Today's Astro plus Pallas into Virgo | a break from routine, feeling at home in unusual situations, sobering up, dealing with authority and limits, the devil is in the details, exacting standards, keeping our eye off the prize, releasing the need for applause

sleepy little sailor by waveystar

At 8:03AM EDT today, the Moon enters Cancer turning our emotional focus for the next couple days toward home, family, renovation, relocation, mom, patriotism and apple pie. We want to nurture and be nurtured. Our attention turns to what we are growing.

We (and other people, of course) can be more sensitive now.

"My house here is painted the yellow colour of fresh butter on the outside, with glaringly green shutters; it stands in full sunlight in a square that has a green garden with plain trees, oleanders and acacias. It is completely whitewashed inside, with a floor made of red bricks. And over it there is the intensely blue sky. In this house I can love and breathe, meditate and paint."
 - Vincent van Gogh

Home projects, getting the kids off to school, nurturing activities and just curling up on the sofa and getting away from it all will be enticing.

First up, three hours later, an opportunistic sextile to "out-of-the-box" Uranus (retrograde in Taurus), so a good time to handle any family/home situations in unusual or modern ways. We could feel at home in unusual situations or with unique people. This could be a good aspect for kids going back to school today - a break (Uranus) from home (Moon).

The mood gets heavier after lunch (12:22 PM EDT) when the Moon opposes sober, authoritative Saturn. The kids get restless, the teacher (and need to sit up straight) sets the rules.

I know someone who is going to traffic court tonight and that sounds about right, too. This could also be a home vs work or family vs work in the world issue. The Moon is at home in Cancer and Saturn is at home in Capricorn, so both are strong and at their best. Worthy adversaries, but Saturn is standing still and preparing to station direct right now, so UBER powerful. If we are feeling depressed this afternoon/tonight know this is a transit. It is transitory. Saturn is heavy.

We will feel what we are carrying now.

Today we also see asteroid Pallas (patterns, strategies and tactics) move into exacting Virgo. Our plans/strategies become more precise, more practical.

(we also have Mercury - communication/ideas/information - moving into this same space tomorrow, a space he/she RULES)

If we can avoid the critical, nitpicky Virgo crap - the perfection story based in our fear of whatever we are doing being judged not quite up to snuff - we can make real progress by focusing on the details and putting one foot in front of the other for the next few weeks.

With Pallas in Virgo - and Mercury about to join in - it will be easier to see what fits and what doesn't. What works and what needs fixing/tossing. What is possible and what isn't. We analyze. 

We feel the need to "get it right".

Remember Virgo is the chapter, in our hero's journey, that follows Leo. The space where those pesky "other people" start to factor into things. The space where we carry that thing we have created in Leo and bring it into the service of other people.

The space we release any need for applause. 

So, it is likely best to focus on our TACTICS rather than goals/results for now. We trust the best, most carefully worked out tactics to produce for us the best results - but we keep our eyes on the tactics - the one foot we are putting in front of the next - NOT on the finish line.

We will talk about this more tomorrow.

xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of September 3rd - part 1 - smooth communication and information flow on MONDAY

diagonal people by Igor-Demidov

We have a very active week with multiple planets changing signs, one planet stationing direct and a New Moon!

I had family over for a barbecue yesterday, so didn't get to the weekly. I will either finish out this post later today or tomorrow morning or do dailies this week.

MONDAY - Mercury sextiles Venus 
WEDNESDAY - Mercury inconjuncts Mars, Mercury moves home to Virgo and inconjuncts Chiron
THURSDAY - Saturn stations direct in Capricorn (2 degrees)
FRIDAY - Mercury trines Uranus and Saturn - Grand Earth Trine(!) - and the Sun opposes Neptune
SATURDAY - Venus squares Mars
SUNDAY - Venus moves into Scorpio and we have the New Moon in Virgo (17 degrees)

On MONDAY the Moon continues her two and a half day monthly journey through Gemini. We are busy. We are communicating. We are running errands. Information is moving. Maybe sibling issues and the local community are keeping us active.

At 8:58AM EDT, Mercury (in confident, loud and proud Leo) will sextile (opportunity) Venus (in Libra) at 25 degrees.

This is a three-peat aspect with the last sextile on August 18th when Mercury was retrograde. So something now could connect back to that date and/or to the previous Mercury/Venus sextile.

This is easy communication, the ability to get someone else to "buy in" to what we want. An opportunity between our Leo (creative projects, children, romance, recreation) and our Libra houses (relationships). Reach out to other people early in the day while this aspect is hottest.

Note - we are still under the influence of yesterday's Moon square Sun (Gemini/Virgo) - choices, decisions, information overload, obstacles.

At 1:37AM the Moon will go void and then move into Cancer at 8:03AM EDT on TUESDAY (turning our focus to home, family, home business, mother, nurturing issues for the next couple days).

Also on Monday, Venus enters her upcoming retrograde shadow.

This means Venus (as us) begins traveling degrees she will travel again while retrograde (October 5th to November 16th) - she will be back to this week's exact degrees in November. Right now she is still in her home sign of Libra. She will move into Scorpio next week and spend most of her retrograde in Scorpio.

So, if we have planets or points between 0-10 degrees of the fixed signs - we will likely feel this retrograde strongest, but everyone will be impacted either directly or through our interactions with other people. The most directly impacted will be planets/points in early Scorpio. Taurus planets (opposite the retrograde Venus) will experience oppositions - issues coming at us from the outside, culminations. Aquarius and Leo planets/points will experience the tension/stress of squares. The other water signs - Pisces and Cancer - will experience trines (brakes off).

29-25 degrees of Libra and the other Cardinal signs will also be impacted. The most directly impacted will be planets/points in late Libra. Aries planets (opposite the retrograde Venus) will experience oppositions - issues coming at us from the outside, culminations. Cancer and Capricorn planets/points will experience the tension/stress of squares. The other air signs - Gemini and Aquarius - will experience trines (brakes off). We'll talk about this as we move through it.

With Venus retrograde we will be re-examining WHAT WE TRULY VALUE.

In Scorpio, events can conspire to show us the ways we merge our emotions/bodies/finances/resources and if this stuff is still working for us. Venus rules relationships, balance, love, money, women, beauty, our resources, our values and self-esteem.

Relationships are tested. Our values and self esteem are tested. Our ideas of beauty and women are tested. The ways we handle our money and resources are tested.

If we have lost ourselves in something - maybe this autumn is the time we come up for air ...

In the meantime, this week, we will want to pay attention to the Venusian themes in our life (the stuff she rules) because with Venus set to revisit the degrees she is walking now (two more times) - these situations are going to be in play for awhile. It could also be that something that starts now will come to a dead stop later on (and with Scorpio ruling death I do not use this word lightly), so keep this in mind.

xo all - back tonight or tomorrow

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | this weekend and a peek ahead into September

mettres les voiles by Marion-Volant

On FRIDAY, we have Venus (in Libra) semi-square the Sun (in Virgo). If we had these planets semi-square in our natal chart we might find it hard to accept a compliment or take money for our services. We might continually short change ourselves. Or maybe our self-worth would get wrapped up in our bank account in other unhealthy ways. With Venus in the sign of relationships now and the Sun in the sign of the critic we might have to bite our tongue to avoid talking about the things we notice that said out loud could be more unkind than helpful. There is probably no such thing as constructive criticism.

The Moon is active. We have the Moon conjuncting Uranus disrupting our comfort zone then moving into a stabilizing trine with Saturn in the early A.M. which is good for taking action on things we want to last. The Moon (uber comfortable in Taurus) trines the Virgo Sun at 12:45PM EDT. This is opportunity for material gains and good energetics for business, negotiations with co-workers, progress with health issues, etc. We will do our Virgo. Play the hand we've been dealt. Focus on the little things. Do the thing that is right in front of us. The Moon will sextile Neptune in the evening, so a good movie/date night. Good for creativity, imagination, healing.

SATURDAY has an active Moon and is another mixed bag. Just being a Saturday should help!

By SUNDAY at 4:02AM EDT the Moon will move into Gemini focusing us on Gemini themes for the next couple days - information, communication, local issues, transportation issues, sibling issues. We will be busy, more chatty, better able to multi-task.

At 10:37PM EDT on Sunday we have the last quarter Moon of the month with the Gemini Moon squaring the Virgo Sun. We are likely overloaded with information by now, much of which we don't need. Virgo wants to cut to the chase and Gemini wants to check out every angle. It is time to be discerning. This speaks of a crisis of choice. The Virgo Sun advises us to choose what is most practical/realistic now. We might want to keep our options open, but that will just keep us stuck - for many situations it is time to choose (but not all, remember, I can't see your chart- use your own discernment). This is also the day Mercury exits his retrograde shadow - meaning he begins to travel new degrees. This summer's Mercury retrograde in Leo is behind us. Whatever we were supposed to learn we have learned. What we do with what we have learned is up to us.

Spending Sunday doing the weeklies means I never seem to have the time to look further than a few days ahead which really hampers these forecasts. I am not sure what to do about it!

Let's review a bit.

We had a Pisces Full Moon last weekend. It might have left us physically drained, especially in the early part of this week.

With a Pisces Full Moon something is released/drifts away/dissolves/culminates. We move into a new cycle leaving something behind us and we know what we need to carry into the new cycle by what has been lost if that makes any sense. We carry what we are left with. We dance with the one left on the dance floor. You get the idea.

The Grand Earth Trine (during the Full Moon) speaks of loss leading to gain - but maybe we can't see that part yet. Earth signs won't be rushed! Earth progress takes time. Earth represents real things - things we can see and touch. Baking a cake takes time. Growing a tomato takes time. Cakes don't bake if we keep opening the oven door. Seeds won't grow if we keep digging them up to check their progress. KNOW the space created by the loss creates a vacuum to be filled. Trust it.

This summer's eclipse season and retrograde cycles have put us through the wringer. For some people the resulting changes are visible things/visible losses/visible changes. For other people this stuff is more internal. Or I should say this stuff is internal for everyone and for some people there are external changes.

We are moving ahead now, but we want to take it slow.

Mercury leaves his retrograde shadow on SUNDAY. He is squaring Jupiter. So we want to RECEIVE the information (remember Jupiter is deep in Scorpio) and then be patient with what we do/say/think with it.

Mars is direct now (since Monday), but had been retrograde since the end of June and he has a few weeks before he leaves his shadow (starts covering totally new territory). He is now back to the degrees he covered around the middle of May (a big time astrologically because we also had Uranus move into Taurus at that time). There was likely something back then we were really wanting (where is 28 degrees Capricorn in your natal chart?). Then over the summer something shifted. This could have been something big or something small. But now Mars (as us) is back here again.

We have learned alot this summer. Goals changed. Soul contracts finished up. Where do we now stand with this thing we were wanting then? How do we move forward from this same space now that we have been re-booted?

By around September 6th Mars will be in full force and moving forward in Capricorn - where he is exalted. This is the day Saturn will station direct. We have been on a long, backward journey this summer. Now our thinking (Mercury) and actions (Mars) reach their logical conclusion. Saturn rules karma. And karma is really just cause and effect. We have consequences.

Maybe we meet a goal. Maybe a responsibility clobbers us in the head. Daddy's home.

On the same day Mercury finally leaves Leo and moves into Virgo where he will begin trining (brakes off) both Saturn - authority, stability, structure - and Uranus - change, revolution, freedom - for the next few days.

If a decision wasn't reached at that Quarter Moon - here is where our minds are finally made up - we are READY TO GET TO WORK.

Remember Mars is exalted (at his best) in Capricorn.

This is because hot-headed, fiery Mars gets the structure he needs to succeed within Saturn's limits and constraints. Limits are our friend now. We don't rush with Mars in Capricorn. We are grounded. We are determined. We can work alone or we can lead. We can get things done.  

So we have a couple weeks in September to settle in and get things going especially the stuff that feels like it has been dragging on and on and

then on September 10th - 11th, Mars moves into Aquarius - for the 3rd time! - here's to hoping the "third time is the charm" rather than "three strikes we're out"!

NOTE - we are far from out.

In Aquarius he will once again journey over Black Moon Lilith and the South Node and by the end of September he gets back to 4-5 degrees Aquarius where we had the Lunar Eclipse at the end of July.

Mars in Aquarius doesn't play by the rules. He can be restless and impatient and dangerous. And he will be squaring anything-can-happen Uranus. So there is alot of wildcard energy left.

Lots of loose ends and shifts are still ahead of us this month.

Another thing we have setting up is a long T-Square between Venus (women, love, money, relationships, self-esteem, our values), Mars (our initiative, action, passion, anger, courage) and Uranus (freedom, individuality, change, innovation) beginning around September 2nd and lasting almost all month. Mars is the focus of the T-Square so we will need to be active and brave. There could be relationship/financial challenges (we want freedom - Uranus AND we want the relationship/money - Venus). We don't want to go all hot-headed and do things we will regret later. We don't want to toss the baby out with the bathwater (babies are kind of cute after all). Mercury will be in Virgo to help us think things through.

Venus starts walking the degrees she will walk back over (three times total) beginning on Monday. So a Venus storyline is opening up. Most of her retrograde will be spent in deep, dark Scorpio in October, so October will be a complicated month and whatever we are dealing with begins to take form next week.

It's Virgo season though so not the time to look too far ahead with any of this - it's like we would be walking through the woods looking off into the distance and stepping on the flowers and mushrooms! Where are our feet?! Watch out for the fungi, folks! The fungi are our friends. Mostly.

September is active with lots of challenges and gifts. The time around September 11th, when Mars gets back into Aquarius will be IMPORTANT, the time  when Mars returns to square Uranus around the 18th will be IMPORTANT and the time around September 27th when Mars returns to his eclipse degree of July 27th will be IMPORTANT.

AND that is just Mars! We have alot of other pieces to the cosmic puzzle!

First up, a long weekend for many people in the United States because we have the Labor Day holiday on Monday, so appropriate for Virgo season, don't you think? Uranus in square to Mars has totally taxed our nervous system - let's give ourselves a break.

xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of August 27th - the delays come to an end, proceed cautiously and strategically, hair-trigger tempers, communication challenges, intense emotions, big plans and even bigger ideas, life speeds up

Time goes by like a train by Julie-de-Waroquier

Some of the big aspects for the week ahead are:

SUNDAY - Full Moon in Pisces
MONDAY - Mars stations direct in Capricorn!!
TUESDAY - Mercury square Jupiter
WEDNESDAY - Mercury inconjunct Pluto
SATURDAY - Venus opposes Eris
SUNDAY - Mercury leaves retrograde shadow

SUNDAY Morning EDT we have the Full Moon in Pisces I wrote about HERE. The day is colored by its aspects as well as a couple I missed in that post including Venus (strong in Libra) opposing Pluto (retrograde in Capricorn) which could bring relationship power struggles, money issues, an almost suffocating desire for something, maybe outside interference in a relationship - the bottom line for us - know this aspect, in play for a couple days, could bring up intense feelings and strong emotions. 

On MONDAY, the Moon (in Pisces) conjuncts Pisces ruler Neptune at 8:05AM EDT. We might feel more sensitive/compassionate and we are certainly more likely to take on other people's emotions - this would be an excellent morning to meditate.

At 10:05AM EDT Mars stations direct at 28 degrees Capricorn - a space where he is exalted.

Whatever stalled or stopped around August 12th will get moving again.

Maybe ego-driven plans (or some area where we wanted our way) and positions that did not work out quite as we expected have caused us to re-flect and re-vise. Between now and September 18th (the final Mars square Uranus) we should get a wrap-up/resolution. If we are smart and paying attention we have received clues from Mars this summer about how to deal with Uranus in Taurus over the next few years.

Mars won't be covering entirely new ground for a few weeks and it will take him a few days to get back up to speed. The Sun is in Virgo. Mars is in Capricorn. Let's take our cues from that. We'll proceed cautiously and strategically.

EXAMPLE FOR LIBRA/Libra Rising - Mars stations direct in your 4th house of home and family. Progress can now be made with a home renovation, relocation, home business or mother/family situation that may have stalled around mid-month.

Mars is very powerful at station and rules violence and anger so stay safe. No dark alleys. Step back from any potential altercations. Expect to feel rushed. 

The Pisces Moon will be active on Monday - keeping us busy - good for business and good for having the energy to do what we need to do.

On TUESDAY, (in play for a couple days before and after) at 1:31AM EDT, Mercury (in fiery Leo) squares Jupiter (in deep, dark Scorpio).

This is BIG News or information or a conversation. Good or bad the square indicates tension. Jupiter will make everything bigger, but also 'appear bigger' than it actually is. So keep this in mind.

Mercury - our communication, conversations, information, local issues, sibling issues, transportation issues - has multiple challenges this week and remember until next Sunday he/she is walking degrees she has walked before (twice!) so this is a repeat pattern from July 9th and then August 11th.

Some people will feel like they are living Groundhog Day (the movie!).

The square with Jupiter can mean we communicate too much. There might be big, floaty ideas without legs now. The details can be missed or glossed over. Words can be over-the-top now. We can be enthusiastic, but also preachy. Any challenges to Mercury mean we need to take care driving. Sibling issues could also come into play.

Remember this isn't an entirely new situation.

We have been through this before - we should have the tools in our tool belt for this one now. We are ready.

EXAMPLE FOR SCORPIO/Scorpio Rising - Mercury is squaring your sign from Leo, your 10th house of career and public life. There could be an optimistic business idea, professional information or exuberant career news now. Make sure you are reading the situation from a grounded space. Don't over-promise. Don't expect too much. The Sun is in Virgo - stick to the facts. Keep in mind Mercury is walking degrees he walked first on July 9th and then again on August 11th (retrograde) - so what have you learned?

The Moon (at the end of Pisces) sextiles (opportunity) Mars (at the end of Capricorn) at 9:54AM EDT. A good time to exercise - we are feeling strong and satisfied with whatever we have completed. 

We have the courage and ability (Mars/Capricorn) to handle the things we can't see coming (Pisces).

The Moon goes Void for a couple hours until she moves into Aries at 12:35PM EDT.

At 5:37PM EDT the Moon (in Aries) will square Saturn (in Capricorn). This could feel a little (or alot) depressing/pessimistic and isolating so stay centered and know this will pass. Chocolate will help.

The Aries Moon will give us a focus on Aries themes for the next couple days - courage, passion, action, initiative, maybe anger, anything new and ambitious.

On WEDNESDAY, Mercury (in fiery Leo) inconjuncts Pluto (in sober Capricorn).

This is a rock and a hard place aspect between our Leo and Capricorn houses. There could be power plays, obsessive thinking and persuasive, manipulative information/conversations. Avoid pushing your ideas onto other people. Avoid being pushed by other people's words. Secrets can come out now. There probably isn't any middle ground here, so just know that. Agree to disagree. Not really the time for an intimate conversation. Not the time to send the boss a memo (which could be misconstrued) or make an impassioned statement publicly. People could feel manipulated even if you think you are coming in with a higher agenda. Let sleeping dogs lie ... for now.

On THURSDAY, the skies are testy. The Moon in Aries will oppose Venus in Libra at 6:56AM EDT and then move into a square with Mars (in Capricorn). People might be aggressive and unwilling to compromise. Not easy energy for everyone to get along. The Moon goes void at 7:04PM EDT and then moves into Taurus at 9:30PM EDT focusing us on Taurus themes for the next couple days - comfort, security, our money, our values, eating well, taking care of ourselves.

I will write about Friday and the weekend later in the week and get up a big picture post for autumn.

xo all

Pisces Full Moon | August 26th - something new and solid built from the ashes of whatever has slipped through our fingers

I have to go by Julie-de-Waroquier

On SUNDAY at 7:56AM EDT the Pisces Moon will oppose the Virgo Sun at 3 degrees giving us our annual Pisces Full Moon.

You have probably noticed the Moon appearing larger and fuller over the last few days. I hope you have been able to get out and walk in it!

Anyone with planets or points in the early degrees of the mutable signs - Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces - and people with planets or points in the early degrees of the water signs - Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces - will probably feel this Full Moon energy strongest.

Pisces and Virgo are opposite signs, but really the opposite sides of the same coin - the same energetic loop. The balance of these two signs is where we bring God (or whatever word you feel most comfortable using here) to earth through our actions of service.

Virgo/Pisces is about the highest levels of service and compassion - it doesn't take on the burdens of others - compassion holds a higher vibration. It's not about removing the pain or suffering of another person which we literally can't do because the karma (ie energy attraction, cause and effect, our perfectly pre-planned, but not predestined life experiences) - that created it in the first place will just recreate it in another form.

Pisces is the last and final sign - the place where the buck stops - Pisces energy knows this.

Pisces compassion shows patience, lends an ear or a shoulder without the need for recognition - without the need for thanks - knowing the service is its own reward; the work is often invisible. It holds open doors and holds the spaces for others to be strong and courageous and confident. 

Full Moons bring energy to a "peak"; to a culmination, maybe to an ending. Pisces rules the 12th house of what is hidden and put away, the ways we self-sabotage, escape, sacrifice, our addictions, our imagination, lack of boundaries, connection, compassion, charity, hospitals, prisons, the things we do last, the things we have forgotten, our distant pasts, water, sleep, illness, healing, spirituality ....

Our Piscean spaces (the roles we play and the roles we have rejected within ourselves and passed out to other people to act out for us) will be on full display. Dreamers will dream. Escapists will run away. Victims and martyrs will play out some endless saga we will all have to hear about. Saviors will march into action. Seekers will look within. Artists will make art. Drifters will drift off course.

Anyone whose boat is only lightly tethered to the dock could be pulled out to sea ...

Now, the wonderful thing about this particular Pisces Full Moon, because it is stabilizing, is the chart includes a Grand Earth Trine between the Sun, Saturn and Uranus. There is solid ground here. With both Saturn and Uranus still retrograde whatever we are dealing with at this Full Moon will have its feet in the past.

The Virgo Sun speaks of us putting one foot in front of the other, developing a solid routine, figuring out what doesn't work, seeing the trees - we know the forest is there, that big old Pisces Full Moon will light up the periphery - but keeping our focus on the details.

The Moon (in Pisces) forms a Kite at the top of the Grand Earth Trine with sextiles from Saturn and Uranus. So we have the new/unexpected (Uranus), the stable/solid (Saturn) enabled into something REAL through that sacrificial Pisces Moon. What are we willing to give up/release to get something new/solid and lasting? Something has to give here. 

Keep in mind with Pisces there is always the chance things can look better than they are and we can be pretty sure that even with that bright light in the night sky we aren't seeing everything. But for those who have done their summer "work" - there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

At the same time we have the Sun (in Virgo) inconjunct Chiron (in Aries) telling us that there is no "perfect" Virgo solution. We also have Saturn (in Capricorn) squaring Chiron.

The rock/hard place (inconjunct), the limit/responsibility (Saturn), the Pisces focal point and the Virgo/Pisces opposition are all reinforcing the same message - to get the manifestion (the new, real solid thing) something else needs to be released. 

"Life is complicated", says Virgo, looking at all the moving parts and noting what needs fixing. "It doesn't need to be" says Pisces, seeing all the ways everything is already working together perfectly.

I hope everyone can get out and walk in the Full Moon. Mars (our action, initiative, passion, anger) moves direct on Monday people. It may take him a few days to get up to speed, but something in our Capricorn house is about to get a big forward PUSH.

xo

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | transition time, the king gets humbled, looking ahead, preparing for lift-off, creating something real, keeping that kite in the air

... by oprisco

I've been finding it hard to get to these charts and write about them lately ... focus Catherine!

Let's take a look at where we are.

We closed out Leo season last week with the Sun's move into practical and "let's get on a routine" Virgo. The time of the harvest (and I have the garden filled with tomatoes to prove it), in Virgo season we move into mutable energy. Shifts happen. The weather changes. Kids go back to school. We adjust our schedules and daily routines. Health issues catch our attention.

The transition from Leo (ruled by the Sun) to Virgo can be hard or welcomed depending on how ready we are to come in out of the Sun!

With the Sun in Virgo we focus on the details. We clean things up. We get organized. Small steps lead to big changes. Small is BIG now.

The astrology wheel is the hero's journey of self discovery. When the sun moves into Virgo, it is the hero's (our) first encounter with service.

We are learning when to help and when helping isn't really helping. Virgo is the modest healer with the critical eye that takes care of the details. Meaningful work and competence are key now.

Virgo knows we are not here to do the work we love - we are here to love the work we do. There is a difference. This is the difference that changes the world. This is the difference that changes us.

Every sign has something to learn from the sign that follows it.

Leo learns from Virgo (and we all have Leo and Virgo in our charts somewhere - its placement will affect how this activates in your own journey) - to do the work. Virgo teaches Leo to let go of the need for the spotlight and recognition and to just focus on the work.

The king gets humbled ... and we might now, too!

(and speaking of kings - last week the Sun moved through the last degrees of Leo - powerful degrees already and uber activated from last year's "Great American Eclipse" - at precisely the time the press was reporting Cohen's guilty pleas and Manafort's guilty convictions. You might remember this eclipse was right on Trump's ascendant and his guiding star Regulus - the star promising 'success and riches if revenge is avoided' - and was followed immediately by multiple powerful weather "storms" and then the more personal, for Trump, 'Stormy' Daniels payoff allegations which are part of Cohen's guilty pleas)

It is no coincidence that Virgo comes in autumn; the time of the harvest - the time we separate the wheat from the chaff.

The Sun in Virgo needs to do good work. In order to do this, we need to figure out what isn't working. We need to be able to see the flaws and problems.

We have Mercury direct now, although still covering old ground. Things are not wrapped up all nicely with a big pink bow, but we are thinking about the future again. We have one eye in the past and one on "what comes next".

Mars is still retrograde, but turns direct on MONDAY. So this past week our attention turned to the future (and on wrapping things up - where do we find that big pink bow?) and next week our actions get green-lighted.

We act. We get acted upon. Things come unstuck. There is movement. 

And, yes, Mars also will be covering old ground for a while, too - so we are moving forward, dragging one, unfinished, foot behind us.

Then on September 6th Saturn stations direct. We have been on a long, backward journey this summer. Now our thoughts and actions reach their logical conclusion. We have consequences. Maybe we meet a goal. Maybe a responsibility clobbers us in the head. Daddy's home.

This weekend we are building toward Sunday's Full Moon in Pisces with a Sun/Saturn/Uranus Grand Earth Trine - a powerful energy for manifesting something REAL. Then at the Full Moon (ruled by dream-maker Neptune) - and this is very rare - the energies form a high flying Kite aspect. As a kid I was never very good at flying kites. Mine would always quickly crash to the ground. This one feels a little different with that solid Grand Earth Trine behind it. Whatever story we have each been walking back and forth over the last few weeks here is the fresh air - inspiring movement toward HIGHER GROUND complete with a detailed Virgo step-by-step action plan/roadmap. What more do we need?

On FRIDAY we have an active Aquarius Moon. First, opposing Mercury and making us mentally restless maybe or compelled to give voice to the unconscious. Maybe we change our mind. It's like we are leaving post-it notes all over the place, even if we don't have any post-it notes. Then the Moon squares Jupiter - this isn't the best aspect to make a good financial decision. We could make a mountain out of a molehill. We could feel overwhelmed - which might be a good thing or not so good. Maybe something here about protecting, or feeling protective of, our home or family. The Moon will finish her day (12:39AM EDT) with a trine to lovely Venus at home in Libra - good for socializing and finding balance. Then she turns void and will be void all day Saturday. Saturday is not a good day to start something new even with the grounded Grand Earth Trine.

Today (Friday) we also have the Sun (in Virgo) inconjunct - that rock and a hard place - Chiron (in Aries). Something here about something that can't be fixed, can't be put back together, can't be made perfect. If we have done our best with it, that is all we can do. I know it hurts. At the same time devoted Vesta (in Sagittarius) is trining (brakes off) strategic Pallas (in Leo) at 24 degrees. This is where we put our energy as we move toward HIGHER GROUND this weekend. Bring an optimistic, big-picture focus on Leo - creative projects, children, romance, fun - our heart's desire, that thing that pushes us into the center stage of our own life, what we are here to be proud of.

We will talk more about the Grand Earth Trine and the powerful Pisces Full Moon in this weekend's post.

xo all

Astrology Forecast For Creatives | Week of August 13th - smooth sailing, don't rush or force things, our rose-colored glasses are wearing rose-colored glasses, love, compassion, stay grounded

... bohemian rapsody 2 by oprisco

Here are some aspects/transits I see for the week ahead:

SUNDAY - Mars retrogrades back into Capricorn, Venus trines the South Node and sextiles the North Node, Pluto trines Ceres
SATURDAY - Mercury sextile Venus
SUNDAY - Mercury stations direct (!), Jupiter trines Neptune
ALL WEEK - Grand Earth Trine with Pluto/Ceres/Juno

Notice the word trine (brakes off) multiple times!

This is a quiet week allowing us to acclimate to this summer's eclipse shifts. Keep in mind we still have six retrograde planets and an active Neptune (obscuring our vision/reality), so let's give the eclipse dust some time to settle down a bit before making any big decisions. We are doing the "re's" (review, revamp, revisit, rethink, redo, relax, etc) and the major work is an inside job.

This week's multiple trines will allow things to fall into place if we go with the flow. They could make us a bit lazy, but I think we are allowed a little breather after the last three months!

Let's start our forecast with Sunday this week since it kind of sets everything up.

On SUNDAY our Virgo Moon makes a Grand Earth Trine with Saturn and Uranus. Mars, still retrograde, moves from Aquarius back into sober Capricorn (through September 12th).

Mars into Capricorn will get us re-focused on our goals and ambitions.

He is still retrograde, so it's not the time for any big moves, but we are setting up the big moves that will come in September. NOTE - after September's full-steam-ahead, Venus will retrograde on October 5th and on the day she stations direct a month later Mercury will station retrograde again, so from October 5th - mid December we are back in the "re's" - we want to make September count and we are setting it up NOW.

Mars change of signs will shift our passions/ambitions/anger/initiative. Mars is exalted in Capricorn - like a young soldier under a salty general, he (as we) can do some of his best work. So, yes, even if we are laying on the beach we will probably be thinking about work or our ambitious plans to make this vacation our best vacation ever. Ha!

Pluto will trine Ceres (Demeter in the Greek story) and Venus (home in Libra) will trine the South Node (in Aquarius). With Venus/Libra trining (brakes off) the South Node (endings, release) we could be re-visiting a prior relationship or relationship issue. The opportunity comes through that sextile with the North Node - our heart, generosity, courage, standing out/up, our creativity and children.

The Virgo Moon will have us focused on service, organization, our day-to-day activities, our health, our work, our pets. Her trine (brakes off) to Saturn (in Capricorn) and Uranus (in Taurus) grounds whatever we are doing. We will be focused on the practical side of life. Some things fall into place so soundlessly we might not even notice.

Now, Mercury is still retrograde so there could still be some snafus and delays, but we should see less of them this week.

For the rest of the week I have nothing to write about other than the Moons, so the aspects through Friday will be fast-moving.

On MONDAY we wake (7:12AM EDT) with the Virgo Moon trining Pluto (in Capricorn). No sleeping in! We are sharp and focused. Small changes create big improvements. After midnight the same Virgo Moon trines Mars (now retrograde in Capricorn) giving us a burst of energy and the ability to get alot done. Who needs sleep, right?! The Moon takes a short void from 12:37AM EDT to 12:57AM EDT when she moves into Libra.

On TUESDAY the Moon in Libra turns our attention to Libran matters - relationships, money, our resources, beauty, women and self-esteem. She squares sober Saturn at 5:55AM EDT so we could wake up grumpy - or we could just let him sleep (let him sleep!). People could be more serious, unbending and less interested in anything that sounds like 'cooperation'. The good news at 2:05PM EDT, the Moon will conjunct lovely Venus making for an easier afternoon. Relationships, cooperation, commerce - things will smooth out. Good energy for socializing. In the evening more good news as the Moon sextiles (opportunity) Mercury at 10:09PM EDT. A good time for a heart to heart conversation. Good for romance and business.

At 9:540AM EDT on WEDNESDAY, the Libra Moon will square Pluto - tempers could flare, secrets come out - the stuff we have stuffed doesn't stay stuffed. At 4:22PM EDT the Moon sextiles the Sun - Moon/Sun sextiles are always good for starting new things - especially short-term projects. Good for creativity, time with children, romance.

On THURSDAY things could be a bit more testy and frustrating, but we could get alot accomplished today. Hopefully we can sleep through the Moon square Mars (3:56AM EDT) - impulsive action, anger, tension. Following an hour long void the Moon enters Scorpio while we sleep focusing us on Scorpian issues for the next couple days - finances, loans, mortgages, debt, sex, reproduction, death/rebirth, other people's resources, the things/ways we merge with other people as well as the themes of our natal Scorpio house.

With the Moon in Scorpio it is always good to KEEP MOVING, so we don't get bogged down in the muck!

At 9:27AM EDT the Scorpian Moon will oppose Uranus (in Taurus). We won't want to be boxed in. People will be seeking out unusual experiences. Paranoia, obsession. Excellent energy for focus and research and to get alot accomplished though. An hour later the Moon will sextile Saturn - do the work, be responsible. The Moon squares Mercury in the P.M. - not good for communications, not the time to be out driving around or dealing with sibling issues.

On FRIDAY the Moon conjuncts Jupiter at 9:06AM EDT - we will all want the day off! This is a good day for business though. We should be feeling lucky and optimistic. Within 30 minutes she moves into a trine with Neptune - more "let's call in sick and take the day off" energy! We could be uber emotional, more compassionate toward others, but also more easily hurt/offended. By 4:11PM EDT the Moon is sextiling Pluto - here is where we get ambitious. This is good energy to have a breakthrough!

On SATURDAY we have the monthly Moon's First Quarter Square with the Scorpio Moon squaring the Leo Sun. Here is our first challenge from last Saturday's Solar Eclipse. There is tension/frustration. Scorpio and Leo are fixed signs so something needs to give here. At 11:07AM EDT the Moon will sextile Mars - the opportunity comes by taking action - especially actions we have taken before or on matters already in play. Following a short void the Moon moves into optimistic Sagittarius focusing us on Sagittarian themes for the next couple days - legal issues, higher education, travel, weddings, our higher thinking, our beliefs, foreigners, exploration, the media, publishing, everything just outside our comfort zone.

At 9:36AM EDT, Mercury - retrograde in Leo - will sextile Venus (in Libra) - this opportunity will be in play for a couple weeks. Mercury in Leo is dramatic and Venus in Libra wants to hear what Mercury has to say. This is an excellent aspect for communication, relationships, love, money and commerce. Great for making art, eloquent writing and making creative projects more beautiful and attractive. Excellent for improving relationships with children and for romance. We will be thinking about relationships/sharing information. Sweet talk feels good. Showy language and big talkers could be more attractive ....

which leads us to SUNDAY and Jupiter trine Neptune which is THE BIG ENERGY OF THE WEEK and one of the biggest energetics in 2018. This is a repeating pattern we had on December 2nd and May 25th. Today's trine is the final of 2018. This is excellent energy for healing, spiritual work, compassion.

Jupiter stretches our boundaries and then Neptune dissolves them.  Boundaries? What boundaries?

This can be a very good thing where we fall right into something WONDERFUL

or something like quicksand and we are very quickly submerged, all depending on what we have going on in our life and how closely this is hitting our planets/points (15 degrees Scorpio/Pisces).

This is excellent healing energy. This is excellent "dream come true" energy. We are manifesting through our emotions now.

With Jupiter in Scorpio though we just need to be sure this is a positive dream and not an obsession/addiction because it could be hard to see the difference now.

Our, and other people's, aspirations could be delusional. 

Our rose colored glasses will be wearing their own rose-colored glasses.

We can more easily connect with collective consciousness. This is excellent energy for meditation - to take care of ourselves. With Uranus retrograde in Taurus now - our health (especially our self-esteem) really will be our wealth.

Connect with nature. Get into water.

If you have someone in your life prone to addiction, this is tricky energy for that - reach out to them now - connection heals addiction.

Our own addictions/escape hatches could become more visible. 

If we have to push we are moving against the currents today. Let it be. The "no limits" comes through faith now. Trust.

Also on SUNDAY Mercury will station direct at 11 degrees Leo. Mercury is very potent at the time of his/her station, so take care driving/operating machinery/dealing with a crazy sibling, no dark alleys - you know the drill. It will take her a few days to get back up to speed and she will be covering old ground (degrees he has walked before) until September 2nd. Answers come in. Progress can be made now - and especially in September!

We will talk more about the big energetics as we move through the week. The urge to escape from reality will be strong now - stay grounded.

xo all

Leo Solar Eclipse New Moon | allowing ourselves to shine, what's on fire?

fire by NadyaBird

At 5:58AM EDT on August 11th the Sun meets the Moon at 18 degrees Leo.

Even through this is a partial Solar Eclipse astronomically, the astrology around this eclipse and its placement in this summer's protracted eclipse season magnifies its energy and makes it extremely powerful.

This is a powerful new beginning for our Leo house (ruled by the Sun) - the space in our chart where we came here to shine!

Pallas is only one degree away from the Sun/New Moon. Pallas is an asteroid Goddess that rules - among other things - diplomatic solutions, strategies, tactics and patterns. So, we have the Sun meeting the Moon in the sign of the North Node (our collective way forward), a retrograde Mercury - our thinking, ideas, communication - conjunct the eclipse, Mars retrograding through the opposing sign (Aquarius), and Pallas nearly exactly conjunct. The Eclipse is forming a Yod (finger of God formed by tense aspects calked inconjuncts that cannot be easily reconciled) with Pluto (in Capricorn) and Neptune (in Pisces).  The Eclipse squares Jupiter (in Scorpio) and Jupiter is still opposing Juno.

There are also all the things we talked about HERE in the weekly playing out!

Times are complicated and challenging!

Let's unpack this - although I think after we unpack it the real power will be in the empty suitcase we are left with! And remember eclipse energy is tricky and moves forward and backward so you might have had this play out a week ago or a month ago - likely almost exactly to the day - or a week or month from now.

First the New Moon is our monthly new beginning when the Moon meets up with the Sun - any time any planet meets the Sun it starts a new cycle and the Moon, blowing through a sign every two and a half days, meets the Sun the most often (monthly). Happening in Leo, a fire sign ruled by the Sun, the Leo New Moon is always a BIG New Moon. Happening near the North Node gives us an eclipse (partial since the North Node is quite a bit past the eclipse point at 5 degrees Leo).

Eclipses are times of collective karma and cosmic resets. We get rebooted!

So we get this fiery fresh start for our Leo house - the space in our natal chart (what house does Leo rule in your natal chart? what house holds the Sun?) we are meant to stand out and shine. The stage that sits empty (for the world!) when we park our ass in the audience.

For all of us Leo rules our creativity, children, romance, fun, games, our heart's desire, generosity, pride, confidence, courage and love.

So we get this potent kick off but this isn't happening all by itself. The Sun and Moon are interacting with other energies and other energies are interacting with each other and everything is playing a part here.

First of all we have Mercury retrograde in Leo - and remember Mercury just met up with the Sun a couple days ago. Our powerful new beginning has its roots in the past - maybe via an actual person who brings us some important information this week or who reappeared from the past or through an idea/communication that came through this week, or will come through within the next couple days.

We have Pallas conjunct the Eclipse. Pallas has been in Leo since mid-July. This placement speaks of showy solutions and dramatic - there is nothing shy about Pallas in Leo - plans and strategies. We want to bowl people over. We want to knock their socks off and we want those socks to fly through the air (let's hope they've been laundered) and attract even more attention. We want applause and a pat on the back. We want to take a bow.

Now, the rub is we have these inconjuncts (rock and hard place) with Neptune and Pluto. Neptune and Pluto are sextiling (opportunity) each other. So they are working well with each other, but not so well with the Eclipse energy.

Let's look at the sextile first.

*Pluto and Neptune are working together. At its highest this energetic connection is spiritual (Neptune) transformation (Pluto). Renewal through compassion. The powerful (Pluto) becoming weak (Neptune). The weak becoming powerful. Painful experiences (Pluto) dissolve (Neptune). We can make owerful changes (Pluto) through our dreams and imagination (Neptune).

At its lower frequencies we could see things like we let our power (Pluto) slip through our fingers (Neptune). We escape (Neptune) through destruction/death (Pluto). There are bogus (Neptune) endings and changes (Pluto). We are lost at sea and lose sight of land (what really matters). We cross needed boundaries (Neptune) by merging too deeply (Pluto) with something/someone.

Let's shoot for the highest ground here. With both these energies inconjunct the Eclipse there could be power struggles and lapses into fantasy/escape.

We will know these possibilities are in play, but choose to see what the Yod - finger of God, voice of God speaking to/through us - is pointing us toward which is the Leo Eclipse!

And we can choose to use the higher manifestations of that sextile.*

We have Jupiter squaring the Eclipse energy. Jupiter squares expand. And Jupiter is trining (brakes off) Neptune for the smooth expansion of our dream or a slippery slope into delusion/self sabotage. That sounds harsh, but let's keep things real here. Jupiter is full of hot air - literally! And we have Jupiter opposing Juno (relationship, marriage, contractual commitments) - so something is still standing in our way.

This is all playing out in the world and this is all playing out in each of our lives. If we have planets or points near 18 degrees of the fixed signs (Aquarius, Taurus, Leo or Scorpio) or near the positions of any of the other power players in this celestial drama we will be more directly impacted.

And as I reread what I have written here I think I have made something simple (not easy, but simple) appear much too complicated.

At its heart this eclipse is about following our heart. About us not waiting for permission to shine.

We are many months into the Leo North Node - and if you have been reading this blog, you know I have been writing for months about following our heart - and we FINALLY get the Leo New Moon! We have had many months to figure out what the hell we are wanting. We know what it is. I can almost guarantee it is already right in front of us. Can we see/feel that yet? And it could be some thing/situation/decision that we would have laughed at a couple years ago and said NO WAY. We have let go of a dream or two in the last couple years. And now here we are. We are kind of like Dorothy on her way toward waking up at home after the tornado ...

Whatever new thing/situation/person/belief/action we choose to work with needs to be something we are excited about, it needs to stir us. It needs to not have any self-sacrifice or victim mentality connected to it. It needs to come with a certain ease. This doesn't mean there won't be work involved, but it can't be only work involved.

With the North Node in Leo now if we really don't want to do something and we do it anyway, it isn't going to work. What we want, what is calling to our heart, is the only thing that will work now.

This is the time we release our detachment (Aquarius) and we move into our heart (Leo).

We are playing a long game.

This is not the time to screw it all up with a big gnarly move, but there is a play to be made and we aren't allowed to sit this one out.

Also keep in mind other people are working through these dense energies, too, and let's give them a break if they let us down. Healing Chiron is in independent Aries - no one owes us anything.

This is the time we take the thing that has alienated and set us apart (Aquarius) and bring it front and center onto the stage (Leo). It will be the thing we are proud of. It will be the thing that makes our heart happy. It will be the thing that when we think about moving toward it - we feel a little lighter, life feels a little easier.

It won't be the big complicated thing we get a headache just thinking about actually doing.

This is the time we step away from the crowd and back into ourselves. We stop revolting against what we don't want and start creating what we do want. We put away the phone and go play with the kids. We turn off the internet and use our computer to write that book we have been wanting to write. We turn our attention away from the masses - our pseudo family who agree with us - and toward the people we love who are right in front of us - who probably do NOT always agree with us. We are connected to the people we are physically connected to for a reason!

This is not a month to miss setting our New Moon intentions. Fire signs are the most potent plus this one has the Eclipse behind it, the Yod and the square to lucky, expansive Jupiter!

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 with fire - release your attention from these things knowing your intention is known. 

Life has heard you. 

Know these things are already yours.

xo all

Keep in mind Mars and Mercury and Saturn and Uranus are all retrograde. We are going back over alot of stuff. Many things have been brought to a standstill and many situations are dangling. Just set your intentions. What does your heart want? What feels best? We are planting powerful seeds in the ground here with our mind (Mercury is conjunct and yes, the past will factor in because Mercury is retrograde!).

During the Full Moon at the end of August and the days leading up to it - beginning around the 22nd - we have a Grand Earth Trine so after this summer of retrospection and road blocks, we will know what to do, what practical steps to take. By September we will be launching ourselves from this new, more solid space. For now - set those intentions. Give yourself a pat on the back if those are the only hands available. Recognize how far you have come. We have all faced a challenging journey and we ARE STILL HERE.

Lots of karma is released during eclipses. This is a good thing, but it doesn't always feel good.

It can leave us standing on shifting sand or even isolated as we disconnect from people and situations via karma releases. I had a friend tell me she doesn't feel connected to her son anymore and looking at their charts this makes perfect sense because alot of baggage between them was unloaded. Their roots are no longer all tangled together. She feels sad. And lost. This is the sucky part of dissolving karma and probably why we allow ourselves to be enmeshed in this crap for lifetimes. Life is forcing our hand now. Just take things one day at a time and be gentle with ourselves and each other. I told her she is getting a fresh set of eyes to see her son. An unencumbered heart to love him. Give it time.

I am trying to take my own advice (because I often don't!) this summer, too.  

GIVE THINGS TIME. 

The first astrology class I ever took was decades ago in Princeton, N.J. I was in banking then and starting to dabble. The teacher was very good with astrology, but his people skills could be harsh. He went around the room and said one sentence about each student's chart. With my chart in his hand he said "this person is in a hurry". I thought, "that's it, that's all I get?!". I felt cheated. I wasn't in a hurry! Didn't he see that nearly exact, challenging T-Square? my Neptune ascendant? that Sun/Saturn? that Sun/Mars? that Sun/Neptune? Hurry? My mother was in a hurry. She talked fast. She walked fast. Not me! Then over the years I thought "my daughter is in a hurry or hubs is always in a hurry or that other driver is in a hurry or my boss/work/my customers push me to hurry". And even as I grew to appreciate the tiny, fragile beginnings of things and little babies and allowing the time to let things GROW and God's own right timing - I still fought the idea that I was "in a hurry",  until I totally burnt myself out from being "in a hurry". Ha! I would never characterize a chart with one sentence though, but it did have impact.

Note - with Mars retrograde this is not a time to hurry. Also note on FRIDAY we have Black Moon Lilith move into conjunction with our retrograde Mars so expect our controversial outsider (anti-patriarchy) energy to be activated via passion/anger/action likely over a situation from the past. BML will not tow the party line! Also Venus is still squaring Saturn so check the weekly about that one.

xo again

Mercury Retrograde Conjunct the Sun | we arrive at the heart of Mercury retrograde

my kind of universe by The Autumn Leaves

"the wound is the place where the light enters you" ... Rumi

Today we have Mercury, moving backward and at the midpoint of his/her retrograde journey, meeting up with the Sun at 15-16 degrees Leo.

Information comes in, the light shines on what we need to know/hear/say.

The "news/clarity" will figure into this weekend's Leo eclipse, could relate back to the last time Mercury met the Sun in early June and Mercury will meet the Sun again in a couple months when whatever is watered now will be fully grown/completed. 

It won't be easy to see what is real here though.

There are multiple challenges with slippery Neptune at the moment, so it might be hard to get a grasp on things - hard to know what to do, say, think. Language could be inspired or head us into lala land. Maybe whatever "news/clarity" comes in shakes up a dream/fantasy. Watch for self-sabotage here. We could easily drift off course. Neptunian challenges require us to reach for the highest/most compassionate ground ... and yes, we might have to swim to reach it. Find the solid ground. Then sit tight. Give things time to unwind. Meditate. Get into some water. Give Neptune his due here.

At the same time Venus (love, money, relationships, values and self-esteem) is trining (brakes off) a retrograde Mars and opposing a retrograde Chiron. And the Sun is squaring Juno (relationships/commitments/partnerships) so more tension there.

Old actions, old angers, old passions, old wounds, old inequalities - can be stirred up now. Venus in Libra is beautiful energy but its shadow is the people-pleasing and denial that comes with wanting everything to be balanced, wanting everyone to be happy. It isn't our job to make someone else happy and it isn't their job to please us. Chiron is called the wounded healer because he is wounded, not because he heals wounds. Let's not be so quick to reach for that box of bandaids.

With so many planets retrograde some 'fencing sitting' is likely now. It's not only likely, it's smart.

When planets go retrograde over a situation we either 1. already have everything we need - the solution is next to the problem, but it's hidden among the many moving parts and we can't see it, so the parts slow down. The parts stop moving. Or 2. other things have to fall into place and our actions are taking us further away from what we need. So we are forced to stop and let life catch up with us.

In the meantime pay attention to language now (situations could also involve other Mercurian themes - siblings, local neighborhood, transportation, electronics) because a light is being shined on something we are meant to SEE.

xo all

Astrology Forecast For Creatives | Week of August 6th - change is an inside job, casting out the projection, a world on fire, anxious to get going but sit with it, pride, money/love gets serious, back to the future, NEWS from the past, sudden shake-ups and abrupt opportunities, the final ECLIPSE of the season

"Life's splendor forever lies in wait about each one of us in all its fullness, but veiled from view, deep down, invisible, far off. It is there, though, not hostile, not reluctant, not deaf. If you summon it by the right word, by its right name, it will come."
- Franz Kafka

I Can Hear You Call by Martin Stranka

MONDAY - Venus home to Libra, Sun square Jupiter
TUESDAY - Uranus stations retrograde
WEDNESDAY - Sun conjunct Mercury retrograde
THURSDAY - Venus square Saturn
SATURDAY - Leo Full Moon Solar Eclipse (18 degrees)
SUNDAY - Retrograde Mars backs into Capricorn

This week's chart is challenging me because I skipped last week (due to having my family in town for a visit), so let's take a peek backwards first.

We had the second (of three) squares between Mars and Uranus LAST WEEK - that could have shown up as a disruption, a break-up, breakdown, breakthrough, break for freedom, accident or a fight (and with Mars retrograde we wouldn't have really been fighting over what it looked like we were fighting over - this would have really been about something from the past, maybe  a very long ago past). With Mars retrograde in "center-stage" Leo we are all grappling with how to express ourselves so we get what we want. The square could have had us dealing with a situation involving children or romance or something that took the "fun" (yes, Leo rules fun and games) out of whatever we were doing.

This square is part of a series. We had the first square May 16th with both planets direct, the second on August 1st with Mars retrograde and Uranus direct and the final square on September 18th with Mars direct and Uranus retrograde.  

However this energy shows up - it is ultimately about breaking/disrupting (Uranus) past patterns (the retrograde energy) through our actions/anger/passion (Mars).

We also had Juno opposing Jupiter last week - tension within partnerships, who/what we have committed ourselves to. Maybe the reality of some situation/partnership/commitment was in our face or there was/is a power imbalance we needed to deal with - Juno and Jupiter were married Gods, with her playing the ever-faithful wife and him the philandering hubby. What are we willing to put up with? With Jupiter in Scorpio probably not very much!

Keep in mind we have alot of retrograde energy, AND Mercury is retrograde and that is hugely impactful - everything right now is an inside job, everything happening outside is a projection! We are always meeting ourselves through outside people and situations, but now is a time we need to sit with what we see/feel. This is where we get to see how the stuff happening to us is actually being created through us.

It's August - take a breath. And a vacation! Re-lax is a "re" word, too.

OK - let's unpack the week ahead, because it is all leading us to another ECLIPSE!

On MONDAY we have Venus, bags packed efficiently from her weeks in Virgo, moving home to Libra - a space she rules, at 7:28PM EDT. After being cramped up in tidy Virgo, she can breathe again and there is room for other people. Venus in Libra is about love and partnership, collaboration and compromise. Venus in Libra is about balance.  

The relationship adjustments and nit-picking should begin to smooth out now. As we continue to wade through this summer's muck at least we now have Venus in Libra!

This transit (until September 9th - note with her upcoming retrograde in Scorpio she will be back in Libra from October 31st to December 2nd - I will give you a heads up when she starts walking degrees she will walk again) makes Libra Suns and Risings, who are already naturally attractive - oh yes, they are!, even more so - both physically attractive and more able to attract what they want/need.

Everyone's Libra house gets more attractive, too - where was Libra when you were born?

We will be attracted to what we find 'beautiful'. We will be attracted to what we find 'just'. We will be attracted to what we find 'peaceful'. And these are the qualities people will find attractive in us and our work in the world. These are the qualities we'll want to bring to the table (and yes, flowers that would be a good thing to bring to the table now, too) to attract whatever we are wanting to attract now, particularly in the area of life housing our natal Libra.

The potential for peace increases as we (the collective) move from critic (Virgo) to diplomat (Libra).

The potential for people pleasing increases, too. Balance is the key now. Making life too much about the other person is Libra's shadow side. It's easier, or I should say, lazier, to just give in to something to have "harmony" than to work out the win-wins. We need to honor ourselves as well as the other person. It's simple, but not easy. If we think balance is easy we should stand on one leg for a while!

The downside is we have a T-Square between Venus and Saturn and Chiron from around August 3rd to August 14th that is challenging our relationships/finances/what we value, our self-esteem. This T-square will be especially potent this week. With the T-Square focusing us on Saturn (our Capricorn house) stepping into our responsibility, doing the work, living up to our commitments - in some area of life we just have to KEEP GOING. It's winter even though it is 100 degrees outside. I hope you have some green beans in the pantry.

The empty space here is our Cancer house - so here is a fix. Taking care of ourselves physically and emotionally, eating well, mothering ourselves, a focus on home and family, a watering of the roots for what we want to grow. The theme of our natal Cancer house needs our attention, too. The good news is while Venus opposes Chiron and squares Saturn - she will be trining (brakes off) Mars, so there is assistance available from our Aquarius house (and collectively from stepping back from the situation, from detaching, from being uniquely ourselves, from giving something some space).

Also at 7:28PM EDT (that's interesting!), the Sun (in Leo) moves into a square with Jupiter (in Scorpio). We could take things too far, things could look better than they actually are, we could overestimate what is possible or take on too much. This might be a good night to be out and about and socializing though!

It will be hard to keep a lid on a boiling pot now - secrets can come out into the light, too.

On TUESDAY Uranus stations retrograde at 2 degrees Taurus at 12:49PM EDT.  

There could be sudden shake-ups and unexpected opportunities now as this major player shifts gears. He will move back over whatever he has been shaking up in our life since mid-May and move back into Aries, to totally finish up the chapter that has been hanging since that time and by the time he gets back into Taurus on March 6, 2019 - that Aries story will be complete (we have Chiron here to heal the damage) and our Uranus/Taurus story, through July 7, 2025 - will be full steam ahead. If this retrograde period means Uranus is moving away from your natal planets and points, things will smooth out now. If he is moving back over them there could be more disruptions.

Keep in mind what is happening here - Uranus (the ruler of Aquarius and planet of chaos and disruption) has made his entry into our Taurus house - since mid-May - this has given us a taste of what is to come. Now he retreats back over the ground he has covered to smooth things out a bit, moves back into Aries to finish up that story (before mid-may he was in Aries for seven years) and remember Aries has changed since Uranus left and Chiron arrived! Then he will reverse course and head back into Taurus for the long haul. Uranus will be back to today's degree in May 2019 though, so keep this in mind.

By 2025 so much will have changed (not just through Uranus, but he is playing a major part) we will be living in a totally different world.

As a collective, our Taurean structures will be shaken over the next few years - our values will change, the ways we use and earn money will change, the Earth will change, the way we value beauty and what we consider beautiful, the way we value our possessions, our self-esteem, the connections between self-esteem and money/resources will be evident, our stale habits will get a kick in the ass, anything boxing us in will be broken open - the more comfortable our comfort zone, the more uncomfortable we may need to get. Whatever this is in our life we have probably had a preview since mid-May.

At 8:23PM EDT, Venus will trine Mars. This is good for men and women getting along - what we want and what we have to do to get what we want working together. We talked about this on Monday as part of that Venus T-Square.  This is a good aspect for business. Money moves. 

We also have the Sun hooking up with Pallas at 14 degrees Leo - this is about shining a spotlight on our plans and strategies. Good energy for presenting ideas (Leo loves an audience) and for recognizing - cue one of Oprah's lightbulb moments - patterns.

NOTE the Moon is void all day Tuesday until she moves home to Cancer at midnight. This is not a good day to start something new or launch anything into the world we want "something to come of".

On WEDNESDAY, the Moon is in Cancer turning our emotional focus to Cancerian themes for the next couple days - home, family, our roots, nurturing, structure, safety, country, patriotism, mom and apple pie. We might find we, and other people, are more sensitive, emotional and moody while the Moon is in Cancer.

The Sun (in Leo) hooks up with a retrograde Mercury at 10:06PM EDT. Here is the mid-way point in this season's Mercury retrograde story.

Information comes in, the light shines on what we need to know/hear/say.  

The "news" will figure into this week's Leo eclipse.

This eclipse takes us back to August 1999. What was going on in our life at that time? Is there any connection to what is happening now?

This is normally a good aspect to start something new (Mercury starts a new story with the Sun) but with Mercury retrograde this time around - it isn't such good energy for totally new beginnings right now.

This could also show up for us as a person from our past, maybe with a BIG story to tell. So pay attention.

On THURSDAY, we wake up with the Moon (in Cancer) opposing Pluto (in Capricorn). The air is ripe for power plays, jealousy, compulsive behavior and competition. Things finish. People can be ruthless. Avoid over-reacting. The Moon goes Void until tonight, so this is another day you don't want to start something new.

At 9:34PM EDT Venus squares Saturn. This is part of the T-Square I wrote about for Monday. People might be less flexible and harder to please. Relationship/money/values issues get serious. Belts tighten. We feel our age (or we feel our mother's age!). We could be feeling depressed about our creative projects or abilities. This would not be the best energy to throw a party! Maybe career/responsibilities (Capricorn) is hindering a relationship (Libra) or vice versa. However the cards fall remember this is a transit. It is transitory. We are playing the long game now.

A bit after midnight the Moon enters Leo turning our emotional focus toward Leo themes (our heart, creative projects. romance, children, fun, our natural spotlight) and getting us primed for Saturday's New Moon Solar Eclipse in Leo - when the Moon meets the Sun.

On FRIDAY the Moon has been moving through a mixed-bag of energies while we slept so we could be dealing with unexpected and disruptive situations in the A.M. (Moon square Uranus) or more pleasant opportunities (Moon sextile Venus).

We will talk about the rest of the weekend including Saturday's New Moon Solar ECLIPSE in the next post - the final eclipse of this summer's eclipse season it is in forceful LEO's "do it BIG" style - a FIERY one with a challenging Yod - so brace for drama and challenges as we move "all in" and our collective karma plays out!

Things will get clearer when Mercury stations direct next week and in the days that follow that.

 xo all

Note - the New Moon Solar Eclipse begins a long Void Moon, so it could feel like the Void Moon lasts until the next New Moon in September! Void month? Nothing started amounts to anything? Um,  I'm not sure, but did I already say "take a vacation?!".

And BTW another heads up - September will take off right out of the gate.

Full Moon Lunar Eclipse in Aquarius | what are we afraid to confront, something is eclipsed out or out of our way, think before acting and then re-think, releasing detachment and distraction, a chart for how to NOT end up in a dystopian nightmare

At 4:19PM EDT, today, with the Moon at 4 degrees Aquarius (on the South Node) opposing the Sun at 4 degrees Leo (on the North Node) we have a Full Moon Lunar Eclipse.

This one is so gnarly I almost didn't want to write about it - I think that's the main reason I procrastinated the weekly until it was too late to write! 

I have heard this is the longest lunar eclipse of this century (some astrologers believe the length of the Moon impacts the length of time its energy is in play - if this is true, this one will have a long impact). I am not sure how I would verify this, but I do know it is the second eclipse (of three) during this long, hot summer.

Full Moons bring energy to a "peak"; to a culmination, maybe to an ending. Eclipses eclipse something out; we get re-set.

If you have planets or points near or on 4-5 degrees of the fixed signs - Aquarius, Taurus, Leo or Scorpio - some area of your life will be very, very different in 6 months (lunar eclipses play out over 6 months - although this one could be longer). For everyone else this eclipse is bringing something to a peak, culmination or an ending. Emotions will be running high now.

The Eclipse is involved in a T-Square with unpredictable Uranus - with Uranus being the focal point and the Moon is conjunct a retrograde Mars (action/anger/passion). Venus has barely squeaked past her opposition to Neptune (we talked about this for Monday and Tuesday), but the dynamic is still in play here. Jupiter loosely fills in the missing leg of the T-Square (Scorpio!). Mercury has just stationed retrograde, so is strong and still and out of sorts. Saturn is trining Uranus and Saturn/Uranus are the co-rulers of Aquarius and of this Eclipse. There is more, but these are the major players here. Whew!

With the Moon conjunct that retrograde Mars - our Mars retrograde, Mars/South Node story will be activated BIG time. HERE is a post about that. We are now at the HEART of the Mars retrograde season and the heart of eclipse season. This is the date we circled on our calendar weeks ago.

This is about us breaking patterns of behavior.

Let's unpack the chart.

The SUN is sitting strong and proud in his/her home sign of Leo. Leo is represented by the lion. A lion is a cat. If you live with a cat you have some idea of what this 'king of the beasts' thing is all about. It becomes the cat's house. You become the cat's human. Cats rule. The male lion doesn't just get to mate with his choice of lioness. He gets all the lionesses.

(and now I am picturing a whole lineup of that little guy from Peanuts dragging his blanket)

Leo represents royalty and generosity and fun and creativity and greed. The shadow of the Leo archetype is a kind of arrogance or self-importance, but what you will find with most Leos is that they have a presence - they impress us. Ruled by the center of our galaxy, the Sun, they rule center stage. We all have Leo somewhere in our chart.

And we all have a stage that sits empty when we don't do our Leo!

It is hard to see when a Leo is not OK and needs help because they unconsciously give us a feeling that they can handle anything. So, when Leo energy (and this can be a Leo Sun or ascendant or anyone speaking from the space we carry Leo in our natal charts, ie if you have Leo in the 7th house and are talking about your partner or if you have Leo in the 2nd house and are talking about your money) is asked, "how's it going?" and Leo energy says "not great, actually I am barely hanging in there" - the other person, instead of asking "why, what's going on?" would be more likely to laugh it off and say something like "me, too" and launch into their own story.

It's hard for other people to relate to Leo as "one of us".

Aquarius energy - which rules this Lunar Eclipse - is the opposite side of the same coin.

It's the energy of "we". It is detached (this doesn't mean unaware or involved) and emotionally non-reactive - note I mean the energy and not all Aquarians, no one is just one thing! It doesn't need to feel special because it already knows it is special - it rules the 11th house (of 12) Aquarius is advanced. It is the sign that comes after the sign that rules achievement. Aquarius knows everyone is special (and the challenge with that is in allowing the Leo specialness to shine and not create a space where everyone being equal means everyone being the same - this is some of what is happening with the rise of populism, people thinking they are trying to hold onto what makes them special when they are really grasping at the dying embers of what makes them the same).

Ruled by Uranus it is the sign of the genius, rebel and criminal. The Aquarius space in our chart is where things will work best by being 'outside the box'. It is unpredictable.

Like Leo, Aquarius doesn't do humble either. 

It's hard for other people to relate to Aquarius as "one of us", too. The Aquarius/Leo polarity isn't about fitting in, because both sides, in different ways, are meant to STAND OUT.

Now even though it's a Full Moon and it's the Moon's show - the Sun is uber strong in Leo - and sitting on the North Node of our collective destiny.

We are either following our heart (that Leo North Node), stepping onto the center stage of our own life, standing on our own two feet or we are avoiding the Mars opposition, avoiding action - doing the old duck-and-cover, hiding out in our comfort zone - which is certain to get a whole lot less comfortable with Uranus there for the next 7 years - staying on the sidelines and away from the limelight. Or maybe we are playing out the same old anger story, or same old impulsive action story that keeps us stuck in a loop - and if we are, the Full Moon at the Mars retrograde mid-point will let us SEE that.

The square to URANUS in today's chart is the wild card energy here. And remember Uranus is uber-strong, too, even though he doesn't like being in Taurus - because he rules Aquarius and the Moon now. Uranus is our fast track on the evolutionary spiral. Something unexpected. Something disruptive. Uranus in Taurus is shaking the very ground beneath our feet, shifting magnetic fields to align us with new realities. Uranus in Taurus is changing what we value. It's also triggering us through what other people have. They have it. We want it. We are triggered. 

Full Moons bring things to light. They bring endings and culminations. The square to Uranus tells us whatever happens here could happen suddenly. Uranian breaks taste like freedom, but maybe only in hindsight. In the moment it could feel like we are dropped on our ass.

SATURN is trining (brakes off) Uranus. Saturn isn't going to stop Uranus - so let's say we have been working our ass off, we could still lose our job, for example - but Saturian energy is available to stabilize something here if we have been doing our Saturn (the work, the responsibility, putting in the time) - so let's say we do lose our job, but the work (doing our Saturn) has resulted in savings in our bank account or resources from the connections we have made with other people - the Saturn stuff will sustain us through the changes. The Saturn trine could also play out as changes that are actually deliberate or calculated even though they appear to happen suddenly.

MERCURY has just stationed retrograde. She is strong and still and out of sorts. Our mind is not going to be much help to us here.

VENUS (from practical Virgo) is still opposing Neptune. The fantasy is still clashing with reality.

The Sun is not only opposing the Moon now - the Sun is also opposing MARS (our action, initiative, anger), retrograding through Aquarius this summer.

So what are we (the Sun) afraid to confront here? 

With that South Node Aquarius being eclipsed - the Earth is blocking the Moon - there is no safe place to hide out. We can't play the Aquarius card and hide out in the audience. We can't play the Aquarius card and hide out in technology. We can't play the Aquarius card and hide out in some kind of "otherness" that keeps us disconnected from ourselves and other people. Aquarius is eclipsed! 
  
And with Mars retrograde there are no bullets in our holster (this is why when we start a fight/lawsuit etc when Mars is retrograde we lose). There isn't even any gas in our gas tank! We come to this time empty of our usual armaments.

During the eclipse - our past conditioning, our past contracts and commitments (including prior life or familial DNA contracts - what we are carrying from our ancestors) - our trauma imprints - with an Aquarian signature (being banished from the group to die in the wilderness, the spaces we don't fit in) or the theme of our Aquarius house are eclipsed OUT. The ways we self-sabotage ourselves here will only be muscle memory after this eclipse. There is nothing, other than habit, supporting their continuation! And the ways they used to work for us - will not work anymore.

I heard a well-known astrologer say something like "we have to step into Aquarius now - be detached, think like an Aquarian", but Aquarius is eclipsed, so I am not so sure of that advice. We have to be acting from our heart/Sun (Leo - the North Node) now.

We are evolving into the Age of Aquarius; a time of equality when we will be our own leaders. We have decided (subconsciously) as a collective that one of the ways to make this happen is for us to experience this particular collective shit-show we are now dealing with.

Remember the Hopi elder's quote.

I know alot of people in the spiritual community talk about "ascension" as if we are going to wake up one day ascended and all will be right with the world - as if it is something we are waiting for. This sounds an awful lot like the Christian belief that Jesus is returning to save us (or save some of us) or aliens are. I have no idea if this is going to happen, but I don't see this in the astrology. The astrology shows us the work. We can see the Age of Aquarius isn't anything like the Broadway musical. There won't be any long haired proclamations of peace (that was the ending of the Age of Pisces).

From this closer vantage point - fifty years past the 1960's - it is more obvious two things the Age of Aquarius is about are technology and equality.

These are the trains that will not be stopped.

And we can see by now how great and how beautiful the world can be with our collective focus here and also how easy, and how FAST, we can really muck this whole thing up - keep in mind the Age of Aquarius is set to last around 2600 years, so we will likely create every possible manifestation of beauty and muck at some point - ha!

(The other day hubs and I watched the movie Ready Player One - I love scifi, but am growing weary of all these dystopian dramas. They scare the hell out of me. It can't be good for what we are collectively creating to have millions of us thinking/focusing on this worst case stuff. This one is particularly scary because we can see how "they" could use technology to give people "pseudo-equality" where we are actually living in shacks but we put on a virtual reality headset and can do/be anything - this scenario sounds disturbingly possible if we muck up the next few years, if Aquarius doesn't embrace that Leo polarity of following our heart and being our own king, we end up with a tyrant king, a "they" ruling us)

The South Node in Aquarius and Mars retrograde this summer are some of the ways we make sure we get something great here. We can't skip steps. Whatever is happening in our life - is our little piece of this. When we choose attention over distraction - use technology not let it use us - when we choose the people right in front of us and ourselves over the group, when we aren't afraid to shine and confront (within ourselves and within our past is most likely with all these retrogrades) what is standing in the way of us bringing what we came here to bring and our own hero's journey - that Leo house theme and the theme of our Sun - we all know our Sun sign, right?! Our Sun sign IS our hero's journey.

Because the major players are forming a T-Square, the missing table leg, which is the opposite of the Taurus focal point is important. The missing leg is Scorpio. So the change/surprise/upset will come from our Taurus house, our Capricorn house will support the change and our Scorpio house will require an investment of our energy to stabilize whatever is happening.

I don't have to write this post by sign because we can't miss this energy. It is big. It is powerful. It is designed to shake us out of our distraction and detachment. Stay in your heart. Meditate. Pray. Connect.

With that Mars opposition and the square to Uranus, accidents/violence are more likely, so stay safe. Take your time with things. Something is going to break. Expect tantrums. Avoid angry confrontations and explosive endings if possible. Avoid impulsive actions. Aquarius rules advancement and higher ground - we will reach for that. Remember, we have never been here before!

Shortly after the Full Moon, Venus will trine Pluto so there is a payoff here. We will talk about that later.

xo all