finally trine Neptune.

Her inconjunct with a retrograde Jupiter could have us wanting more of something or maybe wanting for something to be a little further along - this will connect to the past. Venus/Jupiter can be too much of a good thing - is this possible? Yes.  And with the opposition to Saturn maybe it is our timing that is off. It's good for us or looks like it is, but it's not good for us right now. Maybe we haven't earned it yet. Venus still has work to do.

We talked about her opposition to a retrograde Saturn in the Eclipse post - this is part of the Full Moon's "result". The reality check part with the significant responsibilities.

(You will find when you have an aspect in your natal chart and that same aspect happens by transit - not touching your natal chart, but just the same aspect - your natal aspect flares up. Kind of like an old ankle injury in wet weather. 

Trump was born with a Saturn/Venus conjunction in Cancer activated by this Eclipse by degree AND aspect. And he has a Sag Moon in Venus's natural house. His tweets and speeches this week about "Congresswomen needing to go back where they come from" have been explosive. We talked about this part of his chart HERE.)

Venus moves into a conjunction with the North Node (8:45PM EDT Wednesday) - we align with our values, so whatever we are doing - this is where we know we are on the right path. Fated meetings. Say "YES". Reboot. Then she trines magical, dissolving Neptune.

Maybe we have brought something from the past - probably something we once worked really freaking hard on - to a completion and we let go and move on now.

On FRIDAY, Mercury retrogrades back into Cancer - pulling us back into the home, family, mother, mothering, family business, home business story-line to do the "re's" before we wrap this thing up.

On SATURDAY, a retrograde Mercury meets the Sun in Cancer - information comes to light (maybe old information), a conversation enlightens us (maybe one we've had before) - this might connect back to around May 21st when we were here before. Take another look. Say it again. Re-read the fine print. Re-think it.

On SUNDAY - Venus opposes Pluto. Here's the big aspect of the week. Bigger than the Eclipse? I don't know. Maybe. The Lord of the Underworld doesn't play.

If we keep in mind Venus in Cancer's tendency to be kind of needy we can feel how this might play out. Pluto amplifies this. Maybe we have the feeling of "this is what I MUST have" with the added caveat since this is an opposition - "from YOU". This could be a person/situation, etc. Oppositions are projections. What we want isn't really OUT THERE. But it could feel like life or death that we get it. Or life and death that something plays out in a certain way.

Will we get what we want?

It depends what our previous use of this Plutonian 'power' has drawn to us. We already had the Mercury/Mars oppositions - what did we learn? Some people will get the corner office. Others will get the pink slip. Power is tricky and projecting it outside ourselves is dangerous. We are kind of asking for someone to come along and yank what we want/need away from us.

Pluto/Venus can bring an obsessive fixation and the willingness to manipulate to get what we want. Just keep in mind the karmic ramifications of everything in play now. The bounce back, if not now, come January can be FIERCE.

Pluto is truth and truth is what is needed here. Are we being honest with ourselves about what we want and why we want it?

We'll flesh all this out in the dailies.

xo all

photo by the talented Sylvia15

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 16, 2019 - karmic lessons

Today's Capricorn Moon moves toward her exact opposition to the Cancer Sun happening at 5:38PM EDT - bringing us a Full Moon Lunar Eclipse.

This is a time of karmic LESSONS. Endings. Beginnings. There are commitments/responsibilities that we have outgrown. There are new commitments/responsibilities we have grown into. Happening conjunct Pluto will make our feelings more intense (life and death - watch your language around what is "killing" you) and situations more likely to involve power struggles.

Does anything transform without a struggle? Yes, says Neptune who is active, too, but we have to let go with love/forgive/take time to grieve/bring empathy and compassion to the situation, and often hardest of all, bring it home to ourselves!

With minimal air (only one planet in an air sign) in today's chart - the atmosphere could feel heavy and stifled. And Mercury (as well as almost everything else) is retrograde. We can't think our way out of this. It's a time to release anything that starts with "if only...".

Consider any new commitments (investments of time, money, resources, your emotions) before taking them on now, because they will involve work, time, patience, taking on the man/the old guard. They could pay off in big, unexpected ways, but don't say I didn't warn you about the WORK.

There are collective themes of home/work balance issues and power struggles within relationships in the Full Moon chart. I spell it all out HERE (grab a cup of coffee, this is all happening in my third house of communication and  I like to write).

The Eclipse is intended to bring a culmination/ending to some situation - some way we interact with the world, some goal, commitment, sense of priority - in our Capricorn house. Keep in mind Eclipses come in a series and this is a process. We have two more at the end of December/beginning of January 2020.

We might think we have to "fake it til we make it" - a very Capricornian thing, but then there are times - and this is more and more true as we move into and through the Age of Aquarius - when we have to realize we are just faking it - there is no "making it" because we are faking it. We might have the corner office (maybe we do/maybe we don't) but if we aren't feeling emotionally satisfied, our cup will never be full enough/our view will never be good enough, because this is not who we really are. 

It's time to be honest with ourselves.

Lots to think about as we move through this week and close out this Eclipse season.

xo all - back with the weekly

The ECLIPSE Post is HERE

photo by the talented Rona-Keller 

Full Moon Lunar Eclipse in Capricorn | July 16, 2019 - karmic chickens coming home to roost, secrets exposed, releasing grief, releasing old and deep fears, who's got the power, a good job can't hug you back, the death of the McMansion

On Tuesday, July 16th the Capricorn Moon opposes the Cancer Sun at 24 degrees giving us this month's Full Moon - happening conjunct the Moon's Nodes (Capricorn/Cancer) gives us a Full Moon Lunar Eclipse (partial). 

Full Moons bring energy to a "peak"; to a culmination, maybe to an ending. Eclipses eclipse something out. We get a cosmic reset, much like a computer being turned off and back on and the program that uploads at restart is a little bit (or quite a lot) different than the one we ran on before.

Eclipses change us, and we, (vibrating differently), change our circumstances by attracting or repelling what our new self lines up with.

If you have planets or points on or near 24 degrees Capricorn/Cancer the area of your life impacted will look very, very different over the next six months (or the area of life ruled by the ruler of that sign/point). 

With the Moon conjunct Pluto (and widely conjunct the South Node and Saturn) and the Lunar Eclipse energy amplifying something that's already amplified AND setting up the big January 2020 energies and Eclipses - this is BIG. We had an Eclipse conjunct this degree in mid-July 2000. Some people will see similar themes activated now. 

Let's unpack the chart.

Mars is past his square to Uranus, but the square is still active. So here is the potential for fast change. He is approaching his trine to Jupiter, so things can get bigger/more expansive quickly. Whatever this is it pushes us into new territory. Venus (in Cancer) is exactly opposing Saturn (in Capricorn). This is important. Remember we had Mercury and Mars do this and now it is Venus's turn as she moves through Cancer and begins to oppose the karmic pile-up in Capricorn of the South Node, Saturn and Pluto. Eris is exactly square the Sun and the Moon (!), so this is disruptive. The North Node is trine Neptune and Venus is approaching her own trine to Neptune.  

The ONLY air in the chart - no wonder we can't think straight or make a decision - is Pallas in Libra. Yes, Pallas is STILL in Libra! Relationship patterns. Relationship strategies. With Pallas squaring the Moon/Sun something needs to CHANGE. Squares to the nodes speak of a skipped step. We can't go any further without this ADJUSTMENT. In Libra, even wise-warrior Pallas can get indecisive and with Pallas exactly squaring a retrograde Saturn at the time of the Eclipse - relationship commitments from the past are likely part of the Eclipse story.

The Full Moon conjunct Pluto could bring secrets into the open; the truth to light.

Pluto is retrograde - something from the past needs to end/die. We either transform/clean up the mess or the tower falls. And I am not saying "or" as if we have a say in the matter. We probably don't. If the base is rotted the structure collapses. Capricorn endings could just as easily be the end of a limit/restraint/rule/commitment/authority. An earth sign - the ending could be a physical thing although the greatness of its impact might only be felt in hindsight. 

The theme of our natal Capricorn house - the theme that is in play through at least the beginning of 2020 in our life gets a major reshuffling. Pluto is ultimate energy - absolute light (honesty), absolute darkness. Power. Control. Loss of power. Loss of control. 

With the Moon conjunct Pluto situations might feel like life and death. Sometimes because they are. But most likely because a part of us is dying. Outgrown Capricornian identities are being shed. Rules. Limits. Bye-bye. Moon/Pluto and then that square to Eris may speak of powerful feelings/situations around women. 

With Venus exactly opposing Saturn - what we want/love/value comes with a hefty price tag. Commitments. Responsibilities. We talked about this last week. The fast change (Mars/Uranus) coming at a cost. She is almost close enough to the Sun to be blown out (combust), but I think an exact opposition to Capricorn's ruler at the time of an Eclipse keeps her in the game. With Venus about to trine Neptune and conjunct the North Node and with Saturn trining Neptune - we have magical, spiritual assistance here to make this whole thing work out. We just have to let go of the old dead thing. We have to clean up the mess. We have to polish off that old commitment.

If we are stepping into a new commitment/responsibility now - it won't be easy. That Saturn opposition to what we want means work.

(many wealthy, successful people have challenging Venus/Saturn aspects in their natal charts - Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Oprah - facing powerful old-school opposition/the way things have always been done - it's worked for them, it can work for us, too)

The trines to Neptune and aspects to the North Node (plus 2019's Neptune sextile Saturn - we won't have this one forever!) speak of powerful forces moving us in a new direction because the stuff behind us - the ground that used to be beneath our feet - isn't even there anymore! We are counting on structures and abiding by rules that don't even exist. Those timelines are finished.

Neptune forces development of deeper values through sacrifices and a sense of loss/grief. Sometimes with Neptune things can mysteriously vanish (like my first post!) and the more we shut out any recognition of our spiritual gifts the more we become overly concerned with protecting all that we own as exclusively ours - the more screwed up everything gets and the more scared we feel as things dissolve. What is really happening is our unlimited energy is trapped.

So, HERE, this eclipse is where the trap door gets opened.

We won't likely be dropped onto a bed of feathers because then we would never get up and the point of everything is to KEEP GOING. It's unlikely to be a bed of nails either. Keep in mind those intense Moon/Pluto emotions that stimulate our body to feel every cataclysm/death we (including our past lives and the ancestral DNA that we carry) have ever suffered.

It will all be OK in the end.

Eclipse events are fated - whatever impact we have before or after is probably out of our hands now. The facts must be dealt with. This stuff will play out over the next 6 months.

At its core this is a Cancer/Capricorn Full Moon with the North Node in home and family focused Cancer - see my Nodes posts HERE for more on that. The old structures that are no longer "home" MUST change.

Where I live in Central New Jersey they build these mega-houses we call McMansions. Big house. Little bitty piece of land. Back when my mom lived with us, the year leading up to her death, the nurse who visited us told me how she often went into these houses and they were mostly empty. Which sounded sad, but almost made sense to me, because what the hell do you do with all those rooms and those mega-entryways and sky-high ceilings (not to mention the upkeep costs interfering with someone's ability to buy furniture). The McMansion - is a perfect representation of the kind of shallow, Capricorny thing that is ending. We all have a McMansion somewhere in our life ... the shallow, empty space that is self-destructing as we move toward a more authentic space.

The problem is it might not feel like a shallow empty thing - it might feel like the thing that is holding us up. It isn't. The completion/ending is inevitable. This sense of doom and gloom that is out of proportion to the situation is us being triggered by our history (or our past lives/ancestor's history that we carry).

If it feels like the sky is falling, take a walk outside.

It is probably still up there.

We are actually stepping into a more powerful position as we work through these power struggles through the end of 2019. We are working our piece of the puzzle that moves the collective into the New Age. There is no way we can get this wrong.

To sum it all up - this is a major ending/culmination/beginning WITH some Plutonian deep truth dug up and brought into the light. We see the man behind the curtain or maybe why we do what we do because we are the man behind the curtain. Relationship power dynamics will play a part as well as our Cappy/Cancer house themes or the collective themes of our life in the world, being hard-headed vs home/family, being soft-hearted. We move toward something more authentic and VALUABLE. 

Note this intense and possibly destructive Eclipse is followed a couple days later by some soothing, forward-leaning Venus aspects. So whatever ends/changes it is likely our attention quickly moves to what's next.

xo all

the weekly post will be up on TUESDAY

Weekly and Full Moon Eclipse Posts are coming ... Today's Astrology Forecast 7/15/2019

The Weekly and Eclipse post I wrote on Sunday has vanished - so funny/#notfunny it included the word "vanish".

Note to self - nix the word vanish and toss in the words "lottery winner" during the re-write.

I will get it reposted today. It's HUGE.

In the meantime here is our weekly heads up list and a forecast for MONDAY.

TUESDAY - Lunar Eclipse Full Moon conjunct Pluto, Venus opposes Saturn
THURSDAY - Venus trines Neptune and conjuncts North Node
FRIDAY - Mercury retrograde moves back into Cancer
SATURDAY - Mercury (retrograde) conjuncts the Sun
SUNDAY - Venus opposes Pluto

On MONDAY the Moon is moving through sober Capricorn on her way to oppose the Cancer Sun and conjunct the South Node (and Pluto!) early tomorrow evening EDT and bring us the Full Moon Lunar Eclipse in Capricorn.

Her only aspect is a liberating and future-leaning trine to Uranus (in Taurus). Change is good. The Moon in Capricorn means we are nurtured by being goal-focused, having our crap together and making PROGRESS, so keep moving. Knowing an intense Eclipse with Pluto is coming would make this a good day for purging, de-cluttering, clearing space and getting more emotionally settled.

xo all - back after shipping and banging my head onto my desk a few times with the NEW POST.

photo by the talented friday-forever

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 13, 2019 - the gold nuggets we missed the first time, an adventure, a need to look under the hood, plan a healthy escape tonight, all day void Moon tomorrow so get some rest before the Eclipse

The Moon in Sagittarius will trine Mars at 9:30AM EDT, conjunct Sag ruler Jupiter (retrograde) at 4:10PM EDT and go void at 9:30PM EDT off a square Neptune (retrograde). She will then be Void until Sunday evening (7:04PM EDT when she moves into serious Capricorn).

The trine (brakes off) between our adventurous Sagittarius Moon and Mars (in Leo) speaks of enthusiastic action, fun with children (or our inner child), stepping outside our comfort zone - taking a risk. Then she hooks up with Jupiter (retrograde in Sag) - maybe a previous opportunity - some potential gold we never mined - is back on our radar.

The Moon in Sag can make us more optimistic this time around, but since this lunar day will end with a square to confusing Neptune we might only be able to take this thing so far before that Neptunian tension/frustration kicks in tonight - we are tired, things too dreamy and impractical, our intuition less sharp, the facts get fuzzy, we are overly sensitive - our enthusiasm dissolves. Seek a healthy escape from reality tonight.

Tonight/tomorrow we stop pushing. We are letting things flow. Expect time to be stretchy. 

We also have Venus (in caring for what we value) Cancer semi-squaring Sedna. We talked about Sedna during the Full Moon in May. Semi-squares are like baby squares - they might represent an intuition about a future square (tension/frustration) - like a little warning. Sedna is where we get into trouble when we can't see something is too good to be true. When we don't want to look under the hood. The square to Venus in Cancer makes me think of a  purchase for our home (maybe something we are considering now) that might not work out the way we are expecting. Maybe we order something on super-sale and think we are getting a bargain, but then it doesn't do what we need it to do.

There are millions of ways this energy could play out.

Sedna is in Taurus, so answering to Venus and Venus is in Cancer so answering to the Moon - all the lunar stuff we just talked about.

So, some potential future tension may factor in to today's events. Take this as a little heads up to be prepared - this isn't a stop sign, but a flashing light off in the distance we are able to sort of/kind of see. We might end up there and we might not.

What we are investing our time/attention/resources/money into now should be given a second look (Mercury, and just about everything else is retrograde so things are getting a second look anyway) if it seems too good to be true/too EASY.

Note - the Moon will be Void on Sunday until she moves into Capricorn at 7:04PM EDT and we start to build toward Tuesday's Lunar Eclipse Full Moon! So rest on Sunday because Sunday night we are back in the saddle folks!


xo all

photo by the talented anyaanti

Today's Astrology Forecast | July 11th, 2019 - a whole lot of water, shake ups and break-ups, keep a cool head but keep your head out of the sand, bold independent action is healing, fast change that gets attention, we've been here before

The big news today is we have Mars (in Leo) squaring Uranus (in Taurus).

Fuses can be short. Impulsive actions are possible. This is EXACTLY the kind of energetic you want if you need to make a bold move that shakes things up. Do you need to shake things up?

Uranus is about break-throughs and break-downs and break-ups that push us into the future. With Mars in Leo seeking attention and wanting what it wants (hopefully heart-filled desires and not just a gamble/thrill/applause) and keeping in mind Mercury is retrograde and we are between two powerful kick-ass eclipses - the most powerful still to come - volatile situations will require extra caution.

The Moon in Scorpio (answering to Pluto now, co-ruler of Mars) is going to sextile Saturn, trine Neptune, trine the Sun and go void at 8:28PM EDT off a sextile to Pluto - all harmonious aspects!

With the Cancer Sun (plus North Node!) trining the Scorpio Moon and trining a retrograde Neptune in Pisces - we have a Grand Water Trine forming for a few hours this afternoon (around noon EDT through 3:30 PM). If you have planets or points around 17-19 degrees of the water signs you will best be able to take advantage of this. Flow. Less resistance. Mostly this is good. The Moon is waxing - this is about growth. No boundaries. You take your creative vision to the bank - ka' ching.

The fly in the ointment with the Grand Water Trine is a potential tendency here to feel an exaggerated need for dependency/mothering or we psychologically isolate ourselves from the harsher aspects of reality (we spoke about this in the weekly and yesterday - about the need for caution, but also the need not to stick our head in the sand and pretend nothing is happening - the water will drown us now).

This is alot of WATER. And alot of water is very powerful. How big do you want/need this thing to be?

The best news - the Grand Water Trine is forming a Kite aspect with Saturn/South Node (in Capricorn - always this year pulling us back to that Capricorn house and our natal Capricorn house theme). They are opposing the Sun/North Node and sextiling the Moon and Neptune. Three trines, two sextiles and one opposition. So, yes, now we have sober Saturn stabilizing/limiting the whole thing. But also making it REAL. Making us less likely to drift into lalaland with all this water. We have focus. And yes, it also brings up responsibilities/commitments/limits and with the South Node here and Saturn retrograde, they likely have a connection to the past.

We've been here before.

If we take something on now - it will bring fast change and the need to live up to responsibilities/make a commitment/work with certain rules. It will also shift us (especially on the inside) in magical ways and could be very positive.

Mars MUST get past this square to Uranus. It's fast. It's jolting. Then we move on. And just before he squares Uranus he trines Chiron - so healing through bold, independent action is possible now and leads to greater liberation.

It's tricky energy (but familiar and the water in our body knows this). 

We have unconscious (all that water) help now as we connect with our past, our ancestors, the angels, God - and even Saturn throws us a lifesaver. The resistance is helpful.

Compassion is needed. Forgiveness is needed. The Moon is in Scorpio sextiling Pluto - we are diving deep.

xo all

photo by the talented fly10

Today's Lunar Forecast | tension, power struggles, the dead won't stay buried, the cat's out of the bag, going deep, all's well that ends well, watch for synchronicities, a light is thrown on our best path forward, stepping into the light

The Moon dives into Scorpio at 5:29AM EDT - we are nurtured through Scorpian themes for the next couple days - intensity, intimacy, power, the resources we've merged with other people, other people's values, other people's money, our spouse's income, loans, debts, taxes, inheritance, sex, reproduction, death/rebirth, third party situations.

She will square Mercury and then Mars after lunch before opposing Uranus at 4:20PM EDT.

We are dealing with fixed aspects now, so we could all be more stubborn and entrenched in our position. Tension. Stress. Deep conversations. Arguments. Power struggles. It will be easy to feel pushed, push back and get into a tussle. With that Uranus opposition, the crap we have been repressing, could explode rather spectacularly at any time.

(keep in mind today's energy will feel alot like tomorrow's Mars/Uranus and Sunday's Sun/Pluto - so the whole week is pretty volatile - we will need to balance keeping a cool head (good idea) with burying our head in the sand - not so good)

Finally the Moon will trine Venus at 9:28PM EDT, so it looks like whatever is shaken and stirred today will lead to greater balance, love, beauty, self-esteem or maybe we shift toward home/family to lick our wounds.

We also have the Cancer Sun meeting the North Node at 17 degrees. We talked about this in the weekly, but let's repeat it here:

A light (Sun) is thrown on our best path forward (North Node).

It could be a bright spotlight we can't miss or maybe it's a tiny flicker that catches our eye and pulls us over to investigate a new direction. 

We might receive some confirmation we are on the right path now. Or a gentle shove in a direction we hadn't before considered.

This could be in response to all the lunar/emotional challenges today - us stepping up and stating "this is where I am going."

There is also a wide trine from the Moon to Neptune today that echoes and supports our Neptunian assistance later this week and really all year. Meditate. Go for a walk. Paint. Listen to music. Dance. Show compassion. Take the higher ground. Our past/ancestors/God has our back here.

We are in-between eclipses with Mercury retrograde uncertainty is likely.

xo all

photo by the amazing anyaanti

Weekly Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of July 8th - changing our mind, changing our direction, passionate words, breakdowns and breakthroughs, ego drama, preventing accidents and impulsive moves, following the path home, report card time, daddy issues, a battle of wills

This is a HUGE week. AND we are in-between eclipses in the eclipse spin cycle, so anything can happen - BIG changes ahead folks, brace for impact!

SUNDAY - Mercury stations retrograde
MONDAY - Mercury retrograde conjuncts Mars, Chiron stations retrograde, Venus squares Chiron and sextiles Uranus
TUESDAY - Sun opposes Saturn
WEDNESDAY - Sun conjuncts the North Node
THURSDAY - Mars squares Uranus, Sun trines Neptune
SUNDAY - Sun opposes Pluto

We have Mercury and Chiron both stationing retrograde. With the Sun opposing both Saturn and Pluto some situation reaches THE END OF THE LINE and with the Sun conjunct the North Node - here is our future - a more authentic future that feels like it makes us more vulnerable, but is actually the only, truly safe path - CALLING US HOME.

Mars - in loud and proud and ego-driven Leo - squaring an "anything-can-happen" Uranus tells us if we have been thinking about a BIG change (following our heart) - HERE is the courageous energy to make it happen, on the other hand - HERE is also the impulsive energy to burn a bridge, damage our reputation or make a very careless (possibly hot-headed) and costly mistake.  

There are multiple aspects this week, advising us to keep our EGO IN CHECK. 

We might have to eat some humble pie this week - let's hope it's key lime.

Fuses will be SHORT.

The Sun (in caring Cancer) is trining Neptune (in peaceful, compassionate Neptune) at the same time - can we choose the path of the peaceful warrior? Can we bring compassion to this situation? Neptune is helping us all week - our dreams, our guides, our imagination, our ancestors.

With Mars squaring Uranus and the Sun trining Neptune maybe something/someone could threaten some action and then the situation could dissolve or maybe they (or we) might back down. But there is so much other energy around endings and beginnings, and we are in the eclipse spin cycle, it is impossible to get clear on what will happen this week!

Let's unpack the aspects/transits and take a look at some possibilities.

On SUNDAY - Mercury stations retrograde at 6 degrees Leo. She/he will move back into Cancer on July 19th, station direct on July 31st at 23 degrees Cancer and then get back to 6 degrees Leo on August 18th (squaring Uranus!) and begin covering new ground. Until then we are doing the "re's" with our early Leo, late Cancer natal house themes. With Mercury retrograding in a fire sign we are re-thinking, revising, reviewing our actions, our passions, what our heart wants, what makes us proud, maybe a collective Leo theme like a creative project, children, romance, recreation.

We are moving toward some of the biggest decisions of our life, but we aren't quite there YET. A retrograde Mercury pretty much eliminates our ability to be certain. Between now and the end of July prepare for delays, mechanical glitches, misunderstandings PLUS conversations, situations and people from the past to re-surface.

We are RE-THINKING SOMETHING.

The Moon is in Virgo today so answering to Mercury and we have this month's Waxing Sextile between the Virgo Moon and the Cancer Sun, so there is an opportunity here to improve/fix/re-examine that Cancer situation - home, family, mother, mothering, family business, home business, renovation, relocation.

MONDAY is a VERY BIG DAY.

We have Chiron stationing retrograde. So, now we have Mercury, Chiron, Saturn. Jupiter, Neptune and Pluto ALL retrograde. If we were a book, this would be a review chapter for a complicated storyline, that requires the reader get a re-fresher before proceeding while at the same time introducing new characters and immensely important new plot-lines! Whah!

Chiron (in Aries) is going back over all the hurts/healing since January.

He squares Venus (in Cancer). Our Venus themes of love, money, our values, beauty, self-esteem (and women), already emotionally felt in Cancer (wanting to feel safe) might make us feel more vulnerable now. Difficult home/family issues are stirred up. Situations can transpire to show us any lack of balance, love, beauty, money or resources in our life. Hurts will connect back to very old spaces and other times we didn't feel safe - maybe woundings through our maternal history.

At the same time something is hurting, Venus (ruler of Taurus) is sextiling (opportunity) Uranus in Taurus.

So, NEW avenues are opening up for money, resources, self-esteem, changes to our values (or our natal Taurus house theme). What do we really want? New attractions are possible now. Change is good.

A retrograde Mercury is meeting fiery Mars.

Words can be used as weapons, and will likely have their roots in old situations. Choose your battles carefully. Our language is confident (hopefully not boastful). We are thinking/re-thinking on our feet now. Fast decisions are possible. Our words and actions are working together, but with Mercury retrograde we might make a move without really thinking it through.

We could change the way we are doing something. We could change our mind about a decision. We are re-thinking our actions.

We need to choose our words carefully and we need those words to be assertive!

I said this is a BIG day, right? I think this day will wrap-up OK thanks to Venus/Uranus, but it will take some frustrations and challenges to get us to OK. We've got this thing, don't worry!

On TUESDAY, we have a big annual aspect. Once a year the Sun and Saturn line up in exact opposition and hand us a report card.

We could hear a "no", we could say "no", hit a limit, have to deal with some kind of burden. A light shines on WHY we are being blocked and what obligations remain. We are being pushed in a difficult direction.

Saturn/Sun can also limit self-expression or bring father/authority issues. The opposition comes from something outside ourselves (appears to) - the action of another person or a situation it seems we cannot control.

At the same time we can see the way our own actions/thoughts have set ourselves up here.

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).

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. 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/commit myself.

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.

On WEDNESDAY, the Sun meets up with the North Node (our collective way forward) in Cancer.

A light (Sun) is thrown on our best path forward (North Node).

It could be a bright spotlight we can't miss or maybe it's a tiny flicker that catches our eye and pulls us over to investigate a new direction.

We might receive some confirmation we are on the right path now. Or a gentle shove in a direction we hadn't before considered.

Cancer is ruled by the Moon, so think about where the Moon sits in your natal chart and what house is ruled by Cancer. That's your sweet spot.

On THURSDAY, Mars (in Leo) squares Uranus (in Taurus).

This is tension/frustration making us more accident-prone, easier to anger and liable to take impulsive action. We are pushing for something to happen or re-acting to something that is happening.

This feels like an earthquake.

If we have been wanting to make a disruptive change, THIS is the energy to do that.

But, if we are feeling the need to make some impulsive move we have never thought about before - we might want to sit with it/think it through before we do something we might regret later. Uranus pushes for change and liberation, but won't be around to clean up the mess when we fall on our ass.

With Mars in Leo - our pride can be easily wounded now and coupled with Mercury retrograde's meeting with fiery Mars on Monday - if we are in a situation where we are taking alot of crap this could be the week we just lose it.

We want to keep a cool head, but our head shouldn't need to be buried in the sand to do that. Note to self- get a fan.

We might have to take assertive action (Mars) to be seen/respected (Leo) - just be sure you are coming from a heart-centered and not an ego-centered space.

There are two trines to help us through this. Mars is trining a recently retrograde Chiron, and the Sun is trining Neptune. With Chiron in Aries - we act self-sufficiently/stand up for ourselves in a healthy way - we heal through independent action, through courage. With the Sun (in Cancer) trining Neptune - we act with compassion, we pray for answers, we meditate for a peaceful solution. We bring our highest self to the situation - ask your guides/angels/ancestors for help!

On SUNDAY, the Sun opposes Pluto. The Sun is in Cancer, but the Sun is the ruler of Leo and our ego. So here again we have a power struggle to shine our light/to be seen. Maybe something dealing with that home/family situation. Maybe career related.

Pluto's job here is to clear the way for our solar energy (inner radiance) to emerge without letting our short-sighted ego try to run the whole show, so it could bring us a battle of wills. Powerful authorities and uncompromising situations that put us in our place. A crisis of our self-esteem. Changes might be forced upon us now. This is really a self-destructive aspect, because we are projecting our shadow onto someone else, but we might not be able to see this!

This aspect can also bring tremendous focus and extreme experiences. Secrets can be exposed.

Remember this week is leading us to a big Full Moon Lunar Eclipse in Capricorn next week conjunct Pluto.

Hang on loosely everyone!

Back with the dailies and we will flesh this complicated week out as we move along and add in the Moons! Get some extra rest this week - I think we will need it.

xo all

photo by the amazing anyaanti

New Moon Solar Eclipse in Cancer | July 2, 2019 - new opportunities for home and family, putting down roots, growing where we are planted, moving toward something more authentic, a new focus, a magical escape, the fly in the ointment is the unfinished business that can't be ignored, the dust won't settle until 2020

On Tuesday, July 2nd at 9:31AM EDT the Cancer Moon meets the Cancer Sun giving us this month's New Moon - happening conjunct the Moon's North Node makes this a New Moon Solar Eclipse. 

Let's unpack the chart!

The aspects are mostly wide - sextile to Uranus, squares to Chiron and Pallas, a trine to Neptune, an opposition to Saturn and then there is an almost exact sextile to Vesta (in Taurus). We also have (you can't see it in this chart because the South Node isn't shown) a retrograde Saturn sitting on the South Node and opposing the North Node!

This is the first total solar eclipse since the Great American Eclipse of August 2017 - the Moon blocks the Sun and the flow of energy to planet Earth is interrupted - focusing our attention on that point. We get a cosmic reset, much like a computer being turned off and back on and the program that uploads at restart is a little bit (or quite a lot) different than the one we ran on before.

Eclipses change us, and we, (vibrating differently), change our circumstances by attracting or repelling what our new self lines up with.

Eclipse events don't often happen on the actual date of the Eclipse. One tricky thing with eclipse energy I have found from personal experience as well as other people's charts is they often work backward. The thing the eclipse is "eclipsing out" or "bringing to light" can happen days or weeks before the physical Sun is overtaken by the Moon. Often almost exactly one week or one month before (or after). Then they play out over several months.

Cancer New Moons - and this one is powered up by the Solar Eclipse - are about collective Cancer themes (so, this theme is applicable to all of us both individually and collectively and then the theme of our personal natal Cancer house will come into play, too).

Cancer rules home, family, our roots, mother, mothering, our ancestry, real estate, country, patriotism, home businesses, family businesses, the root of the matter - our emotional security - this is where we get the new beginning - the Eclipse energy makes this more potent!

With the Moon eclipsing the Sun, and opposing a retrograde Saturn conjunct the South Node(!) there is stuff from the past that still needs to be dealt with. A limit. A rule. Unfinished business. Maybe a commitment needs to end or a responsibility needs to be stepped into.

An ending/outcome - and this won't be a total surprise we already know this is coming - is going to play a big role in the (more intense) Full Moon Lunar Eclipse on July 16th.  

And the two things - the more gentle beginning and the harsher ending/reality check - will be connected even if we can't see the connection (although we probably will) - even if they look like two totally unrelated things. Releasing something in one area - and yes, it can be pulled away from us - creates a more extreme focus for that Cancer house. For some people this could be about work/life balance issues, career changes, family issues, family history issues, the shifting of parenting roles or relocation/renovation issues. Also keep in mind both Pluto and Saturn, the bigwigs bringing us the ending are retrograde, so will be back at 24 degrees Capricorn (the degree of the "ending" eclipse in the middle of July) - in the fall with Saturn and in 2020 with Pluto. This transformation is BIG.

Eclipses (similar to a super charged full moon) will eclipse something out or bring something to light or alternately cover it up and then the New Moon seeding will activate the promise of any slow moving transit currently present in our life.

So we have the Solar Eclipse of July 2nd at 10 degrees Cancer - we are growing where we are planted, putting down new roots, creating a space that feels like "home", new beginnings with family/with our flock, becoming more authentic by not being afraid to be "vulnerable" - when she has outgrown her shell, the crab either gets NAKED, while she grows a new one or she DIES, and there is plenty of energy in the collective that supports "dying", so do you really want to live or not? - by being more compassionate toward others, by seeing vulnerability as a strength and not a weakness, by becoming more secure at our very base (and this includes financial security) through our own efforts. Maybe a man/masculine energy leaves.

Then we have the Lunar Eclipse of July 16th at 24 degrees Capricorn - I am not going too deeply into this one, but it DOES impact the Eclipse we have this week. Something from the past dies. We either transform/clean up the mess or the tower falls. And I am not saying "or" as if we have a say in the matter. We probably don't. If the base is rotted the structure collapses. A job could end. A business could end. The theme of your natal Capricorn house - the theme that is in play through at least the beginning of 2020 in your life gets a major reshuffling. We are releasing the need for control, nationalism (there are no national solutions anymore there are only global solutions), releasing the hold those old hero stories have on us, releasing the old rules, the responsibilities/debts that have us stuck, releasing fear of lack, letting go of dependence AND independence, stop being a whiny baby, stop being a clingy mother, releasing our worship of work and public pats on the back (let's start by getting rid of these stupid like buttons that are training us like mice in a maze). The structures/leaders we have relied on or hoped for will fail us. Maybe a woman/feminine energy leaves.

Both of these Eclipses happen the day before Venus changes signs. We could have a change of heart. A financial change. Money changes hands. Our values shift. Our self-esteem gets re-booted rooted in a more authentic and self-sustaining reality. What we see as beautiful changes. What we are attracted to shifts. 

Mars will change signs within two days of each Eclipse also - so our actions change, what we do to get what we want shifts, the way we express passion/anger, what we are angry/passionate about - big shifts. 

These Eclipses truly are game-changers!

This week's Eclipse takes us back to summer/fall 2001 when major Cancer/Capricorn themes were in play in your life, too. What did you have going on then? You can likely see patterns and themes connected to what you have going on now.

The New Moon in Cancer is always powerful because the Moon rules Cancer. 

Factor in the North Node and we get a powerful and emotional new beginning aligned with our path forward. Saturn on the South Node will not let us forget about the past - that responsibility we still have to deal with, but there is something new here now.

The sextile (opportunity) to Vesta in Taurus will give us an instinctive ability to focus on what is most important/sacred and something NEW TO FOCUS ON! Taurus themes - our money, relationships, resources (including the planet), our values - will play a role and with Taurus ruler Venus moving into Cancer the day after the eclipse it will all pull us back into that Cancer primal need to be safe, to be nurtured, to be mothered and to mother (ourselves and others).  

The trine (brakes off) to mystical, magical Neptune speaks of cosmic blessings - prayer and meditation can help activate these energies - there can be an "ease" here, aid from behind the scenes, from our ancestors, from our past, an escape hatch if we need it.

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, family 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.

xo all