weekly astrology forecast | september 23rd to 29th, 2024 - the winds blow, the conversations flow, the idea-communication-information evolves, perspective is everything this week

the astrology of mercury retrograde | August 2024 - a need to rethink and rework the royal roots of our problems

the astrology of 2023 | part I - the inner planets - Mercury in 2023, reviewing, revising and remaking the physical structures of our lives, becoming more useful, grounded and stable

can the astrology of the idaho college student murders show what happened to Xana, Ethan, Kaylee and Madison and who did it | A monday night mystery

I used to do some crime solving (without any of the actual 'solving', of course) forensic astrology on this blog, but haven't posted anything here in a long time. I think knowing the South Node is hovering over my ascendant I haven't wanted to tumble too deeply down any non-necessary rabbit-holes, although I have continued doing charts for a Facebook cold case group from time to time. I looked at these charts for them recently and thought I would post about this case here this time, too, for any readers who might be interested. 

 

This is far from a cold case and in fact the chart is fairly clear this one will be solved. 

Hopefully soon. 

Let's take a look at the charts.

 

On November 13, 2022 sometime between 3AM and 4AM in Moscow, Idaho, three young, beautiful college women and one of their boyfriends were brutally murdered, maybe while they slept, in an off-campus house near the University of Idaho. Prior to the murders, two of the four victims, Xana and her boyfriend Ethan, had attended a frat party and the other two victims, Madison and Kaylee, had been at a local bar. 

 

We have three crime charts to examine. 

The first chart is for the time the police believe the murders occurred, the second chart is the last seen chart - the time two of the women are filmed at a local food truck buying food to bring home after their night out and the third chart is for the time the police are called the next day when the two remaining roommates (who slept on a different floor) woke and the police were called. Then, since we have the birth dates of the four students who were killed (no times are available so we will look at the charts without houses) we will look at their natal charts, too. 

 

This event is uber Gemini energy. The extreme edge of this energy. 

 

Gemini is the sign of duality/twins and is ruled by trickster/magician Mercury. Mars - the planet of war, violence, young men, passion, impulsivity - has been moving back and forth through Gemini since August. At the time of the murders Mars had made his first pass through Gemini and was retrograding backwards. He was out-of-the-bounds of the Sun - not playing by the normal rules - the War God not answering to the king/authority, and historically there are some pretty dramatic examples of violence when Mars has been out-of-bounds (not to mention retrograde). The combination of violent Mars and trickster Mercury can also be said to have a tragic (at times) reputation and in this chart they are in mutual reception, so strengthening and helping each other.

 

Two of the victims, Madison and Kaylee, are best friends since grade school. They are both Geminis with Gemini stelliums,  and were born within a few days of each other. Gemini is the energy of duality - the twins. The girls look very much alike, almost like twins. They both also have, one an EXACT, and one a nearly exact Chiron/Mars conjunction in Sagittarius - very near/on the Galactic Center with Pluto also in Sagittarius (Gemini's polarity sign). Chiron (wound), Mars (young masculine energy, passion, anger) in Sagittarius (college). They also both have 24 degree retrograde Aquarius Uranus placements, which were exactly trining (brakes off) Mars (male violence, weapons) at the time of the murders. There is also something in their charts that could speak of EXACTLY who is responsible, and we will look at this later, too. 

 

The other two victims are a romantic couple. Ethan, the boyfriend who was visiting the house and didn't live there, was a triplet. Both Ethan and his girlfriend Xana (one of the room-mates) have multiple Gemini placements and Uranus on/conjunct the same 24 degrees Aquarius - like the other two victims. Ethan was a Scorpio (the Sun during the murder), Xana was a Cancer (the Moon during the murder). The Cancer Moon had trined the Scorpio Sun some hours before and we were still in the energy of this fall's gnarly/dangerous Eclipses in Scorpio and Taurus. Both Ethan and Xana have mid-degree Pluto in Sag placements and North Nodes (of fate) in Gemini. Of course, many of the students at this college, born during the same time frame, would have some of these placements (and, have been affected, too, in a more peripheral way), but we will see when we get to the crime charts and these particular students' natal charts how the volatile energy of that out of bounds retrograde Mars in Gemini in mutual reception with Mercury in Scorpio was greatly amplified with all these people together at the same time and in the same place. All the trickster Gemini, the volatile Mars on a triggered degree, all the retrograde energy, all their natal Uranus placements - chaos/trauma - trining that dangerous Mars with transiting Uranus conjunct the North Node of Fate and a yod/Finger of God at play and pointed at Mars - it's all rather unbelievable.

We are going to start with the crime chart and work our way backward and forward.

I have set the time for this chart at 3:30AM. This is unlikely to be exact, but we will quickly see the chart is radical (able to be used) and is close enough. 

Remember this is November 13, 2022. A late, late Saturday night. The Sun is in dark Scorpio, the Moon is in her home sign of Cancer and has just trined (brakes off) Venus, (this was preceded by an opposition to Pluto). The Sun in Scorpio is answering to both Pluto and a retrograde and out-of-bounds Mars in Gemini. Note in the chart we have a fated Finger of God formation pointing to Mars from Pluto and that pileup in Scorpio. We had just been through Eclipse season and all that energy is still strong, especially the 16 degree Taurus Lunar Eclipse (Uranus is still on this degree) conjunct the North Node. So, at the time of the murders Uranus is still retrograde - so old stories of chaos/trauma that we carry in our charts/DNA - on the Lunar Eclipse degree. Lunar Eclipses are often energies that speak of women leaving.

Libra rules the ascendant (first house) of the murder chart - this shows the victims, so they are ruled by Venus in Scorpio answering to Mars and Pluto. If you look at the Sun, Mercury and Venus in Scorpio it is hard not to think of the victims. Even though this is an unconventional way to view this chart and nothing in a chart is EVER only one thing, one of the things I am seeing here is - the Sun (Ethan), Mercury (the two girls who look alike, Kaylee and Madison) and Venus (Xana, all the feminine energy). Venus as the victim energy shows women/feminine energy/beauty, In Scorpio, maybe something about what we can't have, jealousy, vengeance, obsession. There could also be connections to money and resources. The ruler of the first in the second might speak of the victims being in the possession of the perpetrator, maybe he even takes something of their or hers with him. The ruler of Libra, Venus, is in her detriment (weak) in Scorpio and answering to Mars - the perpetrator. Since Scorpio rules things hidden it might indicate the victims are asleep/maybe not totally sober, maybe he is hiding or hidden, somehow they don't see this coming. Venusian injuries include injuries to the neck and top of chest. A typical Libra look (in general obviously) is feminine, delicate, round and fair face, cheerful, red lipped, nice looking. Scorpio would make this all a little more lustful/sexy.

The Moon is also a significator and will also represent the victims. The Moon looks strong in her home sign of Cancer, but is on the MC (top/public part) of the chart, so as far from her home in the 4th house as she can get. The Moon here is also showing the public attention this event and the victims in particular will garner. The Moon is sextiling (creating an opportunity if action is taken) chaotic/traumatic Uranus and also the North Node of Fate. Her final aspect in Cancer, and so the way actions taken during her time in Cancer will kind of turn out, will be a couple days later when she goes void off a trine (brakes off) to a retrograde Jupiter - making things BIGGER.

Pluto (death) and Saturn (endings, death) are both in the 4th house of home. Uranus (chaos, trauma) in the 8th house of death. 

The descendant shows the perpetrator. The kind of 'open energy' of that person.

 

Here we have Aries, so the perpetrator's significator is the ruler of Aries - Mars, in the 9th house in Gemini. Mars is retrograde and out-of-bounds (out of the control of the Sun/authority/normal functioning/the rules). We also see Chiron retrograde almost exactly conjunct the DC. This speaks of a Chironic killer - someone with a strong Chiron or someone connected to a Chironic story (adoption, medical doctors, maybe strong Virgo or Sagittarius, feeling unaccepted/turned away, mother issues). Maybe this shows the killer was wounded in the attack. Maybe this shows he is a 'wound collector' type of person, harboring grudges and resentments. He is almost certainly operating from very old, very deep wounds. Typical Aries 'looks' (in general) are people who walk fast with head leaning slightly forward/walk might be distinctive. Light hair. Reasonably tall. They might be prone to headaches or sinus or vision problems. There is a youthful charm about them or they are youthful. They are fast, quick to anger and bore easily. They have an athletic build. With the Aries DC (perpetrator) squaring the Moon in Cancer we could also be seeing dangerous/angry tension with his mother, likely a powerful mother with the Moon at the top of the chart.

Mars in Gemini is most likely a young male. Maybe he is a student. Maybe he works with cars or in some type of local commercial establishment. He is probably angry. He is probably isolated. Mars in Gemini could indicate two perpetrators or multiple perpetrators, but remember Mars is retrograde and out of bounds, answering to trickster Mercury, and the sign on the DC is actually independent Aries, so I don't really think so (it is possible though). I think this is more likely to be one person who is like two people somehow or there could be another person involved in a peripheral way. Maybe saying something that sets him off or that he takes as a "sign" it is time to act. Someone could say something that stirs him on and not even realize it. In the food truck video chart which happens before the murders, the perpetrator is Neptune/Jupiter so quite delusional. Mars is in the 9th house/Sag's house, so maybe the perpetrator is in college, too, (or was, with the retrograde) or maybe this is showing he puts some distance between himself and the crimes afterward, goes back somewhere he has been before. Mars also shows the use of a knife/weapon (in Gemini, so maybe it was kept in a car) and likely says something about the speed of the attack. Things happened fast. 

Mars (the perpetrator) forms a Yod/Finger of God with the Scorpio planets (the victims) and Pluto (death in the 4th house of home). This is very powerful. I would never call something as horrible as this fated, but something like fate is playing out. 

 

With Mars retrograde, there is some kind of repeating nature to this. I think this is almost certainly past life connected and is also showing the perpetrator likely thought about this before doing it. It might have been impulsively acted out that night, but he had thought it through before. Maybe there is a connection with what happens this night to when Mars was direct at 24 degrees Gemini - which would have been back on August 11, 2022. I wonder when school started and what everyone was doing back around this date, especially the killer. I think the young Aries energy shows he hasn't murdered people before in this life, but the retro and Gemini show he may have done something similar in this life, maybe connected to an animal. He could be a hunter, which I guess might be common in Idaho. With Mars ruling weapons, he is likely familiar with the weapon he used, it isn't something he just stole and used for the first time that night. Mars in Aries on the DC could also show the crime was fast. The retrograde and out-of-bounds nature could make sexual Mars impotent. 

So we have a Venus vs Mars, victim/perpetrator story-line. When Venus and Mars are at odds in murder charts, they often speak of relationship murders. Victims and perpetrators who know each other - and the inconjunct between Venus and Mars supports this. In Vettius Valens book, "Anthologies, Book I" (an astrologer who lived in ancient Eqypt in the second century), he said, "when Venus and Mars are at odds they make men weak of mind and unsteady, they cause rivalry and murder and men to be wronged by women or to believe they have been".

 

Twenty four degrees Gemini (Mars position at the time of the murder) is the degree of fixed star Al Hecka. Al Hecka is the bright blue star at the tip of the southern horn of the Taurus bull (stabbing). Al Hecka has the nature of Mars and is said to speak of male violence. In Arabic it comes from the word 'hakka', meaning 'to gore'. In Hebrew the words 'hakhah" is a fishing hook and also means 'to wait', and is, of course, similar to the English word hook. Fishing requires patience as well as angling with a hook, so we see the infamous Taurus patience followed by something like an explosion of horned anger. I found this degree prominent in the charts of multiple college murders and murderers. Twenty four degrees Gemini is conjunct Ted Bundy's Uranus (chaos, trauma) and conjunct Jupiter at the time of his college spree murder in Florida, Danny Rollins' Mercury, Edmund Kemper's Uranus and exact on Marc Lepine's North Node of Fate. This doesn't mean this killer is a serial killer, but speaks of the dangers of the energies at play that night - what the energies are holding, something like a powder keg waiting for a match. This degree is also prominent in the victims' of the Idaho murders natal charts - conjunct Ethan's Saturn and EXACTLY trining his natal Mercury, the mid-point of Madison's Jupiter/Mercury, in the midst of Kaylee's Sun/Jupiter/Mercury and EXACTLY opposing her natal Mars and EXACTLY trining her Part of Fortune (in Mars ruled Aries) and is the midpoint of Xana's Mercury/Saturn and conjunct her North Node of Fate. This is most likely a prominent degree in the murderer's natal or progressed chart, too. 

Uranus and the North Node of Fate are conjunct in the 8th house of death. They are opposing the victims in Scorpio and sextiling the Moon - another significator for the victims. Mars, a stand-in for the perpetrator, is inconjunct Black Moon Lilith and Pallas in Cancer EXACT - the womb wound plus strategic mother and sextiling EXACT, Eris in Aries - chaos/disorder/the discontent that stirs change/often trouble. 

 

What one bad apple can do.

 

The good news - the 4th house cusp (the end of the matter) is in Capricorn, the natural sign of authority and answering to a strong Saturn in Aquarius and also conjunct the murder charts' "Part of Fortune" another significator for the 'final outcome'. Both are good indicators the perpetrator is going to be caught and the case solved. Saturn rules time, requires patience. Aquarius rules technology, the internet, groups of people, friendships - maybe something in here is where the answers will be found (also astrology I should add). The 4th house is Cancer's natural house/holds things close to the vest. The authorities would not be telling the public everything they know. 

If we back up to the food truck - keep in mind, this is BEFORE the murders, the rising sign is Virgo, pretty much exactly squaring that Mars. Virgo is ruled by Mercury (the victims here), so the victims are still those Scorpio planets, but now they are in the third house - out and about in the local community, maybe focused on things like food trucks and transportation issues (Mercury rules such things). Unlike the murder chart they are not in the perpetrator's 'possession' here, and I don't think he is in the house at this point. Mercury is blown out by the Sun, so the victims are not strong in this chart either. The perpetrator in the food truck video chart is found through Pisces and both Jupiter (ancient ruler of Pisces) and Neptune (modern ruler) are in Pisces, so the perpetrator IS strong. Notice how Neptune (the perpetrator) is just below the DC, just a hair's breadth away, like a stalker in the background. Someone right behind them. This might also speak of him stalking one or both of the women in their daily life - that 6th house. The Pisces is showing he isn't thinking straight. He is drunk/drugged/mentally ill. Notice at the time the victims are 'last seen' (the food truck video), Mars from the murder chart (the perpetrator) is at the top of the chart, so he is out in public, too (or maybe at work). The Moon (the other significator for the victims) is EXACTLY trining Uranus retrograde here - chaos/trauma happening in the future with its feet in the past. Could any of what happens later be stopped at this point? Is something happening RIGHT NOW, in this video/or at the time of this video, that is tipping this story in a certain direction? 

This chart makes me think the perpetrator goes to the house with some delusional ideas, maybe about how he can get a specific woman to see him/love him. And he brings the knife with him, some part of him thinking he might need it if things go wrong and some deeper part, because this is a very old story he is repeating and there is that stellium in deadly Scorpio answering to the Mars he will become, with even darker thoughts about what that knife might be used for. But then the one woman becomes two women and then the murders get repeated again when he goes down to leave and is possibly confronted. Or something like this. Because everything is about that retrograde Mars in Gemini and is repeating/doubling.

If we move ahead to the day after the murders to the chart for the time when the police are called, we have Pluto on the ascendant and in the 12th house of the past - a call about a death that has already happened comes in to authority (that first house Saturn), Uranus/North Node in the 3rd house of community speaks of the chaos/trauma that will spread through the community as news of this event becomes known. The Aqua ascendant could be showing a more detached/peripheral/logical 'friend' who is making the call as well as the public waking up to the event/to what has just dawned on them. The Scorpio victims are now in the 9th house, and to me, this speaks of their having 'moved on' from the 8th house of death. Sagittarius naturally rules the 9th house of those greener fields/God/heaven. The Mars perpetrator from the murder chart is now in the 5th house. This might be showing him in a bar/watching a sporting event or doing something recreational, I am unsure. I would think at this point he would be terrified he is about to be caught, but this is the Sun's house of ego, so I am not sure. The chart has a Grand Water Trine between the victims, the delusional or mentally ill or drunk/drugged perpetrator from the last seen chart and the Moon still in Cancer. This makes me wonder if his mother has been pulled into the story. The Moon is trining the Sun, so maybe both parents are. Is mom protecting him? Is he lying to her/is she lying for him - that trine to Neptune? The chart's rising is 1 degree Aquarius, so is considered "too early to judge", so we won't spend alot of time on it, its accuracy isn't guaranteed, but since it is an auxiliary chart to the murder chart, we have looked at it.

When I am posting this, almost a month after the murders, the murderer hasn't been arrested. 

 

I think based on the strong authority right at home in the murder chart they should have a pretty good idea of who did this. That Cappy 4th house will be practical/make a strong case. The police could be watching their suspect or suspects, getting their ducks in a row. With Saturn in futuristic Aquarius, maybe they are waiting on DNA evidence to come back. On March 13, 2023, Mars will have returned to 24 degrees Gemini and the Sun (illumination) will be on the Neptune of the murder chart - hopefully he will be caught long before this time, but maybe this is when he is sentenced or something is wrapped up with authorities.

There are so many 'Gemini' connections to this crime. 

 

That explosive Mars retrograde in Gemini strengthened through his mutual reception with Gemini ruler Mercury in Scorpio. The victims interacting natal Uranus (all retrograde except for Madison) placements. The two Gemini best friends who look so much alike. The one victim a triplet. All the victims duplicating natal planetary placements and extremely potent natal connections with the transits that dangerous night. The crimes committed on two floors. Two people murdered on each floor. Two room-mates on the first floor who survived. Kaylee, just about or having just graduated and about to move on, returned to the house to show her friends her new car (cars very much Gemini energy), so the car being the reason she comes back to the house that weekend. Then the food truck video - both the truck and video very Gemini, maybe a key to this whole thing. Kaylee in the food truck video likely texting for a ride home/Uber. Lots of vehicle stuff which might sound trivial, but Gemini is the sign of the trivial being not so trivial, so something to think about.

 

There is also another Gemini - the sign of two is better than one - connection to this case. There are two guys named Jack. There is an ex boy-friend named Jack who two of the girls tried to communicate with when they got home via phone/text (and the chart is showing a relationship between the killer and victim, Venus/Mars style) and there is a hovering hoodie-guy in the food truck video named Jack, who told someone he was making sure the girls got home safely that night (more transportation/Gemini stuff that looks trivial but maybe isn't), just before they left the food truck in an Uber/car ride without him. 

So, with the Gemini focus, I thought about tossing a Jack asteroid into the murder chart, but there are just too many Jack asteroids and none just named "Jack", so I scratched that. An ex feels like a logical suspect with the retrograde planets and Venus/Mars significators, but this "ex" thing could be all in the killer's head, it is hard to know.

 

The last name of one of the Jacks does have a named asteroid though and it is a VERY unique name. 

I am not going to print out this guy's name here because this certainly isn't any kind of evidence and please don't take it as such. Mercury is magician/trickster energy and even stronger than Mars here, the whole two Jacks thing can be a total red herring. Whether this is 'just the facts jack' or something 'I don't know jack about', well, who knows. It is asteroid 18499 and it is quite uniquely named and this fellow's exact ten letter last name. Astrology sleuths out there familiar with the case might find this interesting. 

Because when we put asteroid 18499 into the murder chart it shows up in the 7th house. The perpetrator's house - in Aries and answering to that out-of-bounds and retrograde Mars. 

 

AND when we put that asteroid into the victims' natal charts it is again very interesting. Especially one chart where asteroid 18499, the uniquely named asteroid of one of our Jacks - is EXACTLY conjunct her North Node of Fate (in Cancer and answering to her Moon which the asteroid is also conjunct, the Moon was also in Cancer the night of the murders).

 

I have read both Jacks have been cleared, so we will have to wait and see what the police come up with. We will revisit this when someone is arrested if we can get a birthdate. The chart is clear the case will be solved.

xo all

Mercury retrograde | Sept 9th to Oct 2nd - galactic messages, mining for old gold, taking our ideas back to the drawing board and our relationships back to basics, re-balancing acts and second chances

 

 

At 11:38PM on Friday, September 9, 2022, Mercury stations retrograde at 8 degrees Libra. 

Mercury goes retrograde (from our point of view here on Earth) three, and sometimes four, times a year. He is retrograde (moving backward) for about three weeks and then stations direct and starts moving forward. 

 

Mercury/think Hermes here - is "the Messenger", the "Trickster", the "Cosmic Magician". He rules the signs of Gemini and Virgo. Collectively this is our - words, communication, siblings, early childhood education, our local community, commerce, tech devices, transportation, our daily life, our service, our health, our work - our collective 3rd and 6th houses. Mercury retrograde periods are times to slow down/to look within. Anything started with "re" becomes the most effective use of our time. Re-thinking, re-evaluating, re-flecting, re-peating, re-unions, re-novations, etc. 

 

Mercury retrogrades are re-curring opportunities to shift out of old mental patterns. We are often asked to pull back from the world and face our shadow self in some way. When we’ve exhausted the possibilities for what we can gain by projecting our shadow self onto the external events and people in our lives, we are ready to face them within our own mind (and heart).

 

On a practical level we see things that were concealed when Mercury was in direct motion. Maybe because we were going too fast to notice them or maybe we took a wrong turn two miles back and need to change direction. Maybe there is a road out up ahead that we don't know about yet. These retrograde periods are always useful/always needed even when we appear to incur delays, re-dos and roadblocks. 

 

Mercury moved into his retrograde shadow degrees back on August 22, 2022 (this was also the day the Sun entered Virgo). That's when he reached 24 degrees Virgo, the degree he will station direct on October 2nd. He leaves his shadow, reaches the degree he/she will station retrograde (8 degrees Libra) on October 17th and then he (as we), having re-ceived all the necessary information/learning from this re-tro period, will move on and will start covering new ground. So, the entire cycle is from August 22 - October 17, but he is retrograde from September 9 - October 2.

Mercury's retrograde starts in Libra then moves back into Virgo. 

 

Collectively we are re-looking at our relationships, in particular our partnerships and our need for balance, fairness and peace. Then we move back into Virgo (September 23rd). Air to earth. The re-looking, re-viewing, re-evaluating, re-novating, etc - continues, but now we are dealing with more solid things. Separating the wheat from the chaff. Our words are given form. It is particularly important what we are saying/thinking/hearing - ABSORBING now. Mercury is back in his home sign of Virgo, so we are fixing, making things better.

 

During Mercury's retrograde he/she will be in multiple conversations with Venus, multiple trines with Pluto and multiple oppositions with Jupiter. He has mutual reception with Venus almost the entire time and winds up back in his home sign - a comfortable space he rules. We really couldn't ask for much better. The Venusian contacts and the fact Mercury starts this retro in Venus's sign Libra, pulls in our relationships, our money, resources, our values, our self-esteem, women and beauty. The trines to powerful Pluto give us MULTIPLE opportunities for empowerment, to speak our truth, to notice TRUTH. The oppositions to Jupiter indicate multiple opportunities to MINE FOR OLD GOLD. We will talk about all this over the next few weeks as we move through the energies of the retrograde period.

A couple things to keep in mind -  Mars is in Gemini for the long haul (through March 2023), so he is answering to Mercury. We are already doing things twice or doing two things at once. Mercury retrograde is going to complicate this. We are going to need to be smart, at exactly the time 'being smart' will be especially tricky.

Also, Mercury in Libra is answering to Venus in Virgo. So, we have this mutual reception thing going on with each planet in the other planet's sign. This will last for almost the entire retrograde and is VERY GOOD NEWS. Mercury can get back to Virgo (his sign) through Venus/Libra. And Venus can get back to Libra (her sign) through Mercury/Virgo. This is better news for Mercury than Venus, since she has to go through a retrograde planet (meaning our relationships/money/values/self-esteem/women - the Venusian stuff - needs to go backward to go forward). For Mercury this means that Venusian tactics get him back to Virgo. This means cooperation, being social, being fair, being kind and diplomatic. With Mars in Gemini, this will not always be such an easy thing because we are also charged with standing up for ourselves/being ourselves/being brave through our language.

 

Here are the pertinent dates:

 

AUGUST 22 - Mercury hits 24 Virgo and starts walking degrees he/she (through us) will walk two more times

SEPTEMBER 2 - Mercury (still direct) opposes Jupiter retrograde

SEPTEMBER 9 - Mercury stations retrograde

SEPTEMBER 12 - Mercury retrograde semi-sextiles Venus

SEPTEMBER 18 - Mercury retrograde opposes Jupiter retrograde

SEPTEMBER 23 - Sun meets Mercury retrograde - mid-point of cycle - ILLUMINATION, here is what the Mercury retrograde has been about for us - this happens at 0 degrees Libra, an Aries point, our collective attention will be on SOMETHING, then Mercury retrogrades back into Virgo, his home sign. Mark this day.

SEPTEMBER 26 - Mercury retrograde meets Venus (26 Virgo)

SEPTEMBER 27 - Mercury retrograde trines Pluto retrograde

OCTOBER 2 - Mercury stations direct at 24 Virgo

OCTOBER 6 - Mercury trines Pluto retrograde (Pluto will station direct 2 days later, is very strong and still here)

OCTOBER 12 - Mercury opposes Jupiter retrograde for the final time, so this will connect to September 2nd and September 18th

Now, besides connecting to the collective energy/the ways we respond TOGETHER, we each have our personal Mercury energy in our natal and progressed charts and the houses he rules within us that are impacted through transiting Mercury. Your natal Gemini and Virgo houses and their themes are affected when Mercury changes sign and direction by transit AND the houses he touches by transit. So, here we are talking about your natal (and progressed) Libra, Virgo and Gemini houses - and we have Mars in your Gemini house and Venus in your Virgo house, and the Sun will move from Virgo to Libra during the retrograde, so this is an action packed area that will be prone to to busyness, delays, repeating patterns, etc.

When Mercury stations on Friday night he/she (Mercury is very androgynous energy, but I will mostly use the pronoun he here) will be tightly sandwiched between dwarf planet Makemake and asteroid Logos. 

Logos is an ancient Greek philosophical term meaning "the Word". "In the beginning was the word" and the way we think about and describe our world is a powerful aspect of our creativity.  The concept of Logos itself could be considered a drive towards rationality (as the Greeks used it), or a connection with the sacred nature of things. We can expect powerful new insights at all levels from personal to collective during this retrograde.

 

Makemake is one of the group of Trans-Neptunian objects (because they orbit beyond Neptune), that include Pluto, Eris, Haumea, etc. The influence of these planets comes from deep space and moves into our more human realm at certain times. They are galactic messengers -weaving our human-story into a story much bigger than we are accustomed to working with. 

 

Makemake was named for the Creator God of a small isolated volcanic island in the Pacific Ocean known as Rapa Nui or Easter Island. Astrologer, Philip Sedgwick, believes the position of Rapa Nui bears a direct relationship to the Galactic Centre. It is difficult to know Makemake's story because so much of the oral tradition of the islanders has been lost, but the islanders, as part of the 'bird-man' cult, would swim out to an islet each year through dangerous open sea to collect eggs. Maybe this annual ritual was designed to ensure that the strongest and bravest warrior was chosen each year to be a sort of chiefly figure, someone the islanders could trust to provide for them, to bring them continued fertility for example.  The symbolism of the 'egg' is significant, given that the island was originally named Easter Island by the Europeans who arrived there on Easter Sunday in 1722. The planet Makemake was also discovered on Easter Sunday, March 31, 2005, and astronomers temporarily named Makemake “The Easter Bunny”. 

 

How this connects to this Mercury retrograde period I will leave up to you to ponder/discover for yourself, but some things to consider might be that Easter Island is another historical example of  European conquest - the devastation of the native people and resources, enslavement, smallpox was introduced here purposefully with devastating consequences. We might see how this connects to current collective events by considering the underlying power mechanics of slave labor (including the current zeitgeist's 'quiet quitting' movement), viral epidemics, wise/unwise use of the earth’s resources, the loss of spirituality and Goddess energy, and the loss of local culture and a sustainable local food supply. It might seem we are re-living Rapa Nui’s/Easter Island's destruction on a global level. Hopefully Makemake and Logos connection with Mercury as he/she backs up speaks of smart AND practical solutions to collective problems. This will connect to our personal lives and circumstances, too. 

 

Keep in mind our North Node - collective way forward - is still in Taurus, so answering to Venus in Virgo, who is answering to this retrograde Mercury. The way forward/through is BACK. Our words are our fortune and our voice MATTERS. When we speak, we are casting S-P-E-L-L-S and during Mercury's - the God of language - retrograde it is especially important to pay attention to this.

 

Try not to be discouraged/annoyed at the repeating energies, delays and re-dos. This is all happening as it should be and in its own time. Slow down and double check things. Don't take on too much! Re-turn to the things, people and places that brought you comfort or that need fixing. We are moving from air to earth. Taking our ideas back to the drawing board. Our relationships back to the basics. This isn't really a problem, even when actual problems are presented, but part of the complicated process called "life on planet Earth".

 

As always, I hope something here is helpful. 

Back with the BIG Full Moon in Pisces post!

xo all

I am always listening to podcasts while I make and would recommend for this retrograde period anything brain/speech related by Andrew Huberman and also, and probably most especially this conversation as podcaster Aubrey Marcus interviews the amazing and brilliant Laurel Airica.

 

 

photography by the talented sara-with-a-gun

the astrology of Mercury's retrograde thru Aquarius and Cappy | january 14th thru february 3rd, 2022 - the change/chaos that changes the future, everything that needs to happen before the cement gets poured

 

Mercury, stations retrograde on January 14th, 2022 at 10 degrees Aquarius. 

 

He/she, as we, (is it confusing when I say this, I can't stop myself!) will get all the way back to 24 degrees Capricorn on February 3rd, before turning around again and re-walking/re-working those same degrees - 24 Cappy through 10 degrees Aqua - until February 24th when he will start covering new ground. 

Mercury originally reached 24 Cappy the first time through on December 29th. 

 

So the entire cycle of back and forth encapsulates December 29th, 2021 thru February 24th, 2022, but the actual retrograde, which most people will feel strongest is January 10th, 2022 through February 3rd, 2022. People with planets/points between 24 Cappy and 10 Aqua will feel this retrograde strongest as well as Virgo and Gemini risings (Mercury being your ruling planet) who are always more subject to Mercury's machinations. Pluto spent alot of time on 24 Cappy last year, so people with planets/points THERE may especially have something breaking loose now. 24 Cappy opposes the United States natal Mercury at 24 Cancer.

So .. Mercury is in Aquarius. Mercury likes being in Aquarius which is the higher octave of Gemini (his sign). He is connected to hive-mind, buzzing along. Taking his "little of this, little of that" Gemini mental gymnastics to a whole new level. He is approaching Saturn (reality) when he is made to stop and turn around. Another look is needed. Another conversation. New information. We missed something.

The "i's" are not dotted (and no, even though Venus is in here, too, hearts don't count). Maybe there is a "t" left uncrossed, somewhere back in chapter seven. Everything is not the way he/we thought it was. The truth shifts. Our reality shifts.

We have to re-think this! 

 

There is alot of non-sense out there about Mercury Retrogrades, and, of course, some people who would just disregard them entirely. I remember when most people had never heard of Mercury Retrograde and now it seems like poor Mercury (planet of communication and MAGIC) is being shamed/blamed for everything that goes wrong.

This is probably because - 1. the internet has exposed many more people to astrological teachings 2. most people are moving so fast now that any sort of slowdown feels like a problem  3. it's a convenient excuse when stuff falls to sh*t (pardon my french), especially stuff that would normally be considered our fault.

The truth is, although we don't want to spend too much time looking backward, we can't full steam ahead through life either.

 

Mercury goes retrograde, as viewed from our position here on Earth, three times a year (sometimes four). Mercury/think Hermes here - is "the Messenger", the "Trickster", the Cosmic Magician. Mercury retrograde periods are great times to figure out things that may be concealed when Mercury is in direct motion. Maybe because we are going too fast to notice them or maybe we took a wrong turn two miles back and need to change direction. Maybe there is a road out up ahead that we don't know about.

 

Sometimes when Mercury is retrograde, and this might be particularly relevant with this one since it starts in an air sign - we want to be proactive, but aren't able to decide. We second guess. Feel ambivalent. This is especially noticeable as Mercury slows down like he has now. He hasn't stationed to turn just yet, but some, likely ancient, part of us, senses this is coming. We pull up short. Or maybe we magnetize something to us that interrupts what we've been doing or we draw the past - the stuff with the dangling loose ends that might trip us up later if not attended to now - into the present to be dealt with.

Mercury retrogrades are a GREAT time to take another/new look at information. To have conversations that we've had before, but to say things in new ways. To STOP ourselves from saying the same old things. To STOP ourselves from looking at/absorbing the same old information. To STOP ourselves from having the same old thoughts. To REDIRECT our attention. Often, we won't have to make conscious decisions to do this kind of stuff, things come up that pull our attention/intentions in new directions.

 

Here in New Jersey, everyone is sick, was sick, or is probably about to be sick. Tests are awol, testing centers fully booked. Everyone is kind of guessing about their state of contagion. 

 

This retrograde starting in Aquarius - the sign of the shot/the mandates - and going back into Cappy - the sign of Wuhan/Pandora "time runs out" during the time of omicron (Venus retro) will have all of this being re-thought, re-analyzed, re-lived (Mercury rules Virgo as well as Gemini and his retro takes us from air to earth) over the next few weeks. 

 

No doubt after Mercury stations direct on February 3rd and has some time to get up to speed we will have alot more information. The information will no doubt still be polarizing because we live in a 3D reality that grows through polarity - that's how this thing works. Still, we will know more than we know now, even though we will still all be looking at different things/knowing different things. That's OK. That's how this whole 'life on planet Earth' is supposed to work. 

We have all lived through dozens of Mercury retrogrades. We are offered the chance, again and again, to learn to use these periods WISELY. Mercury is a trickster energy though - things can kind of sneak in on us, maybe so we can more consciously decide what to do with them than we did the first time through. Everything doesn't come back around because we need to hold onto it/see it as something important. But sometimes we get useful information/situations that we can use later. Things turn around that we wish hadn't, but can later see how this turnaround/delay or stop, was beneficial.

Often the best way through a dicey Mercury retrograde - and any retrograde that takes us through two different signs looks dicey to me - is to give our attention to what comes to our attention and/or what has been previously neglected to free our hands up to get to something new when the retro period ends.

Let's unpack the chart for this particular Mercury retrograde:

 

The way something starts is always a good harbinger of what is going to play out and this retrograde starts with Mercury applying to his Saturn conjunction - so we are approaching something serious and need to re-think/re-vise before we get THERE.  

 

Mercury is in an EXACT square to Uranus. We know we have had Saturn in an exact square to Uranus three times in 2021. Now, Mercury stations just as he reaches his/her (our) square. And Uranus is the modern ruler of Aquarius - so Mercury is answering to him. 

 

Squares bring tension/frustration. Mercury has replaced Saturn in the Saturn/Uranus square of last year, so maybe news is upsetting, disruptive or controversial. Whatever happens it is intended for our thinking to change, we will NOT be able to stick with an out-of-date point of view.

 

Before our thinking/situation meets Saturn (reality/the cement), it has to CHANGE (Uranus). And we know we are going to be back here again after Mercury stations direct, so the change is subject to change!

We get the first Mercury square Uranus on January 14th - a change of direction/thinking and then Mercury will be back on this degree on February 24th, but Uranus will have moved on to 11 degrees Taurus. 

The next day, Mercury will reach 11 degrees Aquarius (February 25th) and square Uranus for the second time - the change changes.

Keep in mind exact dates are tricky with this stuff.

 

Just know whatever changes is subject to more change. This DOES NOT bring us back to where we started because Uranus has since stationed direct and moved on. The first change has changed us AND the future.

 

Another thing in play during this retrograde is Mercury's sextile to Chiron. You might remember it was Saturn's recurring sextiles to Chiron that brought in the healing energies in 2021. So again, Mercury is replacing Saturn. Bringing new ideas/new thinking/new information to HEALING. This aspect is going to repeat on February 24th, too, and this is also the day Venus makes her second sextile to Neptune.

With Mercury, (from Aquarius) replacing Saturn as he/she (we) move through 2021's BIG Uranus squares and Chiron sextiles - we will be bringing the collective hive-mind, new information/conversations/ideas/genius/logic/reason in to replace what has grown out-dated, traditional, too limited. 

 

How does this apply to our own story? 

Another BIG part of this Mercury retrograde is Mercury's multiple meetings with powerful Pluto. 

 

We had the first meeting back on December 30th, a day after Mercury met Venus. So, a conversation started around the end of December. Venus was already retrograde, she had just met Pluto then she meets Mercury then he meets Pluto. 

 

Mercury/Pluto can stir up our fears, obsessions, passions, verbal super-powers, sometimes even TRUTH. That retro Venus might have brought back an old-love/old-ambition. Whatever this is, by the time Mercury gets past Pluto for the final time (when is that mid February?) the hooks and tangles that have been pulling us somewhere we no longer belong will be GONE. 

 

We will know our own mind. 

 

Whatever is left of it anyway :)

 

(will also be something here helpful for releasing what we have gathered in the name of 'fear', but that will be up to us ...)

 

Here are some key dates -

DECEMBER 29TH -  Mercury reaches 24 degrees Cappy and meets Venus - this is the degree he will station direct on February 3rd - this is the degree of the Sun on January 14th when Mercury stations retrograde, and, also where Pluto (death, transformation) was parked for much of 2021 opposing the United States natal Mercury at 24 Cancer.

DECEMBER 30TH - Mercury meets Pluto - part 1 of 3 - this is the day after he meets up with a retrograde Venus, who has also just met Pluto, so he picks up a piece of her story now, this pulls Mercury into the Venus retrograde story

JANUARY 9TH - Mercury direct sextiles Chiron (pulling Mercury into the 2021 Saturn/Chiron sextile as a stand-in for Saturn) part 1 of 3

JANUARY 14TH -  Mercury stations retrograde 10 degrees Aquarius, the Sun is on 24 Cappy, Mercury is squaring Uranus an 10 degrees Taurus (pulling Mercury into the Saturn/Uranus square of 2021 as a stand-in for Saturn)

JANUARY 18TH - Mercury retrograde sextiles Chiron - part 2 of 3

JANUARY 23RD - Sun meets Mercury/inferior conjucntion - here is the mid-point of the Mercury retro journey, HERE is a light on what this is about for us/moment of clarity

JANUARY 26TH - Mercury retrograde trines the North Node in Taurus (sextiles South Node in Scorpio)

JANUARY 28TH - Mercury retrograde meets Pluto - part 1 of 2

JANUARY 30TH - Sun squares Uranus from 10 degrees Aquarius, the degree of Mercury's station on January 14th

FEBRUARY 3RD - Mercury stations direct at 24 degrees Cappy (opposing the United States natal Mercury)

FEBRUARY 11TH - Mercury direct meets Pluto - part 2 of 2

FEBRUARY 24TH - Mercury direct sextiles Chiron, Mercury direct squares Uranus (part 3 of 3 for both)

MARCH 2ND - Mercury direct finally meets Saturn

 

Of course, we will talk about all this as we move through it. 

 

This is all part of the shamanic evolutionary process we are all going through together (Sedna!).

 

Have I said that the United States first ever Pluto return happens in the midst of all this? Well, I guess now I have. Post coming about that. 

 

I hope something here is helpful.

xo all

artwork by the talented Pertaret

the amazing astrology of meghan markle and Ann boleyn | and the crossroads divide us - part I

 

Astrology is the ancient language of archetypes (the myths that connect us by re-tracing the shared pathways of our collective unconscious, there are parts of us/our DNA that remembers, and so reacts, to these stories) and meticulously studied patterns. It is good enough as a predictive tool, but certainly not an exact science because so many things can just mean so many things!

 

What can be gleaned from an astrological natal chart though (birth - first breath of a person/venture/event) is TOTALLY AMAZING.

 

We come into the world, not as a blank slate, but with the patterns within us that have been in human beings before us.

 

If you are lucky enough to live in a family with accurate birth records, astrological analysis can give a voice to the complexities of your family as an organic whole, your family's place within collective society and the role each individual within your family plays in carrying on the ancestral line. 

 

You might think your family boring, but I can guarantee you, the truth of them, each of them, is as riveting as the very best episode of Game of Thrones (yes, the one where Cersei settles all the family's outstanding business - ouch). 

 

When I got into astrology, it was obvious the best way to learn was to study alot of charts - imagine the archetypes/look for patterns. The records in my own family, pre-Ancestry.com, was pretty sketchy, so I once spent (back in the early 90's around the time of Princess Diana's death) a crazy/obsessive amount of time studying the charts of the royal family from present day back to the time of King Henry VIII.

 

After hearing about Meghan and Harry's interview with Oprah last week (I haven't watched it yet), I thought we'd take a look at their current transits to see what is going on, but I actually never got past their uber interesting natals, so we are going to unpack those and see how they BOTH fit, like little missing puzzle pieces, into the ancient and modern royal family charts. And, yes, we'll move onto the transits at some point, too, and see if we can glean where all this is going!

 

From my days absorbed with Princess Diana, I became very familiar with the chart of the infamous - and in my opinion quite maligned - Ann Boleyn (a controversial wife of King Henry VIII and mother of Queen Elizabeth I - she played an important part in English history and the creation of the Church of England - we'll cover more of this story in part II and how it connects to what is going on in the world right now). 

 

When I opened Meghan's chart I immediately recognized Ann's.

 

Do the current energies make Ann's story ripe to be re-imagined through Meghan? Is Meghan Markle the reincarnation of Ann Boleyn?

 

Let's unpack the charts!

There are a couple ways to compare/examine multiple people's charts. We can look at their "synastry" the way their personal points and planets interact with each other (their effect on each other) and we can create a composite chart from the midpoints of their individual charts (which would reflect the energy of the relationship).

 

We'll start with synastry. Ann Boleyn's 23 degree Taurus 10th house Sun is conjunct Meghan's 22 degree natal Chiron (old wounding, in Meghan's case 11th house of the other and the public/the audience). Ann's life = Meghan's wound. Ann's Sun opposes Meghan's 22 degree past-life/ancestral (powerful, but sometime self-sabotaging) Neptune in the 5th house which rules both royalty and children. 

 

This 5th house Neptune of Meghan's is exactly conjunct Ann Boleyn's 4th house Moon (mother, mothering). 

 

Conversely, we can spin this around - Ann's Chiron is ALSO conjunct Meghan's Sun!

 

Ann's wound = Meghan's life-force/purpose. Ann's 4th house Pluto is exactly conjunct Meghan's Uranus. Ann's life/death transformation, which ended with her decapitation by the way (is also conjunct Harry's 10th house South Node allowing Meghan's rebellious Uranus to free him from the burdens of that social status/patriarchal story-line - this is also conjunct Meghan's Black Moon Lilith as she is tossed from the garden one more time, Black Moon Lilith also connects to Black Lives Matter and the part their children's race/color plays as this timeline shifts). This Uranus of Meghan's - the one conjunct Ann's Pluto EXACTLY and Harry's South Node/Ceres conjunction is in Megan's 5th house of children (also royalty).

 

Meghan has an exact Pallas/Diana/Psyche conjunction in her first house. 

 

Ann has a  Pallas/Diana/Psyche conjunction in her 10th house - with asteroid Diana (fertility/childbirth, Goddess of the hunt/hunted) exactly on Ann Boleyn's North Node - Ann's story to be replayed, with a new twist (nothing ever repeats itself in the same way) through the line of Diana? Meghan herself being born within days of Diana's marriage to Charles. 

 

We can imagine the Goddesses gathered at Diana's wedding rubbing their hands together, "OK girls, now we've got a PROJECT".

 

And, yes, for those who might be wondering, Harry (whose real name is Henry) has quite a few connections to his ancestor Henry (also called Harry by his chums) and also to his other ancestor Edward VIII who abdicated the throne for the love of an American woman. We will look at all of that in a later post.

 As for Harry and Meghan's synastry, again we see her Uranus on his South Node (she's breaking him away from this old story/his tradition). Her Chiron (remember this is also Ann Boleyn's Sun) conjunct Harry's exalted 4th house Moon (showing the great care and love from his mother and also the great care and love he has for his mother) - Meghan's Chiron - her wounding - helping him to heal from his mother-wound. But does this also take him back to a 500 year old ancestral 'mother wounding'?

 Meghan's Saturn is also exactly conjunct his Mercury, so she is kind of growing him up/sobering him up/giving his service-oriented Virgo Mercury a purpose, although it could become a bit much on him at times most likely. Saturn synastry aspects, especially maybe the powerful conjunction, point to karmic contracts. Like "we are going to get together and do this" this time around. Or their energetic cording requiring this be worked at during these particular transits. 

 

Harry has a natal Diana/Eris conjunction and Meghan has that first house Diana (exact with Psyche and Pallas) and Eris on her midheaven. Meghan's public discord/feeling unwelcome connecting for Harry to his mother's feeling of being unwelcome. Their story playing out through her pregnancy/birth of Archie with asteroid Child conjunct Harry's 22 degree Virgo Sun (again the need for a Sun/Son/Child to get this thing right, but this time moving in a totally different direction!) and on the Galactic Center in Meghan's chart (which is Harry's natal Neptune placement).

 

(Harry's Sun is also conjunct asteroid Zeus - the solar rays eclipsing his Zeus - the king of the Gods - this eclipsing speaks of the fated destiny of Harry's role as spare to William's heir in this lifetime)

 

Meghan and Harry have a definite Marsy vibe. Needing someone or something to fight lest they fight with each other! But, this also gives them a great deal of passion. 

 

Also her Mars in Cancer (12th house so almost certainly a past life connection here) exact on his DC (his partner) shows us not only their past life 'mother story' but intimates he sees her as fighting as a mother/for her children. Almost certainly with Harry's chart he grew up thinking/feeling that he needed to/or should have somehow saved his own mother.

 

Back in January 2020 as Saturn was approaching Pluto, as time was running out, we had a Cancer Full Moon, we talked about her HERE. 

 

This was that BIG Full Moon in Cancer with the Moon standing all alone across the sky from that powerful pile-up of planets in Capricorn - Mama Bear fighting City Hall. This was when Meghan and Harry were announcing their departure from royal life. This was with the Cappy pile-up on Queen Elizabeth's ascendant (so Moon on her descendant), Ann Boleyn's natal Neptune (5th house children), King Henry VIII's natal Uranus (5th house children), Catherine Duchess of Cambridge aka Kate Middleton's Sun/South Node (5th house children - an old story of hers wraps up suddenly here as Harry leaves with Meghan, interesting for those who know the Henry VIII history - we'll look at this in another post). The Full Moon sextiling (opportunity) Harry's natal Moon and Meghan's Ascendant. WOW.

 

We talked about Hekate recently - she is a triplicity Goddess - considered the wise crone (of the Persephone/maiden, Demeter/mother trio). Turned into a "witch" during patriarchal re-tellings, she is actually the Goddess of the Crossroads. 

 

When major shifts happen in relationships, work, status or health, when we are in transition, no longer who we used to be in some significant way (like the world right now and it's not surprising the royal family, a powerful expression of patriarchy/tradition is a zeitgeist for this) - these are the times when we can be at a major crossroads with Hekate/Hecate. 

 

She sees where we have come from, and which direction (timeline) each of the two choices will take us. I also see Hekate in our natal chart as a place where we just might go astray, and the area of our life where we are bound to develop great wisdom as a way-shower for others. The asteroid Hekate orbits in the same region as the Hygiea asteroid family, but is considered to be an unrelated interloper. My take on this is that she helps us, particularly when we are spending time with the wrong people, to find our true soul family.

 

Meghan was born with Hekate EXACT on her IC at 11 degrees Libra. Her roots/who she is. She is an old soul/will be a wise old woman. Harry was born with Hekate EXACT on his descendant at 11 degrees Cancer (so precisely squaring Meghan's) - his partner destined to be a Hekate. At the time of the Mama Bear Full Moon - the North Node (our collective way forward) was at 9 degrees Cancer - exactly on Harry's mother Diana's natal Sun, conjunct Harry's Hekate, squaring Meghan's Hekate AND inconjunct Duchess Catherine's (AKA Kate Middleton) 11 degree Hekate in Sagittarius. Yes, Meghan's Hekate is 11 degrees Libra, Harry's 11 degrees Cancer and Kate's 11 degrees Sagittarius. The number 11 is a powerful number - the Magician card of the tarot, a number of intuition and spiritual insight - it is a master number related to KARMA.

 

Hekate. A crossroads. A timeline (stream of consciousness) shifts. Maybe something from the Meghan, Harry, Kate story can be used to glean more about the forgotten (by our conscious memory/history, our subconscious remembers) story of Hekate, too.

 

2020's Saturn/Pluto conjunction (the same in Cappy as the days of King Henry VIII) - limits/rules/authority is transformed - death (Pluto) of tradition (Saturn - the patriarchy) AND authority (Saturn) is cemented - because this is happening in Saturn's sign - authority is made more powerful (Pluto).

 

And now, 2021's Saturn/Uranus squares - the old/tradition vs the new/freedom. Chaos redistributing power. We'll continue this adventure in part II and since Hekate (pronounced Heck-a-tay) insists we not ignore Catherine/Kate's role here - we will pull her chart into this, and another Catherine /Katherine, too

 

(history buffs and Brits might see where this is going! yes, it goes there!). 

 

And, of course, we'll examine Harry/Henry, Queen Elizabeth & Diana and how this story - which seems not so terribly significant in the midst of everything that is going on in the world right now - is actually CENTRAL TO IT. A zeitgeist of Saturn/Pluto and Saturn/Uranus. Also, we will look at Meghan's connections to the Queen - which are quite good actually.

xo all

Also, before we leave Goddess Hekate/Hecate, I will add that asteroid Hekate is EXACTLY conjunct Princess Diana's natal Eris and EXACTLY conjunct Queen Elizabeth's natal Neptune (in Leo/7th house and ruling her 2nd) and EXACTLY opposing her natal Jupiter (in Aqua/1st house and ruling her 10th).

The last time I wrote one small paragraph about Meghan Markle I received multiple emails telling me she's a "narcissist". So, let's think about that for a moment. Her natal asteroid Narcissus is at 21 degrees (a powerful, but self-sabotaging degree) in her 9th house (foreign situations/media) in Pisces (past-life/what is behind us). Keep in mind we are seeing Ann Boleyn's powerfully ambitious chart through Meghan and I think anyone with a packed first house in Leo including her Sun and North Node, like Meghan has - naturally attention-getting/charming/designed for the spotlight - is maybe also going to tend toward being self-absorbed. But, that's the plan with this chart! She had to want to be royalty for any of this to work/get resolved. No judgments please.

Today's Astrology Forecast | Tuesday, December 1, 2020 - a turning point month, Mercury into Sagittarius, transitioning to a wider/higher view, don't make a mountain out of a molehill today

 

This week kicked off with our annual Gemini Full Moon - this year a partial Lunar Eclipse. We talked about that HERE. The next Eclipse is a BIG Solar Eclipse in Sagittarius on December 14th (the past comes back and then says good-bye). 

 

We are in between Eclipses now - in the spin cycle - almost anything can happen! 

The Moon is void ALL DAY today as she prepares to come home to Cancer tonight. 

 

Rest if you can (especially if you were particularly exhausted/wired the other day - we had a powerful solar flare, still lingering). Do routine work. Don't launch anything you need something 'to come of'. Time gets stretchy and wonky.

After Mercury's Cappy sextiles of the last few days - opportunities through serious conversations, paperwork, intense information - now he/she (as us) flies into Sagittarius until December 20th. 

 

Mercury rules our minds, thinking, communication, the process and physical means of getting things from point A to point B including commerce, our local environment, our siblings, our tech hardware, our transportation - now he/she comes up from the depths of Scorpio and moves into the "sky's-the-limit" space of Sagittarius.

The scope of information available to us broadens. 

 

All the little details we have been immersed in during Mercury's transit through Scorpio fade from view a bit. It's like we have applied a wide angle lens to our camera. There is more to see (know) but less to specifically look at.

Sagittarius (ruled by Jupiter) is optimistic energy. So those big bodacious ideas will carry us further now. People will be thinking and talking BIG. Making BIG plans. Using BIG persuasive, language. It's a good time to sell your "whatever it is", but also a good time to be sold a bill of goods. Keep in mind that words and information could mislead us as our focus moves away from those pesky details and onto the larger landscape.

Sag's mutable energy is rather boundless and stretchy. This can be a good thing. Sometimes a very good thing. But it can also have its drawbacks. The fly in the ointment - always a fly in there even as the weather grows frosty. Damn flies.

Sagittarius is the great teacher/sage. The archer rules wisdom and philosophy. This is a good time to take something we are interested in to a higher level. Sagittarius rules our collective 9th house (plus the house in your chart with Sagittarius on the cusp!) so communications and information could focus on 9th house themes - legal issues, foreign issues, higher education, travel, religion, weddings, politics, the media, marketing.

Any planets you have in your Sagittarius ruled house will host a meet-up with Mercury over the next few weeks. Since Mercury's archetype is the 'fleet-footed messenger' and 'the magician' the more Sagittarius points and planets in your natal chart the more mental activity and Mercurian transformation you can likely expect. Our planets in the other mutable signs - Gemini, Virgo, Pisces - will be impacted by squares and oppositions.

 

Keep in mind the void Moon today coupled with Mercury's widening of our view could see us making a mountain out of a molehill. We are in the Eclipse portal - our semi-annual trip through the galactic spin cycle. The Eclipse was in Gemini, Mercury (ruler of Gemini) changes signs today and Mercury rules our North Node way forward now - watch what you are saying/thinking. Words are very powerful now. With everything we say/think/write we are casting our SPELL. Lining ourselves up with the future. 

 

What are you agreeing to/deciding/signing off on? Who do you want to be now? 

 

The Moon is waning - finishing up. We should be, too. Big changes coming folks!

xo all

photo by the talented Jana Cleve

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

New Moon in Aquarius | February 4, 2019 - the seeds go into the ground, building on that new(ish) idea/information, courage, LIBERATION, expanding beyond our territory, taking action, that rock that hit you in the head when you took one for the team is the rock your new foundation is built on

Today we have a beautiful New Moon - the Moon and Sun meeting at 15 degrees Aquarius at 4:10PM EST.

The Moon and Sun are conjunct a future-oriented and fast-moving Mercury (WORDS ARE OUR SUPER POWER NOW) and sandwiched between Neptune, strong in Pisces and Saturn, strong in Capricorn (and co-ruler of this month's lunation).

If last month's 15 degree New Moon sandwich (in Capricorn between Saturn and Pluto) was stale bologna on two slices of moldy rye, this month we have a delicious turkey club with some smoked bacon and that chipotle mayo we can never find when we are craving it. Except this month, there it is. Behind the ketchup and WTH it's not even expired!

The Saturn/Neptune sextile (the dream works when we do) is EXACT on the New Moon AND forming a comfortable and spacious cocoon around our happy little couple.

Uranus (co-ruler of Aquarius and this month's lunation) is conjunct a strong Mars in Aries and trining (brakes off) a serious Venus, freshly minted in Capricorn. And look at lucky and expansive Jupiter sextiling the Sun, Moon and Mercury AND trining Mars. Our Moon and Sun are also situated right in the middle of a Venus/Chiron square, but Chiron is trining the North Node, so there's that.

You can't see in this chart, but we also have fiery outsider energy Eris exactly conjunct brother Mars and "take no crap" Garden of Eden exile Black Moon Lilith hooked up with Mercury.

There is angry feminine energy howling at our invisible Moon here. Truth bombs. That thing no one ever wants to talk about - well someone is. 

Let's unpack this baby.

Mercury is conjunct the lunation, but already past the New Moon (Sun/Moon conjunction) making me think there is an idea here, a conversation, some kind of information that we already had. It's not like it comes around again exactly, but more like it happened already, and factors in here rather importantly.

This would be a good time to sit quietly - especially around the exact time of this New Moon - and ASK FOR A THOUGHT, a confirmation, a spiritual awareness, a way forward! Thoughts are things and ideas are alive and waiting for just the right person, the person who can make them REAL, to grab hold of them.

And with Mercury conjuncting Black Moon Lilith - it could be something rather radical, something a bit risky, something that is not everyone's cup of tea. It might be liberating/revolutionary in some way. Yes, this might be the scary part.

Not everyone is going to agree/want to hear about it/think this is a good idea/come with us.
 
With Mercury so important here we don't want to be talking any smack today and tomorrow. No gossip. No idle chit chat. Think about what you are thinking about. Think about what you are saying. Don't say "this isn't bad" when you mean "this is good" - be intentional with your language.

Our words are SPELLS and this is powerful spell-making energy - we need to use our words respectfully.

Don't clutter your mind with a bunch of crap either or let anyone over the age of seven talk your ear off about nonsense.

PLEASE WRITE AND SAY YOUR NEW MOON INTENTIONS - even if you are off and on with them, this month with Mercury - the magician - in futuristic Aquarius and conjunct the lunation, you want to be INTENTIONAL.

You are going to manifest something now, it might as well be something you want!

A good thing about Aquarius is that even though this is a New Moon it is not uber sensitive or sentimental. That cool, non-emotional, ability to think on our feet thing helps keep us in the driver's seat here.

The New Moon is sitting between this year's most promising repeating transit - Saturn sextile Neptune. This is where our dreams meet reality (yes, they'll be work and possibly a sacrifice of some sort required) - and look, there is the New Moon exactly where these two energies meet!

With Saturn and Neptune productively working together (and I am not sure if we have seen these two planets in their home signs working together in many, many years, maybe even hundreds of years!) a structure unwinds/dissolves - maybe we sacrifice what we really, really wanted for something else that someone we love really, really needs, maybe we are required to let something/someone go and it really, really hurts, but from these ashes something new (and somewhat radical - a change for us) gets built. Patience is required and commitment. It may not be easy, but there will be ease here ... and opportunity.

Did I say these power players are working together? Did I say it's rather unprecedented to have them doing this from their home signs? Yes, I did!

The Moon is waxing (growing) for the next two weeks - what are we going to do with this?!

And when do we see Jupiter sextiling the New Moon and trining Mars! There is hope here. There is optimism. There is a fresh start with some kick (here's where that chipotle mayo comes in). Physical action will be required from us. We initiate.

Jupiter can also provide opportunity via a widening of our lens, legal support, media/publishing attention, higher education (Saturn in Capricorn wants to see your credentials - is there something you need to earn here?), help from foreigners or through travel.

Active Mars is conjunct anything-can-happen Uranus plus of course, the New Moon is in Uranus ruled AQUARIUS - this whole thing says - do something different. Or differently. Or something liberating. Or something with technology (or astrology) or with a group or cause you believe in. We could also meet someone who is very different with a very strong will - maybe aggressive/dominating, now.

This new thing requires action. Take the initiative. Take action. Get something started.

There is a challenge with that Venus/Chiron square. It makes me think that even with Lilith and Eris playing such large and liberating roles, we are still penned in here somehow - a boundary, a contract, an investment. Maybe we are short-changed with something or our self-esteem takes a hit. Still, Venus (as us) can move past this hurting/healing (if we allow ourselves to) through that responsible Capricorn energy. And through the release - remember the South Node is here - of our old stories. Old karma. The stuff that used to keep us safe, but now is just keeping us stuck.

There is energy here to be free and liberated, but we can't just be free and liberated.

We still have Saturn/Pluto breathing down our necks. It's still winter. Ignore the cute groundhog, I want spring, too, but this winter takes us all the way into 2020. Trust me on this one.

This is our annual Aquarius New Moon and we had 18 months to release the Aquarius crap when the South Node was in Aquarius last year - eliminating our lazy detachment, deleting the distractions, releasing the alienation and our need to get lost in the crowd and hide out in the audience - if we did our work - and we are not required to do our work perfectly - we are left with a cool head, an open mind and enough emotional distance from whatever we are building to allow the magical forces in play to work for and through us!

This New Moon is releasing our chapter of the last 6 months - remember that total Lunar Eclipse in Aquarius last July and that crazy Mars retrograde in Aquarius! 

New Moons and particularly the two weeks that follow them are initiatory energy.

Stuff starts.

Of course, for stuff to start, other stuff has to end.

The energy here is supporting the fresh start, so a focus on that part pushes us forward.

NEW MOON INTENTIONS

AFFIRMATION TIPS for your monthly New Moon: always make affirmations from a positive place (positive meaning both happy, light hearted and certain) - write your affirmations down by hand in script, speak them out loud. Then release your attention from these things knowing that your intention is known.

Know these things are already yours.

xo all

Our Solar Return is when the Sun gets back to the same degree we drew our first breath (our birthday or very near our birthday) and the chart for that moment is very useful in looking at our year ahead. This New Moon chart is my Solar Return chart since my natal Sun is at 15 degrees Aquarius - the houses are different, of course (I have Sun, Moon, Mercury in the 8th house in this year's Solar Return - this one scared me enough to consider traveling to change it, but then I decided to suck it up and figure out how to work with it, you can run, but you can't hide Cat, plus since this is the house of death, I'm counting on that whole 9 lives thing). My Solar Return chart has the Pluto/Saturn conjunction sitting on my descendant, too, and when I first saw that, I gasped. I kicked and screamed. I threw up a little in my mouth. Then sucked it up (like literally this time, it was disgusting), because it has to be somewhere. The year ahead is going to be big and bodacious, with lots of twists and turns and surprises ahead (with one coming as early as next week) - for all of us!

Mercury into Sagittarius and the Upcoming Retrograde | thinking BIG, BIG news, higher knowledge, open windows, KARMIC release, we all take the RED PILL

the red pill by ahermin

Today we have Mercury - the ruler of our minds, thinking, communication, the process and physical means of getting things from point A to point B, our local environment, our siblings - coming up from the depths of Scorpio and moving into the "sky's-the-limit" space of Sagittarius.

The scope of information available to us broadens. All the little details we have been immersed in during Mercury's transit through Scorpio fade from view a bit.

It's like we have applied a wide angle lens to our camera. There is more to see (know) but less to specifically look at.

Sagittarius (ruled by Jupiter) is optimistic energy.

So those big bodacious ideas will carry us further now. People will be thinking and talking BIG. Making BIG plans. Using BIG persuasive, language. It's a good time to sell your "whatever it is", but also a good time to be sold a bill of goods. Keep in mind that words and information could mislead us as our focus moves away from those pesky details and onto the larger landscape.

Sag's mutable energy is rather boundless and stretchy. This can be a good thing. Sometimes a very good thing. But it can also have its drawbacks. The fly in the ointment - always a fly in there even as the weather grows frosty. Damn flies.

Sagittarius is the great teacher/sage. The archer rules wisdom and philosophy. This is a good time to take something we are interested in to a higher level. Sagittarius rules our collective 9th house (plus the house in your chart with Sagittarius on the cusp!) so communications and information could focus on 9th house themes - legal issues, foreign issues, higher education, travel, religion, weddings, politics, the media, marketing.

Any planets you have in your Sagittarius ruled house will host a meet-up with Mercury over the next few weeks. Since Mercury's archetype is the 'fleet-footed messenger' and 'the magician' the more Sagittarius points and planets in your natal chart the more mental activity and Mercurian transformation you can likely expect. Our planets in the other mutable signs - Gemini, Virgo, Pisces - will be impacted by squares and oppositions.

NOW here comes the uber important part because Mercury isn't the only fellow calling Archer-ville home these days.

We still have Saturn in Sagittarius (since 2014 and just a few weeks from his Capricorn ingress) and he is very slowly and very methodically making his way toward the most important part of our universe - the Galactic Center otherwise known as the Black Hole in the center of the Milky Way otherwise known as 27 degrees Sagittarius.

Today, we have Mercury at 0 degrees Sagittarius and Saturn at 25 degrees Sagittarius.

On November 28th, Mercury (I have said he is fleet-footed, right?) catches up with Saturn and they meet at ... wait for it (drum-roll) ... the Galactic Center, black hole in the center of the Milky Way, 27 degrees Sagittarius (Saturn will be exact on the Galactic Center on November 24th - the culmination of his three year journey!).

Then five days later (December 3rd) Mercury stations retrograde and reverses his course.

Moving backward he meets up with Saturn AGAIN on December 6th (at 28 degrees Sagittarius still pretty much on the Galactic Center!) then continues back all the way to 13 degrees Sagittarius - during his retrograde journey he will have conversations with not only Saturn, but Mars, Venus, Chiron, Ceres, Pallas, Uranus, the North Node and remember he is in Sagittarius so answering to Jupiter and Jupiter is in Scorpio and answering to Pluto! This is HUGE.

(We are part of a spiral galaxy known as the Milky Way. It is 100,000 light years across and includes over 200 billion stars including our closest star, the Sun. All the stars we see in the sky are part of the Milky Way Galaxy. At the center of our Milky War Galaxy is a super-massive Black Hole.)

Normally Mercury is in a sign for about 3 weeks, his journey through Sagittarius will be more than 2 months!

What is possible now? Almost anything!!

One thing I am fairly certain about is we are seeing and will see MASSIVE releases of karma.

"You take the blue pill, the story ends. You wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red pill, you stay in wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes." 

Yes, we've collectively agreed to take the RED PILL! 

For now, pay attention to any news/information/conversations - whatever Mercury's ingress into Sagittarius carries. Often we get a hint of what a long transit will be about at the very start.

Googling the news I see we have Trump just arriving in Asia, there is a headline story about the Saudi Princes I haven't read, the Dem feud, Mueller's investigation, Hollywood sex scandals - some/all of this is probably important. I am searching in the a.m. and this transit really starts later in the day, so we will see what other news stories hit. There will be alot of BIG (Sagittarius) news (Mercury) during this transit!

With all of this happening in Sagittarius it will be about what we believe/truth. We will probably have to go all the way to late December or early January before we can separate fact from exaggeration. 

This applies to our personal lives/lies, too. Big developments, key events will be triggered. There are squares to Chiron so, yes, there will be some painful revelations and decisions, but there are MANY sextiles (opportunities) and trines (brakes off) to keep us moving in the right direction. Lots of limiting beliefs will be unpacked and disguarded. 

This is our karmic clean-up before Saturn comes home to Capricorn (where were you in February 1988 the last time Saturn was home?). THIS IS A BIG OPPORTUNITY. Now, some of this will be out of our hands, but we are powerful creators in our own right and there is alot we can do to help ourselves here.

We are now in a time when we can literally recreate any part of our lives. One small energetic push from each of us puts ALL OF US on a higher timeline with a different outcome. And we can see from the collective news we need to get off this timeline! We want to be on the path toward where we want to be before the cement starts to gets poured (ie Saturn comes home to Capricorn in late December). 

Let's push.

Maybe start with a notepad. 

First, list everything you want to eliminate from your life - bad habits, painful experiences you want to release, situations that have you bound. The stuff we no longer carry any passion for, and yes, it will likely be stuff we used to be quite passionate about. The people/ideas/beliefs we have given our power to that are no longer serving us. The North Node is in Leo - we need to be brave and follow our hearts here. Feel what it feels like without this load. Burn the paper. This is the stuff we aren't going to carry with us.

Make a second list. Here we will write what we want to create - new habits, experiences, ways of being and thinking. What inspires us? What makes us excited? What do we want to do with this one brief life? We can be specific and fly low here or go big and wide - the sky is the limit, except even that isn't true anymore.

The time for who we used to be is past. That's why we are all feeling unstable. We can see this all around us and feel the truth of it in our own hearts. Unless you carry alot of mutable energy this is all probably pretty uncomfortable and scary. 

Maybe alot of what shifts as Saturn approaches the Galactic Center isn't stuff we can see, but as we travel the right path (heart-focused) we will be met, from the opposite direction, by exactly what/who we need to meet. Oxygen mask on your own face first everyone.

Let's take as many steps as possible toward as many things as are calling to us. For example, I am feeling the need to strengthen by backbone (yes, that backbone AND yes, that other backbone) so am taking a 14 day course on strengthening my spine. 

It doesn't matter precisely what steps we take. It doesn't have to be a big thing. Life can use whatever energy we put out.

xo all 

I have been asked why I am making a photobooth when I already have a handmade jewelry business I love. I'm not sure. I made a make-shift photobooth for my sister-in-law's baby shower and it was alot of FUN. I had a trailer - sort of. I wanted work that was less labor intensive with the least negative environmental impact. I need to be around more people. I have never in my adult life thought about doing something because it could be fun for me. This is a hard truth to swallow because I am many decades into my life!

Of course, this project has turned out to be anything and everything BUT fun. Because I believe things need to be hard work in order to work, that is the truth (ie limiting belief) I have been met with at every turn. Also the scarcity thinking that I need to hold onto what I have. And the belief that I have to do everything myself. 

I can see I have procrastinated many things about this new venture and been sidetracked multiple times and wonder if my heart is really in it anymore. If other people having fun is enough. Lately I keep picturing myself painting stars on the ceiling of the Shasta which probably wouldn't work for a photobooth ... so I am finishing the booth (sans stars) - but staying open to multiple possibilities ....

That could be the key now to alot of things - taking action AND staying open to other possibilities. Because everything is shifting and we don't know what we don't know.