jersey girl looks up

Sun Square Pluto, Mercury Sextile Saturn | power games and power struggles, playing chicken, use your grown up voice, just the facts Jack, speak decisively and honestly, grace under pressure, channel E.F. Hutton

Friday, October 12, 2018

The Moon moved into Sagittarius while we slept. Normally the Moon's first change of sign after the New Moon would help ease the New Moon energies - and it will somewhat - but with the Sun moving into a square with Pluto today (part of the New Moon story which is now exact) we might not feel the "let up" just yet. Some people will though.

With the Moon in Sagittarius for the next couple days, we will likely find our focus move onto Sagittarius themes (or the theme of our natal Sagittarius house) - the big picture, travel, stretching our boundaries, the media, legal issues, weddings, religion, foreign people, adventure, places and the things outside our immediate comfort zones. Avoid getting all preachy about something. Avoid taking anything so far it is dangerous - with the Sun moving into square with Pluto this is not the time for any limb dangling.

The Sun (in Libra) squares Pluto (in Capricorn). This is more of the power struggle energy we have been dealing with. Here is the "peak" of it (note - the energy peaks today, your situation may have already peaked). After today it will unwind a bit.

Someone is determined to come out on top. Someone is playing a serious game of "chicken". The Libra Sun tries to keep everything all cordial and balanced, but there is no balance here and the civility is only on the surface. If you feel someone is trying to control you - they are. If you are the one with the power and trying to persuade someone else (we call it persuasion when we do it and manipulation when it is done by other people) - take a moment here. This is the ultimate stressful aspect - whatever is happening can feel like life and death and it could actually be life and death, but is most likely our ego being squeezed.

People will want to feel powerful. People will be using intimidation to their advantage. We could attract (Sun) a Darth Vader (Pluto). This energy also feels like trying to control our father/the powerful masculine. We could be feeling overpowered by life right now. Keep in mind this is a transit. It is transitory.

This is excellent energy for recognizing our own shadow, because we are going to see it in those around us, especially within our close relationships.

The good news, and this feels somewhat similar to the Pallas (Virgo) aspect that was exact yesterday, is we have an opportunistic sextile from Mercury (in Scorpio) and Saturn (also in Capricorn).

So although there are planets in Libra and Capricorn squaring each other (tension/frustration) and they are major players we also have major players sextiling (opportunity) each other from relatively the same spaces.

So we have Mercury - our communication/thinking/ideas - being supported by sober and stable Saturn. Keep conversations serious. Use your grown-up voice. Actually, just be the grown-up in the room. That's how you get your power back now. Not with any manipulative tactics. Words are powerful. Speak wisely. Your power lies in what you know/communicate. Don't say too much. You know those guys who don't say much and we all think they're so smart - be like those guys.

Don't rush to agree with anyone using any bullying tactics now. Don't be intimidated and just say what you think someone in power wants to hear.

Be honest. And civil. Be the grown-up in the room. Put on your big-boy/girl pants. Be practical. Be strategic. Be serious. Talk about what you know.

Stick to the facts. Be that guy who doesn't say too much and everything thinks he's a genius. Speak decisively. Make every word count.

Think "grace under pressure" now.

OK - time to get on with my day. This week's astro is playing out very powerfully in my life. Will write about it this weekend to give you some examples. Try to enjoy this generous Sag Moon a bit if you can - by Sunday afternoon she will be in practical Capricorn and we will be getting down to business.

xo all

Mercury Square the Nodes from Scorpio |what is beneath the words, stuck in a loop, hearing what we might not want to hear, walking our talk, the unavoidable facts, uncomfortable conversations that are worth having, seeing the patterns - MAKING A PLAN

Thursday, October 11, 2018

in.my.head by lunariya

Yesterday's astrology was so gnarly that although I wrote about it in the weekly HERE (Mars square Venus, Mercury opposing Uranus) I didn't want to put my thoughts (which are things) onto paper again.

Whatever this was for us - maybe unexpected or abrupt information, frustration - I'm not going to rehash all the possibilities. We know these are challenging times and this week is particularly harsh.

Our Scorpio house is stressed.

After her opposition with Uranus yesterday, Mercury slips into square with the North and South Nodes of the Moon today (2 degrees - Scorpio, Aquarius, Leo).

This indicates an important piece of information comes to us now - maybe something we don't want to know, but just as likely something that points us in a particular direction. There is a conversation/discussion to be had and with that Venus/Mars square still so tight - it could be confrontational and might be connected to something from the past.

Venus (as us) is swimming backward through the dark waters of Scorpio now, so we are re-viewing, re-vising and re-turning to old situations. This doesn't mean we aren't moving forward. We are. It does mean though that totally new things are kind of "moving against the tide". So, when the tides turn (when Venus stations direct or when she starts covering new degrees) our fortunes with those things can, too. So, we could put alot of time/money/energy into something now that won't pan out in the long run. On the other hand the time/money/energy we are using to - review, revise and return - we know are being put to a good use. Maybe what didn't work before, can work out this time. Old opportunities come back around. Remember, Venus is in Scorpio - the sign of other people's resources and the ways we merge ourselves with other people - there is old gold to be mined now.

For today - and you may have received this information yesterday - pay attention to what triggers you. The fight about the garbage isn't really a fight about the garbage. The uncomfortable conversation with your boss is important. That late notice is important. That thing your kid just said to you that made you hold your breath is important. That song that gets stuck in your head is important.

We are being put on notice. That Aquarius situation, that is very old and very deep - the past life (childhood) trauma, alienation, what happened to us before when we spoke out/when we were uniquely ourselves, when we detached - is ripe for release and here is the information (that yes, could even come through the mouth of an a**hole boss or client) that pushes us toward that Leo North Node - our heart, our children, our creativity, our happiness, that stage that sits empty because it is intended solely for us and we are off hiding in the audience.

Pay attention to the facts that come out now.

There is a nice trine between Pluto (ruler of Scorpio and a hugely important player right now) and Pallas in "dot your i's and cross your t's" Virgo right now. Pallas is excellent energy for strategies, think warrior mode here (where we get to win) and in Virgo is highly effective.

So, make a plan. Step by step. One foot in front of the other. This isn't about making dramatic changes right now (although that Leo North Node does love drama!), but it is about taking practical steps. What has to be done to make the numbers add up? Do more of that. What is working? Do more of that. What isn't working gets cut. Get concise. Look for patterns. Think like a general (or an accountant!). Figure this sh*t out. These energies are activated within us now and want to work with/through us.

We have access to their collective firepower and remember both Venus and Mercury are answering to Pluto!

That trine to Pluto makes the practical VERY powerful right now.

xo all

(whatever news is playing out in the collective now - I admit I have stepped away from it for a couple days - will be important, too)

New Moon in Libra | October 8, 2018 - power imbalances, hard truths, holding ourselves together, planting the seeds of the old fruit, almost time to rebuild

Monday, October 8, 2018

The Catcher by Wonder Milky Girl

Some of today's post I am going to pull from MONDAY in the weekly, but some of it will be new. I thought, after re-reading yesterday's post last night, I might have colored it too darkly with my own current circumstances, so am going to break it down a bit differently here and we'll see if we end up in the same place or with a new vantage point.

The Moon entered Libra on Sunday night at 9:10PM EDT focusing us on Libran themes for the next couple days - partnerships, balance, justice, cooperation, diplomacy. Libra is the sign of relationship.

Before she meets the Sun at 15 degrees Libra (11:47PM EDT) she will square Saturn and trine the South Node (3 degrees), square Vesta (6 degrees), trine Black Moon Lilith (7 degrees) and trine Mars (9 degrees). Note she is doing all of this in the dark (balsamic moon phase) and in Libra she is answering to Venus, recently retrograded into the dark of Scorpio. There is stuff we don't know and can't see here.

The Moon's Capricorn squares today are us reaching limits, dealing with authority, hitting road blocks. The Moon's Aquarius trines (brakes off) speak of an easier time of it off the beaten path now. The Balsamic Moon is a natural time of endings and with the South Node in Aquarius those are supported now.

She met with Ceres on Sunday, still in play now, which I talked about in yesterday's post HERE. By the time the Moon meets the Sun tonight, this aspect will be waning. The power imbalances within our relationship/situation have been made clear to us (personally and collectively) as well as the things that are out of our hands and any mama-drama we are working through.

Everything is leading us - still in the dark - toward that Sun. Now, unlike other planets that get illuminated when they meet the Sun, the Moon, coming between the Earth and the Sun, blocks the Sun's light. And like other planets when she meets the Sun we get a new story. We get a mini re-set every month.

Because this is happening in Libra we look to our natal Libra house (15 degrees) for the kind of theme we will be working with personally. Then we consider the general Libra themes (relationship, partnership, balance, justice, women, beauty) and we consider what Libra's ruling planet is doing and where she is.

We want to keep in mind with Venus (ruling our desire nature) retrograde - we could be wanting something we don't usually want. And with the Sun - remember it is the Sun's meeting with the Moon that creates the New Moon - moving toward a square with Pluto (ruling power, but also death/the finality of situations) on Friday - any big moves toward that thing we want could set energies into motion that cut off other options. We might want to carefully consider any big moves this week because they won't be so easily undone later.

That square to Pluto (and general theme of relationship and other people) could indicate the new from the New Moon is forced upon us, maybe not totally welcomed, and grown from the seeds of something that has reached a conclusion - which I guess new things always are, but maybe it is somehow more obvious here. Maybe we are working through a loss of power here. There could be further destruction before we can get to a place to rebuild - like when workers go into a rotten house and tear down the old walls before the new walls go up.

Or maybe we don't have the power to make the things happen we want to happen or to get what we want from the place we now stand.

Neptune is making an inconjunct (that rock and a hard place) to the Moon/Sun, so something involving a Neptunian theme - self-sacrifice, self-sabotage, illusion, delusion, connection - will not be easily reconciled here. It makes me think things may not be quite as we see them - possible not quite as scary or, with Neptune ruling the 12th house of the ethereal realms, just being handled by larger hands than ours. We could spend alot of time/energy working out something we don't actually have any control over anyway.

Remember the energies influence us in subtle and not so subtle ways. Our stories are always in flux. We always, always have the chance to start again with ourselves.

(Astrology forecasting is like predicting the weather. The weatherman can tell you it is going to rain today, but it up to you whether you change your plans, bring an umbrella or just decide to walk in it! Take what is helpful, toss the rest, the Moon is trining Black Moon Lilith and Mars today, so make your own choices)

So we move toward the New Moon on wobbly legs having been unbalanced by the last two weeks, five months, 8 years - who knows. The New Moon's chart, a launching pad, is a lunar reset. We get a fresh emotional start (remember the Moon is about our emotions) with that Libra theme! Let's not waste it - set those intentions!

Now here's the part that is a repeat from yesterday -

MONTHLY AFFIRMATION TIPS for the Libra New Moon:

What house holds Libra in your natal chart?

This is our annual opportunity to restore balance here. Who/what do we want to partner with?

Get grounded - we have moved from an earth sign into air so this is important - always make affirmations from a positive place (positive meaning certain).

It is a good idea, since the New Moon is literally a blank sheet, to work in a clean, uncluttered space and maybe right after a bath or shower. Definitely when you are alone.

I find affirmations are most effective if I speak less on New Moon days so my words will hold more weight when I need them to.

I usually burn a white candle to help me focus and thin the veils between me and me. It also helps to channel ancestral energy a bit since I am always thinking as I move my story forward, their story moves forward with me.

Write your affirmations down by hand in cursive, we want the letters all connecting and flowing together. Speak the words out loud.

I used to write my affirmations on strips of paper and put them into a bowl of rice so I could mix them around every now and then with my fingers if things got stagnant. Then I decided to burn them. I have written them on rocks and buried them.

This month, I'm doing something I did a few weeks ago to line up with a specific thing that happened pretty effortlessly afterward -

I'm going to write my affirmations

(astrologer Jan Spiller recommends writing 10, but I have found myself stretching to do that or writing the same things every month which feels silly, so I have worked my way down to 3 which feels like a powerful number to me)

on my chalkboard while burning a white candle - when the candle burns out, all by itself - don't burn your house down - I erase the words first and then clean the blackboard with water.

Some people store them until the corresponding Full Moon (in this case during Aries season next April) and burn them then. Do what feels right.

I don't think it's terribly important what we do with our writings as long as we are not pulling them out and checking on them all the time. Setting intentions is like baking a cake - checking on how things are going just slows things down.

We are not handing a honey do list to the universe! We are lining up with the universal energies of creation here.

And I wouldn't be sharing them with other people, which also feels like it dilutes the process or pulls them into our story. I was writing them on my blog for a few months, as examples for people, and that definitely wasn't helpful.

Then - and this is the important part - release your attention from your words knowing your intention is known.

Know these things are already yours.

xo all

(please read MONDAY in the weekly for more about this New Moon)

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of October 8th - dealing with loss, control issues, surprising news mid-week, the angry feminine energy (men carry feminine energy, too) isn't going away, fear of losing what we love, losing what we love, things outside our control are making us cray-cray, planting something new from the seeds of the old fruit

Sunday, October 7, 2018

s by marina kochetyga

Some important aspects this week are:

SUNDAY - Sun conjunct Ceres
MONDAY - New Moon in Libra
TUESDAY - Mercury into Scorpio
WEDNESDAY - Mercury opposes Uranus, Venus squares Mars
THURSDAY - Mercury squares the North and South Nodes
FRIDAY - Sun squares Pluto

Yes, another cray-cray week. Hold on. Know we are all in this together. Tread carefully.

Mars starts covering new ground this week - finally! - after his long summer retrograde through Aquarius. He is in Aquarius for another couple weeks, but now walking new degrees. This can energize stalled actions, initiatives and projects as well as group causes.

Sunday's exact conjunction between the Sun (in Libra) and Ceres is a big part of Monday's New Moon, so let's look at that.

On MONDAY the Moon (in Libra) meets the Sun (in Libra) at 15 degrees. The Moon and Sun are sitting with Ceres and squaring Pluto (the Pluto square with the Sun will be exact on Sunday so the square is waxing/building at the time of the New Moon).

This is the Ceres/Pluto story come to life! You have likely heard this before, but the following is a very brief rehashing of it:

Ceres (known to the Greeks as Demeter) is the mother - the provider, the nurturer - the goddess archetype of spring. Ceres represents the part of our nature that longs to give birth and then nourish and sustain new life. She represents the essential bonding or lack of that occurs between mother and child. She is the impulse to nurture and also to be nurtured by others.

Ceres's daughter, Persephone, was abducted and raped by Pluto, lord of the underworld. The grieving mother, Ceres wandered the earth in search of her missing child.

In her grief, depression and anger, she caused a famine, withholding nourishment from the world until her daughter was returned. Persephone meanwhile had eaten pomegranate seeds, a symbol of sexual awareness, which gave Pluto a claim over her so she could not be returned permanently to her mother.

A deal was reached so Persephone would spend part of each year in the underworld with Pluto caring for the souls of the dead, but each spring would be reunited with her mother in the upper world as she initiated the dead into the rites of rebirth (spring).

Ceres in our chart alerts us to any challenges with nurturing and directs us to the kinds of experience we need to feel unconditionally loved and accepted. Our mother issues, the way we deal with painful and uncontrollable loss and separation - that's Ceres.

Although not much in terms of synchronicity surprises me with astrology - this is a kind of mind-blowing line-up at this New Moon given what we have been going through in the U.S. collective with the Supreme Court seating. The entitled masculine and the marginalized feminine (and we all carry both masculine and feminine energies within us) and with Chiron back in Pisces digging up old wounds and addictions that are demanding our acknowledgement and release.

With Ceres ruling cycles, the seasons of our lives, the way we nurture and what we need to feel nurtured, our mother issues, the way we deal with painful losses squaring Pluto (power/death and rebirth) - whatever we have going on - New Moons are all about new starts - is likely to involve the themes of loss and power imbalances.

We could be dealing with issues that feel like life and death (which they may or may not be) and potentially de-stabilizing financial issues.

New Moons are times in the dark. The seeds go into the ground, but the day we plant the seeds is not the day we eat the fruit. If we can see the seeds as the ashes of the old fruit - we can see better what we have in front of us.

Ceres is about cycles - the highs and lows. She represents a very real lack of control - her grief was not only about the tremendous pain inflicted by Pluto over the loss of her daughter (how are we losing?) but also about the depression (she could be said to rule over the winter season as well as Saturn) that comes when we can't control important things. She turns away from her life. She wanders the earth.

NOTE - You will find the area of life where Ceres sits in your natal chart to be an area where you experience extremes. The tide is in or the tide is out. Things are either very bright and sunny or very dark and depressing. We often face situations that are out of our control.

For us, as a collective, this New Moon in collaborative and diplomatic Libra is a fresh start seeded through a painful loss/something outside our control. With Libra naturally ruling our 7th house of 'the other person' this could play out through partnership, through agreements - which are likely to be seen as unfair or unjust in some way - at the core of it all we see the Ceres/Pluto square and story - our fear of losing control, our fear of losing what we love.

The New Moon will also be inconjunct (rock and hard place) Neptune speaking of fantasies and delusions. Take care with addictive substances. Watch for rose-colored glasses. This could mean our fear of loss is not totally grounded in reality and also reminds us that bigger hands than ours are guiding this whole thing ....

MONTHLY AFFIRMATION TIPS for the Libra New Moon:

What house holds Libra in your natal chart?

This is our annual opportunity to restore balance here. Who/what do we want to partner with?

Know these things are already yours

On TUESDAY, Mercury dives into Scorpio (joining Venus and Jupiter). The planet of communication/ideas/thinking/new/information - also rules siblings, pets, our local neighborhood (Mercury) ingresses into the sign of power, transformation and secrets (Scorpio) until October 31st - note his November retrograde will bring him back into Scorpio to re-walk the final degrees.

This is excellent energy for deep (Scorpio) investigation/research (Mercury).

Instead of learning/thinking/communicating about a little of this and a little of that, now is the time to go "all in" with a subject we are passionate about.

Our mind can focus. Multi-tasking will be harder because our intellect will want to sit with one thing for longer than we usually do.

We will be getting to the bottom of things and will not be satisfied with Libra's (Mercury's last stop) conversational civilities. We'll want to know, and think/talk about, what is really happening. It won't always be comfortable.

The hard truths won't be blurted out spontaneously - we will have to dig for them.

Decide first if you really want to know what is hiding underneath because Plutonian authenticity is not only transformational - it is permanent. There is no going back to "not knowing". Mysteries can be solved. The truth could come out. Secrets can be languaged and spoken out loud.

Difficult conversations will create deeper levels of intimacy now.

If you are dating someone and you have sex (also Scorpio ruled) with them you can never go back to not having sex with them even if you never have sex with them again. The intimacy is still there. It will be like this with our words now.

And once we know the information - we own it. It's our move (with Scorpio the move might be internal).

It changes who we are and we ignore who we are at our own peril.

Careless language (disrespect for ourselves and others) and our careless treatment of other people's words (and their reaction to ours) will be karmic. Keep this in mind.

There could be battles for mental supremacy and mind games during this transit.

People prone to manipulation could be extremely effective (or someone will finally see right to the bottom of what we are doing - maybe that someone will be ourselves).

This is a time to take a good, long look at what we are really seeking when we are trying to make a situation/person behave in a way that pleases us. Think about it. There are gold nuggets to be mined now. Even tiny specks can be used to create great fortunes. Scorpio rules our inheritance.

The fly in the ointment here is that we might think we are mining for gold when we are really just obsessing on the same old same old. Scorpio rules obsession and compulsion and our minds could easily go there now. Notice it. Don't judge it. Think about - "what does it mean that I keep thinking about this?". Scorpio rules death, too. It's not only what we dig up, but what we put into the ground that matters now.

Maybe some words/language/story needs to be put to rest.

This transit could also be about money and paperwork, contracts - wills, loans, etc.

The Moon is void all day Tuesday.

On WEDNESDAY, the Moon will be in Scorpio focusing us on Scorpian issues - life/death, other people's money - loans, inheritance, taxes, partner's income, the things we share with other people, intimacy, sex, reproduction.

Mercury (in Scorpio) is going to oppose Uranus (in Taurus) at the same time the Venus/Mars square becomes exact. This is a BIG day.

Immediately with Mercury/Uranus we get a surprising truth.

Maybe some disturbing news. Maybe a brainstorm or stroke of genius. Maybe a shocking conversation about money or intimacy issues. If something has been a secret or done below the radar this is the time it could come out.

We have talked about the Venus/Mars square before because we have been dealing with it for a while - although not with Venus retrograde. This is where we really want something but are blocked somehow. Our actions and our desires are at cross purposes. This is the masculine vs the feminine. There could be power struggles.

With Venus retrograde this isn't really the time to push. Do what needs to be done, yes. Don't miss a deadline or just come to a complete stop. Take the actions you can, but know that things have a bit of unwinding to do. Things are in flux. When Venus is direct in November - things will start to fall more smoothly into place.

We will flesh out the rest of the week in the next post. It is equally dynamic!

xo all

Astrology Forecast for Today | October 6th - focusing on the details, getting things done, paperwork, getting organized, pet therapy, drifting off course, knots untying, solutions that look better than they actually are or maybe our problem just dissolves, fragile emotional states, lack of boundaries, maybe time for a primal scream

Saturday, October 6, 2018

nothing by Nira Gonzalez

We looked at some bigger picture stuff yesterday, today let's focus in on the details - sometimes it is best to take things day by day, even moment by moment.

The dark Moon moved into Virgo at 7:15PM EDT on Friday night. Our focus will likely turn to Virgo matters for the next couple days - our daily activities, our work, our pets, getting paperwork done and things organized.

We wake on SATURDAY with the Virgo Moon trining (brakes off) stable Saturn. This is good energy to be productive, focus on our goals - get things done. Good energy for business. We can be practical and orderly. The Moon moves into a trine with Vesta (in Capricorn and sitting 3 degrees from Saturn) - we can emotionally focus now on whatever we are devoted to - it has our attention.

After lunch the Moon will sextile (opportunity) a retrograde Venus in Scorpio - our relationship can feel supportive, we are working together, we can get along with other people.

The mood changes in the PM (if you are sensitive to Neptune or lunar changes you will likely feel this sooner, it could even color your entire day) when the Moon moves into her monthly opposition with Neptune at 7:05PM EDT.

Things fog up a bit. It is harder to know what is true. Our ideas could be unrealistic. Information leaks out. We lose our focus. We drift off course. Our emotions are too stretched to be trusted right now.

Having this energy on a Saturday night is probably better than a Monday morning though.

We'll roll with it.

Saturday night would be a good time to go to a movie, make art, meditate, do something healing. Our thinking will be imaginative.

I will be using this energy meditating (Neptune) with my dog (Virgo) - trying to figure out what she wants me to do for her. I have no idea what this will look like. I am sure hubs (Virgo rising) will try to have me committed (Neptune) shortly thereafter, so if I am not back here tomorrow you will know where I am. Send chocolate and a chisel.

Shortly after that Neptune opposition, the Moon moves into a nice trine with Pluto, so a skillful use of our emotional energy could lead to a success now .... prayers for that one.

xo all

I guess Kavanaugh is getting seated. Venus (feminine), moving backward and in her detriment with Mars (masculine) starting to soar again certainly helped him. The dark of the Moon, ripe for backroom dealings did, too. Saturn in Capricorn can't be underestimated. I guess the power of the collective zeitgeist (his personal story's ability to embody the current energies) overrode somewhat the loss and self-sabotage shown in his personal chart. Let's see what collective muck gets dug up in October and what happens in November when Venus gets back into her home sign. We are playing a long game. And we are in the final stretch and the first quarter at the same time ....

If we are feeling triggered we could ask ourselves when was the last time we were ANGRY. Not sad. Not disappointed. Not annoyed or pissed off. Not restrained. But screaming out loud, smashing things to bits ANGRY.

The Moon goes void SUNDAY morning at 10:03AM EDT off a sextile to expansive Jupiter, then stays void until 9:10PM EDT. Take it easy on Sunday. Relax. Set that circus down ...

Venus Stations Retrograde | relationships and money and women and what we value and how we value ourselves gets re-assessed, maybe life feels like a high stakes poker game, what are we willing to bet? what do we love NOW? and are we too focused on what isn't ours?

Friday, October 5, 2018

Drive. Through the Shadow. by A. Finch

Venus stations retrograde today at 10 degrees Scorpio. I wrote about it HERE

This retrograde is reminiscent of one 8 years ago when she stationed at 13 degrees Scorpio on October 7, 2010. We might find similar themes playing out in our life over the next few weeks.

On Halloween she will get back into the sign of Libra and continue moving backward until she gets all the way back to 25 degrees Libra (November 16th) and then she will station direct and start moving forward - walking again, this time direct, all the degrees she has walked before.

So the degrees from 25 Libra (which Venus first walked back on September 3rd when she kicked this whole season off) through 10 degrees Scorpio are the "hot" spots for this retrograde. She won't be covering entirely new ground until the middle of December when she sextiles Saturn and moves past 10 degrees Scorpio.

Venus is considered in her detriment in Scorpio AND during her retrograde she will be traveling through the "Via Combusta". Via Combusta are the degrees between 15 Libra and 15 Scorpio - that ancient astrologers labelled some of the most challenging degrees of the zodiac because both the Moon and the Sun (the lights of the zodiac) are in their "fall" and the so-called "malefic" planets - Saturn (exalted in Libra) and Mars (co-ruler of Scorpio) are strong.

So, Venus (as us) has her work cut out for her over the next few weeks.

NOTE - the New Moon on Monday is on 15 degrees Libra!

I don't want to rehash what I wrote in THIS post, except to say while Venus is retrograde we will be doing the "re's" with Venusian themes - women, beauty, art, love, money, our resources, our values and self-esteem. Someone from our past could re-appear. An old way of making art or love or money could re-appear. A situation we have been through before with Scorpian themes could reappear. We will be "reviewing" the things we value. In Scorpio this will play out through Scorpian themes - other people's money, big money, loans, inheritances, debts, sex, life/death issues, reproduction, shared scenarios, power struggles, jealousy, third party situations including triangles. Venus retrograde can also play out through the themes of our natal ruled Libra and Taurus houses.

We will get to some kind of cross-roads with whatever it is we are going through by around October 26th-31st when Venus will oppose Uranus bringing sudden changes and unexpected situations. Both planets will be in a Grand Cross with both the North Node (in Leo) and the South Node (in Aquarius) so whatever is going on will have the stamp of FATE marked clearly upon it.

And remember although Venus will be opposing Uranus, Uranus is in Taurus answering to Venus! Also keep in mind that Mercury is in Libra (answering to Venus), Uranus is in Taurus (answering to Venus), the Sun is in Libra (answering to Venus), Ceres is in Libra (answering to Venus) and the Moon will be in Libra (answering to Venus) for the New Moon on Monday - that's alot of our energy in the hands of Venus as she dives through the muck of mid-Scorpio!

October will dig up some relationship and financial challenges, but we can see the light at the end of the tunnel isn't a train - it's the Venusian Goddess herself in November as she backs into her home sign of Libra. She will still be retrograde, but we should be able to regain some balance. She will also have a stabilizing sextile to Saturn beginning the third week of October that should help.

We have been through some rocky waters since May, that have probably never really smoothed out. Note - the goal here isn't really about them smoothing out! If we make our goal for things to "smooth out" we won't be reaching that goal anytime soon. We are in the Age of Aquarius - things aren't smoothing out.

We need to find a way to live and love through rapidly changing times.

Now with Mars finally starting to cover new degrees next week we have the masculine energy literally revving up at the same time the feminine energy is struggling for air!

And Venus is squaring Mars as she stations! And Jupiter - moving through his long journey in Scorpio and preparing to move home to Sagittarius next month (!) - is finally leaving his retrograde shadow, too.

Plus this week we have had Mercury squaring Pluto. This is our mind being detonated with one of those Wiley Coyote stacks of dynamite. The Moon has been in sensitive Cancer so we are feeling our way through whatever is going on.

This stuff ain't for sissies.

Venus retrograde - all 40 days and 40 night of it - will have us re-assessing BIG themes in our lives.

The world is going to look so different by next spring. Let's not put any more pressure on ourselves right now than we have to - there is enough outside pressure already!

Let's take care of what is front in front of us. Let's do what is sensible. Let's give ourselves some air and some room to breath. Decisions are challenging during Libra season anyway and we will spend time agonizing over things that in reality are out of our hands anyway ...

Venus in Scorpio is going to make everything feel like life and death, and although some situations might be, many more situations will be playing out very differently than we expect them to over the next few months.

2018 is a bridge year (and yes, for many people it feels like one of those rope bridges swaying high over a bed of jagged rocks) carrying us into the changes of 2019/2020.

We don't usually have Mars and Venus retrograde in the same year - and we are all walking spaces we have never walked before AND in the middle of all this the nodes are going to switch from Leo/Aquarius to Cancer/Capricorn. This is all quite unprecedented.

The first aspect Venus retrograde will make is that square to Mars (in Aquarius) early next week, so we don't want to be overthinking everything right now. Keep that in mind. Or out of mind maybe.

xo all

Mercury Square Pluto, 3rd Quarter Square Moon | power struggles, facing the truth, words are power, news and information, honoring ourselves, hard to cooperate, growing ourselves up, eating the damn apple

Tuesday, October 2, 2018

autumn by Art-de-Viant

The sensitive Cancer Moon (people with planets/points around 9 degrees of the cardinal signs - Aries, Cancer, Libra, Capricorn - will feel this most strongly) reaches its third quarter square of the month with the Libra Sun.

This is tension/stress. The 3rd quarter Moon is a time of crisis. Summer squares autumn.

This is about the themes of our Cancer/Libra houses or the collective Cancer/Libra themes of relationship insecurities, relationship imbalances, what is fair, what is just. Think about those Libran scales and look through the lens of Cancer (peeking out of her shell - is she safe here?).

The resolution will come through honoring ourselves - our safety, our security, our self-nourishment - AND coming into balance with the other person's position - compromise, cooperation, diplomacy.

Have we been neglecting our own needs/wants to stay in relationship with someone/something? On the other hand have we been unrealistically looking to someone/something else to mother our grown-up selves? Cancer is both the mother and the baby.

Saturn is opposing the Moon now, so we could feel like giving up. Let's not turn a corner into a dark alley just to avoid feeling uncomfortable.

We also have the exact square between Mercury and Pluto today - this one has been in play for a couple days and will take a couple days to unwind itself.

Mercury (communications, information, thinking) from 18 degrees Libra is squaring Pluto (power, life/death, big money/finances) at 18 degrees Capricorn.

Whatever we are thinking about/talking about - will be INTENSE, powerful, deep - maybe bitter.

With Pluto (ruler of that murky Scorpio 8th house) there are secrets and back door deals.

We don't know what we don't know. We can't see what we can't see. It is safe to assume we are not getting the full picture.

Mercury in Libra wants to just push this whole mess under the bed, slap on some lipstick and pretend everything is a OK. That isn't going to work now. Pluto rules Scorpio - the sign that follows Libra. The guy is dragged out from under the bed, the pretty lipstick gets smudged, the angry husband shows up with a shotgun - everything is clearly not a OK.

Some examples of how this energy is playing out with people I know - 1. someone is being audited this week. Mercury (which rules Virgo as well as Gemini - the details, the paperwork, the dotting of the i's and crossing of the t's) squaring Pluto (the tax man, power, other people's money). 2. Someone else is dealing with bankers - this is a similar dynamic and again there is a certain innate unfairness and imbalance (Libra) built into the situation because one side has the power.

3. Someone else is dealing with the reading (Mercury) of a will (Pluto) in a complicated family situation with power struggles. 4. I am dealing with Olive's (Mercury rules Virgo and Virgo rules pets) life/death (Pluto) health issues and surgery again.

All kinds of buried crap is hitting all kinds of fans this week (last week and next also).

This is the stuff coming out from under the bed - I hope for you it's just a few dust bunnies and there aren't any real monsters under there. Are there real monsters? Here's where we need to put on our big girl pants and assure our seven year old self we can handle this.

So what do we do?

Don't pour pink paint and pretend everything is OK. That paint is going to chip and we will be right back here again with an even bigger mess - and there won't be enough paint to cover this anyway.

Whatever it is we are afraid to look at - LOOK DEEPER. The expression - "the truth hurts, but the truth will also set you free" comes to mind here.

Don't allow someone to manipulate you into something you don't agree with/something that takes away your security. Maybe we need to channel our Black Moon Lilith who is hooked up with Mars today - the powerful are not the only ones with power now.

Don't manipulate someone else and call it persuasion. Keep it real.

We need to be smart and tactful. We need to see/feel the other person's point of view (maybe that is the space where we need to look deeper?).

We may need to stand up for ourselves and we definitely need to take care of ourselves.

Situations will likely have an undercurrent about power and control (maybe life and death or could feel like life and death - which BTW is hard on our physical bodies which can't tell the difference, so take care of yours) and there won't be easy solutions/compromises.

Words are powerful now. We could burn the whole place down with our language today, so be careful.

This is excellent energy for research, delving deeply into some information, journaling, therapy, working out a puzzle, getting to the bottom of a legal matter.

xo all

An example now with the Kavanaugh story playing out in the U.S. collective is understanding HIS-story. Yes, I know we have thousands of years of understanding HIS-story. But LOOK DEEPER.

I was reminded yesterday by someone's Facebook post about the 80's classic Sixteen Candles that "rape in the 1980's wasn't something done by acquaintances at house parties" - remember the scene where the very drunk girl was handed from one boy to another (weren't they the hero boys in the film or am I remembering this incorrectly?) like a sex doll. In the movie, this was all a joke and good, clean fun. We are reminded this was the culture at the time. It's not an excuse. But it does allow us some way into HIS-story if we need one. And we do. Need one.

Because we carry all these archetypes within us.

And we have reached a point in time where it is just too painful to continue on in an un-integrated state. It is no longer possible to just stuff our own fear. It is no longer possible to just ram things through. The polarity within us just stops us dead in our tracks. We must face it directly and resolve the "split" within us in order to be able to move forward at all now. This is why we are feeling more "prevented" and "opposed" than ever. We can push the blame onto the other person or the situation for a time, but it won't stay "pushed" for long now before it pushes back!

Note - this doesn't mean I think Kavanugh should or will be appointed to the Supreme Court. No, I don't (hell, no) and the astrology looks like this storyline is definitely not wrapping up in week. Venus is going retrograde this week, to dig something up in Scorpio (!), and she won't be hitting new degrees until 2019.

And yes, I am being totally triggered by all of this, too.

Looking at 80's culture (and how it has evolved) is just a tool I can use to help integrate the part of me that - wants what it wants, that feels entitled to it, that played by the "rules" at the time (that aren't the rules now) and didn't get my "pay-off", that is foaming at the mouth angry.

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of October 1st - women not taking any sh*t, compromise needed, words are uber powerful, if you don't want to burn something down better hold your tongue, if you do want to burn something down this would be the time to speak up, secrets spill, possible bad news, get to bed early

Sunday, September 30, 2018

toxic city 03 by Art-de-Viant

We start the week with Pluto direct (18 degrees Capricorn) after his five month retrograde (since April 22nd).

He will move forward until April 23, 2019 when, at 23 degrees Capricorn he will again station retrograde

(my besieged 21 degree Capricorn Mercury needed to lie down today upon realizing this (!) since I am getting FIVE passes of Pluto, except with Pluto the lying down could be in a big old wooden box, so I probably shouldn't even joke about this).

Pluto is retrograde for almost half the year - imagine what Scorpio (rising, like me) people could do if their ruling planet wasn't retrograde almost half the year. I imagine how nice it must be to be a Leo rising with your ruling planet (the Sun) never stationing retrograde, but then think about those Gemini and Virgo risings who must feel like they pretty much have to do everything twice! Ugh!

In October, Pluto is going to cross the ecliptic from North to South for the first time since 1770 - Pluto literally returning to the underworld AND at a time when Jupiter (in Scorpio) is answering to him AND when Venus is retrograding through Scorpio and answering to him. Also interesting that Pluto stations direct - in mythology Pluto is the rapist of Persephone (Ceres' daughter) - the same week Venus (ruler of women) stations retrograde - while the United States is embroiled in the Kavanaugh nomination mess.

But first Mercury is going to have a conversation with Pluto this week - likely one we aren't going to like, so let's take a look at the week ahead.

Here are the major aspects I see:

MONDAY - Mars conjuncts Black Moon Lilith (in Aquarius)
TUESDAY - Mercury (in Libra) squares Pluto (in Capricorn)
FRIDAY - Venus stations retrograde (in Scorpio)
SATURDAY - Mercury opposes Eris
SUNDAY - the Sun conjuncts Ceres (in Libra)

So, this looks like another stressful, intense week for many of us. Remember we are all in this together - we'll get through this.

On MONDAY, the Moon enters Cancer at 2PM EDT ending a more than 24 hour void. In Cancer, we could find our focus turning to home, family, home business, mom, country, yada, yada for the next couple days. We will want to hunker down, maybe even hide out. Everyone will be more sensitive. Keep this in mind.

At 4:29PM EDT, the Cancer Moon sextiles unpredictable Uranus (in Taurus). We want to do something different. A change of pace is required. Opportunity comes from doing something else. At 7:18PM EDT the Moon opposes Saturn. There are limits, responsibilities, emotions get repressed, people become more inflexible.

Todays' big news, Mars (in Aquarius) once again - yes, another repeat - conjuncts Black Moon Lilith (the angry outsider). We last had these two meet on August 10th. This is the uncontrolled masculine and the outsider feminine together. This is the volatility of the male/female power imbalance. Sparks will fly. We might struggle against some kind of domination as we are, once again, reminded of all the ways we don't quite fit in. We are older and wiser than we were on August 10th, but a cotton sheet will still feel like a lead blanket. We might need to run screaming into the woods with this one ....

On TUESDAY, we have the last quarter Moon at 5:45AM EDT, when the Cancer Moon squares the Libra Sun. This is a crisis point in the Moon's monthly cycle. The square to Libra speaks of the need for balance, justice and compromise. This isn't about us giving in or pouring pink paint over a problem, but to work with Libra we do need to acknowledge there are two sides to every story.

At 8:18AM EDT then Moon will trine (brakes off) a seductive Venus (in Scorpio). This is women getting along with other women. This is being social and what we want and what we need coming together. This is that balance we were seeking early this morning, so I guess we get it. It might be subtle though. By 2:48PM EDT the Moon has moved on to a compassionate, imaginative trine with dreamy Neptune. We have a Grand Water Trine going on now making everyone more sensitive, but also more sensitive to each other. Our boundaries are thin. Addictions attract. Escape hatches open.

The big news Tuesday, and this is exact on Tuesday, but in play all week is Mercury's square to a newly direct Pluto. This speaks of powerful conversations/communications. WORDS ARE POWERFUL. We, and other people, can be very persuasive, but equally manipulative (what is the difference exactly? I guess whether we are the one doing the talking or someone else is!). Secrecy. Obsessive thoughts. Paranoia. Jealousy. Possibly bad news comes in. This could be relationship vs career stuff. Our words can be misconstrued. Things could feel like life and death and they might actually be about life and death. Information could be used to gain power over other people now. We might discover something someone in power has done wrong - this could be a big news theme in the collective, too. Secrets get spilled. Some people's motivations will be deeper and darker than we expect - check your motivations before opening your mouth folks! People will be audacious. Yes, audacious.

Stay frosty.

Watch your language, but if you actually want to burn the house (your job, your marriage, etc) down with your mouth this would be the time.

Again this week's themes of "who has the power?", "who is in control?" are in play.

This is good energy for research, investigations, writing a mystery novel (get working on that one, will ya') and getting to the bottom of things.

Then at 10:10PM EDT the Moon moves into her monthly opposition with Pluto - what else can happen?! Best to avoid emotional entanglements. Just stay home and go to bed. But then, of course, because what else, just a few minutes later the Moon will square Mercury making our minds restless, maybe preoccupied with the past - it could be hard to fall asleep.

OK, so we get to sleep by 8:30PM EDT on Tuesday.

We wake on WEDNESDAY to a Void Moon until she moves into Leo at 5:12PM EDT. Wednesday would not be a good day to start anything new or push anything important out into the world (unless it is your tax return) because nothing will come of it. And if you don't believe this, keep in mind, Obama started his second term - yes, the one Trump has been busy dismantling - on a Void Moon. Void moons are good energy to work on things already in progress - we can often get alot done.

The Moon's move into Leo will turn our focus to Leo themes - children, self-expression, creativity, fun, recreation, romance - for the next couple days.

At 7:29PM EDT the Leo Moon will square Uranus (in Taurus). We will be feeling more impulsive and independent, and so will other people - not such good energy for interacting with others. Expect the unexpected.

OK, so on Wednesday night we go to sleep by 6:30PM EDT.

On THURSDAY the Leo Moon will oppose Mars (in Aquarius, for what seems like forever) at 5:31AM EDT. This could make for a challenging morning.

BUT by 12:19PM EDT the Leo Moon is sextiling (opportunity) the Libra Sun. This last sextile between the Moon and Sun before the New Moon is excellent energy for creativity and collaboration. This is a good time for business and meeting people. Good for romance, activities with children, putting something out there you can be proud of.

Actually if you are pushing something out into the world this week - from now until Venus stations retrograde on Friday at 3:05PM - it is pretty much all systems GO (keeping in mind I can't see your natal).

OK, back later in the week with the rest of that Venus retrograde series and to finish out this week. See Part I about Venus retrograde HERE.

Whatever this Venus retrograde will be about for you - you know it, it is already in play.

xo all

Think wine, hot baths and "this too shall pass" this week

Weekend Astrology Forecast Creatives | molehills into mountains, the feminine energy vs the power structures, fresh air and fresh ideas, sleeping in while a sleeping giant wakes up plus some astro on the Kavanaugh nomination

Friday, September 28, 2018

Nina by Bird Sophie Black

At 1:20PM EDT on FRIDAY we have the Moon (in Taurus) trining Pluto (in Capricorn). We get this aspect once a month during the Moon's transit through Taurus. This is powerful emotional energies. Great for intense experiences that leave us feeling nourished. In earth signs this is stable energy as something solid moves forward or clicks almost silently into place.

At 6:36PM EDT the Moon moves into her opposition with Jupiter (in Scorpio) - this is probably not the time to make a large purchase because we could be feeling very self-indulgent and make a bad financial move. Our emotions are over the top, too. We are nurtured - and challenged(!) - by things that are outside our comfort zone or go deeper than we want to go. Mountains will be made from molehills now, so keep that in mind. Good energy for business, but probably not so good for a Friday night date. There is a feminine energy vs the power structure struggle with Taurus/Capricorn here, too.

Also today Chiron (retrograde in Pisces) sextiles Juno (in Taurus) at 29 degrees. With Chiron back in Pisces we are returning to a past wounding/loss/addiction. The opportunity of the sextile, which is gentle, comes through partnership/commitments/contracts - maybe someone who understands us, a commitment that is encouraging, an acknowledgement of our pain makes a difference now.

With Chiron in Pisces the healing comes from letting go ....

The Moon goes Void off her opposition to Pluto and stays void until she moves into Gemini on SATURDAY morning at 9:36AM EDT. The Moon in Gemini will turn our attention to conversations and communications, to words and writing, to ideas and information- for the next couple days.

We will be busy and mentally active. Lots of errands. Lots of texts. Activities could involve our local neighborhood and our siblings. Computer and transportation issues could have our focus, too.

The Moon will trine Mars (and then form a Grand Air Trine with the Sun (!) on Saturday night - great for creative work, writing, communicating. Try to take advantage of this time period, we don't get this kind of energy very often! Open the windows and bring in some fresh air. Open your mind and bring in some fresh ideas. Good date night for conversation and being out and about.

On SUNDAY we have another long Void Moon (sleeping it off or maybe we are just all talked out?!) starting in the morning and lasting until Monday afternoon!

And Pluto stations direct (the sleeping giant awakens) - will write a post about that!

xo all

A couple people have asked me about what the astrology says about the outcome for the Kavanaugh hearings. The story captures the zeitgeist of our times. I believe these souls are playing out the collective energies for all of us (and the energies are unfolding in our own lives, too).

It's like we are watching a play about "what is happening while we are watching the play".

The astrology was uncannily perfect yesterday - even the Moon's waning inconjunct; the rock and hard place between the Libra Moon and the Taurus Sun - with Venus (ruling Libra) rubbing up against Venus (ruling Taurus) and the GOP having all their questions asked by a female prosecutor!

All the wounds from centuries of patriarchy (the masculine by male entitlement, the feminine by dis-empowerment) are coming up to be healed/released.

I don't have Blasey-Ford's birth information, but Kavanaugh's chart has Jupiter hitting his natal Neptune (1st house) and opposing his natal Pluto (7th house). Neptune here is self-sabotage, stuff from the past, addiction, illusion, self-deception - that banana peel just laying in wait for his foot. Jupiter ruling legal issues/courts. Pluto ruling power and manipulation. He would believe (Neptune in the 1st) he is going to win - but then maybe Neptune pulls the rug out from under him. And he is one of the 1960's babies born with that Uranus/Pluto conjunction so Uranus provides unexpected situations and plot twists when Pluto is activated - he looked like a shoe-in just a few weeks ago and even as I write this people seem convinced he is going to get in. That 7th house Pluto would give him powerful allies. He does have transitting Jupiter at the top of his chart - so a peak career time for him, but that Neptune looks like a major loss to me and it gets multiple hits.

Also his best transits are waning so it looks like he missed his moment. Maybe if he does gets in he doesn't get to stay somehow or doesn't perform/vote the way he is expected to. I don't know. It looks like the chart of someone having a public loss created by something in the past, an addiction or self-sabotage. He also has some natal transits that makes me think this seat opened up for him through some kind of deception. I guess we will see ....

Neptune is set to be a HUGE player in 2019. He will square Jupiter multiple times and sextile Saturn and all three planets will be powerful in their home signs!

xo all

Today's Astrology Forecast, September 27th | a BIG spotlight on our way forward, a rock and a hard place, a need to adjust, counselling conversations, solid commitments

Thursday, September 27, 2018

Where the wolves are by Alexandra Sophie

The Moon entered Taurus while we slept likely focusing us on Taurus themes for the next couple days - our money, our resources, what we own, our values and self-esteem.

The early Moon in Taurus (Full Moon in Aries on Monday) is this month's waning inconjunct (the rock and hard place of the waning Moon's cycle)- Libra Sun inconjunct Taurus Moon. We can use the Taurus Moon to steady ourselves in this moment. What do we have right now? What is right in front of us that we can touch? What do we want right now? What can we do about it? The Moon is squaring both Mars (sitting on the South Node - another threepeat!) and the North and South Nodes and is very active today.

Mars on the South Node of Aquarius - for the third time since he went into Aquarius in May (what has been going on in your life since May?!) - there is an earlier post from June 8th - HERE. Whatever has reached a boiling/turning point during this LONG Mars in Aquarius cycle is most likely feeling very in our face. This is us releasing the argument/the trauma/the distraction/ the need for chaos. The good news - Mars will be moving off - only one degree, but still moving off - this sensitive point by Saturday. Right around the same time Pluto is waking up - we are moving forward!

This is all about relationship dynamics and synchronistically begins to unwind with the Sun in Libra - the ruler of our 7th house of relationships - and just before Venus, ruler of Libra, begins her big relationship chapter next week.

Think about those Libra scales. Why is Libra the only sign whose symbol is an inanimate object - maybe because the way we see/experience other people is a projection from us and not real? Think about how scales work. One side needs to equal the other side for the scales to be in balance. In relationship we are on one side of the scales and the other person is on the other and we have to balance each other for the relationship to be in balance. And this is within any relationship - it doesn't have to be romantic.

Libra is the harmony and cooperation between those opposing forces when they are in balance.

In order to do Libra right we have to do Aries right (Libra polarity sign) Aries is about - who am I?, what do I want? - so, we enter Libra (relationship) through Aries and our self-definition (who I am). So let's say we are interacting with a person who doesn't balance with us - we adjust. Maybe through Libra we offer diplomacy, compromise, etc.

Maybe in order to stay in balance - and you can imagine those Libran scales with you on one side and the other person on the other - because we haven't done our Aries work to know ourselves - we put some parts of ourselves away (I don't really need someone who yada, yada - you can fill in the blank). Imagine us pulling off our right arm to stay in balance! Or imagine those scales the other way around with us feeling unworthy of that other person's love/attention/time. So we have to add weight to our side of the scales - we over burden ourselves (let me do this and that and the other thing for you), we puff ourselves up artificially, sometimes we even put on actual weight.

And then we move into Scorpio (like Venus is now) from this unbalanced position (where things are only balanced because we have cut off our arm or added an extra arm!) - we go in deep, we merge our bodies and money and intimate emotions - and then we are totally screwed. Except we are never totally screwed (Scorpio does rule sex though and those issues are about to be magnified) because we get all these transits and make all these free will decisions that will shake our stuck sh*t up. Taurus is the polarity point for Scorpio - so we have to know in Taurus (2nd house) what we own, what we value, again who we are - BEFORE we get into Scorpio where we merge our stuff with other people. But we aren't perfect and we don't always know and sometimes even when we think we do, what we know/value changes, so here we are on planet Earth exploring this stuff ....

Anyhow, back to today - we also have Saturn conjunct Vesta (2 degrees Capricorn) and Mercury conjunct Ceres (9 degrees Libra) and the Sun sextile (opportunity) the North Node in Leo.

So, even though we are walking through this month's waning inconjunct we have what we need to handle it!

The Sun sextiling the North Node is like a beam of light being shone on our journey ahead. Watch for synchronicities indicating you are on the right path and universal hints that tweak whatever you are doing. Mars is in Aquarius and the North Node is in Leo - we have to be ourselves. We have to shine from our own center stage. We have to do what makes us feel proud.

Mercury (communication/ideas) hooking up with mama bear Ceres in diplomatic and balanced Libra speaks of someone being HEARD. We speak, they listen. They speak, we listen. This isn't really about deep conversations and we could be making connections at a superficial level - but that level is skipped at our own peril - think of those Libra scales!

Saturn (duty, responsibility limits, rules) conjunct Vesta (devotion, keeping the fire burning) in his home sign of Capricorn is about rules and responsibilities. If we commit to something now we are committed (hopefully not in a straitjacket kind of way). This could also be the old boys being the old boys ...

I don't think we could ask for more perfectly timed energetics for Christine Blasey Ford's testimony and Brett Kavanaugh's rebuttal. This story is a zeitgeist - this energy is playing out in our lives, too. I haven't looked at her chart, but remember his having some slippery Neptune transits - lies, illusion, alcohol, memory loss from alcohol fits, too, self-sabotage - any stuff from the past that has been lying around like a banana peel just waiting for his foot ....

Knowing these three major aspects plus allowing that Taurus Moon some comfort and downtime should give you something to work with today!

xo all

Chiron backs into Pisces, Sun squares Saturn | the healing power of our collective imagination, unbalanced and unfair, arguments, power struggles, limitations that require compromise and adjustment

Tuesday, September 25, 2018

diving for the ground by Dark Gomo

A retrograde Chiron (the wounded healer) returns to Pisces today, allowing us to clean up any unfinished business left behind from his 7 year cycle there (which ended in April).

If he is backing off planets or points in our chart (early Aries/early cardinal signs - although with the Full Moon energy here still uber active you may not feel it for a few days), this could be experienced as an easing up of a situation. If he is moving toward a planet or point (early Pisces/early mutable signs) an old situation, from Apirl/pre-April, could intensify.

Probably these past few months with Chiron in Aries (healing the wounded masculine) has taught us something about "putting the oxygen mask on our own face first", setting better boundaries, embracing the new, being brave, getting our own tired asses out of the well. HERE is a post about Chiron in Aries.

Something in our Aries house has been seeded. We will get back to it in February. And by then we will have Jupiter home in Sagittarius (keep your eye on November!) - we will be feeling much more optimistic!

For now, he moves back into Pisces until February to finish up.

In Pisces - we let go.

This can be a good thing. This could be a time of forgiveness (a big Pisces theme) - which we do for ourselves and not for them - we release that story's hold on us. Pisces kind of gone, is gone-gone. It's out to sea, lost in the vastness of the ocean's waters. Impossible to hold onto, slippery when wet.

Grief gets released as we are given one more chance to accept the loss/pain.

Letting go could also pull us back into a fantasy (maybe of being taken care of?), an addiction, an escape from reality. Chiron in Pisces can be an almost crippling sensitivity. His years in Pisces speak of a mass deception, collective confusion and disillusionment - a mass escape from reality.

So watch for the "dream" to pop back up. Remember we had that Virgo New Moon a couple weeks ago where we were literally pulling that Piscean dream into our Virgo reality or else we need to let that dream go, lest we be pulled under with it.

A good use of this time is to connect with ourselves (by starting a meditation practice or a mindfulness practice or both), offer other people compassion/connection - it is easier to feel other people's pain now. There is healing through art, imagination, music, water. We have the healing power of the collective imagination.

Keep in mind Chiron's healing power is in the acceptance of the wound - it's not some magic fairy dust that makes the problem itself disappear.

******

We wake on TUESDAY within the energy of the Aries Moon squaring Mercury (in Libra). Communications could be testy. Our words, and the words of other people, could come off harsher than we intended. We might have been feeling this last night, too. Arguments are possible.

Our minds are restless.

By 7:40PM EDT, the Libra Sun is squaring Saturn (in Capricorn). We talked about this in yesterday's Full Moon post because the energy is part of the Aries Full Moon story.

We are kind of being awakened to our personal challenges now. Limitations will require adjustments and compromise. A duty or responsibility can be demanding our complete attention or rigid compliance. We are dealing with issues of our reputation. This doesn't feel good. Libra wants things balanced and for justice to prevail and somehow it isn't.

Heads up that tomorrow is another all day Void Moon - 6:28AM EDT through midnight - so won't be a good day to start anything brand new - and goes void off a square to Pluto which speaks of power struggles and intense emotions (things can feel like life and death). But we could also have alot of stamina and energy on WEDNESDAY and get alot accomplished.

xo all

Astrology Forecast for Monday, September 24th - Full Moon in Aries, a painful ending or culmination, a vulnerability coming to light, conversations around touchy subjects, a zeitgeist, taking action on our long term goals or something that stabilizes, rock solid commitments, new beginnings that are RIGHT IN OUR FACE

Sunday, September 23, 2018

Bright Full Moon by Claire Solo

"I'd rather be whole than good." ... C.G. Jung

MONDAY - Full Moon at 1 degree Aries
TUESDAY - Sun squares Saturn
WEDNESDAY - Chiron backs into Pisces, Mars conjuncts the South Node
THURSDAY - Sun trines Mars
FRIDAY - Pluto stations direct

I write the weeklies on Sunday and again this Sunday, my time is not my own, so I will have to do dailies!

This week is going to be big and busy. Let's take a look at Monday.

The Moon is VOID ALL DAY on MONDAY until her move into Aries at 7:04PM EDT (so not the day to start anything new) opposing the Sun, freshly housed in Libra, and giving us this year's Full Moon in Aries.

The Full Moon is always a time of tension - it's a time of Sun opposite Moon. Oppositions are pretty much just what they sound like. There is a reason police departments and emergency rooms are uber busy during Full Moons!

This month we've got the Sun in Libra at 1 degree (ruled by Venus - peace, women, balance, fairness, love, cooperation) and the Moon in the opposite sign of Aries at 1 degree (ruled by Mars - war, young men, initiative, passion, courage, anger, violence, independence).

This is the culmination of the Aries New Moon that launched the lunar year back in April, maybe something from that time is finishing up. Feels like years ago, doesn't it? I am aging in dog years now, how about you?

At the Full Moon things peak, culminate or come to light. Results are delivered. Stuff finishes up.

Conjunct wounded healer Chiron, it is possible that a weakness or vulnerability is illuminated now. Something here is outside of our control. Endings are probably going to hurt. The Moon squares both Vesta and Saturn (both in serious Capricorn). The whole thing is forming a T-Square with Saturn/Vesta as the focus. Saturn is authority and structure - walls and rules. Vesta speaks of devotion and in Capricorn; a devotion to tradition; keeping things the way they have always been, keeping the flame alive. A responsibility/commitment/limit is highlighted.

The Sun is cozied up to Mercury so a spotlight (Sun) could be directed onto a conversation or message or idea. The opposition to the Moon in fiery Aries tells us something here is too demanding or creates contention or is simply unfair. Or maybe our head is at odds with our emotions (instincts). Imbalances within relationships could be highlighted. Self-interest could be highlighted - this is the Aries Moon after all! With both the Sun and Mercury squaring Saturn - there could be limits around communication - what can be said, what information comes out. Maybe answers are not to our liking. Maybe the numbers don't add up.

The Moon is sextile (opportunity) Mars - ruler of the Moon since he rules Aries! - telling us we will be able to move through this if we take take action on (that Saturn!) our long terms goals/goals that increase our security over time. This is a time for solid commitments - for things that are built to last. Remember Mars is moving toward his final conjunction with the South Node - we are all clearing the decks and making way for something NEW!

EXAMPLE for Aries/Aries Rising - and remember Aries rising is the collective energy since it puts the signs in their natural houses (meaning this example is in play for all of us collectively - although you may have stronger themes at play with your natal house themes). With the Moon sitting with Chiron painful endings are possible now. Some could be things we have initiated, others could be forced upon us. The T-Square speaks of changes within our career/what we have publicly devoted ourselves to (Saturn/Vesta), our partnerships (Libra Sun) and ourselves/our brand (Aries Moon). Sun/Mercury indicates powerful conversations around touchy subjects. Mars is pushing for action on our goals that increase out long-term security - we are playing the long game, remember! Know that commitments/contracts/partnerships initiated now and built on solid ground are going to be around for awhile. Actions now have far reaching consequences. Fortune favors the brave at this Full Moon. We will need to work through our fear/vulnerability with whatever it is we are trying to do now!

So, the above is the general layout of this Full Moon for all of us because these are the collective houses.

We also each have our natal layout that could be more precise. Where are your natal Aries, Libra and Capricorn houses - what are those house themes? Let's look at one sign (sorry I didn't have the time to think about/write about all twelve).

EXAMPLE for Scorpio/Scorpio Rising - this Full Moon is happening in your 6th house (Aries house) of your day-to-day activities, your routine, work, co-workers, pets and your health. The Moon sitting with Chiron here speaks of the possibility of a painful ending or a vulnerability/pain coming to light. You will likely feel unprepared for whatever is happening. Uncomfortable conversations (Capricorn house) are possible around those 6th house themes, something you have devoted yourself to and/or issues from the past (Libra house - maybe something you haven't wanted to look at, a healing issue, an addiction, a secret). Do what needs to be done Scorpio. But keep in mind this isn't the time for any mountain leaping. As a friend said to me recently - when you don't know what is "right" to do - do what is sensible. Your modern ruler, Pluto, is moving direct at the end of this week, your energy/power is set to return - hang in there!

With the Full Moon happening at the Aries point (1 degree Aries) there is a collective story playing out - a zeitgeist - for this moment that matters. Pay attention to the national news, the world news and your local news. With the Aries Full Moon - we are working the Aries/Libra polarity. Us vs other people. How we partner. How we balance and share. Is justice just? Since Aries is ruled by Mars and Libra is ruled by Venus - this could be a masculine vs feminine story ....

This is a fiery Full Moon - keyed in to endings, yes, but also to the Sun's Libra ingress and POWERFUL NEW BEGINNINGS - get out and walk in it.

With so many planets in the early degrees it is good energy for fresh starts and to get stuff out into the world - just watch the long Void Moons, we have three this week!

xo all

Mercury meets the Sun | practical decisions, a light on the facts, seeing the forest AND the trees, hearing what we need to hear, saying what needs to be said, that book we need to read falls into our lap, getting down to brass tacks, that thing from early August wraps up

Thursday, September 20, 2018

Letters by Alhor-Ern

So today we have Mercury meeting up with the Virgo Sun at 28 degrees. This is our thinking meeting our being - we are what we think we are.

(this is also close enough to trigger the Aries point - 0 degrees of the cardinal signs - with an opposition, so important news/information is playing out on the world stage now, too - pay attention)

There are a couple ways this speaks to us. The first is that this conjunction is part of a cycle - any planet meeting the Sun starts a new/finishes an old cycle. So, we look to the last time these two met, which was August 8th, and we know something that began around that time is reaching a conclusion/culmination now. You might remember August 8th was the mid-point of Mercury's summer retrograde when we knew what the re-trograde was all about for us.

This is also about what these two planets bring (through us) when they join together and how that might look through the lens of our Virgo house.

This is excellent energy for logical communication. To come to a practical decision. For the facts to come to light that clear things up for us. To present our case. For information we can work with. For us to hear what we need to hear to move forward/on. For an answer. We can see both the trees and the forest now.

With the Sun and Mercury meeting in Virgo we can know whatever enlightenment we receive will be sensible.

Yesterday we had the Virgo Sun and the Capricorn Moon form a waxing trine (brakes off) - sensible actions/way we present ourselves integrated well with authority/our goals. So, the Sun trines the Moon then Mercury comes calling to wrap something up from early August. By tomorrow the Moon will move into Aquarius where we know she will cross that South Node (release), Mercury will leave his home sign and move into Libra, to be followed within a day by the Sun. And immediately we have these Chiron oppositions illuminating painful issues/situations and our insecurities.

For today though we have Mercury meeting the Sun. We have the Moon meeting Mars (in Capricorn) so we won't want to be told what to do - this one speaks of an emotional nourishment through action/exertion. Maybe we need to stand up (Mars) for women (the Moon) or maybe we need to stand up to a woman!

Bottom lines for today - time to move our bodies, walk our talk, talk our game and keep our ears open.

xo all

Mars Square Uranus again | if lightning doesn't strike the same place twice, then what about three times?!

Tuesday, September 18, 2018

Bolt Below the Beast by Framed by Nature

Today, Mars (yes, still in Aquarius) squares Uranus (retrograde in Taurus) at 1 degree.

This is THE BIG Mars three-peat - we have had multiple three-peats - because of his recent retrograde (he - as we - is still walking degrees he has walked before).

AGAIN this is taking us back to mid-May and early August when these two powerhouses previously squared each other. We had the square with both planets direct, then with Mars retrograde and Uranus direct and now with Uranus retrograde and Mars direct.

This is the final lightning bolt!

With the South Node in Aquarius, this could be a final break from the past - situation, habit, place, person. Maybe more freedom/liberation is created, but at the same time our security/existing resources/values are shaken up.

There will be a tendency to make erratic (Uranus) moves (Mars). We, or someone else, could act suddenly and forcefully. There is stress/tension. Changes can be forced upon us. People are rebellious. No one wants to be boxed in. On the other hand, maybe what hits us like a lightning bolt and forces our hand also allows us to know exactly what we should do ... and then we actually do it.

This is a turning point.

We have been approaching something since May and now here it is.

Keep in mind that Mars, as us, is pretty much totally out of control in Aquarius. Uranus in Taurus is answering to Venus who is squaring Mars and Black Moon Lilith and the South and North Nodes.

(and again that Leo North Node (!) - are we following our heart, are we taking actions we can be proud of, are we taking care of the children?)

The Mars square is lighting a fire under Venus (currently in deep Scorpio and walking degrees she is going to walk two more times - is this getting confusng?!) and she is passed the baton. This feels like massive change whose time has come and it started mid-May.

See Part I of my Venus retrograde post HERE.

Things can go to zero in a split second now, so be careful ....

At the same time a direct Vesta (home, hearth, what we are devoted to) is doing her own three-peat after a recent retrograde, getting back to her April 1st degree of 0 Capricorn. There is something here that is requiring our sobriety. This is us being accountable, doing the responsible thing - not letting those home fires burn out ....

xo

I wish I had time to write this by sign - but this is your Aquarius house and your Taurus house - fixed houses of your chart, so change is more challenging.

EXAMPLE for Virgo/Virgo Rising - Mars is three-peating through your 6th house of your day-to-day activities, your routine, work, co-workers, pets and your health. Something here is getting the lightning bolt. This is new, but not new and will relate back to mid-May and early August.